Factores relacionados a la cultura (etnia), género, edad y localidad de residencia de las personas pueden influir sobre el uso que den a las plantas nativas. Mediante el análisis de una encuesta con pruebas de Chi cuadrado, se determinó la influencia de estos factores sobre el aprovechamiento de los frutos de tres especies nativas, en una comunidad mestiza y en otra de mayoría indígena shuar, en la Amazonía central ecuatoriana. El reconocimiento y consumo de los frutos varió entre especies según la manera en que cada uno es consumido (en platos principales, como postre, etc.) y según el grado en que cada uno es cultivado u obtenido del bosque. La recurrencia a los cultivos o al bosque para la cosecha de los frutos varió entre comunidades, tanto por diferencias entre culturas como por diferencias ambientales relacionadas, por ejemplo, a la historia del poblamiento de cada comunidad. Las ocupaciones rutinarias de mujeres y hombres influyeron también sobre la recurrencia a las fuentes de obtención de los frutos. En este caso, el estudio mostró que el gusto por el sabor es una razón muy importante para mantener el consumo de los frutos, mientras que el desconocimiento y la escasez o dificultad para obtenerlos son los principales motivos por los que no se consumen o el consumo es abandonado.

Several microwave-assisted digestion methods were tested at the Centro de Estudios Aplicados en Química laboratory in Quito, Ecuador, to determine the accuracy and performance efficiency of the mineralization process for the determination of total mercury in fish tissue by cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrophotometry. The use of MARSEasyPrep high-pressure vessels, low amounts of reagents (1 cm3 HNO3, 1 cm3 H2O2, and 1 cm3 HClO4), an irradiation temperature of 210 °C, and 35 min of mineralization time resulted in accurate performance, with recoveries of certified reference material DORM-4 between 90.1% and 105.8%. This is better than the Association of Official Analytical Chemists 2015.01 method, which has a reported accuracy of 81%. The repeatability precision and intermediate precision were established at three concentration levels (0.167, 0.500, and 0.833 mg·kg−1) and expressed as the percentage of the relative standard deviation ranging from 1.5% to 3.0% and 1.7% to 4.2%, respectively. Further, the method was satisfactorily applied to analyze fortified samples of tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), with recoveries ranging from 98.3% to 104.3%. The instrumental limits of detection and quantification were 0.118 µg·dm−3 and 0.394 µg·dm−3, respectively.

Globally, a majority of people use plants as a primary source of healthcare and introduced plants are increasingly discussed as medicine. Protecting this resource for human health depends upon understanding which plants are used and how use patterns will change over time. The increasing use of introduced plants in local pharmacopoeia has been explained by their greater abundance or accessibility (availability hypothesis), their ability to cure medical conditions that are not treated by native plants (diversification hypothesis), or as a result of the introduced plants' having many different simultaneous roles (versatility ypothesis). In order to describe the role of introduced plants in Ecuador, and to test these three hypotheses, we asked if introduced plants are over-represented in the Ecuadorian pharmacopoeia, and if their use as medicine is best explained by the introduced plants' greater availability, different therapeutic applications, or greater number of use categories. Drawing on 44,585 plant-use entries, and the checklist of >17,000 species found in Ecuador, we used multi-model inference to test if more introduced plants are used as medicines in Ecuador than expected by chance, and examine the support for each of the three hypotheses above. We find nuanced support for all hypotheses. More introduced plants are utilized than would be expected by chance, which can be explained by geographic distribution, their strong association with cultivation, diversification (except with regard to introduced diseases), and therapeutic versatility, but not versatility of use categories. Introduced plants make a disproportionately high contribution to plant medicine in Ecuador.

Consumers have considered organic crops more beneficial to health and the environment as opposed to con-ventional crops. The following review aims to compare the major nutrients and mineral content in organic and conventional tomatoes. As such, articles related to the comparison of organic and conventional tomato crops were selected, as well as articles in which nutrient and/or mineral content were determined. Four research groups were formed based on their hypotheses. The quality of each study was evaluated considering the sta-tistical tools used to determine the results’ significance. Result ranges were compared to analyze the variation in the individual nutrient and mineral content in each study. No objective evidence was found that organic crops are nutritionally better than conventional crops; in both cases, results were within similar ranges. For conven-tional and organic tomatoes (fresh weight), the respective concentration ranges were 1.00–63.8 mg/100 g and 10.7–40.0 mg/100 g for ascorbic acid, 0.02–337.0 mg/100 g and 0.44–422 mg/100 g for lycopene, and 0.0058–4.44 mg/100 g and 0.0061–3.90 mg/100 g for β-carotene. For polyphenol and mineral content, the re-sults varied depending on farming technique. Finally, aspects related to environmental protection help organic products achieve better market positioning.

