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The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in millions of deaths globally, and while several diagnostic systems were proposed, real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) remains the gold standard. However, diagnostic reagents, including enzymes used in RT-PCR, are subject to centralized production models and intellectual property restrictions, which present a challenge for less developed countries. With the aim of generating a standardized One-Step open RT-qPCR protocol to detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA in clinical samples, we purified and tested recombinant enzymes and a non-proprietary buffer. The protocol utilized M-MLV RT and Taq DNA pol enzymes to perform a Taqman probe-based assay. Synthetic RNA samples were used to validate the One-Step RT-qPCR components, demonstrating sensitivity comparable to a commercial kit routinely employed in clinical settings for patient diagnosis. Further evaluation on 40 clinical samples (20 positive and 20 negative) confirmed its comparable diagnostic accuracy. This study represents a proof of concept for an open approach to developing diagnostic kits for viral infections and diseases, which could provide a cost-effective and accessible solution for less developed countries.

Children seem to present a barrier to the gender revolution in that parents are more likely to divide paid and domestic work along traditional gender lines than childless couples are. However, the extent to which this is so varies between countries and over time. We used data on 35 countries from the 2012 International Social Survey Programme to identify the contexts in which parents and non-parents differ the most in their division of labour. In Central/South America, Eastern Europe, Southern Europe, Asia, and South Africa, labour sharing configurations did not vary as much with the presence of children as in Australia, Western Europe, North America, and Northern Europe. Our multilevel models helped explain this pattern by showing that children seem to present a greater barrier to the gender revolution in richer and, surprisingly, more gender equal countries. However, the relationship between children and couples' division of labour can be thought of as curvilinear, first increasing as societies progress, but then weakening if societies respond with policies that promote men's involvement at home. In particular, having a portion of parental leave reserved for fathers reduces the extent to which children are associated with traditional labour sharing in the domestic sphere.

The Tuina prospect is situated in northern Chile, approximately 50 km east of Calama in the Antofagasta Region. It lies within the Eocene-Oligocene metallogenic belt, which is home to world-class copper deposits, including Chuquicamata, El Abra, and Radomiro Tomic. To characterize the subsurface architecture, we deployed a temporary seismic network of 37 geophones and applied Local Seismic Tomography to derive seismic velocity models. The results show intermediate Vp/Vs values in the prospect area, suggesting a highly fractured environment consistent with surface geological data. Additionally, we identified a high Vp/Vs anomaly with a northwest orientation, reaching depths of up to 20 km and intersecting the anomaly associated with Tuina. We propose that this structure is not a simple lineament, as previously suggested, but rather a concealed fault system controlling the eastern boundary of the Eocene-Oligocene metallogenic belt. In this context, the so-called Calama-Olacapato-El Toro lineament represents a complex fault system playing a key role in the region’s structural evolution and mineralization. Based on this, we present a five-stage conceptual model explaining how fluid migration from subduction enables the formation of mineral prospects controlled by this fault system. The tomography results correlate with surface data, demonstrating the method’s effectiveness for geophysical exploration.

The term Nikkei emerged in the Americas, post-Second World War, to describe persons of Japanese descent living abroad. Based on an ethnographic study with Chileans of Japanese descent, we propose that Nikkei can be productively understood as an ethno-regional identity. Building on and departing from scholarship that focuses on Nikkei identities in Peru and Brazil in national/global/diasporic terms, we highlight the role of Nikkei persons and groups in Latin America in developing Chilean Nikkei identity and community. While some Chileans come to identify as Nikkei, others are unaware of or distance themselves from it. While definitions of Nikkei vary, Chilean Nikkei organizations are expanding their understanding of the term. We discuss diverse members’ responses towards such inclusiveness as they negotiate the consanguineous boundaries of Nikkei identity. In theorizing Nikkei as an ethno-regional identity and highlighting the role of institutions in the formation and promotion of Nikkei identity, we contribute to decentering identity politics from individual choice and recentering identity in processes of diaspora formation and community-making.

