Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat, sliced, cooked ham and salami products, marketed in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil Occurrence, quantification, and serotyping

The preference for ready-to-eat sliced foods may pose an increased risk for food-borne diseases and a major concern is the presence of Listeria monocytogenes L monocytogenes was assessed in two types of products cooked ham and salami One hundred and thirty samples of each product were acquired in retail shops in the city of Sao Paulo and submitted to laboratory analysis The rate of positives was significantly higher in salami samples than in ham samples (62% and 0 8% respectively) L. monocytogenes counts in salami samples varied between <10 and 1900 colony-forming units per gram (CFU/g) The serotypes found in both products were as follows according to incidence 4b (37 5%) 1/2b (25%) 3b (25%) and 1/2c (12 5%) Based on the results of the present study the authors suggest that the risk of listeriosis resulting from the consumption of salami is higher than that associated with the consumption of cooked ham (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved

Body image dissatisfaction and eating symptoms in mothers of adolescents with eating disorders

The purpose of the present study was to assess body dissatisfaction and eating symptoms in mothers of eating disorder (ED) female patients and to compare results with those of a control group. The case group consisted of 35 mothers of female adolescents (aged between 10 and 17 yrs) diagnosed with ED who attended the Interdisciplinary Project for Care, Teaching and Research on Eating Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence (PROTAD) at Clinicas Hospital Institute of Psychiatry of the Universidade de Sao Paulo Medical School. Demographic and socioeconomic data were collected. Eating symptoms were assessed using the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) and body image was assessed by the Body Image Questionnaire (BSQ) and Stunkard Figure Rating Scale (FRS). The case group was compared to a control group consisting of 35 mothers of female adolescents (between 10 and 17 years) who attended a private school in the city of Sao Paulo, southeastern Brazil. With regard to EAT, BSQ and FRS scores, we found no statistically significant differences between the two groups. However, we found a positive correlation between BMI and BSQ scores in the control group (but not in the case group) and a positive correlation between EAT and FRS scores in the case group (but not in the control group). It appears to be advantageous to assess body image by combining more than one scale to evaluate additional components of the construct. (Eating Weight Disord. 15: e219-e225, 2010). (C)2010, Editrice Kurtis

Geophysical investigation using resistivity and GPR methods: a case study of a lubricant oil waste disposal area in the city of Ribeiro Preto, So Paulo, Brazil

Geophysics has been shown to be effective in identifying areas contaminated by waste disposal, contributing to the greater efficiency of soundings programs and the installation of monitoring wells. In the study area, four trenches were constructed with a total volume of about 25,000 m(3). They were almost totally filled with re-refined lubricating oil waste for approximately 25 years. No protection liners were used in the bottoms and laterals of the disposal trenches. The purpose of this work is to evaluate the potential of the resistivity and ground penetrating radar (GPR) methods in characterizing the contamination of this lubricant oil waste disposal area in Ribeiro Preto, SP, situated on the geological domain of the basalt spills of the Serra Geral Formation and the sandstones of the Botucatu Formation. Geophysical results were shown in 2D profiles. The geophysical methods used enabled the identification of geophysical anomalies, which characterized the contamination produced by the trenches filled with lubricant oil waste. Conductive anomalies (smaller than 185 Omega m) immediately below the trenches suggest the action of bacteria in the hydrocarbons, as has been observed in several sites contaminated by hydrocarbons in previously reported cases in the literature. It was also possible to define the geometry of the trenches, as evidenced by the GPR method. Direct sampling (chemical analysis of the soil and the water in the monitoring well) confirmed the contamination. In the soil analysis, low concentrations of several polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were found, mainly naphthalene and phenanthrene. In the water samples, an analysis verified contamination of the groundwater by lead (Pb). The geophysical methods used in the investigation provided an excellent tool for environmental characterization in this study of a lubricant oil waste disposal area, and could be applied in the study of similar areas.

EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY IN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE, CONSERVATION, AND POLICY: A CALL TO ACTION

Evolutionary biologists have long endeavored to document how many species exist on Earth, to understand the processes by which biodiversity waxes and wanes, to document and interpret spatial patterns of biodiversity, and to infer evolutionary relationships. Despite the great potential of this knowledge to improve biodiversity science, conservation, and policy, evolutionary biologists have generally devoted limited attention to these broader implications. Likewise, many workers in biodiversity science have underappreciated the fundamental relevance of evolutionary biology. The aim of this article is to summarize and illustrate some ways in which evolutionary biology is directly relevant We do so in the context of four broad areas: (1) discovering and documenting biodiversity, (2) understanding the causes of diversification, (3) evaluating evolutionary responses to human disturbances, and (4) implications for ecological communities, ecosystems, and humans We also introduce bioGENESIS, a new project within DIVERSITAS launched to explore the potential practical contributions of evolutionary biology In addition to fostering the integration of evolutionary thinking into biodiversity science, bioGENESIS provides practical recommendations to policy makers for incorporating evolutionary perspectives into biodiversity agendas and conservation. We solicit your involvement in developing innovative ways of using evolutionary biology to better comprehend and stem the loss of biodiversity.

Seroprevalence of anti-Leishmania spp. antibodies in rural dogs from the city of Monte Negro, State of Rondonia, Brazil

The present study assessed the prevalence of anti-Leishmania spp antibodies in dogs from the city of Monte Negro, State of Rondonia, Brazil ELISA (NE >= 3) and IFAT (>= 1 40) were used to evaluate 161 serum samples collected from rural dogs from Monte Negro Forty-five (27 9%) dogs were positive by ELISA tests and five (3 1%) were positive by IFAT The present study showed for the first time the frequency of exposure to Leishmania spp in dogs in the State of Rondonia, Amazon Region

Formalization of an architectural model for exception handling coordination based on CA action concepts

Architectures based on Coordinated Atomic action (CA action) concepts have been used to build concurrent fault-tolerant systems. This conceptual model combines concurrent exception handling with action nesting to provide a general mechanism for both enclosing interactions among system components and coordinating forward error recovery measures. This article presents an architectural model to guide the formal specification of concurrent fault-tolerant systems. This architecture provides built-in Communicating Sequential Processes (CSPs) and predefined channels to coordinate exception handling of the user-defined components. Hence some safety properties concerning action scoping and concurrent exception handling can be proved by using the FDR (Failure Divergence Refinement) verification tool. As a result, a formal and general architecture supporting software fault tolerance is ready to be used and proved as users define components with normal and exceptional behaviors. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.