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The article discusses the importance of the category of "amefricanidade" as a methodology for analyzing the productions of black authors in Latin America. The researchers argue that universities were established following Eurocentric guidelines, excluding literary productions and non-Western knowledge. The author highlights the importance of rethinking academic practices and including black authors in literature and Hispanic-American culture disciplines. The proposal of the term "amefricanos" as a political and cultural category that surpasses territorial, linguistic, and ideological limitations is discussed, allowing for a deep understanding of America as a whole. The text analyzes two works of poetry by black authors in the Pampean region of South America, exploring themes such as racism and African matrix traditions. The circulation of this knowledge in the academic environment is fundamental for a more complete interpretation of literature. [Extracted from the article]

Interannual variability of vegetation activity (i.e., photosynthesis) is strongly correlated with El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Globally, a reduction in carbon uptake by terrestrial ecosystems has been observed during the ENSO warm phase (El Niño) and the opposite during the cold phase (La Niña). However, this global perspective obscures the heterogeneous impacts of ENSO at regional scales. Particularly, ENSO has contrasting impacts on climate in northern South America (NSA) depending on the ENSO phase and geographical location, which in turn affect the activity of vegetation. Furthermore, changes of vegetation activity during multiple ENSO events are not well understood yet. In this study, we investigated the spatial and temporal differences in vegetation activity associated with ENSO variability and its three phases (El Niño, La Niña, Neutral) to identify hotspots of ENSO impacts in NSA, a region dominated by rainforest and savannas. To achieve this, we investigated time series of vegetation variables from 2001 to 2014 at moderate spatial resolution (0.0083°). Data were aggregated through dimensionality reduction analysis (i.e., Global Principal Component Analysis). The leading principal component served as a proxy of vegetation activity (VAC). We calculated the cross‐correlation between VAC and the multivariate ENSO index separately for each ENSO phase. Our results show that El Niño phase has a stronger impact on vegetation activity both in intensity and duration than La Niña phase. Moreover, seasonally dry ecoregions were more susceptible to El Niño impacts on vegetation activity. Understanding these differences is key for regional adaptation and differentiated management of ecosystems. Plain Language Summary: Precipitation and temperature are important climatic drivers of vegetation processes. In particular, El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events are related to changes in precipitation and temperature over large regions, which in turn affects the activity of the vegetation. In northern South America (NSA), these changes on climate are opposite during the same ENSO event depending on the geographical location. Moreover, local conditions and vegetation type can moderate or amplified changes in vegetation activity. Currently, the contrasting vegetation changes during the ENSO warm (El Niño) and cold (La Niña) phase are not well understood in NSA. Furthermore, it is unknown where the largest vegetation variability is occurring during ENSO phases. We combined different vegetation variables related to vegetation greenness and plant productivity over 14 years to estimate changes in vegetation activity related to photosynthesis. In this way, we assessed the variability of vegetation activity during El Niño and La Niña. We found that variability of vegetation activity is stronger and longer during El Niño than La Niña. In addition, vegetation in semi‐arid ecoregions was more susceptible to El Niño. A better understating of how vegetation activity varies during different ENSO phases will improve regional conservation strategies under the increasing ENSO frequencies. Key Points: Interannual variability of vegetation activity in northern South America is related to changes in climate due to El Niño and La Niña eventsEl Niño events have a stronger impact on vegetation activity both in intensity and duration than La Niña eventsSemi‐arid ecoregions are the most vulnerable to El Niño, but further investigation is required to understand underlying processes [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Therya is the property of Asociacion Mexicana de Mastozoologia, A. C. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

All the names in Paronychia described from South America are investigated. Five names (P. arbuscula, P. brasiliana subsp. brasiliana var. pubescens, P. coquimbensis, P. hieronymi, and P. mandoniana) are lecto- or neotypified on specimens preserved at GOET, K, LP, and P. The typification of nine names, first proposed by Chaudhri in 1968 as the "holotype" are corrected according to Art. 9.10 of ICN. Three second-step typifications (Art. 9.17 of ICN) are proposed for P. camphorosmoides, P. communis, and P. hartwegiana. The following nomenclatural changes are proposed: P. arequipensis comb. et stat. nov. (basionym: P. microphylla subsp. microphylla var. arequepensis), P. compacta nom. nov. pro P. andina (Philippi non Gray; Art. 53.1 of ICN), P. jujuyensis comb. et stat. nov. (basionym: P. hieronymi subsp. hieronymi var. jujuyensis), P. compacta subsp. boliviana comb. nov. (basionym: P. andina subsp. boliviana), and P. compacta subsp. purpurea comb. nov. (basionym: P. andina subsp. purpurea). A new species (P. glabra sp. nov.) is proposed based on our examination of live plants and herbarium specimens. P. johnstonii subsp. johnstonii var. scabrida is synonymized (syn. nov.) with P. johnstonii. Finally, P. argyrocoma subsp. argyrocoma is excluded from South America since it was based on misidentified specimens (deposited at MO) of P. andina subsp. andina. A total of 30 species (43 taxa including subspecies, varieties, subvarieties, and forms) are recognized, highlighting that for some (Paronychia chilensis, P. communis, P. setigera) we provisionally accept Chaudhri's infraspecific classification, since the high phenotypic variability of these taxa is quite complicated and further investigations need to solve their taxonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pteris has numerous representatives of Asian and Oceanic origin naturalized in America, some of them recognized as invasive weeds. Pteris ensiformis was introduced in America in the middle of the 19th century and subsequently naturalized in USA and Central America, but the records of its distribution in South America are isolated and the establishment or naturalization of the populations is unclear. As part of a broader study whose objective is to review the diversity of ferns and lycophytes in the Paranaense forest P. ensiformis was found for the first time in Argentina. In addition to describing, illustrating, and distinguishing the species from other species of the genus in the country, we review the distribution of P. ensiformis in South America comparing herbarium collections and iNaturalist observations, a citizen science platform. Additionally, a status for the species is proposed or suggested in each country where it is registered according to its stage of the naturalization process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Human Review is the property of Eagora Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Predicting the potential distribution and coexistence of suitable geographic areas for Chagas disease vectors in the Americas is a crucial task for understanding the eco-epidemiological dynamics of this disease. The potential distribution and coexistence of 3 species-Rhodnius prolixus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae), Cavernicola pilosa (Hemiptera: Reduviidae), and Rhodnius pictipes (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) were modeled. Presence records were obtained and environmental variables were selected based on correlation analysis, Jackknife analysis and knowledge of the biology and natural history of the species. The MaxEnt algorithm included in the kuenm package of R software was used for modeling the potential distribution, and various scenarios of the BAM diagram (Biotic, Abiotic, and Movement variables) were evaluated. The variables contributing to the final models were different for each species. Rhodnius pictipes showed a potential distribution in South America, particularly in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, and Suriname. Areas with environmentally suitable conditions for R. prolixus were located in southern Brazil, Peru, Colombia, southern Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, whereas for C. pilosa they were in southeastern Brazil, southeastern Central America, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. Co-occurrence analysis revealed distinct patterns in the neotropical region, with some areas indicating the potential distribution of 1 or more species. In Brazil, occurrence and co-occurrence areas were concentrated in the northwest and southeast regions. Overall, this study provides valuable information on the potential distribution and coexistence of vectors, which can inform targeted vector control strategies and contribute to global efforts in combating Chagas disease., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)

In this study the simulated extreme and moderate El Niño events (e.g., frequency of occurrence and spatial variability) are characterized and the historical teleconnections on precipitation and temperature climate extremes in South America are analysed. Future projected changes in these teleconnections under a global warming context are also addressed. For this purpose a set of 10 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) global climate models (GCMs) simulations derived from three experiments (historical, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) are considered. The study period is 1916–2100. As El Niño is seasonally phase‐locked, peaking in late austral spring and summer, the present analysis is carried out for these two seasons, as well as annually. Results indicate that extreme El Niño events are projected to double their occurrence considering RCP4.5 and RCP8.5, while a less pronounced increase is projected for moderate El Niño events. Most of these events show a similar pattern of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies: a positive centre in the central equatorial Pacific that extends eastward to the coast of America. In a global warming context, the resemblance between these events may decrease. Overall, the spatial structure of the impacts of El Niño are expected to be similar between moderate and extreme events, although in some cases (regions and seasons), a higher intensity is observed considering the events characterized as extreme El Niños rather than moderate ones. As extreme El Niño events are expected to be more frequent in the future, the impacts on climate extremes as well as the associated socioeconomic impacts would also take place much more frequently too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic stress and damage from natural hazards are escalating at an alarming rate, calling for anticipatory risk management. Yet few studies have projected flood and drought risk, owing to large uncertainties, strong non‐linearities, and complex spatial‐temporal dynamics. Here, we develop an integrative global risk analysis framework encapsulating future changes in flood and drought hazards as well as associated exposure and vulnerability dimensions. Flood characteristics are quantified by fitting a generalized extreme value distribution (GEV) to the annual flow maxima time series, while drought properties are characterized by the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) and the standardized precipitation index (SPI). The drivers of drought and flood risk changes at the global and regional scales are explored, and the wide cascade of uncertainties in the risk assessment is decomposed. We find a substantial increase in both flood and drought risk towards the end of the century over most of the globe, driven by compounding changes in exposure, vulnerability, and hazard. A shift from a fossil‐fueled development to a sustainable one decreases the global area facing a risk doubling from 61% to 33% for flood and from 41% to 23% for drought. South America and Africa are identified as hotspot regions where a concomitant, large increase in both flood and drought risk are projected. The hazard quantification method is ubiquitously the dominant uncertainty source for drought risk changes, while the contribution of uncertainty sources for flood risk changes is highly variable in space. Plain Language Summary: The number of natural hazards has accelerated sharply in the past few decades, with hydrology‐related catastrophes being responsible for >50% of the total fatalities. The risk of extreme events thus warrants investigation in order to formulate efficient adaptation and risk management policies. Here, we scrutinize changes in flood and drought risk over the global land area for the end‐21st‐century to identify leverage points in reducing the risk. Our results show an increase in both flood and drought risks over most of the area. South America and Africa are identified as hotspot regions where a concurrent, large increase in both flood and drought risks are projected, necessitating integrated policies and practices for deliberate and effective disaster risk reduction in these regions. Our findings provide a basis for better decision‐making to curb the growing impacts of the extremes and socioeconomic developments. Key Points: A large increase in flood and drought risk is projected towards the end of the century over most of the global land areaShifting from a fossil‐fueled development to a sustainable one reduces both flood and drought risk by halfSouth America and Africa are identified as risk hotspots [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to determine, through a systematic review and meta-analysis, the combined prevalence of equine infectious anemia (EIA) in domestic equids in South America, Central America and the Caribbean regions, in the period 2010-2021. Information was selected from articles published in the electronic databases PubMed/ PubMed Central, Science Direct, Scielo, Ebsco and Google Scholar. Original articles and postgraduate theses, with full text available, were considered in the study, including domestic equids, using serological techniques recommended by the OIE and providing the sample size and number of positive samples. A meta-analysis to estimate the combined prevalence of the disease and a subgroup analysis were carried out to determine the effect of the geographic regions (South America, Central America and the Caribbean), the animal species (horses, donkeys and mules) and the period of publication of the articles (2010-2016 and 2017-2021). The effect of the groups on the combined prevalence was further assessed by meta-regression analysis. Forty-nine articles were included in the study, from which a combined prevalence of 11.8 % was determined (95 % CI: 10.3-13.5). The multivariate meta-regression analysis showed that there was an association of the combined prevalence of the disease with the study period and the animal species studied. It is concluded that there are few studies regarding the behavior of this disease in the regions studied, besides there was an association of the combined prevalence of the disease with the study period and the species studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interchange between the previously disconnected faunas of North and South America was a massive experiment in biological invasion. A major gap in our understanding of this invasion is why there was a drastic increase in the proportion of mammals of North American origin found in South America. Four nonmutually exclusive mechanisms may explain this asymmetry: 1) Higher dispersal rate of North American mammals toward the south, 2) higher origination of North American immigrants in South America, 3) higher extinction of mammals with South American origin, and 4) similar dispersal rate but a larger pool of native taxa in North versus South America. We test among these mechanisms by analyzing ∼20,000 fossil occurrences with Bayesian methods to infer dispersal and diversification rates and taxonomic selectivity of immigrants. We find no differences in the dispersal and origination rates of immigrants. In contrast, native South American mammals show higher extinction. We also find that two clades with North American origin (Carnivora and Artiodactyla) had significantly more immigrants in South America than other clades. Altogether, the asymmetry of the interchange was not due to higher origination of immigrants in South America as previously suggested, but resulted from higher extinction of native taxa in southern South America. These results from one of the greatest biological invasions highlight how biogeographic processes and biotic interactions can shape continental diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf-cutter ants belonging to the genus Atta are important ecosystem engineers and conspicuous bioturbators in Neotropical regions acting as superorganisms. The Atta ants excavate impressive and long-lived nests with complex subterranean systems that provide shelter from predation and climatic extremes and allow reproduction and fungus-growing. Despite their importance and the large body of literature on the ecology of Atta ants, their role in geological processes is still poorly studied and underestimated compared to other soil invertebrates such as termites and earthworms. In this work, based on interdisciplinary literature and examples from South America, we provide a systematic review of the main mechanisms and processes by which the leaf-cutter ants direct and indirectly affect the soil characteristics and properties, and also their impact on surficial geological and geomorphological processes at different scales. We also highlight how specific digging and transport processes, such as biomixing, biosorting, biotransfer, and biodeposition affect pedogenesis and landform development. We highlight how the soil turnover and mounding processes create different surficial landforms that are easily eroded and reworked along the slopes by runoff. In the subsurface, the digging behavior results in soil sorting and biogenic microaggregates development that increase soil porosity, with implications for water-holding capacity. The subterranean system creates preferential flux pathways that increase the leaching processes and the complexity of weathering fronts in Atta -bioturbated soils. The impact of the bioturbation of leaf-cutting ants can reach >5 m deep, composed mainly of biofabrics, such as biopores with loose or dense infillings, clay linings, mamillated vugs, excrements, oval granular and rounded microaggregates