Balanoposthitis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa co-producing metallo-beta-lactamase and 16S rRNA methylase in children with hematological malignancies

Balanoposthitis is defined as the inflammation of the glans penis and its foreskin. In the presence of other underlying medical conditions, this localized infection may spread systemically, serving as a source of fever and bacteremia in neutropenic males. Two rare cases of balanoposthitis caused by a clonally related Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolate co-producing the SPM-1 metallo-beta-lactamase and the novel 16S rRNA methylase RmtD are described. Four multidrug-resistant (MDR) P. aeruginosa isolates were successively recovered from glans/foreskin swabs and urine cultures from two uncircumcised pediatric patients, one with Burkitt`s non-Hodgkin`s lymphoma and one with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Clinically, preputial colonization by MDR P. aeruginosa evolved to severe balanoposthitis with glans/foreskin lesions as a source of fever. Combination therapy of ciprofloxacin and/or aztreonam (systemic) plus polymyxin B (topical) was effective once reversion of the neutropenic condition was achieved. Although P. aeruginosa remains an unusual cause of balanoposthitis, these cases should alert the physician to the potential pathogenicity of this bacterium. Furthermore, co-production of metallo-beta-lactamase and 16S rRNA methylase has a potential impact on the empirical management of complicated infections caused by P. aeruginosa. Crown Copyright (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases. All rights reserved.

Highly Toxic Microcystis aeruginosa Strain, Isolated from So Paulo-Brazil, Produce Hepatotoxins and Paralytic Shellfish Poison Neurotoxins

While evaluating several laboratory-cultured cyanobacteria strains for the presence of paralytic shellfish poison neurotoxins, the hydrophilic extract of Microcystis aeruginosa strain SPC777-isolated from Billings`s reservoir, So Paulo, Brazil-was found to exhibit lethal neurotoxic effect in mouse bioassay. The in vivo test showed symptoms that unambiguously were those produced by PSP. In order to identify the presence of neurotoxins, cells were lyophilized, and the extracts were analyzed by HPLC-FLD and HPLC-MS. HPLC-FLD analysis revealed four main Gonyautoxins: GTX4(47.6%), GTX2(29.5%), GTX1(21.9%), and GTX3(1.0%). HPLC-MS analysis, on other hand, confirmed both epimers, with positive Zwitterions M(+) 395.9 m/z for GTX3/GTX2 and M(+) 411 m/z for GTX4/GTX1 epimers. The hepatotoxins (Microcystins) were also evaluated by ELISA and HPLC-MS analyses. Positive immunoreaction was observed by ELISA assay. Alongside, the HPLC-MS analyses revealed the presence of [l-ser(7)] MCYST-RR. The N-methyltransferase (NMT) domain of the microcystin synthetase gene mcyA was chosen as the target sequence to detect the presence of the mcy gene cluster. PCR amplification of the NMT domain, using the genomic DNA of the SPC777 strain and the MSF/MSR primer set, resulted in the expected 1,369 bp product. The phylogenetic analyses grouped the NMT sequence with the NMT sequences of other known Microcystis with high bootstrap support. The taxonomical position of M. aeruginosa SPC777 was confirmed by a detailed morphological description and a phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequence. Therefore, co-production of PSP neurotoxins and microcystins by an isolated M. aeruginosa strain is hereby reported for the first time.

Tabasco pepper production with CO(2) application using drip irrigation

Tabasco pepper production with CO(2) application using drip irrigation. Application of CO(2) through water reduces the soil solution pH, causing variations in nutrient mobility and consequent effects on the absorption. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of carbon dioxide rates supplied by drip irrigation in the production of Capsicum frutescens L. crop. A randomized block design with four treatments and eight replications was used. The treatments were four rates of CO(2): 0 (T1), 451.95 (T2); 677.93 (T3) and 903.92 (T4) kg ha(-1). The fruits were counted and weighed; the length and the diameter were obtained from an average of 20 fruits per plant, randomly taken, from each treatment in the plot. The quadratic effect (p < 0.01) occurred for CO(2) on the yield and there was quadratic effect (p < 0.05) of the rates on the number of fruits. There were no effects of CO(2) rates on the green matter, dry matter and fruit length and diameter. The T2 treatment provided greater yield and higher number of fruits per plant with an increase of 16 and 26%, respectively in relation to T1 (without CO(2)). CO(2) application favored the increase in the yield because of the greater number of fruits per plant in the Tabasco pepper crop.

Production of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) P(3HB-co-3HV) with a broad range of 3HV content at high yields by Burkholderia sacchari IPT 189

The biosynthesis of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) from sucrose and propionic acid by Burkholderia sacchari IPT 189 was studied using a two-stage bioreactor process. In the first stage, this bacterium was cultivated in a balanced culture medium until sucrose exhaustion. In the second stage, a solution containing sucrose and propionic acid as carbon source was fed to the bioreactor at various sucrose/propionic acid (s/p) ratios at a constant specific flow rate. Copolymers with 3HV content ranging from 40 down to 6.5 (mol%) were obtained with 3HV yield from propionic acid (Y-3HV/prop) increasing from 1.10 to 1.34 g g(-1). Copolymer productivity of 1 g l(-1) h(-1) was obtained with polymer biomass content rising up to 60% by increasing a specific flow rate at a constant s/p ratio. Increasing values of 3HV content were obtained by varying the s/p ratios. A simulation of production costs considering Y-3HV/prop obtained in the present work indicated that a reduction of up to 73% can be reached, approximating US$ 1.00 per kg which is closer to the value to produce P3HB from sucrose (US$ 0.75 per kg).

Co/Al2O3 catalysts promoted with noble metals for production of hydrogen by methane steam reforming

The effect of noble metal addition on the catalytic properties of Co/Al2O3 was evaluated for the steam reforming of methane. Co/Al2O3 catalysts were prepared with addition of different noble metals (Pt, Pd, Ru and Ir 0.3 wt.%) by a wetness impregnation method and characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, temperature programmed reduction (TPR) and temperature programmed oxidation (TPO) of the reduced catalysts. The UV-vis spectra of the samples indicate that, most likely, large amounts of the supported cobalt form Co species in which cobalt is in octahedral and tetrahedral symmetries. No peaks assigned to cobalt species from aluminate were found for the promoted and unpromoted cobalt catalysts. TPO analyses showed that the addition of the noble metals on the Co/Al2O3 catalyst leads to a more stable metallic state and less susceptible to the deactivation process during the reforming reaction. The Co/Al2O3 promoted with Pt showed higher stability and selectivity for H(2)production during the methane steam reforming. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Production of hydrogen by ethanol steam reforming on Co/Al2O3 catalysts: Effect of addition of small quantities of noble metals

The catalytic performance of Co/Al2O3 catalysts promoted with small amounts noble metals (Pt, Pd, Ru, Ir) for steam reforming of ethanol (SRE) has been investigated. The catalysts were characterized by the energy dispersive X-ray, X-ray diffraction, BET surface area, X-ray absorption fine structure and temperature reduction programmed techniques. The results showed that the promoting effect of noble metals included a marked decrease of the reduction temperatures of both Co3O4 and cobalt surface species interacting with the support due to the hydrogen spillover effect, leading to a significant increase of the reducibilities of the promoted catalysts. The better catalytic performance for the ethanol steam reforming at 400 degrees C was obtained for the CoRu/Al2O3 catalyst, which presented an effluent gaseous mixture with the highest H, selectivity and the reasonable low CO formation. (C) 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Impact of Manaus City on the Amazon Green Ocean atmosphere: ozone production, precursor sensitivity and aerosol load

As a contribution to the Large-Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia - Cooperative LBA Airborne Regional Experiment (LBA-CLAIRE-2001) field campaign in the heart of the Amazon Basin, we analyzed the temporal and spatial dynamics of the urban plume of Manaus City during the wet-to-dry season transition period in July 2001. During the flights, we performed vertical stacks of crosswind transects in the urban outflow downwind of Manaus City, measuring a comprehensive set of trace constituents including O(3), NO, NO(2), CO, VOC, CO(2), and H(2)O. Aerosol loads were characterized by concentrations of total aerosol number (CN) and cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), and by light scattering properties. Measurements over pristine rainforest areas during the campaign showed low levels of pollution from biomass burning or industrial emissions, representative of wet season background conditions. The urban plume of Manaus City was found to be joined by plumes from power plants south of the city, all showing evidence of very strong photochemical ozone formation. One episode is discussed in detail, where a threefold increase in ozone mixing ratios within the atmospheric boundary layer occurred within a 100 km travel distance downwind of Manaus. Observation-based estimates of the ozone production rates in the plume reached 15 ppb h(-1). Within the plume core, aerosol concentrations were strongly enhanced, with Delta CN/Delta CO ratios about one order of magnitude higher than observed in Amazon biomass burning plumes. Delta CN/Delta CO ratios tended to decrease with increasing transport time, indicative of a significant reduction in particle number by coagulation, and without substantial new particle nucleation occurring within the time/space observed. While in the background atmosphere a large fraction of the total particle number served as CCN (about 60-80% at 0.6% supersaturation), the CCN/CN ratios within the plume indicated that only a small fraction (16 +/- 12 %) of the plume particles were CCN. The fresh plume aerosols showed relatively weak light scattering efficiency. The CO-normalized CCN concentrations and light scattering coefficients increased with plume age in most cases, suggesting particle growth by condensation of soluble organic or inorganic species. We used a Single Column Chemistry and Transport Model (SCM) to infer the urban pollution emission fluxes of Manaus City, implying observed mixing ratios of CO, NO(x) and VOC. The model can reproduce the temporal/spatial distribution of ozone enhancements in the Manaus plume, both with and without accounting for the distinct (high NO(x)) contribution by the power plants; this way examining the sensitivity of ozone production to changes in the emission rates of NO(x). The VOC reactivity in the Manaus region was dominated by a high burden of biogenic isoprene from the background rainforest atmosphere, and therefore NO(x) control is assumed to be the most effective ozone abatement strategy. Both observations and models show that the agglomeration of NO(x) emission sources, like power plants, in a well-arranged area can decrease the ozone production efficiency in the near field of the urban populated cores. But on the other hand remote areas downwind of the city then bear the brunt, being exposed to increased ozone production and N-deposition. The simulated maximum stomatal ozone uptake fluxes were 4 nmol m(-2) s(-1) close to Manaus, and decreased only to about 2 nmol m(-2) s(-1) within a travel distance >1500 km downwind from Manaus, clearly exceeding the critical threshold level for broadleaf trees. Likewise, the simulated N deposition close to Manaus was similar to 70 kg N ha(-1) a(-1) decreasing only to about 30 kg N ha(-1) a(-1) after three days of simulation.

High density flux of Co nanoparticles produced by a simple gas aggregation apparatus

Gas aggregation is a well known method used to produce clusters of different materials with good size control, reduced dispersion, and precise stoichiometry. The cost of these systems is relatively high and they are generally dedicated apparatuses. Furthermore, the usual sample production speed of these systems is not as fast as physical vapor deposition devices posing a problem when thick samples are needed. In this paper we describe the development of a multipurpose gas aggregation system constructed as an adaptation to a magnetron sputtering system. The cost of this adaptation is negligible and its installation and operation are both remarkably simple. The gas flow for flux in the range of 60-130 SCCM (SCCM denotes cubic centimeter per minute at STP) is able to completely collimate all the sputtered material, producing spherical nanoparticles. Co nanoparticles were produced and characterized using electron microscopy techniques and Rutherford back-scattering analysis. The size of the particles is around 10 nm with around 75 nm/min of deposition rate at the center of a Gaussian profile nanoparticle beam.

Do plant species influence soil CO(2) and N(2)O fluxes in a diverse tropical forest?

