Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griffon & Maul [(sin.) Botryodiplodia theobromae Pat] en el cultivo de cacao: síntomas, ciclo biológico y estrategias de manejo

Throughout history, the cocoa crop (Theobroma cacao L.) has been affected by countless diseases, some of these caused by Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griffon & Maul. Although three Lasiodiplodia species have been reported affecting cocoa plants, L. theobromae is the most studied species both in cocoa and other crops. In recent years this phytopathogen has been gaining importance. In cocoa, L. theobromae can survive in soil and culture remains in the form of pycnidia and chlamydospores, spreading by different factors until reaching the plant tissues, remaining there as an endophyte. The pathogenic fungus can cause young twigs death (a characteristic symptom found in field conditions), fruits rot and mummification, and even vascular dieback. In general, the management of pathogens of the Botryosphaeriaceae family is complex, even more so when the pathogen is already present in the crop area. However, there are genetic, cultural, biological, chemical control measures, among others, that could be integrated and used in cocoa crops. As there is little information about L. theobromae in cocoa crops, we believe that this review will be very helpful for both technicians and researchers.A lo largo de la historia, el cultivo del cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) se ha visto afectado por innumerables enfermedades, algunas de estas causadas por Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griffon & Maul. Aunque han sido reportadas tres especies de Lasiodiplodia afectando plantas de cacao, L. theobromae es la especie más estudiada tanto en cacao como en otros cultivos. En los últimos años este fitopatógeno ha venido tomando importancia. En cacao, L. theobromae puede sobrevivir en el suelo y restos de cultivo en forma de picnidios y clamidósporas, diseminándose por diferentes factores hasta alcanzar los tejidos vegetales, permaneciendo ahí como endófito. El hongo patogénico puede causar muerte de ramillas jóvenes (síntoma característico encontrado en campo), pudrición y momificación de frutos, e incluso muerte regresiva. De manera general, el manejo de patógenos de la familia Botryosphaeriaceae es complejo, más aún cuando el patógeno ya está presente en el local de cultivo. Sin embargo, existen medidas de control genético, cultural, biológico, químico, entre otras, que podrían ser integradas y usadas en el cultivo de cacao. Al existir poca información sobre L. theobromae en el cultivo de cacao, creemos que está revisión será de mucha ayuda tanto para técnicos como para investigadores

A Recombinant Protein Based on Trypanosoma cruzi P21 Enhances Phagocytosis

Background: P21 is a secreted protein expressed in all developmental stages of Trypanosoma cruzi. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the recombinant protein based on P21 (P21-His(6)) on inflammatory macrophages during phagocytosis. Findings: Our results showed that P21-His(6) acts as a phagocytosis inducer by binding to CXCR4 chemokine receptor and activating actin polymerization in a way dependent on the PI3-kinase signaling pathway. Conclusions: Thus, our results shed light on the notion that native P21 is a component related to T. cruzi evasion from the immune response and that CXCR4 may be involved in phagocytosis. P21-His(6) represents an important experimental control tool to study phagocytosis signaling pathways of different intracellular parasites and particles.Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais [APQ-00621-11]Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas GeraisFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao PauloFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao PauloCoordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior [23038005295/2011-40]Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel SuperiorConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e TecnologicoConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologic

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio