• Dr Francisco Zamora, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the School of Medicine of Universidad de Santiago, emphatically rejects the possibility of a dengue or Zika outbreak in mainland Chile, as the disease-carrying mosquito (aedes aegypti) lives only in tropical areas. After confirming 10 cases of dengue in Easter Island, the Chilean Health Authorities have taken a number of actions to prevent a major outbreak, like the careful waste handling and an information campaign among people in that island.

After confirming 10 cases of dengue in Easter Island, the Chilean health authorities have taken a number of actions to prevent a major outbreak, like the careful waste handling and an information campaign among people in that island.

The dengue and Zika carrying mosquito requires tropical environments for its proliferation; therefore, its presence in mainland Chile and a large scale outbreak of these diseases, even if there are citizens who got the virus abroad, are not possible, because “the infection is only caused by the mosquito bite,” Dr Zamora stresses.

“The mountains of the Andes provide an exceptional natural barrier to the possible spread of the aedes aegypti,” he adds.

In spite of this, the specialist believes that we have to be cautious, considering some studies conducted on Zika virus and its harmful effects on pregnant women, as some have delivered babies with hydrocephalus. 

Although research results are not conclusive, Dr Zamora believes that recommendations given by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministries of Health of the countries at risk are in accordance with the WHO’s mandate on protecting people. 

Dr Zamora explains that the alarm on Zika virus in Brazil was caused by a study that relates babies born with hydrocephalus and women carrying the disease.

But he says that although the study results are not conclusive and the number of cases reported is not representative, “we have to be cautious and advise pregnant women not to travel to areas were this mosquito lives, even if there is not absolute certainty over its relation with hydrocephalus cases.”

Dengue fever

“Dengue fever is a disease caused by a virus borne by the aedes aegypti mosquito, the same vector in yellow fever, Zika fever and chikungunya,” Dr Zamora explains.

“This insect abounds in tropical areas and it has spread from north to south over Latin American countries like Mexico, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, among others, and also in Easter Island, in our country. The mosquito is usually found in very humid environments and its bite causes fever, muscle and joint pain, and skin lesions,” he adds.

Those are the initial symptoms, but the disease development will depend on the patient, he says.

“Dengue fever has subsequent effects like hemorrhagic fever that, together with a temperature, can result in low levels of platelets and plasma and the consequent bleeding that can cause the patient’s death,” he says.

“People with dengue usually do not require special treatment and recover from it,” he adds. 

The reason why health authorities are concerned is that, when infected by dengue, “people do not develop immunity to the virus, so, any subsequent disease can be severer and cause death,” he concludes.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

Photo: The aedes aegypti mosquito is vector in dengue fever, yellow fever, Zika y chikungunya.

• At the “Variabilidad Hidrológica en la Determinación del Caudal Ecológico” seminar held at Universidad de Santiago, Dr Matías Peredo presented a new model that allows small hydroelectric power plants to have a constant flow of river water.

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During the “Variabilidad Hidrológica en la Determinación del Caudal Ecológico” seminar held at Universidad de Santiago, Dr Matías Peredo, professor at the Department of Civil Engineering in Civil Works, presented a new model that allows small hydroelectric power plants to have a constant flow of river water.

The method simulates a physical habitat that includes fish and also leisure time activities, like sport fishing. The purpose of this model is to provide a way of measuring how much water these small power plants require to keep constantly operating, without damaging the ecosystem and independently of rain shortages.

Current Chilean regulations establish that there always should be a specific water flow limit to preserve river ecosystems. However, Dr Peredo says that, just like flora and fauna vary according to dry and rainy years, water flow should change to preserve that ecosystem.

“If more water runs, the volume of water should be higher; and if less water runs, then the volume should be lower. What should not happen is to always keep the minimum volume of water stated by the national regulations, as this not sustainable,” he says.

He adds that the purpose of the model developed is to allow the possibility of bringing more water to generate hydroelectric power by means of variations in the ecologic water volume, and at the same time, to protect the ecosystem. “This is the reason why this is a sustainable energy development.”

The study results could propose more diverse ways of hydroelectric power generation, promoting the incorporation of small power plants.

“The goal is not to rely only on large power plants, but also on small plants, as they could contribute to meet energy demands during dry seasons,” he explains.

The study allowed to conclude that rivers naturally change their flows, as they are flexible. This is why in dry years, water volume should be reduced: to have a delta of water that could be used by small power plants.

