Engaging the Guatemala Scientific Diaspora: The Power of Networking and Shared Learning.

The underdevelopment of the higher education system in Guatemala and the fragility of its science and technology (S&T) contexts have compelled a significant number of talented Guatemalan scientists to be trained, educated, and employed abroad. The relocation of such skilled human power to different countries and regions has resulted in a growing Guatemalan Scientific Diaspora (GSD). Until recently, the emigration of scientists from the Global South to scientifically advanced countries in the North was studied as it negatively impacted the countries of origin.

Harmful algal blooms and cyanotoxins in Lake Amatitlán, Guatemala, coincided with ancient Maya occupation in the watershed.

Human-induced deforestation and soil erosion were environmental stressors for the ancient Maya of Mesoamerica. Furthermore, intense, periodic droughts during the Terminal Classic Period, ca. Common Era 830 to 950, have been documented from lake sediment cores and speleothems.

Holocene life and microbiome profiling in ancient tropical Lake Chalco, Mexico.

Metagenomic and traditional paleolimnological approaches are suitable to infer past biological and environmental changes, however, they are often applied independently, especially in tropical regions. We combined both approaches to investigate Holocene Prokaryote and Eukaryote diversity and microbial metabolic pathways in ancient Lake Chalco, Mexico. Here, we report on diversity among a large number of lineages (36,722 OTUs) and functional diversity (27,636,243 non-clustered predicted proteins, and 6,144 annotated protein-family genes).

Antioxidative response of the three macrophytes Ceratophyllum demersum, Egeria densa, and Hydrilla verticillata to a time dependent exposure of cell-free crude extracts containing three microcystins from cyanobacterial blooms of Lake Amatitlán, Guatemala.

Microcystins (MCs) produced by cyanobacteria in natural environments are a potential risk to the integrity of ecosystems. In this study, the effects of cyanobacterial cell-free crude extracts from a Microcystis aeruginosa bloom containing three MC-congeners MC-LR, -RR, and -YR at environmental relevant concentrations of 49.3±2.

Accumulation of microcystin congeners in different aquatic plants and crops--a case study from lake Amatitlán, Guatemala.

Microcystins (MCs) fate in natural environments can lead to its transfer into aquatic organisms, e.g. aquatic plants.