Chilean brush tailed mouse (): a diurnal precocial rodent as a new model to study visual receptive field properties of superior colliculus neurons.

Lab rodent species commonly used to study the visual system and its development (hamsters, rats, and mice) are crepuscular/nocturnal, altricial, and possess simpler visual systems than carnivores and primates. To widen the spectra of studied species, here we introduce an alternative model, the Chilean degu (). This diurnal, precocial Caviomorph rodent has a cone enriched, well-structured retina, and well-developed central visual projections.

Initial phthalates fingerprint and hydrochemical signature as key factors controlling phthalates concentration trends in PET-bottled waters during long storage times.

Phthalateacid esters (PAEs) concentration in bottled water and different factors (water pH, storage time, sunlight exposure, and temperature) that affect/control them have become hot topics during recent years. Nevertheless, quite contradictory results and disagreements on the effects of these factors have been published. In an attempt to find some consensus on this topic, a comprehensive study considering the combined effect of long storage times (longer than a year) and the water hydrochemical signature (including water pH, elemental composition and the presence/absence of dissolved CO)was performedusing the four most commonly consumed bottled water brands on the Chilean market.

Touching the Sky: Coccinellids (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) at High Altitudes in South America.

Records of extreme altitudes where several coccinellid species from South America inhabit the Andes of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru are provided. After an intensive review of several entomological collections and literature, records for 35 species with at least one location over 3500-m elevation were obtained, including the genera Cycloneda (ten species), Eriopis (15 species and one subspecies), Harmonia (one species), Hippodamia (two species), Mimoscymnus (two species), Psyllobora (one species), and Stenadalia (four species). In total, 184 location records are listed, of which 119 were from between 3000 and 4000 m, 57 between 4000 and 4900 m and eight above 4900 m, with the highest altitude record at 5250 m for Eriopis minima Hofmann.

Pollen Types Used by the Native Stingless Bee, Tetragonisca angustula (Latreille), in an Amazon-Chiquitano Transitional Forest of Bolivia.

Samples of corbicular and stored pollen gathered by Tetragonisca angustula (Latreille, 1811) in an Amazon-Chiquitano transitional forest during the dry season were analyzed. The pollen spectrum was established as well as the dynamics of the relationship between the stingless bee and the surrounding flora. Pollen samples obtained from three rational hives were subjected to acetolysis and 55 pollen types were identified, the most frequent being from Anadenanthera (Fabaceae), Chenopodiaceae, and Dydimopanax (Araliaceae).

Identification of the Female Sex Pheromone of the Leafroller Proeulia triquetra Obraztsov (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

Proeulia triquetra Obraztsov (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) is an occasional pest in fruit orchards in central-southern Chile. In order to develop species-specific lures for detection and monitoring of this species, we identified the female-produced sex pheromone. (Z)-11-Tetradecenyl acetate (Z11-14:OAc), (E)-9-dodecenyl acetate (E9-12:OAc), and (E)-11-Tetradecenyl acetate (E11-14:OAc) were identified as biologically active compounds present in female pheromone glands by solvent extraction of the gland and analysis of the extracts by gas chromatography-electroantennographic detection and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Release Kinetic in Yogurt from Gallic Acid Microparticles with Chemically Modified Inulin.

Gallic acid (GA) was encapsulated with native (NIn), cross-linked (CIn) and acetylated (AIn) inulin by spray-drying. Inulin microparticles were characterized by encapsulation efficiency (EE) and their release profile in yogurt. The EE was significantly higher for GA-CIn (98%) compared with GA-NIn (81%) and GA-AIn (77%) microparticles, showing the effect of the modification of inulin on interaction of GA-polymer.

New Records Reveal the Actual Distribution of Cratomelus meritus Gorochov (Orthoptera: Anostostomatidae), a Giant Red Cricket from Chile.

The geographic distribution of the red cricket Cratomelus meritus Gorochov had remained unknown until now due to mislabeling and lack of new records. The aim of this short communication is to uncover and establish the actual distribution of the species on the basis of new records and discuss potential biogeographic hypotheses about its distribution.

International Regulations of Propolis Quality: Required Assays do not Necessarily Reflect their Polyphenolic-Related In Vitro Activities.

Propolis has been proposed as a polyphenolic-rich natural product potentially able to be used for human consumption or even for medicinal proposes. To guarantee a minimum phenolic and flavonoid content and as consequence of their related-biological activities, international requirements of propolis quality are commonly applied. In this work we assessed phenolic and flavonoid contents of propolis; the antioxidant capacity (toward peroxyl radicals and hypochlorous acid); the ability to generate nitric oxide (NO); and, finally the antimicrobial activity of 6 propolis samples from the VI region of Chile.

Molecular Characterization and In Silico Analysis of the Pheromone-Binding Protein of the European Grapevine Moth Lobesia botrana (Denis & Schiffermüller) (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae).

The European grapevine moth Lobesia botrana (Denis & Schiffermüller) is an economically important insect in Europe. The species invaded vineyards in Chile, Argentina, and California during 2008-2010 causing severe problems. A major component of the sex pheromone, (E,Z)-7,9-dodecadienyl acetate (E7,Z9-12:Ac), is used in a mating disruption technique when grapevine moth populations are low or to monitor pest numbers.

Development of an ingredient containing apple peel, as a source of polyphenols and dietary fiber.

Apple peel is a waste product from dried apple manufacture. The content of phenolic compounds, dietary fiber, and mineral are higher in apple peel, compared to other edible parts of this fruits. The objective of this study was to develop an ingredient from Granny Smith apple peel, using a pilot scale double drum-dryer, as drying technology.

Mathematical modeling in genetic networks: relationships between the genetic expression and both chromosomic breakage and positive circuits.

The human genome with its 23 pairs of chromosomes, is the result of evolution. This evolution has been ruled by the mutation process and also by the physiological and pathological reorganization of the genomic material inside or between the chromosomes, which are conditioning the genomic variability. This reorganization is starting at singular points on the short or long chromosomic arms, called crossing-over, or translocations, insertions, break points.

Genetic design of biologically inspired receptive fields for neural pattern recognition.

This paper proposes a new method for the design, through simulated evolution, of biologically inspired receptive fields in feedforward neural networks (NNs). The method is intended to enhance pattern recognition performance by creating new neural architectures specifically tuned for a particular pattern recognition problem. It proposes a combined neural architecture composed of two networks in cascade: a feature extraction network (FEN) followed by a neural classifier.

Frequency domain analysis of sleep EEG for visualization and automated state detection.

Conventional analysis of EEG signals for sleep scoring is based on the time domain assessment of wave patterns. Human experts carry out this task relying on the direct visualization of EEG epochs. Techniques that enhance an intuitive visualization may encourage a wider use of more abstract descriptors, such as frequency domain features.