Olives (Olea europaea L.) are an important crop in the Mediterranean Basin, but it is not well-known that they have also been grown in other areas, such as Galicia in northwestern Spain. Although commercial production ended long ago in this peripheral growing region, it remains home to olive resources that are well-adapted to the prevailing environmental conditions, providing a valuable but largely undocumented source of genetic variation. Following a survey of Galicia to locate examples of centuries-old olive trees, those detected were subjected to molecular characterization using a set of microsatellite markers, as well as full botanical characterization using the features established by the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, along with others proposed by the present authors. These procedures allowed 11 undescribed varieties to be identified, which are new genetic resources that might be of use in olive improvement programs or studies of how the species adapts to different climates. The trees also underwent preliminary health checks, allowing disease-free specimens of each variety to be propagated. The addition of this material to the Community Plant Variety Office’s register of commercial varieties is underway.

Downy mildew is one of the most destructive diseases affecting grapevines (Vitis vinifera L.). Caused by the oomycete Plasmopara viticola (Berk. and Curt.) Berl. and de Toni, it can appear anywhere where vines are cultivated. It is habitually controlled by the application of phytosanitary agents (copper-based or systemic) at different stages of the vine growth cycle. This, however, is costly, can lead to reduced yields, has a considerable environmental impact, and its overuse close to harvest can cause fermentation problems. All grapevines are susceptible to this disease, although the degree of susceptibility differs between varieties. Market demands and European legislation on viticulture and the use of phytosanitary agents (art. 14 of Directive 128/2009/EC) now make it important to know the sensitivity of all available varieties, including minority varieties. Such knowledge allows for a more appropriate use of phytosanitary agents, fosters the commercial use of these varieties and thus increases the offer of wines associated with different terroirs, and helps identify material for use in crop improvement programmes via crossing or genetic transformation, etc. Over 2020–2021, the susceptibility to P. viticola of 63 minority vine varieties from different regions of Spain was examined in the laboratory using the leaf disc technique. Some 87% of these varieties were highly susceptible and 11% moderately susceptible; just 2% showed low susceptibility. The least susceptible of all was the variety Morate (Madrid, IMIDRA). Those showing intermediate susceptibility included the varieties Sanguina (Castilla la Mancha, IVICAM), Planta Mula (Comunidad Valenciana, ITVE), Rayada Melonera (Madrid, IMIDRA), Zamarrica (Galicia, EVEGA), Cariñena Roja (Cataluña, INCAVI), Mandrègue (Aragón, DGA) and Bastardo Blanco (Extremadura, CICYTEX). The highly susceptible varieties could be differentiated into three subgroups depending on sporulation severity and density.

Leaf morphology in plants is very important in the evaluation of intraspecific variation. Indeed, the leaves of the fig tree (Ficus carica L.) present a great diversity of shape and size. The present study consists of the botanical, morphological, and morphometric characterization of the leaves of 26 local fig tree varieties cultivated in different areas of Bejaia (northeast Algeria). Our results indicate that the morphological parameters of the leaves allowed a good differentiation of the studied cultivars according to the descriptors (UPOV) among varieties and independent of their growing environment. Moreover, the method of morphometric description proposed in this paper allows the differentiation of varieties and the comparison among them in an objective way and by simple mathematical methods. This method demonstrates the existence of a very high percentage of polymorphisms within the studied varieties, but also their classification according to the number of lobes, the depth of the lateral sinuses, and the degree of openness of the angles performed by the main veins of the leaves. The Azougagh variety is characterized by wider angles, and, on the contrary, the Tassahlit variety has the least-open angles. None of the studied varieties presented "entire" leaves. The majority presented leaves with five lobes. The varieties Tilizwith, Tazarzourth, Avarkan, Tamkarkourth, and Inconnu B differed clearly from the rest by showing leaves with seven lobes and deep lateral sinuses. In contrast, the varieties Zarika, Baccor Blanc, Avarkan Lisse, and Avgaiti presented leaves with only three lobes. This is the first work on fig tree characterization using morphometric methods, which are shown to be complementary to the UPOV code and efficient in separating even the closed varieties. It will be interesting to extend these studies to larger scales and areas.

