Biofortification to avoid malnutrition in humans in a changing climate: Enhancing micronutrient bioavailability in seed, tuber, and storage roots

Ana Luisa Garcia-Oliveira Mahalingam Govindaraj Rodomiro Ortiz (2023, [Artículo])

Bioaccessibility and Absorption Biofortified Crop Cultivars Genes and Genetic Markers Nutrient Acquisition Transport and Storage CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA BIOAVAILABILITY ABSORPTION CLIMATE CHANGE GENETIC MARKERS GENETIC ENGINEERING NUTRIENTS TRANSPORT STORAGE

Economic development, transport investment, and urbanization in Mexico: causality and effects

Vicente German-Soto Alexsandra De la Peña Flores Karina García (2023, [Artículo, Artículo])

The transport investment is often used as a tool for economic development and urbanization. However, there is still debate about whether transport improvements promote development and urbanization or, conversely, these latter create the conditions that stimulate the transport. In theory, the transport system contributes to development and urbanization because it speeds up the exchange of goods and services, but the effects can also be reversed, so the direction of causality is not so easily identified. This work uses Mexican state information of the 1988-2018 period, grouped as panel, to know both magnitude and direction of the impacts. Methodology consists in cointegration tests and VECM regressions. The results reveal that long-term causality goes from economic development to transport and its subsectors, which means that economic development is a necessary condition to modernize transport in Mexico. For urbanization, the causality and magnitude of the effects vary depending on the transport subsector. The total economy and passenger sector’s investments cause urbanization, but transportation and subsectors of cargo carriers and communications estimate two-way causality. The conclusions suggest that urbanization depends on improvements in transportation and the latter, in turn, on economic development.

Desarrollo regional Transporte Economía urbana Causalidad Modelo VECM CIENCIAS SOCIALES CIENCIAS SOCIALES Economic development, Granger-Causality, VECM Models, Productivity, Urban Economics

Does access to improved grain storage technology increase farmers' welfare? Experimental evidence from maize farming in Ethiopia

Hugo De Groote Bart Minten (2024, [Artículo])

Seasonal price variability for cereals is two to three times higher in Africa than on the international reference market. Seasonality is even more pronounced when access to appropriate storage and opportunities for price arbitrage are limited. As smallholder farmers typically sell their production after harvest, when prices are low, this leads to lower incomes as well as higher food insecurity during the lean season, when prices are high. One solution to reduce seasonal stress is the use of improved storage technologies. Using data from a randomised controlled trial, in a major maize-growing region of Western Ethiopia, we study the impact of hermetic bags, a technology that protects stored grain against insect pests, so that the grain can be stored longer. Despite considerable price seasonality—maize prices in the lean season are 36% higher than after harvesting—we find no evidence that hermetic bags improve welfare, except that access to these bags allowed for a marginally longer storage period of maize intended for sale by 2 weeks. But this did not translate into measurable welfare gains as we found no changes in any of our welfare outcome indicators. This ‘near-null’ effect is due to the fact that maize storage losses in our study region are relatively lower than previous studies suggested—around 10% of the quantity stored—likely because of the widespread use of an alternative to protect maize during storage, for example a cheap but highly toxic fumigant. These findings are important for policies that seek to promote improved storage technologies in these settings.

Hermetic Storage Randomised Controlled Trial CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA STORAGE PILOT FARMS SEASONALITY WELFARE MAIZE

Corrección de defectos óseos en el área de Ingeniería tisular

Correction of bone defects by tissue Engineering

ROSA ALICIA SAUCEDO ACUÑA MONICA GALICIA GARCIA JUDITH VIRGINIA RIOS ARANA SIMON YOBANNY REYES LOPEZ (2012, [Artículo])

Hoy en día, los defectos óseos representan uno de los casos de mayor impacto en la salud debido a la frecuencia con que éstos ocurren a causa de traumatismos, fracturas, enfermedades congénitas o degenerativas. En la actualidad, los implantes de tejido óseo de gran volumen se encuentran severamente restringidos a causa de las limitaciones de difusión en la interacción con el ambiente del huésped para los nutrientes, intercambio gaseoso y eliminación de desechos. Es por ello que la corrección de los defectos óseos ha cobrado gran importancia en el área de Ingeniería tisular buscando mejorar las estrategias clínicas para su tratamiento. El propósito de esta revisión es proporcionar un panorama general del desarrollo de andamios para la regeneración de tejido óseo, mostrando los avances logrados en los ensayos in vitro e in vivo en la última década

Currently, bone defects cases represent a major impact on health due to how often they occur because of trauma, fractures, congenital or degenerative diseases. Now, bone implants to large volume are severely restricted because of the diffusion limitations in the interaction

with the environment of the host for nutrients, gas exchange and waste disposal. That is why the correction of bone defects has become very important in the field of tissue engineering looking to improve clinical strategies for treatment. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the development of scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration, showing the progress made in the in vitro and in vivo in recent decades.

