Phytophthora oleae, a new root pathogen of wild olives

Wild olive (Olea europaea subsp. europaea var. sylvestris) is an important component of Mediterranean forests and a key genetic source for olive improvement programmes. Since 2009, a severe decline caused by Phytophthora cryptogea and P. megasperma has been detected in a protected wild olive forest of high ecological value (Dehesa de Abajo, Seville, Spain). In this natural forest, sampling of roots and soil was carried out on 25 wild olives with symptoms in 2014 and 2015. Apart from the already known P. cryptogea A1 and P. megasperma, a third Phytophthora species was consistently isolated from wild olive rootlets with symptoms. These isolates conformed morphologically with the newly described species P. oleae and were confirmed by analysis of their ITS regions and cox1 sequences. Temperature–growth relationships showed a maximum growth at 19.9 °C on carrot agar medium, making it the lowest temperature Phytophthora species infecting wild olive roots. Pathogenicity was confirmed on 1‐year‐old healthy wild olive seedlings and was similar to the previously known pathogenic phytophthoras. As temperature requirements are quite different, the three Phytophthora species may be active against wild olive roots in different seasons. However, the prevalence of P. oleae infecting wild olives in recent years could be due to its introduction as a new invasive pathogen. The probable invasive nature of P. oleae, together with increasing rain episodes concentrated in short periods frequent in southern Spain, would allow the outbreak of infections in wild olive forests, and also put cultivated olive orchards at risk

Family involvement in under 7s school football in La Rioja: interests, motivations, roles and family dynamics .

The under 7s football is a non-formal socio-educative scenario especially overcrowded. The adult environment puts efforts end illusions on school sport as an extracurricular activity for the child to promote their education. There are numerous proposals for trying to establish guidelines to family behavior. However, this study wants to understand the familiar illusions that encourage the participation in under 7s football of their children as primarily responsible for their education. In this way, the aim of the study is to investigate the family motivations for school football to revalue the confluences of its educational value. The research emerges from a Case Study design ethnographic mode that uses the questionnaire (N=134, 63 women and 71 men) to deepen of the perception of family members involved in school football: parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters. The results reaffirm the social function that the football has for the child and the adults that accompany them. Family involvement stands as an indispensable pillar for the sport activity. Thus, to optimize the educational potential is necessary to have the complicity of the family to reclaim the educational reference against the permeability of football business

Analysis of urban agriculture solid waste in the frame of circular economy: Case study of tomato crop in integrated rooftop greenhouse

Within urban agriculture (UA), integrated rooftop greenhouses (i-RTG) have great growth potential as they offer multiple benefits. Currently it is intended to improve environmental benefits by taking advantage of the water, nutrients and gases flows. On the other hand, solid waste (SW) generated by the UA is a new type of waste within cities that has not well been classified or quantified for its use. This could become a new problem for the waste management system within cities in the future, mainly the organic fraction. The objective of this research is to identify what type of i-RTG SW has the potential to be used from a circular economy (CE) perspective and propose a type of management for its material valorization. The results of the case study show that, of the SW generated in i-RTG, the biomass has the greatest potential to be used locally as an eco-material, particularly the tomato stems. Its use is proposed as a substrate for two experimental lettuce crops in i-RTG. The results show that tomato stems have a better yield as a substrate after a prewash treatment, since at first the values of electrical conductivity (EC) are very high with respect to the control substrate, which is expanded perlite. In conclusion, we can say that it is possible to increase the environmental benefits of i-RTG by taking advantage of its biomass locally, helping to foresee a possible future problem regarding the management of the residual biomass of i-RTG within cities. In this way, the paradigm about the perception of the SW of the UA could be changed to give them a by-product treatment from the beginning

El portafolio etnográfico: una herramienta facilitadora del aprendizaje a lo largo de la vida

ABSTRACTAs a consequence of an essay in educational innovation, fried out in our own educational experience, we outline our conceptualization of ethnographic–portfolio. It is a the process of personal tool which helps in the process of personal development to exert citizenship, as a way to over come the existential dilemma between systemic interests and the person’s self–determined development. Its high mediating potential is discussed to engage in a constructivist learning process, in terms of an achievement evaluation and a revision of projects. It generates significant dossiers with and for the Others. The interview is the essential component.RESUMENConsecuencia de un ensayo en innovación educativa, contrastado en la propia experiencia docente, presentamos nuestra concepción del portafolio etnográfico. Se trata de una herramienta que ayuda en el proceso personal de formación continuada para el ejercicio de la ciudadanía, como una forma de superar el dilema existencial entre los intereses sistémicos y el desarrollo autodeterminado de los individuos. Se analiza desde su alto potencial mediador para comprometer un aprendizaje constructivista, en términos de evaluación de logros y reorientación de proyectos. Genera dossieres significativos con y para los Otros, con la entrevista como elemento clave.ABSTRACTAs a consequence of an essay in educational innovation, fried out in our own educational experience, we outline our conceptualization of ethnographic–portfolio. It is a the process of personal tool which helps in the process of personal development to exert citizenship, as a way to over come the existential dilemma between systemic interests and the person’s self–determined development. Its high mediating potential is discussed to engage in a constructivist learning process, in terms of an achievement evaluation and a revision of projects. It generates significant dossiers with and for the Others. The interview is the essential component

A characterisation and evaluation of urban areas from an energy efficiency approach, using Geographic Information Systems in combination with Life Cycle Assessment methodology

The retrofitting of less energy efficient building stock represents one of the most significant challenges in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Nowadays, the housing sector represents about 40% of the energy consumption in the European Union. In this regard, the level of insulation installed in buildings is directly related to the energy efficiency of the building, and consequently to the urban area. In addition, several studies have shown that a comprehensive perspective of energy efficiency is needed, together with calculating the importance of introducing Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. The purpose of this study is to develop a methodology to: first, measure the energy efficiency level of specific urban areas and their buildings using a geospatial model in an integral perspective; and second, the environmental impact caused by the refurbishment of these building façades using a LCA method. On the one hand, according to a bottom-up framework the quantitative and qualitative characterisation of the building stock façade at the urban scale is possible generating a georeferenced spatial data model of buildings using Geographic Information Systems. On the other hand, the environmental impact of the most usual constructive solutions to refurbishment building façades is calculated using the LCA methodology. The results obtained are merged and interpolated to the urban scale. The methodology is tested for the case study of blocks of flats in Barcelona using the open data of building stock from the Spanish Government. Firstly, this methodology provides more information in regard to urban areas as well as calculating their energy efficiency. Secondly, the study measures the renovation impact of the less efficient buildings. Finally, the results provide the basis for supporting decisions on building stock retrofitting for urban scale from a new approach, especially making the selection between various renovation scenarios much clearer

Evaluation of cell culture in microfluidic chips for application in monoclonal antibody production

Microfluidic chips are useful devices for cell culture that allow cell growth under highly controlled conditions, as is required for production of therapeutic recombinant proteins. To understand the optimal conditions for growth of cells amenable of recombinant protein expression in these devices,we culturedHEK-293T cells under different microfluidic experimental conditions. The cells were cultured in polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and polydi-methylsiloxane (PDMS)microdevices, in the absence or presence of the cell adhesion agent poly-D-lysine. Different microchannel geometries and thicknesses, as well as the influence of the flow rate have also been tested, showing their great influence in cell adhesion and growth. Results show that the presence of poly-D-lysine improves the adhesion and viability of the cells in continuous or discontinuous flow. Moreover, the optimal adhesion of cells was observed in the corners of themicrochannels, as well as in wide channels possibly due to the decrease in the flow rate in these areas. These studies provide insight into the optimal architecture of microchannels for long-term culture of adherent cells in order to use microfluidics devices as bioreactors for monoclonal antibodies production.Fil: Peñaherrera Pazmiño, Ana Belén. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Payés, Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Sierra Rodero, Marina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Vega, M.. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; ArgentinaFil: Rosero, G.. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Lerner, Betiana. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Helguera, Gustavo Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Pérez, M. S.. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentin

The e-portfolio in higher education: The case of a line of teaching innovation and complex change management

This work proposes a line of innovation to implement possible uses for the e-portfolio in higher education. We present an initial framework for analysis with attention to three main arguments: the validity of the interest of the e-portfolio for higher education in light of the current challenges posed by the knowledge society; the relevance of complex change management within organisations such as universities; and the identification of critical elements in the relevant literature concerning experiences similar to the case analysed here. The milestones for the line of innovation include six projects and three teacher training courses. Once data had been gathered in the respective assessment phases for each milestone by means of document analysis techniques (e-portfolios, teaching materials, usage statistics), questionnaires, discussion groups, in-depth interviews, and self-assessments (responsible academics, teachers, and students), a global analysis of the whole line was conducted from a complex approach to the problems of teaching change and innovation. A technological, political and cultural reading of innovation reveals emerging problems to reconsider: the attainment of deep learning; the standardisation of academic tutoring; the formation of learning and practice communities; the reconceptualisation of the e-portfolio as a personal learning environment; and the transformation of the university institution as a learning organisation. The premature condition of higher education to deal with the change in the teaching paradigm and the urgency to revisit its innovation policies to overcome it stand out among the critical conclusions of this study.
 Received: 27 April 2021Accepted: 27 October 202

Isolation and pathogenicity of Phytophthora species and Phytopythium vexans recovered from avocado orchards in the Canary Islands, including Phytophthora niederhauserii as a new pathogen of avocado

Root rot, caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi, is the most important disease of avocado, but few studies have determined whether other Phytophthora or oomycete species are involved in crop decline. Avocado orchards in the Canary Islands were surveyed for the presence of Phytophthora and Phytophthora-like oomycetes. Isolates obtained were identified morphologically and by sequence analysis of their internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions, and their pathogenicity was tested by root and stem inoculation of avocado seedlings. Phytophthora species were isolated in 41 of 99 orchards sampled, and 10% of orchards were infected with more than one species. The species most frequently isolated was P. cinnamomi, which was detected in 26 orchards. In addition, P. multivora (ten orchards), P. niederhauserii (four orchards), P. nicotianae (four orchards), P. palmivora (one orchard) and Phytopythium vexans (20 orchards) were isolated. Phytophthora nicotianae and P. palmivora have been previously reported as pathogens of avocado, but P. niederhauserii, P. multivora and Pp. vexans are reported for the first time to be associated with this host. Phytophthora niederhauserii was the most virulent of these species. It was isolated from declining trees, and root rot severity was comparable to that caused by P. cinnamomi in two independent pathogenicity tests. In addition, P. niederhauserii caused cankers after stem inoculation. The pathogenicity results for P. multivora and Pp. vexans varied depending on isolates and pathogenicity tests. This study increases the knowledge of oomycetes associated with avocado, highlighting the potential threat posed by P. niederhauserii to this important fruit crop

¿Locos o malos? Una revisión del trastorno de personalidad antisocial o disocial.

Los profesionales han sido tradicionalmente pesimistas en las posibilidades terapéuticas de pacientes con personalidad antisocial. Algunos autores incluso critican la inclusión de la entidad dentro de los trastornos mentales. El artículo revisa todos estos aspectos, así como otras áreas, tales como su comorbilidad, epidemiología, etiología, pronóstico y prevención

¿Locos o malos? Una revisión del trastorno de personalidad antisocial o disocial.

Los profesionales han sido tradicionalmente pesimistas en las posibilidades terapéuticas de pacientes con personalidad antisocial. Algunos autores incluso critican la inclusión de la entidad dentro de los trastornos mentales. El artículo revisa todos estos aspectos, así como otras áreas, tales como su comorbilidad, epidemiología, etiología, pronóstico y prevención