Changing presentation of complete hydatidiform mole at the New England Trophoblastic Disease Center over the past three decades: does early diagnosis alter risk for gestational trophoblastic neoplasia?

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Endoparasites of horses from the Formiga city, located in center-west region of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

With the aim of studying the endoparasite fauna of horses from the Formiga city, located in center-west region of the state of Minas Gerais, 25 animals that were naturally infected with helminths were evaluated. By means of parasitological necropsies, different endoparasites were found. The subfamily Cyathostominae presented the highest incidence, followed by Trichostrongylus axei, Oxyuris equi, Triodontophorus serratus, Strongyloides westeri, Strongylus edentatus, Habronema muscae, Parascaris equorum, Probstmayria vivipara, Strongylus vulgaris, Gasterophilus nasalis, Anoplocephala magna and Anoplocephala perfoliata. In the present study, if the species Probstmayria vivipara was not considered in the prevalence, the frequency of Cyathostominae was equivalent to 94.85%. The results obtained in this study allowed us to detect and identify different species of helminths in horses, and confirmed the high incidence of nematodes belonging to the subfamily Cyathostominae in the center-west region of Minas Gerais.

Changes in cells's secretory organelles and extracellular matrix during endochondral ossification in the mandibular condyle of the growing rat

The mandibular condyle from 20-day-old rats was examined in the electron microscope with particular attention to intracellular secretory granules and extracellular matrix. Moreover, type II collagen was localized by an immunoperoxidase method. The condyle has been divided into five layers: (1) the most superficial, articular layer, (2) polymorphic cell layer, (3) flattened cell layer, (4) upper hypertrophic, and (5) lower hypertrophic cell layers. In the articular layer, the cells seldom divide, but in the polymorphic layer and upper part of the flattened cell layer, mitosis gives rise to new cells. In these layers, cells produce two types of secretory granules, usually in distinct stacks of the Golgi apparatus; type a, cylindrical granules, in which 300-nm-long threads are packed in bundles which appear lucent after formaldehyde fixation; and type b, spherical granules loaded with short, dotted filaments. The matrix is composed of thick banded lucent fibrils in a loose feltwork of short, dotted filaments. The cells arising from mitosis undergo endochondral differentiation, which begins in the lower part of the flattened cell layer and is completed in the upper hypertrophic cell layer; it is followed by gradual cell degeneration in the lower hypertrophic cell layer. The cells produce two main types of secretory granules: type b as above; and type c, ovoid granules containing 300-nm-long threads associated with short, dotted filaments. A possibly different secretory granule, type d, dense and cigar-shaped, is also produced. The matrix is composed of thin banded fibrils in a dense feltwork. In the matrix of the superficial layers, the lucency of the fibrils indicated that they were composed of collagen I, whereas the lucency of the cylindrical secretory granules suggested that they transported collagen I precursors to the matrix. Moreover, the use of ruthenium red indicated that the feltwork was composed of proteoglycan; the dotted filaments packed in spherical granules were similar to, and presumably the source of, the matrix feltwork. The superficial layers did not contain collagen II and were collectively referred to as perichondrium. In the deep layers, the ovoid secretory granules displayed collagen II antigenicity and were likely to transport precursors of this collagen to the matrix, where it appeared in the thin banded fibrils. That these granules also carried proteoglycan to the matrix was suggested by their content of short dotted filaments. Thus the deep layers contained collagen II and proteoglycan as in cartilage; they were collectively referred to as the hyaline cartilage region.

