فهرست مطالب mart

 It is known that the combination of bioprocesses can contribute to obtaining better results compared to those achieved by applying each process individually. Solid state fermentation of Vitis labrusca grape pomace was carried out using different saprotrophic fungi following a vermicomposting process.

 A palatability test was performed to evaluate the permanence of Eisenia foetida adults on pomace transformed by fungi. Subsequently, pomace treated with Ulocladium botrytis LPSc 813 was vermicomposted for 90 days to evaluate comparatively the earthworm population dynamics and different physio-chemical and biological parameters with respect to control treatment.

 The pomace treated with Coriolopsis rigida LPSc 232 and U. botrytis showed a 100% permanence of the earthworms, though only this last fungus was able to modify the acidity of the parent grape pomace (pH 7.66 ± 0.84) without increasing its salinity. The combination of U. botrytis-vermicomposting showed a reduction in the adult and juvenile earthworm number at 60 days and presented a higher germination index compared to the control.

 Results suggest that grape pomace pretreated with U. botrytis could be an optimal starting substrate for vermicomposting, obtaining an organic fertilizer in a short period.

Streptococcus mutans is considered the primary bacterial species closely associated with the etiology of dental caries in humans. Recent studies suggest an association between caries and the genetic diversity of S. mutans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genotypic diversity of S. mutans in schoolchildren, its stability in a one-year follow-up study, and its association with dental caries. We studied 25 schoolchildren. Representative S. mutans colonies were isolated from the dental plaque of each child, grown on mitis-salivarius-bacitracin agar, and inoculated in trypticase soy broth. We performed 16S rRNA gene PCR-RFLP analysis on S. mutans isolates. Dental caries in deciduous and permanent surfaces was scored according to the WHO criteria. After 12 months, the caries incidence, S. mutans count, and genotypic diversity were compared. We grouped samples to observe similarities using cluster analysis. A similarity coefficient of > 95% was considered for defining the genotypes. At baseline, we proved the genotypic diversity of S. mutans with five different genotypes. Caries scores were higher in children with genotype A (dmfs 5.4 vs. 3.4). The genotypic diversity of S. mutans in the schoolchildren decreased after one year, with the predominance of genotype A (52% to 92%) that was also associated with high bacterial counts (P = 0.0063). This study supports that there are changes in the genotype of S. mutans over time, and the more cariogenic genotype is more stable than the others.

High wind speeds produced by hurricanes or synoptic winds can cause considerable damage and the failure of structural and nonstructural elements. The use of glass façades in buildings has become very popular; in Mexico, a large number of buildings along the coast are designed with glass façades. Glass façades provide light, temperature control, and an esthetic view; however, this type of glass system is particularly vulnerable to high wind-induced pressures. A methodology to determine the fragility curves of glass façades under turbulent wind loading is proposed. This methodology could be used to select the appropriate glass thickness of a façade. The procedure employs an autoregressive and moving average model to simulate the wind field and Monte Carlo techniques to simulate the glass resistance of the windows. The methodology to construct the fragility curves is illustrated with a numerical example of a glass façade of a 96-m tall building. Three cases of glass resistance associated with coefficients of variation equal to 0, 10, and 20% were considered. The results of the numerical example show that the uncertainty in the glass resistance plays an important role in the development of the fragility curves of the glass façades for high mean wind speeds between 38 and 67 m/s at a height of 10 m.

Precision-cut tissue slices are considered an organotypic 3D model widely used in biomedical research. The comet assay is an important screening test for early genotoxicity risk assessment that is mainly applied on in vitro models. The aim of the present study was to provide a 3D organ system for determination of genotoxicity using a modified method of the comet assay since the stromal components from the original tissue make this technique complicated. A modified comet assay technique was validated using precision-cut hamster kidney slices to analyze the antigenotoxic effect of the phenolic compounds caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, and rosmarinic acid in tissue slices incubated with 15 µM HgCl2. Cytotoxicity of the phenolic compounds was studied in Vero cells, and by morphologic analysis in tissue slices co-incubated with HgCl2 and phenolic compounds. A modification of the comet assay allows obtaining better and clear comet profiles for analysis. Non-cytotoxic concentrations of phenolic acids protected kidney tissue slices against mercury-induced DNA damage, and at the same time, were not nephrotoxic. The highest protection was provided by 3 µg/ml caffeic acid, although 6 µg/ml rosmarinic and 9 µg/ml chlorogenic acids also exhibited protective effects. This is the first time that a modification of the comet assay technique is reported as a tool to visualize the comets from kidney tissue slices in a clear and simple way. The phenolic compounds tested in this study provided protection against mercury-induced genotoxic damage in precision-cut kidney slices.

