Exposure to Mixtures of Pollutants in Mexican Children from Marginalized Urban Areas

Background: Exposure to contaminant mixtures in developing countries is an important public health issue. Children are identified as the most susceptible group to adverse health effects due to the exposure. Objective: The aim of this study was to conduct a screening for mixture pollutants in Mexican children in urban marginalized communities. Methods: We analyzed children (aged 6–12 years old) who resided in four urban marginalized communities in San Luis Potosi, Mexico: i) Bellas Lomas (BEL), a site with vehicular traffic; ii) Tercera Chica (TC), a site with brick kilns; Iii) Rincon de San Jose (SJR), a site with a hazardous waste landfill; and (iv) Morales (MOR) a metallurgical zone with copper-arsenic and electrolytic zinc smelters. Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP)), benzene (trans, trans-muconic acid (t,t-MA), manganese, arsenic and fluoride were quantified in urine and lead in blood samples. Findings: Our results indicate that median exposures to manganese were 4.4, 5.2, 5.8 and 6.3 μg/L for BEL, TC, SJR and MOR, respectively. For BEL, fluoride was present at a higher concentration with 2.3 mg/L followed by MOR, TC and SJR with 1.7, 1.5 and 1.2 mg/L respectively. The highest concentrations of arsenic that were found were 11 μg/L in MOR and lead concentration was reported between 4.2 and 6.8 μg/dL, in BEL, TC and MOR. 1-OHP and t,t-MA were higher in TC (0.23 μmol/mol creatinine (cr), 429.7 μg/g cr, respectively) followed by SJR (0.09 μmol/mol cr, 427.4 μg/g cr), MOR (0.03 μmol/mol cr, 258.6 μg/g cr) and BEL (0.06 μmol/mol cr, 220.6 μg/g cr). Conclusion: Considering the large number of people, especially children, exposed to multiple pollutants, it is important to design effective intervention programs that reduce exposure and the resultant risk in the numerous urban marginalized communities in Mexico

Programas de ciencias ambientales y salud. Un nuevo profesional de salud para los nuevos escenarios de riesgo y vulnerabilidad

En la actualidad es cada vez más necesario ubicar a la salud como un derecho humano ligado al desarrollo, esto requiere de la atención de múltiples factores, por lo cual ha dejado de ser una entidad exclusiva de la medicina.Para construir salud deben atenderse los factores que se relacionan con el origen de la enfermedad y los que afectan el bienestar de la población. Su estudio debe analizarse desde una perspectiva que incluya el panorama de los nuevos escenarios de riesgos (sitios contaminados y ocupaciones precarias) en un contexto de vulnerabilidad (pobreza, marginación, violencia, seguridad social, entre otros) para la salud humana y el ambiente. En consecuencia, se requiere proponer un nuevo profesional de salud que analice desde una visión transdisciplinaria los nuevos escenarios de riesgo, que atienda todas las amenazas, sociales, químicas, físicas, biológicas y ecológicas; y además, pueda plantear esquemas de innovación social para prevenir y atender el deterioro del bienestar y la construcción de la salud. Por ello, hemos generado un programa de ciencias ambientales y salud donde el objetivo es desarrollar un profesional con una nueva perspectiva que posicione a la salud como un fuerte elemento transformador para el cambio, un motor del desarrollo social, un eje de cohesión social y no solamente como la ausencia de afecciones o enfermedades.</p

Programas de ciências ambientais e saúde. Um novo profissional de saúde para os novos cenários de risco e vulnerabilidade

