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During a survey of freshwater diatoms from Mojiang River, Chebaling Nature Preserve in Shaoguan City, Shixing County, Guangdong Province, China, a new Encyonema species, Encyonema chebalingense sp. nov., was discovered. Based on observations with light and scanning electron microscopy, a detailed morphological description of E. chebalingense is here presented. The main features of E. chebalingense include: conspicuously asymmetrical and dorsiventral, semielliptical to semielliptical–lanceolate valves, with a filiform raphe; dorsal margin clearly arched and ventral margin nearly straight or slightly concave; central area on the ventral side formed by 1–2 shorter central striae; and short tectullae projecting within the striae. The new species was compared with some similar species, all of which show similarities to E. chebalingense but differ in features such as dimensions, internal valve structure, stria density and valve shape. This genus is common and abundant in relatively clean waters, and other new species most likely will be recorded in the future from China.
Ruohan Huang; Jin Ma; Xianyun Wang; Saúl Blanco; John Patrick Kociolek; Wei Zhang. Encyonema chebalingense sp. nov., a new freshwater diatom species (Cymbellales, Bacillariophyceae) from Guangdong Province, China. Phytotaxa 2021, 508, 77–84 -77–84.
AMA StyleRuohan Huang, Jin Ma, Xianyun Wang, Saúl Blanco, John Patrick Kociolek, Wei Zhang. Encyonema chebalingense sp. nov., a new freshwater diatom species (Cymbellales, Bacillariophyceae) from Guangdong Province, China. Phytotaxa. 2021; 508 (1):77–84-77–84.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRuohan Huang; Jin Ma; Xianyun Wang; Saúl Blanco; John Patrick Kociolek; Wei Zhang. 2021. "Encyonema chebalingense sp. nov., a new freshwater diatom species (Cymbellales, Bacillariophyceae) from Guangdong Province, China." Phytotaxa 508, no. 1: 77–84-77–84.
The Upper Paraná River floodplain is one of the few remaining non-dammed stretches in Brazil. It has a typical fluvial dynamics represented by the flood pulse and a highly complex habitat, which allows the existence and maintenance of a great biodiversity, including diatom species. As it happens in tropical lowland environments, also in this floodplain, the genus Eunotia is one of the most diverse and abundant diatom groups. Therefore, this study addresses morphologic and morphometric details of a new species and the most abundant Eunotia species in sediment cores from two wetland lakes. The morphological characteristics from each species were obtained through microscopy documentation of cell walls, and compared with other related species.
Daiane Trevisan Ruwer; Saúl Blanco; Liliana Rodrigues. Eunotia Ehrenberg (Eunotiaceae, Bacillariophyta) in a subtropical floodplain: a new species and taxonomic contributions. Phytotaxa 2021, 505, 157 -175.
AMA StyleDaiane Trevisan Ruwer, Saúl Blanco, Liliana Rodrigues. Eunotia Ehrenberg (Eunotiaceae, Bacillariophyta) in a subtropical floodplain: a new species and taxonomic contributions. Phytotaxa. 2021; 505 (2):157-175.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDaiane Trevisan Ruwer; Saúl Blanco; Liliana Rodrigues. 2021. "Eunotia Ehrenberg (Eunotiaceae, Bacillariophyta) in a subtropical floodplain: a new species and taxonomic contributions." Phytotaxa 505, no. 2: 157-175.
Benthic diatoms have traditionally been used as bioindicators of aquatic ecosystems. Because diatom-based monitoring of water quality is required by European legislation, molecular-based methods had emerged as useful alternatives to classical methods based on morphological identification using light microscopy. The aim of this study was to test the reliability of DNA metabarcoding combined with High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) techniques in the bioassessment of the trophic status of 22 Mediterranean shallow ponds in NW Spain. For each pond, the Trophic Diatom Index (TDI) was calculated from inventories obtained by identification using light microscopy (LM) followed by high-throughput sequencing (HTS) at the molecular level. Ponds were subsequently classified into five water quality classes. The results showed a good correspondence between both methods, especially after applying a correction factor that depended on the biovolume of the cells. This correspondence led to the assignment to the same quality class in 59% of the ponds. The determination and quantification of valves or DNA sequences was one of the main pitfalls, which mainly included those related to the variability in the relative abundances of some species. Accordingly, ponds with similar relative abundances for the dominant species were assigned to the same quality class. Moreover, other difficulties leading the discrepancies were the misidentification of some species due to the presence of semi-cryptic taxa, the incompleteness of the reference database and the bioinformatic protocol. Thus, the validation of DNA-based methods for the identification of freshwater diatoms represents an important goal, as an alternative to using traditional methods in Mediterranean shallow ponds.
María Borrego-Ramos; Eloy Bécares; Pedro García; Alejandro Nistal; Saúl Blanco. Epiphytic Diatom-Based Biomonitoring in Mediterranean Ponds: Traditional Microscopy versus Metabarcoding Approaches. Water 2021, 13, 1351 .
AMA StyleMaría Borrego-Ramos, Eloy Bécares, Pedro García, Alejandro Nistal, Saúl Blanco. Epiphytic Diatom-Based Biomonitoring in Mediterranean Ponds: Traditional Microscopy versus Metabarcoding Approaches. Water. 2021; 13 (10):1351.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaría Borrego-Ramos; Eloy Bécares; Pedro García; Alejandro Nistal; Saúl Blanco. 2021. "Epiphytic Diatom-Based Biomonitoring in Mediterranean Ponds: Traditional Microscopy versus Metabarcoding Approaches." Water 13, no. 10: 1351.
Diatoms are important organisms in freshwater ecosystems due to their position as primary producers and therefore, analyzing their assemblages provides relevant information on ecosystem functioning. Diatoms have historically been identified based on morphological traits, which is time-consuming and requires well-trained specialists. Nevertheless, DNA barcoding offers an alternative approach to overcome some limitations of the morphological method. Here, we assess if both approaches are comparable methods to study patterns and mechanisms (including environmental filtering and dispersal limitation) of epiphytic diatom metacommunities using a comprehensive dataset from 22 Mediterranean ponds at different taxonomic resolutions. We used a fragment of rbcL barcode gene combined with High-Throughput Sequencing to infer diatom community composition. The overall degree of correspondence between both approaches was assessed by Procrustean rotation analysis and Procrustean randomization tests, whereas the role of local environmental variables and geographical distances was studied using a comprehensive combination of BIOENV, Mantel tests and distance-based redundancy analysis. Our results showed a relatively poor correspondence in the compositional variation of diatom metacommunity between both approaches. We speculate that the incompleteness of the reference database and the bioinformatics processing are the biases most likely affecting the molecular approach, whereas the limited counting effort and the presence of cryptic species are presumably the major biases related with the morphological method. On the other hand, variation in diatom community composition detected with both approaches was strongly related to the environmental template, which may be related with the narrow community-environment relationships in diatoms. Nevertheless, we found no significant relationship between compositional variation and geographical distances. Overall, our work shows the complementary nature of both approaches and highlights the importance of DNA metabarcoding to address empirical research questions of community ecology in freshwaters, especially once the reference databases include most genotypes of occurring taxa and bioinformatics biases are overcome.
Alejandro Nistal-García; Pedro García-García; Jorge García-Girón; María Borrego-Ramos; Saúl Blanco; Eloy Bécares. DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms. Science of The Total Environment 2021, 786, 147410 .
AMA StyleAlejandro Nistal-García, Pedro García-García, Jorge García-Girón, María Borrego-Ramos, Saúl Blanco, Eloy Bécares. DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms. Science of The Total Environment. 2021; 786 ():147410.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlejandro Nistal-García; Pedro García-García; Jorge García-Girón; María Borrego-Ramos; Saúl Blanco; Eloy Bécares. 2021. "DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms." Science of The Total Environment 786, no. : 147410.
Benthic diatoms are well known bioindicators of water quality, used in many aquatic ecosystems. Since diatom-based monitoring of water quality is required by European legislation, the search for methods that facilitate this task has become more relevant. The aim of this study was to test the reliability of DNA metabarcoding combined with high-throughput sequencing (HTS) techniques in the bioassessment of 22 Mediterranean shallow ponds in Spain. For each pond, Trophic Diatom Index (TDI) was calculated from inventories obtained by using light microscopy, and then molecular (HTS) methods. Ponds were subsequently classified into five water quality classes. Our results showed a good correspondence between both methods, especially after applying a correction factor depending on the biovolume of the cells. This correspondence led to the assignment to the same quality class in 59% of the ponds. The determination and quantification of valves or DNA sequences was one of the main pitfalls, mainly those related to the variability in the relative abundances of some species. Accordingly, ponds with similar relative abundances for the dominant species were assigned to the same quality class. Moreover, other difficulties leading the discrepancies were the misidentification of some species due to the presence of semi-cryptic taxa, the incompleteness of the reference database and the bioinformatic protocol. Therefore, the validation of DNA-based methods for the identification of freshwater diatoms represents an important goal, as an alternative to traditional ones in Mediterranean shallow ponds.
María Borrego-Ramos; Eloy Bécares; Pedro García-García; Alejandro Nistal; Saúl Blanco. An account of epiphytic diatoms in mediterranean wetlands: comparing morphological and molecular assessments. ARPHA Conference Abstracts 2021, 4, e64948 .
AMA StyleMaría Borrego-Ramos, Eloy Bécares, Pedro García-García, Alejandro Nistal, Saúl Blanco. An account of epiphytic diatoms in mediterranean wetlands: comparing morphological and molecular assessments. ARPHA Conference Abstracts. 2021; 4 ():e64948.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaría Borrego-Ramos; Eloy Bécares; Pedro García-García; Alejandro Nistal; Saúl Blanco. 2021. "An account of epiphytic diatoms in mediterranean wetlands: comparing morphological and molecular assessments." ARPHA Conference Abstracts 4, no. : e64948.
The descriptions of the new species Cymbella balkii sp. nov. and C. yerlii sp. nov. were given in this study. The species were found in a karstic limnocrene spring which is one of the most important sources of Sakarya River. Cymbella balkii sp. nov. is very similar to C. pervarians, C. simonsenii, C. percymbiformis, C. perparva, C. alpestris and C. vulgata. Among them, C. pervarians is the most similar taxon however, the former has higher stigmata number and larger valve than the latter. Cymbella yerlii sp. nov. is very similar to C. parva, C. perparva and C. parviformis are similar taxa. Among them, C. parva is the most similar taxon in all related ones with similar outline. However, length/width ratio is higher in C. yerlii than the other taxa.
Cüneyt Nadir Solak; Neslihan Balkis-Ozdelice; Elif Yilmaz; Turgay Durmus; Saúl Blanco. Description of two new Cymbella (Bacillariophyta) species from Sakarbaşı spring, Turkey. Phytotaxa 2021, 484, 195 -206.
AMA StyleCüneyt Nadir Solak, Neslihan Balkis-Ozdelice, Elif Yilmaz, Turgay Durmus, Saúl Blanco. Description of two new Cymbella (Bacillariophyta) species from Sakarbaşı spring, Turkey. Phytotaxa. 2021; 484 (2):195-206.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCüneyt Nadir Solak; Neslihan Balkis-Ozdelice; Elif Yilmaz; Turgay Durmus; Saúl Blanco. 2021. "Description of two new Cymbella (Bacillariophyta) species from Sakarbaşı spring, Turkey." Phytotaxa 484, no. 2: 195-206.
During the investigations of the diatom flora of Lake Qinghai, China (see Liu et al. 2020 for details), specimens of an undescribed species of Pinnularia Ehrenberg (1843: 45) were encountered, which are hereby illustrated and described.
Li-Ying Deng; Saúl Blanco; Bing Liu; Si-Jin Quan; Ji-Yan Long. Pinnularia qinghainensis: a new diatom species (Bacillariophyta) found in the brackish Lake Qinghai, China. Phytotaxa 2021, 483, 80 -84.
AMA StyleLi-Ying Deng, Saúl Blanco, Bing Liu, Si-Jin Quan, Ji-Yan Long. Pinnularia qinghainensis: a new diatom species (Bacillariophyta) found in the brackish Lake Qinghai, China. Phytotaxa. 2021; 483 (1):80-84.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLi-Ying Deng; Saúl Blanco; Bing Liu; Si-Jin Quan; Ji-Yan Long. 2021. "Pinnularia qinghainensis: a new diatom species (Bacillariophyta) found in the brackish Lake Qinghai, China." Phytotaxa 483, no. 1: 80-84.
Diatoms are important organisms in freshwater ecosystems due to their position as primary producers and therefore, analyzing their communities provides relevant information on ecosystem functioning. Diatoms have historically been identified based on morphological traits, which is time-consuming and requires well-trained specialists. Nevertheless, DNA barcoding offers an alternative approach to overcome some limitations of the morphological method. Here, we assess if both approaches are comparable methods to study patterns and mechanisms (including environmental filtering and dispersal limitation) of epiphytic diatom metacommunities using a comprehensive dataset from 22 Mediterranean ponds at different taxonomic resolutions. We used a fragment of rbcL barcode gene combined with High-Throughput Sequencing to infer diatom community composition. The overall degree of correspondence between both approaches was assessed by Procrustean rotation analysis and Procrustean randomization tests, whereas the role of local environmental variables and geographical distances was studied using a comprehensive combination of BIOENV, Mantel tests and distance-based redundancy analysis. Our results showed a relatively poor correspondence in the compositional variation of diatom metacommunity between both approaches. We speculate that the incompleteness of the reference database and the bioinformatics processing are the biases most likely affecting the molecular approach, whereas the limited counting effort and the presence of cryptic species are presumably the major biases related with the morphological method. On the other hand, variation in diatom community composition detected with both approaches was strongly related to the environmental template, which may be related with the narrow ecological niche and the strong preferences for particular substrata of some diatom species. Nevertheless, we found no significant relationship between compositional variation and geographical distances at regional extent. Overall, our work highlights the importance of DNA metabarcoding to address empirical research questions of community ecology in freshwaters, especially once the reference databases include most genotypes of occurring taxa and bioinformatics biases are overcome.
Alejandro Nistal; Pedro Garcia; Jorge Garcia; María Borrego; Saúl Blanco; Eloy Bécares. DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms. ARPHA Conference Abstracts 2021, 4, e63672 .
AMA StyleAlejandro Nistal, Pedro Garcia, Jorge Garcia, María Borrego, Saúl Blanco, Eloy Bécares. DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms. ARPHA Conference Abstracts. 2021; 4 ():e63672.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlejandro Nistal; Pedro Garcia; Jorge Garcia; María Borrego; Saúl Blanco; Eloy Bécares. 2021. "DNA metabarcoding and morphological methods show complementary patterns in the metacommunity organization of lentic epiphytic diatoms." ARPHA Conference Abstracts 4, no. : e63672.
The diatom Berkeleya transfretana is described as a new species from samples collected at Playa Punta Sauciño, an intertidal coastal area in Ceuta, North Africa. Its main features are the comparatively small size in relation to other Berkeleya species and the very fine and dense striae pattern (more than 40 striae per 10 µm). The new species is here described under light and scanning electron microscopy and compared to related taxa. The benthos of these rocky beaches are interesting spots of biodiversity still to be explored.
Adriana Olenici; Francisco Jiménez-Gómez; Saúl Blanco. Berkeleya Transfretana sp. Nov., a New Marine Diatom from Ceuta (North Africa). Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 2021, 9, 146 .
AMA StyleAdriana Olenici, Francisco Jiménez-Gómez, Saúl Blanco. Berkeleya Transfretana sp. Nov., a New Marine Diatom from Ceuta (North Africa). Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. 2021; 9 (2):146.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAdriana Olenici; Francisco Jiménez-Gómez; Saúl Blanco. 2021. "Berkeleya Transfretana sp. Nov., a New Marine Diatom from Ceuta (North Africa)." Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9, no. 2: 146.
The performance of an anoxic-aerobic microalgal-bacterial system treating synthetic food waste digestate at 10 days of hydraulic retention time via nitrification-denitrification under increasing digestate concentrations of 25%, 50%, and 100% (v/v) was assessed during Stages I, II and III, respectively. The system supported adequate treatment without external CO2 supplementation since sufficient inorganic carbon in the digestate was available for autotrophic growth. High steady-state Total Organic Carbon (TOC) and Total Nitrogen (TN) removal efficiencies of 85–96% and 73–84% were achieved in Stages I and II. Similarly, PO43−-P removals of 81 ± 15% and 58 ± 4% were recorded during these stages. During Stage III, the average influent concentrations of 815 ± 35 mg TOC·L−1, 610 ± 23 mg TN·L−1, and 46 ± 11 mg PO43−-P·L−1 induced O2 limiting conditions, resulting in TOC, TN and PO43−-P removals of 85 ± 3%, 73 ± 3%, and 28 ± 16%, respectively. Digestate concentrations of 25% and 50% favored nitrification-denitrification mechanisms, whereas the treatment of undiluted digestate resulted in higher ammonia volatilization and hampered nitrification-denitrification. In Stages I and II, the microalgal community was dominated by Chlorella vulgaris and Cryptomonas sp., whereas Pseudoanabaena sp. was more abundant during Stage III. Illumina sequencing revealed the presence of carbon and nitrogen transforming bacteria, with dominances of the genera Gemmata, Azospirillum, and Psychrobacter during Stage I, II, and III, respectively. Finally, the high settleability of the biomass (98% of suspended solids removal in the settler) and average C (42%), N (7%), P (0.2%), and S (0.4%) contents recovered in the biomass confirmed its potential for agricultural applications, contributing to a closed-cycle management of food waste.
Andrés F. Torres-Franco; Maribel Zuluaga; Diana Hernández-Roldán; Deborah Leroy-Freitas; Cristian A. Sepúlveda-Muñoz; Saúl Blanco; César R. Mota; Raúl Muñoz. Assessment of the performance of an anoxic-aerobic microalgal-bacterial system treating digestate. Chemosphere 2020, 270, 129437 .
AMA StyleAndrés F. Torres-Franco, Maribel Zuluaga, Diana Hernández-Roldán, Deborah Leroy-Freitas, Cristian A. Sepúlveda-Muñoz, Saúl Blanco, César R. Mota, Raúl Muñoz. Assessment of the performance of an anoxic-aerobic microalgal-bacterial system treating digestate. Chemosphere. 2020; 270 ():129437.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAndrés F. Torres-Franco; Maribel Zuluaga; Diana Hernández-Roldán; Deborah Leroy-Freitas; Cristian A. Sepúlveda-Muñoz; Saúl Blanco; César R. Mota; Raúl Muñoz. 2020. "Assessment of the performance of an anoxic-aerobic microalgal-bacterial system treating digestate." Chemosphere 270, no. : 129437.
Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. is a new freshwater diatom described in Portugal from phytobenthos samples in an urban pond located in Aveiro (Portugal). This new diatom is illustrated and discussed based on different samples collected in July–August 2017 from Santo António Park pond in the city centre. This taxon was compared with other Gomphonema taxa and the morphological features are documented through light and scanning electron micrographs. Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. is characterized by showing solitary cells, rhombic-lanceolate to lanceolate valves with rounded apices, a narrow, linear axial area, and slightly asymmetrical central area. This taxon may be confused with G. affine var. rhombicum in terms of length, striae density and outline. Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. was present in freshwater with low dissolved oxygen concentrations, high conductivity, neutral to slightly alkaline pH and high nitrate concentrations.
Lorena González-Paz; Salomé F.P. Almeida; Saúl Blanco; Cristina Delgado. Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae) from an urban pond. Phytotaxa 2020, 471, 16 -28.
AMA StyleLorena González-Paz, Salomé F.P. Almeida, Saúl Blanco, Cristina Delgado. Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae) from an urban pond. Phytotaxa. 2020; 471 (1):16-28.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLorena González-Paz; Salomé F.P. Almeida; Saúl Blanco; Cristina Delgado. 2020. "Gomphonema alavariense sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae) from an urban pond." Phytotaxa 471, no. 1: 16-28.
Background: Due to their isolation, islands offer excellent areas for the study of distribution of benthic diatoms. On the other hand, diatoms bearing canal raphe have received less attention compared to other groups of diatoms such as Navicula, Pinnularia or Amphora. Questions: Is it possible that thermal springs on islands offer a refuge for infrequent diatom species? Studied species: Platichthys furnensis C. Delgado, V. Gonçalves & S.F.P. Almeida sp. nov. Study site and dates: The species here described was collected in the epilithon of a thermal spring in São Miguel Island (Azores Archipelago, Portugal) in September 2015. Methods: This new taxon was compared to other diatom species of the genera Nitzschia, Tryblionella, Entomoneis and Hantzschia and to the other species of the genus Platichthys. The morphology is documented by light and scanning electron images and discussed in detail. Results: Platichthys furnensis was found in a thermal pool, a similar habitat to the one where P. krammeri type was collected in Chile in 1940. P. furnensis has many structures that are characteristic of the recently described genus Platichthys, including raised canal raphe and fibulae, compressed valve face, steep valve face and numerous open copulae. Conclusions: The description of the new taxon is interesting because it is the first species within Platichthys to be described from the Northern Hemisphere.
Cristina Delgado; Vitor Gonçalves; Saúl Blanco; Salomé F.P. Almeida. A new diatom (Bacillariophyceae) species from a thermal spring in Azores archipelago (São Miguel island, Atlantic Ocean). Botanical Sciences 2020, 99, 169 -181.
AMA StyleCristina Delgado, Vitor Gonçalves, Saúl Blanco, Salomé F.P. Almeida. A new diatom (Bacillariophyceae) species from a thermal spring in Azores archipelago (São Miguel island, Atlantic Ocean). Botanical Sciences. 2020; 99 (1):169-181.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCristina Delgado; Vitor Gonçalves; Saúl Blanco; Salomé F.P. Almeida. 2020. "A new diatom (Bacillariophyceae) species from a thermal spring in Azores archipelago (São Miguel island, Atlantic Ocean)." Botanical Sciences 99, no. 1: 169-181.
Currently, microalgae (i.e., diatoms) constitute a generally accepted bioindicator of water quality and therefore provide an index of the status of biological ecosystems. Diatom detection for specimen counting and sample classification are two difficult time-consuming tasks for the few existing expert diatomists. To mitigate this challenge, in this work, we propose a fully operative low-cost automated microscope, integrating algorithms for: (1) stage and focus control, (2) image acquisition (slide scanning, stitching, contrast enhancement), and (3) diatom detection and a prospective specimen classification (among 80 taxa). Deep learning algorithms have been applied to overcome the difficult selection of image descriptors imposed by classical machine learning strategies. With respect to the mentioned strategies, the best results were obtained by deep neural networks with a maximum precision of 86% (with the YOLO network) for detection and 99.51% for classification, among 80 different species (with the AlexNet network). All the developed operational modules are integrated and controlled by the user from the developed graphical user interface running in the main controller. With the developed operative platform, it is noteworthy that this work provides a quite useful toolbox for phycologists in their daily challenging tasks to identify and classify diatoms.
Jesús Salido; Carlos Sánchez; Jesús Ruiz-Santaquiteria; Gabriel Cristóbal; Saul Blanco; Gloria Bueno. A Low-Cost Automated Digital Microscopy Platform for Automatic Identification of Diatoms. Applied Sciences 2020, 10, 6033 .
AMA StyleJesús Salido, Carlos Sánchez, Jesús Ruiz-Santaquiteria, Gabriel Cristóbal, Saul Blanco, Gloria Bueno. A Low-Cost Automated Digital Microscopy Platform for Automatic Identification of Diatoms. Applied Sciences. 2020; 10 (17):6033.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJesús Salido; Carlos Sánchez; Jesús Ruiz-Santaquiteria; Gabriel Cristóbal; Saul Blanco; Gloria Bueno. 2020. "A Low-Cost Automated Digital Microscopy Platform for Automatic Identification of Diatoms." Applied Sciences 10, no. 17: 6033.
A new species, Nupela eremica sp. nov. is described from a high mountain lake located in the Eastern Range of Colombian Andes. The new taxon was studied from sediment and epiphyton samples and under light and scanning electron microscope. Comparison with morphologically similar taxa is showed. N. giluwensis, N. carolina, N. gomphosphenioides, N. encyonopsis, N. incerta, N. neglecta, N. tenuicephala, and N. exilissima show morphometric values overlapping those of Nupela eremica sp. nov. The combination of valve size and outline is unique and justifies the erection of this new species.
Saúl Blanco; Claudia L. Muñoz-López; Carlos A. Rivera-Rondón. Nupela eremica sp. nov. (Bacillariophyta, Naviculaceae) from a páramo lake in the Colombian Andes. Phytotaxa 2020, 455, 295 -300.
AMA StyleSaúl Blanco, Claudia L. Muñoz-López, Carlos A. Rivera-Rondón. Nupela eremica sp. nov. (Bacillariophyta, Naviculaceae) from a páramo lake in the Colombian Andes. Phytotaxa. 2020; 455 (4):295-300.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSaúl Blanco; Claudia L. Muñoz-López; Carlos A. Rivera-Rondón. 2020. "Nupela eremica sp. nov. (Bacillariophyta, Naviculaceae) from a páramo lake in the Colombian Andes." Phytotaxa 455, no. 4: 295-300.
During a survey of freshwater diatoms from a mountain lake, Lake Tiancai, Laojunshan National Park, Hengduan Mountain Range, Lijiang City, Yunnan Province, China, a new Kurtkrammeria species, Kurtkrammeria tiancaiensis sp. nov. was recorded. A detailed morphological description of K. tiancaiensis is presented, based on light and scanning electron microscopy. The main features of K. tiancaiensis include slightly dorsiventral valves with narrowly rounded, or slightly protracted ends, a wide central area, apical pore fields at both poles and lack of stigmata. The new species is compared with K. treinishii, K. weilandii, K. lacusglacialis and K. eileencoxiae (≡ Gomphonema eileencoxiae), all of which show similar valve outlines to K. tiancaiensis, but differ in details of size, striae density, puncta density, number of apical pore fields, shape of the central area and/or presence of stigmata.
Wei Zhang; Xue-Wei Gu; Ming-Yan Bao; John Patrick Kociolek; Saùl Blanco; Yan-Ling Li. Kurtkrammeria tiancaiensis sp. nov. a new cymbelloid species (Bacillariophyceae) from Lijiang Laojunshan National Park in Yunnan Province, China. Phytotaxa 2020, 451, 223 -230.
AMA StyleWei Zhang, Xue-Wei Gu, Ming-Yan Bao, John Patrick Kociolek, Saùl Blanco, Yan-Ling Li. Kurtkrammeria tiancaiensis sp. nov. a new cymbelloid species (Bacillariophyceae) from Lijiang Laojunshan National Park in Yunnan Province, China. Phytotaxa. 2020; 451 (3):223-230.
Chicago/Turabian StyleWei Zhang; Xue-Wei Gu; Ming-Yan Bao; John Patrick Kociolek; Saùl Blanco; Yan-Ling Li. 2020. "Kurtkrammeria tiancaiensis sp. nov. a new cymbelloid species (Bacillariophyceae) from Lijiang Laojunshan National Park in Yunnan Province, China." Phytotaxa 451, no. 3: 223-230.
This paper is an examination of Thomas Comber’s diatom contribution to the Catalogue of African Plants Collected by Dr. Friedrich Welwitsch in 1853-1861. It includes notes on the new taxa described, deals with a few nomenclatural issues and very briefly considers the biogeographical implications of museum collections.
David M. Williams; Saúl Blanco. Thomas Radcliffe Comber (1837–1902), his contribution to the diatoms recorded in the Catalogue of African Plants Collected by Dr. Friedrich Welwitsch in 1853–1861 (1898–1901) with notes on nomenclatural issues and biogeographical implications. Phytotaxa 2020, 451, 45 -62.
AMA StyleDavid M. Williams, Saúl Blanco. Thomas Radcliffe Comber (1837–1902), his contribution to the diatoms recorded in the Catalogue of African Plants Collected by Dr. Friedrich Welwitsch in 1853–1861 (1898–1901) with notes on nomenclatural issues and biogeographical implications. Phytotaxa. 2020; 451 (1):45-62.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDavid M. Williams; Saúl Blanco. 2020. "Thomas Radcliffe Comber (1837–1902), his contribution to the diatoms recorded in the Catalogue of African Plants Collected by Dr. Friedrich Welwitsch in 1853–1861 (1898–1901) with notes on nomenclatural issues and biogeographical implications." Phytotaxa 451, no. 1: 45-62.
Human skin is one of the most complex body organs that functions as a physical barrier against water loss and environmental stressors that include UV radiation, reactive oxygen species, pathogens, chemicals and physical agents. Skin texture may undergo ageing, fragility of the dermal layer, thinning, laxity, enlarged pores, dryness, fine lines, and wrinkles as a result of chronic exposure to intrinsic and extrinsic destructive factors. This leads to the growing importance of the cosmetic industry. Therefore, there is a need to investigate harmless and efficient natural raw ingredients, and cyanobacteria-derived compounds have the potential to cope with this challenge. Cyanobacteria are important metabolite sources, which can be used to fight against skin-related problems. Cyanobacteria are morphologically diverse photosynthetic prokaryotes that are broadly distributed in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. Cyanobacteria have developed special mechanisms to help them endure extreme conditions therefore various secondary metabolites can be extracted from them. Mycosporine-like amino acids, polysaccharides, pigments, scytonemin, antioxidants, and carotenoids are some of the beneficial metabolites that are extracted from cyanobacteria. Diverse cyanobacteria strains are now being broadly used in skin care products for various skin conditions by acting as sunscreens, anti-wrinkling agents, moisturizer or texture-enhancing agents. In this paper, an overview of the cosmetic potentials of cyanobacteria is presented.
Bahareh Nowruzi; Gisoo Sarvari; Saúl Blanco. The cosmetic application of cyanobacterial secondary metabolites. Algal Research 2020, 49, 101959 .
AMA StyleBahareh Nowruzi, Gisoo Sarvari, Saúl Blanco. The cosmetic application of cyanobacterial secondary metabolites. Algal Research. 2020; 49 ():101959.
Chicago/Turabian StyleBahareh Nowruzi; Gisoo Sarvari; Saúl Blanco. 2020. "The cosmetic application of cyanobacterial secondary metabolites." Algal Research 49, no. : 101959.
This study aims at elucidating the environmental factors controlling benthic diatom diversity and uniqueness in Mediterranean mountain ponds. Samples of periphytic diatoms were collected in 45 ponds in Andalusia, south of Spain, and analysed by standard methods. Data analysis reveals that diatom diversity is mainly controlled by elevation and hydroperiod. Contrary to the usual findings in the literature, the highest scores on Shannon’s diversity index were found in high-elevation temporary ponds, but this effect is hidden by lake clustering in the analysed dataset. Significant distance-decay similarity (DDS) trends were detected in the analysis of floristic composition among the samples, stressing the importance of spatial factors that may override the effect of other abiotic factors. These findings highlight the role of isolation and dispersal limitation in the configuration of the biogeographical patterns of benthic diatoms.
