Nutritional strategies of physically active subjects with muscle dysmorphia

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to identify dietary strategies for physically active individuals with muscle dysmorphia based on a systematic literature review. Method References were included if the study population consisted of adults over 18 years old who were physically active in fitness centers. We identified reports through an electronic search ofScielo, Lilacs and Medline using the following keywords: muscle dysmorphia, vigorexia, distorted body image, and exercise. We found eight articles in Scielo, 17 in Medline and 12 in Lilacs. Among the total number of 37 articles, only 17 were eligible for inclusion in this review. Results The results indicated that the feeding strategies used by physically active individuals with muscle dysmorphia did not include planning or the supervision of a nutritionist. Diet included high protein and low fat foods and the ingestion of dietary and ergogenic supplements to reduce weight. Conclusion Physically active subjects with muscle dysmorphia could benefit from the help of nutritional professionals to evaluate energy estimation, guide the diet and its distribution in macronutrient and consider the principle of nutrition to functional recovery of the digestive process, promote liver detoxification, balance and guide to organic adequate intake of supplemental nutrients and other substances.

Mutualism from the inside: coordinated development of plant and insect in an active pollinating fig wasp

Recent studies on the obligate interaction between fig trees and their pollinating agaonid wasps have focused on population aspects and wasp-seed exploitation at the level of the inflorescence. Detailed studies on larval and gall development are required to more fully understand how resources are exploited and adaptations fine-tuned by each partner in nursery pollination mutualisms. We studied the larval development of the active pollinating fig wasp, Pegoscapus sp., and the galling process of individual flowers within the figs of its monoecious host, Ficus citrifolia, in Brazil. The pollinator development is strongly dependent on flower pollination. Figs entered by pollen-free wasps were in general more likely to abort. Retained, unpollinated figs had both higher larval mortality and a lower number of wasps. Pegoscapus sp. larvae are adapted to plant development, with two contrasting larval feeding strategies proceeding alongside gall development. The first two larval stages behave as ovary parasites. Later larval stages feed on hypertrophied endosperm. This indicates that a successful galling process relies on endosperm, and also reveals why pollination would be a prerequisite for the production of high-quality galls for this Pegoscapus species.

Prey-capture efficiency between juveniles and adults, feeding habitat and abundance of Wattled Jacana foragers in northern Pantanal, Mato Grosso state, Brazil

The choice of foraging strategies implies an attempt at gaining energy by predators. Supposedly, the difference in employing the "sit and wait" or "active foraging" behavior lays in hunter skills, experience and the kind of prey consumed. With the hypothesis that "active foraging" demands no learning, in this study we compared the prey capture efficiency among Wattled Jacana juveniles and adults, and also present descriptive information about feeding habitat and the abundance variation of foragers throughout the day in the northern Pantanal. Prey capture efficiency did not differ significantly among juveniles and adults, corroborating our initial hypothesis that "active foraging" is an instinctive behavior and demands no experience to be effective. However, future work is necessary to compare the energetic quality of consumed items by juveniles and adults, searching for differences explained by adults' experience. Foraging individuals were found at an average distance of 14 m ranging from 2 to 42 m) from the margin of the sampled swamps, however 64% of the foragers were found closer to the margins. The average depth of foraging sites was 17 cm, ranging from 5 to 40 cm, although no preference for specific classes of depth was found (p > 0,05). Despite the accepted general pattern of birds being more active in the early morning, the largest number of individuals foraging was observed between 11:00 and 12:00 AM, but no significant difference was found in the abundance of foraging individuals among different periods of the day. Factors, which were not analyzed, such as food availability and presence of competitors and predators need to be studied to reveal the main factors of the spatial and temporal distribution of the Wattled Jacana.

Dispersal strategies of Aceria guerreronis (Acari: Eriophyidae), a coconut pest

The dispersal of plant-feeding mites can occur involuntarily, through transportation of infested plant parts, or voluntarily, by walking to new plant parts or to suitable spots where biotic (phoresis) or abiotic (wind, agricultural tools, etc.) factors carry them over long distances. Elucidating the dispersal mechanisms of the coconut mite, Aceria guerreronis Keifer, is important for understanding the process of colonization of new fruits of a same or different plants, essential for the improvement of control strategies of this serious coconut pest. Thus, the objective of this work was to investigate the voluntary dispersal mechanisms of this mite. The hypothesis that the coconut mite disperses by walking, phoresis or wind were tested. The coconut mite was shown to be able to walk short distances between fruits of the same bunch or between bunches of the same plant. Phoresis on insects of the orders Hymenoptera (Apidae), Coleoptera (Curculionidae) and Lepidoptera (Phycitidae) was evaluated in the laboratory and in the field. Although in the laboratory mites were shown to be able to climb onto honeybees, field investigations failed to show these insects as important carriers of the pest, corroborating findings of previous works; however, both laboratory and field investigations suggested the curculionid Parisoschoenus obesulus Casey to be able to transport the coconut mite between plants. Similarly, laboratory and field investigations suggested wind to be important in the dispersal of the coconut mite between plants.