Integrated strategies for the control of Nacobbus aberrans s.l. in tomato

Microorganisms in the tomato rhizosphere ecosystem develop associations, many of which canbe beneficial or pathogenic for this crop. The plant parasitic nematode (PPN) Nacobbus sp. cause significant economic losses to horticultural farmers in Argentina. The distribution of this genusis limited to the American continent and is consider a quarantine pest. Biological control strategies of PPN are environmentally friendly alternatives that ensure the sustainability of the horticultural system. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of the combined application of broccoli aqueous extract (BAE) and Purpureocillium lilacinum SR14 fungus in tomato plants (Solanumlycopersicum var. Platense) for the management of N. aberrans s.l. Three-week-old seedlings were transplanted into pots containing the following treatments: T1: control (sterile horticultural soil), T2: naturally infested horticultural soil (NIHS), T3: NIHS + SR14(1x10exp6 spores/g), T4:NIHS + BAE(12%), T5: SHNI + SR14(1x10exp6 spores/g) + BAE(12%). Six replicates per treatment were carried out and plants were maintained in a green house. Data, collected at 120 days post transplant,revealed that tomato growth was affected in NIHS(T2). Plants showed a 47% and 30% reduction in weight and length, respectively, compared to uninfected soil (T1). The highest number (4 tomatoes/plant) and weight mean (80 g) of fruits were recorded in T4. The fungus alone or combined with BAE (T3, T4 and T5) effectively controlled N. aberrans s.l. population (reduction percentages: galls = 35, 90 and 93%, egg masses = 5,94 and 90% and reproduction factor = 90, 93 and 98%). Physicochemical and biological analyzes were also performed to evaluate the effect of the treatment on the soil ecosystem. The data showed an increase in organic matter for all treatments compared to the initial condition. Nutrient values such as P, N and Swere maintained throughout the trial. Regarding the soil mycobiota, the fungal count (cfu/g) was around 106 for all treatments, but a lower diversity was observed in T5 with a prevalence of P. lilacinum (3x10exp4). As regards the nematofauna, treatments did not significantly influence the number of individuals (n°/g of soil) belonging to the different trophic groups (phytopathogens:16, bacteriophages: 19, predators: 10 and fungivores: 15), with the exception of T4, where ahigher count of omnivores was observed (30). Finally, studies on microbial activity revealed that treatments did not influence the counts (MPN/g) of ammonifying (mean: 1.9x10exp2) and denitrifying agents (mean: 2.7x1013), while T4 and T5 reduced the density of 1 log unit of nitrate- reducing bacteria (mean: 3.4x10exp6) and aerobic-heterotrophic bacteria (mean: 3.9x10exp8). In conclusion, the integrated strategy reveal a synergistic effect for the control of N. aberrans s.l.,without affecting tomato plant development, nutrient content and soil microbiome.Fil: Sosa, Ana Laura. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología. Cátedra de Ecología Microbiana; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología; ArgentinaFil: Girardi, Natalia Soledad. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología. Cátedra de Ecología Microbiana; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Rosso, Laura Cristina. Istituto Per La Protezione Sostenibile Delle Piante; ItaliaFil: Passone, Maria Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina35th Symposium of the European Society of NematologistsCordobaEspañaEuropean Society of NematologistsConsejo Superior de Investigaciones CientíficasInstituto Andaluz de Investigación y Formación Agraria, Pesquera, Alimentaria y de la Producción Ecológic

Outdoor thermal and visual perception of natural cool materials for roof and urban paving

Given the acknowledged thermal performance of natural light color gravels applied as cool roof and cool urban paving, this work is aimed at investigating if such behavior is perceivable by pedestrians, who are questioned in this paper about their visual and thermal comfort perception. In fact, there are still related aspects to analyze, in order to optimize their application and provide a comfortable space for users, both on the thermal and the visual point of view. Therefore, the question that this work wants to answer is: given their intrinsic characteristics, do these materials create a sensitive thermally and visually more comfortable environment for pedestrians? In order to address this uninvestigated issue, users’ judgment about visual and thermal comfort of these surfaces is considered, also by comparing them with grassland and asphalt. Also, the statistical correspondence between physical properties of such materials and possible correspondence with respect to human perception with varying weather conditions is analyzed. Given the relatively high reflectance of these materials, it appears particularly important to evaluate these aspects, to consciously apply them as urban paving or roof covering by optimizing their natural passive cooling potential. In this preliminary study, users’ response to these surfaces is evaluated by mean of field surveys, both on the thermal and the visual evaluation, and contemporary in-field measurements of surface parameters. Also, human perception with respect to these high-reflectance surfaces’ is compared with the one related to grassland and asphalt, with varying weather conditions. Then, a statistical analysis is performed to investigate the differences among different gravels, grassland and asphalt, based on surveys’ results. The results show how pedestrians, questioned during summer days, prefer grassland, while asphalt is the less favorite surface both visually and thermally; there is a small difference between gravels’ types evaluation, while weather variability affect the preferences

Detection and quantification of Aspergillus section Flavi spp. in stored peanuts by real-time PCR of nor-1 gene, and effects of storage conditions on aflatoxin production

Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus are the main species from section Flavi responsible for aflatoxin accumulation in stored peanuts. A real-time PCR (RT-PCR) system directed against the nor-1 gene of the aflatoxin biosynthetic pathway as target sequence was applied to monitor and quantify Aspergillus section Flavi population in peanuts. Kernels were conditioned at four water activity (aW) levels and stored during a 4-month period. The quantification of fungal genomic DNA in naturally contaminated peanut samples was performed using TaqMan fluorescent probe technology. Sensitivity tests demonstrated that DNA amounts accounting for a single conidium of A. parasiticus RCP08300 can be detected. A standard curve relating nor-1 copy numbers to colony forming units (cfu) was constructed. Counts of species of Aspergillus section Flavi from unknown samples obtained by molecular and conventional count (CC) methodologies were compared. A correlation between cfu data obtained by RT-PCR and CC methods was observed (r=0.613; p<0.0001); and the former always showed values higher by 0.5-1 log units. A decrease of fungal density was observed throughout the storage period, regardless of the quantification methodology applied. Total aflatoxin levels ranging from 1.1 to 200.4ng/g were registered in peanuts conditioned at the higher aW values (0.94-0.84 aW).The RT-PCR assay developed appears to be a promising tool in the prediction of potential aflatoxigenic risk in stored peanuts, even in case of low-level infections, and suitable for rapid, automated and high throughput analysis. © 2010.Fil: Passone, Maria Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigación en Micología y Micotoxicología; ArgentinaFil: Rosso, Laura Cristina. Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Ciancio, Aurelio. Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Etcheverry, Miriam Graciela. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Kinetics of the Reactions of O·- and HO· with α,α,α-Trifluorotoluene and 4-Fluorotoluene

The absolute rate constants for the reactions of O· - and HO· with α,α,α-trifluorotoluene and 4-fluorotoluene were obtained by flash photolysis.Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicada

Thermal comfort in the historical urban canyon: the effect of innovative materials

Urban heat island (UHI) can considerably affect the thermal quality of the urban environment, especially within urban canyons, that have typically low sky view factor and limited surface heat re-emission capability. A huge research effort has been registered to develop mitigation solutions for UHI, such as cool materials and greenery. Nevertheless, it is not always possible to apply such strategies in historical urban environments due to constrains for the preservation of their cultural value that do not allow to modify the exterior architectural appearance of heritage buildings. In this scenario, the present paper deals with the analysis of the potential of innovative cool materials characterized by the same appearance of historical ones in mitigating the UHI occurring in the context of a historical urban canyon located in central Italy selected as pilot case study. To this purpose, a preliminary experimental characterization of such innovative highly reflective materials has been performed. Afterwards, an experimental continuous monitoring campaign of the main outdoor microclimate parameters and a numerical modelling of the canyon have been carried out to evaluate the local mitigation capability of such materials when applied over the vertical and horizontal surfaces of the historical canyon. The results show the huge potential of the proposed innovative cool materials in mitigating the local microclimate of the historical urban canyon. In fact, a MOCI reduction up to 0.15 and 0.30 is detected by applying cool red envelope materials and cool red envelope materials plus cool grey paving materials, respectively, on the canyon surfaces