This study aimed to evaluate the potential of two carbon (C)-rich carrier materials derived from agricultural residues, spent mushroom substrate (SMS) and composted wheat straw (CWS) for enhancing soil carbon stabilization in an Andisol, with a view towards their future application in smart fertilizer design. We investigated how their contrasting nitrogen contents and application rates affect soil organic carbon dynamics and contribute to sustainable soil management and climate change mitigation. Soil incubations were conducted over 365 days, during which C mineralization, enzymatic activities, and C and N sequestration were assessed. SMS addition at both low and high rates (0.5% and 1% soil C increase, respectively) enhanced soil organic carbon (SOC) stabilization, increasing mean residence times (40.6 and 48.8 years) and half-life times (28.1 and 33.8 years) of the stable C pool compared to unamended soil (35.9 and 24.9 years). High-rate CWS application (1% soil C increase) promoted native SOC decomposition, increasing C losses (5.8%) and reducing C sequestration potential (96%). However, low-rate CWS application (0.5% soil C increase) showed promise, increasing mean residence time (46.8 years) and half-life time (32.4 years) of the stable C pool. Spearman correlations revealed positive associations between electrical conductivity, total N, humification indices, and C stabilization parameters, highlighting the importance of nutrient availability and humification potential for C stabilization. Incorporating C-rich carrier materials with balanced nutrient content, such as SMS, can enhance soil C stabilization and support climate-smart agriculture goals. Low-rate CWS application also shows potential as an alternative C-rich carrier material. However, careful consideration of application rates and material properties is crucial to avoid adverse effects on native SOC mineralization .

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in millions of deaths globally, and while several diagnostic systems were proposed, real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) remains the gold standard. However, diagnostic reagents, including enzymes used in RT-PCR, are subject to centralized production models and intellectual property restrictions, which present a challenge for less developed countries. With the aim of generating a standardized One-Step open RT-qPCR protocol to detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA in clinical samples, we purified and tested recombinant enzymes and a non-proprietary buffer. The protocol utilized M-MLV RT and Taq DNA pol enzymes to perform a Taqman probe-based assay. Synthetic RNA samples were used to validate the One-Step RT-qPCR components, demonstrating sensitivity comparable to a commercial kit routinely employed in clinical settings for patient diagnosis. Further evaluation on 40 clinical samples (20 positive and 20 negative) confirmed its comparable diagnostic accuracy. This study represents a proof of concept for an open approach to developing diagnostic kits for viral infections and diseases, which could provide a cost-effective and accessible solution for less developed countries.

El presente trabajo aborda la situación en la Libia post Gadafi. Tras el comienzo de las Primaveras Árabes surgieron una serie de actores con el objetivo común de derrocar al régimen. La caída y muerte de Gadafi, supuso el inicio de una nueva etapa marcada por la aparición de milicias que frustraron la transición democrática, y acentuaron la lucha por los recursos de poder, siendo el petróleo el más importante. El objetivo principal de este artículo radica en analizar cómo y por qué se produjo la diversificación del poder que ha tenido a Libia envuelta en una situación de caos por más de seis años.

In the Chilean wine industry, the lack of resources, as well as the lack of highly developed knowledge sources (from research programs and institutions) and professional workers, have impeded it from reaching a higher position amongst the leaders of wine producing countries. Therefore, experts suggest clustering based on geographic wine zones as the business scheme to compete. Through the brand image of a cluster, wineries could develop activities that would not be possible on their own. Similarly, actions pursued within a cluster may foster an innovation prone atmosphere; therefore wineries may benefit from this innovative scheme, to reach new markets or increase their market share, and finally, to develop competitive advantage.This project uses the Chilean wine industry organized as clusters to ascertain whether the cluster environment fosters the surge, development and implementation of innovative activities based upon an adapted framework namely the Innovation Value Chain (IVC). This model examines the process of innovation as a three-stage process. It was selected as it allows the analysis of the aggregation of individual innovations goals (from persons and individual firms within a cluster) at a cluster level, and how these are developed into commercialized actions.Wineries from one Chilean wine cluster, i.e. the Maule region, were analysed in terms of their IVC framework to explore differences amongst wineries, but also between different stages of innovation in a winery. Results from descriptive and inferential analysis, demonstrated that wineries were innovative, but differences were observed amongst wineries’ innovativeness during the process of innovation development for individual wineries. This highlights the importance of the development of strategies aimed to enhance the extent and quality of networks amongst wineries, but also between wineries and other agents related to and beyond the cluster in order to increase the performance of wineries concerned. This project makes three significant contributions: (1) it describes the performance of clustered wineries with regards to their process of innovation development; (2) it provides recommendations to both wineries’ managers/owners and policy makers on how to face the challenges of the wine industry; and (3) it enhances the understanding of innovation for clustered wineries in Chile. Further work for this project includes statistical test of the IVC framework as well as the use of qualitative data. Moreover, comparisons among wine clusters of different countries would be worth pursuing.