Spatial-Temporal Evolution of Scientific Production about Genetically Modified Maize

Maize is the grain cereal that is the basis of human and animal diets in Mexico and Latin America; it constitutes an essential crop for global food security. The objective of this study was to analyze the spatial–temporal evolution of scientific production on the theme of GMO maize, through a bibliometric analysis of the texts available in the main editorial houses (Elsevier, Scopus, and Springer), open access journal articles database (Conricyt, Scielo, Redalyc, Latindex, Claryvate Analytics, Periodica, and DOAJ), and freely accessible web search engine Google Scholar, to determine the factors that influence the impact of the studies. From 1991 to 2019, 917 texts were found whose spatial–temporal evolution showed a linear growth that concentrated in Latin America (58.56%). The low impact (measured by the number of bibliographic citations) of scientific studies developed in countries of Latin America was related to their publication in journals edited in their own countries and in Spanish, which restricts the constructive criticism of peer review. For the case of Mexico, a spatial discrepancy was also found between research centers and production areas, which limits the transference of technology; and no specialized author in theme of GMO maize was found; the researchers responded to “scientific trends” in agreement with the agrarian policies of the timeS

Genetic Diversity of Castanea sativa Mill. Accessions from the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines and Emilia Romagna Region (Italy)

This work investigated the genetic diversity of 134 Castanea sativa Mill. accessions present in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. Samples were taken from three collection fields (Granaglione, Zocca and Paloneta) in the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. The accessions were analyzed by using 16 microsatellite markers (SSR). Genetic distances among accessions, calculated through the DICE coefficient, were used to construct an UPGMA cluster analysis. One major genotype (named “Marroni”) was identified across the three investigated collection fields; this variety corresponds to a sweet chestnut cultivar that has been propagated and widely diffused in the Emilia-Romagna region. Other genotypes were represented by different varieties of Italian chestnuts. The results of this study will be used to define and share guidelines for the characterization and varietal certification of the chestnut varieties in the Emilia-Romagna regionField and laboratory work were developed as the contribution of the regional project PSR ‘BIODIVERSAMENTE CASTAGNO’ and of the National Academy of Agriculture (ANA), in particular for supporting the analyses on the Granaglione’s samples. The Parco Didattico Sperimentale del Castagno di Granaglione and the Collection of Zocca host the main varieties of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. Sara Alessandri’s fellowship was funded by the Agricultural, Environmental, and Food Science and Technology (STAAA) PhD program offered by the Department of Agriculture and Food Sciences (DISTAL, University of Bologna)S

Spatial Delimitation of Genetic Diversity of Native Maize and Its Relationship with Ethnic Groups in Mexico

Mexico, as a center of origin of maize, presents a high diversity of maize races. With the objective of spatially demarcating regions with high concentration of intraspecific diversity in Mexico, as a fundamental measure for the in situ conservation of their agrobiodiversity, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools have been used to generate diversity and richness indexes for 64 maize races cultivated in Mexico, using indexes to demarcate relationships to environmental factors such as temperature, precipitation, and altitude; the presence of indigenous groups; and the type of maize used. These relations allowed defining seven environmental units spatially, with characteristic maize races in each of them, which constitute priority areas for in situ conservation. In addition, a close relationship was found between the diversity of maize races and of ethnic groups, from the center to the south of the country, associated with the differences in maize use in different ethnic groups. This geographical demarcation of races and uses of maize will favor food security through specific measures of in situ conservation, as well as an increase in added value of maize by-products based on specific maize races conserved by local ethnic groupsS

Polarized light microscopy guarantees the use of autochthonous wheat in the production of flour for the Protected Geographical Indication ‘Galician Bread’

‘Galician Bread’ is a traditional baked product and a national benchmark that has recently been granted the European mark of Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), which requires at least 25% of the flour to be produced from autochthonous varieties such as ‘Caaveiro’. The objective of this work was to find a method that guarantees the presence and the percentage of ‘Caaveiro’ wheat in blended flours by using microscopy techniques. Using optical microscopy, including bright-field and polarizing microscopy, autochthonous and foreign flours were analyzed and compared. ‘Caaveiro’ starch presented a different birefringence pattern (associated with a higher amount of amylose) with respect to other cultivars used to produce flours, a feature used to make a computation of the two starch granule types in the mixtures of ‘Caaveiro’ with foreign flours. Repetitions with different mixture percentages allowed us to develop a mathematical model to estimate the percentage of ‘Caaveiro’ flour present in the mixture. Firstly, the most effective method for preparing samples was determined by ensuring the homogeneity of the samples and, subsequently, a validation was carried out with blind samples. Starch birefringence properties allowed the detection of ‘Caaveiro’ wheat flour in mixtures with foreign/Castilian wheat flours and to determine the percentages used in the flour mixtures applying a calibration line (R2 = 0.9577). Deviations were due to the difficulty in obtaining precise mixtures of the blended flours, as happened with other Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR)-based methods used in the same samples. This is a novel method for detecting contraventions/infractions of the percentage of ‘Caaveiro’ used in wheat flours, which is simple, effective and inexpensiveThis research was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, Proyectos de Generación de Conocimiento 2021-2023 (PID2021-123905OB-I00). We would like to thank Da Cunha Group for the samples and their support of the ‘Cátedra do Pan e do Cereal’. Nerea Fernández-Canto is grateful to Xunta de Galicia for her predoctoral research fellowship (ED481A-2019/263)S

