Protein Kinase (casein kinase 2, CK2) is a serine-threonine kinase that is frequently dysregulated in many human tumors. Therefore we hypothesized that peptides capable of binding to the CK2 acidic domain may exhibit potential anticancer properties. By screening a random cyclic peptide phage display library, we have identified a novel peptide, P15, that abrogated CK2 phosphorylation by blocking the substrate in vitro. To verify its potential antineoplastic effect, P15 was fused to the cell-penetrating peptide derived from the HIV-Tat protein. Interestingly, P15-Tat induced apoptosis as evidenced by rapid caspase activation and cellular cytotoxicity in a variety of tumor cell lines. Furthermore, direct injection of P15-Tat into C57BL6 mice bearing day 7-established solid tumors, resulted in substantial regression of the tumor mass. Our findings describe a new proapoptotic cyclic peptide that blocks the CK2 phosphorylation and exhibits antitumor effect in vivo, indicating that the P15 peptide may potentially be used clinically to treat solid tumors or as an adjuvant for cancer therapy.

Image analysis provides an accurate and precise method of pest evaluation. This work's objective was to compare the usefulness of the ImageJ® 1.43u image processor and visual estimation as methods to characterize brown rust lesions and estimate the resistance of new sugarcane cultivars. For this, leaves images of 10 cultivars were captured, and the parameters quantity, most regular size of the pustules, and leaf area affected were determined. The data were correlated with the eight control (standard) genotypes' evaluations to obtain a classification of disease resistance. The results showed that the software's determinations were the most accurate, although all the methods were reliable for rating the reaction to brown rust. Therefore, it is proposed to move away from visual disease assessment toward a system based on digital image analysis.

Four isolates of the phytopathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas albilineans (Xa) from samples taken in commercial fields of different Cuban provinces and two from the cultivar L55-5, artificially infected in the Camagüey and Matanzas Experimental Stations, were used for the extraction of total nucleic acids according to the CTAB protocol. They were amplified by PCR using four primer combinations: A: P1-M1, B: P1-M2, C: P2-M1 and D: P2-M2. Direct sequencing of the PCR products was performed on all samples and the nucleotide sequences were used to generate partial consensus of 16-23S rRNA, which were analyzed with the BLASTn program. In all the isolates evaluated, the presence of a common band at the height of 620 bp was visualized and the AFLP profile showed that there is homology when comparing the sequences corresponding to the 16-23S rDNA of X. albilineans of the different isolates; the phylogenetic analysis reflected a grouping of the isolates of the species, regardless of its geographical origin, different from others of the genus Xanthomonas. The comparison of the Cuban isolates with eight strains published in GenBank, showed marked similarity with them, with 100% nucleotide identity and percentage of coverage with a genome fragment of the GPE PC73 strain from Guadalupe, KO905 from the United States and a strain from Brazil. The predominance of the generalized circulation in Cuba of a single serovar is presumed.

Concordance evaluations between evaluation methods or evaluators are common in medical disciplines, but not in agricultural sciences. The objective of this study was to detect the concordance between two methods used to determine the percentage of leaf area affected by brown rust in sugarcane: visual estimation and image analysis using ImageJ® 1.43u software. For this, the percentage of area affected by pustules was determined according to each procedure during two trials. Correlation analysis, concordance correlation coefficient calculation and concordance test were performed. Pearson's correlation was not constant within the range of data evaluated, which represents a difficulty in detecting systematic differences. The concordance correlation coefficient was classified as poor, while the Bland-Altman concordance analysis allowed detecting a bias of -1.48% and -0.57% between the methods in both trials, which is considered acceptable. The study showed that both procedures agree, but the values measured visually tend to be higher than those obtained with the ImageJ® 1.43u software, mainly in cultivars with a larger leaf area affected by the disease. The procedure described in this work facilitates decision-making on the opportunity to substitute or use different methods for the evaluation of brown rust in sugarcane, which can also be applied to other pathosystems or disciplines.

Con el objetivo de evaluar la efectividad y el impacto ambiental de diferentes tratamientos herbicidas preemergentes para el control de especies arvenses en caña de azúcar, se establecieron dos experimentos de campo en diferentes localidades durante el período abril 2020 - junio 2021. Se realizó un inventario florístico de las plantas arvenses para determinar la composición taxonómica de las especies y su frecuencia de aparición. Se evaluaron siete tratamientos herbicidas: Unipix GD70 (Imazapic), Merlín Total SC60 (Isoxafluotole + Indaziflan), Mayoral LS35 (Imazapic + Imazapyr), Palmero GD75 (Isoxafluotole), Palmero GD75 + Mayoral LS35, Merlín GD75 + Mayoral LS35, y Merlín GD75 (Isoxafluotole) como testigo estándar, además de un testigo absoluto sin aplicación de herbicidas. Para cada tratamiento se calculó el coeficiente de impacto ambiental y se evaluó el costo total por hectárea. El inventario florístico confirmó que las especies arvenses presentan una relación filogenética cercana, lo cual facilita su manejo mediante prácticas de control similares. Todos los tratamientos herbicidas evaluados lograron un control excelente de las especies arvenses. En cuanto al impacto ambiental, el 50% de los tratamientos presentaron un nivel de riesgo bajo y el 50% restante un riesgo muy bajo. El tratamiento Unipix GD70 mostró la mejor relación costo-beneficio con el menor costo por hectárea por días libres de malezas, manteniendo el cultivo limpio durante 90 días posteriores a la aplicación. Los resultados obtenidos permiten ampliar las estrategias de manejo integrado de malezas como alternativas al tratamiento convencional Merlín GD75 (0.200 kg ha⁻¹), ofreciendo opciones más eficientes y ambientalmente sostenibles para el control de arvenses en caña de azúcar.

The high demand for food and the overexploitation of natural resources to provide goods and services permanently to the population cause negative effects on the balance of ecosystems; however, depending on the management, systems intervened by man can offer a variety of services in a sustainable manner. Agroforestry systems(AFS), through the combination and interaction of all their components, seek to contribute to food security and to the improvement of the quality of life of peasant families, allowing at the same time the diversification of production, environmental sustainability and the generation of marketable surpluses. The fundamental objective of this work was the design of AFS in areas of the Santa Rita micro-basin, municipality of Palma Soriano, southeastern region of Cuba. To this end, the biophysical characterization of the study area was carried out and in plots with land use conflict; AFSs were designed based on their location within the water network of the micro-basin and the effective depth. Seven AFS alternatives were proposed on 52.91 ha, which contributes to the generation of a source of employment and income for the inhabitants of this agricultural setting; improves the coverage of the protection strips of the riverbeds, increases the forested area and the biodiversity of the Santa Rita micro-basin.