MEDICINA Y CIENCIAS DE LA SALUD Ingeniería tisular regeneración ósea Andamio Tissue engineering Bone regeneration Scaffolds

On-farm storage loss estimates of maize in Kenya using community survey methods

Hugo De Groote Anani Bruce (2023, [Artículo])

Maize is the most important staple in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), with highly seasonal production. High storage losses affect food security, but good estimations are lacking. A new method using focus group discussions (FGDs) was tested with 121 communities (1439 farmers, 52% women) in Kenya's six maize-growing zones, to estimate the maize losses to storage pests and analyze farmer practices. As control strategies, half of the farmers used chemical pesticides (49%), while hermetic bags (16%) and botanicals (15%) were also popular. Relative loss from weevils in the long rains was estimated at 23%, in the short rains 18%, and annually 21%. Fewer farmers were affected by the larger grain borer (LGB) than by maize weevils: 42% in the long rainy season and 32% in the short rainy season; losses from LGB were also smaller: 19% in the long season, 17% in the short season, and 18% over the year. Total storage loss, from both species combined, was estimated at 36%, or 671,000 tonnes per year. The greatest losses occur in the humid areas, especially the moist mid-altitudes (56%), and with smaller loss in the drylands (20–23%). Extrapolating the point data and overlaying with the maize production map shows the geographic distribution of the losses, with the most important area found around Lake Victoria. FGDs provide convenient and cheap tools to estimate storage losses in representative communities, but a total loss estimate of 36% is higher than is found in other studies, so its accuracy and framing effects need to be assessed. We conclude that storage pests remain a major problem, especially in western Kenya, and that the use of environmentally friendly technologies such as hermetic storage and botanicals needs more attention, both by the public extension service and private agrodealers.

Larger Grain Borer Maize Weevil CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA MAIZE STORAGE LOSSES PESTS SURVEY METHODS

Sustainable urban mobility: An alternative for air pollution in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area

José Antonio Olivares Mendoza Clemente Hernandez-Rodriguez Luz Alicia Jimenez Portugal (2023, [Artículo, Artículo])

The objective of this paper is to evaluate whether the low-carbon transport strategy (subway, rapid transit bus system -Macrobús-, trolleybus, and shared bicycles) implemented in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (AMG) from 2000 to 2019 improves air quality. Sustainable urban mobility is the movement of people in cities in a way that generates the least impact on the environment. We analyze three actions of government intervention in the same sense. This is the first study for Guadalajara, the third-largest city in Mexico. We use robust Newey-West estimators and endogenously model pollution disruptions using the Bai Perron approach. Our results suggest that this type of public transport reduces SO2, NO2, O3, and CO, though we find an increase in PM10. We also identified that when the service of the first line of the Bus Rapid Transit was consolidated CO, O3 and PM10 decreased. In addition, the improvement in the connectivity of the bus network with the subway means that only NO2 diminished. Finally, the entry into operation of the shared bicycle program reduced PM10, while increasing O3 and in SO2. In short, sustainable urban mobility is an alternative to making the transit of people efficient, while mitigating air pollution in the AMG.

Contaminación del aire Transporte urbano Bicicletas compartidas Autobuses de tránsito rápido Metro CIENCIAS SOCIALES CIENCIAS SOCIALES Air pollution Urban transport Bus Rapid Transit

Saneamiento del vaso Cencali, Villahermosa, Tabasco. II. Diseño del proceso

ANNE MARGRETHE HANSEN HANSEN Franklin Torres-Bejarano (2008, [Artículo])

Este artículo es el segundo de dos partes que resumen las actividades y los estudios realizados durante la evaluación y el diseño del proceso de saneamiento del vaso Cencali, en el centro de Villahermosa, Tabasco, México. El estado hipereutrófico de este cuerpo de agua está constituido principalmente por la acumulación de una gran cantidad de sedimentos provenientes de escurrimientos urbanos y aguas residuales. Por lo tanto, se identificó la remoción de estos sedimentos como medida más urgente para el rescate del vaso. La ubicación del vaso, el reducido espacio disponible en zonas adyacentes, así como las características propias de los sedimentos, impidieron un diseño tradicional del proceso. Por ello se diseñó y adaptó un proceso que consiste en los componentes de dragado por bombeo, sedimentación, transporte y secado de los sedimentos. De acuerdo con el análisis de humedad de sedimentos y experimentos piloto de bombeo, la mezcla de agua-sedimento dragada tenía entre 65 y 85% de humedad, resultando en volúmenes a remover entre 50,400 m3 y 130,000 m3. Para controlar y reducir el volumen de sedimentos transportados y evitar tiempos y costos excesivos, se diseñó una tecnología de sedimentación en cuatro tanques flotantes-sumergibles colocadas en el vaso Cencali. Además, se propuso un concepto para el futuro mantenimiento del vaso, consistente en la combinación de procesos de sedimentación y dragado en una depresión topográfica construida dentro del vaso para este propósito.