Today it is becoming increasingly necessary to consider health a human right linked to development. In order to do so, multiple factors need to be taken into account. Hence, health will no longer be the exclusive purview of medicine.To build health, factors related to the origin of diseases and those affecting the well-being of the population must be taken into consideration. They should be analyzed from a perspective that covers the plethora of new risk scenarios (polluted sites and precarious jobs) in a context of vulnerability (poverty, marginalization, violence, social security, among others), both for human health and the environment.Consequently, a new health professional that is capable of analyzing the new risk scenarios from a transdisciplinary point of view, of dealing with all social, chemical, physical, biological and ecological threats and, in addition, of devising social innovation schemes for preventing and tackling the deterioration of well-being and the construction of health is needed.Therefore, we have created a health and environmental science program to train professionals that have a new perspective which deems health a strong transforming element for change, a driver of social development and an axis of social cohesion—not just the absence of diseases or illnesses.En la actualidad es cada vez más necesario ubicar a la salud como un derecho humano ligado al desarrollo, esto requiere de la atención de múltiples factores, por lo cual ha dejado de ser una entidad exclusiva de la medicina.Para construir salud deben atenderse los factores que se relacionan con el origen de la enfermedad y los que afectan el bienestar de la población. Su estudio debe analizarse desde una perspectiva que incluya el panorama de los nuevos escenarios de riesgos (sitios contaminados y ocupaciones precarias) en un contexto de vulnerabilidad (pobreza, marginación, violencia, seguridad social, entre otros) para la salud humana y el ambiente. En consecuencia, se requiere proponer un nuevo profesional de salud que analice desde una visión transdisciplinaria los nuevos escenarios de riesgo, que atienda todas las amenazas, sociales, químicas, físicas, biológicas y ecológicas; y además, pueda plantear esquemas de innovación social para prevenir y atender el deterioro del bienestar y la construcción de la salud. Por ello, hemos generado un programa de ciencias ambientales y salud donde el objetivo es desarrollar un profesional con una nueva perspectiva que posicione a la salud como un fuerte elemento transformador para el cambio, un motor del desarrollo social, un eje de cohesión social y no solamente como la ausencia de afecciones o enfermedades.Atualmente é cada vez mais necessário considerar a saúde como um direito humano associado a o desenvolvimento, o que requera atenção sobre múltiplos fatores, razão pela qual deixou de ser um objeto exclusivo da medicina.Para gerar saúde devem ser abordados quer os fatores que se relacionam com a origem da doença quer os que afetam o bem-estar da população. O seu estudo deve efetuar-se a partir de uma perspetiva que inclua o panorama dos novos cenários de risco (locais contaminados e más condições de habitabilidade) num contexto de vulnerabilidade (pobreza, marginalização, violência, segurança social, entre outros) para a saúde humana e o ambiente.Nessa sequência, é necessário proporum novo profissional de saúde que analise a partir de uma visão transdisciplinar os novos cenários de risco, que responda a todas as ameaças, sociais, químicas, físicas, biológicas e ecológicas; e que, além disso, possa apresentar esquemas de inovação social para prevenira deterioração do bem- estar e abordar a construção da saúde. Por este motivo, desenvolvemos um programa de ciências ambientais e saúde cujo objetivo é desenvolver um profissional comum a nova perspetiva que posicione a saúde como um forte elemento transformador para a mudança, um motor para o desenvolvimento social, um eixo de coesão social e não apenas como a ausência de doenças ou lesões

Histopatología, fisiología y calidad postcosecha de frutos de aguacate (Persea americana Mill.) cv. 'Hass' infectados con el avocado sunblotch viroid (ASBVd) y diagnóstico de la enfermedad.