Observations on the biology of a predatory nematode belonging to Diplogasteridae

The use of predatory nematodes as biological control agents of phytoparasitic nematodes has been re-evaluated only recently. To be effective, predatory nematodes should be easy to grow, cheap, and available on a commercial scale. In addition, they must show a reproductive rate sufficient to sustain a high population density and a significant longevity and stability for storage. The predators are not phytopathogenic nematodes, and among the positive outcomes of their introduction are remarkable their environment compatibility and safety for other non-target organisms, as well as the ability to search for prey. These features are present in Diplogasteridae. Their adaptability enables them to withstand changing climatic conditions, as well as the temporal variability between predator and prey. It should also be emphasized the ability to disperse, persist and reproduce in the absence of prey, the spectrum of action, all factors ideal for the management of phytoparasitic species. Adverse factor is cannibalism, due the lack of preys, that can reduce their biological control potential. We herein present preliminary data on occurrence, reproduction and intestine bacterial flora of the predatory nematode, Koerneria sudhausi

Kinetics of the Reactions of O·- and HO· with α,α,α-Trifluorotoluene and 4-Fluorotoluene

The absolute rate constants for the reactions of O· - and HO· with α,α,α-trifluorotoluene and 4-fluorotoluene were obtained by flash photolysis.Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicada

Pueblos indígenas y Educación Superior: indagaciones y experiencias en Argentina y Brasil

El ingreso de estudiantes indígenas en las universidades latinoamericanas revela un escenario de gran complejidad: múltiples regímenes de relaciones atraviesan procesos de rápida reformulación institucional y política, configurando un área de interés académico para diferentes campos disciplinares.Emergentes de contextos coloniales, subordinados y asimétricos, los pueblos indígenas encuentran en la educación superior la posibilidad del inédito ejercicio de posiciones institucionales más equitativas. Como estudiantes, producen reconfiguraciones interétnicas, raciales, culturales, políticas, territoriales, potencializando redes de sociabilidad en escalas desconocidas hasta hace poco tiempo.Este dossier se propone reunir y divulgar un conjunto de artículos que abordan algunas de las políticas y experiencias de educación superior de indígenas que existen en Brasil y en Argentina. Los mismos fueron presentados durante el Grupo de Trabajo ?Indígenas y educación superior: políticas, experiencias y producción colaborativa de conocimientos?, realizado durante la XI Reunión de Antropología del Mercosur, en Montevideo, en diciembre de 2015, bajo la coordinación de las organizadoras.Al presentar esta propuesta, buscamos crear un espacio para la comunicación e intercambio entre los investigadores del tema, atendiendo al análisis de estudios que abarcan las escalas macro y micro institucionales, mencionadas anteriormente.Fil: Paladino, Mariana. Universidade Federal Fluminense; BrasilFil: Ossola, María Macarena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta; ArgentinaFil: de Castro Freitas, Ana Elisa. Universidad Federal de Parana; BrasilFil: Rosso, Laura Cristina. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste; Argentin

miR-221/222 control luminal breast cancer tumor progression by regulating different targets

α6β4 integrin is an adhesion molecule for laminin receptors involved in tumor progression. We present a link between β4 integrin expression and miR-221/222 in the most prevalent human mammary tumor: luminal invasive carcinomas (Lum-ICs). Using human primary tumors that display different β4 integrin expression and grade, we show that miR-221/222 expression inversely correlates with tumor proliferating index, Ki67. Interestingly, most high-grade tumors express β4 integrin and low miR-221/222 levels. We ectopically transfected miR-221/222 into a human-derived mammary tumor cell line that recapitulates the luminal subtype to investigate whether miR-221/222 regulates β4 expression. We demonstrate that miR-221/222 overexpression results in β4 expression downregulation, breast cancer cell proliferation, and invasion inhibition. The role of miR-221/222 in driving β4 integrin expression is also confirmed via mutating the miR-221/222 seed sequence for β4 integrin 3′UTR. Furthermore, we show that these 2 miRNAs are also key breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion regulators, via the post-transcriptional regulation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 5A (STAT5A) and of a disintegrin and metalloprotease-17 (ADAM-17). We further confirm these data by silencing ADAM-17, using a dominant-negative or an activated STAT5A form. miR-221/222-driven β4 integrin, STAT5A, and ADAM-17 did not occur in MCF-10A cells, denoted “normal” breast epithelial cells, indicating that the mechanism is cancer cell-specific.   These results provide the first evidence of a post-transcriptional mechanism that regulates β4 integrin, STAT5A, and ADAM-17 expression, thus controlling breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion. Pre-miR-221/222 use in the aggressive luminal subtype may be a powerful therapeutic anti-cancer strategy