For his part, Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi, President of Universidad de Santiago de Chile highlights the importance of this study and the support that our university “gives to this type of initiative, through which professors can strengthen their academic and scientific networks to build knowledge at the service of our country.”

He said that the seminar “allowed to reflect on how to transfer the results and new knowledge to environmental assessment agencies and the market through training activities, seminars, conferences and the development of written material, among others.”

In this project, Dr Peredo worked in partnership with the Environmental Assessment Service (Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental, SEA), that requested and validated this work, and the Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO, in Spanish), that funded the project through a public goods for competitiveness contest.

The Department of Civil Engineering in Civil Works of this university, together with a multidisciplinary team of 25 professionals including hydrologists, geographers, biologists and experts in rural development and environmental engineers, worked at this project.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

·         The amount awarded will be supplemented by institutional funds, through the Vice Presidency of Research, Development and Innovation. This will allow the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology to renovate and acquire new equipment for the important research work that they develop.

Universidad de Santiago was awarded 571 million 528 thousand Chilean pesos in the IV Scientific and Technology Equipment Fund (Fondequip) Grant Contest. Fondequip is a program led by the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (Conicyt).

The funds will benefit different research projects.

Dr Raúl Cordero, professor at the Department of Physics of Universidad de Santiago is leading the project “Characterization of Clouds in the Antarctic Peninsula and the Southern Ocean” that seeks to better understand the interrelation between clouds and polar climate.

“Through interactions with short wave and long wave radiation, clouds significantly impact the energy balance, contributing to warming (or cooling) the Earth surface. The clouds are the biggest source of uncertainty in global climate models and affect the forecast of future climate scenarios,” the researcher said.

Therefore, in a context of climate change, “a better understanding of the clouds over the Southern Ocean and the Antarctic Peninsula is urgent,” the researcher said.

Thanks to the funds awarded, Dr Cordero will be able to acquire a Micro Pulse LIDAR (MPL), a high- tech remote sensing laser system that provides constant and independent follow-up of clouds profiles and properties. The equipment will be assembled on Universidad de Santiago’s Research Platform (62º 12’ S; 58º 57’ W), on San Jorge Island, located in the Austral Ocean, to the north of the Antarctica Peninsula.

To guarantee the access and dissemination of the measurements and data generated by the new equipment, it will be connected to the NASA’s “Micro Pulse Lidar Network” (MPLNET).

Confocal microscope

The Faculty of Chemistry and Biology was also granted funds for two projects. One of them is led by Dr Claudio Acuña Castillo, head of the Department of Biology. According to the researcher, they seek to “renovate the confocal microscope to keep our competitiveness and increase the number of papers published by the areas of Biology and Biomedicine.”

The third initiative that received funding was the project for updating and acquiring new accessories for a nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer that will strengthen different research areas in chemistry. Dr Juan Guerrero of the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology is leading this project.

Impact of new equipment

According to Dr Raúl Cordero, “by means of the acquisition of cutting edge technology, this contest allows Chile to strengthen the scientific instrumentation of the Universidad de Santiago’s Antarctic Platform and contributes to training advanced human capital, at an undergraduate and graduate levels, with an specialization both in the polar atmosphere and climate change.”

For his part, Dr Acuña says that having this type of funds available allow us to have the leading-edge equipment required to generate competitive research.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

Universidad de Santiago was awarded 900 million Chilean pesos in the V version of the Contest Anillos Research Projects in Science and Technology. The contest was announced by the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research.

Universidad de Santiago was awarded 900 million Chilean pesos for the execution of two projects in the context of the V version of the Contest Anillos Research project in Science and Technology 2014.

Thanks to the Associative Research Program (PIA, in Spanish), 17 projects will be funded nationwide, all of them top-class studies with international scope.

Dr Óscar Bustos Castillo, Vice President of Research, Development and Innovation, said that he was very pleased with the results, adding that “this type of project allows developing cutting-edge research that goes beyond our borders, and this is highly significant to contribute to our university’s internationalization.”

Dr Bustos highlighted that two of the projects that were awarded funding belong to consolidated research groups that, in the short term, could become research centers.

“These study projects will be executed over three years and will allow us to face issues of national interest and global challenges, restating the role we play as a state and public university,” he said.