Frutos de aguacate (Persea americana Mill) cv. ‘Hass’ se cosecharon de árboles infectados con el Avocado sunblotch viroid (ASBVd) en Tingambato, Michoacán, considerando tres condiciones fenotípicas: árboles asintomáticos vigorosos (A), árboles de vigor regular (AR) y árboles con síntomas en frutos (S). Se determinó la presencia del ASBVd mediante RT-PCR e hibridación Northern con ribosondas complementarias al viroide. La presencia del ASBVd se detectó en el exocarpio y mesocarpio de frutos de aguacate “Hass” sintomáticos y asintomáticos y en los tejidos de la semilla (cubierta seminal, cotiledones y eje embrionario) de frutos sintomáticos. Es posible que los síntomas macroscópicos causados por el ASBVd en frutos hayan sido el resultado de cambios anatómicos en la conformación y estructura de las células del exocarpio y mesocarpio, caracterizados principalmente por una marcada desorganización celular, acumulación de polifenoles intercelulares y en las paredes celulares, reducción del contenido citoplásmico y desarrollo de colapso y muerte celular. Los tejidos sintomáticos manifestaron una reducción del 27-35 % en el contenido de clorofila (a y b) y aumento del 33-38 % de compuestos fenólicos. Hubo taponamiento de los elementos de vaso del tejido vascular. La desorganización y colapso celular conducen al hundimiento y formación de grietas en frutos sintomáticos; la reducción del contenido de clorofila y aumento de compuestos fenólicos posiblemente expliquen el desarrollo de coloraciones amarillas o rojizas en el exocarpio. Los frutos asintomáticos no mostraron ningún cambio anatómico a pesar de la presencia del ASBVd. También se analizaron la producción de dióxido de carbono, etileno y patrón de maduración, las variables físicas de calidad (firmeza, pérdida de peso, materia seca y tamaño de fruto) y la composición bromatológica (contenido de aceite, proteínas, azucares, fibra cruda, cenizas y contenido energético) de frutos asintomáticos (A y AR) y sintomáticos (S). Los frutos asintomáticos (A y AR) maduraron de manera uniforme, pero los sintomáticos (S) presentaron maduración irregular, asociada a la menor actividad respiratoria y producción de etileno, generándose pérdidas de 46.6 % debido a senescencia y falta de maduración diez días después de la cosecha. No hubo diferencias significativas (p≤0.05) en la velocidad de pérdida de peso y firmeza entre los frutos asintomáticos (A) y sintomáticos (S), pero los últimos fueron 8-10 % de menor tamaño. Los frutos (A, AR y S) no mostraron diferencias significativas (p≤0.05) en el contenido de proteínas, azúcares, fibra cruda ni cenizas; sin embargo, los frutos sintomáticos y asintomáticos cosechados de árboles de vigor regular, presentaron menor contenido de materia seca (23.5-23.9 %) y aceite (12.7-13.5 g/100g) que causó decremento en 28-32 % del aporte calórico, respecto a frutos asintomáticos cosechados de árboles vigorosos con 19.2 g/100g de aceite y 26.1 % de materia seca. Es importante señalar que todos los frutos analizados (A, AR y S) superaron los valores mínimos de materia seca y aceite necesarios para su cosecha y consumo en fresco. Finalmente, se realizaron muestreos en campo de árboles de aguacate Mexicano procedentes del Estado de México y Puebla y árboles cv. ‘Hass’ en Tingambato, Michoacán. Los árboles de raza mexicana mostraron ser libres del ASBVd en las diferentes zonas de colecta. En aguacate ‘Hass’ se determinó una incidencia del 8 % por hibridación y 11 % por RT-PCR que correspondieron a los árboles que manifestaron síntomas de la enfermedad en huerto, pero la RT-PCR mostró mayor sensibilidad al detectar un árbol asintomático infectado con el viroide. Los materiales negativos al ASBVd pueden ser utilizados como fuente de semilla para la obtención de portainjertos o como fuente de vareta durante la propagación de plantas. _______________ ABSTRACT: Fruits of avocado (Persea Americana Mill) cv. ‘Hass’ were harvested in Tingambato, Michoacán from trees infected with the Avocado sunblotch viroid (ASBVd) taking into account three phenotypic conditions: asymptomatic vigorous trees (A), trees of regular vigor (AR) and viroid symptoms in fruits (S). Symptomatic (S) and asymptomatic fruits (A, AR) were analyzed by RT-PCR and dot-blot hybridization with complementary riboprobes for ASBVd detection. The presence of the ASBVd was detected in the exocarp and mesocarp of symptomatic and asymptomatic “Hass” avocado fruit sand in seed tissues (seed coat, cotyledon and embryo) from symptomatic fruits. It is possible than the macroscopic symptoms caused by the ASBVd in fruits were the result of anatomical changes in the composition and structure of the exocarp and mesocarp cells, which are typified by a marked cellular disorganization, accumulation of phenolic compounds in the cytoplasm and cell walls, reduction of cytoplasmic content and development of cell collapse and death. Symptomatic tissues showed a reduction of 27-35 % of chlorophyll content (a and b) and an increment of 33-38% in phenolic compounds. Conducting tissues showed obstruction of xylem elements. Disorganization and cell collapse leads to grooves formation in symptomatic fruits and the reduction of chlorophyll content and increase of phenolic compounds probably leads to the development of yellow or red symptoms on rind. Asymptomatic fruits did not show any anatomical change despite the presence of the ASBVd. Ethylene and carbon dioxide production rates, physical quality variables [pulp firmness, weight loss (%), dry matter and fruit size] and bromatological composition (oil, proteins, sugars, crude fiber, ashes and energetic contents) were also evaluated. The asymptomatic fruits (A y AR) showed normal maturation, but it was irregular in the symptomatic (S) ones due to reduction in the rate of ethylene and carbon dioxide production, which caused fruit losses of 46.6 % due to senescence and lack of maturity in fruits 10 days after harvest. There were no differences (p≤0.05) in the rate of weight loss (%) and pulp firmness among the asymptomatic (A) and symptomatic (S) fruits, but the symptomatic ones showed 8-10 % less fruit size. Fruits (A, AR y S) did not show differences (p≤0.05) in proteins, sugars, crude fiber nor ash content, but symptomatic and asymptomatic fruits harvested from trees of regular vigor presented less dry matter (23.5-23.9 %) and oil (12.7-13.5 g/100g) content, which decreased the caloric contribution in 28-32 %, compared to asymptomatic fruits harvested from vigorous trees, which presented 26.1 % of dry matter and 19.2 g/100g of oil. It is important to point it out that all fruits analyzed (A, AR y S) reached the minimum dry matter and oil content demanded for harvest and to develop good quality for consumption in fresh. Finally, samples of Mexican avocado trees were taken in the field from orchard from the State of Mexico and Puebla and trees cv. 'Hass' from Tingambato, Michoacán. The trees of Mexican races showed to be free of ASBVd from the different areas of collection. The incidence determined in 'Hass' avocado by hybridization was 8 % and 11 % by RT-PCR, which corresponded to trees expressing symptoms of the disease in the orchard, but the RT-PCR showed greater sensitivity by detecting an asymptomatic tree infected with the viroid. Negative materials to the ASBVd can be used as source of seed for obtaining rootstocks or scion, during propagation of plants.Tesis (Doctorado en Ciencias, especialista en Fitopatología).- Colegio de Postgraduados, 2011.Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT)

