Optimización de condiciones de cultivo de tejidos y transformación in vitro e in planta de la variedad local de arroz Don Justo FCAyF

El arroz (Oryza sativa L.) es uno de los cereales de mayor importancia económica debido a que provee alimento a más de la mitad de la población mundial. El mejoramiento de este cultivo mediante ingeniería genética requiere poner a punto procesos como el cultivo de tejidos y la transformación. En este trabajo se optimizaron los métodos de cultivo in vitro y transformación de la variedad local de alto rendimiento Don Justo FCAyF. Con respecto al cultivo de tejidos se determinó que la concentración óptima de 2,4D para la callogénesis fue de 3 mg.l-1 con un 42%. La regeneración de parte aérea mostró un 77% de eficiencia con una combinación de 4 mg.l-1 BAP y 0,8 mg.l-1 ANA. En relación a la transformación mediante Agrobacterium tumefaciens se obtuvieron diferentes porcentajes de eficiencia dependiendo del plásmido utilizado para transformar como también del explanto. En el caso de la transformación in vitro de callos embriogénicos se obtuvieron valores entre 14-29% dependiendo del plásmido. Mientras que el método in planta de transformación de embriones presentó una eficiencia entre 3-28%. En conclusión, en este trabajo se puso a punto los métodos de cultivo y transformación de una variedad local de arroz que facilitará el mejoramiento genético de la misma mediante distintas técnicas como transgénesis convencional o edición génica.

Polyamines and Legumes: Joint Stories of Stress, Nitrogen Fixation and Environment

Polyamines (PAs) are natural aliphatic amines involved in many physiological processes in almost all living organisms, including responses to abiotic stresses and microbial interactions. On other hand, the family Leguminosae constitutes an economically and ecologically key botanical group for humans, being also regarded as the most important protein source for livestock. This review presents the profuse evidence that relates changes in PAs levels during responses to biotic and abiotic stresses in model and cultivable species within Leguminosae and examines the unreviewed information regarding their potential roles in the functioning of symbiotic interactions with nitrogen-fixing bacteria and arbuscular mycorrhizae in this family. As linking plant physiological behavior with "big data" available in "omics" is an essential step to improve our understanding of legumes responses to global change, we also examined integrative MultiOmics approaches available to decrypt the interface legumes-PAs-abiotic and biotic stress interactions. These approaches are expected to accelerate the identification of stress tolerant phenotypes and the design of new biotechnological strategies to increase their yield and adaptation to marginal environments, making better use of available plant genetic resources.

Synergistic arsenic(v) and lead(ii) retention on synthetic jarosite. I. Simultaneous structural incorporation behaviour and mechanism

Jarosite [KFe₃(SO₄)₂(OH)₆] minerals are effective scavengers of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) and are abundant, for example, in acid rock/mine drainage scenarios. The retention process is highly relevant for environmental attenuation of heavy metals and metalloids since these are usually highly soluble and thus mobile under acidic conditions. We investigated both macroscopically and at the molecular scale the extent and the effects of concomitant incorporation of As(v) and Pb(ii) into synthetic jarosite at different As/Pb starting molar ratios, using XRD-Rietveld, SEM, ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and wet chemistry. The amount of arsenate substituted in the jarosite structure was larger when Pb(ii) was also incorporated, the former filling up to approximately 33% of the tetrahedral sites normally occupied by SO₄^2-, as compared to 21% when Pb(ii) was absent. Similarly, the amount of Pb(ii) incorporated in the structure was larger when As(v) was also taken up. The jarosite unit cell volume increased as higher amounts of As(v) incorporated into its structure, but simultaneous Pb(ii) incorporation seemed to limit this increase due to its smaller size as compared to K⁺. The extent to which As and Pb can accommodate in the jarosite structure was found to be limited by concentration maxima under the imposed synthesis conditions. At As/Pb ratios up to 1, Pb-As-jarosites were the only crystalline products. Above this ratio, a mixture of Pb-As-jarosite, anglesite (PbSO₄) and poorly-crystalline ferric arsenate (AFA) phases was observed. At the highest As/Pb ratio investigated of 1.80 Pb-As-jarosite was no longer formed. Infrared spectroscopy analysis was applied for the first time here to substituted jarosites with both cations and anions, showing spectral changes in the solids as the As/Pb ratio increased: a characteristic As-O doublet at ∼810 and ∼855 cm^-1 was observed upon Pb incorporation, showing an indirect effect of Pb(ii) on the As-O bonds in the jarosite structure. Thus, structural incorporation of Pb plays a pivotal role in the unit cell environment of jarosite to balance the distortion caused by AsO₄-for-SO₄ substitution. The retention processes found in this work have important environmental implications and impacts: through the synergistic incorporation encountered, remediation enhancement of cationic pollutants such as Pb(ii) is possible in a concomitant fashion with As(v) attenuation in acidic mining and metallurgical environments.