The projects

One of the projects is led by Dr Maritza Páez and Dr María Victoria Encinas, researchers at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology, and Dr Jenny Blamey, researcher at Fundación Biociencia, who will address the problems generated by the spontaneous and undesirable damage of materials, known as corrosion or biocorrosion. The name of the study is “Functionalized surfaces: protection against corrosion and biocorrosion.”

They have the goal of replacing the anti corrosion procedures that involve chemical compounds of high toxicity, like chromates, and provide effective and eco-friendly solutions.

Dr Francisco Melo (surface mechanics), Dr José Zagal (electrochemistry) and Dr Manuel Azocar (bioinorganic chemistry) will participate in the project.

Dr Marcela Urzúa (polymers) and Dr Marco Flores (surface physics), both researchers at Universidad de Chile, will take part in the project too, as well as Dr Jenny Blamey and Dr Freddy Boehmwald (microbiology), of Fundación Biociencia, and Dr Mamie Sancy (corrosion-electrochemistry), of the Chilean Air Force.

The second project is led by Dr Raúl Cordero, researcher at the Department of Physics. This is the second time that he leads an Anillo Project (the first time was in 2010). This time, he seeks to better understand the effects of black carbon at the Andean cryosphere. 

Black carbon or soot is a pollutant generated by the use of fossil fuels in the cities that is carried by the wind over the Andean snow, changing its reflectivity and its melting speed. 

According to Dr Cordero, the study “is mainly focused on measuring the content of black carbon in the snow on the west side of the Andes.” For this purpose, they will conduct campaigns to collect samples and analyze their carbon content across the country, from Putre to the Patagonia.

With this data, “we expect to generate a map that shows the black-carbon content in the Andean cryosphere, highlighting the areas of impact. This information will be useful to evaluate the effect of black carbon on glaciers melting,” the researcher explained.

The project is really important, because the country’s long-term sustainability depends on the availability of water resources coming from the Andean snows. However, just like many cold regions of the planet, the Andean cryosphere has doubled the global warming rate. “Although green-house gas emissions seem to be the main cause of this problem, black carbon may be playing a role too,” he added.

“Universidad de Santiago is a leader in interdisciplinary studies that address different aspects of sustainability, what largely explains the successful results of our applications. This project involves an interdisciplinary team of physicists, chemists, glaciologists and engineers of six renowned Chilean universities. Besides, ten international institutions will collaborate with the project, like the German Aerospace Center (DLR, in German) and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC),” Dr Cordero concluded.

Nationwide results

The other 15 projects that were awarded funds belong to the following universities: five to Universidad Católica de Chile; four to Universidad de Chile; two to Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María and one to Universidad de La Frontera, one to Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, one to Universidad Andrés Bello and one to Universidad Autónoma de Chile.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

•  Universidad de Santiago de Chile made a significant contribution to Expo Food Process 2015, a technical and business platform that brought together different productive sectors related to food industry, facilitating the access to new technologies and solutions in different production processes. 

Universidad de Santiago de Chile had an outstanding participation in Expo Food Process 2015, a technical and business platform that brought together different productive sectors related to food industry, facilitating the access to new technologies and solutions in different production processes.

The activity was held at Espacio Riesco, Santiago, between November 04^th and 06^th. Researchers at the Food Science and Technology Research Center (Cecta), the Department of Food Science and Technology, and the Department of Chemical Engineering of our university participated at the exhibition and led two specialized seminars. One of them was focused on biotechnological research and development for the food and beverages sector, and the other, on food packaging.

The university delegation was led by Dr Oscar Bustos Castillo, Vice President of Research, Development and Innovation. He told the attendees that Universidad de Santiago has strongly been related to the development of the country since its beginnings, what has led it to incorporate new lines of work.

“Today, our society is more aware of improving its quality of life by means of healthy food; therefore, the university considers the food sector a priority area,” he explained.

The scientific productivity in this field of research concentrates 10% of the total number of publications of the university and the 17% of the projects awarded funds from different sources.

Research with impact

Many researchers at Universidad de Santiago participated in the two seminars.

During the first day, Dr Laura Almendares gave the presentation “Generación de Productos Innovativos para la Empresa Alimentaria” (Generating innovative products for Food Industry) and Dr Julio Romero presented his work “Tecnología de membranas y solventes alternativos: ejemplos de transferencia y adaptación tecnológica” (Technology of membranes and alternative solvents: examples of technological adaptation and transfer).

Dr Claudio Martínez, Cecta’s director, presented his work “Mejoramiento del vino a través de la microbiología, una tecnología aplicable a otras bebidas fermentadas” (Improving wine production through microbiology: a technology that can be applied to other fermented drinks), and Raúl Ciudad, member of the I+D Committee of the Social- Business Development Council of Universidad de Santiago, gave the presentation “Desafíos I+D+i Universidad-Empresa” (University-Business I+D+i Challenges).

Gonzalo Jordán, Executive Chairman of CORFO’s Food Strategic Program gave the presentation “La Especialización Inteligente de la Industria Alimentaria: Nuevos Espacios de Competitividad” (Smart specialization in Food Industry: new spaces for competitiveness).

On Friday 06^th, Dr Abel Guarda Moraga gave his presentation “Envases de Alimentos. Requerimientos y Necesidad de desarrollo” (Food packaging. Requirements and need for development, and Dr María José Galotto, “Innovación en el área de envases de alimentos. La nanotecnología como herramienta para el desarrollo” (Innovation in food packaging. nanotechnology as a development tool).

For his part, Dr Francisco Rodríguez talked about “Envases para productos hortofrutícolas” (Packaging for fruit and vegetables) and Dr Julio Bruna, about “Envases y Biodegradabilidad: Realidades y Mitos” (Packaging and biodegradability: myths and facts). Finally, Dr Alejandra Torres closed the presentations with “Requerimientos de Innocuidad en envases plásticos para alimentos” (Innocuousness requirements for plastic food packaging).

Translated by Marcela Contreras

•  In the context of the second IDeA en Dos Etapas Contest of the Fondef Program of Conicyt, four projects of Universidad de Santiago with potential economical and social impact were awarded about US$800,000. 664 projects applied for the funding nationwide, but only 50 were selected.
• For Dr Luis Magne, Head of the Technology Transfer Department of Universidad de Santiago, “The projects that were awarded funds represent the efforts made by our university to develop applied research projects that respond to the main problems of the country.”
• Particularly, the funds will support the following projects: “Proyecto sensores Hall ultrasensibles para detecciones varias de la industria minera” (by Dr Dora Altbir); “Bases científicas-tecnológicas para generar una propuesta de regulación de envases plásticos reciclados post-consumo para su uso en contacto directo con alimentos” (by Dr María José Galotto); “Plataforma de apoyo a la gestión de emergencia y aplicaciones” (by Dr Mauricio Marín) y la “Investigación para la optimización de la producción de pellets hidrofóbicos de alta densidad energética a través de la carbonización hidrotérmica de diferentes mezclas de biomasa de relevancia nacional” (by Dr Luis Díaz).

Universidad de Santiago was awarded 551,662,728 Chilean pesos (about US$800,000) for the execution of four projects in the context of the second IDeA en Dos Etapas Contest of the Fondef (Fund for the Promotion of Scientific and Technological Development) Program of the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (Conicyt, in Spanish). These funds will contribute to scientific and technological research with potential economic and social impact.  

Khaled Awad, Director of the Fondef Program, highlights that in this second version, the IDeA en Dos Etapas Contest consolidates itself as a strong tool to support projects in different regions of the country.

“Fondef works to promote technological development based on scientific knowledge in all areas. This contest shows us this diversity and contributes to science and technology research work conducted all over the country,” he says.

For his part, Dr Luis Magne, Head of the Technology Transfer Department of Universidad de Santiago, says: “These results show, in the first place, the high competitiveness of local science.” “The projects that were awarded funds represent the efforts made by our university to develop applied research projects that respond to the main problems of the country,” he adds.

The funds awarded to the university will support four projects.

One of them is led by Dr Dora Altbir, who will develop ultra-sensitive HALL sensors for different detection works in mining industry.

Another project is led by Dr Mauricio Marín, who will develop a support platform for emergency managing and apps.

For her part, Dr María José Galotto leads a research group who will work on the scientific-technological bases to generate a proposal for regulating the use of post-consumer recycled plastic containers for direct food contact applications. 

Dr Luis Díaz will lead a study for optimizing the high-energy-density hydrophobic pellet production through hydrothermal carbonization of different biomass blends of national importance.

In this contest’s second call, 644 projects applied for the funds, almost 200 more than in the first version, but only 50 were selected nationwide. The projects are distributed in the following areas: Food (8), Fishing and Aquaculture (8), Energy (7), Manufacturing (6), Health (6), Social Sciences and Education (5), Mining Industry (3), Infrastructure (3), ICT (2) and Environment (1).