To test whether plant species influence greenhouse gas production in diverse ecosystems, we measured wet season soil CO(2) and N(2)O fluxes close to similar to 300 large (>35 cm in diameter at breast height (DBH)) trees of 15 species at three clay-rich forest sites in central Amazonia. We found that soil CO(2) fluxes were 38% higher near large trees than at control sites >10 m away from any tree (P < 0.0001). After adjusting for large tree presence, a multiple linear regression of soil temperature, bulk density, and liana DBH explained 19% of remaining CO(2) flux variability. Soil N(2)O fluxes adjacent to Caryocar villosum, Lecythis lurida, Schefflera morototoni, and Manilkara huberi were 84%-196% greater than Erisma uncinatum and Vochysia maxima, both Vochysiaceae. Tree species identity was the most important explanatory factor for N(2)O fluxes, accounting for more than twice the N(2)O flux variability as all other factors combined. Two observations suggest a mechanism for this finding: (1) sugar addition increased N(2)O fluxes near C. villosum twice as much (P < 0.05) as near Vochysiaceae and (2) species mean N(2)O fluxes were strongly negatively correlated with tree growth rate (P = 0.002). These observations imply that through enhanced belowground carbon allocation liana and tree species can stimulate soil CO(2) and N(2)O fluxes (by enhancing denitrification when carbon limits microbial metabolism). Alternatively, low N(2)O fluxes potentially result from strong competition of tree species with microbes for nutrients. Species-specific patterns in CO(2) and N(2)O fluxes demonstrate that plant species can influence soil biogeochemical processes in a diverse tropical forest.

Net greenhouse gas fluxes in Brazilian ethanol production systems

Biofuels are both a promising solution to global warming mitigation and a potential contributor to the problem. Several life cycle assessments of bioethanol have been conducted to address these questions. We performed a synthesis of the available data on Brazilian ethanol production focusing on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and carbon (C) sinks in the agricultural and industrial phases. Emissions of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) from fossil fuels, methane (CH(4)) and nitrous oxide (N(2)O) from sources commonly included in C footprints, such as fossil fuel usage, biomass burning, nitrogen fertilizer application, liming and litter decomposition were accounted for. In addition, black carbon (BC) emissions from burning biomass and soil C sequestration were included in the balance. Most of the annual emissions per hectare are in the agricultural phase, both in the burned system (2209 out of a total of 2398 kg C(eq)), and in the unburned system (559 out of 748 kg C(eq)). Although nitrogen fertilizer emissions are large, 111 kg C(eq) ha-1 yr-1, the largest single source of emissions is biomass burning in the manual harvest system, with a large amount of both GHG (196 kg C(eq) ha-1 yr-1). and BC (1536 kg C(eq) ha-1 yr-1). Besides avoiding emissions from biomass burning, harvesting sugarcane mechanically without burning tends to increase soil C stocks, providing a C sink of 1500 kg C ha-1 yr-1 in the 30 cm layer. The data show a C output: input ratio of 1.4 for ethanol produced under the conventionally burned and manual harvest compared with 6.5 for the mechanized harvest without burning, signifying the importance of conservation agricultural systems in bioethanol feedstock production.

Bidimensional codes recorded on an oxide glass surface using a continuous wave CO(2) laser

Surface heat treatment in glasses and ceramics, using CO(2) lasers, has attracted the attention of several researchers around the world due to its impact in technological applications, such as lab-on-a-chip devices, diffraction gratings and microlenses. Microlens fabrication on a glass surface has been studied mainly due to its importance in optical devices (fiber coupling, CCD signal enhancement, etc). The goal of this work is to present a systematic study of the conditions for microlens fabrications, along with the viability of using microlens arrays, recorded on the glass surface, as bidimensional codes for product identification. This would allow the production of codes without any residues (like the fine powder generated by laser ablation) and resistance to an aggressive environment, such as sterilization processes. The microlens arrays were fabricated using a continuous wave CO(2) laser, focused on the surface of flat commercial soda-lime silicate glass substrates. The fabrication conditions were studied based on laser power, heating time and microlens profiles. A He-Ne laser was used as a light source in a qualitative experiment to test the viability of using the microlenses as bidimensional codes.

