Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Introduction. Orius insidiosus is an omnivorous insect with an endophytic oviposition strategy, with a preference for oviposition on plants that guarantee shelter and food. Objective. To evaluate three plant species as oviposition sites for O. insidiosus on Phaseolus vulgaris (Fabaceae), Ipomoea batata (Convolvulaceae) and Portulaca oleracea (Portulacaceae). Materials and methods. The work was carried out in 2020, at the Center for Research and Reproduction of Biological Controllers of the Universidad Autónoma de Nicaragua, León, Nicaragua, León. Cutting 15-cm-long from three plants for O. insidiosus females were used as oviposition substrates: Portulaca oleracea L., Phaseolus vulgaris L., and Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam. The experimental unit (n= 90) consisted of 15 cm long tender cuttings, individually placed in polyethylene cups using thirty replicates per treatment, using the no-choice technique. One pair of O. insidiosus was placed on each cutting. Every 24 h the cuttings were inspected to count the egg laying. Subsequently, the cuttings were removed and checked for five days to count nymphs hatching, and the final weight of the cutting was determined. Results. The highest laying values in P. oleracea cuttings with 5.90 eggs/day per cutting, followed by I. batatas with 4.10 eggs/day, and finally P. vulgaris with 2.13 eggs/day. There was evidence of variability in the posture according to the initial and final weight. The hatching values were lower than those of laying, P. oleracea had the highest hatching average with 4 individuals, followed by I. batatas with 1.5, and P. vulgaris with 0.8. Conclusions. P. oleracea showed a better preference for O. insidiosus regarding egg laying and nymph hatching. It could be validated in the field as a biological control strategy.

Introduction. The High Mountain Region (RHM) is the most productive and socioeconomic region for the coffee cultivation in the state of Veracruz, Mexico, and one of the most representative of the sector at the national level. Objective. To determine the quality of life (QL) from the objective and subjective point of view of the small coffee producers (SP) in RHM, Mexico. Materials and methods. One hundred and fifty semi-structured interviews were applied to producers in eleven municipalities located in: Comapa, Coscomatepec, Huatusco, Ixhuatlán del café, Sochiapa, Tenampa, Tomatlán, Totutla, Tlaltetela, Tlacotepec, and Zentla, during 2020. Descriptive statistics and trend measurements were obtained. Results. At objective level the QL was found to be low, but at the farmers’ subjective level, it was determined to be acceptable. In the objective assessment, it was identified that the SP have minimal education (primary), the income is not adequate (they require activities outside the farm with an average net annual income of US $ 416 to US $ 1115), the cost of health has increased (due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and proper nutrition is lacking (19 to 25 meals per month). In the subjective assessment there is insecurity and distrust with the government authorities, however, the producers have adapted to living in adverse socioeconomic contexts, since they value community life, intra-family relationships and their environment (coffee growing), which could be influenced by their own worldview. Conclusion. With or without knowledge of the concept of quality, producers have developed a learned or acquired capacity, both individually and collectively to adapt to the environment. Objectively, the quality of life is considered low, however, the interviewees had a perception of satisfaction both individually and collectively.

Introduction. The influence of electronic commerce (EC) on people’s food purchasing decisions has been relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Costa Rica, there is no information available on how this medium has modified the food purchasing and consumption behaviors in Costa Rican families during this health emergency. Objective. To analyze changes in the food purchase and consumption patterns of Costa Ricans that were influenced by the EC during the pandemic. Materials and methods. An online survey using the snowball methodology was carried out in June 2021 in different social networks groups in Costa Rica. Structural equation modeling was used to establish the causes associated with endogenous (trust, convenience, hedonic impulses) and exogenous variables (socioeconomic status, purchase decisions due to COVID-19) that outlined the changes in purchasing habits. The stimuli generated from EC that influenced these purchase decisions were reviewed according to the specific food group. Results. A strong causality was found from the latent variable convenience (β=0.89; p<0.01) for the purchase of food by EC, in addition to little impact (β=-0.35; p<0.01) on food consumption habits, generated by the measures defined to contain the pandemic. The sanitary measures established by the authorities show causality in the general response of the food consumer by EC (NORM_1<0.8; p<0.01), which was low if its estimated value is compared with other motivators in purchase decisions such as convenience due to improvements in quality of life (CO1≅0.8; p<0.01) or even trust due to the commitment to quality offered by the website (CF3≅0.6; p<0.01). Conclusions. The pandemic promoted an improvement in consumer perception regarding advantageous situations of employing EC to make food purchases.

Introduction. Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is one of the perennial monocultures that has spread to almost a little more than nineteen million hectares in the world. Its expansion has generated social, economic, and political debate in various tropical countries. One of the problems that has been discussed is the impact on the physicochemical, biological, and ecological properties of the soil. Objective. (i) To provide a current overview of the expansion of oil palm cultivation in an area of the Soconusco region, Chiapas, Mexico, (ii) to document the effects caused by oil palm on the physicochemical and biological properties of the soil, and (iii) to present some proposals for management practices to increase the fertility and abundance of soil macroinvertebrates. Development. The search for keywords was carried out in the “topics” section within the “Web of Science” database from the year 2009 to March 2018. Research that relates the cultivation of oil palm with physical parameters, soil chemicals, and biology was consulted. The literature demonstrates the negative effects generated by oil palm monoculture on some physicochemical properties of the soil and the ecology and biology of the edaphic macrofauna. Conclusion. Evidence is show that the poor management of oil palm monoculture has environmental implications. The integration of good sustainable management practices could mitigate damage to the soil.

Introduction. The use of plant growth-promoting bacteria can be an alternative to be integrated as a management strategy of cape gooseberry crop through their incorporation in seedling stages, allowing to obtain more vigorous seedlings that can tolerate biotic and abiotic stress at the time of transplant. Objective. To evaluate the plant growth promoting activity and endophytic capacity of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Bs006 and Pseudomonas migulae Pf014 inoculated during the seedling stage of cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.). Materials and methods. In a randomized complete block design with three replications, an experiment was carried out from April to May 2018 in a greenhouse located at the Tibaitatá Research Center, Mosquera, Colombia. Bacteria were inoculated separately in the substrate at 1 x 108 UFC mL-1. Physiological variables such as dry biomass of the root, stem, and leaves (g), final length (cm), leaf area (cm2), and the number of leaves were analyzed; additionally, its endophytism was verified by evaluating the colonization of the plant tissue. Results. B. amyloliquefaciens Bs006 stimulated seedling growth at different levels, exhibiting greater promotion capacity than P. migulae Pf014, since it increased plant length by 34 %, and stem and root growth by 59 % and 16 %, respectively; also, increase in dry root biomass by 178 %, stem by 161 %, and leaves by 96 % was found. In addition, bacteria were isolated from the interior of plant tissues, demonstrating their endophytic behavior. Conclusions. The positive response in all the agronomic variables evaluated with the application of B. amyloliquefaciens Bs006, indicates that this rhizobacterium can be integrated into the cape gooseberry production scheme, helping to enhance crop production.

Introduction. Common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L.) are legumes, widely consumed in developing countries. However, those grains could be contaminated with Aspergillus, a genus of fungus that includes mycotoxin-producing species. Objective. To identify the Aspergillus species that colonize the grains of common beans and peanuts in Costa Rica and to identify atoxigenic strains of A. flavus. Materials and methods. Eighty-three samples of common bean grains and nineteen samples of peanuts were collected during the years 2019 and 2020 in regions where those grains are produced in Costa Rica. All samples were used to isolate and identify Aspergillus species by partial sequences of ITS (internal transcribed spacer) and cmd (calmodulin) genes. Atoxigenic strains of A. flavus were also identified by chemical and molecular methods. Results. 46 % and 32 % of the collected common beans and peanuts samples, respectively, were contaminated with Aspergillus spp. In common beans, 85 isolates of Aspergillus were obtained, most of them belonging to A. flavus and A. niger species. Most of the A. flavus isolates were obtained from the Cabécar (fifteen isolates) and Nambí (seven isolates) common bean varieties, while A. niger was mostly isolated from the Cabécar variety (eleven isolates). In the case of peanuts, thirteen isolates were obtained, most of them identified as A. niger. No atoxigenic strains were found in peanuts, however, in common beans, five strains of A. flavus with this characteristic were found. Conclusions. The present study demonstrated the diversity of Aspergillus species that colonize the grains of common beans and peanuts in Costa Rica. Most of the species isolated are producers of mycotoxins that cause adverse effects on human health.

Introduction. The use of digital image analysis with the “Germinator” allows the automatic evaluation of seed germination. In addition to maximum germination, other parameters associated with seed germination vigor can be quantified simultaneously. Objective. To optimize the “Germinator” as a complement for the automatic analysis of seed germination quality in rice. Materials and methods. The experiments were conducted at the Centro para Investigaciones en Granos y Semillas (CIGRAS) from 2015 to 2018. The “Germinator” software package was optimized on the Palmar 18 variety, and then tested with a panel of 126 rice seed samples comprising fourteen varieties. The germination curves were quantified, the automatically acquired data were compared with manual counting based on radical protrusion and a standardized method. Besides, accelerated aging and controlled aging experiments were conducted to show the sensibility of the automatic method. Results. The relationship between germination quantified automatically and quantified manually was high (R2= 0.99). Maximum germination, quantified by image analysis, ranged from 69 % to 100 % in the panel of 126 samples. The correlation between germination assessed by digital images and the standard method was rho (spearman)= 0.34. The “Germinator” allowed the simultaneous quantification of other variables associated with seed vigor, such as the t50 parameter, which is the time the seed lot takes to reach 50 % of the germination. In addition, the automatic method revealed the differential effect of two seed aging protocols. Conclusions. The use of digital image analysis made it possible to evaluate automatically seed germination based on radicle protrusion and also made it possible to quantify other complementary variables associated with seed vigor (t50).