The selected projects will go into the Applied Science Phase, where I+D (Innovation and Development) projects are funded to validate proofs of concept, models or prototypes at small scale or under lab conditions.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• They shared with 400 youngsters from 71 countries, met 15 Nobel laureates in the fields of science and received recognition for their enthusiasm and creativity in the picture that they took and sent to the organizing committee before their trip.
• Felipe Recabal Rivas and Eduardo Cancino Jaque, students at the Faculty of Science, and Renato Leiva Tubino, student at the Technological Faculty, represented Universidad de Santiago at the first version of this important science meeting for youngsters worldwide.
• The three students, together with Maricarmen Castro Amaro, student at Universidad de Chile, represented Chile in the activity that, according to the surveys, exceeded expectations.
• The group was accompanied by Dr Dora Altbir Drullinsky, director of the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. She said that after the trip, “They came back highly motivated for what they are studying, aware of the impact that science may have on a country’s welfare and of the importance of personal efforts to have good results. This experience will mark them for many years, both personally and at their work in their disciplines.”

Felipe Recabal Rivas and Eduardo Cancino Jaque, students at the Faculty of Science; Renato Leiva Tubino, student at the Technological Faculty, and Maricarmen Castro Amaro, student at Universidad de Chile, were the only Chilean representatives at the first version of the World Science Conference- Israel (WSCI). They were accompanied by Dr Dora Altbir Drullinsky, director of the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology.

More than 400 students from 71 countries attended the conference, and the four Chilean students fulfilled the requested tasks with enthusiasm and creativity, the abilities that this conference sought to foster.

The Chilean students received recognition for the creative picture that they took of themselves together with a moai a few days before leaving the country, showing their eagerness to participate. With this picture, they won the second place in the contest of most original photographs.

Besides, each student participated in groups made up of students from different countries and science disciplines, to promote collaborative work among scientists. Eduardo Cancino participated in a team that was recognized for its work in making one of the best posters of the conference.

Inspiration

For the students, the conference was a great experience, as “It reflected the great interest that Israel has for scientific activity, as a key part of development,” Felipe Recabal said after the trip.

He highlighted that working with international multidisciplinary teams showed him that “There is always more than one way of interpreting and analyzing a phenomenon, what makes science much more complete.”

Eduardo Cancino stressed how interesting the presentations were, particularly the ones given by researchers whose scientific-technological developments seemed “impressive to him.” “A significant factor was that they had received funding for their studies, what is very encouraging in research matters,” he said.

He added that, from his personal point of view, the experience shared by the speakers made him understand the importance of persistence and hard work. “Once, they were like us, so we have a long way of efforts and dedication to go.”

Renato Leiva highlighted the level of the organization of the conference and its goals. The conference sought “To inspire young scientists, and I feel that, at least in my case, I am now more eager to continue working in science and doing my best to contribute to my country and the world.”

He was surprised by the scientific environment in which Israel lives. “I was able to notice that young Israelis who I talked to are very eager to contribute to their country. I believe this enthusiasm should be replicated in Chile. What all Nobel laureates stressed the most (both in presentations and in conversations) was ‘Do not give up.’ I will use this message in my academic development,” he said.

For Maricarmen Castro, student at Universidad de Chile, the experience was “Out of this world!” “It put into perspective all I had thought about science since I was a girl. Listening to Nobel laureates and see how they got where they are now was very exciting and gave me a lot to learn. Effort, motivation and persistence are the key words to say ‘Eureka’ some day.”

Motivation for the future

For her part, Dr Altbir described the activity as “fantastic.” “The possibility of interacting with such renowned scientists as the 15 Nobel laureates and other scientist from different universities of Israel, plus the huge cultural diversity given by the students of 70 countries, and an environment that fostered creativity and imagination, made this conference a “once in a lifetime experience,” she said.

She added that she has been able to see that the students came back “Highly motivated for what they are studying, aware of the impact that science may have on a country’s welfare and of the importance of personal efforts to have good results. This experience will mark them for many years, both personally and at their work in their disciplines.”

The conference was held in Jerusalem and it was conceived to contribute to the cooperation and the sense of responsibility, for a better future for the new generations of scientists.

The activity was organized by the Hebrew University, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel.

The Chilean delegation was supported by the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Cedenna) and the Israeli Embassy in Chile.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• Dr Laura Almendares Calderón, professor at the Technological Faculty of Universidad de Santiago, presented her study “Development of a technology to replace prickly pear skin with a peel to keep the physiological, microbiological and organoleptic properties of the fresh fruit” at the Expo Milano 2015 (Italy). Dr Almendares presented the innovation in an activity devoted to the best sustainable development practices for food security.

Dr Laura Almendares Calderón, professor at the Technological Faculty of our University, carried out a technical visit to the Expo Milano 2015 (Italy) in order to get an insight of the food situation around the world. She was able to see a wide variety of raw materials, manufactured goods, equipment and supplies exhibited by more than one hundred countries. The activity had the presence of leaders from all over the world, like President Michelle Bachelet, who opened the Chilean Pavillion.

In this context, Dr Almendares, director of the FIA-USACH Project, PYT-2012-0033, “Development of a technology to replace prickly pear skin with a peel to keep the physiological, microbiological and organoleptic properties of the fresh fruit”, presented her work at the BSDP Week.

The activity started with an exhibition of photos, porters, brochures and other information material related to this matter. The academic was able to show the results of this Chilean innovative project to people from different countries, at the Urban Center, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, in downtown Milano, between June 10^th and 13^th.

Chile participated in the competition “Feeding Knowledge”, a program created to contribute to the permanent legacy of the Expo Milano 2015.

With that purpose in mind, a document will be generated containing policies and key recommendations to create an effective knowledge system in the food security field in the Mediterranean Region. The final version of this document will be available in September this year.

Selection of proposals

The proposals submitted by eligible candidates underwent a strict admission control by the International Selection Committee, which is responsible for the final evaluation, using nine pre-established criteria.

The proposals that did not meet one or more of the admission criteria were not considered as “Good Practices in Food Safety.”

The ones that were well evaluated officially became “participating initiatives”, like the work presented by Dr Almendares. 

Her work was included in the priority theme “Food consumption habits: diet, environment, society, economy and health.”

This theme groups all projects which objectives are focused on research activities that evaluate the impact of current diets on the environment, economy, society, culture, health and nutritional sustainability.

This was the only Chilean study presented at the activity and it was registered as ‘9712. Development of methodology to replace prickly pear skin for enriched eatable peel. Chile. 25’.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• Dr Juan Escrig participated in the Fifth International Conference for Young Scientists and the Annual General Meeting of the Global Young Academy, held between May 25^thand 29^th, in Montebello, Canada. On the occasion, professor Escrig encouraged his peers to use all available means to disseminate their work among general public and other scientists. This conference gathers scientists from around the world, who are selected for the excellence of their science and their commitment to service. Currently, it has 200 members from 58 countries.

One of the goals of the Fifth International Conference for Young Scientists and the Annual General Meeting of the Global Young Academy (GYA), held between May 25^th and 29^th, in Montebello (Canada), was to provide an opportunity for reducing the science gap between developed and developing countries.

The activity gathers scientists from around the world, who are selected for their excellence demonstrated by their scientific achievements in their fields and their commitment to service. Currently, it has 200 members from 58 countries, representing the main regions of the planet.

GYA aims to empower and mobilize young scientists to address the principal issues they may face at their early careers. The idea is to reduce the science gap between developed and developing countries by connecting young scientists from different countries.

Besides, the organization maintains active links with international science organizations including the UN Science Advisory Board, the Global Network of Science Academies, the Global Research Council and the International Council for Science.

It publishes statements on international science policy and the research environment, what is important information for early-career researchers.

Universidad de Santiago

Universidad de Santiago was represented by Dr Juan Escrig, researcher at the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CEDENNA, in Spanish), at the Department of Physics.

According to Dr Escrig, the participants in the activity discussed that “a key challenge for researchers is the limited access to research software or scientific equipment due to the lack of funding for acquiring licences and/or new equipment.”

“This jeopardizes the quality of the research work, causes the use of pirated software and, in extreme cases, brain drain, and it is closely related to another problem: the need to improve the research environment in the institutions, something that would allow young scientists to fully develop their potential,” he adds.

He thinks that many women have not received yet the support that they require to succeed in their scientific careers.

And he also thinks that in general, institutions do not compensate the time that young scientists devote to promoting science.

Some guidance

Professor Escrig gives some guidance for young scientists at Universidad de Santiago, so that they contribute to the country development.

“The idea is that they participate in scientific education and in outreach activities at schools and universities of the country, because the benefits of science cannot be disseminated without the participation of and the communication among scientists, citizens, politicians and the media,” he says.

“Young scientists at the University should organize themselves, for example, through the INDI, the Group of Researchers for Development and Interdisciplinarity of Universidad de Santiago, because in this way, they will be in a unique position to take on roles in providing scientific advice for the country,” he adds.

“INDI scientists stand out not only for their excellent research work, but also for their commitment to bring together scientists and politicians to face the problems of the country. Also, I think that we require a mentoring network for young women scientists,” he concluded.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

·         In 1859, Charles Darwin published the book “On the Origin of Species”, where he states that invading species with a high degree of evolutionary closeness to the invaded community (phylogenetic relationship), would be less likely to become established, because “struggle for survival” would be more intense between related species. However, experiments conducted by Dr Sergio Castro, researcher at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology and CEDENNA, have shown something different.

“Many people have accepted Darwin’s hypotheses as incontrovertible facts due to his recognized status in science. However, many of these hypotheses lie on mechanisms that have not been evaluated. This is a common situation in science development: usually the observations made are tested afterwards,” Dr Sergio A. Castro, researcher at the Laboratory of Ecology and Biodiversity of Universidad de Santiago, says.

In order to test Darwin’s hypothesis, Dr Castro and his research team developed a Fondecyt project. In this context, their paper “Evaluating Darwin’s Naturalization Hypothesis in Experimental Plant Assemblages: Phylogenetic Relationships Do Not Determine Colonization Success” was published by the renowned journal PLOS ONE, currently the largest scientific journal in the world, with a high impact factor (Q1) for its citations.

“Different species can be introduced in an area and several of them can finally establish themselves as populations, as if they were native species, without depending on human action. These are considered naturalized species. In our experiment, we observed a colonizing plant in different vegetal communities. These communities had different degrees of phylogenetic relatedness with the invading species. If Darwin was right, a trend towards the establishment of the invading species would have been recorded, depending on the evolutionary relatedness. However, after three years, we evaluated the results and they did not support Darwin’s hypothesis,” Dr Castro says.

The experiment was conducted in Batuco (a place close to Santiago) and 15 species were selected. One of them, the native lettuce Lactuca, was used as a colonizing or invading species, while the other 14, like chamomile, broad bean, arugula, among others, were used as experimental assemblage communities. With these plants, five treatments were organized according to their different phylogenetic relatedness with respect to Lactuca. They showed that colonization did not depend on phylogenetic relatedness. 

“En nuestro estudio todas las plantas pudieron convivir, independiente de sus parentescos. Por esto, los resultados manifiestan que la hipótesis de Darwin no tiene un respaldo tan sólido o por lo menos no es tan general como él lo planteaba”, indica Castro.

“In our study, all plants were able to coexist, regardless of their relatedness. Therefore, the results show that Darwin’s hypothesis does not have a strong base or, at least, the hypothesis is not as generalized as he stated,” Dr Castro says.

The researcher has also evaluated Darwin’s naturalization hypothesis by analyzing the composition of Chilean flora and introduced exotic plants. This work not only disproved the hypothesis, but it yielded opposite results.

“We found that species from other environments can be introduced in Chile’s central zone and find relatives that survive well in this climate. These relatives can provide pollinators and seed dispersers, making naturalization more likely to happen, contrary to what is expected in Darwin’s hypothesis,” he says.

Having an impact on global change

In the past few decades, people have become more interested in knowing how the different human activities affect the environment. The focal point has been climate change, passing over other factors, like introducing foreign species, flora or fauna, in other places. These factors are considered as part of global change.

“Chile is a biogeographic island. It is surrounded by a mountain chain, a desert and an ocean; therefore its flora has evolved isolated for more than 180 years. However, in the past centuries some species have been introduced that are risky to native species,” he explains.

Chile’s central zone biogeography is so particular that it is considered one of the 35 biodiversity hotspots of the world. These places are characterized by a high level of species endemism, but at the same time, their preservation is in danger as a result of human impact.

“An introduced species can produce the extinction of a native one, damaging our biodiversity. Nowadays, our variety of exotic plants is wide if compared with the variety of our native flora. But, what can we do to prevent this situation? There is little we can do in a globalization context, but we can generate diagnosis to prevent some species from entering and becoming naturalized,” Dr Castro says.

Translated by Marcela Contreras