FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER

Preferred name

Main Affiliation

Facultad de Ciencias de la Ingeniería e Industrias

CIAL - Centro de Investigación de Alimentos

Web Site

Google Scholar

ORCID

0000-0001-8092-3750

Scopus Author ID

58620465200

Now showing 1 - 10 of 37

Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
In-silico prediction of RT-qPCR-high resolution melting for broad detection of emaraviruses
(Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2023-05-08)
Alejandro Olmedo-Velarde
;
Francisco M. Ochoa-Corona
;
Adriana E. Larrea-Sarmiento
;
Toufic Elbeaino
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
<jats:p>Twenty-four species of RNA viruses contain members infecting economically important crops that are classified within the genus <jats:italic>Emaravirus</jats:italic>, family <jats:italic>Fimoviridae</jats:italic>. There are at least two other non-classified species that may be added. Some of these viruses are spreading rapidly and cause economically important diseases on several crops, raising a need for a sensitive diagnostic technique for taxonomic and quarantine purposes. High-resolution melting (HRM) has shown to be reliable for the detection, discrimination, and diagnosis of several diseases of plants, animals, and humans. This research aimed to explore the ability to predict HRM outputs coupled to reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). To approach this goal a pair of degenerate genus-specific primers were designed for endpoint RT-PCR and RT-qPCR-HRM and the species in the genus <jats:italic>Emaravirus</jats:italic> were selected to framework the development of the assays. Both nucleic acid amplification methods were able to detect <jats:italic>in-vitro</jats:italic> several members of seven <jats:italic>Emaravirus</jats:italic> species with sensitivity up to one fg of cDNA. Specific parameters for <jats:italic>in-silico</jats:italic> prediction of the melting temperatures of each expected emaravirus amplicon are compared to the data obtained <jats:italic>in-vitro</jats:italic>. A very distinct isolate of the High Plains wheat mosaic virus was also detected. The high-resolution DNA melting curves of the RT-PCR products predicted <jats:italic>in-silico</jats:italic> using uMelt<jats:sup>SM</jats:sup> allowed saving time while designing and developing the RT-qPCR-HRM assay since the approach avoided extensive searching for optimal HRM assay regions and rounds of HRM tests <jats:italic>in-vitro</jats:italic> for optimization. The resultant assay provides sensitive detection and reliable diagnosis for potentially any emaravirus, including new species or strains.</jats:p>
Scopus© Citations 2
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Botrytis cinerea as a cause of blackberry gray mold disease in Ecuador
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2024-06-18)
I. E. Jinez
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Sequencing, genome analysis and prevalence of a cytorhabdovirus discovered in Carica papaya
(Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2019-06-20)
Andrés X. Medina-Salguero
;
Juan F. Cornejo-Franco
;
Samuel Grinstead
;
Dimitre Mollov
;
Joseph D. Mowery
Scopus© Citations 22
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Multiplex End-Point PCR for the Detection of Three Species of <i>Ophiosphaerella</i> Causing Spring Dead Spot of Bermudagrass
(Scientific Societies, 2019-08)
J. Francisco Iturralde Martinez
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
;
Alma R. Koch Kaiser
;
Carla D. Garzón
;
Nathan R. Walker
<jats:p> A multiplex end-point polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was developed for identifying the three-fungal species in the genus Ophiosphaerella that cause spring dead spot (SDS), a devastating disease of bermudagrass. These fungi are difficult to identify by morphology because they seldom produce pseudothecia. To achieve species-specific diagnosis, three pairs of primers were designed to identify fungal isolates and detect the pathogen in infected roots. The internal transcribed spacer region, the translation elongation factor 1-α, and the RNA polymerase II second-largest subunit were selected as targets and served as templates for the design of each primer pair. To achieve uniform melting