Maize tortilla is a basic food in Mexico, and, lately, the food industry has tried to make the manufacturing process easier by using instant flours and specialized machines. The purpose of this study was to investigate consumers’ behaviors related to tortillas and to evaluate the sensory, textural, and physico-chemical parameters of tortillas from the Tlazala region, Mexico. The sensory profile revealed that the artisanal ones had better parameters in terms of smell, taste, and appearance compared to the others. These results are consistent with consumers’ preferences for tortillas made of maize grain instead of industrial corn flour. The sensory parameters and the physico-chemical and texture profile parameters varied with the maize type and manufacturing process. Our findings showed that the artisanal hand-made ones were more nutritious, followed by those mechanically made using maize grain, and finally by those mechanically made from industrialized corn flour. The results of this study may help processors to better understand the parameters of their products and people’s preferences.

La mayor diversidad florística de los bosques templados se encuentra en el componente herbáceo y arbustivo del sotobosque, en estos, la flora adquiere gran importancia ecológica y funcional. Los procesos esenciales del ciclo de nutrientes y la trayectoria sucesional, dependen directamente de la vegetación del sotobosque. Por ello, es necesario realizar la caracterización florística de estas comunidades y conocer su diversidad. En este estudio se determinó la composición y estructura de las especies herbáceas y arbustivas en bosques densos de Pinus hartwegii (Lindl) y Abies religiosa (Kunth Schltdl. et Cham.) del Nevado de Toluca y se cuantificó la abundancia de regeneración arbórea en 10 cuadrantes continuos de 10 m × 10 m. En las especies menores a 50 cm de altura se estimó la cobertura y abundancia con base en la escala Braun-Blanquet. En las especies mayores a 50 cm se obtuvo el valor relativo en cobertura, frecuencia y densidad, además del valor de importancia. De acuerdo con los resultados obtenidos, la flora del sotobosque de Abies religiosa posee una mayor riqueza y está compuesta por 33 especies, 25 géneros y 14 familias, donde Asteraceae es la familia dominante. El sotobosque de Pinus hartwegii registró un total de 18 especies, 16 géneros y 10 familias, con dominancia en cobertura y abundancia de la familia Poaceae. En ambas comunidades vegetales la abundancia de la regeneración es mayor en plántulas y menor en brinzales y latizales.

Connectedness to Nature represents a growing area of interest in the latest years because it could have implications in human behavior. In addition, another type of implications studied in people have been the sounds of birds. The aim of this literature review was to analyze the state of knowledge about Connectedness to Nature and birds, as well as its link with variables related to well-being to identify gaps and directions for further research. We reviewed 41 papers published between 2011 and 2021. Papers were found in 29 journals with studies from 16 countries. Eighty-five percent of the papers used an experimental design and there is a trend of increasing publications over time. Our results show that Connectedness to Nature is linked to variables related to well-being, and the presence of birds (or their perception) contributes to explain the relationship. Therefore, more research on the subject is needed because there is evidence that contradicts some findings. Also, research is needed in different bird species, sounds, different cultures and local contexts, thus, it is necessary to study rural and urban areas. In addition, research is needed in children and teenagers who have been very little represented. Finally, it is necessary to have more information from Latin American countries as they represent the most diverse in bird species and to be able to compare with more studied regions like Europe and North America.

