Suppression of Bactrocera oleae (Diptera: Tephritidae) pupae by soil arthropods in the olive grove

Soil arthropods can provide ecosystem services, such as biological control of crop pests that spend part of their life cycle in the soil. This is the case of Bactrocera oleae (Rossi) (Diptera: Tephritidae), one of the most important pests of olives. The impact of edaphic arthropods on the abundance of B. oleae pupae was evaluated and their contribution for biological control of the pest was quantified. Exclusion and exposed boxes with B. oleae pupae were installed in olive groves in parallel with pitfall traps used for sampling arthropods and the percentage of pupae suppression was evaluated from January to May 2014. Forficulidae dominated the community during the winter period while Formicidae dominated in spring. Pupae suppression reached the maximum value in the beginning of spring and these results indicate that soil arthropods have strong impact in the decline of B. oleae pupae in olive groves.This study was financially supported by FEDER Funds throughout Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade – COMPETE and National Funds throughout FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, within the project EXCL/AGR-PRO/0591/2012: Olive crop protection in sustainable production under global climatic changes: linking ecological infrastructures to ecosystem functions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Efeito do treino de força na melhoria da performance muscular e funcional em mulheres idosas

Resumo: Estudos recentes têm dado primazia à realização de exercícios de força com velocidades de execução superiores às ditas tradicionais. Além disso, é sugerida a inclusão de exercícios que promovam a melhoria da capacidade funcional através da realização de acções motoras associadas às tarefas diárias, desde subir e descer degraus, sentar e levantar de uma cadeira, carregar sacos, etc. Desta forma, este estudo teve como objectivo examinar a resposta de um programa de treino de força com velocidades de execução máxima durante a fase concêntrica na melhoria da força muscular e capacidade funcional em mulheres idosas caucasianas. Método: Vinte e quatro mulheres foram distribuídas de forma aleatória para um grupo controlo (GC) (n=12; 63.3±5.9) e outro experimental (GE) (n=12; 60.3±9.3). O GE foi submetido a 3 sessões/semana de treino de força durante 12 semanas). O grupo de controlo não fez qualquer tipo de actividade física, tendo apenas sido submetida à recolha de dados no pré-teste (T1) e pós-teste (T12). A avaliação consistiu em exercícios de força: 1-repetição máxima no supino, 1-repetição máxima na extensão de pernas e em testes que avaliaram a aptidão funcional: sentar e levantar - 30 seg. (SL) e “go-up and go” (GUG), ambos da bateria de testes Rikly & Jones (1999). O plano de treino consistiu na realização de supino (SUP) e extensão de pernas bilateral (EP) com cargas progressivas (40%-75%) e realização de abdominais (3x12) e lombares (3x10). Resultados: O GC não apresentou melhorias nos testes durante teste período, tendo registado diferenças significativas no teste SL (-12,2%; p=0.029). Relativamente ao GE, foram observadas melhorias nos testes, 1RMSUP (38.6%; p=0.001), 1RMEP (24.6%p=0.00) e SL (17.1%; p=0.003). No entanto, embora no teste GUG tenhamos percebido uma diminuição no tempo de execução do percurso, esta não foi significativo (-4.3%; p=0.259). Conclusão: Um programa de treino de força com velocidades de execução máximas durante a fase concêntrica permite ganhos significativos no aumento dos índices de força nos membros superiores e inferiores. Além disso, esta metodologia contribui para o aumento da mobilidade e da autonomia funcional, aumentando também a coordenação neuromuscular e a potência, que em idades avançadas parecem contribuir significativamente para a diminuição do risco de queda e consequentemente para o aumento da independência funcional e da qualidade de vida

Biogeographic ranges do not support niche theory in radiating Canary Island plant clades

Aim: Ecological niche concepts, in combination with biogeographic history, underlie our understanding of biogeographic ranges. Two pillars of this understanding are competitive displacement and niche conservatism. The competitive displacement hypothesis holds that very similar (e.g. closely related) co-occurring species should diverge, forced apart by competition. In contrast, according to the niche conservatism hypothesis, closely related species should have similar niches. If these are fundamental structuring forces, they should be detectable when comparing the climatic niches of endemic species in radiating clades in oceanic archipelagos, where closely related species exist in both sympatry and allopatry and the species' entire ranges are known. We took advantage of this natural experimental system to test whether the climatic niche relationships predicted by the two hypotheses are found. Location: Canary Islands. Methods: For the plant clades Aeonium, Argyranthemum, Descurainia, Echium, Lotus and Sonchus, separately, we tested relationships between phylogenetic distance and climatic niche differentiation (in temperature, precipitation and their combination), using a high-resolution dataset. We also tested for niche conservatism using Blomberg's K and Pagel's λ. We compared climatic niche differentiation between pairs of species existing in sympatry with that for pairs of species in allopatry. For each comparison, we focused on the climatic niche space available to both species. Results: The relationships between phylogenetic distance and climatic niche differentiation were mostly non-significant; some weak but significant positive relationships were found, mainly for Aeonium and Sonchus. Where differences between sympatry and allopatry were found, niche differentiation tended to be greater in allopatry. Main conclusions: The expectations from niche conservatism were frequently not met; instead our results suggest considerable climatic niche lability. All significant differences in climatic niche differentiation were opposite to the predictions from competitive displacement. These forces may be less important in structuring biogeographic ranges than is commonly thought, at least on islands

