Identification of microsatellites linked to Lr47

Leaf rust resistance gene Lr47 is located within a interstitial segment of Triticum speltoides Taush. 7S chromosome translocated to the short arm of chromosome 7A of bread wheat. This gene is resistant against currently predominant races of leaf rust from Argentina. The objectives of this study were to identify microsatellites linked to this source of resistance as a potential tool to introgress this source of resistance. Isogenic lines with and without Lr47 developed from 10 cultivars/breeding lines as well as 10 microsatellites previously mapped in 7AS chromosome were used in this study. Microsatellite gwm 60 was the only marker that co-segregated completely linked to Lr47. These data indicate that gwm 60 could be a valuable marker to introgress Lr47 in wheat germplasm

Role of PPase-SE in Geotrichum klebahnii , a yeast-like fungus able to solubilize pectin

Protopectinases (PPases) constitute a heterogeneous group of extracellular enzymes able to release soluble pectin from insoluble protopectin in plant tissues. Geotrichum klebahnii (ATCC 42397) produces PPase-SE with endopolygalacturonase activity. PPase-SE has been used for pectin extraction and maceration of plant tissues. Here, the capacity of G. klebahnii to use different pectins as carbon and energy sources (CES) was studied, in addition to PPase-SE capacity to release pectin from lemon peel. The strain was unable to use pectin from different origins as CES. When G. klebahnii was cultivated with mixtures of different amounts of glucose and citrus pectin as CES, the biomass obtained was proportional to the initial concentration of glucose, which was completely consumed. In addition, it produced PPase-SE in a glucose-containing medium. A culture was used for the extraction of pectin from lemon peels. Pectin was enzymatically extracted simultaneously with tissue maceration, yielding 3.7 g of (dry) pectin per 100 g of (wet) lemon peel. Extracted pectin was not metabolized by the strain. It was concluded that G. klebahnii uses PPase-SE to macerate, invade and colonize plant tissues, thus releasing soluble sugars to be used as CES without metabolizing solubilized pectin

Identification of leaf rust resistance genes in selected Argentinean bread wheat cultivars by gene postulation and molecular markers

Leaf rust, caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks. is a common and widespread disease of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), in Argentina. Host resistance is the most economical, effective and ecologically sustainable method of controlling the disease. Gene postulation helps to determine leaf rust resistance genes (Lr genes) that may be present in a large group of wheat germplasm. Additionally presence of Lr genes can be determined using associated molecular markers. The objective of this study was to identify Lr genes that condition leaf rust resistance in 66 wheat cultivars from Argentina. Twenty four differential lines with individual known leaf rust resistance genes were tested with 17 different pathotypes of leaf rust collected from Argentina. Leaf rust infection types produced on seedling plants of the 66 local cultivars were compared with the infection types produced by the same pathotypes on Lr differentials to postulate which seedling leaf rust genes were present. Presence of Lr9, Lr10, Lr19, Lr20, Lr21, Lr24, Lr25, Lr26, Lr29, Lr34, Lr35, Lr37, Lr47 and Lr51 was also determined using molecular markers. Eleven different Lr genes were postulated in the material: Lr1, Lr3a, Lr3ka, Lr9, Lr10, Lr16, Lr17, Lr19, Lr24, Lr26, Lr41. Presence of Lr21, Lr25, Lr29, and Lr47 could not be determined with the seventeen pathotypes used in the study because all were avirulent to these genes. Eleven cultivars (16.7%) were resistant to all pathotypes used in the study and the remaining 55 (83.3%) showed virulent reaction against one or more local pathotypes. Cultivars with seedling resistance gene combinations including Lr16 or single genes Lr47 (detected with molecular marker), Lr19 and Lr41, showed high levels of resistance against all pathotypes or most of them. On the opposite side, cultivars with seedling resistance genes Lr1, Lr3a, Lr3a + Lr24, Lr10, Lr3a + Lr10, Lr3a + Lr10 + Lr24 showed the highest number of virulent reactions against local pathotypes. Occurrence of adult plant resistance genes Lr34, Lr35i and Lr37 in local germplasm was evaluated using specific molecular markers confirming presence of Lr34 and Lr37. Our data suggest that combinations including seedling resistance genes like Lr16, Lr47, Lr19, Lr41, Lr21, Lr25 and Lr29, with adult plant resistance genes like Lr34, SV2, Lr46 will probably provide durable and effective resistance to leaf rust in the region

Uso de la cola y el marsupio en Didelphis marsupialis y Metachirus nudicaudatus (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) para transportar material de anidaci\uf3n

Information about the use of tail to carry nesting material by Neotropical marsupials is poorly documented. Based on videoclips obtained by camera traps, we documented the behavior of gathering and carrying nesting material in curling tails by Didelphis marsupialis and Metachirus nudicaudatus. Additionally, we documented for the fist time an individual of D. marsupialis gathering leaves and other nesting material in the pouch. This is the first documentary evidence of the use of the marsupium for other activities than lactation and protection of pouch youngs

A political ecology of green territorialization : frontier expansion and conservation in the Colombian Amazon

After decades of civil war, the Colombian government has recently declared the Amazon as a model region for green growth and low carbon development. The Amazon Vision programme, launched by the Colombian government in 2016, seeks to contribute to forest conservation, climate mitigation, poverty reduction and peace building. The Amazon Vision fundamentally reframes the Colombian Amazon from a ‘narco frontier’ that needs to be liberated from guerrilla influence, organized crime and peasants destroying forests for coca cultivation, to a net CO2 sink with enormous potential for green growth and poverty reduction. Drawing on historical and empirical qualitative research in Guaviare and complemented by a quantitative land cover classification, this article builds on the concept of ‘green territoriality’ to investigate the extent to which the shift towards conservation affects property rights and the ability of indigenous groups and peasants to access land and natural resources. We illustrate how the reframing of peasants from protagonists of development and frontier expansion to villains, and of indigenous communities from underdeveloped forest dwellers to environmental guardians, has created land conflicts and affected the legitimacy of their respective property rights. In both cases, the Amazon Vision strengthens conservation policies and challenges existing land rights but also creates new windows of opportunity for the land claims of indigenous communities while reinforcing conceptualizations of social differentiation among dwellers of the Amazon

Flexibility Services Based on OpenADR Protocol for DSO Level

Nowadays, Distribution System Operators are increasing the digitalization of their smart grids, making it possible to measure and manage their state at any time. However, with the massive eruption of change-distributed generation (e.g., renewable resources, electric vehicles), the grid operation have become more complex, requiring specific technologies to balance it. In this sense, the demand-side management is one of its techniques; the demand response is a promising approach for providing Flexibility Services (FSs) and complying with the regulatory directives of the energy market. As a solution, this paper proposes the use of the OpenADR (Open Automated Demand Response) standard protocol in combination with a Decentralized Permissioned Market Place (DPMP) based on Blockchain. On one hand, OpenADR hierarchical architecture based on distributed nodes provides communication between stakeholders, adding monitoring and management services. Further, this architecture is compatible with an aggregator schema that guarantees the compliance with the strictest regulatory framework (i.e., European market). On the other hand, DPMP is included at different levels of this architecture, providing a global solution to Flexibility Service Providers (FSP) that can be adapted depending on the regulation of a specific country. As a proof of concept, this paper shows the result of a real experimental case, which implements a Capacity Bidding Program where the OpenADR protocol is used as a communication method to control and monitor energy consumption. In parallel, the proposed DPMP based on Blockchain makes it possible to manage the incentives of FSs, enabling the integration of local and global markets