Emerging diseases caused by fungi are a serious threat to wildlife biodiversity. The widespread fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) has caused dramatic amphibian population declines and species extinctions worldwide. While many amphibians have been negatively affected by Bd, some populations/species have persisted despite its presence. One factor contributing to amphibian protection against this fungus is the host-associated skin microbiome. In this study, we aimed to identify gene clusters associated with the antifungal activity of amphibian skin bacteria. Specifically, we explored skin bacteria isolated from species that have persisted in the wild despite the presence of Bd: the frogs Agalychnis callidryas, Craugastor fitzingeri, Dendropsophus ebraccatus, and the axolotl Ambystoma altamirani. Bacterial isolates were tested in vitro for their capacity to inhibit the growth of two fungal pathogens: Bd and the phytopathogen Botrytis cinerea (Bc). Genome mining of these bacterial isolates revealed a diverse repertoire of Biosynthetic Gene Clusters (BGCs) and chitin-degrading gene families (ChDGFs) whose composition and abundance differed among bacterial families. We found specific BGCs and ChDGFs that were associated with the capacity of bacteria to inhibit the growth of either Bd or Bc, suggesting that distinct fungi could be inhibited by different molecular mechanisms. By using similarity networks and machine learning, we identified BGCs encoding known antifungal compounds such as viscosin, fengycin, zwittermicin, as well as siderophores and a novel family of beta-lactones. Finally, we propose that the diversity of BGCs found in amphibian skin bacteria comprise a substantial genetic reservoir that could collectively explain the antifungal properties of the amphibian skin microbiome.

Aims: To analyze and synthesize the principal contributions to the creation of a classification of established forests in sub-humid, temperate climatic regions in Mexico. Methods: Documentary analysis and review of works on the classification of the vegetation of Mexico, with emphasis from 1950 to the present. To identify and analyze the terms frequently used to refer to these plant communities, the following was done: literature search, analysis of frequencies and co-occurrences of these terms that appeared in the titles of the documents. A list of associations of these communities was compiled through a documentary review. Results: Vegetation classification proposals, both nationally and internationally, tend towards the standardization of criteria and nested hierarchical integration at various levels based on physiognomic, climatic, phenological and floristic attributes. The two highest levels of organization in these proposals are based on major vegetation, defined by vegetation forms and climatic criteria as “temperate forests”. Meanwhile lower levels, including the level of associations, are based on their floristic composition. The most frequently used term to refer to these plant communities, according to the documents used in the search, is “temperate forest”, although other terms frequently used are “coniferous forest”, “pine forest”, and “oak forest”. Conclusions: Knowledge about the classification of vegetation in Mexico dates back to pre-Hispanic times. However, it was not until the second half of the 20th century that solid proposals that are influential today were put forward. Given the high biological diversity of the country, it is still a pending task to characterize and make an inventory of the diversity at the level of associations that form this type of temperate forests. Taxonomic reference: Villaseñor (2016). Abbreviations: FVT = Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt; SECLAVEMEX = Mexican Vegetation Classification System; SMO = Sierra Madre Oriental; SMOc = Sierra Madre Occidental; SMS = Sierra Madre del Sur (SMS).

Se registra el conocimiento tradicional de las plantas útiles en los bosques de Pinus hartwegii, un ecosistema importante que marca el límite altitudinal de la vegetación arbórea en México y que brinda importantes servicios ambientales por ser cabecera de cuencas hidrológicas. El estudio se realizó en dos comunidades rurales de alta montaña en el centro de México: Ranchería Las Palomas (RLP) en el Estado de México y San José Pilancón (SJP) en el estado de Veracruz. Se usó el método de consenso de informantes y se hicieron entrevistas semiestructuradas al 10 % de la población, recorridos botánicos, análisis de datos del Índice de Valor de Uso (IVU) y riqueza de plantas. Se encontraron 51 especies útiles en RLP y 46 especies en SJP, así como nueve categorías de uso en RLP y once en SJP. El IVU coincidió en las dos comunidades, donde el pino-ocote (P. hartwegii) fue la especie más importante (1,9 RLP y 1,2 SJP). Se encontraron 24 especies en común, 16 coinciden con los nombres comunes y usos, pero ocho especies tuvieron nombres y usos diferentes. De manera general, para las localidades estudiadas, se pudo reconocer que el conocimiento tradicional sobre las plantas útiles se resguarda en la población adulta y del sexo femenino. Se espera que este estudio sea una base para la valoración y conservación del conocimiento tradicional y la fitodiversidad de este tipo de bosques, tanto por las comunidades locales, así como por autoridades en temas ambientales.