Diesel is composed of various toxic compounds that can have a negative influence on the environment including plants, microorganisms, and even groundwater being used for cultivation and human consumption. Diesel oil biodegradation kinetics was investigated using bubble-column reactor and microbial consortium isolated from a hydrocarbons spill site and were assessed by gas chromatography. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the importance of intrinsic microorganisms used to degrade diesel. 93.84% of the diesel got consumed in the bubble-column reactor after 15 days of culture. The consortium showed the ability to produce emulsifiers using diesel oil as its only carbon and nitrogen source (hydrocarbonclastic). This study showed that the hydrocarbonclastic consortium isolated from polluted soil has the metabolic tools for diesel degradation (as a single carbon and energy source), and the capacity to produce bioemulsifiers in a bubble column reactor. Microbial consortium and bioemulsifiers produced in this research have the potential to be used in the cleanup processes of polluted soil with hydrocarbons such as diesel.

Leishmaniasis represents a serious threat to the health as one of the most important neglected tropical diseases as designated by the World Health Organization. The disease is endemic in 82 countries, among them Tunisia is an indigenous area for cutaneous Leishmaniasis. In a previous work, two tritepenic acids namely oleanolic and maslinic acids have been isolated from olive leaf extract. In the present paper, the in vitro activity against amastigotes stage of Leishmania (L.) infantum and Leishmania (L.) amazonensis was investigated. Maslinic acid showed the highest activity, against L. amazonensis, with an IC50 of 1.417 ±0.401 µg/ml and a selectivity index of 9.405. Although, the oleanolic acid exhibit a better activity against L. infantum with an IC50 of 0.999 ± 0.089 µg/ml and selectivity index of 8.111.

Argemone mexicana is a Papaveracea plant; some reports have shown their antibacterial, anti-cancer, sedative and probably anti-anxiety properties. From their aerial parts, flavonoids and alkaloids have been isolated, which are intrinsically related to some actions on the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anxiolytic-like effects of the plant, using its ethanolic extract and alkaloid-enriched extract obtained from fresh leaves.
Material and Phytochemical screening was carried out together with evaluation of antioxidant capacity and the enrichment of alkaloids present in the extract. Subsequently, 100 and 200 mg/kg doses of ethanolic extract and alkaloid-enriched extract (200 µg/kg) were intraperitoneally administered to female Wistar rats, which were exposed to elevated plus maze (EPM) test. Picrotoxin (1 mg/kg), a non-competitive gamma-aminobutyric acid A (GABAA) chloride channel antagonist, was used in experimental procedures to evaluate if this receptor is involved in the anxiolytic-like effects of A. mexicana. To discard motor effects associated with the treatments, the rats were evaluated by the locomotor activity test.
Only the ethanolic extract at 200 mg/kg and alkaloid-enriched extract (200 µg/kg) produced anxiolytic-like effects similarly to diazepam 2 mg/kg on EPM test, without affecting locomotor activity. Meanwhile, the administration of picrotoxin blocked anti-anxiety effect of alkaloid-enriched extract of the plant.
These results showed that A. mexicana is a potential anxiolytic agent and we suggest that this effect is mediated by the GABAA receptor. These effects are related to the presence of alkaloids.

Studies suggest that children who start solid foods early are at risk for developing food allergies. Herein, we evaluated the effects of the introduction of peanuts to the diets of children on emerging peanut allergies. Children with allergic rhinitis and asthma were enrolled in the present study and evaluated in four stages. In the first stage, a clinical history was completed for all participants. In the second stage, skin tests were conducted to detect the sensitization to peanuts. In the third stage, the parents were interviewed about the peanut-eating habits of their children. In the fourth stage, children with a convincing history of allergy or a positive peanut skin test result were subjected to an open oral food challenge (OOFC). Three hundred children in four groups were included, 58.2% of the subjects were male, and the mean age was 7.3±3.9 years. The median age of first exposure to peanuts in patients with peanut allergies was greater than that in children without peanut allergies (2 years versus 1 year; p=0.009). The multivariate analysis, including only those children subjected to the OOFC, revealed that the consumption of peanuts after the age of ≥2 years is a risk factor for developing a peanut allergy (odds ratio=8.0, 95% confidence interval 1.3-50.0, p=0.026). The results of the present study showed that the late introduction of peanuts to children increases the risk of developing a peanut allergy.

