30 million years of Permian volcanism recorded in the Choiyoi igneous province (W Argentina) and their source for younger ash fall deposits in the Parana Basin: SHRIMP U-Pb zircon geochronology evidence

We present four SHRIMP U-Pb zircon ages for the Choiyoi igneous province from the San Rafael Block, central-western Argentina. Dated samples come from the Yacimiento Los Reyunos Formation (281.4 +/- 2.5 Ma) of the Cochico Group (Lower Choiyoi section: andesitic breccias, dacitic to rhyolitic ignimbrites and continental conglomerates). Agua de los Burros Formation (264.8 +/- 2.3 Ma and 264.5 +/- 3.0 Ma) and Cerro Carrizalito Formation (251.9 +/- 2.7 Ma Upper Choiyoi section: rhyolitic ignimbrites and pyroclastic flows) spanning the entire Permian succession of the Choiyoi igneous province. A single ziron from the El Imperial Formation, that is overlain unconformably by the Choiyoi succession, yielded an early Permian age (297.2 +/- 5.3 Ma). while the main detrital zircon population indicated an Ordovician age (453.7 +/- 8.1 Ma). The new data establishes a more precise Permian age (Artinskian-Lopingian) for the section studied spanning 30 Ma of volcanic activity. Volcanological observations for the Choiyoi succession support the occurrence of explosive eruptions of plinian to ultraplinian magnitudes, capable of injecting enormous volumes of tephra in the troposphere-stratosphere. The new SHRIMP ages indicate contemporaneity between the Choyoi succession and the upper part of the Parana Basin late Paleozoic section, from the Irad up to the Rio do Rasto formations, encompassing about 24 Ma. Geochemical data show a general congruence in compositional and tectonic settings between the volcanics and Parana Basin Permian ash fall derived layers of bentonites. Thickness and granulometry of ash fall layers broadly fit into the depletion curve versus distance from the remote source vent of ultraplinian eruptions. Thus, we consider that the Choiyoi igneous province was the source of ash fall deposits in the upper Permian section of the Parana Basin. Data presented here allow a more consistent correlation between tectono-volcanic Permian events along the paleo-Pacific margin of southwestern Gondwana and the geological evolution of neighboring Paleozoic foreland basins in South America and Africa. (C) 2010 International Association for Gondwana Research. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Geochronological data from the Faxinal coal succession, southern Parana Basin, Brazil: A preliminary approach combining radiometric U-Pb dating and palynostratigraphy

A radiometric zircon age of 285.4 +/- 8.6 Ma (IDTIMS U-Pb) is reported from a tonstein layer interbedded with coal seams in the Faxinal coalfield, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Calibration of palynostratigraphic data with the absolute age shows that the coal depositional interval in the southern Parana Basin is constrained to the Sakmarian. Consequently, the basal Gondwana sequence in the southern part of the basin should lie at the Carboniferous-Permian boundary, not within the Sakmarian as previously considered. The new results are significant for correlations between the Parana Basin and the Argentinian Paganzo Basin (302 +/- 6 Ma and 288 +/- 7 Ma) and with the Karoo Basin, specifically with the top of the Dwyka Tillite (302 +/- 3 Ma and 299.2 +/- 3.2 Ma) and the lowermost Ecca Group (288 +/- 3 Ma and 289.6 +/- 3.8 Ma). The evidence signifies widespread latest Carboniferous volcanic activity in western Gondwana. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Lower and Upper Neoproterozoic magmatic records in Itaiacoca Belt (Parana-Brazil): Zircon ages and lithostratigraphy studies

The Itaiacoca Belt is a sequence of metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks that crop out east of Parana and southeast of Sao Paulo states, in southern Brazil. This geologic-geochronologic study supports division of the Itaiacoca Belt into two major lithologic sequences. The older is a carbonate platform sequence (dolomitic meta-limestones/metamarls/calc-phyllites/ carbonate phyllites) with minimum deposition ages related to the end of the Mesoproterozoic/beginning of the Neoproterozoic (1030-908 Ma:U-Pb, zircon of metabasic rocks). The younger sequence contains mainly clastics deposits (meta-arkoses/metavolcanics/metaconglomerates/metapelites) with deposition ages related to the Neoproterozoic (645-628 Ma:U-Pb,zircon of metavolcanic rocks). These ages are quite close to K-Ar ages (fine fraction) of the 628-610 Ma interval, associated with metamorphism and cooling of the Itaiacoca Belt. The contact between the dolomitic meta-limestones and meta-arkoses is marked by intense stretching and high-angle foliation, suggesting that the discontinuity between these associations resulted from shearing. It is proposed here that the term Itaiacoca Sequence, should represent the dolomitic meta-limestones, and the term Abapa Sequence represents the meta-arkoses/metavolcanics/phyllites. in a major tectonic context, these periods are related to the break-up of Rodinia Supercontinent (1030-908 Ma) and the amalgamation of the Gondwana Supercontinent (645-628 Ma). (C) 2008 International Association for Gondwana Research. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lycopodiopsis derbyi Renault from the Corumbatai Formation in the state of Sao Paulo (Guadalupian of Parana Basin, Southern Brazil): New data from compressed silicified stems

