Phylogenetic relationships of plant species from the flowering desert of the Atacama Region / Relaciones filogenéticas de especies de plantas que crecen en el desierto florido de la Región de Atacama

Every 3 to 7 year angiosperms species of the flowering desert appear in the Atacama Region of Chile, as a result of the climatic phenomenon "El Niño". Our objective was to evaluate the universality of matK and rbcL barcode markers of these species, and validate their taxon through phylogenetic relationships. Argemone hunnemannii, Oenothera coquimbensis, Malesherbia humilis, Leucocoryne appendiculata, Loasa elongata, Nicotiana solanifolia, Stachys grandidentata, Aristolochia chilensis, Alstroemeria kingii and Adesmia eremophila, almost all classified as endemic to Chile, were collected in Pan de Azúcar and Llanos de Challe National Park (Atacama Region, Chile) at the end of October 2017. The phylogeny of these ten angiosperm species from the flowering desert was analyzed using rbcL and matK markers with the maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference methods. The results showed that 70% of the species can be distinguished with the matK or rbcL locus, however, 100% were distinguished using both loci. The phylogenetic results showed that the species formed clades with high reliability and high support with both the matK and rbcL genes, when comparing our results with sequences obtained from GenBank. The matK and rbcL genes are efficient markers for analyzing phylogenetic relationships and validating the taxonomy of flowering species.

Las especies de angiospermas del Desierto Florido de la Región de Atacama de Chile aparecen cada 3 a 7 años, influenciado por el fenómeno climático "El Niño". Nuestro objetivo fue evaluar la universalidad de los marcadores de código de barra matK y rbcL de estas especies, y validar su taxón por medio de relaciones filogenéticas. Las especies Argemone hunnemannii, Oenothera coquimbensis, Malesherbia humilis, Leucocoryne appendiculata, Loasa elongata, Nicotiana solanifolia, Stachys grandidentata, Aristolochia chilensis, Alstroemeria kingii y Adesmia eremophila son clasificadas la mayoría endémicas de Chile. Estas especies fueron colectadas en el Parque Nacional Pan de Azúcar y Llanos de Challe, Región de Atacama, Chile. La colecta se realizó a fines de octubre de 2017. Con los marcadores rbcL y matK se analizó la filogenia con los métodos máxima verosimilitud e inferencia bayesiana en diez especies de angiosperma del Desierto Florido. Los resultados mostraron que el 70% de las especies pueden ser distinguidas con un locus matK o rbcL, sin embargo, el 100% se distinguió usando ambos locus. Los resultados filogenéticos mostraron que las especies formaron clados con alta fiabilidad y alto soporte tanto con los genes matK y rbcL, al comparar con accesos de secuencias obtenidas de GenBank. Lo genes matK y rbcL son marcadores eficientes para analizar relaciones filogenéticas y validar el taxón de las especies de flor.

Historical review of clinical vaccine studies at Oswaldo Cruz Institute and Oswaldo Cruz Foundation - technological development issues

This paper presents, from the perspective of technological development and production, the results of an investigation examining 61 clinical studies with vaccines conducted in Brazil between 1938-2013, with the participation of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute (IOC) and the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz). These studies have been identified and reviewed according to criteria, such as the kind of vaccine (viral, bacterial, parasitic), their rationale, design and methodological strategies. The results indicate that IOC and Fiocruz have accumulated along this time significant knowledge and experience for the performance of studies in all clinical phases and are prepared for the development of new vaccines products and processes. We recommend national policy strategies to overcome existing regulatory and financing constraints.

Changes in PEP Carboxylase, Rubisco and Rubisco activase mRNA levels from maize (Zea mays) exposed to a chronic ozone stress

We quantified the ozone impact on levels of Zea mays L. cv. Chambord mRNAs encoding C4-phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (C4-PEPc), ribulose-l,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase small and large subunits (Rubisco-SSU and Rubisco-LSU, respectively) and Rubisco activase (RCA) using real-time RT-PCR. Foliar pigment content, PEPc and Rubisco protein amounts were simultaneously determined. Two experiments were performed to study the ozone response of the 5th and the 10th leaf. For each experiment, three ozone concentrations were tested in open-top chambers: non-filtered air (NF, control) and non-filtered air containing 40 (+40) and 80 nL L-1 (+80) ozone. Regarding the 5th leaf, +40 atmosphere induced a loss in pigmentation, PEPc and Rubisco activase mRNAs. However, it was unable to notably depress carboxylase protein amounts and mRNAs encoding Rubisco. Except for Rubisco mRNAs, all other measured parameters from 5th leaf were depressed by +80 atmosphere. Regarding the 10th leaf, +40 atmosphere increased photosynthetic pigments and transcripts encoding Rubisco and Rubisco activase. Rubisco and PEPc protein amounts were not drastically changed, even if they tended to be increased. Level of C4-PEPc mRNA remained almost stable. In response to +80 atmosphere, pigments and transcripts encoding PEPc were notably decreased. Rubisco and PEPc protein amounts also declined to a lesser extent. Conversely, the level of transcripts encoding both Rubisco subunits and Rubisco activase that were not consistently disturbed tended to be slightly augmented. So, the present study suggests that maize leaves can respond differentially to a similar ozone stress.

Eficacia del tratamiento farmacológico de osteoporosis en la prevención de fracturas / Pharmacological treatment efficacy in osteoporosis for prevention of fractures

En el presente artículo se hace una exhaustiva revisión bibliográfica de las investigaciones y resultados clínicos de las drogas más utilizadas para el tratamiento de la osteoporosis, así como de la efectividad de cada una de ellas para prevenir una fractura. También se discuten los problemas más importantes para prevenir, diagnosticar y tratar esta enfermedad con un costo beneficio razonable. Al final se discuten algunas estrategias y sugerencias para definir si es necesaria o no una intervención farmacológica, y si ésta se considera necesaria, de qué tipo debe ser.