Fluoride Intake from Meals Served in Daycare Centres in Municipalities with Different Fluoride Concentrations in the Water Supply

Purpose: The aim of this study was (1) to determine the fluoride content in the meals served to children aged up to 36 months in daycare centres of two municipalities with different levels of fluoride in the water supply, (2) to calculate the mean fluoride ingested daily by the children when consuming those meals and (3) to analyse the contribution of this consumption to the development of dental fluorosisMaterials and Methods: Samples of the meals served to the children were collected during a whole week. The fluoride content of the samples of solid foods and milk was analysed using an ion-specific electrode combined with reference electrode after diffusion facilitated by hexamethyldisiloxane Samples of beverages were buffered with an equal volume of total ionic strength adjustment buffer and analysed using a combined electrode. The results were compared using the Mann Whitney testResults: Mean fluoride contents of the meals were of 0.204 +/- 0 179 and 0.322 +/- 0.242 mu g F/mL (P < 0.05), respectively, in the municipalities with low and adequate fluoride content. Daily fluoride intake in the former was 0.013 +/- 0.003 mg/kg body weight/day and in the latter was 0.012 +/- 0 001 mg/kg body weight/day (P > 0 05)Conclusions: The children were not exposed to dental fluorosis in the daycare centres However, the risk cannot be ignored, considering the meals and the use of fluoridated dentifrices at home may also contribute to fluoride intake.

Repair of critical-size defects with autogenous periosteum-derived cells combined with bovine anorganic apatite/collagen: an experimental study in rat calvaria

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Variabilidade espacial da densidade do solo sob manejo da irrigação

Este trabalho foi desenvolvido em um solo aluvial na Estação Experimental da Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA) Algodão, município de Souza, Estado da Paraíba, Brasil, com o objetivo de estudar a variabilidade espacial da densidade do solo. A área tem uma superfície cultivada de 17 ha e os testes de campo foram feitos em 40 pontos amostrais, locados na linha central longitudinal de cada parcela agrícola, eqüidistante de 50 m. Na determinação da densidade do solo, foi utilizado o método do anel volumétrico, em amostras com estrutura indeformada para as profundidades de 0-30, 30-60 e 60-90 cm. A variabilidade espacial foi determinada pela técnica de estatística clássica e da geoestatística. Na análise estatística clássica, a densidade do solo para as três profundidades apresentou baixos valores de desvio-padrão e coeficiente de variação, indicando pouca variação da densidade do solo com aumento da profundidade. A densidade do solo manifestou estrutura de dependência espacial, modelada por meio de semivariogramas, os quais permitiram a interpolação por Krigagem, apresentando estrutura esférica nas profundidades de 0-30 e 60-90 cm, com alcance de 46 m e estrutura exponencial com alcance de 255,10 m para a profundidade 30-60 cm.

Plasma rico em plaquetas no tratamento de lesões condrais articulares induzidas experimentalmente em equinos: avaliação clínica, macroscópica, histológica e histoquímica

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Chromosome Evolution in African Cichlid Fish: Contributions from the Physical Mapping of Repeated DNAs

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Structural bioinformatics study of PNP from Schistosoma mansoni

The parasite Schistosoma mansoni lacks the de novo pathway for purine biosynthesis and depends on salvage pathways for its purine requirements. Schistosomiasis is endemic in 76 countries and territories and amongst the parasitic diseases ranks second after malaria in terms of social and economic impact and public health importance. The PNP is an attractive target for drug design and it has been submitted to extensive structure-based design. The atomic coordinates of the complex of human PNP with inosine were used as template for starting the modeling of PNP from S. mansoni complexed with inosine. Here we describe the model for the complex SmPNP-inosine and correlate the structure with differences in the affinity for inosine presented by human and S. mansoni PNPs. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Vascular flora of Serra do Japi Biological Reserve, Jundiaí, southeastern Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Occurrence and behavior of butyltins in intertidal and shallow subtidal surface sediments of an estuarine beach under different sampling conditions

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Effect of modified clays on the structure and functional properties of biofilms produced with zein

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Activation of Ca2+-independent membrane-damaging activity in Lys49-phospholipase A(2) promoted by amphiphilic molecules

Association of class-II phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2)) with aggregated phospholipid substrate results in elevated levels of the Ca2+-dependent hydrolytic activity. The Asp49 residue participates in coordination of the Ca2+ ion cofactor, however, in Lys49-PLA(2) homologues (Lys49-PLA(2)S), substitution of the Asp49 by Lys results in loss of Ca2+ binding and lack of detectable phospholipid hydrolysis. Nevertheless, Lys49-PLA2S cause Ca2+-independent damage of liposome membranes. Bothropstoxin-I is a homodimeric Lys49-PLA(2) from the venom of Bothrops jararacussu, and in fluorescent marker release and dynamic light scattering experiments with DPPC liposomes we demonstrate activation of the Ca2+-independent membrane damaging activity by similar to4 molecules of sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) per protein monomer. Activation is accomparlied by significant changes in the intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence emission (ITFE) and near UV circular dichroism (UVCD) spectra of the protein. Subsequent binding of 7-10 SDS molecules results in further alterations in the ITFE and far UVCD spectra. Reduction in the rate of N-bromosuccinimide modification of Trp77 at the dimer interface suggests that initial binding of SDS to this region accompanies the activation of the membrane damaging activity. 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulphonic acid binding studies indicate that subsequent SDS binding to the active site is concomitant with the second structural transition. These results provide insights in the structural basis of amphiphile/protein coupling in class-II PLA(2)s. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Extruded vesicles of dioctadecyldimethylammonium bromide and chloride investigated by light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy

Combined dynamic and static light scattering (DLS, SLS) and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) were used to investigate extruded cationic vesicles of dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride and bromide (DODAX, X being Cl- or Br-). In salt-free dispersions the mean hydrodynamic diameter, D-h, and the weight average molecular weight, M-w, are larger for DODAB than for DODAC vesicles, and both D-h and M-w increase with the diameter (phi) of the extrusion filter. NaCl (NaBr) decreases (increases) the DODAB (DODAC) vesicle size, reflecting the general trend of DODAB to assemble as larger vesicles than DODAC. The polydispersity index is lower than 0.25, indicating the dispersions are rather polydisperse. Cryo-TEM micrographs show that the smaller vesicles are spherical while the larger ones are oblong or faceted, and the vesicle samples are fairly polydisperse in size and morphology. They also indicate that the vesicle size increases with phi and DODAB assembles as larger vesicles than DODAC. Lens-shaped vesicles were observed in the extruded preparations. Both light scattering and cryo-TEM indicate that the vesicle size is larger or smaller than phi when phi is smaller or larger than the optimal phi* approximate to 200 nm. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Implicit differential equations with impasse singularities and singular perturbation problems

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Ácaros (Arachnida: Acari) associados a Bauhinia variegata L. (Leguminosae) no noroeste do Estado de São Paulo

Foi estudada a acarofauna associada a Bauhinia variegata L., espécie introduzida no Brasil como ornamental. Dois exemplares dessa planta foram amostrados mensalmente, de maio de 2000 a abril de 2001. Foram registrados 8.482 ácaros, pertencentes a 25 espécies de 11 famílias. Os fitófagos foram os mais abundantes, sendo Lorryia formosa Cooreman a espécie dominante. A dominância de L. formosa foi provavelmente influenciada pela condição de estresse das plantas amostradas e pela baixa quantidade de ácaros predadores sobre estas plantas.