Intratracheal intubation (i.t.) in mice is a technique required for many in vivo study protocols, as are the intranasal (i.n.) route or the use of aerosol generators.The i.n. technique is rapid to perform but erratic whereas the transtracheal route requires a short surgery, with anesthesia and a few days needed for total recovery and wound healing before the study can be performed. The i.t. route is a reliable, fast and simple technique and we provide a detailed description for intubation by transthoracic illumination and confirmation in the mouse, using commercially available tools. The result is a technique that takes about 40 seconds to perform, including verification of right positioning of the probe, with no mortality, pulmonary edema, bleeding or laryngeal damage observed. However checking the correct placement of the probe is crucial for good results.This method’s robustness was evaluated by comparing bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cell count results, obtained both from i.n. instillation and i.t. inoculation of LPS (E. coli Lipopolysaccharide) to produce a model of lung lower airways inflammation to evaluate anti-inflammatory compounds. We also describe its use as the standard infection technique in an acute Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection model for therapeutic efficacy studies.

The clinical behavior of asthma varies with age at onset. This study was undertaken to identify associated markers of adult-onset allergic asthma (age ≥20 years).This cross-sectional study compared two groups: 58 patients with asthma onset at <20 years and 66 with onset at ≥20 years. They were compared depending on results of clinical history, and body mass index (BMI), aeroallergen sensitization, total serum IgE, eosinophil count, asthma control test, and asthma severity level. Ages at first asthma episode were 10.0 ± 6.6 and 33.4 ± 10.5 (p <0.001) in the <20 and ≥20 group, respectively. BMI was higher in adult asthmatic subjects (29.8 versus 27.1, P= 0.017), but BMI ≥30 kg/m2 was not associated with asthma onset in ≥20 years (odds ratio [OR] = 1.56, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.759 to 3.211; p= 0.227). After multivariate analysis, allergic rhinitis and IgE ≥150 IU/mL were negatively correlated with asthma onset in ≥20 years old (OR adjusted [ORa] = 0.255, 95% CI 0.078 to 0.837, P= 0.024, and ORa =0.385, 95% CI 0.175 to 0.849, p= 0.018, respectively). Adult-onset allergic asthma was not different from early-onset asthma.

Free-living amoebae (FLA) are protozoa that are widely distributed in the environment mainly in water and soil related habitats. Thermophilic amoebae are among the most common FLA in water bodies, being Vermamoeba vermiformis one of the most common species reported worldwide from these sources. Interestingly, V. vermiformis has often been reported to survive at high temperatures and osmotic pressure worldwide. In this study, snow samples were collected from Mount Teide, Tenerife, Canary Islands during the winter season of 2014. The samples were culture on non nutrient agar plates and checked daily for the presence of FLA. After a week, V. vermiformis amoebae were observed in the plates incubated at room temperature and 37ºC. Molecular characterization was carried out by amplifying the 18S rDNA gene and DNA sequencing, confirmed that the isolated strain belonged to Vermamoeba vermiformis species. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of Vermamoeba vermiformis isolation from such an inusual habitat (low temperatures and high altitude) and the first report of these species in the Canary islands.

Intratracheal intubation (i.t.) in mice is a technique required for many in vivo study protocols, as are the intranasal (i.n.) route or the use of aerosol generators.The i.n. technique is rapid to perform but erratic whereas the transtracheal route requires a short surgery, with anesthesia and a few days needed for total recovery and wound healing before the study can be performed. The i.t. route is a reliable, fast and simple technique and we provide a detailed description for intubation by transthoracic illumination and confirmation in the mouse, using commercially available tools. The result is a technique that takes about 40 seconds to perform, including verification of right positioning of the probe, with no mortality, pulmonary edema, bleeding or laryngeal damage observed. However checking the correct placement of the probe is crucial for good results.This method’s robustness was evaluated by comparing bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cell count results, obtained both from i.n. instillation and i.t. inoculation of LPS (E. coli Lipopolysaccharide) to produce a model of lung lower airways inflammation to evaluate anti-inflammatory compounds. We also describe its use as the standard infection technique in an acute Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection model for therapeutic efficacy studies.

