Publications by authors named "Carolina Contreras"

Flavor is an essential characteristic of fruit quality and is significant for consumers. Off-flavors have been reported in several fruits, including sweet cherry. This fruit has been reported to show an herbaceous/grassy-like flavor.

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To cope with life in the mountains, populations of the same species can exhibit substantial variability in their altitudinal migration patterns and phenotypes in response to local weather conditions. Studying such variability can provide valuable insights into how local populations respond to environmental challenges, and this information can be useful for conservation efforts in mountain ecosystems. Here, we used δH values of feathers and blood to evaluate latitudinal variation in altitudinal migration patterns and its possible links with body size, oxidative status, and exploratory behavior in 72 individuals of rufous-collared sparrow () that breed at low and high elevations in the center (~33°) and south (~38°) of Chile.

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Corky disorders in apples represent a significant problem for long-term storage where controlled atmosphere (CA) is mainly used. Ultra-low oxygen (ULO) is an alternative to CA, which consists of low partial pressure of O to maintain a low metabolism in the apple fruit, achieving an effective decrease in the ethylene production and physiological disorders. The aim of this research was to study the effectiveness of a short hypoxia period on the development of cork physiological disorders during the storage of apple.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examined the clinical and survival characteristics of transplant-eligible multiple myeloma patients in Latin America, focusing on the differences between public and private healthcare systems.
  • It included data from 1293 patients diagnosed from 2010 to 2018, highlighting significant disparities in outcomes and survival rates between those treated in public versus private institutions.
  • The findings suggest that late diagnosis and limited access to effective treatments in public facilities contribute to poorer survival rates, while patients receiving modern therapies and autologous stem cell transplants have survival rates comparable to international standards.
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Article Synopsis
  • Amphibian movement is influenced by both temperature and hydration, but organisms face multiple environmental factors simultaneously in nature.
  • To study these effects, researchers examined two populations of a small amphibian from environments with very different temperatures and rainfall.
  • Findings revealed that locomotor performance improved with higher temperatures and better hydration, plateauing at 25-30°C, and that the warmer environment population showed less impact on movement from dehydration, suggesting a possible adaptation to heat.
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Background: Immunoglobulin light chain (AL) amyloidosis is a rare and underdiagnosed entity.

Aim: To characterize patients with AL amyloidosis in Chilean public health centers.

Material And Methods: We conducted a retrospective, multicenter study.

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Background The treatment of choice of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) is an induction with proteasome inhibitors followed autologous stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Since 2013, the treatment of these patients in the public system is based on CTD (cyclophosphamide, thalidomide, and dexamethasone). Aim To evaluate the response rates achieved with CTD, and the results of HSCT in patients with NDMM in the public setting.

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The high metabolic activity associated with endurance flights and intense fuelling of migrant birds may produce large quantities of reactive oxygen species, which cause oxidative damage. Yet it remains unknown how long-lived birds prepare for oxidative challenges prior to extreme flights. We combined blood measurements of oxidative status and enzyme and fat metabolism in Hudsonian godwits (Limosa haemastica, a long-lived shorebird) before they embarked on non-stop flights longer than 10,000 km during their northbound migrations.

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Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is one of the most common malignancies found in hematology.

Aim: To describe the features of patients with MM and perform a survival analysis according to the different treatment protocols used between 2000 and 2016.

Material And Methods: Analysis of the database of the Chilean national anti-neoplastic drug program.

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Purpose: Lean healthcare is highlighted in the literature as an approach to quality improvement and operational efficiency. The purpose of this paper is to study how Lean healthcare has been implemented by analyzing empirical outcomes.

Design/methodology/approach: The authors used a literature review as the primary research method, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses process.

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Hamelia patens, is a plant traditionally used to treat a variety of conditions among the Huastec people of Mexico. The objective of this study is to characterize the phenolic content and critically examine the antimicrobial activity of leaf extracts H. patens, obtained by maceration, Soxhlet and percolation, using ethanol as 70% solvent.

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Many physiological adjustments occur in response to salt intake in several marine taxa, which manifest at different scales from changes in the concentration of individual molecules to physical traits of whole organisms. Little is known about the influence of salinity on the distribution, physiological performance, and ecology of passerines; specifically, the impact of drinking water salinity on the oxidative status of birds has been largely ignored. In this study, we evaluated whether experimental variations in the salt intake of a widely-distributed passerine () could generate differences in basal (BMR) and maximum metabolic rates (M), as well as affect metabolic enzyme activity and oxidative status.

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Lipoxygenase (LOX) is an important contributor to aroma compounds in most fresh produce; however, little is known about the LOX pathway in pepino (Solanum muricatum Aiton) fruit. We explored the LOX aroma compounds produced by the flesh and the peel and identified eight putative LOX genes expressed in both tissues during fruit growth and development during two consecutive seasons. This study shows that pepino produces C5, C6, and C9 LOX-derived compounds.

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'Crimson Seedless' is one of the most important table grape varieties in Chile, but under certain environmental conditions, the fruit exhibits inadequate red color development, causing economic losses due to lower product quality. The use of plant growth regulators, such as abscisic acid (ABA) and ethylene, during development increases the anthocyanin content of the skin, improving the color of the berry. Recently, sucrose has been identified as a signaling molecule capable of regulating the expression of genes of the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway.

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Mammals of the Neotropics are characterized by a marked annual cycle of activity, which is accompanied by several physiological changes at the levels of the whole organism, organs and tissues. The physiological characterization of these cycles is important, as it gives insight on the mechanisms by which animals adjust adaptively to seasonality. Here we studied the seasonal changes in blood biochemical parameters in the relict South American marsupial Dromiciops gliroides ("monito del monte" or "little mountain monkey"), under semi-natural conditions.

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Cherimoya (Annona cherimola Mill.) is a subtropical fruit characterized by a significant increase in organic acid levels during ripening, making it an interesting model for studying the relationship between acidity and fruit flavor. In this work, we focused on understanding the balance between the concentration of organic acids and the gene expression and activity of enzymes involved in the synthesis and degradation of these metabolites during the development and ripening of cherimoya cv.

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Lipoxygenase (LOX) is an important contributor to the formation of aroma-active C6 aldehydes in apple (Malus × domestica) fruit upon tissue disruption but little is known about its role in autonomously produced aroma volatiles from intact tissue. We explored the expression of 22 putative LOX genes in apple throughout ripening, but only six LOXs were expressed in a ripening-dependent manner. Recombinant LOX1:Md:1a, LOX1:Md:1c, LOX2:Md:2a and LOX2:Md:2b proteins showed 13/9-LOX, 9-LOX, 13/9-LOX and 13-LOX activity with linoleic acid, respectively.

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Many mammals hibernate, which is a profound lethargic state of several weeks or months during winter, that represents a transitory episode of hetherothermy. As with other cases of dormancy, the main benefit of hibernation seems to be energy saving. However, the depth and duration of torpor can be experimentally modified by the composition of food, especially by fattyacid composition.

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Seasonal torpor or hibernation is a phenomenon characterized by a physiological transition to dormancy (torpor) during challenging periods in terms of energy availability or metabolic load. Extensive physiological reprogramming and changes in gene-expression, immune function, oxygen transport and intermediate metabolism, occur during eutherian hibernation. Here we studied the seasonality of blood parameters, and during daily torpor, in a South American marsupial (Dromiciops gliroides).

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During periods of cold, small endotherms depend on a continuous supply of food and energy to maintain euthermic body temperature (T(b)), which can be challenging if food is limited. In these conditions, energy-saving strategies are critical to reduce the energetic requirements for survival. Mammals from temperate regions show a wide arrange of such strategies, including torpor and huddling.

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Batch and column experiments were performed to determine the Cu(II) binding capacity of silica-immobilized humin biomass. For column studies, 500 bed volumes of a 0.1 mM Cu(II) solution were passed through humin packed columns at the flow rates of 1, 1.

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Batch and column experiments were performed to determine the Pb(II) binding ability of silica-immobilized humin biomass under different conditions. Batch experiments were performed to determine the interference of Ca(II) and Mg(II) and column experiments were used to determine the effect of flow rate and the presence of Ca(II) and Mg(II) on the Pb(II) adsorption by the humin biopolymer. The results from the batch experiments showed that Pb binding decreased as the concentrations of Ca and Mg increased.

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Background: Although unreliability of periodontal measurements is considered mainly to concern attempts to detect true changes in longitudinal studies, it is also a source of variability that may substantially decrease the precision of estimates obtained in cross-sectional studies. This study assessed the effects of measurement errors on estimates of prevalence, extent, and severity of clinical attachment loss.

Methods: Four examiners performed repeat attachment level recordings in 128, 122, 134, and 133 adolescents, respectively, who participated in a study of clinical attachment loss among 9,162 high school students from Santiago, Chile.

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