Genetic variability of porcine parvovirus isolates revealed by analysis of partial sequences of the structural coding gene VP2

The 3'-terminal 853 nt (and the putative 283 aa) sequence of the VP2-encoding gene from 29 field strains of porcine parvovirus (PPV) were determined and compared both to each other and with other published sequences. Sequences were examined using maximum-parsimony and statistical analyses for nucleotide diversity and sequence variability. Among the nucleotide sequences of the PPV field strains, 26 polymorphic sites were encountered; 22 polymorphic sites were detected in the putative amino acid sequence. Mapping polymorphic sites of protein data onto the three-dimensional (3D) structure of PPV VP2 revealed that almost all substitutions were located on the external surface of the viral capsid. Mapping amino acid substitutions to the alignment between PPV VP2 sequences and the 3D structure of canine parvovirus (CPV) capsid, many PPV substitutions were observed to map to regions of recognized antigenicity and/or to contain phenotypically important residues for CPV and other parvoviruses. In spite of the high sequence similarity, genetic analysis has shown the existence of at least two virus lineages among the samples. In conclusion, these results highlight the need for close surveillance on PPV genetic drift, with an assessment of its potential ability to modify the antigenic make-up of the virus.

Multiscale Fractal Descriptors and Polynomial Classifier for Partial Pixels Identification in Regions of Interest of Mammographic Images

Computer systems are used to support breast cancer diagnosis, with decisions taken from measurements carried out in regions of interest (ROIs). We show that support decisions obtained from square or rectangular ROIs can to include background regions with different behavior of healthy or diseased tissues. In this study, the background regions were identified as Partial Pixels (PP), obtained with a multilevel method of segmentation based on maximum entropy. The behaviors of healthy, diseased and partial tissues were quantified by fractal dimension and multiscale lacunarity, calculated through signatures of textures. The separability of groups was achieved using a polynomial classifier. The polynomials have powerful approximation properties as classifiers to treat characteristics linearly separable or not. This proposed method allowed quantifying the ROIs investigated and demonstrated that different behaviors are obtained, with distinctions of 90% for images obtained in the Cranio-caudal (CC) and Mediolateral Oblique (MLO) views.

Partial purification and characterization of lysine-ketoglutarate reductase in normal and opaque-2 maize endosperms

Lysine-ketoglutaratc reductase catalyzes the first step of lysine catabolism in maize (Zea mays L.) endosperm. The enzyme condenses L-lysine and α-ketoglutarate into saccharopine using NADPH as cofactor. It is endosperm-specific and has a temporal pattern of activity, increasing with the onset of kernel development, reaching a peak 20 to 25 days after pollination, and thereafter decreasing as the kernel approaches maturity. The enzyme was extracted from the developing maize endosperm and partially purified by ammonium-sulfate precipitation, anion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, and affinity chromatography on Blue-Sepharose CL-6B. The preparation obtained from affinity chromatography was enriched 275-fold and had a specific activity of 411 nanomoles per minute per milligram protein. The native and denaturated enzyme is a 140 kilodalton protein as determined by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme showed specificity for its substrates and was not inhibited by either aminoethyl-cysteine or glutamate. Steady-state product-inhibition studies revealed that saccharopine was a noncompetitive inhibitor with respect to α-ketoglutarate and a competitive inhibitor with respect to lysine. This is suggestive of a rapid equilibriumordered binding mechanism with a binding order of lysine, α-ketoglutarate, NADPH. The enzyme activity was investigated in two maize inbred lines with homozygous normal and opaque-2 endosperms. The pattern of lysine-ketoglutarate reductase activity is coordinated with the rate of zein accumulation during endosperm development. A coordinated regulation of enzyme activity and zein accumulation was observed in the opaque-2 endosperm as the activity and zein levels were two to three times lower than in the normal endosperm. Enzyme extracted from L1038 normal and opaque-2 20 days after pollination was partially purified by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. Both genotypes showed a similar elution pattern with a single activity peak eluted at approximately 0.2 molar KCL. The molecular weight and physical properties of the normal and opaque-2 enzymes were essentially the same. We suggest that the Opaque-2 gene, which is a transactivator of the 22 kilodalton zein genes, may be involved in the regulation of the lysine-ketoglutarate reductase gene in maize endosperm. In addition, the decreased reductase activity caused by the opaque-2 mutation may explain, at least in part, the elevated concentration of lysine found in the opaque-2 endosperm.

Simulations of incompressible fluid flows by a least squares finite element method

In this work simulations of incompressible fluid flows have been done by a Least Squares Finite Element Method (LSFEM) using velocity-pressure-vorticity and velocity-pressure-stress formulations, named u-p-ω) and u-p-τ formulations respectively. These formulations are preferred because the resulting equations are partial differential equations of first order, which is convenient for implementation by LSFEM. The main purposes of this work are the numerical computation of laminar, transitional and turbulent fluid flows through the application of large eddy simulation (LES) methodology using the LSFEM. The Navier-Stokes equations in u-p-ω and u-p-τ formulations are filtered and the eddy viscosity model of Smagorinsky is used for modeling the sub-grid-scale stresses. Some benchmark problems are solved for validate the numerical code and the preliminary results are presented and compared with available results from the literature. Copyright © 2005 by ABCM.