Traceability of the local cultivar ‘Caaveiro’ in flour mixtures used to produce Galician bread by simple sequence repeats and droplet digital polymerase chain reaction technology

The analysis of simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and of bulk ground samples by droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) was investigated as an alternative to individual kernel testing for assessing the presence of local cultivars in common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) varietal blends. The recent Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) of ‘Pan Galego’ (Galician bread) requires that the flour comprise a minimum 25% local wheat cultivars. As a test for compliance with this minimum level, wheat flours were prepared by mixing commercial flours with 0%, 5%, 20%, 25% and 30% ‘Caaveiro’ and 100% ‘Caaveiro’ and 100% commercial flours were used as controls. A second analysis was performed with a second set of wheat flours with 5% and 25% ‘Caaveiro’. These were mixed with two different commercial flours to assess the potential ability of five SSRs to identify the percentage of ‘Caaveiro’, constituting the first reference of the use of SSRs in the traceability of specific autochthonous cultivars in flour blends. ddPCR using the QX200 system platform was used to the targeted proportions across the simulated range with two out of five SSRs, indicating that they can be used in the traceability of ‘Caaveiro’ in mixed flours and breadsS

Screening of Galician grapevine varieties by SNPs, phenotypic traits, and phytopathology

The genetic erosion of the European grapevine diversity in the last century has promoted the conservation of varieties in germplasm banks to prevent their disappearance. The study of these varieties is necessary as it would allow the diversification of the wine market, as well as provide a source of genes to face new pathogens or climate constraints. In this work, the grapevine varieties preserved in the “Estación de Viticultura e Enoloxía de Galicia” (EVEGA) Germplasm Bank (Ourense, Spain) were widely characterized, combining ampelography, ampelometry, agronomy, and phytopathology. Moreover, genetic characterization was carried out through the analysis of 48 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A Bayesian analysis based on the SNP data was carried out to define the genetic structure of the EVEGA Germplasm Bank, which allowed the differentiation of two main reconstructed panmictic populations (RPPs), confirming previous results obtained based on microsatellite markers (SSRs). A great diversity between varieties was found for almost every parameter evaluated for ampelography, ampelometry, phytopatology, phenology, and berry quality. A principal component analysis (PCA) performed with these phenotypical data allowed discrimination among some groups of varieties included in different genetic populations. This study allowed us to evaluate the grapevine diversity maintained in the EVEGA Germplasm Bank and characterize varieties of potential value for breeding programs of interest for the Galician viticulture

Genetic diversity of the Spanish apple genetic resources using SSRs

The Spanish Program of Plant Genetic Resources integrates, among others, the collections located at Public University of Navarre, Centro de Investigaciones Agrarias de Mabegondo, Cabildos (Tenerife, La Palma and Gran Canaria), University of Lleida, Estación Experimental de Aula Dei-CSIC and CITA of Aragon. Those collections include mainly local cultivars from their respective regions, covering most of the Spanish apple-growing areas. Though some previous studies about the genetic variability of apple genetics resources from Spain were already performed, a complete analysis is needed in order to evaluate the complete diversity of Malus spp. in Spain. For doing that, the Spanish Government funded the project ¿Harmonization of the methodology of characterization, assessment of genetic diversity and definition of the core collection of the apple germplasm conserved in Spanish genebanks¿. In total, we have evaluated 1206 accessions using standardized methodologies, with SSR markers and morphological descriptors. SSR fingerprinting was performed with 13 SSR markers. SSR profiles were obtained independently and allele sizes were compared using a common set of cultivars selected as references. Results showed 601 genotypes for 1206 accessions. Most of the genotypes (438) were identified only in one accession. The other 163 genotypes were repeated in two to 81 accessions (involving 767 accessions in total). The harmonization of morphological descriptors will allow us to determine if the accessions with the same genotype are synonymies or closely related individuals. Results of this study highlight the interest of coordinated actions in order to optimize the management of germplasm collections and to evaluate the complete genetic diversity of Malus spp. in Spain.Peer Reviewe

Foro de debate: seguridad de las alternativas a la transfusión alogénica en el paciente quirúrgico y/o crítico

Estos últimos años han aparecido alertas de seguridad, no siempre bien sustentadas, que cuestionan el uso de algunas alternativas farmacológicas a la transfusión de sangre alogénica y/o lo restringen en indicaciones establecidas. Asistimos también a la preconización de otras alternativas, incluyendo productos hemáticos y fármacos antifibrinolíticos, sin que haya una base científica sólida que lo justifique. Por iniciativa del Grupo de Estudios Multidisciplinares sobre Autotransfusión y del Anemia Working Group Espana¿ se reunió a un panel multidisciplinar de 23 expertos del área de cuidados de la salud en un foro de debate para: 1) analizar las diferentes alertas de seguridad en torno a ciertas alternativas a la transfusión; 2) estudiar los antecedentes que las han propiciado, la evidencia que las sustentan y las consecuencias que conllevan para la práctica clínica, y 3) emitir una valoración argumentada de la seguridad de cada alternativa a la transfusión cuestionada, según el uso clínico de la misma. Los integrantes del foro mantuvieron contactos por vía telemática y una reunión presencial en la que presentaron y discutieron las conclusiones sobre cada uno de los elementos examinados. Se elaboró un primer documento que fue sometido a 4 rondas de revisión y actualización hasta alcanzar un consenso, unánime en la mayoría de los casos. Presentamos la versión final del documento, aprobada por todos los miembros del panel, esperando sea de utilidad para nuestros colegas