temperatures, three to five random nucleotide extensions (flaps) were added to the 5′ terminus of some of the designed specific primers. Temperature cycling conditions and PCR components were standardized to optimize specificity and sensitivity of the multiplex reaction. Primers were tested in multiplex on DNA extracted from axenic fungal cultures and from field-collected infected and uninfected roots. A distinct amplicon was produced for each Ophiosphaerella sp. tested. The DNA from Ophiosphaerella close relatives and other common bermudagrass pathogens did not amplify during the multiplex assay. Metagenomic DNA from infected bermudagrass produced species-specific amplicons while DNA extracted from noninfected roots did not. This multiplex end-point PCR approach is a sensitive and specific molecular technique that allows for correct identification of SDS-associated Ophiosphaerella spp. from field-collected roots. </jats:p>
Scopus© Citations 9
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Virosis en el cultivo del tabaco
(Clinical Biotec, 2023-12-15)
Enny Ganchozo-Mendoza
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
;
Felipe R. Garcés-Fiallos
<jats:p>El tabaco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) es un cultivo industrial de importancia económica y una planta modelo importante, cultivada ampliamente en muchos países. Su producción, rendimiento y calidad se han visto gravemente afectados por una serie de factores entre las que destacan las infecciones virales. Hasta el momento se han reportado más de 60 virus pertenecientes a 20 géneros que infectan y provocan pérdidas sustanciales de rendimiento en tabaco. Los genomas de estos fitopatógenos pueden ser de ADN o ARN, distribuyéndose en varias partículas virales (monopartito, bipartito o tripartito). En su gran mayoría, las infecciones virales en tabaco son ocasionadas por virus de ARN monocatenarios de sentido positivo (ARN +) como los pertenecientes al género Tobamovirus y Cucumovirus. No obstante, los Begomovirus (virus de ADN) también impactan económicamente el cultivo de tabaco. Esta revisión enlista los principales virus de ADN y ARN que infectan plantas de tabaco, así como sus vectores más relevantes. Además, se abordan las técnicas de detección y diagnóstico que se han desarrollado continuamente para identificar correctamente las enfermedades virales asociadas al cultivo de tabaco. Palabras clave: Nicotiana tabacum L., virus de plantas, incidencia de virus, detección y diagnóstico viral</jats:p>
Scopus© Citations 1
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Near-Complete Genome Sequence of Ryegrass Mottle Virus from Irrigation Water in Ecuador
(American Society for Microbiology, 2021-05-06)
Fiama Guevara
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
;
Kenneth M. Stedman
<jats:p> In this work, we report the near-complete genome sequence of Ryegrass mottle virus identified in irrigation water through next-generation sequencing and <jats:italic>de novo</jats:italic> assembly. The genome is 4,247 bp long, arranged in five open reading frames with a 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of 87 nucleotides and a 3′ UTR of 247 nucleotides. </jats:p>
Scopus© Citations 2
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
Salmonella enterica Serovar Infantis KPC-2 Producer: First Isolate Reported in Ecuador
(Mary Ann Liebert Inc, 2024-12-01)
VILLAVICENCIO ZAMBRANO, FERNANDO XAVIER
;
Viviana Albán
;
Carolina Satán
;
Hidaleisy Quintana
;
Wladimir Enríquez
Antimicrobial resistance is currently considered a public health threat. Carbapenems are antimicrobials for hospital use, and Enterobacterales resistant to these β-lactams have spread alarmingly in recent years, especially those that cause health care-associated infections. The blaKPC gene is considered one of the most important genetic determinants disseminated by plasmids, promoting horizontal gene transfer. This study describes, for the first time in Ecuador, and worldwide, the presence of a blaKPC-2 gene in an isolate of Salmonella enterica serovar Infantis from a clinical sample. Through whole-genome sequencing, we characterized the genetic determinants of antimicrobial resistance in this Salmonella ST-32 strain. Our results showed the presence of several resistance genes, including blaCTX-M-65, and a conjugative plasmid Kpn-WC17-007-03 that may be responsible for the horizontal transference of these resistance mechanisms.