Evaluation and modeling of the wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) have to be based on the fact that the pollutant concentrations and flow rates change constantly. In addition, different approaches must used due to there are different processes in a WWTP. A Mexican petrochemical complex has a WWTP that processes wastewaters from several petrochemical plants, where the flow rates and pollutant concentrationschange constantly. The actual WWTP has an equalization pond (EP) followed by an aerated lagoon (AL). The EP performance was evaluated by CFD tool and it was possible to evaluate the equalization pond performance. In the biological process, a more realistic dynamical model to evaluate the AL performance was developed and calibrated. The reactor was modeled as a plug flow reactor with high dispersion, due to there is no biological sludge recirculation. It was found that with an increase of 12.5% in the wastewater flow rate the Mexican regulation will not be satisfied The model improves modeling because considers different actual operational factors as lost of VOC and variations of temperature, influent COD and flow rate, which have tremendous impact on the petrochemical wastewater treatment plant performance.

The role played by soil constituents in governing temporal trends of metal mobility in calcareous Mediterranean soils deserves special attention due to the particular soil and climate characteristics. Reactions occurring during the aging modify the metal mobility over time, and the rate of metal application and type of soil can be decisive in the outcome of aging reactions in soils. The aim of the present work was to investigate the role that both metal dose and soil constituents play in temporal trends of (potential) metal mobility in soils offering a natural gradient of carbonate and whose remaining soil constituents differed. Soil samples were spiked with a mixture of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn at two levels and then left aging for 12 months incubation. Metals were extracted at different time intervals (1 day, 1, 3, 6 and 12 months) with one-step extraction methods to estimate immediate metal mobility (NaNO3) and potential metal mobility (diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid –DTPA–). At both levels of contamination, NaNO3-extractable Cd, Cu and Zn concentration values reached equilibrium within the period of incubation. Temporal trend of immediate metal mobility was governed by carbonate fraction for Cd and Cu and by the finest carbonate fraction for Zn. In the case of potential metal mobility, DPTA-extractable metal concentrations did not reach equilibrium within the incubation time. In this case, the combined action of carbonate, organic, Fe-oxide and clay fractions were decisive to define the different temporal trends observed for each metal and level.

This paper represents the first redescription of Hemileius suramericanus (Hammer, 1958) (Oribatida, Scheloribatidae). Morphological and chaetotactic details are added to original Hammer's description. The species is compared with others Neotropical species of Hemileius and two new synonyms, H. laticlava and H. confundatus sensu Hammer, are proposed.

A lot of people think that the economic development of a country is associated with its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but GDP does not consider aspects as important as the environmental performance of a country. Nowadays, environmental issues are one of the most important aspects of the long term development of a country and play an important role in a nation’s wealth. Although the analysis of countries’ environmental performance is a very novel subject, many researchers are making a significant effort to capture its essence by testing the sustainability of regions. This paper discusses the main proposals developed in the literature that establish country rankings considering different dimensions in order to measure the sustainability or environment. This summary allows us to establish the main differences between proposals and some future research. Furthermore, we analyse the correlation and concordance between the different countries rankings established in the literature. The results reveal clear concordance between proposals.

Many studies on cold environments have been developed over the past two decades. High mountain freshwater presents high variability of nutrients and chemico-physical parameters, showing variations of pH, oxygen concentration, metals and temperature throughout the year. National Park of Sierra Nevada (Granada, Spain) (37°032 N 03°182 W), has almost 40 lakes that are reported to be both endemic and oligotrophic. However, very little information about their microbial diversity can be found in literature. In this work, a Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to find best nutritional conditions for the isolation of psychrophilic microalgae from La Caldera Lake. The results showed that best culture medium, was the Rodriguez-Lopez medium (RL); data were adjusted to a quadratic prediction model reporting a biomass concentration over 600 mg/L at 10 and 20ºC. In this paper, the diversity of culturable freshwater microalgae in the La Caldera Lake was observed by PCR using specific primers for eukaryotic 18S rRNA genes. Samples were taken in early July and late Agust, 2011. In July presence of strains belonging to the Eustigmatophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Scenedesmaceae families were found. In August, only microalgae from the Eustigmatophyceae, Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Scenedesmaceae families were found. An individual culture of each isolated strain was carried out. Microalgae S21 had phylogenetic similitude with Chlorophyceae, and showed best growth being biomass concentration in RL 393.73 mg/L and 128.52 mg/L at 20ºC and 10ºC, respectively. Moreover, specific growth rates (μmax), 0.25/h and 0.13/h at 20ºC and 10ºC, respectively, were detected for strain S21.