Lagunas urbanas Dragado Transporte de sedimentos Disposición de sedimentos Villahermosa, Tabasco INGENIERÍA Y TECNOLOGÍA

Seed integrity, effect of temperature and storage time on germination of Populus luziarum and P. primaveralepensis, endangered subtropical species from Mexico

César Jacobo Pereira MIGUEL ANGEL MUÑIZ CASTRO JOSE ANTONIO VAZQUEZ GARCIA Joel David Flores Rivas ALEJANDRO MUÑOZ URIAS FRANCISCO MARTIN HUERTA MARTINEZ (2022, [Artículo])

"Background: Populus luziarum and P. primaveralepensis are endemic species of western Mexico; growing in riparian forests they are critically endangered. The best way to conserve their seeds is unknown, which could be limiting for their conservation.

Hypothesis: The germinability of both subtropical species is like that of boreal and template Salicaceae species that disperse seeds in spring and early summer, as they germinate quickly with high percentages, and rapidly lose their viability when stored at ambient temperature.

Studied species: Populus luziarum and P. primaveralepensis. Study site and dates: Western Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. Jalisco, Mexico. October 2019.

Methods: The physical integrity of the seeds was assessed by X-ray imaging and compared with germinability. In addition, the effect of storage time (nine weeks) under two temperatures (4 and 21 °C) on the percentage and mean germination rate was evaluated.

Results: No significant differences were found between physical integrity and germination in freshly collected seeds for both species. Germination in the first 24 hrs was 91 and 95 % for Populus luziarum and P. primaveralepensis, respectively (week 0). Germination percentages were lower when stored at 21 °C, but P. primaveralepensis was decreased more slowly.

Conclusions: Seeds of subtropical Populus respond similarly to those of species from temperate and boreal climates with early seed dispersal, a crucial condition for establishing ex situ reforestation and conservation programs."

Salicaceae Seed physical integrity Seed storage conditions Subtropical endemic species White poplars BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA VEGETAL (BOTÁNICA) BIOLOGÍA VEGETAL (BOTÁNICA)

A twelve years story of waste of social resources: The Mexico-Toluca Interurban Train

Rubén Chavarín (2024, [Artículo, Artículo])

The general objective of this paper is to make an ex-post evaluation of the Mexico-Toluca Interurban Train project (TIMT) more than nine years after the beginning of its construction stage. The present study is based on the cost-benefit analysis approach, through which some analysis scenarios have been built and whose results are contrasted with the official project evaluations. The present research has focused on the analysis of the TIMT as a microcosm of the scarce efficiency of public investment in Mexico, resulting in a waste of social resources. According to the results of the study, the combination of delays and cost overruns (186% in nominal terms, 114% in real terms, and 90% in dollars) has configured a project (across two Federal Government Administrations) with negative social profitability, with losses valued at more than 550 million dollars, placing it in the most problematic quartile of train projects in the world.

cost-benefit analysis ex-post evaluation public investment transport projects Latin America análisis costo-beneficio evaluación ex-post inversión pública proyectos de transporte América Latina CIENCIAS SOCIALES CIENCIAS SOCIALES

Escalamiento de las ecuaciones del flujo del agua subterránea mediante filtrado de Butterworth

ALVARO ALBERTO ALDAMA RODRIGUEZ MIGUEL MEJIA Roger Beckie (2006, [Artículo])

El flujo de agua y el transporte de solutos en medios geológicos se desarrollan en muchas escalas de longitud (poros del orden de milímetros hasta regiones que tienen kilómetros de longitud). Por lo mismo, hay escalas demasiado pequeñas para ser resueltas mediante un modelo o para ser observadas con los aparatos convencionales de medición. Aun cuando no es factible desarrollar modelos que resuelvan todas las escalas significantes, sí es posible desarrollar modelos de la dinámica de las escalas grandes. Estos modelos de escala grande no requieren la descripción explícita de las escalas pequeñas, pero deben incluir el efecto de las escalas pequeñas en la dinámica de las escalas grandes. La incorporación de tales efectos requiere la solución de un problema de cerradura. Por medio del uso de filtros de Butterworth se desarrolla una solución exacta para el problema de cerradura para el flujo del agua en un medio poroso con gran heterogeneidad. Se incluyen pruebas numéricas que validan los resultados teóricos.

Flujo de agua Medios porosos Transporte de solutos CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA