Flowering wild vegetation contributes to the maintenance of biodiversity,ecological balance and the sustainability of ecosystems, with a positive influence, inparticular, on pollinating insects. The objective of this research was to characterizemorphologically the pollen grains of wild flowering plants predominant in the town ofLaramie, province of Chao, department of La Libertad, Peru, during winter 2024. Parts ofplants, such stems and branches with flowers, were collected. Plants identification wasdone in the herbarium of the National University of Trujillo (UNT); anthers and pollengrains in 19 identified species were prepared for observation, and characterizationunder a compound microscope at 100X. The great diversity of the pollen grain isstands out in terms of morphological characters between different species and evenwithin the same genus, highlighting the size, shape and ornamentation of the exine asvariable characters, which suggests the great potential for use of such characters inthe taxonomic identification of plants.

The present research was carried out with the objective of determining the comparative differential morphological characteristics between the pollen grains of Citrus aurantifolia (Christm.) Single 1913, Citrus limon (L.) Osbeck 1765, Citrus latifolia (Yu. Tanaka) Yu. Tanaka 1951 and Citrus medica (L.) 1853, from Cajamarca and La Libertad, Perú. Samples of stems and branches with flowers were taken for taxonomic identification in the “Truxillense” herbarium of the Universidad Nacional de Trujillo(UNT), and palynological studies in the Genetics and Molecular Biology laboratory of the UNT, Trujillo, La Libertad, Perú. Dehiscent anthers of each species under study were isolated on a slide sheet, the pollen grains were stained with 0.5% safranin and were observed and photographed under an Olympus BX40 optical microscope at a magnification of 100X, recording the ornamentation characteristics and values. to establish shape, number, diameter of pores and thickness of the exine. The pollen grains in the studied species show reticulated exines, being predominantly prolatespheroidal, tetracolporate; with variable values of P/E, exine thickness and pore diameter between species and even within the same species, thus affirming theexistence of great interspecific and intraspecific genetic variability in the Citrus genus.

In this study, qualitative morphological characters, traditional and derived morphometric descriptors, palynological traits, and multivariate analyses were integrated to evaluate morphological variation among five wild and cultivated Opuntia taxa from the coastal region of La Libertad, Peru, including a morphotype of Opuntia ficus-indica. Vegetative characters revealed differences in cladode architecture, spine development, and growth habit, whereas derived morphometric descriptors improved the characterization of shape and the relative arrangement of morphological structures. Floral, fruit, seed, and pollen characters showed consistent differences among the evaluated taxa that were further supported by principal component analyses, suggesting patterns of morphological variation. The morphotype of O. ficus-indica showed consistent morphological differentiation from cultivated O. ficus-indica within the sampled material, particularly in reproductive traits, cladode architecture, and spine development. Overall, the integration of macro and micromorphological evidence with derived morphometric descriptors provided a comprehensive characterization of phenotypic variation and represents a useful approach for documenting morphological differentiation within Opuntia. Further integrative studies are needed to clarify the taxonomic significance of this morphological differentiation.

The study evaluated the genotoxicity of sodium benzoate and potassiumsorbate using the comet assay, employing erythrocytes of Oreochromis niloticus (tilapia) as an ex vivo biological model. This model is a viable alternative due to its genetic homogeneity, nucleated cells, and low cost. Treatments were conducted with concentrations of 40, 65, and 90 mg/ml of both preservatives and were compared with positive (cyclophosphamide) and negative (fetal bovine serum) controls. The results showed that potassium sorbate has a greater genotoxic effect than sodium benzoate, with a clear dose-response relationship in DNA fragmentation. From 40mg/ml, sorbate showed a significant increase in DNA damage, and at 90 mg/ml, thedamage was comparable to the positive control. Sodium benzoate presented a lesssevere effect, maintaining high cell viability at concentrations of 40 and 65 mg/ml, while sorbate reduced viability at higher concentrations, with an LD50 of 163 mg/ml. Parameters such as the percentage of tail DNA and olive tail moment reflected an increase in genetic damage induced by sorbate. These findings demonstrate thattilapia erythrocytes are an effective model for evaluating cytotoxicity and genotoxicity,highlighting the need to regulate the concentrations of food preservatives to protectgenetic integrity and consumer safety.

He seeds and leaves of Ricinus communisL. are known to contain toxic compounds; however, its pollen has not yet been investigated. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of aqueous extracts of R. communisL. seeds and pollen on the development of Drosophila melanogaster. Diets containing different concentrations of seed extracts and corbicular pollen from Apis melliferawere formulated, and the numbers of pupae and adults were recorded. Treatments with seed extract significantly resulted in a marked decrease in survival rates ranging from 1.33% to 30.67% for pupae and 0.33 to 22% for adults, compared to the control diet (45% and 37.67%, respectively). In contrast, diets supplemented with pollen extract showed remarkably higher survival rates, with approximately 72% of adults successfully emerging. In conclusion, R. communisL. seed extract inhibited the development of D. melanogaster, whereas the corbicular pollen extract promoted survival.