• In the Southern Hemisphere, Chile is the largest exporter of berries. Therefore, national researchers focus their efforts on increasing their life, to allow these products to reach more distant markets. An eco active container which aims to contribute to this purpose has been generated at U. Santiago.

In 2008, Dr. Maria Paula Junqueira, academic at the Technological Faculty, committed herself  to making a contribution to the food area, and she was part of  the task of converting Chile into a food power. Thus, through a Fondef project, she tried to combat the limitations generated, particularly by the fungus Botrytis cinerea, in the so -called  berries, and this allowed their  extension of life.

The closing of the investigation "Life extension of fresh berries by using eco-active packaging” was held on Friday 19^th at the Plaza San Francisco Hotel, where the results were presented to the participating institutions.

The eco active container has an antifungal agent in his film, which fights the fungus specifically mentioned. Also, it  is also friendly with the environment, because it is recyclable. To verify the efficiency of the invention, tests with raspberries and blueberries were tested in Chile, while in England raspberries and blackberries were used, because we are in different seasons.

Of all the berries used in the study, raspberries showed a better response to interact with the packaging, and this helped to extend its life in two days.

"We had a very promising result," the academic at the Department of Science and Food Technology remarked; she  added that "due to the final results of this research, an  initiative was taken in order to try with other fruits like grapes and strawberries and we already have companies which are interested in participating. "

Dr. Junqueira thanked the cooperation of the school, saying that she had "an unconditional support from the University from the start and then at all stages involved in  the project."

This work, which also involved Dr. Maria Angelica Bargains and Dr. Francisco Rodriguez, members of the same academic unit, gave birth to a patent application in Chile, which will also be replicated abroad soon.

Companies’ experience

In the presentation of results, representatives of the participating companies  were present. Enrique Harvgreaves attended in representation of  Typack company, a packaging  company. He said: "I do hope that this product is on the market soon.” He also thanked the opportunity to develop a collaborative work with the University.

Meanwhile, Alvaro Acevedo, from Vitalberry, referred to the contribution generated in the production process of these fruits during the investigation. "The market demands have pushed us to the improvement of production processes, and this has increased the quality requirements demanded for these products," he said. He also emphasized that this result "has a lot of potential; undoubtedly, it is a product to be applied massively".

Dr. Luis Magne, Head of Technology Transfer, attended on behalf of the Vice-President for Research, Development and Innovation. He said "we take on the challenge of leading the University on the path of innovation. The road has not been easy but  maturity has been achieved in the sense of understanding what technological research is. "

Luisa Martínez, financial analyst of the Fund for the Promotion of Science and Technology was also present in this event.

 By Valeria Osorio

• The Optics and Photonics Group of Universidad de Santiago, led by graduate student Pablo Fredes, organized an educational astrophotography camp aiming to promote knowledge on how to handle different state-of-the-art technologies to observe the stellar panorama, capturing unprecedented photographs.

About 15 students of the Engineering Physics program participated at the First Southern Night Skies Astrophotography Camp organized by the Optics and Photonics Group of our University, which is one of the Student Chapters of the Optical Society of America (OSA).

During two nights, the young group made up of undergraduate and graduate students of the Engineering Physics program participated in the activity that was sponsored by Centro Cultural de Astronomía La Cisterna. They were taken to Observatorio Turístico y Educativo Roan Jasé, at Cajón del Maipo to become familiar with observational field work using different telescopes and high-resolution CCD cameras that operate together with a computer to capture images of the night sky.

About 15 students, together with five members of Centro Cultural de Astronomía La Cisterna, had the possibility of observing the surface of the sun and its spots during the day and enjoyed interesting talks about the life cycle of stars, constellations, exoplanets, the Mapuche world view and astrobiology, among others.

“We learned so much: setting the telescopes in ‘station’, understanding the use of mirrors and lenses, distinguishing different types of telescopes and finding celestial bodies in the sky. Watching planets directly is amazing,” the student Daniel Barrientos said. He considered the experience to be rewarding, even from a spiritual point of view.

For these young students, this approach to astronomy also represents a view to the wide variety of employment opportunities related to their program and it allows them to start exploring the possibility of working in any of the important astronomical observatories in our country.

Astronomy at Universidad de Santiago

Pablo Fredes, president of the Optics and Photonics Group of our University, one of the OSA’s Student Chapters, is also a professor at the Department of Physics and is writing his dissertation to complete his Philosophy of Science graduate program. From his experience as a teacher, he thinks that astronomy is a field that could be strengthened by our University, especially because of the relations fostered by the Planetarium and the enthusiasm shown by the students of his Department.

“All physics students are interested in astronomy,” he said, considering the advantages offered by the skies of our country for this activity and for research. “Maybe this camp can contribute to develop this field at the University,” Fredes added.

He explained that the camp idea was born last year, when the members of the group were thinking thought about the activity that they wanted hold in 2014 with funds provided by the OSA.

The OSA, through its student chapters, funds activities aiming to spread, promote and encourage studying some physics branches, like optics and photonics (the study of photons’ properties and flux).

“The OSA’s grant allowed us to buy a CCD camera- that we attached to a telescope- and to cover transportation, food and entry-fee expenses,” Fredes said.

The activity was organized together with Centro Cultural de Astronomía La Cisterna, which members are astronomy amateurs willing to share their knowledge and equipment.

“We are very happy with the results, because the activity included young people who knew much about optics but who had not had the chance of watching through a telescope or taking photographs with this type of instruments. Besides, the images we were able to capture are a valuable material, so we are doubly satisfied,” Manuel Tobar, a member of Centro Cultural de Astronomía La Cisterna, said.

In October, the members of the group are planning to hold the Second National Congress of Optics and Photonics, where they expect to exhibit the photographs taken during the camp that took place on April 4-6.

“We would like to have more activities, establish more links and have the possibility of applying for other grants, maybe at a university or at a national level,” Fredes concluded.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• “Broccoli’s myrosinase enzyme production and encapsulation for its use as a food supplement” That is the name of the Fondef project recently awarded to Alejandro Angulo, a graduate of Universidad de Santiago. In the VIU line (Valorización de la Investigación en la Universidad, in Spanish), the funds will allow to develop a capsule to prevent different cancers.

It is well known that eating vegetables provides many health benefits; even more: some of them have disease preventive properties. Like broccoli, for example, that according to different studies, can be a natural anticancer agent.

Based on this idea, Alejandro Angulo, Biotechnology Engineer graduated from Universidad de Santiago, submitted the project “Broccoli’s myrosinase enzyme production and encapsulation for its use as a food supplement” to the IV VIU Contest of Fondef (Fund for the Promotion of Scientific and Technological Development) and he was recently awarded the funds. The initiative has the purpose of developing a capsule to enhance the natural ability of the broccoli to prevent different cancers.

Alejandro Angulo, director of the project, explains that this vegetable is able to produce some antioxidant and anticancer compounds called isothiocyanates, like sulforphane, that is highly powerful. The precursor to this compound, the myrosinase enzyme, is found in broccoli. When you chew it, its tissue breaks down, the enzyme and the substrate react and sulforphane is naturally released. “If we have more optimal or high-activity enzymes, we could maximize the content of these anticancer compounds,” the researcher said.

For the above, he proposes to create a capsule containing purified enzyme that, when eaten with broccoli, increases the sulforphane content in the body, and therefore, its anticancer effect. However, the researcher warns that the product “would allow preventing cancer, but it would not be a treatment for cancer.”

The researcher says that the idea of developing this food supplement arose when he was looking for a topic for his dissertation work and contacted Dr. Andrea Mahn. She was working on a Fondecyt project that sought to transform broccoli into a functional food. “I focused on the broccoli enzyme that acts as a catalyst for the chemical reaction that releases the anticancer compound, and aspect that she was not studying. In my dissertation work I was trying to describe this enzyme to then purify it and leave it ready to be used in the product. It was then when we thought of developing a food supplement,” he remembers.

His idea was one of the 12 proposals submitted by Universidad de Santiago that won the last VIU Contest version, a historical record that ranks our University in the first place this year. The study will have the support of the Department of Technology Transfer (DGT, in Spanish) to move forward to the ultimate goal: to develop the product for market.

The project is at its first stage that includes a business plan and a work plan; then it will be evaluated to continue to the second stage: the project implementation. “In the long term, we expect to meet all the project stages and position the product as a recognized brand. The idea is to position the brand and sell our product,” the researcher concluded.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• A new index is the result of the study conducted by a research team at the Department of Informatics Engineering of Universidad de Santiago, led by Dr Max Chacón. This may be a great contribution to improve early detection and measurement of neurodegenerative diseases, like amyothrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and other alterations in cerebral hemodynamics, including cerebrovascular accidents, and subarachnoid hemorrhages, among others.

Cerebral autoregulation is a mechanism which aims to maintain stable cerebral blood flow, despite of the changes in blood pressure.

In order to measure this mechanism, the Aaslid Tiecks method is widely used, but it is not accurate and sometimes it provides false positives that make difficult to differentiate between healthy and sick subjects.

During the study conducted by academics of our University in partnership with the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Leicester (United Kingdom), when the new model was applied to 16 healthy men, promising results were observed. 

This new index uses two parameters that are obtained directly from the response signal of the brain to a decrease in arterial blood pressure caused by the sudden release of bilateral thigh cuffs, and a third parameter that measures the difference between the gradient of this response and the change in arterial blood pressure.

“This new index means an improvement in the whole system. The former index did not allow differentiating between healthy and sick individuals in a correct way. When you see the results of the tests, there is an improvement in the evaluation of healthy subjects. The next challenge is to test the index in pathological cases, to confirm the results already obtained,” Dr Chacón said.

University support

Professor Chacón stressed that the study was “completely conducted at the university.” He also highlighted the support that they received from Universidad de Santiago, as the study was brought forth thanks to the contribution of the Department of Scientific and Technological Research and the Department of Informatics Engineering.

Besides, professor Chacón expressed his gratitude to his work team, made up of Dr José Luis Lara, co-author of the study and professor at the Department of Informatics Engineering, and Dr Ronney Panerai, also co-author of this work and professor at the University of Leicester. The researcher also thanked Dr Gonzalo Acuña and Dr Millaray Curilem, both professors at Universidad de la Frontera, who did not formally take part in the study, but contributed to make this research a reality.

Publication of paper

The study results were published in the paper ‘A new model-free index on dynamic cerebral blood flow autoregulation’, where the new index is proposed. It represents a breakthrough in medicine.

The paper was also published by Plos one, one of the most important scientific journals around the world. According to Dr Chacón, this journal is one of the fastest means to publish, so it provides a way to disseminate the results of his work.

He explained that his work “should have a big impact because it is a useful tool at the service of medicine. As it is useful and shows concrete results, the paper might be cited in several occasions.”

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

• In order to develop more tolerable therapies, a research team at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago de Chile studies the use of biodegradable nanoparticles to increase the Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) circulation time in the body to combat cancer.

In order to develop more tolerable therapies, a research team at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago de Chile studies the use of biodegradable nanoparticles to increase the Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) circulation time in the body to combat cancer.

The study is led by Dr Patricia Díaz, professor at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology and is being developed in the context of the 2016 Fondecyt Post Doc Project (3160837) "Uso de nanopartículas con circulación prolongada para la administración de ATP en tratamientos anticancerígenos." Dr Díaz and her team will test new nanotechnology-based applications to deliver cancer-fighting drugs into the body.

She explains that any drug delivered in the body for therapeutic purposes requires a circulation time to play its therapeutic role.

Some molecules, like ATP, are quickly degraded, so high constant drug doses are required to be therapeutically effective and this is not beneficial for patients.

“As drugs are encapsulated in nanoparticles, the enzymes that metabolize them cannot bind to them. This is why they are protected against degradation. Consequently, drugs’ half-life is increased, prolonging its therapeutic efficacy,” she explains. 

Improved treatments

The advantage of using ATP as a cancer-fighting drug is that it has minor side effects if compared to other drugs. But ATP degrades very quickly when it is recognized by the enzymes in the body. Therefore, different drug administration methods are required, like the use of nanoparticles with biodegradable and biocompatible properties.

“For this reason, we want to encapsulate ATP into biocompatible nanoparticles to increase its half-life. We will also use other strategies to make them invisible to the immune system, so that they can circulate longer. The idea is to prevent them from binding to the cell and to avoid extracellular release of ATP. In this way, we expect to have a higher amount of drug available in the body for a prolonged anti-cancer effect,” she explains.

According to Dr Díaz, the main objective of the study is to test the effectiveness of ATP-carrying nanoparticles in cancer treatment. “I expect to demonstrate that nanoparticle-encapsulated drugs increase their bioavailability when compared with conventional administration methods. Besides, we also expect to analyze the potential synergistic effect of administrating ATP in combination with other drugs frequently used in cancer treatment.”

“This synergistic effect could destroy a higher number of cancer cells, benefiting patients with advanced cancer,” she adds.

Another advantage of this type of treatment is that, as it allows a sustained release of drugs in time, patients could receive the treatment once a week or every two or more weeks, depending on the drug encapsulation capacity and its circulation time,” she concludes. 

Dr Juan Pablo García-Huidobro, researcher at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology, is also participating in the study, which is being conducted at the Pharmacology Laboratory.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• These researchers seek to change the concept of nutrition through an artificial intelligence startup, which has also developed other 100% plant-based products with the same taste, texture and smell as traditional foods.

• In this way, Dr. Rodolfo Madrid, from the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology, refers to the Conicyt  funds granted for implementing a research ring that will join top scientists. The challenge is to study the physiological role of the TRP ion channels involved in detecting thermal and pain stimuli, among many other physiological processes. Knowing how these channels work may allow the development of treatments for attacking diseases related to the their malfunction.

Three research groups and a common commitment -understanding the role of TRP channels in heat sensitivity, pain and synaptic plasticity-  define the project led by Dr. Rodolfo Madrid researcher at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology. His initiative has recently received funds from the "2011 Fourth Contest of Research Rings in Science and Technology" organized by the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research, CONICYT. (See related article).

"Study of the Physiological role of TRP Channels in Thermotransduction and Synaptic Plasticity" is an associative research project that joins three research groups: two correspond to the University’s laboratory of neurosciences at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology -one led by Dr. Rodolfo Madrid and the other by Dr. Bernardo Morales-  the third is the Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience from Valparaiso, led by Dr. Patricio Orio. The joint challenge is to study the physiological role of various members of a group of membrane proteins: polymodal ion channels of the TRP (Transient Receptor Potential) superfamily in diverse physiological processes. For this purpose, they will have the annual funds of 150 million pesos, for three years.

"We want to study the role of various TRP channels in the electrical response of thermoreceptors of cold and nociceptors against various physiological and pathophysiological situations, in order to develop a mathematical model that could serve as a tool for predicting the electrical behavior of these neurons against modifications -that could be the result, for example, of an inflammatory process or an injury-  and  determining  the role of ion channels in regulating neuronal communication in particular regions of the central nervous system," Dr. Rodolfo Madrid explains.

"TRP channels are part of a large group of proteins involved in the detection of thermal stimuli and nociception, among many other physiological processes, and have recently been associated with learning and memory processes," the specialist says.
 

Advanced human capital

This associative research, will attract and train new high-level human capital. It will also  incorporate doctoral and postdoctoral students and, in this way, the group of neuroscientists at the University’s Faculty of Chemistry and Biology will become stronger.

"Besides, we will work with the collaboration of laboratories that belong to some of the world's best centers in the field, such as the Institute of Neuroscience in Alicante, Cambridge University and John Hopkins University, worldwide reference points in the study of neuroscience. This will not only help the growth and consolidation of  our group, but it will also allow our students go directly to stay in those centers,” the researcher says.

Besides, Dr. Madrid values ​​the grant of this ring project "as a recognition that should extend not only to the members of our group, but to all the neuroscientists at the University. From our point of view, this is the most important project of neuroscience that our institution has received and it means that our work has not been the result of improvisation, " he finally  points out.

• Ethylene is a hormone able to accelerate the ripening and maturation of fruits. Through a Fondef project, Dr. Francisco Rodríguez, a researcher at the Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Cedenna, in Spanish) of Universidad de Santiago, seeks to reduce the effects caused by this gas in two particular types of fruit, avocados and kiwis, and to develop more efficient packaging for the export process.

The Packaging Laboratory (Laben, in Spanish) of Universidad de Santiago organized a seminar that was held on November 28th, at Plaza San Francisco Hotel, with the purpose of informing on the current state of a study that seeks to develop an ethylene adsorber for producing packaging for climacteric fruit, like kiwis or avocados.

The activity was attended by representatives of different companies and by Valeska González, project executive of the Fund for the Promotion of Scientific and Technological Development, (Fondef, in Spanish); Dr. María José Galotto, director of the Laben; and Dr. Óscar Bustos, Vice President of Research, Development and Innovation of Universidad de Santiago.

During his presentation, Dr. Francisco Rodríguez Mercado, director of the project, said that the level of ripeness that fruits reach while they are being transported to different countries “requires finding new strategies to allow us to control some processes that affect the quality of our products.”

Dr. Rodríguez explained that, in order to reduce the effects of ethylene, they are working on a new adsorber based on local minerals, zeolites and clay, specifically. The first results showed that if zeolites are modified by some metals, they have a better response at ethylene removal, overtaking clay by 5% in effectiveness.

At a next stage, the study will focus on developing a suitable film that will be tested in the plant and then, in the selected fruits.

International point of view

Dr. Ramón Catalá, representative of the Institute of Agricultural Chemistry and Food Technology of the High Council for Scientific Research (IATA-CSIC), in Spain, also took part in the seminar and spoke about innovation and main trends in food packaging.

According to Dr. Catalá, Universidad de Santiago is on the right track “because they (researchers at the University) are working on completely relevant issues. Besides, the researchers are excellent and they have a clear policy with regards to incorporating qualified people to strengthen research activities on active packaging,” he said.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

•  A natural technological solution to manage Bortrytis cinerea- a phytopathogenic fungus that affects grapes and causes significant economic losses- was developed by researchers at Universidad de Santiago. The study conducted by a team that involved researchers at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology and the Faculty of Engineering will provide a healthier and more eco-friendly solution to this problem. Dr Milena Cotoras explains: “It is a natural product that adds value to residues, something that is very important for the industry,” adding that Chile produces about 100 thousand tones of these residues.

A natural and biodegradable fungicide was the result obtained in the project led by Dr Milena Cotoras. The project was funded by the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (Conicyt, in Spanish) through the Fund for the Promotion of Scientific and Technological Development (Fondef, in Spanish) and its IDeA Program.

With this support, the project “Development of a fungicide derived from wine industry residues against pthytopathogenic fungus Botrytis cinerea (code CA12i10054) was conducted in order to find an innovative solution to a problem that commonly affects wine industry: the presence of the Botrytis cinerea fungus (grey mould).

This fungus affects more than 250 vegetal species; however, it is usually related to wine making industry for its negative impact on local vineyards that leads to significant economic losses.

An interesting aspect of this study is the fact that the team used grape pomace extracts to produce this solution which, until recently, was considered as waste. These residues were obtained thanks to the collaboration of Viña Miguel Torres winery during the study.

Dr Cotoras explains: “It is a natural product that adds value to residues, something that is very important for the industry,” adding that Chile produces about 100 thousand tones of these residues.

The results of this study also included the development of six undergraduate thesis, two publications, seven presentations in national and international conferences and one patent application.

The project closure ceremony was held on May 05^th in the Auditorium of the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology and was headed by the Dean of the Faculty, Dr Gustavo Zúñiga. Francisco Vargas, executive of Fondef; Edgardo Santibáñez, manager of the Department of Technology Management of Universidad de Santiago, and Dr Isidro González Collado, professor at Universidad de Cádiz (Spain), attended the ceremony. Some of the researchers, Dr Leonora Mendoza and Dr Rubén Bustos, were also present at the activity.

Eco-friendly solutions

During the activity, Dr Isidro González Collado gave the presentation ‘Síntesis, inspirada en la genómica, de moléculas hibridas como antifúngicos contra el hongo fitopatógeno Botrytis cinerea’ to inform about part of the work that he has been doing for 35 years with his research team. 

“The big current problem with most of fungicides is that they remain on the soil for a long time, causing environmental problems and toxicity to animals, birds and even to human beings, because they enter the food chain,” Dr González, an expert in organic chemistry, says.

According to the Spanish expert, the challenge taken on by Dr Milena Cotoras and Dr Leonora Mendoza is on the right track, because it is part of the current challenges in the field, where all the efforts are being made to find effective solutions, which are less damaging to people and the environment.

Dr González says that in the case of Chile, the fungus that causes “grey rot” (Botrytis cinerea) has a strong relation with oenology. “During the past years, the use of natural fungicides has been improved in Chile and I am aware that recent work has been oriented to a natural control of Botrytis to avoid toxic residues in wine,” he says.

Bringing industry and universities closer together

Francisco Vargas, executive of Fondef, who also participated in the activity, says: “We have tried to bring industry and universities closer together, as it is the only way we have to reach products, development and innovation.”

Besides, Mr Vargas announced that in August, the fourth call for the Fondef Technological Research contest will be opened. “In this way, the efforts made in research and in activities to get economic and social impacts that give sense to research, will be extended. In other words, it is necessary to generate industrial and government actions to give our society and our markets universal access to research results. And this will only be possible if there is a permanent cooperation and mutual benefit between universities and companies.”

Translated by Marcela Contreras