Influence of ridge type on mandibular distal extension removable partial denture.

The aim of this study was to use photoelastic models to analyze the distribution of stress caused by the incidence of loads on a mandibular distal extension removable partial denture, both on the abutment teeth and on differently shaped residual ridges: distal ascending, descending-ascending, horizontal and distal descending. The best type of retainer and location of the rest on the last abutment tooth were determined for the different types of ridge. Four models were made from photoelastic resin (PL-1 for the teeth and PL-2 for the alveolar ridge), one for each kind of ridge. For each model, 4 removable partial dentures (RPD) were made (16 RPD altogether): T-bar retainer and distal rest, T-bar retainer and mesial rest, circumferential retainer and distal rest, and circumferential retainer and mesial rest. The models were placed on a circular polariscope and a 100 N axial load (point load) was applied to premolars and molars of the RPD. The formation of photoelastic bands was photographed for qualitative analysis. Results showed that the horizontal ridge had better distribution of stress, while the distal descending ridge had greater concentration of stress. The circumferential retainer had greater areas of stress for all types of ridges except the horizontal ridge, where there was no influence related to retainer type. The distribution of stress was similar among the different types of ridges when the rest was mesial or distal to the last abutment tooth, except for the distal descending ridge, where there was greater concentration of stress when the rest was located distally to the last abutment tooth. Thus, it may be concluded that (1) the situation was least favorable for the distal descending ridge and most favorable for the horizontal ridge, (2) the T-bar retainer had more favorable stress distribution, except when the ridge was horizontal, in which case there was no influence in relation to the type of retainer, (3) the location of the rest showed similar behavior in all except the distal descending ridge.

At least two indigenous species of the Bemisia tabaci complex are present in Brazil

Bemisia tabaci is one of the most important global agricultural insect pests, being a vector of emerging plant viruses such as begomoviruses and criniviruses that cause serious problems in many countries. Although knowledge of the genetic diversity of B. tabaci populations is important for controlling this pest and understanding viral epidemics, limited information is available on this pest in Brazil. A survey was conducted in different locations of São Paulo and Mato Grosso states, and the phylogenetic relationships of B. tabaci individuals from 43 populations sampled from different hosts were analysed based on partial mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase 1 gene (mtCOI) sequences. According to the recently proposed classification of the B. tabaci complex, which employs the 3.5% mtCOI sequence divergence threshold for species demarcation, most of the specimens collected were found to belong to the Middle East-Asia Minor 1 species, which includes the invasive populations of the commonly known B biotype, within the Africa/Middle East/Asia Minor high-level group. Three specimens collected from Solanun gilo and Ipomoea sp. were grouped together and could be classified in the New World species that includes the commonly known A biotype. However, six specimens collected from Euphorbia heterophylla, Xanthium cavanillesii and Glycine maxima could not be classified into any of the 28 previously proposed species, although according to the 11% mtCOI sequence divergence threshold, they belong to the New World high-level group. These specimens were classified into a new recently proposed species named New World 2 that includes populations from Argentina. Middle East-Asia Minor 1, New World and New World 2 were differentiated by RFLP analysis of the mtCOI gene using TaqI enzyme. Taq I analysis in silico also differentiates these from Mediterranean species, thus making this method a convenient tool to determine population dynamics, especially critical for monitoring the presence of this exotic pest in Brazil. © 2012 Blackwell Verlag, GmbH.

Fourier series for quaternions and the square of the error theorem

In this paper we introduce a type of Hypercomplex Fourier Series based on Quaternions, and discuss on a Hypercomplex version of the Square of the Error Theorem. Since their discovery by Hamilton (Sinegre [1]), quaternions have provided beautifully insights either on the structure of different areas of Mathematics or in the connections of Mathematics with other fields. For instance: I) Pauli spin matrices used in Physics can be easily explained through quaternions analysis (Lan [2]); II) Fundamental theorem of Algebra (Eilenberg [3]), which asserts that the polynomial analysis in quaternions maps into itself the four dimensional sphere of all real quaternions, with the point infinity added, and the degree of this map is n. Motivated on earlier works by two of us on Power Series (Pendeza et al. [4]), and in a recent paper on Liouville’s Theorem (Borges and Mar˜o [5]), we obtain an Hypercomplex version of the Fourier Series, which hopefully can be used for the treatment of hypergeometric partial differential equations such as the dumped harmonic oscillation.

Avaliação do balanço nitrogenado e aparecimento de nitrogênio uréico como marcadores de catabolismo, infecção e mortalidade em pacientes com lesão renal aguda em diálise

Pós-graduação em Fisiopatologia em Clínica Médica - FMB