with biotic origin at great depths (> 2 m). These impacts indicate long-term bioturbation by ants that can result in different soil development pathways. Long-term Atta bioturbation can result in soil homogenization (proisotropic soil development) or create textural contrasts between the soil horizons associated with stone-layers (proanisotropic soil development) through fine material transport from the subsurface. Besides the physical modifications, the Atta nests are biogeochemical hot spots or 'islands of fertility' that increase the habitat quality and growth and affect vegetation patterns through changes in the biotic and abiotic components of soils via nutrient concentrations. The Atta nests affect chemical weathering patterns due to presence of fungal and waste chambers that change the soil pH and CO 2 concentration. The impact of leaf-cutting ants in landscape development is an expression of the long-term bioturbation activities and their cumulative impacts (multiple generations) on earth surface processes. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The approaches and tools of health promotion can be useful for civil society groups, local and national governments and multilateral organizations that are working to operationalize the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Health promotion and sustainable development share several core priorities, such as equity, intersectoral approaches and sustainability, that help maximize their impact across traditional sectoral boundaries. In the Region of the Americas, each of these priorities has strong resonance because of prominent and long-standing health inequities that are proving resistant to interventions driven solely by the health sector. We describe several cases from the World Health Organization's (WHO) Region of the Americas in which the approaches and tools of health promotion, with a focus on cities, healthy settings and multisectoral collaboration, have been used to put the agenda into practice. We highlight areas where such approaches and tools can be applied effectively and provide evidence of the transformative potential of health promotion in efforts to achieve the sustainable development goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributes to the study of South American regionalism focusing on the emergence of sectoral cooperation starting in 2000. To do so, the article analyses two policy areas - transport infrastructure and energy integration - addressing two questions: Why has regional cooperation emerged despite the absence of economic interdependence and market-driven demand for economic integration? And why are policy outcomes evident in some areas (i.e. transport infrastructure) while limited in others (i.e. energy)? It is argued that the emergence of regional cooperation as well as the variation in policy outcomes between areas can be explained largely by the articulation of a regional leadership and its effect on the convergence of state preferences. The article shows how the Brazilian leadership, incentivised by the effects of the US-led Free Trade Area of the Americas negotiations and the financial crises that hit the region in the late 1990s, made state preferences converge towards a regionalist project encompassing all South American countries by making visible the mutual benefits of cooperation on transport infrastructure and energy. In the case of energy, however, the emergence of a second regional leadership project - pursued by Chávez's Venezuela - and deep preference divergence led sectoral cooperation into a gridlock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Parnaíba basin is a 7.8 × 105 km2 Phanerozoic sedimentary province in NE South America which hosts basic and (rare) intermediate (to acid) rocks of large igneous provinces (LIP) related to the early stages of Atlantic rifting episodes. The Upper Triassic/Lower Jurassic (Rhaetian/Hettangian) Mosquito Formation of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP) has been historically characterized on the western side of the basin, while the Early Cretaceous (Hauterivian/Valanginian) Sardinha Formation of the Equatorial Atlantic Magmatic Province (EQUAMP) has been considered (supposedly) as the exclusive igneous manifestation on the eastern flank of the basin. We carried out an extensive sampling on the eastern border of the Parnaíba basin where were identified: (1) low-Ti tholeiites (LT) (TiO 2 < 2 wt%) poor in incompatible elements (e.g., Sr < 245 ppm) with εNd from −1.08 to −1.71. These rocks yield 40Ar/39Ar age of 188.26 ± 1.52 Ma, interpreted as a disturbed age of a CAMP representative. Sharing geographical provinciality with LT a minor volume of (2) high-Ti tholeiites yielded a plagioclase 40Ar/39Ar date of 199.7 ± 1.6 Ma. This high-Ti Triassic group (HTt) has low P 2 O 5 content (TiO 2 2.0–2.5 wt%; P 2 O 5 < 0.25 wt%), poor in incompatible elements content (Sr < 240 ppm) and it is highly radiogenic in Nd (εNd from 6.1 to 3.3). (3) Another prevalent group of high-Ti tholeiites (HT) (TiO 2 > 2.4 wt%) is rich in incompatible elements (e.g., Sr > 400 ppm) and it is less radiogenic in Nd (εNd −2.17 to −3.04) being interpreted as a member of the EQUAMP. (4) Types with compositions chemically analogous to trachyandesite to trachytes (SiO 2 > 56.5 wt%), here named as evolved rocks (ER), are interpreted as highly fractionated melts from EQUAMP HT tholeiites. The EQUAMP event was dated at 130.82 ± 0.24 Ma. Our new geochemical dataset composed of 111 samples, in combination with the previous databases of Atlantic-related LIPs in NE south America was qualitatively and (semi)automatically evaluated using the Self-Organized Maps (SOM) approach. The results shed light on the provinciality of tholeiitic magmatism in the Parnaíba basin, in association with correlated igneous events in the Borborema Province. The western Parnaíba basin volcanic (and intrusive) rocks belong to the CAMP event, while the eastern side is shared between CAMP and EQUAMP plumbing systems. Beyond the Parnaíba basin boundaries, low-Ti intrusions of the CAMP keep geochemical isotopic similarities with two ENE and NW-SE dike swarms of the Borborema Province, increasing its influence further east. High-Ti intrusions (Sardinha) retain high geochemical-isotopic-geochronological similarities with the Rio Ceará-Mirim and the Canindé giant dike swarms, thus endorsing the proposal of a single Cretaceous tholeiitic event related to the West Gondwana breakup. • Low-Ti CAMP dominates in the W and NE Parnaíba basin but is very discreet to the SSE area. • High-Ti CAMP can be found in association with the low-Ti type in NE and SSE border of the Parnaíba basin. • High-Ti EQUAMP rocks dominate, but are not exclusive, to the central and SE regions. • Low-Ti EQUAMP is restricted to dike swarms hosted in the Precambrian basement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this analysis we show how globally coherent teleconnections from life-cycles of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) lead to correlated crop production anomalies in North and South America. We estimate the magnitude of ENSO-induced Pan-American production anomalies and discuss how increasing crop harvesting frequency may affect Pan-American production variability. We find that ENSO accounts for ∼72%, 30% and 57% of Pan-American maize, soybean and wheat production variability, respectively. ENSO-induced production anomalies are greatest for maize, with median anomalies of ∼5% of Pan-American production. ENSO-induced yield anomalies for maize and soybeans tend to be of the same sign in North America and southeast South America but of an opposite sign in northeast Brazil. Teleconnections for wheat are more complicated because ENSO affects wheat yields via lagged soil moisture teleconnections in the US and an increased probability of disease in South America, but anomalies tend to be of the same sign in North America and southeast South America. After broadly characterizing ENSO-induced production anomalies, we demonstrate that they are not static in time. Increasing crop harvesting frequency has affected the correlated risks posed by ENSO. We use a soil water balance to show that in Brazil changing to a safrinha cropping cycle increases both the mean water stress and the ENSO-induced soil water content anomalies during flowering in both the maize and soybean seasons, which is a result of increasing evaporative demand during times of lower precipitation and moving the flowering seasons into months with strong ENSO teleconnections. Increasing crop harvesting frequency in Brazil has therefore increased ENSO-induced production variability of soybeans and maize. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El artículo discurre sobre las características geográficas de la región de América Latina. La autora comenta sobre la inclusión de países de América Central, América del Sur y el Caribe en América Latina, y examina su historia desde el periodo colonial. También se considera la organización social y cultural de la región.

The current outbreak of Zika virus (ZIKV) in South America is one of the most serious public health emergencies since the Ebola outbreak of West Africa [2014]. ZIKV belongs to the flaviviridae family and has two lineages (Asian and African). The virus was first discovered in Uganda [1947] and the first human infection was identified in Nigeria [1952]. The current epidemic is the third of its type after that of Yap Island, Micronesia [2007] and French Polynesia [2013]. Phylogenetic studies revealed that the current strain shares about 99.7% of nucleotides and 99.9% of amino acids with the strain of French Polynesia epidemic [2013], suggesting that it has spread across the Pacific Ocean to invade South America. Aedes Aegypti mosquito is the main vector for ZIKV and there are some reports describing possible sexual and maternal to fetal transmission. ZIKV infection is known to be self-limited. However, recent reports suggested that it can be associated with neurological manifestations as Guillan-Barrè Syndrome and microcephaly in the newborn population. Currently, vector control seems to be the most effective available preventive measure against ZIKV spread. The development of broad spectrum antivirals and ZIKV vaccines should be a priority of future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leishmania species are zoonotic multi-host parasites that are responsible for visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis. In the Americas, visceral leishmaniasis is caused by Leishmania infantum, a parasite introduced by domestic dogs after America's colonization, which are its main reservoir host. Despite this recent introduction, L. infantum is found infecting mammals from other taxa, both in urban and sylvatic focuses. Some bat, rodent and marsupial species can be found infected in urban areas although these synanthropic mammals are rarely considered in public policies. In the wild, Primate, Pilosa, Carnivora and Chiroptera are some of the mammal orders already found infected by L. infantum in Americas. Cutaneous leishmaniasis are related to different Leishmania species whose transmission is associated to sylvatic mammals and vectors, occurring also in anthropized areas surrounding urban centers. Different enzootic scenarios are recognized for each one of the Leishmania species associated with cutaneous leishmaniasis, for example: L. guyanensis, sloths and arboreal strata; L. naifii, armadillo and terrestrial refuges; and L. mexicana/L. amazonensis and caviomorph rodents. Leishmania braziliensis is a heterogeneous parasite already found infecting species from Didelphimorphia, Rodentia, Primata, Carnivora and Chiroptera orders throughout South America. Contrasting the knowledge about the role played by dogs in visceral leishmaniasis, the cutaneous leishmaniasis reservoirs are still unknown, and transmission is probably not related to a unique reservoir host, but to an assemblage of species responsible for parasite maintenance and transmission. Understanding the factors involved in the amplification of enzootic foci is essential to support effective and sustainable strategies for leishmaniasis surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tackling germs, negotiating norms, and securing access to medicines are persistent challenges that disproportionally affect developing countries' participation in global health governance. Furthermore, over the last two decades, the excessive focus on global pandemics and security in global health diplomacy, rendered peripheral diseases that usually strike the poor and vulnerable, creating situations of marginalisation and inequality across societies. However, as the importance of regions and regionalism increases in global politics, and integration ambitions and initiatives extend beyond trade and investment to embrace welfare policy, there are new opportunities to explore whether and how regional commitments affect health equity and access to medicine in developing nations. What, if any, are the possibilities for meso-level institutions to provide leadership and direction in support of alternative practices of global (health) governance? Can regional polities become international advocacy actors in support of global justice goals? This article addresses these questions by analysing regional health diplomacy in South America. The article argues that regional organisations can become sites for collective action and pivotal actors in the advocacy of rights (to health) enabling diplomatic and strategic options to member state and nonstate actors, and playing a role as deal-broker in international organisations by engaging in new forms of regional health diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

New DNA-based predictive tests for physical characteristics and inference of ancestry are highly informative tools that are being increasingly used in forensic genetic analysis. Two eye colour prediction models: a Bayesian classifier – Snipper and a multinomial logistic regression (MLR) system for the Irisplex assay, have been described for the analysis of unadmixed European populations. Since multiple SNPs in combination contribute in varying degrees to eye colour predictability in Europeans, it is likely that these predictive tests will perform in different ways amongst admixed populations that have European co-ancestry, compared to unadmixed Europeans. In this study we examined 99 individuals from two admixed South American populations comparing eye colour versus ancestry in order to reveal a direct correlation of light eye colour phenotypes with European co-ancestry in admixed individuals. Additionally, eye colour prediction following six prediction models, using varying numbers of SNPs and based on Snipper and MLR, were applied to the study populations. Furthermore, patterns of eye colour prediction have been inferred for a set of publicly available admixed and globally distributed populations from the HGDP-CEPH panel and 1000 Genomes databases with a special emphasis on admixed American populations similar to those of the study samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trichostomum schlimii Müll.Hal., a neglected Colombian taxon, is transferred to the genus Pseudosymblepharis Broth. as Pseudosymblepharis schlimii (Müll.Hal.) comb. nov. The species, known only from the type locality in Santa Marta, Colombia, is newly reported for the moss floras of Bolivia, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guiana, Peru, and Venezuela. It is described, lectotypified, illustrated, and mapped. Diagnostic characters, and distinction from one closely related American species within the genus are discussed. Trichostomum mollissimum (Broth. ex E.B.Bartram) H.A.Crum and Pseudosymblepharis guatemalensis (E.B.Bartram) B.H.Allen are reduced to the synonymy of Pseudosymblepharis schlimii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims at depicting the situation of Spanish frontiers in South America, focusing on Guayana and Patagonia during the second half of Charles III's reign. Archival records and bibliography are used for research purposes, but the main basis of the article is the analysis of the most meaningful maps, trying to show the politics of frontier consolidation and the importance of the cartography produced at that time as a means of updating geographical knowledge in this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on nineteenth-century intellectuals in Latin America and how their historiography was constructed through an overlapping of patriotic history and geological history. The author discusses the Colombian exploration group Chorographic Commission, which included explorers Joaquín Acosta and Manuel Ancízar, examines how these historians linked archaeology and geology, and discusses how they viewed the Spanish conquest in relation to geographical sites.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century. South America hosts the world's greatest diversity of plants and most animal groups, as well as a variety of environmental movements, involving urban and rural communities. South American academic philosophy, however, has given little consideration to this rich biocultural context. To nourish an emergent regional environmental philosophy three main sources can be identified. First, a variety of ancient and contemporary ecological worldviews and practices offer a rich biocultural array of South American environmental thought that can be disclosed and valued through the work of cultural anthropology, liberation philosophy, liberation pedagogy, liberation theology, ecofeminism, and biocultural conservation. Second, some recent academic environmental philosophy research and teaching teams have been formed in South American universities with the support of the interdisciplinary United Nations Environmental Programme or based on the individual interests of some scattered scholars. Third, social movements have increasingly demanded the incorporation of environmental values into regional policies and decision-making processes. These three sources can foster intercultural, international, and transdisciplinary dialogues to further develop a South American environmental philosophy grounded in its precious biocultural diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes how changes in subjugation policy impacted the different indigenous nations inhabiting the Pacific lowlands and under the judicial jurisdiction of Santafe, Quito, and Panama. In their eagerness to obtain riches, colonial authorities, along with the vecinos (neighbours) of Andean urban centers, constructed a series of negative discourses about the Indians that legitimized a brutal war lasting almost a century. The failure of this policy in the mid-seventeenth century permitted the establishment of a series of missions in this territory that sought to dominate the indigenous population, but now through evangelization, a seemingly "softer" technique. Despite the differences between these two policies of subjugation, both sought to include indigenous peoples in part of the colonial economic system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though the analysis of DNA from archaeological bone comes with some major limitations, it constitutes the most direct means of investigating prehistoric population dynamics. The interdisciplinary contextualization of genetic data with the archaeological and palaeoecological record helps to reconstruct past population histories and the demography of ancient populations. For South America, palaeogenetic studies have become increasingly important. Here we review the existing ancient DNA data from pre-Columbian individuals to assess their potential to contribute to our understanding of early South American population history. Th e spatial and temporal distribution of ancient South American populations analysed to date is very uneven and the data resolution of the analysed genetic markers is low. Nevertheless, the data suggest that there were population dynamic processes accompanying cultural development in Western South America. With the new methodologies and better sampling strategies employed in current paleogenetic projects and more effective interdisciplinary cooperations it will be soon possible to achieve a better understanding of the peopling of the continent and the succeeding population history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Vegetation fires are a key global terrestrial disturbance factor and a major source of atmospheric trace gases and aerosols. Therefore, many earth-system science and operational monitoring applications require access to repetitive, frequent and well-characterized information on fire emissions source strengths. Geostationary imagers offer important temporal advantages when studying rapidly changing phenomena such as vegetation fires. Here we present a new algorithm for detecting and characterising active fires burning within the imager footprints of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES), including consideration of cloud-cover and calculation of fire radiative power (FRP), a metric shown to be strongly related to fuel consumption and smoke emission rates. The approach is based on a set of algorithms now delivering near real time (NRT) operational FRP products from the Meteosat Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infra-Red Imager (SEVIRI) imager (available from http://landsaf.meteo.pt/), and the GOES processing chain presented here is designed to deliver a compatible fire product to complete geostationary coverage of the Western hemisphere. Results from the two GOES imagers are intercompared, and are independently verified against the well regarded MODIS cloud mask and active fire products. We find that the detection of cloud and active fires from GOES matches that of MODIS very well for fire pixels having FRP>30MW, when the GOES omission error falls to less than 10%. The FRP of fire clusters detected near simultaneously by both GOES and MODIS have a bias of only 22MW, and a similar bias is found when comparing near-simultaneous GOES East and GOES West FRP observations. However, many fire pixels having FRP<30MW remain undetected by GOES, probably unavoidably since it has a much coarser spatial resolution than MODIS. Adjustment using data from the less frequent but more accurate views obtained from high spatial resolution polar orbiting imagers could be used to bias correct regional FRP totals. Temporal integration of the GOES FRP record indicates that during the summer months, biomass burning combusts thousands of millions of tonnes of fuel daily across the Americas. Comparison of these results to those of the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFEDv2) indicate strong linear relationships (r²>0.9), suggesting that the timely FRP data available from a GOES real-time data feed is likely to be a suitable fire emissions source strength term for inclusion in schemes aiming to forecast the concentrations of atmospheric constituents affected by biomass burning. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the history of Andean textiles following the Spanish conquest and during the establishment of the colonial system from the late 16th century to the early 17th century. It asserts that textiles were the primary form through which pre-Hispanic inhabitants of the Andes gave shape to and communicated their ideas, formalized social and political relationships, and interacted with the spiritual world. The article further maintains that Andean textiles and dress revealed information about the economic policy of the Inca state, facilitating the conquest and colonization, and that they informed strategies developed to convert native peoples to Christianity.

The “Great American Biotic Interchange” (GABI) is regarded as a defining event in the biogeography of the Americas. It is hypothesized to have occurred when the Isthmus of Panama closed ca three million years ago (Ma), ending the isolation of South America and permitting the mixing of its biota with that of North America. This view of the GABI is based largely upon the animal fossil record, but recent molecular biogeographic studies of plants that show repeated instances of long-distance dispersal over major oceanic barriers suggest that perhaps the land bridge provided by the isthmus may have been less necessary for plant migration. Here we show that plants have significantly earlier divergence time estimates than animals for historical migration events across the Isthmus of Panama region. This difference in timing indicates that plants had a greater propensity for dispersal over the isthmus before its closure compared with animals. The GABI was therefore asynchronous for plants and animals, which has fundamental implications for the historical assembly of tropical biomes in the most species-rich forests on the planet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses certain categories of indigenous people who existed at the frontier between the European (Spanish and Creole) and native civilizations during the Spanish colonial period in Rio de la Plata in South America. In particular, it examines indigenous women who negotiated peace treaties, indigenous captives living among the Creole population, and Spanish-speaking Indians with basic writing skills who assisted their leaders as secretaries in relations with the colonial world. The article asserts that the functioning of indigenous people in these roles reveals the interest of native populations in maintaining relations with colonial society without depending on external agents and losing their autonomy.

The article examines life in frontier regions of the Spanish empire in the Americas. In particular, it discusses the presence of Europeans in the colonial frontier areas of the Amazon River in South America and the Sierra del Nayar in New Spain. It analyzes these Europeans' response to and interaction with the natural surroundings and indigenous peoples of these areas, focusing on the imposition of European ideas. The article relies in part on accounts authored by French explorer Charles-Marie de la Condamine during his 1735 scientific expedition to South America.

The article presents a study on the morphological, anatomical and palynological aspects of the genus Salpichlaena from South and Central America. The aim of the study was to provide a systematic revision of the said genus to contribute to the knowledge of fern biodiversity in America. It states that the type of specimens and its original descriptions were consulted to identify the applications of names. It mentions that two species were recognized including S. volubilis and S. hookeriana.

In this article, a collaborative effort between archaeologists and marine ecologists, we discuss the role kelp forest ecosystems may have played in facilitating the movement of maritime peoples from Asia to the Americas near the end of the Pleistocene. Growing in cool nearshore waters along rocky coastlines, kelp forests offer some of the most productive habitats on earth, with high primary productivity, magnified secondary productivity, and three-dimensional habitat supporting a diverse array of marine organisms. Today, extensive kelp forests are found around the North Pacific from Japan to Baja California. After a break in the tropics - where nearshore mangrove forests and coral reefs are highly productive - kelp forests are also found along the Andean Coast of South America. These Pacific Rim kelp forests support or shelter a wealth of shellfish, fish, marine mammals, seabirds, and seaweeds, resources heavily used historically by coastal peoples. By about 16,000 years ago, the North Pacific Coast offered a linear migration route, essentially unobstructed and entirely at sea level, from northeast Asia into the Americas. Recent reconstructions suggest that rising sea levels early in the postglacial created a highly convoluted and island-rich coast along Beringia's southern shore, conditions highly favorable to maritime hunter-gatherers. Along with the terrestrial resources available in adjacent landscapes, kelp forests and other nearshore habitats sheltered similar suites of food resources that required minimal adaptive adjustments for migrating coastal peoples. With reduced wave energy, holdfasts for boats, and productive fishing, these linear kelp forest ecosystems may have provided a kind of "kelp highway" for early maritime peoples colonizing the New World. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of História, Ciências, Saúde - Manguinhos is the property of Casa de Oswaldo Cruz and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of História, Ciências, Saúde - Manguinhos is the property of Casa de Oswaldo Cruz and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A key to the anareolate stick-insect genera (Insecta: Phasmatodea) of the New World (North, Central and South America) is provided. Otocraniella flagelloantennata gen. n. sp. n. and Echetlus fulgens n. sp. are described as new. A new genus, Aplopocranidium gen. n., is erected for Bacteria waehneri (Günther, 1940). Baculum ramosum (Saussure, 1861) is redescribed. New synonyms have been traced during the works on this study. Hypocyrtus (Redtenbacher, 1908) is a subjective junior synonym of Lamponius (Stål, 1875), Steleoxiphus (Rehn, 1907) of Paraleptynia (Caudell, 1904), and both Abrachia (Kirby, 1889) and Ceratiscus (Caudell, 1904) of Baculum (Saussure, 1861). The anareolate tribe Hesperophasmatini is recognized as a member of the Pseudophasmatidae: Xerosomatinae. A new tribe, Paraleptyniini trib n., is introduced to encompass the anareolatae genera Paraleptynia (Caudell, 1904), Xiphophasma (Rehn, 1913) and Parabacillus (Caudell, 1903). A study of egg material showed these taxa to belong into Heteronemiidae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comments on Peruvian scholars Gabriela Ramos' perspective on Taki Onqoy, an Andean resistance against colonial abuses. Ramos' analysis of informaciones' testimonies as evidence of Indian agency, rebellion, millennarian vision; Ramos' attention to textual problems inside the informaciones; Nature of the Taki Onqoy movement.

The series Laeves Bacigalupo & E. L. Cabral of the genus Borreria is here revised. Eight species are recognized, keyed out, described and illustrated. Borreria paraensis E. L. Cabral & Bacigalupo is a new species from Pará and Bahia (Brazil) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the role of the anthropologist investigating ethnic nationalism in the Colombian Vaupes. Differences between indigenous, fourth-world ethnic nationalist movements and nation-state nationalism; Dilemmas regarding Indian nationalism in Latin America; Reasons behind the criticisms against the Regional Indigenous Council of the Vaupes.

Focuses on the study regarding the population structure of the Yanomama, a particular tribe of South American Indians. Establishment of the first sustained contacts of non-Indians with the Yanomama; Population expansion of the tribal area; Distinct features of the Yanomamas.