Lycopodiopsis derbyi Renault was analyzed on the basis of compressed silicified stems from four Guadalupian outcrops of the Parana Basin (Corumbatai Formation) in the State of Sao Paulo, Southern Brazil. Dichotomous stems have been recorded, and three different branch regions related to apoxogenesis are described. The most proximal region has larger, clearly rhomboidal leaf cushions, with protruding upper edges; the intermediate transitional region also has rhombic leaf cushions, but they are smaller and less elongated than the lower in the same axis; finally, the most distal region reveals only incipient cushions, with inconspicuous infrafoliar bladders; interspersed microphylls were still attached. A well preserved branch representative of this most distal region was sectioned; it has a siphonostelic cylinder similar to that previously described for L derbyi. The cortex, however, shows new traits, such as a short portion of elongated cells between the periderm and the external cortex (or leaf cushion tissue). The stems were apparently silicified prior to their final burial but were probably not transported for long distances. Their final burial may have taken place during storm events, which were common during the deposition of the Corumbatai Formation. These stems are commonly deformed due to compression, mainly because the internal cortical portions rapidly decayed prior to silicification due to their thin-walled tissue, and are therefore not preserved. The common alkalinity of a shallow marine environment such as that in which the Corumbatai Formation was deposited, should mobilize the silica and favors petrifaction. Based on the new data, an emended diagnosis is proposed and a modification of the identification key published by Thomas and Meyen in 1984 for Upper Paleozoic Lycopsida is suggested. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Chondrichthyans from the base of the Irati Formation (Early Permian, Parana Basin), Sao Paulo, Brazil

Three species of chondrichthyans are reported from conglomeratic sandstone at the base of the Lower Permian (Artinskian) Irati Formation (Parana Basin) near Rio Claro, Sao Paulo State, Brazil. The fossils include: 1) dispersed teeth of the petalodont ltapyrodus punctatus Silva Santos 1990, first described from the Permian (Artinskian) Pedra do Fogo Formation, Parnaiba Basin, Northeast Brazil; 2) a new species of tooth of the Order Orodontiformes; and 3) a new species of finspine of the Order Ctenacanthiformes. These fossils occur in an allochthonous assemblage of vertebrate remains including other Chondrichthyes, Xenacanthiformes and cladodonts, paleonisciform bony fish, and tetrapods. This discovery is a significant contribution to the sparse record of South American Chondrichthyes from the Early Permian and raises questions regarding the paleoenvironmental adaptations among these fish within Paleozoic basins of Brazil at this time. (C) 2010 International Association for Gondwana Research. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The onset of flood basalt volcanism, Northern Parana Basin, Brazil: A precise U-Pb baddeleyite/zircon age for a Chapeco-type dacite

We report the first U-Pb baddeleyite/zircon date for a felsic volcanic rock from the Parana Large Igneous Province in south Brazil. The new date of 134.3 +/- 0.8 Ma for a hypocrystalline Chapeco-type dacite from Ourinhos (northern Parana basin) is an important regional time marker for the onset of flood basalt volcanism in the northern and western portion of the province. The dated dacite was erupted onto basement rocks and is overlain by a high-Ti basalt sequence, interpreted to be correlative with Pitanga basalts elsewhere. This new U-Pb date for the Ourinhos dacite is consistent with the local stratigraphy being slightly older than the few reliable step-heating (40)Ar/(39)Ar dates currently available for overlying high-Ti basalts (133.6-131.5 Ma). This indicates an similar to 3 Ma time span for the building of the voluminous high-Ti lava sequence of the Parana basin. On the other hand, it overlaps the (40)Ar/(39)Ar dates (134.8-134.1 Ma) available for the stratigraphically older low-Ti basalt (Gramado + Esmeralda types) and dacite-rhyolite (Palmas type) sequences from South Brazil, which is consistent with the short-lived character of this volcanism and its rapid succession by the high-Ti sequence. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Wettability, Shrinkage and Color Changes of Araucaria angustifolia After Heating Treatment

The effects of thermal treatment on the wettability and shrink resistance of Araucaria angustifolia (Parana pine) were studied from 20 to 200 °C. The contact angles of water droplets on untreated and heat-treated samples were measured by the sessile drop method in the grain of heartwood and sapwood cut in the radial, longitudinal, and tangential directions. A significant increase of the contact angles was verified for the samples from room temperature to 120 °C, in particular in the radial and tangential directions; at higher temperatures, the contact angles assumed almost constant values. From 120 to 200 °C, the sapwood of Araucaria angustifolia showed better dimensional stability and lower thermal resistance when compared to the heartwood. Variations of color were also studied by using the CIELab system, which showed to be capable of accurately distinguishing samples treated at different temperatures.