Anaerobic fluidized bed reactor with expanded clay as support for hydrogen production through dark fermentation of glucose

This study evaluated hydrogen production in an anaerobic fluidized bed reactor (AFBR) fed with glucose-based synthetic wastewater. Particles of expanded clay (2.8-3.35 mm) were used as a support material for biomass immobilization. The reactor was operated with hydraulic retention times (HRT) ranging from 8 to 1 h. The hydrogen yield production increased from 1.41 to 2.49 mol H(2) Mol(-1) glucose as HRT decreased from 8 to 2 h. However, when HRT was 1 h, there was a slight decrease to 2.41 mol H(2) Mol(-1) glucose. The biogas produced was composed of H(2) and CO(2), and the H(2) content increased from 8% to 35% as HRT decreased. The major soluble metabolites during H(2) fermentation were acetic acid (HAc) and butyric acid (HBu), accounting for 36.1-53.3% and 37.7-44.9% of total soluble metabolites, respectively. Overall, the results demonstrate the potential of using expanded clay as support material for hydrogen production in AFBRs. (c) 2008 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Equivalent Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage Processes in Offshore Petroleum Production Facilities

The present study approaches the economic and technical evaluation of equivalent carbon dioxide (CO(2) eqv.) capture and storage processes, considered in a proposal case compared to a base case. The base case considers an offshore petroleum production facility, with high CO(2) content (4 vol%) in the composition of the produced gas and both CO(2) and natural gas emissions to the atmosphere, called CO(2) eqv. emissions. The results obtained with this study, by using a Hysys process simulator, showed a CO(2) emission reduction of 65% comparing the proposal case in relation to the base case.

Production and characterization of RF-sputtered PbO-GeO(2) amorphous thin films containing silver and gold nanoparticles

In the present work we report the characterization of PbO-GeO(2) films containing silver nanoparticles (NPs). Radio Frequency (RF) co-sputtering was used for deposition of amorphous films on glass substrates. Targets of 60PbO-40GeO(2) (in wt%) and bulk silver with purity of 99.99% were RF-sputtered using 3.5 m Torr of argon. The concentration of silver and gold NPs in the films was controlled varying the RF-power applied to the targets (40-50W for the PbO-GeO(2) target; 6-8 W for the metallic target). The films obtained were annealed in air at different temperatures and various periods of time. Absorption measurements have shown strong NPs surface plasmon bands. Different widths and peak wavelengths were observed, indicating that size, shape and distribution of the silver NPs are dependent on the deposition process parameters and on the annealing of the samples. X-Ray Fluorescence and Transmission Electron Microscopy were also used to characterize the samples. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Wood CO(2) efflux and foliar respiration for Eucalyptus in Hawaii and Brazil

We measured CO(2) efflux from wood for Eucalyptus in Hawaii for 7 years and compared these measurements with those on three-and four-and-a-half-year-old Eucalyptus in Brazil. In Hawaii, CO(2) efflux from wood per unit biomass declined similar to 10x from age two to age five, twice as much as the decline in tree growth. The CO(2) efflux from wood in Brazil was 8-10x lower than that for comparable Hawaii trees with similar growth rates. Growth and maintenance respiration coefficients calculated from Hawaii wood CO(2) efflux declined with tree age and size (the growth coefficient declined from 0.4 mol C efflux mol C(-1) wood growth at age one to 0.1 mol C efflux mol C(-1) wood growth at age six; the maintenance coefficient from 0.006 to 0.001 mu mol C (mol C biomass)(-1) s(-1) at 20 degrees C over the same time period). These results suggest interference with CO(2) efflux through bark that decouples CO(2) efflux from respiration. We also compared the biomass fractions and wood CO(2) efflux for the aboveground woody parts for 3- and 7-year-old trees in Hawaii to estimate how focusing measurements near the ground might bias the stand-level estimates of wood CO(2) efflux. Three-year-old Eucalyptus in Hawaii had a higher proportion of branches < 0.5 cm in diameter and a lower proportion of stem biomass than did 7-year-old trees. Biomass-specific CO(2) efflux measured at 1.4 m extrapolated to the tree could bias tree level estimates by similar to 50%, assuming no refixation from bark photosynthesis. However, the bias did not differ for the two tree sizes. Foliar respiration was identical per unit nitrogen for comparable treatments in Brazil and Hawaii (4.2 mu mol C mol N(-1) s(-1) at 20 degrees C).