Geographic Object-Based Analysis of Airborne Multispectral Images for Health Assessment of Capsicum annuum L. Crops

Vegetation health assessment by using airborne multispectral images throughout crop production cycles, among other precision agriculture technologies, is an important tool for modern agriculture practices. However, to really take advantage of crop fields imagery, specialized analysis techniques are needed. In this paper we present a geographic object-based image analysis (GEOBIA) approach to examine a set of very high resolution (VHR) multispectral images obtained by the use of small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), to evaluate plant health states and to generate cropland maps for Capsicum annuum L. The scheme described here integrates machine learning methods with semi-automated training and validation, which allowed us to develop an algorithmic sequence for the evaluation of plant health conditions at individual sowing point clusters over an entire parcel. The features selected at the classification stages are based on phenotypic traits of plants with different health levels. Determination of areas without data dependencies for the algorithms employed allowed us to execute some of the calculations as parallel processes. Comparison with the standard normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and biological analyses were also performed. The classification obtained showed a precision level of about 95 % in discerning between vegetation and non-vegetation objects, and clustering efficiency ranging from 79 % to 89 % for the evaluation of different vegetation health categories, which makes our approach suitable for being incorporated at C. annuum crop&rsquo;s production systems, as well as to other similar crops. This methodology can be reproduced and adjusted as an on-the-go solution to get a georeferenced plant health estimation

Automated Health Estimation of <i>Capsicum annuum</i> L. Crops by Means of Deep Learning and RGB Aerial Images

Recently, the use of small UAVs for monitoring agricultural land areas has been increasingly used by agricultural producers in order to improve crop yields. However, correctly interpreting the collected imagery data is still a challenging task. In this study, an automated pipeline for monitoring C. Annuum crops based on a deep learning model is implemented. The system is capable of performing inferences on the health status of individual plants, and to determine their locations and shapes in a georeferenced orthomosaic. Accuracy achieved on the classification task was 94.5. AP values among classes were in the range of [63,100] for plant location boxes, and in [40,80] for foliar area predictions. The methodology requires only RGB images, and so, it can be replicated for the monitoring of other types of crops by only employing consumer-grade UAVs. A comparison with random forest and large-scale mean shift segmentation methods which use predetermined features is presented. NDVI results obtained with multispectral equipment are also included

