A species distribution model of the giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera: Worldwide changes and a focus on the Southeast Pacific.

Worldwide climate-driven shifts in the distribution of species is of special concern when it involves habitat-forming species. In the coastal environment, large Laminarian algae-kelps-form key coastal ecosystems that support complex and diverse food webs. Among kelps, Macrocystis pyrifera is the most widely distributed habitat-forming species and provides essential ecosystem services. This study aimed to establish the main drivers of future distributional changes on a global scale and use them to predict future habitat suitability. Using species distribution models (SDM), we examined the changes in global distribution of M. pyrifera under different emission scenarios with a focus on the Southeast Pacific shores. To constrain the drivers of our simulations to the most important factors controlling kelp forest distribution across spatial scales, we explored a suite of environmental variables and validated the predictions derived from the SDMs. Minimum sea surface temperature was the single most important variable explaining the global distribution of suitable habitat for M. pyrifera. Under different climate change scenarios, we always observed a decrease of suitable habitat at low latitudes, while an increase was detected in other regions, mostly at high latitudes. Along the Southeast Pacific, we observed an upper range contraction of -17.08° S of latitude for 2090-2100 under the RCP8.5 scenario, implying a loss of habitat suitability throughout the coast of Peru and poleward to -27.83° S in Chile. Along the area of Northern Chile where a complete habitat loss is predicted by our model, natural stands are under heavy exploitation. The loss of habitat suitability will take place worldwide: Significant impacts on marine biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are likely. Furthermore, changes in habitat suitability are a harbinger of massive impacts in the socio-ecological systems of the Southeast Pacific.

[Translational medicine and innovation in health: mechanisms and perspectives]. / Medicina traslacional e innovación en salud: mecanismos y perspectivas.

Many new discoveries in Life Sciences cannot be translated into products, services or new applications to improve human health. Translational medicine, defined as "from bench to bedside", refers to the transfer of results or new knowledge achieved in the laboratory into health innovation. We aim to review the state of art of translational medicine, its relationship with innovation processes and the different perspectives to consider. Finally, we contextualize the situation of Research and Development (R&D) in Chile and the main issues of the biotechnology market in the country.

Medicina traslacional e innovación en salud: mecanismos y perspectivas / Translational medicine and innovation in health: mechanisms and perspectives

Many new discoveries in Life Sciences cannot be translated into products, services or new applications to improve human health. Translational medicine, defined as "from bench to bedside", refers to the transfer of results or new knowledge achieved in the laboratory into health innovation. We aim to review the state of art of translational medicine, its relationship with innovation processes and the different perspectives to consider. Finally, we contextualize the situation of Research and Development (R&D) in Chile and the main issues of the biotechnology market in the country.

Seaweeds: an opportunity for wealth and sustainable livelihood for coastal communities.

The European, Canadian, and Latin American seaweed industries rely on the sustainable harvesting of natural resources. As several countries wish to increase their activity, the harvest should be managed according to integrated and participatory governance regimes to ensure production within a long-term perspective. Development of regulations and directives enabling the sustainable exploitation of natural resources must therefore be brought to the national and international political agenda in order to ensure environmental, social, and economic values in the coastal areas around the world. In Europe, Portugal requires an appraisal of seaweed management plans while Norway and Canada have developed and implemented coastal management plans including well-established and sustainable exploitation of their natural seaweed resources. Whereas, in Latin America, different scenarios of seaweed exploitation can be observed; each country is however in need of long-term and ecosystem-based management plans to ensure that exploitation is sustainable. These plans are required particularly in Peru and Brazil, while Chile has succeeded in establishing a sustainable seaweed-harvesting plan for most of the economically important seaweeds. Furthermore, in both Europe and Latin America, seaweed aquaculture is at its infancy and development will have to overcome numerous challenges at different levels (i.e., technology, biology, policy). Thus, there is a need for regulations and establishment of "best practices" for seaweed harvesting, management, and cultivation. Trained human resources will also be required to provide information and education to the communities involved, to enable seaweed utilization to become a profitable business and provide better income opportunities to coastal communities.

Spearfishing to depletion: evidence from temperate reef fishes in Chile.

Unreliable and data-poor marine fishery landings can lead to a lack of regulatory action in fisheries management. Here we use official Chilean landing reports and non-conventional indicators, such as fishers' perceptions and spearfishing competition results, to provide evidence of reef fishes depletions caused by unregulated spearfishing. Results show that the three largest and most emblematic reef fishes targeted mainly by spearfishers (> 98% of landings) [Graus nigra (vieja negra), Semicossyphus darwini (sheephead or pejeperro), and Medialuna ancietae (acha)] show signs of depletion in terms of abundance and size and that overall the catches of reef fishes have shifted from large carnivore species toward smaller-sized omnivore and herbivore species. Information from two snorkeling speargun world championships (1971 and 2004, Iquique, Chile) and from fishers' perceptions shows the mean size of reef fish to be declining. Although the ecological consequences of reef fish depletion are not fully understood in Chile, evidence of spearfishing depleting temperate reef fishes must be explicitly included in policy debates. This would involve bans or strong restrictions on the use of SCUBA and hookah diving gear for spearfishing, and minimum size limits. It may also involve academic and policy discussions regarding conservation and fisheries management synergies within networks of no-take and territorial user-rights fisheries areas, as a strategy for the sustainable management of temperate and tropical reef fisheries.

Physical and biological properties of barium cross-linked alginate membranes.

We describe the manufacture of highly stable and elastic alginate membranes with good cell adhesivity and adjustable permeability. Clinical grade, ultra-high viscosity alginate is gelled by diffusion of Ba2+ followed by use of the "crystal gun" [Zimmermann H. et al., Fabrication of homogeneously cross-linked, functional alginate microcapsules validated by NMR-, CLSM- and AFM-imaging. Biomaterials 2003;24:2083-96]. Burst pressure of well-hydrated membranes is between 34 and 325kPa depending on manufacture and storage details. Water flows induced by sorbitol and raffinose (probably diffusional) are lower than those caused by PEG 6000, which may be related to a Hagen-Poiseuille flow. Hydraulic conductivity, L(p), from PEG-induced flows ranges between 2.4x10(-12) and 6.5x10(-12) m Pa(-1)s(-1). Hydraulic conductivity measured with hydrostatic pressure up to 6 kPa is 2-3 orders of magnitude higher and decreases with increasing pressure to about 3x10(-10) m Pa(-1)s(-1) at 4kPa. Mechanical introduction of 200 microm-diameter pores increases hydraulic conductivity dramatically without loss of mechanical stability or flexibility. NMR imaging with Cu2+ as contrast agent shows a layered structure in membranes cross-linked for 2h. Phase contrast and atomic force microscopy in liquid environment reveals surface protrusions and cavities correlating with steps of the production process. Murine L929 cells adhere strongly to the rough surface of crystal-bombarded membranes. NaCl-mediated membrane swelling can be prevented by partial replacement of salt with sorbitol allowing cell culture on the membranes.