Characterization of the phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C-released form of rat osseous plate alkaline phosphatase and its possible significance on endochondral ossification

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

Patients from the Oral Oncology Center, UNESP, Araçatuba with an indication for prosthesis

Head and neck tumors are a major health concern worldwide, due to their high incidence and mortality rates, particularly in developing countries. In Brazil, this type of cancer is commonly diagnosed and studies suggested that it may be the leading cause of mortality in the country. The increase in life expectancy worldwide, as well as environmental and behavioral factors, are related to carcinogenesis. Therefore, an understanding of basic epidemiology and statistical methods is critical, in order to promote early diagnosis and cancer prevention. Cancer patients with an indication for prosthesis were selected from the medical records of the Oral Oncology Center, School of Dentistry, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Araçatuba, between 1991 and 2010. The following variables were recorded: gender, age, type and location of the lesion, radiation dose and dental prosthesis. The majority of the patients were male (74.15%) and >60 years of age (53.37%). Tumors were most commonly located in the floor of the mouth (11.1%) and squamous cell carcinoma was the most prevalent type (72.8%). This study provides the profiles of patients who attended the Oral Oncology Center and the results may aid in the creation of cancer prevention programs.

Adalimumab for maintenance therapy for one year in Crohn's disease: results of a Latin American single-center observational study

Adalimumab is a fully-human antibody that inhibits TNF alpha, with a significant efficacy for long-term maintenance of remission. Studies with this agent in Latin American Crohn's disease patients are scarce. The objective of this study was to outline clinical remission rates after 12 months of adalimumab therapy for Crohn's disease patients. Retrospective, single-center, observational study of a Brazilian case series of Crohn's disease patients under adalimumab therapy. Variables analyzed: demographic data, Montreal classification, concomitant medication, remission rates after 1, 4, 6 and 12 months. Remission was defined as Harvey-Bradshaw Index ≤ 4, and non-responder-imputation and last-observation-carried-forward analysis were used. The influence of infliximab on remission rates was analyzed by Fischer and Chi-square tests (P<0.05). Fifty patients, with median age of 35 years at therapy initiation, were included. Remission rates after 12 months of therapy were 54% under non-responder-imputation and 88% under last-observation-carried-forward analysis. After 12 months, remission on patients with previous infliximab occurred in 69.23% as compared to 94.59% in infliximab-naïve patients (P = 0.033). Adalimumab was effective in maintaining clinical remission after 12 months of therapy, with an adequate safety profile, and was also more effective in infliximab naïve patients.

Mutagenicity profile of atmospheric particulate matter in a small urban center subjected to airborne emission from vehicle traffic and sugar cane burning

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) is genotoxic and recently was classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. PM chemical composition varies depending on source and atmospheric conditions. The Salmonella/microsome assay is the most used mutagenicity test and can identify the major chemical classes responsible for observed mutagenicity. The objective of this work was to characterize the mutagenicity of PM samples from a countryside city, Limeira, Brazil, which is influenced by heavy traffic and sugar cane biomass burning. Six samples of total PM were collected. Air mass backward trajectories were calculated. Organic extracts were assayed using the Salmonella/microsome microsuspension mutagenicity assay using TA98, YG1041, and TA1538, with and without metabolic activation (S9). YG1041 was the most sensitive strain and mutagenicity reached 9,700 revertants per m(3) without metabolic activation. Potency for TA1538 was higher than TA98, indicating that this strain should be considered in air mutagenicity studies. The increased response to YG1041 relative to TA98, and the decreased response with S9, suggests that nitroaromatics are the major contributors. Limeira is among the most mutagenic cities in the world. High mutagenicity in Limeira seems to occur when the air mass from the area of sugarcane production is mixed with air from the region impacted by anthropogenic activities such as traffic. An increase in the formation of nitro-polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons may result from longer contact time between the aromatic compounds and the atmosphere with high NOx and ozone concentration, although more studies are required to confirm this hypothesis. Environ. Mol. Mutagen., 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Microstructural and Nonohmic Properties of ZnO center dot Pr6O11 CoO Polycrystalline System

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

Shopping center: consumo do espaço, cotidianidade e fetichismo

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

Infraestrutura de data center e suas tendências com foco em eficiência energética

With the Big Data development and the growth of cloud computing and Internet of Things, data centers have been multiplying in Brazil and the rest of the world. Designing and running this sites in an efficient way has become a necessary challenge and to do so, it's essential a better understanding of its infrastructure. Thus, this paper presents a bibliography study using technical concepts in order to understand the specific needs related to this environment and the best forms address them. It discusses the data center infrastructure main systems, methods to improve their energy efficiency and their future trends