The popular press, as well as most academic literature, claims that innovation activities areinherently linked to higher company performance. Successful innovations usually increase the firm’s market scope or reduce costs, helping firms to obtain superior benefits. Therefore, most innovations are developed with those objectives in mind. Environmental orientation is defined as the managerial recognition of the significance of the impact a company has on the environment, and the need to minimize such impact. Nowadays, environmental motivation for innovation is becoming more and more common as firms are more aware of the consequences of their activities and attempt to be socially responsible. However, most literature on innovation is focused on R&D and on large mature firms, practically neglecting small and medium sized Enterprises – SMEs-, as does the literature on corporate social responsibility. In this paper, we focus on a sample of 1337 start-up SMEs less than 10 years old, from which we obtained information regarding their innovation activities. Our results show that in comparison to cost-oriented innovations, environmental orientation in the development of innovations increases performance.

A crude biosurfactant mixture was produced in a 1.4 L tubular reactor by a mixed culture; after the thermal treatment of the whole culture an increase in emulsification activity and surface tension was observed, with a main effect on the first one. The emulsification index of the mixture obtained was of 60.4 %. The crude mixed biosurfactant was used to enhance hydrocarbon biodegradation of intemperized soil in a slurry reactor, for which two biodegradation assays were carried out. In the first reactor (R1), the crude mixed biosurfactant was added along with inoculum at initial stage, and the second reactor (R2) was inoculated 5 days after the initial biosurfactant addition. When the crude biosurfactant mixture was added as a pretreatment (R2), the extent and rate of hydrocarbon biodegradation was increased efficiently in the slurry phase reactor 1.3-folds in comparison to non-biosurfactant control. So, the initial hydrocarbon content (9,275 g/kg of dry soil) was reduced to 674 ± 34 mg kg-1 with about 92% of removal efficiency at the 10 days of treatment in the slurry reactor. On the other hand, the bioreactor that received the biosurfactant and the inoculum at the initial stage showed slower hydrocarbon consumption and as result hydrocarbon content was reduced by approximately 34%.

This paper presents a mapping procedure for risk mapping of water and wind erosion, which helps to identify protective measures needed in the planning and management of natural parks. The map of water erosion risk was developed by combining the original and revised universal soil loss equation methodologies (USLE-RUSLE), and the map of wind erosion risk was developed using Quirantes’ method. Using GIS techniques allows parametric characterisation of the factors involved in the processes of soil degradation. The validation procedure was carried out in two natural parks in the Spanish Central System. Integration of the two maps resulted in a risk map of water and wind erosion. This mapping shows a high risk of water erosion in areas of high slopes and elevations with little agricultural activity and undulating reliefs. The risk of wind erosion is lower in sectors with analytical and textural high erodibility and low vegetation cover.

The overall incidence of obesity and its prevalence is increasing continuously. The obesity is a cardiovascular risk factor whose importance is increasing too. It is associated with many chronic conditions such as type II diabetes mellitus or cardiovascular diseases. The obesity is also implicated as a risk factor for several kinds of cancer such as esophagus, pancreas, colon, rectum, breast cancer in menopausal women. The treatment of the obesity may reduce the incidence of these diseases. The mainstray of the treatment of obesity is changing the lifestyles, but obesity´s treatment may need drug therapy or even though surgical treatment.. Orlistat is a specific inhibitor of gastrointestinal lipases, which stops fat absortion. It is used along with a hypocaloric diet, for obesity´s treatment. The beneficial effects of orlistat include weight loss, the improvement of blood pressure´s control, it may delay the development of diabetes mellitus, and it may reduce HbA1c. Besides the interaction with other drugs (mainly warfarin and amiodarone)..Orlistat´s mainly side effects are gastrointestinal disorders such as the existence of oily spotting from the rectum, abdominal pain or discomfort, fecal urgency. There are also side effects at other levels, like flu symptoms, hypoglycemia, heathache or upper respiratory infections. There are other side effects with very low incidence but clinically relevant like pancreatitis, subacute liver failure, severe liver disease, myopathy, or tubular necrosis secondary to oxalate nephropathy induced by Orlistat..In this case report appears a new adverse effect of Orlistat that has not been described above: thrombopenia and macrocytic anemia..

