Trichoderma spp. isolates with potential of phosphate solubilization and growth promotion in cherry tomato

Trichoderma fungi are considered relevant plant growth promoters for increasing the efficiency in the use of nutrients, as well as acting as biological control agents. This study aimed to select Trichoderma spp. isolates with potential for phosphate solubilization and their application as growth promoters in interaction with homeophatic preparations, in cherry tomato. Among 16 Trichoderma spp. isolates obtained from soils of organic tomato growing areas tested in vitro, together with a commercial product (Trichodermil®), two of them showed the ability for indole-3-acetic acid production and phosphate solubilization. The Trichoderma “R” had the highest mycelial growth speed index and presented twice as much spores than the commercial product. An in vivo experiment was also conducted in a greenhouse, in order to observe the potential of Trichoderma spp. isolates and homeophatic preparations on the cherry tomato growth promotion, using a randomized block experimental design, in a 4 x 3 factorial arrangement, with three Trichoderma isolates and two homeopathic preparations (Phosphorus 6CH and Carbo vegetabilis 6CH) + treatment without homeopathic preparation. The leaf area and dry mass of leaves and roots were determined. It was possible to observe that the isolate “R”, identified as Trichoderma asperellum, was effective in the cherry tomato growth promotion, while the homeopathic preparations applied did not show any effect

Projeto de extensão natação na escola: implicações do período pandêmico / School swimming extension project: implications of the pandemic period

Objetivo: Este estudo teve por objetivo analisar os impactos das ações pedagógicas desenvolvidas por meio virtual durante o período de lockdown. Materiais e Métodos: Para esta pesquisa foi utilizado como modelo de investigação o método transversal. Participaram 136 indivíduos, sendo 73 pais/responsáveis, e 63 escolares. Como instrumento de pesquisa, foram utilizados dois questionários: um foi entregue para os pais/responsáveis e o outro aos escolares. Cada instrumento foi composto por nove perguntas fechadas, utilizando a Escala de Likert para classificação das respostas. Para organização da análise dos resultados, as questões foram organizadas em três categorias: “Atividades Práticas”, “Atividades Teóricas'' e “Compreensão Específica”. Os dados foram analisados através da estatística descritiva (apresentados em números absolutos, e percentuais), com tabulação e plotagem no programa Microsoft Excel® for Windows®10. Resultados: Ao analisarmos os resultados referente a  categoria “Atividades Práticas”, foi possível observar nos dois grupos (pais/responsáveis e escolares) a concordância e a relevância em se manter ativo no período de lockdown. No domínio “Atividades Teóricas”, os resultados evidenciados nos dois grupos demonstraram que as tarefas virtuais teóricas recomendadas influenciaram de forma positiva na ampliação dos conhecimentos dos escolares a respeito da modalidade e manutenção de hábitos saudáveis. Em relação a categoria “Compreensão Específica”, os grupos apresentaram a predominância de respostas  equivalentes, demonstrando  o entendimento da importância das atividades virtuais durante o período de lockdown. Conclusão: Diante das evidências encontradas neste estudo, foi possível constatar  pelos pais/responsáveis e escolares, o predomínio da aprovação das ações pedagógicas desenvolvidas por meio virtual  durante o período de lockdown do projeto de extensão Natesc

Italian Guidelines in diagnosis and treatment of alopecia areata

Alopecia areata (AA) is an organ-specific autoimmune disorder that targets anagen phase hair follicles. The course is unpredictable and current available treatments have variable efficacy. Nowadays, there is relatively little evidence on treatment of AA from well-designed clinical trials. Moreover, none of the treatments or devices commonly used to treat AA are specifically approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The Italian Study Group for Cutaneous Annexial Disease of the Italian Society of dermatology proposes these Italian guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of Alopecia Areata deeming useful for the daily management of the disease. This article summarizes evidence-based treatment associated with expert-based recommendations

Potential of yeasts as biocontrol agents of the phytopathogen causing cacao Witches' Broom Disease: Is microbial warfare a solution?