Diversidade, distribuição e abundância de flebotomíneos (Diptera: Psychodidae) no Paraná

Devido à crescente expansão da leishmaniose visceral americana (LVA) no Brasil, o presente estudo teve como objetivo identificar as espécies de flebotomíneos em áreas vulneráveis à transmissão dessa parasitose, bem como em outras sem qualquer informação sobre a presença desses dípteros no Paraná. As coletas de flebotomíneos foram realizadas em 46 localidades distribuídas em 37 municípios do Paraná, no período de março de 2004 a novembro de 2005. Em cada uma das localidades foram instaladas armadilhas de Falcão, durante três noites consecutivas, em vegetação natural e ambientes antrópicos (intra e peridomicílio). Ocasionalmente, foram instalas armadilhas de Shannon e feitas inspeções de paredes e aspiração em domicílio, peridomicílio e extradomicílio. O tratamento dos dados baseou-se na estimativa das freqüências e abundância das espécies, segundo cinco regiões de distintas paisagens originais. Coletaram-se 38.662 flebotomíneos de 23 espécies. Predominaram Nyssomyia neivai (Pinto) (75.6%), Ny. whitmani (Antunes & Coutinho) (10.1%), Migonemyia migonei (França) (7.8%), Expapillata firmatoi (Barreto et al.) (2.1%) and Pintomyia fischeri (Pinto) (1,6%); representando juntas 97,2% dos flebotomíneos coletados. Lutzomyia longipalpis (Lutz & Neiva) o principal vetor da LVA não foi encontrado. No entanto, capturou-se Lu. gaminarai (Cordero et al.), cujas fêmeas são morfologicamente semelhantes às de Lu. longipalpis. As espécies mais freqüentes e abundantes têm sido apontadas como vetores da leishmaniose tegumentar no Paraná e em outras áreas das Regiões Sudeste e Sul do Brasil. A presença de Lu. gaminarai no Paraná suscita a necessidade de estudos do seu comportamento, inclusive em relação à sua competência vetorial do agente da leishmaniose visceral.

Causas múltiplas de morte relacionadas às doenças cerebrovasculares no Estado do Paraná

OBJETIVO: Identificar as causas associadas de morte e o número de causas informadas nas declarações de óbito por doenças cerebrovasculares entre residentes no Estado do Paraná. MATERIAL E MÉTODOS: O banco de dados de mortalidade do ano de 2004 foi obtido do Sistema de Informação de Mortalidade disponível no endereço eletrônico do Datasus. A população escolhida foi separada pelo programa TabWin e as causas múltiplas foram processadas pelo programa Tabulador de Causas Múltiplas de Morte. RESULTADOS: O número médio de causas informadas foi de 2,92 para as mulheres e 2,97 para os homens. A maioria dos óbitos (74,8%) foi de pessoas com 65 anos ou mais de idade. Entre as causas associadas aos óbitos por doenças cerebrovasculares se destacaram as doenças do aparelho respiratório (37,9%), as doenças hipertensivas (37,5%) e os sintomas, sinais e achados anormais de exames clínicos e de laboratório (32,3%). CONSIDERAÇÕES FINAIS: Foi observada relativa melhora na qualidade dos dados de mortalidade em relação ao número de causas citadas. A hipertensão arterial como uma das principais causas associadas sugere a necessidade do seu controle no combate à mortalidade por doenças cerebrovasculares. Incentivos devem ser promovidos para estudos com causas múltiplas, para que se utilizem melhor informações tão importantes, que são desprezadas em estudos de mortalidade feitos somente com a causa básica de morte.

Study of the cardiac left atrioventricular valvar complex in water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) of the Jafarabadi breed

Atrioventricular valve complex of 30 Jafarabadi water buffaloes, adult males were studied in this research with no heart diseases. The animals were obtained from a slaughterhouse in Brazilian State of Parana. The hearts were opened at the third portion affording access to the valve complex. The complexes had its area, number and type of tendinous cords submitted to analysis. The results showed that the complex is composed by two cusps and four accessory cusps, two or three papillary muscles in which 10-25 tendinous cords fix on the cusps that face the ventricle wall. The total area of the complex was on average 38.56cm², with a minimum of 24.96cm² and a maximum of 55.54cm². Statistically, no relation between the number of cords and the cusps' area where they are inserted or with the number of papillary muscle where they originated from was observed.

A primeira planta cartográfica da cidade de São Paulo

The first known plan of the city of Sao Paulo, made in 1810 by Rufino Felizardo e Costa, is analyzed with emphasis on the cartographic and astronomical details: the precision, scale, magnetic declination, and orientation in relation to the north, the prime meridian, the precision of the coordinates (latitude and longitude) and others. An analytic methodology is followed, observing the plan and formulating questions. To answer then, resources of modern technologies are employed (digital cartography, GPS) as well as knowledge of the history of cartography. The work is justified by the fact that there are no cartographic studies about this important document.

FILTERING TECHNIQUES APPLIED ON RAW CARRIER PHASE FOR GPS DETECTING SMALL DYNAMIC DISPLACEMENTS

This work is part of a research under construction since 2000, in which the main objective is to measure small dynamic displacements by using L1 GPS receivers. A very sensible way to detect millimetric periodic displacements is based on the Phase Residual Method (PRM). This method is based on the frequency domain analysis of the phase residuals resulted from the L1 double difference static data processing of two satellites in almost orthogonal elevation angle. In this article, it is proposed to obtain the phase residuals directly from the raw phase observable collected in a short baseline during a limited time span, in lieu of obtaining the residual data file from regular GPS processing programs which not always allow the choice of the aimed satellites. In order to improve the ability to detect millimetric oscillations, two filtering techniques are introduced. One is auto-correlation which reduces the phase noise with random time behavior. The other is the running mean to separate low frequency from the high frequency phase sources. Two trials have been carried out to verify the proposed method and filtering techniques. One simulates a 2.5 millimeter vertical antenna displacement and the second uses the GPS data collected during a bridge load test. The results have shown a good consistency to detect millimetric oscillations.

New Species of Eugenia sect. Racemosae (Myrtaceae) from the Atlantic Forest, Eastern Brazil

Morphological characters support the description of four new species of Eugenia L sect. Racemosae O. Berg (Myrtaceae) from Brazilian Atlantic Forest. The new species are described, illustrated, and compared with putatively related species. They are: E. brunneopubescens Mazine from Parana, E. capixaba Mazine from Espirito San to, E. costatifructa Mazine from Bahia and Sergipe, and E. longibracteata Mazine from Sao Paulo.

Environmental isolation of black yeast-like fungi involved in human infection

The present study focuses on potential agents of chromoblastomycosis and other endemic diseases in the state of Parana, Southern Brazil. Using a highly selective protocol for chaetothyrialean black yeasts and relatives, environmental samples from the living area of symptomatic patients were analysed. Additional strains were isolated from creosote-treated wood and hydrocarbon-polluted environments, as such polluted sites have been supposed to enhance black yeast prevalence. Isolates showed morphologies compatible with the traditional etiological agents of chromoblastomycosis, e.g. Fonsecaea pedrosoi and Phialophora verrucosa, and of agents of subcutaneous or systemic infections like Cladophialophora bantiana and Exophiala jeanselmei. Some agents of mild disease were indeed encountered. However, molecular analysis proved that most environmental strains differed from known etiologic agents of pronounced disease syndromes: they belonged to the same order, but mostly were undescribed species. Agents of chromoblastomycosis and systemic disease thus far are prevalent on the human host. The hydrocarbon-polluted environments yielded yet another spectrum of chaetothyrialean fungi. These observations are of great relevance because they allow us to distinguish between categories of opportunists, indicating possible differences in pathogenicity and virulence.

Genetic variability of the Amazon River prawn Macrobrachium amazonicum (Decapoda, Caridea, Palaemonidae)

The freshwater prawn Macrobrachium amazonicum is widely distributed in South America, and occupies habitats with a wide range of salinities. Several investigations have revealed the existence of wide intraspecific variability among different populations, although the understanding of this variability is still fragmentary and incomplete. We compared and characterized inland and coastal populations of M. amazonicum from Brazil, using molecular data (16S and COI mtDNA) to describe the degree of variability, structure, and relationships among them. Genetic divergence rates among populations showed variability at the intraspecific level. All the analyses evidenced significant genetic divergence among populations, structuring them in three groups: I-inland waters of the Amazonian Hydrographic Region (HR); II-Parana/Paraguay HR; and III-coastal systems of northern and northeastern Brazil. Phylogenetic reconstructions revealed that the populations form a single monophyletic clade, which supports their characterization as a single species. Clade I was a sister clade of that formed by clades II and III, which were themselves sister clades. Populations from Sertaozinho/Miguelopolis and Avare, introduced into the state of Sao Paulo, may have originated from natural populations in the states of Mato Grosso do Sul and Para, respectively. Geographical isolation probably contributed to the observed variation, and if this isolation continues. M. amazonicum may undergo speciation within its broad geographical distribution. The sequences obtained here can be used as name-tags for population identification, and the DNA barcodes are useful to identify the origin of specimens used in different freshwater-prawn cultures or introduced populations of unknown origin.