Simple sequence repeat (SSR markers or microsatellites), based on the specific PCR amplification of DNA sequences, are becoming the markers of choice for molecular characterization of a wide range of plants because of their high polymorphism, abundance, and codominant inheritance. Different methods have been used for the analysis of the SSR amplified fragments being submarine agarose electrophoresis the more suitable method for the routine application. In this work we have performed a comparative study of the utilization of four different types of low melting (Metaphor®, Sea Kem®, and MS-8®) and regular (LD-2®) agaroses and two different staining protocols using Ethidium Bromide and Gel Red Nucleic Acid Gel Sating®. Almond cultivars assayed included the Spanish cultivars ‘Antoñeta’, ‘Marta’, ‘Penta’, ‘Tardona’ ‘Desmayo’ and ‘Guara’, the French cultivars ‘Ferragnés’ and ‘R1000’, the USA cultivar ‘Mission’, the Tunisian cultivar ‘Achaak’, the Italian cultivar ‘Tuono’ and the Australian cultivar ‘Chellaston’. SSR detection using Metaphor® agarose gel electrophoresis was the most efficient with higher resolution and would be able to resolve most of allelic variation in comparison with the other three agaroses assayed. In addition, gel staining using Ethidium Bromide showed similar results than the GelRedTM Nucleic Acid Gel Stain® although it is much more toxic. The use of MetaPhor® agarose and GelRedTM Nucleic Acid Gel Stain® appears good indicated for molecular characterization of mapping of population due to its good resolution in comparison with the rest of agaroses, less toxicity in comparison with the use of Ethidium Bromide, and lower cost and easier routine application in comparison with the automatic capillary sequencing.

Laser irradiation has been introduced in endodontic treatment due to its bactericidal effect. The aim of this study is to evaluate the bactericidal efficacy of a 940 nm diode laser alone or in combination with 5% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) against mature biofilms of E. Faecalis. Sixty-eight (60 for the three groups, 4 for SEM and 4 as negative controls) single-rooted human central incisors were prepared and contaminated with E. Faecalis. After two weeks of incubation, specimens were randomly divided in three groups; group 1 (n =20), the teeth were irradiated with a 940 nm diode laser; group 2 (n=20), specimens were rinsed with 5% NaOCl; group 3 (n=20), the teeth were rinsed with 5% NaOCl and then were irradiated with 940 nm diode laser. Four teeth were used to observe the biofilms by SEM. Intracanal bacteria sampling was done, and the samples were plated to determinate the CFU count. At 24 hours and 7 days, group 3 showed a significant difference (P=0,02; P=0,00) in disinfection if compared to group 1 but did not show this difference if compared to group 2 (P=1, P=0,66), although group 3 obtaining a more extensive disinfection. Groups 1 and 2 did not show difference after 24 hours (P=0,09) but showed a significant difference 7 days afterwards (P=0,04). The combination of sodium hypochlorite and diode laser light (940 nm) has a synergistic effect, intensifying the bactericidal action.

This study is aimed to identify sources of particulate matter with mean aerodynamic diameter below 10 μm (PM10) present in the atmosphere of the Metropolitan Area of Mexico City (MAMC), using samples obtained from January 1st to June 30th, 2009, analyzed with X-ray spectrometric techniques. MiniVol samplers were used to collect samples on polycarbonate filters in three sites (North, Center, and South) of the MAMC. The filters were exposed along 24 h every two days, starting at 8:00 AM, and then analyzed with particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE), a microPIXE (μPIXE) system, and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). Statistical multivariate tests with positive matrix factorization (PMF) were conducted to identify possible contributing factors. The model HYSPLIT was used to determine back-trajectories and the MODIS database for fire spot localization. The multivariate methods identified five factors in the Center and South, and four in the North, including Soil, Sulfate, Fuel/Industry, and Biomass burning, with certain differences in the factors and contributions. Application of HYSPLIT back-trajectories associated these factors to three main Soil sources and points of secondary aerosols production, as well as locations where Biomass burning aerosols were originated. The combination of X-ray spectrometric methods, receptor modeling, back-trajectory determination, and fire site localization, allowed the identification of possible sources of PM10 in the MAMC, namely, the dry Texcoco lake, the Toluca Valley, and the North dry plains for Soil aerosols, the influence of local industrial areas for Sulfate (secondary) aerosols, and the appearance of fires for Biomass burning.