Plant diseases caused by fungal pathogens are responsible for major crop losses worldwide, with a significant socio-economic impact on the life of millions of people who depend on agriculture-exclusive economy. This is the case of the Witches' Broom Disease (WBD) affecting cacao plant and fruit in South and Central America. The severity and extent of this disease is prospected to impact the growing global chocolate market in a few decades. WBD is caused by the basidiomycete fungus Moniliophthora perniciosa. The methods used to contain the fungus mainly rely on chemical fungicides, such as copper-based compounds or azoles. Not only are these highly ineffective, but also their utilization is increasingly restricted by the cacao industry, in part because it promotes fungal resistance, in part related to consumers' health concerns and environmental awareness. Therefore, the disease is being currently tentatively controlled through phytosanitary pruning, although the full removal of infected plant material is impossible and the fungus maintains persistent inoculum in the soil, or using an endophytic fungal parasite of Moniliophthora perniciosa which production is not sustainable. The growth of Moniliophthora perniciosa was reported as being antagonized in vitro by some yeasts, which suggests that they could be used as biological control agents, suppressing the fungus multiplication and containing its spread. Concurrently, some yeast-based products are used in the protection of fruits from postharvest fungal spoilage, and the extension of diverse food products shelf-life. These successful applications suggest that yeasts can be regarded a serious alternative also in the pre-harvest management of WBD and other fungal plant diseases. Yeasts' GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) nature adds to their appropriateness for field application, not raising major ecological concerns as do the present more aggressive approaches. Importantly, mitigating WBD, in a sustainable manner, would predictably have a high socioeconomic impact, contributing to diminish poverty in the cacao-producing rural communities severely affected by the disease. This review discusses the importance/advantages and the challenges that such a strategy would have for WBD containment, and presents the available information on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying fungi antagonism by yeasts.This work was supported by the strategic programme UID/BIA/04050/2013 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007569) funded by national funds through the FCT I.P. and by the ERDF through the COMPETE2020 - Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI), and the project EcoAgriFood (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000009), supported by the Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020) under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). PF is a Ph.D. student of the Doctoral Programme in Applied and Environmental Microbiology (DP_AEM) and FCT grantee PD/BD/113810/2015

Contributions and complexities from the use of in-vivo animal models to improve understanding of human neuroimaging signals.

Many of the major advances in our understanding of how functional brain imaging signals relate to neuronal activity over the previous two decades have arisen from physiological research studies involving experimental animal models. This approach has been successful partly because it provides opportunities to measure both the hemodynamic changes that underpin many human functional brain imaging techniques and the neuronal activity about which we wish to make inferences. Although research into the coupling of neuronal and hemodynamic responses using animal models has provided a general validation of the correspondence of neuroimaging signals to specific types of neuronal activity, it is also highlighting the key complexities and uncertainties in estimating neural signals from hemodynamic markers. This review will detail how research in animal models is contributing to our rapidly evolving understanding of what human neuroimaging techniques tell us about neuronal activity. It will highlight emerging issues in the interpretation of neuroimaging data that arise from in-vivo research studies, for example spatial and temporal constraints to neuroimaging signal interpretation, or the effects of disease and modulatory neurotransmitters upon neurovascular coupling. We will also give critical consideration to the limitations and possible complexities of translating data acquired in the typical animals models used in this area to the arena of human fMRI. These include the commonplace use of anaesthesia in animal research studies and the fact that many neuropsychological questions that are being actively explored in humans have limited homologues within current animal models for neuroimaging research. Finally we will highlighting approaches, both in experimental animals models (e.g. imaging in conscious, behaving animals) and human studies (e.g. combined fMRI-EEG), that mitigate against these challenges

Estado general y recomendaciones para el manejo de cultivos y pasturas en el norte BA