Introduction. Moringa oleifera Lam. . it is a deciduous tree with perennial growth ontogeneric to the growth of shrubs. Moringa is the only genus of the Moringaceae family. The main studies of the species olerifera focus on forage production, and very few on seed production. Objective. To evaluate sowing densities and successive harvests for seed production of M. oleifera Lam varieties, in an ecosystem degraded by the seasonal drought in Cauto Valley, Granma province, Cuba. Materials and methods. The study was carried out from 2016 to 2018 in seed banks of the Pastures and Forages Experimental Station (20º 27’ 52.1” N 76º 40’47” W) of the “Jorge Dimitrov” Agricultural Research Institute, Cuba, through a randomized block design in factorial arrangement with four replications, for a total of 64 treatments resulting from the combination of sowing density (4), varieties of M. oleifera (4), and number of harvests (4). The variables considered were: number of seeds per fruit, number of fruits per plant, fruit length, 100-seeds weight, and seed yield. Results. The Criolla and Supergenius varieties had the highest seed yield (p≤0.01) (0.67 and 0.71 t ha-1, respectively), in the second harvest in July 2017, compared to the rest of the harvests and varieties under study. The Supergenius variety provided the highest values in the number of seeds/fruit, number of fruits/plant, and fruits length/plant with 18,23, 32,08, and 49,18 cm, respectively. Conclusion. The varieties of M. oleifera under study had no differences in seed production potential, sowing density had not effect, only successive harvests every six months conditioned a differentiation in seed production.

Introduction. Research focused on listening and understanding public attitudes towards farm animal welfare is proliferating globally. Objective. To determine how consumers in Colombia perceive the welfare of farm animals and socio-demographic factors associated with such perceptions. Materials and methods. A descriptive and analytical epidemiological study was done through the implementation of a cross-sectional national online survey, conducted from September to October-2021, to obtain information on the knowledge and attitudes of consumers (≥18 years) in Colombia regarding farm animal welfare, as well as socio-demographic characteristics (sex, age, education, occupation, location, growing-up environment, level of contact with livestock farms, and diet). Logistic and multinomial logistic regression models were used to evaluate associations of demographic factors with the level of importance given to animal welfare (AW), perceptions about needs, behavior, and sentience in farm animals, and perceptions about the state and promotion of AW in Colombia. Results. Responses from 798 participants were included in the analysis, 85.57 % saw AW as a concept that refers to how to treat animals and improve their quality of life. The level of importance given to AW was 9.78±0.85 (scale from 0 to 10) and was associated with words such as health, food, caring, respect, and comfort. Sex, age, education, level of contact with a farm, and growing-up in rural areas significantly influenced the opinions regarding the concept of AW and the promotion of farm animal welfare in Colombia. Conclusion. The participants showed concern about farm animal welfare. The differences found associated with the different socio-demographic factors can be used as a basis for formulating education and empowerment strategies that help modulate changes in the way animals are seen, and what welfare means and what it implies.

Introduction. Barley (Hordeum vulgare) net blotch (MR) causes yield losses estimated between 23 % to 44 %, as well as its malting quality. Objective. To evaluate over time the evolution of net blotch in different malting barley cultivars with and without application of foliar fungicide, associating it with yield and malting quality. Materials and methods. The trial was carried out during 2017 at the experimental field Universidad Nacional del Noroeste of the Buenos Aires province, in the city of Junín (Bs. As., Argentina) with an experimental block design with a 5x2 factorial arrangement and three repetitions, with randomization within blocks. Factor 1 was the cultivars and factor 2 was the foliar fungicide treatment. The pathometric variables incidence and severity were used to calculate the intensity of the MR and subsequently the area under the disease intensity progress curve (ABCPIE). Results. There was no interaction between cultivars and foliar fungicide application. The application of the foliar fungicide allowed a decrease in the ABCPIE in all the cultivars evaluated. Caliper was significantly associated (R2=0.67; p<0.0001) and inversely proportional to ABCPIE. Conclusions. The temporal evolution of the MR depended on the cultivar. Sinfonia had the lowest ABCPIE compared to the other cultivars evaluated. The application of foliar fungicide significantly reduced the evolution of MR over time. The disease influenced yield components and industrial quality of malting barley.