Scopus© Citations 1
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
First Report of Pectobacterium brasiliense Causing Banana Soft Rot in Ecuador
(Scientific Societies, 2024-02-01)
A. Toaza
;
R. Caiza
;
F. J. Garrido
;
GARRIDO HARO, PATRICIA DE LOS ANGELES
;
L. A. Ramos
Banana (Musa spp.) is the most economically important crop in Ecuador, with exports representing 35% of the agricultural GDP of the country. It covers 230,000 ha, mostly concentrated in three coastal provinces, Guayas, Los Ríos, and El Oro. Between July and September 2022, disease symptomatic banana cultivar Williams plants were observed in commercial plantations located in two parishes in the province of Guayas (Naranjito and Lorenzo de Garaicoa) and one parish in the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas (La Concordia), with an incidence that ranged from 5 to 15%. Symptoms included soft rot of the pseudostem and rhizome decay, characterized by a fetid odor. Three symptomatic pseudostems from each location were collected, washed with running water to remove any debris, and dried with absorbent paper. From the lesion of each pseudostem, seven pieces of 2 cm2 were taken, surface sterilized, and macerated in 9 ml of sterile peptone water (0.1% w/v). The macerate was diluted threefold in sterile water, plated on nutrient agar, and incubated at 30°C for 24 h. Eight randomly picked colonies, with convex elevation and creamy white color, were isolated on nutrient agar. Each of the bacterial isolates was biochemically profiled by the Biolog system (Biolog, U.S.A.) and identified as Pectobacterium. Three isolates, one from each parish (FP220416, FP220694, and FP220904), were selected for testing Koch’s postulates and further identification. Sequences from fragments of the 16S, dnaA, gapA, and gyrB genes were obtained from these isolates, following the protocols used by Dobhal et al. (2020) and Boluk et al. (2020), showing 98.1 to 99.0%, 98.2%, 99.7 to 99.8%, and 98.4 to 98.9% identity, respectively, with sequences from the Pectobacterium brasiliense type strain LMG_21371 (accession no. JQOE00000000). The obtained sequences were deposited in GenBank with the following accession numbers: OR392417, OR371545, OR371546, OR727281, OR727282, and OR739074 to OR739080. Using BEAST version 1.10.4 (Suchard et al. 2018), a Bayesian multilocus phylogenetic tree was built with multiple sequence alignments of dnaA, gapA, and gyrB from 22 P. brasiliense isolates and two P. aquaticum isolates used as outgroup. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the Ecuadorian isolates cluster with P. brasiliense BF20 isolated from Opuntia ficus-indica in Mexico and are closely related with the type strain. Pathogenicity tests were conducted through syringe infiltration with 1 ml of 1 × 108 CFU/ml bacterial suspension. Each of the three characterized isolates were inoculated into the pseudostems of five healthy 4-month-old banana plants of the cultivar Williams. Negative control plants were infiltrated with sterile distilled water. The plants were incubated at 25°C and 74% relative humidity. Black lesions started to appear 11 days after inoculation, and 5 weeks after inoculation plants showed clear symptoms of soft rot of the pseudostem, including fetid odor associated with plant tissue decomposition. The control plants remained symptom-free. Bacteria were reisolated only from symptomatic pseudostems and identified as P. brasiliense with the specific primers Pb1F and Pb1R.
Scopus© Citations 1
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
First Report of Dickeya fangzhongdai Causing Soft Rot in Bananas in Ecuador
(Scientific Societies, 2025-03-12)
A. Toaza
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
;
R. B. Caiza
;
P. A. Garrido
;
A. D. Salazar
Scopus© Citations 1
Some of the metrics are blocked by your
consent settings
An umbra-related virus found in babaco (Vasconcellea × heilbornii)
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2021-05-27)
Juan F. Cornejo-Franco
;
FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER
;
Dimitre Mollov
;
Diego F. Quito-Avila
Scopus© Citations 13

FLORES FLOR, FRANCISCO JAVIER

Filters

Settings

Sort By

Results per page