La percepción del impacto de la maternidad y la paternidad en la carrera científica en Ciencias de la Vida en España

La menor representación de las mujeres respecto a los hombres en etapas avanzadas de la carrera científica se ha relacionado con diversos factores, como el tiempo dedicado a la maternidad. Para conocer la percepción del impacto de la maternidad y la paternidad en el desarrollo de la carrera científica en Ciencias de la Vida en España, se ha realizado una encuesta a 324 investigadores. La mayoría de las personas investigadoras perciben que la crianza tiene un efecto negativo en el desarrollo de su carrera, especialmente en la de las mujeres y cuando los hijos son pequeños. En consonancia, las mujeres reducen el tiempo dedicado al trabajo para cuidar de los hijos más que los hombres. Además, más de la mitad de las personas investigadoras declara haber modificado sus planes de natalidad por su carrera científica. Estas personas proponen medidas para la conciliación familiar y laboral que podrían ayudar a mejorar su panorama.Women and men’s representation in advanced stages of the scientific career is unbalanced, a fact that has been related with different factors, namely the time dedicated to motherhood. The perception of the impact of motherhood and fatherhood on the development of the scientific career in Life Sciences in Spain was evaluated through a survey carried out with 324 researchers. Most researchers perceive that parenting has a negative effect on their careers, particularly on women and when the children are young. Female researchers with children have displaced more of their time dedicated to work for activities related to childcare than their male colleagues. Moreover, more than half of the researchers specify that they have modified their plans regarding maternity / paternity due to their careers. Researchers propose several mitigation strategies to improve the balance between parenting and scientific career.Ministerio de Ciencia e InnovaciónComunidad de MadridUniversidad de Alcal

Synthesis, surface active and antimicrobial properties of new alkyl 2,6-dideoxy-L-arabino-hexopyranosides

Synthesis of alkyl 2,6-dideoxy-L-arabino-hexopyranosides was accomplished by the reaction of 1,5-anhydro-2,6-dideoxy-L-arabino-hex-1-enitol with fatty alcohols in dichloromethane, catalyzed by triphenylphosphine hydrobromide. Reaction with octanol and dodecanol gave the corresponding α-glycosides in 50% and 42% yield, the β-glycosides in 20% and 21% yield and the α-anomer of the Ferrier product in 10% and 9% yield, respectively.Deacetylation of the α-/β-glycosides with sodium methoxide in methanol afforded the amphiphilic L-arabino-hexopyranosides in 94–99% yield. The surface tension at the air–water interface of the octyl L-glycosides and of the dodecyl α-L-glycoside aqueous solutions at 35 °C was measured with a du Noüy ring tensiometer and surface properties such as critical micelle concentration (CMC), relative surface excess, molecular area at the interface and Gibbs micellization free energy were evaluated. The stereochemistry of the hexopyranoside ring in unimers and aggregates is correlated to the hydrophobicity and packing efficiency on the air–water interface. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of the surface-active glycosides were evaluated using the paper disk diffusion method. The dodecyl α-L-arabino-hexopyranoside was quite active over Bacillus cereus and Bacillus subtilis, while low activity was found for this glycoside over Enterococcus faecalis and Listeria monocytogenes. The octyl glycosides tested showed low activity over almost all the above-mentioned bacteria, and also over the fungus Candida albicans. No inhibition of Salmonella enteritidis and of the filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger was detected for any of the compounds tested.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Situação nutricional e alimentar de pré-escolares no semi-árido da Bahia (Brasil): I.Avaliação antropométrica