Vegetables are one of the most important components in the human diet, but despite their multiple nutritional components, studies have demonstrated the presence of trace metals in their edible parts. In Ecuador, two of the most consumed crops are tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and lettuce (Lactuca sativa). The importance of these two crops in the Ecuadorian diet, especially in large and touristic locations like the Metropolitan District of Quito, implies food safety-related concerns for locals and visitors. However, no previous studies have quantified the cadmium and lead levels in these two vegetables using samples from Quito markets. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the cadmium and lead content in both tomato and lettuce products from main nonorganic and organic markets in Quito using a graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results showed that the cadmium levels were lower than 0.058 in tomatoes and 0.034 mg/kg in lettuce, which are under the respective threshold values (0.100 and 0.200 mg/kg). Regarding lead, levels lower than 0.066 mg/kg were detected in lettuce, which did not exceed the CXS 193-1995 threshold value, while levels in tomatoes were near or exceeded the threshold value (0.100 mg/kg) from four markets (0.209, 0.162, 0.110, 0.099 mg/kg), suggesting a possible risk from tomato consumption. In addition, most vegetables marketed as organic had higher metal content than those coming from nonorganic markets. Based on these results, local health and commercial control authorities should monitor contaminants in food products sold in Quito and other places in Ecuador to ensure their safety.

We provide a synopsis to the family Dennstaedtiaceae in Bolivia, including 28 species (30 taxa) in 7 genera. Two endemic species of Hypolepis, H. periculosa and H. woodii, and a widespread subspecies of Pteridium esculentum, subsp. gryphus, are described as new.

Santa Rosa Island community members derive their income and livelihoods from bio-aquatic resources, principally bivalves of the genus Anadara, both for subsistence use and commercial purposes. Bivalve mollusks have a sedentary lifestyle and feed by filtering water, meaning they absorb all surrounding substances, including harmful elements like toxic metals. This study aimed to analyze different-sized samples of Anadara tuberculosa and Anadara similis, sediment, and Rhizophora mangle leaves to determine their total amount of cadmium, lead, and chromium as a first approach to the evaluation of the health risk related to the consumption of bivalves. For both species from four sampling sites, the results revealed metal concentrations in the bivalves between 0.211 and 0.948 mg kg–1, 0.038, and 0.730 mg kg–1, and 0.067 and 0.923 mg⋅kg–1 for Cd, Cr, and Pb, respectively. The calculated potential risk (>1) for cadmium, considering all body weights, showed a high health risk for consumers. In the case of lead, the results showed a high health risk in children. There was no risk found for chromium. For sediments, the mean values were 2.14, 29.99, and 12.37 mg⋅kg–1 and for the Rhizophora mangle leaves were 2.23, 4.22, and 3.35 mg⋅kg–1 for Cd, Cr, and Pb, respectively. These results did not show a relation with the metal content in bivalves.

El presente estudio corresponde a la evaluación de la calidad del agua del río Pita y sus afluentes ubicados dentro y fuera del Parque Nacional Cotopaxi. Se fijaron siete estaciones de monitoreo, en las cuales se recolectaron muestras aguas arriba y abajo de cada afluente, en abril de 2018 y abril de 2019. Se midieron parámetros físicoquímicos in situ como: pH, temperatura y porcentaje de saturación de oxígeno disuelto (OD); se analizaron los parámetros establecidos en la normativa ambiental ecuatoriana: Texto Unificado de la Legislación Secundaria del Ministerio del Ambiente, TULSMA, Anexo 1, Libro VI, tabla 2, aplicando métodos de análisis de acuerdo al Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater (APHA). Los resultados indican que las muestras recolectadas superan el límite permisible para fenoles (0,001 mg·dm-3) establecido en el TULSMA, a excepción del río Hualpaloma, mientras que para el caso de hierro, todas las muestras del cauce del río Pita y sus afluentes sobrepasan el límite permisible (0,3 mg·dm-3 ). A partir de los resultados obtenidos, las muestras recolectadas del río Pita cumplen con los criterios de calidad de agua establecidos para la conservación de la vida acuática y silvestre, a pesar de atravesar zonas urbanas, donde diariamente existen descargas domésticas e industriales por tratarse de un canal abierto. Finalmente, de acuerdo al índice de calidad del agua aplicado (ICA-NSF), los afluentes ubicados dentro del parque Nacional Cotopaxi presentaron una “calidad buena”, mientras que los afluentes ubicados fuera del Parque Nacional presentaron una “calidad media” relacionada con la cercanía a zonas urbanas.

BIRM is an anticancer herbal formulation from Ecuador. Previous study established its antitumor and antimetastatic activity against prostate cancer models. The activity of BIRM against human prostate cancer (PCa) cells was investigated to uncover its mechanism of antitumor activity. In androgen receptor (AR)-expressing PCa cells BIRM was 2.5-fold (250%) more cytotoxic in presence of androgen (DHT) compared to cells grown in the absence of DHT. In AR-positive cells (LAPC-4 and LNCaP) BIRM caused a dose and time-dependent down-regulation of AR and increased apoptosis. Exposing cells to BIRM did not affect the synthesis of AR and AR promoter activity but increased degradation of AR via proteasome-pathway. BIRM caused destabilization of HSP90-AR association in LAPC-4 cells. It induced apoptosis in PCa cells by activation of caspase-8 via death receptor and FADD-mediated pathways. A synthetic inhibitor of Caspase-8 cleavage (IETD-CHO) aborted BIRM-induced apoptosis. The effect of BIRM on AKT-mediated survival pathway in both AR+ and AR- negative (PC-3 and DU145) showed decreased levels of p-AKTser 473 in all PCa cell lines. BIRM dosed by oral gavage in mice bearing PC-3ML tumors showed selective efficacy on tumor growth; before tumors are established but limited efficacy when treated on existing tumors. Moreover, BIRM inhibited the LNCaP tumor generated by orthotropic implantation into dorsal prostate of nude mice. Partial purification of BIRM by liquid-liquid extraction and further fractionation by HPLC showed 4-fold increased specific activity on PCa cells. These results demonstrate a mechanistic basis of anti-tumor activity of the herbal extract BIRM.

The capacity of 133 fungal endophyte isolates for degrading petroleum hydrocarbons was evaluated. The endophytes were isolated from leaf and stem tissues from 23 plants collected in a natural habitat contaminated with crude oil in southwestern Ecuador. Their capacity for hydrocarbon biodegradation was tested by an in vitro colorimetric qualitative test during 10 days, using the Minimal Salt Medium and crude oil as the carbon source. Taxonomic identification of the endophytic fungi that showed bioactivity in the qualitative test was carried out by analysis of the ITS gene of the region 18S of the rDNA. Endophytes showed the best results in the previous qualitative test where selected for a quantitative in vitro test for 30 days. Residual hydrocarbons were tracked by infrared spectroscopy (IR) and gas chromatography (GC) with a flame ionization detector. The maximum removal rates of total petroleum hydrocarbons were 99.6% (IR) and 99.8% (GC), corresponding to fungi of the genus Verticillium sp. and Xylaria sp. 1 respectively. This is the first report of biodegradation of crude oil hydrocarbons by endophytic fungi in a tropical ecosystem. The results suggest these fungal isolates are potential hydrocarbon biodegraders that could be used in bioremediation processes.

Several microwave-assisted digestion methods were tested at the Centro de Estudios Aplicados en Química laboratory in Quito, Ecuador, to determine the accuracy and performance efficiency of the mineralization process for the determination of total mercury in fish tissue by cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrophotometry. The use of MARSEasyPrep high-pressure vessels, low amounts of reagents (1 cm3 HNO3, 1 cm3 H2O2, and 1 cm3 HClO4), an irradiation temperature of 210 ◦C, and 35 min of mineralization time resulted in accurate performance, with recoveries of certified reference material DORM-4 between 90.1% and 105.8%. This is better than the Association of Official Analytical Chemists 2015.01 method, which has a reported accuracy of 81%. The repeatability precision and intermediate precision were established at three concentration levels (0.167, 0.500, and 0.833 mg·kg−1) and expressed as the percentage of the relative standard deviation ranging from 1.5% to 3.0% and 1.7% to 4.2%, respectively. Further, the method was satisfactorily applied to analyze fortified samples of tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), with recoveries ranging from 98.3% to 104.3%. The instrumental limits of detection and quantification were 0.118 μg·dm−3 and 0.394 μg·dm−3, respectively.

Heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd) are a global concern; recent researches have concluded that they are related to health risks caused by contaminated food intake. Although Cd contents in cocoa beans and their derivatives have been investigated, the relationship of Cd concentration with other metals such as nickel (Ni) and lead (Pb) information is not available. Thus, this study uses a general approach to examine Cd, Ni, and Pb concentrations in cocoa beans from nine Ecuadorian provinces. It aims to determine a possible relationship between each metal content. As results, Ni was the most abundant reaching concentrations between 1.462 and 8.528 mg kg−1 (mean 3.930 mg kg−1), followed by Pb between 0.502 and 1.966 mg kg−1 (mean 1.432 mg kg−1) and Cd between 0.267 and 1.715 mg kg−1 (mean 0.753 mg kg−1). The regression analysis results (< 0.2420746), the Pearson correlation coefficient values (< 0.369) and variation inflation factors results (< 1.319) do not demonstrate linear correlation or multivariate regression between each metal tested, thus it is not necessary to consider competition regarding metal intake by plants to develop successful remediation techniques. Nevertheless, the high values obtained should be considered by public health and commerce authorities for establishing permissible levels of Ni and Pb.

Environmental pollution allows heavy metals to interact with ecosystems, bioaccumulating and passing through the food chain. Animals and humans can consume contaminated species and reach toxic and harmful concentrations in their organisms. While there are international regulatory frameworks for heavy metal contents, these are not always known or suitable for local conditions. This situation calls for the development of locally-applicable analytical methods for the determination of heavy metal concentrations in common vegetal and animal food products. Two established methods (AOAC 999.11, based on sample drying and calcination, and IPN AC-06-00, based on microwave-assisted acid digestion) were comparatively tested at the CESAQ-PUCE laboratory in Quito, Ecuador, to determine their suitability. Sample matrices used were non-industrial, non-organic tomato, lettuce, and beef commonly found in local markets. Heavy metals tested were cadmium, nickel, and lead. Test guidelines and comparative parameters were based on AOAC (2002) and included quantification limits, repeatability variation coefficients, intermediate precision percentages, accuracy and calculated expanded uncertainties. Unlike method AOAC 999.11, method IPN AC-06-00 performance for all parameters was within the range of recommended expected values as per AOAC, and was therefore deemed more suitable to be applied under the local CESAQ-PUCE laboratory conditions. The validation of method IPN AC-06-00 demonstrated its local applicability. In addition, IPN AC-06-00 can be used by similar laboratories to assess contaminants concentrations and improve the baseline information concerning human exposure to toxic metals.

While the importance of local-scale habitat niches in shaping tree species turnover along environmental gradients in tropical forests is well appreciated, relatively little is known about the influence of phylogenetic signal in species' habitat niches in shaping local community structure. We used detailed maps of the soil resource and topographic variation within eight 24-50 ha tropical forest plots combined with species phylogenies created from the APG III phylogeny to examine how phylogenetic beta diversity (indicating the degree of phylogenetic similarity of two communities) was related to environmental gradients within tropical tree communities. Using distance-based redundancy analysis we found that phylogenetic beta diversity, expressed as either nearest neighbor distance or mean pairwise distance, was significantly related to both soil and topographic variation in all study sites. In general, more phylogenetic beta diversity within a forest plot was explained by environmental variables this was expressed as nearest neighbor distance versus mean pairwise distance (3.0-10.3 % and 0.4-8.8 % of variation explained among plots, respectively), and more variation was explained by soil resource variables than topographic variables using either phylogenetic beta diversity metric. We also found that patterns of phylogenetic beta diversity expressed as nearest neighbor distance were consistent with previously observed patterns of niche similarity among congeneric species pairs in these plots. These results indicate the importance of phylogenetic signal in local habitat niches in shaping the phylogenetic structure of tropical tree communities, especially at the level of close phylogenetic neighbors, where similarity in habitat niches is most strongly preserved.

In this study, cadmium (Cd), nickel (Ni), and lead (Pb) contents were analyzed in sixteen banana composite samples from different commercial establishments from eleven Ecuadorian production provinces using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The concentrations (fresh weight) in the samples collected (9.3-47.3 μg·kg for Cd, 16.1-105.6 μg·kg for Ni, and 36.9-538.0 μg·kg for Pb) were used to calculate the estimated daily intake (EDI), target hazard quotient (THQ), and target carcinogenic risk (CR) associated with dietary exposure to these potentially toxic metals. Cd and Ni results showed that every sample had EDIs lower than the oral reference dose and THQ values lower than 1, demonstrating that there was no non-carcinogenic risk related to the exposure to Cd and Ni. In the case of Pb, two EDIs results were higher than the reference dose, also their corresponding THQ values were higher than 1. The lead CR in all samples was less than 1 × 10 , the upper limit used for acceptable cancer risk. Thus, there is no significant health risk to the consumer associated with bananas with contamination levels of Cd, Ni, but there is Pb risk for toddlers (12 kg of body weight) intake comparable to the one detected in the present study.