Diagrammatic scale for quantification of severity of white thread blight disease in yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis Saint Hilaire).

The yerba-mate industry is one of the most important economic activities in Misiones, a province in the northeast of Argentina that is the world's leading producer and exporter of this crop. White thread blight disease caused by Ceratobasidium niltonzousanum affects the cultivation reducing its quality and productivity. Due to the lack of a standardized visual method to quantify the severity of this disease in yerba mate, a diagrammatic scale was developed and validated. Yerba-mate branches were collected in a field in the north of Misiones province, and the actual severity was determined digitally. A six-level scale was developed using the DOSLOG software, based on the Weber-Fechner law. The validation was carried out by twenty raters. One evaluation without the diagrammatic scale and two evaluations with the scale were carried out in 14-day intervals. Accuracy, precision, and reproducibility of the scale were evaluated through linear regressions and correlation analysis, obtaining R2 values ranged between 0.70 and 0.94. Using the diagrammatic scale developed in this work, raters enhanced the accuracy and precision of the estimates, and the repeatability of the scale improved by 94.74%. The scale was appropriate to assess the damage of white thread blight in yerba mate.

Isolation and selection of endophytic spore-forming bacteria with plant growth promoting properties isolated from Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil. (yerba mate).

Yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil.) is a species native to the subtropical regions of South America. Despite being an important crop for the region, there are few studies on the use of microorganisms to improve the growth of seedlings in the nursery stage. The objective of this study was to isolate spore-forming endophytic bacteria with plant growth promoting properties associated with yerba mate seedlings and determine their phytobeneficial effect under controlled laboratory conditions. Isolates were selected based on their sporulation capacity and evaluated for in vitro plant growth promoting properties (nitrogen fixation, phosphate solubilization, production of siderophores and synthesis of indolic compounds). Yerba mate seedlings were inoculated with the most promising isolates, which were identified via analyses of the sequence of their 16S rDNA gene as Bacillus circulans (12RS3) and Bacillus altitudinis (19RS3, T5S-T4). After 120 days plants showed higher root dry weight when inoculated with isolate 19RS3 and higher shoot dry weight with 19RS3 and T5S-T4. In conclusion, further studies to determine the ability of these isolates to adapt to the climatic conditions and to survive amidst the native soil microflora in yerba mate cultivated native soils, will be crucial for developing such strains as biofertilizer.

Recent patents related to phosphorylation signaling pathway on cancer.

Phosphorylation and dephosphorylation play an important role in the regulation of growth factor and cytokine signal transduction to modulate cell proliferation, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis. In some cellular systems, the information suggests that EGFR, somatostatin receptors, SHP-1, Akt and PI3K can regulate carcinogenesis implied process through regulated the activity of NF-κB. Current patents related to signaling pathway that includes somatostatin receptors, phosphotyrosine phosphatases, tyrosine kinases, AKT/PKB and PI3K are focusing in diagnosis, prognosis and treatment. Many recent patented techniques include inhibition, antagonism or alternative therapeutic methods. Furthermore, it is necessary to deepen understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in cancer to develop other alternative therapies focusing not only on new inhibitors.