A survey of 754 preschool children was undertaken in the urban areas of seven small towns of the semi-arid region of Bahia, Northeast Brazil. The study set out to determine the prevalence of weight and height deficits, as well as to correlate them with variables such as age, family income, mother's schooling and food consumption. A prevalence of 22.9% of Height for Age (HA) below -2.0 SD was found (stunting) and prevalence of 19.1% and 3.6% were determined, respectively for Weight for Age (WA) and Weight for Height (WH) below -2.0 SD (wasting). Regarding food consumption, only 6.8% of the children received a diet with an adequate energy supply for their age group in the previous day. There was a close association between inadequate HA and WA and family income per capita (p=0.001 and p=0.000, respectively). Children from families with income ; 1/2 minimum wage per capita stratum. The children included in this study showed prevalences of inadequate WH and WA significantly higher than those found in a national survey conducted in the same period (p=0.047 and p=0.000 respectively). This fact is surprising since in the last decade important reductions in child malnutrition and mortality were reported in the country as a whole; this may indicate that children from this region probably were not benefited in the same way as the rest of the Brazilian child population.Foram estudados 754 pré-escolares de áreas urbanas de sete municípios do semi-árido da Bahia, Brasil. Os objetivos foram determinar a prevalência de déficit ponderal e estatural, indicativos de desnutrição atual e/ou pregressa e sua associação com a idade, sexo, renda em salário-mínimo (SM), escolaridade materna e adequação do consumo alimentar. Encontrou-se 22,9% de crianças com altura/idade abaixo de -2,0 DP (desnutrição pregressa), 19,1% com peso/idade e 3,6% com peso/altura abaixo de -2,0 DP (desnutrição atual). Em relação ao inquérito dietético somente 6,8% das crianças haviam consumido no dia anterior uma dieta que suprisse os requerimentos energéticos para sua faixa etária. Houve forte associação entre os indicadores A/l e P/l inadequados com renda familiar per capita (p=0,001 e p=0,000, respectivamente); crianças de famílias com renda per capita ;1/2 SM. Em relação ao P/A como também P/l, os pré-escolares estudados no semi-árido apresentaram prevalências significativamente superiores às encontradas por pesquisa nacional realizada na mesma época (p=0,047 e p=0,000, respectivamente). Esses achados surpreendem, já que nas últimas décadas tem sido demonstrada no Brasil uma melhoria signifivativa na desnutrição e mortalidade infantil e parecem indicar que as crianças do semi-árido não lograram ainda alcançar os mesmos benefícios que o restante da população infantil brasileira

Avaliação do Risco de Desenvolvimento de Problemas Relacionados com Medicamentos em Pacientes de Baixa Renda Atendidos em uma Clínica-Escola

No posee resumen.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Satietogenic Protein from Tamarind Seeds Decreases Food Intake, Leptin Plasma and CCK-1r Gene Expression in Obese Wistar Rats

Objective: This study evaluated the effect of a protein, the isolated Trypsin Inhibitor (TTI) from Tamarindus indica L. seed, as a CCK secretagogue and its action upon food intake and leptin in obese Wistar rats. Methods: Three groups of obese rats were fed 10 days one of the following diets: Standard diet (Labina®) + water; High Glycemic Index and Load (HGLI) diet + water or HGLI diet + TTI. Lean animals were fed the standard diet for the 10 days. Food intake, zoometric measurements, plasma CCK, plasma leptin, relative mRNA expression of intestinal CCK-related genes, and expression of the ob gene in subcutaneous adipose tissue were assessed. Results: TTI decreased food intake but did not increase plasma CCK in obese animals. On the other hand, TTI treatment decreased CCK-1R gene expression in obese animals compared with the obese group with no treatment (p = 0.027). Obese animals treated with TTI presented lower plasma leptin than the non-treated obese animals. Conclusion: We suggest that TTI by decreasing plasma leptin may improve CCK action, regardless of its increase in plasma from obese rats, since food intake was lowest

The Azorean Biodiversity Portal: an internet database for regional biodiversity outreach

Copyright © 2010 The Natural History Museum.There is a growing interest in academia to provide biodiversity data to both the scientific community and the public. We present an internet database of the terrestrial lichens, bryophytes, vascular plants, molluscs, arthropods, vertebrates and coastal invertebrates of the Azores archipelago (Portugal, North Atlantic): the Azorean Biodiversity Portal (ABP, http://www.azoresbioportal.angra.uac.pt/). This is a unique resource for fundamental research in systematics, biodiversity, education and conservation management. The ABP was based on a regional species database (ATLANTIS), comprised of grid-based spatial incidence information for c. 5000 species. Most of the data rely on a comprehensive literature survey (dating back to the 19th century) as well as unpublished records from recent field surveys in the Azores. The ABP disseminates the ATLANTIS database to the public, allowing universal, unrestricted access to much of its data. Complementarily, the ABP includes additional information of interest to the general public (e.g. literature on Macaronesian biodiversity) together with images from collections and/or live specimens for many species. In this contribution we explain the implementation of a regional biodiversity database, its architecture, achievements and outcomes, strengths and limitations; we further include a number of suggestions in order to implement similar initiatives