Saúl Blanco; Adriana Olenici; Fernando Ortega; Francisco Jiménez Gómez; Francisco Guerrero. Identifying environmental drivers of benthic diatom diversity: the case of Mediterranean mountain ponds. PeerJ 2020, 8, e8825 .
AMA StyleSaúl Blanco, Adriana Olenici, Fernando Ortega, Francisco Jiménez Gómez, Francisco Guerrero. Identifying environmental drivers of benthic diatom diversity: the case of Mediterranean mountain ponds. PeerJ. 2020; 8 ():e8825.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSaúl Blanco; Adriana Olenici; Fernando Ortega; Francisco Jiménez Gómez; Francisco Guerrero. 2020. "Identifying environmental drivers of benthic diatom diversity: the case of Mediterranean mountain ponds." PeerJ 8, no. : e8825.
Disentangling the relative role of species sorting and dispersal limitation in biological communities has become one of the main issues for community ecologists and biogeographers. In this study, we analysed a data set of epiphytic diatoms comprising 34 lakes from six European countries. This data set covers a relatively large latitudinal gradient to elucidate which processes are affecting the distribution of diatom communities on a broad spatial extent. Our results show strong environmental effects on the composition of the diatom communities, while the spatial factor effects were weak, emphasising that compositional variation was mainly due to species turnover. Our data support information from the literature that local abiotic factors are the main predictors controlling the compositional variation of diatom assemblages in European shallow lakes. More specifically, changes in species composition were driven mainly by nutrient content in Northern Europe, whereas lakes located in Southern Europe were more affected by conductivity and lake depth. Our results solve pending questions in the spatial ecology of diatoms by proving that species turnover is stronger than nestedness at any spatial scale, and give support to the use of epiphytic diatoms as biological indicators for shallow lakes.
Omar Rodríguez-Alcalá; Saúl Blanco; Jorge García-Girón; Erik Jeppesen; Ken Irvine; Peeter Nõges; Tiina Nõges; Elisabeth M. Gross; Eloy Bécares. Large-scale geographical and environmental drivers of shallow lake diatom metacommunities across Europe. Science of The Total Environment 2019, 707, 135887 .
AMA StyleOmar Rodríguez-Alcalá, Saúl Blanco, Jorge García-Girón, Erik Jeppesen, Ken Irvine, Peeter Nõges, Tiina Nõges, Elisabeth M. Gross, Eloy Bécares. Large-scale geographical and environmental drivers of shallow lake diatom metacommunities across Europe. Science of The Total Environment. 2019; 707 ():135887.
Chicago/Turabian StyleOmar Rodríguez-Alcalá; Saúl Blanco; Jorge García-Girón; Erik Jeppesen; Ken Irvine; Peeter Nõges; Tiina Nõges; Elisabeth M. Gross; Eloy Bécares. 2019. "Large-scale geographical and environmental drivers of shallow lake diatom metacommunities across Europe." Science of The Total Environment 707, no. : 135887.
The diatom Encyonema nevadense S.Blanco & al. sp. nov. is described as a new species, from epilithic samples collected from a high mountain pond in Sierra Nevada National Park. This taxon is characterized by the presence of narrow lanceolate valves with a moderate dorsiventrality, and the presence of areolae with irregular external openings. The type population is compared with Encyonema perpusillum (A.Cleve) D.G.Mann and its varieties, the morphologically closest species within the genus. The ecological and biogeographic implications of the discovery are briefly discussed.
Saúl Blanco; Adriana Olenici; Inmaculada De Vicente; Francisco Guerrero. Contribution to the inventory of Iberian diatoms: Encyonema nevadense S.Blanco & al. sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae). Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid 2019, 76, 088 .
AMA StyleSaúl Blanco, Adriana Olenici, Inmaculada De Vicente, Francisco Guerrero. Contribution to the inventory of Iberian diatoms: Encyonema nevadense S.Blanco & al. sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae). Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid. 2019; 76 (2):088.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSaúl Blanco; Adriana Olenici; Inmaculada De Vicente; Francisco Guerrero. 2019. "Contribution to the inventory of Iberian diatoms: Encyonema nevadense S.Blanco & al. sp. nov. (Cymbellales, Gomphonemataceae)." Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid 76, no. 2: 088.