The main phenological stages (budburst, flowering, veraison, and ripeness) of 53 Spanish minority varieties were studied to determine their potential to help winegrowers adapt to climate change conditions. In total, 43 varieties were studied in the same location in Spain (Alcalá de Henares, in the Madrid region) and 10 varieties in 5 other regions (Galicia, Navarre, Catalonia, Extremadura, and Andalusia). Other traits of agronomic and oenological interest, such as yield and acidity, were also monitored. The results allow for the grouping of the varieties into several clusters according to the time of ripeness (very early—only for red varieties—and early, intermediate, and late, for both red and white varieties) and yield (high, medium, and low). The total acidity in the grape juice ranged from 3 to 11 g of tartaric acid/L. The average temperatures were higher (up to 3–4 °C during summer) compared to historical averages during the 1957–2021 time period. Advanced phenology phases and reduced acidity are regarded as negative effects of climate change for winegrowing practices. Since some minority varieties showed late or intermediate ripening, high acidity, and high (1 Kg/shoot) or medium (0.5 Kg/shoot) yield, our findings suggest that they may be cultivated in the coming years by winegrowers as an approach to mitigate climate change effects.

Grapevine cultivation is of historic importance arround the Mediterranean basin. The Spanish Levant is an area of notable grapevine diversity, where ancient varieties destined for producing wine, table grapes and raisins can still be found. For some of these neglected varieties, however, no complete description has ever been made; current legislation does not, therefore, allow their commercial use. The botanical characterization of old varieties is an important step toward their identification and can also help to clarify synonymies and homonymies, problems very commonly encountered with this crop. The present work provides ampelographic descriptions of seven genotypes for which microsatellite marker profiles were already available, and discusses the possible origins of their names, as well as instances of synonymy and homonymy. Seven accessions of ancient grapevine genotypes from the Spanish Levant were subjected to in situ ampelographic analysis following official methods. The characteristics of their leaves, bunches and berries were recorded. The ampelographic descriptions made in the present work provide insight into the history of cultivation of the examined genotypes and would pave the way for their inclusion in the Spanish national catalog, which would allow their commercial use. The information gathered on the possible origin of these genotypes' names, and instances of synonymy and homonymy, enriches our knowledge of this recovered germplasm. The present results contribute toward our understanding of Europe's grapevine genetic diversity, and highlight the need to conserve it.

The present work examines the flavanol content of the seed waste resulting from the production of white and rosé wines from mountain-cultivated grapes in northern Spain, the cold-press-extracted oils of these seeds, and the leftover pelleted seed husks. In addition, both oils were analyzed to determine their nutritional quality and physicochemical characteristics. Flavanols, particularly the dimers procyanidin B1 and procyanidin B2, were abundant in all waste fractions from both types of pomace, although the highest concentrations of flavanols were found in the white grape pomace and its extracted oil. The white grapeseed oil had 10 times more flavanol than the rosé grapeseed oil. The values for the nutritional variables measured for both oils, although they differed, were within the limits established by the Codex Alimentarius for edible vegetable oils.

The ‘Narcea rose’ is a recently described yet ancient rose cultivar of interest to the perfume industry. Given its excellent adaptation to the conditions of the place where it was rediscovered, the possibilities of its horticultural/industrial production have been under examination for some time. The hydrodistillation process produces a red-to-brownish mixture of water and rose petals that could contain compounds that could be used in other industrial procedures. Their recovery and further utilization would reduce disposal costs and improve the sustainability of relevant industries. This work reports the quantification, by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC–MS) and quadrupole time of flight Q-TOF analyses, of the polyphenol content in the waste water. This waste was found to contain high concentrations of quercetin, gallic acid and ellagic acid, as well as smaller concentrations of kaempferol and its derivatives, all of which can influence plant, human and animal health.

The need to develop an environmentally friendly, sustainable viticulture model has led to numerous grapevine improvement programmes aiming to increase resistance to downy and powdery mildew. The success of such programmes relies on the availability of protocols that can quantify the resistance/susceptibility of new genotypes, and on the existence of molecular markers of resistance loci that can aid in the selection process. The present work assesses the degree of phenotypic resistance/susceptibility to downy and powdery mildew of 28 new genotypes obtained from crosses between "Monastrell" and "Regent." Three genotypes showed strong combined resistance, making them good candidates for future crosses with other sources of resistance to these diseases (pyramiding). In general, laboratory and glasshouse assessments of resistance at the phenotype level agreed with the resistance expected from the presence of resistance-associated alleles of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for the loci Rpv3 and Ren3 (inherited from "Regent"), confirming their usefulness as indicators of likely resistance to downy and powdery mildew, respectively, particularly so for downy mildew.

Prostate (PC) and breast cancer (BC) are heterogeneous hormonal cancers. Treatment resistance and adverse effects are the main limitations of conventional chemotherapy treatment. The use of sensitizing agents could improve the effectiveness of chemotherapeutic drugs as well as obviate these limitations. This study analyzes the effect of single catechin (CAT), procyanidin B2 (ProB2) treatment as well as the co-adjuvant treatment of each of these compounds with docetaxel (DOCE). We used PC- and BC-derived cell lines (PC3, DU-145, T47D, MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231). The short and long-term pro-apoptotic, anti-proliferative and anti-migratory effects were analyzed. RT-qPCR was used to discover molecular bases of the therapeutic efficacy of these compounds. ProB2 treatment induced a two- to five-fold increase in anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects compared to single DOCE treatment, and also had a more sensitizing effect than DOCE on DU145 cells. Regarding BC cells, ProB2- and CAT-mediated sensitization to DOCE anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects was cell-independent and cell-dependent, respectively. Combined treatment led to high-efficacy effects on MCF-7 cells, which were associated to the up-regulation of CDKN1A, BAX, caspase 9 and E-cadherin mRNA under combined treatment compared to single DOCE treatment. CAT and ProB2 can enhance the efficacy of DOCE therapy on PC and BC cells by the sensitizing mechanism.

Epidermic cells of 'Rosa Narcea' are studied at three different moments along the blooming.Qualitative and quantitative studies are carried out.Qualitative research was done by histochemical techniques and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).The quantitative one was done by using images obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM).Both adaxial and abaxial epidermic cells in the 'Rosa Narcea' present cuticular striation.The volatile essential oils which determine the 'Rosa Narcea' scent have to cross through the cuticle in order to go out.Under transmission electron microscopy (TEM), some microchannels through which the smell molecules are probably released, are observed.These canaliculi are concentrated in the cuticular striation area.The quantitative analysis indicates that there is a higher number of cells and with thicker striation in the epidermis of those roses blooming at the end of the blossom season.This allows the team to hypothesize that the smell emission will be higher at the beginning of July than at the beginning of May, although nothing may be inferred about the aroma quality.

The present work reports the discovery and the complete characterisation of an ancient cultivated rose variety found growing in a private garden in the southwest of the Principality of Asturias (northern Spain). The variety is here given the name Narcea. The majority of roses currently cultivated belong to the so-called group of 'Modern Roses', all of which were obtained after 1867 via artificial crosses and improvement programmes. All are destined for ornamental use. Until the 19th century, the great majority of the many ancient cultivated roses in Europe were used in perfumery and cosmetics, or had medicinal uses. Rosa damascena and Rosa centifollia are still grown and used by the French and Bulgarian perfume industries. The Asturian Massif of the Cantabrian Mountain Range provides a natural habitat for some 75% of the wild members of the genus Rosa, but until now there was no evidence that this area was home to ancient cultivated roses. A complete botanical description is here provided for a discovered ancient rose. It is also characterised according to a series of sequence tagged microsatellite sites, and its agronomic features are reported. In addition, a histological description (optical and scanning electronic microscope studies) of the petals is offered, along with an analysis of the volatile compounds present in these organs as determined by solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. The results reveal the uniqueness of this ancient type of rose and suggest it may be of interest to the perfume industry.

Background and Aims Vitis viniferaseeds from one Medieval and two Roman-era archaeological sites in Galicia (north-western Spain) were morphologically compared to seeds of different cultivated varieties (V. viniferasubsp.sativa) in the same areas and with those of wild grapevines (V. viniferasubsp.sylvestris) from different parts of Spain and the French Basque Country. Methods and Results The length and width at different points of each seed were measured and different relationships determined from these values for later comparison. Morphologically, the seeds from the Roman sites appeared to belong to bothV. viniferasubsp.sylvestrisandV. viniferasubsp.sativa. Those from the Medieval site were similar to present cultivars. Conclusions The close relationships of certain currently cultivated varieties to some of the Roman samples indicate these varieties may be older than the others examined. Indeed, the seeds of the variety Albarino showed similar morphometric characteristics to the seeds found at both the Roman and Medieval sites. Since Albarino is traditionally cultivated in the same area as these sites, this variety may have been grown as long ago as Roman times. Significance of the Study This work throws light on the origin and domestication of cultivated grapevine varieties during Roman and Medieval times.

Vitis vinifera is very susceptible to downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola). A number of authors have suggested different genetic populations of this fungus exist in Europe, each showing a different degree of virulence. Work performed to date indicates this diversity to be the result of different factors. In areas where gene flow is greater and recombination more frequent, the diversity of P. viticola appears to be wider. In vineyards isolated by geographic barriers, a race may become dominant and produce clonal epidemics driven by asexual reproduction. The aim of the present work was to identify the conditions that influence the genetic diversity of P. viticola populations in the vineyards of northwestern Spain, where the climatic conditions for the growth of this fungus are very good. Vineyards situated in a closed, narrow valley of the interior, in more open valleys, and on the coast were sampled and the populations of P. viticola detected were differentiated at the molecular level through the examination of microsatellite markers. The populations of P. viticola represented in primary and secondary infections were investigated in the same way. The concentration of airborne sporangia in the vegetative cycle was also examined, as was the virulence of the different P. viticola populations detected. The epidemiological characteristics of the fungus differed depending on the degree of isolation of the vineyard, the airborne spore concentration, and on whether the attack was primary or secondary. Strong isolation was associated with the appearance of dominant fungal races and, therefore, reduced populational diversity.

The Spanish botanist Simon de Rojas Clemente y Rubio (1777-1827) did the groundwork for modern ampelography, the discipline that focuses on the characterization of Vitis vinifera L. He developed his methods through the examination of material he himself collected in Andalusia in 1803-04. The material that Clemente herborized (leaves and shoots) is preserved among the collections held in the Royal Botanical Garden herbaria. Clemente's herbarium contains 186 specimens, all in an excellent state of preservation, and it is the world's oldest collection of herborized grapevine cultivars, as it was collected before the arrival of phylloxera in Spain. For these reasons, this herbarium is a remarkable source of information for the study of ancient grapevine cultivars and the history of ampelography and viticulture in general. Despite its clear relevance for research in viticulture, not much attention has been paid to it, and it had never been fully studied before. The present work reports the successful isolation and amplification of ancient nuclear DNA extracted from Clemente's herborized material, allowing the molecular identification of two cultivars.

Simón de Rojas Clemente y Rubio (1777 to 1827) is considered the father of modern ampelography. He developed the first scientific method for describing grapevine varieties through the examination of material he collected in Andalusia between 1802 and 1804. The Royal Botanical Garden in Madrid conserves the material he collected and preserved (leaves and shoots). This herbarium, the oldest of all grapevine variety herbaria, is invaluable for ampelographic and other studies (such as genetic diversity, molecular characterization, or viticultural history studies) and provides unique insight into early 19th century (the pre-phylloxera era) grapevine cultivation. The present work reports a DNA extraction protocol and a redefining of the simple sequence repeat primers routinely used in grapevine characterization, which allowed successful amplification of the ancient DNA extracted from Clemente’s herborized material.

The winemaking industry produces huge quantities of different types of waste, such as bunch stems, grape skins and grape seeds. Knowledge of the composition of these wastes is essential if their disposal is to be appropriate. However, they can contain compounds such as flavanols that are beneficial to human health and of interest to the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. The aim of this work was to establish whether flavanols are present, and in what concentration, in the above-mentioned wastes, as well as in the musts and final wines derived from the internationally known ‘Albariño’ (white) and ‘Mencía’ (red) grapevine varieties. Extractions were performed using appropriate solvents, and the compounds obtained identified by HPLC-MS QTOF. All three ‘Albariño’ wastes had higher concentrations of flavanols than did the ‘Mencía’ wastes. Flavanols were in very low concentration in the ‘Albariño’ must, but virtually absent from the ‘Mencía’ must. The ‘Mencía’ wine, however, had much higher concentrations of these compounds than did the ‘Albariño’ wine. This is explained in that these compounds are passed to the final wine in ‘Mencía’ (and likely in other red wines). The present results suggest that red winemaking wastes are poorer in these compounds, while white winemaking wastes—certainly ‘Albariño’ wastes—provide a potential source useful to industry.

Abstract Background: Low uptake and poor adherence to oral drugs for breast cancer prevention and ductal carcinoma in situ has led to an interest in local routes of delivery with the intent of decreasing systemic exposure and reducing toxicity. LTT has emerged as a possible alternative; previous studies have shown selectively higher concentrations in the breast than in the serum with this delivery route. A question related to LTT is whether or not the drug will permeate and distribute throughout the breast, as is expected with oral delivery. Methods: We conducted a double-blind study of oral versus LTT delivery of the selective progesterone receptor modulator, telapristone acetate (TPA), in a presurgical window setting, enrolling 82 women planning therapeutic or prophylactic mastectomy. We randomized 67 women 1:1, to oral TPA 12 mg daily, or gel TPA applied to both breasts daily (12 mg/breast), for 4 weeks ±1 week. Mastectomy specimens were sampled at 5 non-tumor locations as well as the tumor and lymph node when available. Samples were split in two: drug concentration (conc.) assay using LC-MS/MS and histological evaluation of tissue composition (fat, fibrous stroma, epithelium). The primary endpoint was mean drug conc. across all breast locations (anticipating that the gel would deliver a mean concentration that was >50% of the mean in the oral group). A secondary endpoint was the drug distribution pattern across the breast, expecting that the distribution would be similar. The tumor sample was saved for biomarker assays related to TPA action; these are ongoing, for a pre-planned pooled analysis of data with NCT01800422 (reported in SABCS abstract 851863). Results: Of 63 evaluable women (33 oral and 30 gel group), 27 had unilateral and 36 had bilateral mastectomy. The mean drug conc. in the oral group was 166.3 ng/G (SE 11.7), and in the gel group was 10.6 ng/G (SE 10.8), (p<.0001). The conc. was variable across the 7 locations tested in both groups. High concentrations were found in the superficial and deep central locations, retroareolar and lateral locations ranked in the middle, and the medial location was discrepant, being high in the oral and low in the gel group. The variation in drug concentration across all locations was not significantly different between groups (Kolmogorov-Smirnov p=0.99). Among women with bilateral mastectomy, drug concentrations were similar between breasts in both oral and gel groups. In the gel group, despite low TPA concentrations, there was evidence of drug metabolism. The major metabolite, CDB 4453 was detectable in 192/193 samples with detectable parent drug. Analysis of drug concentration adjusted for tissue composition is ongoing. Conclusions: The gel formulation of TPA did not permeate the skin well. However, the drug delivered to the breast was distributed throughout the breast, similar to the oral delivery route, with the highest concentration in the deep central location. These drug distribution data are novel; drug distribution at multiple locations throughout the breast has not previously been shown. Further work is needed to understand breast distribution with formulations known to have good dermal permeation. Citation Format: Lee O, Pilewskie M, Xu Y, Benante K, Blanco L, Helenowski I, Tull MB, Muzzio M, Jovanovic B, Karlan S, Hansen N, Bethke K, Kulkarni S, Perloff M, Dimond EP, Heckman-Stoddard BM, Khan SA. Local transdermal therapy (LTT): Drug permeation and distribution of telapristone acetate (TPA) in a pre-surgical window study of women undergoing mastectomy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2018 Dec 4-8; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P6-21-12.

Desde la antigüedad han destacado las aportaciones españolas al ámbito de la caracterización de las variedades de vid, sobresaliendo entre todas ellas, las realizadas por Simón de Rojas Clemente y Rubio en los inicios del siglo XIX, quien llegó al ámbito de la vid de una manera casual y gracias a una historia rocambolesca, digna de una novela de aventuras. Este autor está considerado como el creador de una disciplina científica, la ampelografía, que se ocupa de la caracterización de la vid (Vitis vinifera L.). Desarrolló el primer método científico de descripción de las vides, determinando los órganos de la planta que debían ser medidos y analizados, el momento del ciclo vegetativo en que debía tomarse cada dato en cada órgano, el modo de hacerlo o los detalles que debían ser estudiados en cada uno. Propuso incluso una terminología, hasta entonces inexistente, para referirse a cada una de las partes de las hojas de vid, las flores, los racimos, las bayas, las semillas o los sarmientos. Describió con precisión las variantes morfológicas, de tamaño, de color, de presencia o ausencia y tipo de pelos, etc., que pueden encontrarse en cada uno de los órganos de esta planta. El desarrollo de este método científico está basado en las variedades de vid recogidas y estudiadas por Clemente en Andalucía entre 1803 y 1804, cuyos resultados se publicaron en 1807 en su obra Ensayo sobre las variedades de vid que vegetan en Andalucía. En el Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid se conserva el material vegetal herborizado (hojas y pámpanos) de cada una de estas variedades estudiadas y cuyos resultados se incluyen en el citado libro. Este herbario, con 186 pliegos, puede ser considerado el más antiguo del mundo de variedades de vid cultivadas, con 214 años de antigüedad. Además de ser la base para la creación de la citada disciplina científica es reflejo de la diversidad existente a principios del siglo XIX en Andalucía en este cultivo. Es por todo ello un material de alto valor científico, museístico y sociocultural.

No country has a larger area under olive (Olea europaea subs. europaea var. europaea) cultivation than Spain. In the Spanish northwest, however, this crop has largely been forgotten, even though olive oil was once an important product of the area. Sadly, apart from a few scraps of information handed down orally, little information exists regarding the genotypes grown, or from where they may have originally come. Many centuries-old olive trees, however, can still be found in the area, some even forming groves now part of open woodland but which may harbour an important genetic reservoir. The present work describes a botanical and molecular analysis of these ancient trees, following a survey of allegedly native genotypes surviving in different locations in Galicia. Comparison of their molecular profiles with those in the World Olive Germplasm Bank of Cordoba, and those in the database compiled by the Agronomy Department of the University of Cordoba, revealed two known Galician genotypes, ´Brava Gallega´ and ´Mansa Gallega´, and the Portuguese genotype ´Cobrancoça´. Six genotypes present in neither database were also detected. In addition, some misidentifications of the ´Mansa´ genotype in recent studies were clarified. Botanical analysis confirmed the molecular results in all cases. The findings suggest a larger survey should be performed so that the full olive genetic diversity of this region can be recorded and preserved.