Biomedical subjects

Carmen Flores-Mendoza

Publications and source records attributed to Carmen Flores-Mendoza.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

The real relationship between short-term memory and working memory.

Storage-oriented memory span tasks with no explicit concurrent processing are usually referred as short-term memory (STM) tasks, whereas tasks involving storage plus concurrent processing requirements are designated as working memory (WM) tasks. The present study explores a question that remains unsolved: Do STM and WM tasks clearly tap distinguishable theoretical constructs? For that purpose, a large sample of 403 participants was tested through 12 diverse memory span tasks. Half of those tasks are widely accepted as measures of STM, whereas the other half measure WM. The results show that STM and WM share largely overlapping underlying capacity limitations, suggesting that all memory span tasks tap essentially the same construct. Some implications are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Natural Plasmodium infections in Anopheles darlingi and Anopheles benarrochi (Diptera: Culicidae) from eastern Peru.

Malaria, both Plasmodium falciparum (Welch) and Plasmodium vivax (Grassi & Feletti), has reemerged as a significant public health disease issue in Peru, especially in forested areas in the eastern part of the country. The spread of Anopheles darlingi Root, the principal South American malaria vector, into new areas of Peru is thought to be a factor in this resurgence. However, epidemiological evidence suggests that in malaria endemic areas of eastern Peru where An. darlingi does not occur, other species are involved in malaria transmission. The objective of this study was to analyze Anopheles species collected from 11 provinces within four departments in eastern Peru during 2001 and 2002 for infections with P. falciparum and P. vivax. More than 84,000 Anopheles mosquitoes representing 13 species were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the presence of Plasmodium circumsporozoite (CS) proteins. Of these, only An. darlingi and Anopheles benarrochi Gabaldón, Cova García & López were found positive. In total, 14 (0.98%) of 1,432 pools of An. darlingi were positive for Plasmodium species; specifically 10 (0.70%) pools were positive for P. falciparum, two (0.14%) were positive for P. vivax VK210, and two (0.14%) were positive for P. vivax VK247 proteins. Nine (0.14%) of 6,323 pools of An. benarrochi were positive for Plasmodium; five (0.08%) of 6,323 pools were positive for P. falciparum, two (0.03%) were positive for P. vivax VK247, one (0.02%) was positive for mixed P. vivax VK210/VK247 infections, and one (0.02%) was positive for mixed P. falciparum and P. vivax VK210 CS-proteins. Although infection rates in An. benarrochi were significantly lower (0.14%) than rates found for An. darlingi (0.98%), our data suggest that An. benarrochi may play a role in transmitting and maintaining Plasmodium species in various malaria endemic areas of eastern Peru.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Geographical distribution of Anopheles darlingi in the Amazon Basin region of Peru.

Malaria has reemerged as a significant public health disease threat in Peru, especially within the Amazon Basin region. This resurgence of human cases caused by infection with Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax is thought to be associated with the spread of Anopheles darlingi, the principal South American malaria vector, into new areas of the Amazon Basin. However, comprehensive studies of the distribution for this species have not been conducted in Peru for several years, nor are historical accounts accurate enough to determine if An. darlingi was actually present and not collected or misidentified. Therefore, the objective of this study is to define the distribution of An. darlingi as well as obtain data on distribution and abundance of other Anopheles species in this region. Mosquitoes were collected during 2001 in the Departments of Loreto and Ucayali, the two largest Amazonian Departments of Peru. A total of 60,585 specimens representing 12 species of the subgenera Nyssorhynchus and Anopheles were collected at 82 (88.2%) of 93 collecting sites. The majority of mosquitoes obtained were identified as An. benarrochi, comprising 70.7% of mosquitoes collected, followed by An. darlingi (24.0%), Anopheles mattogrosensis (2.4%), and Anopheles triannulatus (1.5%). Anopheles darlingi was collected from 48.8% of sites, indicating that this species is established throughout central Loreto, including further west in the Amazon Basin than previously reported. These data suggest that this species is now found in areas of the Amazon Basin region where it has not been previously reported.

Animals↗