Bacterial wilt and canker of tomato: fundamentals of a complex biological system

"Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is well-known as a model for study of plant–pathogen interactions, since it is a crop of global relevance and susceptible to multiple bacterial, fungal, viral and nematode pathogens. Among bacterial phytopathogens, the actinomycete Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (Cmm) is the causal agent of bacterial wilt and canker of tomato, considered a quarantine disease at international level. The tomato–Cmm interaction has been studied to decipher the pathogenicity mechanisms in Cmm, susceptibility mechanisms in tomato, molecular basis of resistance to Cmm in wild species relative to domesticated tomato, and the level of genetic variability in Cmm. The objective of this review is to discuss recent advances in tomato–Cmm compatible interaction, which can be integrated for application in early diagnosis and biological control of bacterial wilt and canker of tomato. Further study of plant–microorganism interactions is a promising field for improvements in tomato pathogen resistance.

Uso pedagógico de la Serie HIT para la formación del profesorado de secundaria. Debate sobre una experiencia en tiempos de pandemia

En situación de pandemia por Covid -19 y ante la posibilidad del cierre de los centros educativos y aprovechando la emisión de la serie HIT en TVE 1 y el posterior debate, se realizó esta interesante actividad para trabajar competencias de los alumnos del Máster Universitario en Profesorado de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria y Bachillerato, Formación Profesional y Enseñanza de Idiomas ( MAES) en la asignatura de Sociedad Familia y Educació

Raman Spectroscopy and Machine-Learning for Early Detection of Bacterial Canker of Tomato: The Asymptomatic Disease Condition

Bacterial canker of tomato is caused by Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (Cmm). The disease is highly destructive, because it produces latent asymptomatic infections that favor contagion rates. The present research aims consisted on the implementation of Raman spectroscopy (RS) and machine-learning spectral analysis as a method for the early disease detection. Raman spectra were obtained from infected asymptomatic tomato plants (BCTo) and healthy controls (HTo) with 785 nm excitation laser micro-Raman spectrometer. Spectral data were normalized and processed by principal component analysis (PCA), then the classifiers algorithms multilayer perceptron (PCA + MLP) and linear discriminant analysis (PCA + LDA) were implemented. Bacterial isolation and identification (16S rRNA gene sequencing) were realized of each plant studied. The Raman spectra obtained from tomato leaf samples of HTo and BCTo exhibited peaks associated to cellular components, and the most prominent vibrational bands were assigned to carbohydrates, carotenoids, chlorophyll, and phenolic compounds. Biochemical changes were also detectable in the Raman spectral patterns. Raman bands associated with triterpenoids and flavonoids compounds can be considered as indicators of Cmm infection during the asymptomatic stage. RS is an efficient, fast and reliable technology to differentiate the tomato health condition (BCTo or HTo). The analytical method showed high performance values of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy, among others

Un caso de hemangioma congénito localizado en la extremidad inferior izquierda y revisión

Vascular anomalies are common in childhood.They generally affect skin and are evident at birth or in the first weeks of life.Two main groups can be established: vascular malformations strictly speaking and hemangiomas. It is exposed a congenitalhemangioma case, located in the left lower limb, which has not undergone any involution after several months, being able topersist throughout life. Main clinical features of these disorders are also reviewed.Las anomalías vasculares congénitas son frecuentes en la infancia.Afectan generalmente a la piel y son evidentes enel momento del nacimiento o en las primeras semanas de vida. Se dividen en dos grandes grupos: las malformacio-nes vasculares propiamente dichas y los hemangiomas. Presentamos un caso de hemangioma congénito localizadoen la extremidad inferior izquierda, que al cabo de varios meses no muestra ningún signo de involución pudiendopersistir toda la vida, y se revisan las principales características clínicas de estas afecciones