Piornales, enebrales y pinares oromediterráneos (Pino-Cytision oromediterranei) en el Sistema Central

Se revisan fitosociológicamente los bosques y matorrales oromediterráneos del Sistema Central pertenecientes a la alianza Pino-Cytision oromediterranei. Un suborden, una asociación y seis subasociaciones se proponen como nuevos: Juniperenalia nanae, Echinosparto pulviniformis-Cytisetum oromediterranei, Cytiso-Echinospartetum barnadesii ericetsoum arboreae, Junipero-Cytisetum oromediterranei adenocarpetosum hispanici, arctostaphylletosum crassifoliae, ericetosum aragonensis, genistetosum cinerascentis y populetosum tremulae. Asimismo, se proponen diversas correcciones nomenclaturales y se tipifican los principales sintáxones de la clase. Por último, se presenta un esquema sintaxonómico de la misma en la Península Ibérica hasta el nivel de asociación, con la diagnosis biogeográfica, ecológica y florística de los sintáxones de rango superior.Finalmente, en el apéndice florístico se proponen tres nuevas combinaciones nomenclaturales: Echinospartum ibericum Rivas-Martínez, Sánchez-Mata & Sancho, E. ibericum subsp. pulviniformis (Rivas-Martínez) Rivas-Martínez y Thymus praecox Opiz subsp. penyalarensis (Pau) Rivas-Martínez, Fernández-González & Sánchez-Mata.

Poa feratiana Boiss. & Reuter en el Sistema Central (España)

Se da a conocer la presencia del taxon Poa feratiana Boiss. &  Reuter en el Sistema Central, Se comenta la corologia del taxon en la Península Ibérica.

Contribución al estudio florístico de la zona central de Sierra Morena

Se trata en este trabajo de comentar algunas citas poco conocidas para las Sierras de Alcudia, Madrona y Puertollano en la Cordillera Mariánica.

Floristical notes from Western Sierra de Gredos (Spanish Central System)

Se citan algunas plantas con interés corológico herborizadas en el macizo occidental de la Sierra de Gredos.

The Tamaricetea arceuthoidis: a new class for the continental riparian thickets of the Middle East, Central Asia and the subarid regions of the Lower Volga valley

The new class, the Tamaricetea arceuthoidis, is described covering riparian and intermittent shrubby vegetation of the Irano-Turanian Region in the southwestern and Central Asia and the Lower Volga valley. The dominating species are species of the genus Tamarix that refer high water table in arid and semi-arid habitats with high to moderate salinity. This new class is an ecological analogon of the Nerio-Tamaricetea occurring in the Mediterranean Basin.

Disponibilidad del recurso hídrico en la microcuenca del río Bermúdez. Región central de Costa Rica.

La microcuenca del río Bermúdez es parte de la principal zona de explotación hídrica en la región Central de Costa Rica, razón por la cual se realiza un diagnóstico de la disponibilidad del recurso hídrico en esta microcuenca donde se identifican las áreas con mayor problemática de disponibilidad de este recurso. Para ello se calculó un balance hídrico mensual, según uso del suelo, unidad geomorfológica y zona climática. Con base en este balance se determinó y clasificó la disponibilidad del recurso, identificando en la microcuenca solamente tres categorías: alta, media y moderada. No existen áreas de baja disponibilidad de recurso hídrico lo que demuestra que la oferta es suficiente, sin embargo, existe una presión importante sobre el recurso hídrico pues más de la mitad del área de la microcuenca se encuentra con una disponibilidad moderada.

A polysaccharide extracted from sphagnum moss as antifungal agent in archaeological conservation

On the basis of the well-known preservative properties of Sphagnum moss, a potential opportunity to use moss polysaccharides (Sphagnan) in art conservation was tested. Polysaccharides were extracted from the moss (S. palustre spp.) in the amount of 4.1% of the Sphagnum plant dry weight. All lignocelluloses were removed from this extract as a result of the treatment of the moss cellulose with sodium chlorite. The extracted polysaccharide possessed a strong acidic reaction (pH 2.8) and was soluble in water and organic solvents. The extract was tested on laboratory bacterial cultures by the disk-diffusion method. The antibacterial effect was demonstrated for E. coli and P. aeruginosa (both gram-negative) while Staphylococcus aurelus (gram-positive) was shown to be insensitive to Sphagnum polysaccharides. The antifungal effect of Sphagnum extract was tested by the disk-diffusion method on the spores of seventeen fungal species. These fungi were isolated from ethnographic museum objects and from archaeological objects excavated in the Arctic. Twelve of these isolates appeared susceptible to the extract. The inhibiting effect of the extract was also tested by the modified broth-dilution method on the most typical isolate (Aspergillus spp.). In this experiment, in one ml of the nutritious broth, 40µl of 3% solution of polysaccharides in water killed 10,000 fungal spores in 6 hours. The inhibiting effect was not connected to the acidity or osmotic effect of Sphagnum polysaccharides. As an example of the application of Sphagnum polysaccharides in art conservation, they were added as preservative agents to conservation waxes. After three weeks of exposure of microcrystalline wax to test fungi (Aspergillus spp.), 44% of wax was consumed. When, however, ~ 0.1% (w/w) of Sphagnum extract was mixed with wax, the weight loss of wax was only 4% in the same time interval. On the basis of this study it was concluded that Sphagnum moss and Sphagnum products can be recommended for use in art conservation as antifungal agents.