Pyrethroids levels in paddy field water under Mediterranean conditions: measurements and distribution modelling

[EN] The cultivation of rice (Oriza sativa L.) under Mediterranean conditions regularly requires the use of treated wastewater due to shortage of freshwater. As a consequence, the intensification of rice production to supply the uprising demand of grain could break the stability between agriculture and environment. In this work, we studied the occurrence and distribution of pyrethroids in surface water and groundwater collected during two periods (flooding and dry soil conditions) in paddy fields located in the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Pyrethroids were detected at concentrations ranging from 14 to 1450 ng L-1 in surface water and from 6 to 833 ng L-1 in groundwater. The results obtained were valuated statistically using principal component analysis, and differences between both sampling campaigns were found, with lower concentrations of the target compounds during the flooding sampling event. Moreover, a geographic information system program was used to represent a model distribution of the obtained results, showing wastewater treatment plants as the main sources of contamination and the decrease of pyrethroids during flooding condition when water flows over the paddy fields. The impact of these compounds on water quality was discussed.Authors wish to thank INIA for the predoctoral fellowship (R. Aznar) and Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness RTA2014-00012-C03-01 for financial support.Aznar, R.; Sánchez Brunete, C.; Albero, B.; Moreno-Ramón, H.; Tadeo, JL. (2017). Pyrethroids levels in paddy field water under Mediterranean conditions: measurements and distribution modelling. Paddy and Water Environment. 15(2):307-316. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10333-016-0550-2S307316152Albalawneh A, Chang TK, Chou CS (2015) Impacts on soil quality from long-term irrigation with treated greywater. Paddy Water Environ. doi: 10.1007/s10333-015-0499-6Aznar R, Moreno-Ramón H, Albero B, Sánchez-Brunete C, Tadeo JL (2016a) Spatio-temporal distribution of pyrethroids in soil in mediterranean paddy fields. J Soils Sediments. doi: 10.1007/s11368-016-1417-2Aznar R, Albero B, Sánchez-Brunete C, Miguel E, Moreno-Ramón H, Tadeo JL (2016b) Simultaneous determination of multiclass emerging contaminants in aquatic plants by ultrasound-assisted matrix solid-phase dispersion and GC–MS. Environ Sci Pollut Res. doi: 10.1007/s11356-016-6327-8Campo J, Masia A, Blasco C, Pico Y (2013) Occurrence and removal efficiency of pesticides in sewage treatment plants of four Mediterranean River Basins. J Hazard Mater 263:146–157Corcellas C, Eljarrat E, Barceló D (2015) First report of pyrethroid bioaccumulation in wild river fish: a case study in Iberian river basins (Spain). Environ Int 75:110–116Directive 2006/118/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on the protection of groundwater against pollution and deterioration. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=URISERV:l28139&from=ES Accessed 14 Dec 2015Duran JJ, García de Domingo A, López-Geta JA, Robledo PA, Soria JM (2005) Los Humedales del Mediterráneo español: modelos geológicos e hidrogeológicos. Instituto Geológico y Minero Español, Madrid España. 160European Commission (2005) Review report for the active substance Esfenvalerate, 6846/VI/97-finalFarnham IM, Singh AK, Stetzenbach KJ, Johannesson KH (2002) Treatment of nondetects in multivariate analysis of groundwater geochemistry data. Chemometr Intell Lab 60:265–281Feo ML, Ginebreda A, Eljarrat E, Barcelo D (2010a) Presence of pyrethroid pesticides in water and sediments of Ebro River Delta. J Hazard Mater 393:156–162Feo ML, Eljarrat E, Barcelo D (2010b) A rapid and sensitive analytical method for the determination of 14 pyrethroids in water samples. J Chromatogr A 1217:2248–2253Gimenez-Forcada E (2014) Space/time development of seawater intrusion: a study case in Vinaroz coastal plain (Eastern Spain) using HFE-Diagram, and spatial distribution of hydrochemical facies. J Hydrol 517:617–627Hendley P, Holmes C, Kay S, Maund SJ, Travis KZ, Zhang MH (2001) Probabilistic risk assessment of cotton pyrethroids: iII. A spatial analysis of the Mississippi, USA, cotton landscape. Environ Toxicol Chem 20:669–678Hildebrandt A, Lacorte S, Barcelo D (2007) Assessment of priority pesticides, degradation products, and pesticide adjuvants in groundwaters and top soils from agricultural areas of the Ebro river basin. Anal Bioanal Chem 387:1459–1468Hildebrandt A, Guillamon M, Lacorte S, Tauler R, Barcelo D (2008) Impact of pesticides used in agriculture and vineyards to surface and groundwater quality (North Spain). Water Res 42:3315–3326Hladik ML, Kuivila KM (2009) Assessing the occurrence and distribution of pyrethroids in water and suspended sediments. J Agric Food Chem 57:9079–9085Kuivila KM, Hladik ML, Ingersoll CG, Kemble NE, Moran PW, Calhoun DL, Nowell LH, Gilliom RJ (2012) Occurrence and potential sources of pyrethroid insecticides in stream sediments from seven U.S. metropolitan areas. Environ Sci Technol 46:4297–4303McManus SL, Richards KG, Grant J, Mannix A, Coxon CE (2014) Pesticide occurrence in groundwater and the physical characteristics in association with these detections in Ireland. Environ Monit Assess 186:7819–7836Money E, Carter GP, Serre ML (2009) Using river distances in the space/time estimation of dissolved oxygen along two impaired river networks in New Jersey. Water Res 43:1948–1958Monica N, Choi K (2016) Temporal and spatial analysis of water quality in Saemangeum watershed using multivariate statistical techniques. Paddy Water Environ 14:3–17Moreno-Ramón H, Marqués-Mateu A, Ibáñez-Asensio S, Gisbert JM (2015) Wetland soils under rice management and seawater intrusion: characterization and classification. Spa J Soil Sci 5(2):111–129Moschet C, Vermeirssen ELM, Seiz R, Pfefferli H, Hollender J (2014) Picogram per liter detections of pyrethroids and organophosphates in surface waters using passive sampling. Water Res 66:411–422Pistocchi A, Vizcaino P, Hauck M (2009) A GIS model-based screening of potential contamination of soil and water by pyrethroids in Europe. J Environ Manag 90:3410–3421Rodríguez-Liébana JA, ElGouzi S, Mingorance MD, Castillo A, Peña A (2014) Irrigation of a Mediterranean soil under fields’ conditions with urban wastewater: effect on pesticides behavior. Agric Ecosyst Environ 185:176–185SANCO-12571 (2013) Guidance document on analytical quality control and validation procedures for pesticide residues analysis in food and feed. European Commission. http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/pesticides/guidance_documents/docs/qualcontrol_en.pdf . Accessed 4 April 2016Smiley PC Jr, King KW, Fausey NR (2014) Annual and seasonal differences in pesticides mixtures within channelized agricultural headwater streams in central Ohio. Agric Ecosyst Environ 193:83–95Soil Survey Staff (2014) Keys to soil taxonomy, 12th edn. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Washington. http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/survey/class/taxonomy/?cid=nrcs142p2_053580 . Accessed 4 April 2016Solomon KR, Giddings JM, Maund SJ (2001) Probabilistic risk assessment of cotton pyrethroids: i. Distributional analyses of laboratory aquatic toxicity data. Environ Toxicol Chem 20:652–659Sprecher SW (2008) Installing Monitoring wells in soils. Version 1.0. USDA—NRCS (United States Department of Agriculture)-(Natural Resources Conservation Service). Lincoln. USA. http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052914.pdf . Accessed 4 April 2016Swift MJ, Izac AMN, van Noordwijk M (2015) Biodiversity and ecosystem services in agriculture landscapes-are we asking the right questions? Agric Ecosyst Environ 104:113–134Weston DP, Holmes RW, You J, Lydy MJ (2005) Aquatic toxicity due to residential use of pyrethroid insecticides. Environ Sci Technol 39:9778–9784Weston DP, Holmes RW, Lydy MJ (2009) Residential runoff as a source of pyrethroid pesticides to urban creeks. Environ Pollut 157:287–294Weston DP, Ramil HL, Lydy MJ (2013) Pyrethroid insecticides in municipal wastewater. Environ Toxicol Chem 32:2460–246

Histología y Citología de Cítricos

El cultivo de los cítricos es una tradición muy arraigada en toda la cuenca mediterránea. Esta práctica supone una fuente apreciable de riqueza para los habitantes de las comarcas o regiones que la explotan comercialmente. El estudio de los cítricos en España comenzó a principios del siglo pasado en torno a la Granja Agrícola de Burjassot, concretamente en la Estación Naranjera de Levante, una institución pionera constituida en el año 1931 y dedicada íntegramente a tal fin. Con posterioridad, a mitad de los años 70, el personal de la Estación se trasladó a otras instalaciones más modernas y espaciosas, localizadas en Montcada, que hoy conocemos como Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias (IVIA). En este Instituto se continúa profundizando hoy día en el conocimiento y en la mejora del cultivo de los cítricos. Los trabajos de histología y citología interesaron al Dr. Eduardo Primo Millo desde su inicio en el mundo de la investigación agraria. Suya fue la idea de, con el paso del tiempo, recopilar las aportaciones que su equipo venía realizando en este campo. Una antigua iniciativa que hoy se materializa en esta "Histología y Citología de Cítricos". Este texto comienza con la descripción tanto de las estructuras y de los sistemas membranosos que pueden contener las células como de los diferentes tejidos que componen un cítrico. A continuación se aborda la germinación de la semilla, un complejo proceso de degradación y movilización de reservas nutritivas que permitirán el crecimiento de estructuras vegetativas vitales para la planta: el tallo y la raíz. El estudio de la porción enterrada de la planta, la raíz, comienza con su ontogenia y su estructura primaria y prosigue incidiendo sobre su crecimiento secundario y su ramificación, así como sobre el papel que algunas fitohormonas pueden tener en estos procesos. La descripción del tallo, en particular de su sistema vascular, y de la hoja, se aborda haciendo hincapié en los cambios que experimenta la anatomía foliar en condiciones medioambientales que inducen estrés en los cítricos, como por ejemplo la salinidad. Para finalizar se describe la morfología y la anatomía de las estructuras reproductivas de los cítricos repasando los cambios anatómicos y ultraestructurales que se producen en las distintas partes de la flor y en el fruto durante los procesos de floración y de fructificación. La mayoría de las descripciones anatómicas, histológicas y ultraestructurales que aparecen en este texto están ilustradas con imágenes obtenidas en la investigación realizada en el Laboratorio de Fisiología Vegetal del Departamento de Citricultura y Otros Frutales del IVIA

ECOLOGICAL NICHE OF SEMIDOMESTICATED POPULATIONS OF Capsicum pubescens RUIZ & PAV. BASED ON ACCESSIONS FROM VERACRUZ, MEXICO

Para cultivar una especie silvestre es necesario modificar el esquema genético resultante de los procesos de selección natural a uno adaptado a las condiciones manejadas por el hombre, e implica detectar áreas geográficas similares a aquellas donde se originó la especie. En este estudio se analiza un modelo de áreas geográficas potenciales para la adaptación de Capsicum pubescens Ruiz & Pav. con el objetivo de detectar las condiciones de nicho ecológico apropiado, determinar zonas potenciales en México y describir las relaciones entre el medio ambiente y las características morfológicas del fruto. Se utilizó el algoritmo reciente de máxima entropía (MaxEnt) para modelar el nicho de C. pubescens dentro de una región de importancia en el centro de Veracruz, México. Se utilizó un total de 44 sitios de presencia y cuatro variables bioclimáticas para detectar nichos adecuados para la especie; así mismo, se realizó un análisis de regresión por mínimos cuadrados parciales (PLS) combinando los sitios de presencia, variables bioclimáticas y características morfológicas del fruto. Se construyó un mapa final de idoneidad identificando las áreas adecuadas para el crecimiento de C. pubescens. Las contribuciones de las variables predictoras al modelo fueron preipitación anual (Bio12) 43.9 %, capa de potasio (K) 23 %, altitud (DEM) 22.3 % y temperatura media anual (Bio1) 10.7 %, con valor del área bajo la curva de 99.7 %. Los mínimos cuadrados parciales corroboraron la importancia de las covariables, que intervienen en la expresión de características morfológicas del fruto, ayudando a entender mejor las relaciones entre especies y el medio ambiente. Áreas aún no exploradas arrojaron probabilidades de ocurrencia mayores a 90 %, principalmente en las zonas montañosas de Chihuahua, Tamaulipas, Nuevo León y la Sierra de Santa Martha al sur del estado de Veracruz. Se identificó un grupo de accesiones sobresalientes que podrían servir como base para iniciar un programa de mejoramiento genético en esta especie

Spatio-temporal distribution of pyrethroids in soil in Mediterranean paddy fields

[EN] The demand of rice by the increase in population in many countries has intensified the application of pesticides and the use of poor quality water to irrigate fields. The terrestrial environment is one compartment affected by these situations, where soil is working as a reservoir, retaining organic pollutants. Therefore, it is necessary to develop methods to determine insecticides in soil and monitor susceptible areas to be contaminated, applying adequate techniques to remediate them. Materials and methods This study investigates the occurrence of ten pyrethroid insecticides (PYs) and its spatio-temporal variance in soil at two different depths collected in two periods (before plow and during rice production), in a paddy field area located in the Mediterranean coast. Pyrethroids were quantified using gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC MS) after ultrasound-assisted extraction with ethyl acetate. The results obtained were assessed statistically using non-parametric methods, and significant statistical differences (p&#8201;<&#8201;0.05) in pyrethroids content with soil depth and proximity to wastewater treatment plants were evaluated. Moreover, a geographic information system (GIS) was used to monitor the occurrence of PYs in paddy fields and detect risk areas. Results and discussion Pyrethroids were detected at concentrations &#8804;57.0 ng g&#8722;1 before plow and &#8804;62.3 ng g&#8722;1 during rice production, being resmethrin and cyfluthrin the compounds found at higher concentrations in soil. Pyrethroids were detected mainly at the top soil, and a GIS program was used to depict the obtained results, showing that effluents from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) were the main sources of soil contamination. No toxic effects were expected to soil organisms, but it is of concern that PYs may affect aquatic organisms, which represents the worst case scenario. Conclusions A methodology to determine pyrethroids in soil was developed to monitor a paddy field area. The use of water from WWTPs to irrigate rice fields is one of the main pollution sources of pyrethroids. It is a matter of concern that PYs may present toxic effects on aquatic organisms, as they can be desorbed from soil. Phytoremediation may play an important role in this area, reducing the possible risk associated to PYs levels in soil.Authors wish to thank INIA for the predoctoral fellowship (R. Aznar) and Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness RTA2014-00012-C03-01 for financial support and Jonathan Villanueva Martin for his contribution to this work.Aznar, R.; Moreno-Ramón, H.; Albero, B.; Sánchez Brunete, C.; Tadeo, JL. (2016). Spatio-temporal distribution of pyrethroids in soil in Mediterranean paddy fields. Journal of Soils and Sediments. 17(5):1503-1513. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-016-1417-2S15031513175Albaseer SS, Rao RN, Swamy YV, Mukkanti K (2010) An overview of sample preparation and extraction of synthetic pyrethroids from water, sediment and soil. J Chromatogr A 1217(35):5537–5554Alonso MB, Feo ML, Corcellas C, Vidal LG, Bertozzi CP, Marigo J, Secchi ER, Bassoi M, Azevedo AF, Dorneles PR, Torres JPM, Lailson-Brito J, Malm O, Eljarrat E, Barcelo D (2012) Pyrethroids: a new threat to marine mammals? Environ Int 47:99–106Amweg EL, Weston DP, Ureda NM (2005) Use and toxicity of pyrethroid pesticides in the Central Valley, California, USA. Environ Toxicol Chem 24(4):966–972Arias-Estevez M, Lopez-Periago E, Martinez-Carballo E, Simal-Gandara J, Mejuto JC, Garcia-Rio L (2008) The mobility and degradation of pesticides in soils and the pollution of groundwater resources. Agric Eco Environ 123(4):247–260Aznar R, Albero B, Sanchez-Brunete C, Miguel E, Tadeo JL (2014) Multiresidue analysis of insecticides and other selected environmental contaminants in poultry manure by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. J AOAC Int 97(4):978–986Campo J, Masia A, Blasco C, Pico Y (2013) Occurrence and removal efficiency of pesticides in sewage treatment plants of four Mediterranean River Basins. J Hazard Mater 263:146–157European Commission (2002) Review report for the active substance Cyfluthrin, 6843/VI/97-finalEuropean Commission (2004) Review report for the active substance α-Cypermethrin, SANCO/4335/2000-finalEuropean Commission (2005) Review report for the active substance Esfenvalerate, 6846/VI/97-finalFeo ML, Ginebreda A, Eljarrat E, Barcelo D (2010) Presence of pyrethroid pesticides in water and sediments of Ebro River Delta. J Hydrol 393(3-4):156–162Fojut TL, Palumbo AJ, Tjeerdema RS (2012) Aquatic life water quality criteria derived via the UC Davis method: II. Pyrethroid insecticides. Rev Environ Contam Toxicol 216:51–103Gan J, Lee SJ, Liu WP, Haver DL, KAbashima JN (2005) Distribution and persistence of pyrethroids in runoff sediments. J Environ Qual 34:836–841Hill IR (1985) Aquatic organisms and pyrethroids. Pestic Sci 27:429–465Huang LM, Thompson A, Zhang GL, Chen LM, Han GZ, Gong ZT (2015) The use of chronosequences in studies of paddy soil evolution: a review. Geoderma 237:199–210Katagi T (2004) Photodegradation of pesticides on plant and soil surfaces. Rev Environ Contam Toxicol 182:1–189Laskowski DA (2002) Physical and chemical properties of pyrethroids. Rev Environ Contam Toxicol 174:49–170Mahabali S, Spagnoghe P (2014) Mitigation of two insecticides by wetlands plants: feasibility study for the treatment of agricultural runoff in Suriname (South America). Water Air Soil Pollut 225:1771Maund SJ, Hamer MJ, Lane MCG, Farrelly E, Rapley JH, Goggin UM, Gentle WE (2002) Partitioning, bioavailability, and toxicity of the pyrethroid insecticide cypermethrin in sediments. Environ Toxicol Chem 21(1):9–15Maund SJ, Campbell PJ, Giddings JM, Hamer MJ, Henry K, Pilling ED, Warinton JS, Wheeler JR (2012) Ecotoxicology of synthetic pyrethroids. Top Curr Chem 314:137–165Money E, Carter GP, Serre ML (2009) Using river distances in the space/time estimation of dissolved oxygen along two impaired river networks in New Jersey. Water Res 43(7):1948–1958Moore MT, Cooper CM, Smith S, Jr Cullum RF, Knight SS, Locke MA, Bennett ER (2009) Mitigation of two pyrethroid insecticides in Mississippi Delta constructed wetland. Environ Pollut 157:250–256Moreno-Ramón H, Marqués-Mateu A, Ibáñez-Asensio S, Gisbert JM (2015) Wetland soils under rice management and seawater intrusion: characterization and classification. Spa J Soil Sci 5(2):111–129Nawaz MF, Bourrie G, Trolard F, Mouret JC, Henry P (2013) Effects of agronomic practices on the physico-chemical properties of soil waters in rice culture. Turk J Agric For 37(2):195–202Oros DR, Werner I (2005) Pyrethroid insecticides: an analysis of use patterns, distributions, potential toxicity and fate in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Central Valley. White Paper for the Interagency Ecological Program. SFEI Contribution 415. San Francisco Estuary Institute, Oakland, CAPascual-Aguilar J, Andreu V, Gimeno-Garcia E, Pico Y (2015) Current anthropogenic pressures on agro-ecological protected coastal wetlands. Sci Total Environ 03:190–199Soil Survey Staff (2014a) Soil survey field and laboratory methods manual. Soil survey investigations report no. 51, version 2.0. In: Burt R, Soil Survey Staff (eds). U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Washington, p 407Soil Survey Staff (ed) (2014b) Keys to soil taxonomy, 12th edn. USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Washington, p 372Song Y, Kai J, Song X, Zhang W, Li L (2015) Long-term toxic effects of deltamethrin and fenvalerate in soil. J Hazard Mater 289:158–164Weston DP, Holmes RW, You J, Lydy MJ (2005) Aquatic toxicity due to residential use of pyrethroid insecticides. Environ Sci Technol 39(24):9778–9784Weston DP, Ramil HL, Lydy MJ (2013) Pyrethroid insecticides in municipal wastewater. Environ Toxicol Chem 32(11):2460–2468Zhou JL, Rowland S, Mantoura RFC (1995) Partition of synthetic pyrethroid insecticides between dissolved and particulate phases. Water Res 29:1023–110

The global contribution of soil mosses to ecosystem services

Soil mosses are among the most widely distributed organisms on land. Experiments and observations suggest that they contribute to terrestrial soil biodiversity and function, yet their ecological contribution to soil has never been assessed globally under natural conditions. Here we conducted the most comprehensive global standardized field study to quantify how soil mosses influence 8 ecosystem services associated with 24 soil biodiversity and functional attributes across wide environmental gradients from all continents. We found that soil mosses are associated with greater carbon sequestration, pool sizes for key nutrients and organic matter decomposition rates but a lower proportion of soil-borne plant pathogens than unvegetated soils. Mosses are especially important for supporting multiple ecosystem services where vascular-plant cover is low. Globally, soil mosses potentially support 6.43 Gt more carbon in the soil layer than do bare soils. The amount of soil carbon associated with mosses is up to six times the annual global carbon emissions from any altered land use globally. The largest positive contribution of mosses to soils occurs under a high cover of mat and turf mosses, in less-productive ecosystems and on sandy and salty soils. Our results highlight the contribution of mosses to soil life and functions and the need to conserve these important organisms to support healthy soils.The study work associated with this paper was funded by a Large Research Grant from the British Ecological Society (no. LRB17\1019; MUSGONET). D.J.E. is supported by the Hermon Slade Foundation. M.D.-B. was supported by a Ramón y Cajal grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (RYC2018-025483-I), a project from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation for the I + D + i (PID2020-115813RA-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033a) and a project PAIDI 2020 from the Junta de Andalucía (P20_00879). E.G. is supported by the European Research Council grant agreement 647038 (BIODESERT). M.B. is supported by a Ramón y Cajal grant from Spanish Ministry of Science (RYC2021-031797-I). A.d.l.R is supported by the AEI project PID2019-105469RB-C22. L.W. and Jianyong Wang are supported by the Program for Introducing Talents to Universities (B16011) and the Ministry of Education Innovation Team Development Plan (2013-373). The contributions of T.G. and T.U.N. were supported by the Research Program in Forest Biology, Ecology and Technology (P4-0107) and the research projects J4-3098 and J4-4547 of the Slovenian Research Agency. The contribution of P.B.R. was supported by the NSF Biological Integration Institutes grant DBI-2021898. J. Durán and A. Rodríguez acknowledge support from the FCT (2020.03670.CEECIND and SFRH/BDP/108913/2015, respectively), as well as from the MCTES, FSE, UE and the CFE (UIDB/04004/2021) research unit financed by FCT/MCTES through national funds (PIDDAC)

Varietal description of two genotypes of manzano chili pepper (Capsicum pubescens Ruiz & Pav.)

Objective: the objective of this research work was to obtain the varietal description of two varieties of chile manzano in Las Montañas in the center of Veracruz, México. Design/methodology/approach: the varietal characterization module was established under greenhouse conditions at the Centro de Bachillerato Tecnológico Agropecuario No. 99 in the municipality of Coscomatepec de Bravo. The recorded descriptors were in accordance with the International of Plant Genetic Resources Institute for Capsicum and the Graphic Handbook for Variety Description of manzano hot pepper. The plants were characterized from the seedling to the adult plant. The agronomic management of the crop was carried out in accordance with the manual for the production of manzano hot pepper in Las Montañas of the state of Veracruz. Results: all qualitative descriptors were constant for the two varieties MEXUVNE1-15-C2 and MEXUVCU1-16-C2 from seedling to fruiting; in contrast, there were dissimilarities in plant height, stem, leaf, flower, fruit and seed dimensions. Limitations of the study/implications: the pandemic caused by COVID-19 was the main limitation so that some descriptors were not recorded in a timely manner as indicated in the Graphic Handbook. Findings/conclusions: both varieties are very similar; however, the greatest distinction was in the quantitative type descriptors such as: plant height, fruit length, fruit diameter and number of seeds.Objective: The objective of this research study was to obtain the varietal description of two varieties of manzano chili pepper in Las Montañas region, in central Veracruz, Mexico. Design/methodology/approach: The varietal characterization module was established under greenhouse conditions. The markers recorded were in accordance with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute for Capsicum and the Graphic Handbook for Variety Description of manzano chili pepper. The plants were characterized from seedling in greenhouse to adult plant. The agronomic management of the crop was carried out in accordance with the manual for the production of manzano chili pepper in Las Montañas, state of Veracruz. Results: All qualitative markers were constant for the two varieties, MEXUVNE1-15-C2 and MEXUVCU1-16-C2, from seedling to fruit setting. In contrast, there were dissimilarities in plant height, and stem, leaf, flower, fruit and seed dimensions. Study limitations/implications: The pandemic caused by COVID-19 was the main limitation, resulting in some markers not being recorded in a timely manner as indicated in the Graphic Handbook. Findings/conclusions: Both varieties are very similar; however, the greatest distinction was in the quantitative markers, such as: plant height, fruit length, fruit diameter and number of seeds

Biogenic factors explain soil carbon in paired urban and natural ecosystems worldwide

12 páginas.- 4 figuras.- 49 referencia.- Supplementary information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-023-01646-z .- Full-text access to a view-only version (Acceso a texto completo de sólo lectura en este enlace) https://rdcu.be/c8vZiUrban greenspaces support multiple nature-based services, many of which depend on the amount of soil carbon (C). Yet, the environmental drivers of soil C and its sensitivity to warming are still poorly understood globally. Here we use soil samples from 56 paired urban greenspaces and natural ecosystems worldwide and combine soil C concentration and size fractionation measures with metagenomics and warming incubations. We show that surface soils in urban and natural ecosystems sustain similar C concentrations that follow comparable negative relationships with temperature. Plant productivity’s contribution to explaining soil C was higher in natural ecosystems, while in urban ecosystems, the soil microbial biomass had the greatest explanatory power. Moreover, the soil microbiome supported a faster C mineralization rate with experimental warming in urban greenspaces compared with natural ecosystems. Consequently, urban management strategies should consider the soil microbiome to maintain soil C and related ecosystem services.This study was supported by a 2019 Leonardo Grant for Researchers and Cultural Creators, BBVA Foundation (URBANFUN), and by BES Grant Agreement No. LRB17\1019 (MUSGONET). M.D-B., P.G-P., J.D. and A.R. acknowledge support from TED2021-130908B-C41/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ Unión Europea NextGenerationEU/PRTR. M.D.-B. also acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation for the I + D + i project PID2020-115813RA-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. M.D.-B. was also supported by a project of the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) and the Consejería de Transformación Económica, Industria, Conocimiento y Universidades of the Junta de Andalucía (FEDER Andalucía 2014-2020 Objetivo temático ‘01 - Refuerzo de la investigación, el desarrollo tecnológico y la innovación’) associated with the research project P20_00879 (ANDABIOMA). D.J.E. was supported by the Hermon Slade Foundation. J.P.V. thanks the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) (EEQ/2021/001083, SIR/2022/000626) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST), India (DST/INT/SL/P-31/2021) and Banaras Hindu Univeristy-IoE (6031)-incentive grant for financial assistance for research in plant-microbe interaction and soil microbiome. J.D. and A. Rodríguez acknowledge support from the FCT (2020.03670.CEECIND and SFRH/BDP/108913/2015, respectively), as well as from the MCTES, FSE, UE and the CFE (UIDB/04004/2021) research unit financed by FCT/MCTES through national funds (PIDDAC).Peer reviewe

Mycotoxins in fruits and their processed products: Analysis, occurrence and health implications

AbstractMycotoxins are secondary metabolites of filamentous fungi that occur naturally in food and feed. The presence of these compounds in the food chain is of high concern for human health due to their properties to induce severe toxicity effects at low dose levels. The contamination of fruits with mycotoxins has not only caused health hazards but also resulted in economic losses, especially for exporting countries. The mycotoxins most commonly found in fruits and their processed products are aflatoxins, ochratoxin A, patulin and the Alternaria toxins alternariol, alternariol methyl ether and altenuene. The aim of this work is to review the toxicity of these major mycotoxins, their natural occurrence in fruits, dried fruits, juices, wines and other processed products, the analytical methods available for their determination and the strategies for their control

Determination of corn herbicides by GC‒MS and GC-NPD in environmental samples

Several herbicides widely used to control weeds in corn, atrazine, alachlor, metolachlor, and pendimethalin, have been determined in soil and water. Analysis of herbicides was performed by GC-NPD and GC‒MS. Soil was extracted with ethyl acetate on a mechanical shaker, and water was extracted with dichloromethane in a separatory funnel. The average recoveries through the method were higher than 90% in soil and 85% in water. The detection limit was lower than 0.01 ppm in soil and 0.1 ppb in water for GC‒MS and GC-NPD, respectively. Soil samples from corn fields, after harvest, were taken from the surface (0‒10 cm) of several fields located in Albacete and Guadalajara, Spain, and water was taken from wells located in the fields. These samples were analyzed according to the proposed GC methods, and statistically similar values between the two methods were obtained. The identities of the detected herbicides were confirmed by GC‒MS. © 1994, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved