UNED Research Journal
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos
<p><strong><em>UNED Research Journal / Cuadernos de Investigación UNED</em></strong> j is an indexed international scientific journal that is published online (ISSN 1659-441X). Pre-publication drafts are published as soon as they are available, adding them to the table of contents of the next issue under the modality of continuous publication. Until December 2023 it was published twice a year, and changed to a single issue of continued publication, covering from January 1 through December 31, starting January 2024.</p> <p>Its aim is to publish university <strong>research of international quality</strong>. We publish articles in <strong>all fields of science</strong>. The journal is aimed at an <strong>academic audience. </strong>This journal provides immediate free <strong>open access</strong> to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public, fosters a greater global exchange of knowledge. We do not charge authors or readers, and all our content is available with a <strong>CC BY 4.0</strong> license.</p>Universidad Estatal a Distancia, Costa Ricaen-USUNED Research Journal1659-4266<p>Note: This abstract contains an incorrect copyright due to technical issues. Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms: Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal</p> <p>All journal contents are freely available through a <strong>CC BY 4.0</strong> license.</p> <p>CC BY 4.0 is a Creative Commons: you can copy, modify, distribute, and perform, even for commercial reasons, without asking permission, if you give appropriate credit.</p> <p>Contents can be reproduced if the source and copyright are acknowledged according to the Open Access license CC BY 4.0. Self-storage in preprint servers and repositories is allowed for all versions. We encourage authors to publish raw data and data logs in public repositories and to include the links with all drafts so that reviewers and readers can consult them at any time.</p> <p>The journal is financed by public funds via Universidad Estatal a Distancia and editorial independence and ethical compliance are guaranteed by the Board of Editors, UNED. We do not publish paid ads or receive funds from companies.</p>First pages 16 (Jan-Dec 2024)
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos/article/view/5171
UNED Research Journal
Copyright (c) 2024 Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
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2024-02-082024-02-0816e5171e517110.22458/urj.v16i1.5171Chemical profile of essential oils of the Costa Rican native tree Myrcianthes storkii (Myrtaceae)
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos/article/view/4863
<p><strong>Introduction</strong>: The genus<em> Myrcianthes</em> ranges from southern Florida to Chile, including the Caribbean, and the species <em>Myrcianthes storkii</em> is a shrub or tree found in Costa Rica and western Panama, in wet to very rainy, cloud, and oak forests (altitude 1300-3150m). <strong>Objective</strong>: To identify the chemical composition of essential oils from leaves, floral buds, and twigs of <em>M. storkii</em> of Costa Rica.<strong> Methods</strong>: We obtained the essential oils through hydrodistillation in a Clevenger-type apparatus. The chemical composition of the oils was done by GC/FID and GC/MS, using the retention indices on DB-5 and Carbowax types of capillary columns in addition to mass spectra. <strong>Results</strong>: The oils consisted mainly of terpenoids (55,45-87,75%). A total of 281 compounds accounted for 91,27-74,56% of the total amount of oils. The major constituents from the leaf oil were myrcene (17,44%), <em>cis</em>-calamenene (12,60%), α-pinene (5,48%), (<em>E</em>)-caryophyllene (5,16%), limonene (3,91%), <em>p</em>-cymene (3,71%), 1,8-cineole (2,80%), and α-humulene (2,80%). The floral bud essential oil consisted mainly of α-pinene (15,23%), <em>cis</em>-calamenene (12,70%), myrcene (8,59%), 1,8-cineole (4,26%), germacrene B (3,65%), α-humulene (3,55%), and (<em>E</em>)-caryophyllene oxide (2,93%). The major components of twig oil were <em>cis</em>-calamenene (11,31%), palmitic acid (7,99%), (<em>E</em>)-caryophyllene (4,68%), -cadinene (3,28%), cubenol (3,24%), and (<em>Z</em>)-caryophyllene oxide (2,94%). <strong>Conclusion</strong>: The presence of a significant quantity of myrcene and <em>cis</em>-calamenene seems to be characteristic of this species.</p>Carlos ChaverriJosé F. Cicció
Copyright (c) 2023 Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
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2024-01-152024-01-1516e4863e486310.22458/urj.v16i1.4863Electroactive microorganisms in coffee processing wastewater (iron redox processes)
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos/article/view/4806
<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> Wastewater is often a good source for electrogenic bacteria, which are essential for Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs). The electrons they release while metabolizing organic matter is evidence of their electrogenic capacity. <strong>Objective</strong>: To evaluate the iron-reducing capacity of bacteria isolated from coffee wastewater. <strong>Methods:</strong> We isolated morphologically distinct facultative bacteria from the anode electrode of MFCs, with coffee mill wastewater as our substrate. We did a preliminary identification with the Biolog GEN III system (Biolog Inc. Hayward, CA, USA). To assess the conversion of iron (III) to iron (II) by the isolated bacteria, we tested iron (III) citrate, iron (III) chloride, and iron (III) oxide. For comparison, we used <em>S. oneidensis</em> as a positive control in our experiments. <strong>Results:</strong> We identified eight bacterial isolates with a predominance of non-sporulated Gram positive bacilli morphology. They have reductive activity of iron compounds, giving the best conversion percentages from a for iron oxide (III). The isolate coinciding with the genus <em>Citrobacter</em> (SB), the only Gram negative bacillus, obtained iron conversion percentages higher than 1,0% in the three iron compounds (maximum: 4,3%). <strong>Conclusion:</strong> In the residual water from the coffee process, there are bacteria with electrogenic capability that could be used in Microbial Fuel Cells.</p>Joice Castro AlvarezLidieth Uribe Lorío Paola Fuentes-Schweizer
Copyright (c) 2023 Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
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2023-12-212023-12-2116e4806e480610.22458/urj.v16i1.4806Zoonotic and non-zoonotic gastrointestinal parasites in frogs from an urban tropical river of Costa Rica
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos/article/view/4803
<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The urban ecosystems of Costa Rica are home to several anuran species that coexist with still poorly studied parasites. <strong>Objective:</strong> To report the presence of zoonotic and non-zoonotic gastrointestinal parasites in <em>Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni, Espadarana prosoblepon, Smilisca sordida</em>, in urban river habtat in San José, Costa Rica. <strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed 30 fecal samples, from specimens kept in the laboratory for ten months, with three diagnostic techniques. <strong>Results:</strong> We detected for the first time in Costa Rica the presence of <em>Giardia duodenalis</em> and <em>Cryptosporidium parvum</em> in <em>H. fleischmanni</em>, <em>E. prosoblepon</em> and <em>S. sordida</em> (with antigen detection tests); in addition, nematodes (Strongylidae and <em>Rhabdias </em>spp.), intestinal ciliates and cestode eggs with other diagnostic techniques. <strong>Conclusion:</strong> These urban frogs carried at least six types of parasites, some of them, first reports.</p> <p> </p>Gabriela Pérez-GómezAna Eugenia Jiménez-Rocha
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2023-12-212023-12-2116e4803e480310.22458/urj.v16i1.4803Crustaceans in Phragmatopoma sp. (Polychaeta: Sabellariidae) intertidal reefs, Pacific, Costa Rica
https://revistas.uned.ac.cr/index.php/cuadernos/article/view/4926
<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> Annelid polychaete worms of the family Sabellariidae build reefs by cementing together sand grains. These reefs increase local habitat heterogeneity and species diversity. The reefs are used as a refuge by invertebrates, and crustaceans are frequent. <strong>Objective:</strong> To list the species of crustaceans found in <em>Phragmatopoma</em> sp. reefs on two localities of the North Pacific coast of Costa Rica and at the port of Puntarenas, Gulf of Nicoya estuary. <strong>Methods:</strong> We dislodged fragments of reef colonies qualitatively at low tide with a chisel, stored them in plastic bags and later disaggregated the fragments by hand. We identified the crustaceans whenever possible and deposited them in the collection at the University of Costa Rica (MZUCR). <strong>Results</strong>: We identified 30 species: 26 species of macro-crustaceans in samples from the North coast, eight of them <em>Petrolisthes </em>(Porcellanidae)<em>. </em>From the Puntarenas samples we identified five species (27 macro-crustaceans and 3 isopods). A few micro-crustaceans (Amphipoda, Isopoda) were also present but not identified. <strong>Conclusions:</strong> The number of crustacean species found in <em>Phragmatopoma</em> sp. reefs is relatively high but comparisons with other studies are difficult. Porcellanid crabs are common on these reefs. The low diversity of Puntarenas reefs remains unexplained.</p>José A. VargasRita Vargas-CastilloJeffrey A. Sibaja-Cordero
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2024-02-012024-02-0116e4926e492610.22458/urj.v16i1.4926