Chile
A new species of bivalve was discovered in Quisco, Chile. Austrogena nerudai was named in honor of the Chilean Pablo Neruda since the first specimens were found near the residence once occupied by the poet.
Latin America
Argentina researchers participated in the development of a report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and determined that variations in climate could be beneficial to southeastern South America by increasing yield in wheat, soybean, corn and sunflower.
Argentina
Argentine scientists have recovered material belonging to the time of a great extinction in the late Permian-early Triassic period more than 200 million years ago that reflected a post-extinction recovery. They are also studying the Jurassic period in Patagonia where fossils have provided information on the evolution of Jurassic climate.
Mexico
Mexican and Argentine scientists are studying the bacteria Lactobacillus bulgaricus as a soil decontamination agent for heavy metals. It has been determined that the bacteria interact with metal ions through a novel photonics method and it’s been shown that the larger the radius of the contaminant ions the greater the possibility of “sequestration” by the bacteria.
CINVESTAV researchers in Mexico have developed a white corn crop that is genetically modified to be drought resistant. This can increase maize yields by more than 10% in conditions of water stress and reduce production costs by 14%, they claim.
Brazil
The journal Cell posted a list of the top 40 scientists in the life sciences. The only Latin American included is a Brazilian Dario Zamboni who studies the immune system and its relationship to pathogens.