El norte de la provincia de Buenos Aires atraviesa, como otras regiones del país, una situación extrema en relación con el déficit de precipitaciones, registrándose en algunos casos como el de Pergamino, uno de los menores registros histórico para el período junio a octubre desde el año 1910. Esta situación excepcional afecta tanto a los cultivos invernales como a las pasturas. En función de los informes que cada mesa local de emergencia ha requerido a las Agencias de Extensión Rural, compilamos la información generada a fin de brindar un panorama general del área de influencia de la Estación Experimental Agropecuaria INTA Pergamino. En el presente material se incorporan recomendaciones para manejo de cultivos y pasturas en un escenario complejo para la producción agropecuaria desde la perspectiva climática. Si bien el pronóstico indica una continuidad de efecto “Niña” hasta, al menos, fines de diciembre, en los últimos días de octubre han ocurrido precipitaciones de mayor significancia hacia el sur de la región analizada que seguramente tendrán incidencia en el desarrollo de las pasturas y las condiciones de siembras de los cultivos de soja y maíz, que será abordado en posteriores informes. El trabajo incluye el aporte de técnicos de los Grupos de Sistemas de Información Geográfica, Manejo de Cultivos y Bovinos, junto las Agencias de Extensión Rural de la Estación Experimental Agropecuaria de INTA Pergamino, así como el relevamiento del estado general de cultivos facilitado por el Centro Regional Buenos Aires Norte.EEA PergaminoFil: Casartelli, Miguel Ángel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia De Extensión Rural Lobos; ArgentinaFil: Contreras, Cecilia Inés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Arrecifes; ArgentinaFil: Couretot, Lucrecia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Fitopatología; ArgentinaFil: Fernández, Facundo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Chacabuco; ArgentinaFil: Jecke, Fernando Ariel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Antonio de Areco; ArgentinaFil: Lisa, Juan Carlos. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Rojas; ArgentinaFil: Llovet, José Andrés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agronomía; ArgentinaFil: Magri, Laura Inés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Arrecifes; ArgentinaFil: Marino, Magdalena Rosa. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Coronel Brandsen; ArgentinaFil: Martín, Antonio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Chivilcoy; ArgentinaFil: Mattera, Juan. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Forrajeras; ArgentinaFil: Melilli, María Paula. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Junín; ArgentinaFil: Melión, David. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Bragado; ArgentinaFil: Mousegne, Fernando. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Antonio de Areco; ArgentinaFil: Portillo, Javier. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Sección Sistema de Información Geográfica (SIG); ArgentinaFil: Sabio, Milton Nelson. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Lobos; ArgentinaFil: Serrano, Pedro Miguel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Coronel Brandsen; ArgentinaFil: Signorelli, Alejandro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Junín; ArgentinaFil: Sticconi, María Eugenia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Desarrollo Rural; ArgentinaFil: Tellería, María Guadalupe. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Junín; ArgentinaFil: Terrile, Ignacio Ismael. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Departamento Trigo; ArgentinaFil: Zanettini, Jorge Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural 25 de Mayo; ArgentinaFil: Zuchini, Cristian Ariel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Chivilcoy; ArgentinaFil: Zunino, Ignacio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Agencia de Extensión Rural Mercedes; Argentin

Early-infantile onset epilepsy and developmental delay caused by bi-allelic GAD1 variants.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate are the most abundant amino acid neurotransmitters in the brain. GABA, an inhibitory neurotransmitter, is synthesized by glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD). Its predominant isoform GAD67, contributes up to ∼90% of base-level GABA in the CNS, and is encoded by the GAD1 gene. Disruption of GAD1 results in an imbalance of inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters, and as Gad1-/- mice die neonatally of severe cleft palate, it has not been possible to determine any potential neurological dysfunction. Furthermore, little is known about the consequence of GAD1 disruption in humans. Here we present six affected individuals from six unrelated families, carrying bi-allelic GAD1 variants, presenting with developmental and epileptic encephalopathy, characterized by early-infantile onset epilepsy and hypotonia with additional variable non-CNS manifestations such as skeletal abnormalities, dysmorphic features and cleft palate. Our findings highlight an important role for GAD1 in seizure induction, neuronal and extraneuronal development, and introduce GAD1 as a new gene associated with developmental and epileptic encephalopathy

Bioprospection of yeasts as biocontrol agents against phytopathogenic molds

Yeasts isolated from sugar cane and maize rhizosphere, leaves and stalks were screened against the phytopathogenic molds Colletotrichum sublineolum and Colletotrichum graminicola, both causal agents of the anthracnose disease in sorghum and maize, respectively. Strains identified as Torulaspora globosa and Candida intermedia were able to inhibit the mold growth, with the first species also exhibiting killer activity. No previous report on the application and potentiality of these yeasts as biocontrol agents were found neither the killer phenotype in Torulaspora globosa.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq