Chorological and morphological data concerning species of the genus "Ambrosia" L. ("Compositae") present on the Iberian Peninsula.

Se ha realizado un estudio corológico de las especies del género Ambrosia L. (Compositae) presentes en la Península Ibérica. Son Ambrosia maritima L., A. tomentosa Nutt., A. trifida L., A. artemisiifolia L., A. psilostachya DC. y A. tenuifolia Spreng. Además, utilizando material de herbario y ejemplares recolectados por los autores, se ha llevado a cabo un estudio morfológico y micromorfológico de las hojas y frutos de dichas especies, para lo que se ha utilizado el microscopio electrónico de barrido. Los datos obtenidos han permitido la elaboración de dos claves de determinación para estas especies, una basada en caracteres foliares y la otra en aspectos florales y carpológicos. El estudio corológico revela que la penetración de estos neófitos se produce a través de los litorales mediterráneo y atlántico, colonizando en primer lugar hábitats alterados por la actividad humana, como cunetas de carreteras, vías férreas, dunas marítimas, cultivos abandonados o riberas de ríos y arroyos.A chorological study of the species of the genus Ambrosia L. (Compositae) present on the Iberian Peninsula has been performed. The species were Ambrosia maritima L., A. tomentosa Nutt., A. trifida L., A. artemisiifolia L., A. psilostachya DC. and A. tenuifolia Spreng. Additionally, using material from the herbarium and samples collected by the authors, we carried out a morphological and micromorphological study of the leaves and fruits of the species examined, in the latter case using a scanning electron microscope. The data obtained allowed the elaboration of two keys for the determination of these species; one based on leaf characteristics and the other on floral and carpological aspects. The corological study revealed that the penetration of the neophyte plants occurs through the Mediterranean and Atlantic littoral areas, first colonizing habitats altered by human activity, such as roadsides, railway lines, maritime dunes, abandoned crop lands and the banks of rivers and streams

Assessment of the methodology for estimating ridge density in fingerprints and its forensic application

In recent times, some studies have explored the forensic application of dermatoglyphic traits such as the epidermal ridge breadth or ridge density (RD) toward the inference of sex and population from fingerprints of unknown origin, as it has been demonstrated that there exist significant differences of fingerprints between sexes and between populations. Part of the population differences found between these studies could be of methodological nature, due both to the lack of standardisation in the position of the counting area, as well as to the differences in the method used for obtaining the fingerprint. Therefore, the aim of this study was to check whether there are differences between the RD of fingerprints depending on where the counting area is placed and how the fingerprints are obtained. Fingerprints of each finger were obtained from 102 adult Spanish subjects (50 females and 52 males), using two methods (plain and rolled). The ridge density of each fingerprint was assessed in five different areas of the dactylogram: two closer to the core area (one on the radial and the other on the ulnar side), two closer to the outermost area of each of the sides (radial and ulnar), and another one in the proximal region of the fingertip. Regardless of the method used and of the position of the counting area, thumbs and forefingers show a higher RD than middle, ring, and little fingers in both sexes, and females present a higher RD than males in all areas and fingers. In both males and females, RD values on the core region are higher than those on the outer region, irrespective of the technique of fingerprinting used (rolled or plain). Regardless of the sex and location of the count area (core or outer), the rolled fingerprints exhibit RD greater than that of the plain ones in both radial and proximal areas, whereas the trend is inverted in the ulnar area, where rolled fingerprints demonstrate RD lesser than that of the plain ones. Therefore, in order for the results of different studies to be comparable, it is necessary to standardise the position of the count area and to use the same method of obtaining the fingerprint, especially when involving a forensic application

Impact of aging in fingerprint ridge density: Anthropometry and forensic implications in sex inference

The variation in the epidermal ridge's width between the sexes, during various growth stages, and among different populations has been previously assessed. However, the changes that occur with aging are barely known. The goal of this study was to analyse the degree of variation in epidermal ridge width due to aging. So that, fingerprint ridge density was estimated to establish their relationship with body and hand size changes that typically occur in adulthood. In this study, a sample of 213 adults of both sexes from a Spanish native population of different age ranges?18?30?years old (?junior? group) and 50?66?years old (?senior? group)?was used. Ridge density was assessed in three counting areas of the distal phalanx of each finger (radial, ulnar, and proximal). Height, weight, and a set of anthropometric measurements for both hands were also taken. Our results show that ridge density is higher in females than males throughout adulthood and decreases with aging in the radial and ulnar areas (as the hands widen) but not in the proximal region. Thus, a relationship between hand dimensions and ridge density was found. The data indicate that aging changes may conceal the recognized sex differences in ridge density, and so a better understanding of the topological variations in the epidermal ridge width throughout the life cycle and the factors involved would facilitate the interpretation of the differences between the sexes and different age groups

Fingerprint ridge density in the Argentinean population and its application to sex inference: A comparative study

Fingerprint ridge density (RD) is known to vary according to sex and population, and such variation can be used for forensic purposes. The aim of this study was to analyze the fingerprint RD of two samples of the Argentinean population in order to assess their topological, digital, bilateral, sexual, and population differences for subsequent application in the inference of sex. Data were collected from the fingerprints of 172 individuals from the Buenos Aires province and 163 from the Chubut province. RD was assessed for three different count areas for all 10 fingers of each individual. In both sexes and both samples, significant differences among areas were obtained, so that radial-RD > ulnar-RD > proximal-RD. Females presented greater RD than males in all areas and on all fingers. Regarding population differences, no significant differences were found between the Buenos Aires and Chubut samples (except for proximal RD in males). However, both samples showed RD significantly different from that of the Jujuy province. The application of Bayes? theorem allowed for the identification of an RD threshold for discrimination of sexes in these Argentinean samples. In conclusion females consistently exhibit narrower epidermal ridges than males, which may evidence a universal pattern of sexual dimorphism in this trait that can be useful in forensics in the identification of individuals.Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarroll

Microwave-Assisted Extraction of Curcuma longa L. Oil: Optimization, Chemical Structure and Composition, Antioxidant Activity and Comparison with Conventional Soxhlet Extraction

Curcuma root (Curcuma longa L.) is a very important plant in gastronomy and medicine for its unique antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. Conventional methods for the extraction of curcuma oil require long extraction times and high temperatures that can degrade the active substances. Therefore, the objectives of the present study were: (i) first, to optimize the extraction yield of curcuma oil by applying a Box-Behnken experimental design using surface response methodology to the microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) technique (the independent variables studied were reaction time (10–30 min), microwave power (150–200 W) and curcuma powder/ethanol ratio (1:5–1:20; w/v); and, (ii) second, to assess the total phenolic content (TPC) and their antioxidant activity of the oil (at the optimum conditions point) and compare with the conventional Soxhlet technique. The optimum conditions for the MAE were found to be 29.99 min, 160 W and 1:20 w/v to obtain an optimum yield of 10.32%. Interestingly, the oil extracted by microwave-assisted extraction showed higher TPC and better antioxidant properties than the oil extracted with conventional Soxhlet technique. Thus, it was demonstrated that the method applied for extraction influences the final properties of the extracted Curcuma longa L. oil.This research was funded by the Basque Country Government (IT 1008-16)

Halochromic and antioxidant capacity of smart films of chitosan/chitin nanocrystals with curcuma oil and anthocyanins

Curcuma longa L. essential oil and anthocyanin extracts contain bioactive compounds such as antioxidant properties and their pigments are able to change color when exposed to different pH or ammonium gas. In this context, the objective of the present work was to develop pH-sensitive intelligent films by adding curcuma oil (composed of essential oils and pigments) and anthocyanin extracts to a chitosan matrix reinforced with alphachitin nanocrystals. The incorporation of curcuma oil, anthocyanins and nanocrystals enhanced the mechanical properties and hydrophobicity; and, decreased water solubility and moisture content. In addition, the films also showed almost total blocking against UV/Vis light at wavelengths below 550 nm. Interestingly, the films were at the same time antioxidant, and sensitive to color change when exposed to ammonia gas and different pH solutions, with greater variations observed when higher concentrations of curcuma oil were added. Hence, these results revealed the potential of these films as intelligent food packaging applications.The authors would like to thank the funding from the Basque Country Government (IT 1008-16). R. F. -M. acknowledge the financial support of the Basque Country Government (scholarship of young researchers training). S.C.M.F. is a recipient of an E2S UPPA MANTA E2S Partnership Chair (Marine Materials) sponsored by the French programme "Investissements d'Avenir" administered by the French National Research Agency (ANR-16-IDEX-IDEX). The authors wish to acknowledge the technical and human assistance received from SGIker (UPV/EHU/ERDF, EU), Spain

Evaluation of CO2-doped blends in single-stage with IHX and parallel compression refrigeration architectures

CO2 is the standard for medium to large-sized commercial applications, as it combines security and low environmental impact. However, it requires the use of advanced and complex cycles. Recently, CO2-doping (the addition of a small quantity of another fluid) has attracted scientific attention, as when CO2 is mixed with fluids with higher critical temperatures, the optimum operation moves to subcritical, providing COP increments in relation to pure-CO2 operation. This work, from a theoretical perspective, evaluates CO2-doping with the fluids R-152a, R-1234yf, R-1234ze(E) and R-1233zd(E) considering the two most used CO2 cycles: the base cycle with an internal heat exchanger (IHX) and the cycle with parallel compression (PC), fractionation taking place. The work analyses the COP improvements for an evaporating level of -10°C and from 10 to 40°C of environment temperature. Predicted maximum COP increments reach up to 5.8% for the IHX cycle and 10.0% for the PC cycle

A novel Kluyveromyces marxianus strain with an inducible flocculation phenotype

Flocculation is a very useful phenotype for industrial yeast strains, since it facilitates cell harvest and represents an easy way of cell immobilization in continuous fermentation processes. The present work represents the first time that an inducible flocculation phenotype has been generated in a non flocculent strain of Kluyveromyces marxianus. This was accomplished by expressing Saccharomyces cerevisiae FLO5 gene in K. marxianus CECT 11769 strain. The FLO 5 gene was placed under the control of an EPG promoter, not repressed by glucose and induced by anoxia. Our experimental approach successfully generated two novel K. marxianus flocculent phenotypes: one inducible and one constitutive. The constitutive phenotype originated from deletions in the FLO5 promoter region, indicating the existence of putative upstream repressor site involved in oxygen regulation of the EPG1 promoter. The novel strains here generated had a unique set of characteristics that provided an advantage, over the wild-type strain, for the industrial co-production of ethanol and polygalacturonase.This work was supported by the AECID (Grant no. A/024951/09 and A/ 030029/10)S

Metodología de enseñanza para la iniciación deportiva en el judo

En el presente artículo científico se mencionará la metodología de enseñanza para la iniciación en el deporte del Judo , el estudio fue realizado a diferentes autores que hablan de la aplicación de distintas metodologías de enseñanza, en sus diferentes etapas de iniciación deportiva, además el estudio se realizó en distintos repositorios digitales y fuentes académicas confiables para que se pueda determinar varios conceptos como: las fases dentro de la etapa de iniciación del deportista, métodos de enseñanza, a su vez se analiza recomendaciones que favorezcan el desarrollo del deportista en esta etapa de su preparación y un análisis general de dicha etapa. El artículo es de carácter bibliográfico, ya que se revisará información trascendental y de mayor relevancia conforme al tema a tratar, con el fin de especificar puntos muy importantes y sobre todo aclarar la metodología de enseñanza más idónea para que se aplica en estas edades de iniciación deportiva. PALABRAS CLAVE: Métodos de enseñanza; Judo ; Iniciación deportiva. Teaching methodology for sports initiation in Judo ABSTRACT In this scientific article, the teaching methodology for initiation in the sport of Judo  will be mentioned, the study was carried out with different authors who speak of the application of different teaching methodologies, in their different stages of sports initiation, in addition the study is carried out in different digital repositories and reliable academic sources so that several concepts can be determined such as: the phases within the athlete's initiation stage, teaching methods, in turn, recommendations that favor the athlete's development at this stage of their preparation and a general analysis of said stage. The article is of a bibliographic nature, since transcendental and more relevant information will be reviewed according to the topic to be discussed, in order to specify very important points and above all to clarify the most suitable teaching methodology to be applied in these initiation ages sporty. KEYWORDS: Teaching methods; Judo ; Sportsinitiation