Evaluation of the potential of indigenous calcareous shale for neutralization and removal of arsenic and heavy metals from acid mine drainage in the Taxco mining area, Mexico

In the Taxco mining area, sulfide mineral oxidation from inactive tailings impoundments and abandoned underground mines has produced acid mine drainage (AMD; pH 2.2-2.9) enriched in dissolved concentrations (mg l⁻¹) sulfate, heavy metals, and arsenic (As): SO₄²⁻ (pH 1470-5454), zinc (Zn; 3.0-859), iron (Fe; pH 5.5-504), copper (Cu; pH 0.7-16.3), cadmium (Cd; pH 0.3-6.7), lead (Pb; pH < 0.05-1.8), and As (pH < 0.002-0.6). Passive-treatment systems using limestone have been widely used to remediate AMD in many parts of the world. In limestone-treatment systems, calcite simultaneously plays the role of neutralizing and precipitating agent. However, the acid-neutralizing potential of limestone decreases when surfaces of the calcite particles become less reactive as they are progressively coated by metal precipitates. This study constitutes first-stage development of passive-treatment systems for treating AMD in the Taxco mine area using indigenous calcareous shale. This geologic material consists of a mixture of calcite, quartz, muscovite, albite, and montmorillonite. Results of batch leaching test indicate that calcareous shale significantly increased the pH (to values of 6.6-7.4) and decreased heavy metal and As concentrations in treated mine leachates. Calcareous shale had maximum removal efficiency (100%) for As, Pb, Cu, and Fe. The most mobile metals ions were Cd and Zn, and their average percentage removal was 87% and 89%, respectively. In this natural system (calcareous shale), calcite provides a source of alkalinity, whereas the surfaces of quartz and aluminosilicate minerals possibly serve as a preferred locus of deposition for metals, resulting in the neutralizing agent (calcite) beings less rapidly coated with the precipitating metals and therefore able to continue its neutralizing function for a longer time.

Solid-phase control on lead bioaccessibility in smelter-impacted soils

The goal of this work was to identify the solid-phase control on lead (Pb) bioaccessibility in soils impacted by smelter activities in the city of San Luis Potosi, in north-central Mexico. Total Pb concentrations in 30 ha of soil terrain from a residential area adjacent to the smelter showed levels above the 400-mg/kg intervention guideline dictated by Mexican Environmental regulations. These concentrations, although raising human health and environmental concerns, showed low water-soluble lead (<0.1 mg/L) and relatively low lead bioaccessibility (2.4-20.5%). X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy techniques showed, in addition to common Pb phases reported in similar contaminated environments [galena (PbS) and anglesite (PbSO(4))], the presence of a solid lead arsenate phase. The Pb solubility measured in soils agrees very well with the low solubility reported for the Pb minerals identified and explains the relatively low Pb bioaccessibility values measured, presumably from their low dissolution during passage through the gastrointestinal tract. The results reported are highly relevant for smelter-originated environmental contamination scenarios in general.

Arsenic sorption by carbonate-rich aquifer material, a control on arsenic mobility at Zimapán, México

Arsenic retention by carbonate-rich aquifer material at Zimapán, México, was studied to gain insight into the processes controlling arsenic mobility in natural systems. Batch experiments showed that retention of soluble As (V) on carbonate-rich aquifer material was 35.3-90% in the pH range of 7-9 found in Zimapán natural water. Chemical and mineralogical compositions, point of zero charge (PZC), and experimental arsenic retention at various pH of three composite samples of limestone (M1, M2, M3) showed that sorption (adsorption and coprecipitation) may be one of the main processes controlling arsenic mobility in the Zimapán As-polluted aquifer. The PZC values approximately corresponded to the PZC reported for the main minerals present in each sample: hydrous ferric oxides (M1), calcite (M2), and the range from hydrous ferric oxides and calcite (M3). The chemical and mineralogical compositions of each sample explain the obtained PZC values. Experimental and modeled arsenic retention at various pH values on sample M1 corresponded to reported arsenic adsorption onto hydrous ferric oxides. Coprecipitacion of complex Ca arsenates or arsenic adsorption onto calcite or clay minerals could be the main processes of arsenic retention on samples M2 and M3. Groundwater flow through the granular, carbonate-rich, shallow aquifer may decrease the water As content as a result of these interactions. A remediation method based on the promotion of polluted water flow into the shallow aquifer could be developed from these results.

Crystal structures and magnetic properties of metal complexes bearing four nitronyl nitroxide moieties in the same coordination sphere

Mononuclear transition metal complexes of the type [M(2,6-NITpy)2](ClO4)2 x solvent (2,6-NITpy = 2,6-bis-(3'-oxide-1'-oxyl-4',4',5',5'-tetramethylimidazolin-2'-yl)pyridine; M = Ni (1), Co (2), Zn (3), Mn (4), Cu (5)) have been synthesized and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Crystal data: 1, monoclinic, P2(1)/c, Z = 4, a = 20.946(2) A, b = 12.0633(2) A, c = 21.173(2) A, beta = 113.55(1) degrees; 2, monoclinic, P2(1)/c, Z = 4, a = 20.902(2) A, b = 12.0981(8) A, c = 21.215(2) A, beta = 113.130(9) degrees; 3, triclinic, P1, Z = 2, a = 11.410(1) A, b = 12.932(1) A, c = 21.609(2) A, alpha = 96.040(2) degrees, beta = 102.24(1) degrees, gamma = 114.98(1); 4, monoclinic, P2(1)/n, Z = 4, a = 11.5473(8) A, b = 19.212(1) A, c = 25.236(2) A, beta = 98.772(9) degrees; 5, triclinic, P1, Z = 2, a = 12.1604(9) A, b = 12.6961(9) A, c = 18.103(2) A, alpha = 84.191(8) degrees, beta = 73.392(8) degrees, gamma = 66.072(8). The two 2,6-NITpy biradicals behave as terdentate ligands and bind almost perpendicular to each other in meridional positions. In compounds 1-4, the pyridine rings are axially ligated and four different nitronyl nitroxide radicals bind to the metal center through their O(nitroxyl) atoms, forming the equatorial plane of a distorted octahedron. On the contrary, in the copper(II) complex (5), the two N(pyridyl) atoms are found in equatorial positions. Only two nitroxide groups are then bound to the copper(II) ion in the equatorial plane, the other two being axially ligated. The two axially bound nitronyl nitroxide radicals couple ferromagnetically to the copper center (JCu-rad(ax) = + 10 K), whereas a strong antiferromagnetic coupling between this metal ion and the equatorial nitroxide groups (JCu-rad(eq) = -460 K) is observed. The other complexes exhibit strong antiferromagnetic metal-radical interactions: JNi-rad = -240 K, for 1; JMn-rad = -120 K, for 4. Interestingly, the study of the diamagnetic zinc(II) compound (3) reveals a moderate intramolecular antiferromagnetic interaction between radicals coordinated to the same metal center (Jrad-rad = -27.7 K). This interaction is transmitted through space and is also present in the other complexes: Jrad-rad = -14 K, for 1; Jrad-rad = -10 K, for 4; Jrad-rad = -20.5 K, for 5. Antiferromagnetic intermolecular interactions are also present in all the complexes herein studied.