Reproductive compatibility and chromosome pairing in the Drosophila buzzatii complex

Fertility (percentage of fertile crosses) and the degree of synapsis in salivary gland chromosomes in isofemale lines of Drosophila buzzatii, D. serido, D. koepferae and D. seriema were analysed. D. buzzatii was completely sterile in intercrosses with strains from the other species except for D. koepferae. The other species intercrossed to a greater or lesser degree, but also differed between crossing directions. Homologous pairing in salivary gland preparations of strains and hybrids conformed with the data on fertility. The lowest degree of synapsis was present in hybrids between D. koepferae and D. buzzatii, D. seriema and D. koepferae and D. koepferae and D. serido. These species also exhibited the lowest degree of reproductive compatibility. Hybrids between D. seriema and D. serido showed an intermediate degree of synapsis (pairing absent in the proximal and distal chromosome ends), as well as fertility greater than that found in the other interspecific crosses. Results of the fertility of crosses involving strains of a single species, compared with data in the literature, indicated that intraspecific divergence occurred in D. serido and D. koepferae.

Glycogen distribution in ameloblasts and odontoblasts of newborn rats of sialoadenectomized dams. Histochemical study

In order to get information about the distribution of glycogen in ameloblasts and odontoblasts, studies were made of newborn rats of sialoadenectomized dams and newborn rats of control dams. Rodent offspring were decapitated on the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th days after birth. Their heads were fixed in 10% neutral formalin solution, decalcified in sodium citrate-formic acid and embedded in paraffin, and frontal sections were prepared. Sections 6 micrometers thick were stained by specific histochemical reactions to detect glycogen. Based on the results obtained, it was concluded that the amount of glycogen was lower in the cytoplasms of ameloblasts and odontoblasts of experimental animals when compared to controls.

Adenocarcinoma polimorfo de baixo grau de malignidade do tipo papilífero. Estudo morfológico e imuno-histoquímico.

Two cases of polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma of the papillary type, from minor salivary glands were studied by light microscopy and immunohistochemistry. One case exhibited a predominance of the papillary pattern, whereas the other presented the following patterns of histological appearance: papillary, solid, pseudocystic and tubular. Utilizing the peroxidase-antiperoxidase (PAP) method, the intermediate filament vimentin, keratin and S100 protein were observed in tumor cells. The immunohistochemical analysis revealed two types of neoplastic cells: myoepithelial and luminal.

Hidrocistoma écrino e apócrino na pálpebra - Casuística na Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu- São Paulo

Background - Hidrocystomas ecrine and apocrine may be observed in the eyelids. Objective - The purpose of this study was to observe the occurrence of eyelid hidrocystoma (eccrine or apocrine), as well as the relation between clinical and histopathological diagnosis. Patients and Methods - 42 patients were selected, with a total of 52 lesions, attended between January 1990 to April 1999, at the Botucatu Medical School, with diagnosis of hidrocystoma confirmed by histopathology diagnosis. Result - Hidrocystoma occurred in 0.07% of patients undergoing lesion removal during this period. Eccrine and the apocrine hidrocystoma were frequently observed in female patients, aged over 40 years. The clinical picture ranged from about 1 to 5 years. The lesions were mainly located in the lower eyelid and presented as a single lesion. The clinical diagnosis agreed with the histopathological diagnosis in 67.31% of the apocrine hidrocystomas, and 9.62% of the eccrine hidrocystomas. Conclusions - Apocrine hidrocystoma was the most frequently observed eyelid hidrocystoma. The correlation between clinical and histopathological diagnosis was higher for apocrine hidrocystomas.

Exocrine glands of Schwarziana quadripunctata (Hymenoptera, Apinae, Meliponini)

This article describes the location, anatomy, histology and ontogeny of adult Schwarziana quadripunctata exocrine glands. These glands appear either as individualized organs (salivary gland system and Dufour gland) or as epidermis differentiation (tegumentary glands). Variations in the occurrence and degree of development among colony components with regard to their degree of maturity are also described.

Afecções oculares em crianças de 2 a 8 anos da rede pública municipal de Piracicaba - SP

Study model: observacional, retrospective. Objective: to determine the frequence of the ametropic errors and other ocular problems in children with 2 to 8 year-old at Piracicaba - SP. Patients and Method: During the school year of 2000, 1001 children enrolled at the public schools of Piracicaba - SP, age ranged from 2 to 8 years old, were referred to complete ophthalmological exam. Visual acuity was previously determined using Snellen chart, applied by school teachers. Those children presenting visual acuity equal or less than 0.8, visual complaints or visual disorders were selected to appointment. Results: 51 children (5.09%) did not attended to examination. 950 children were submitted to complete ophthalmological exam. Ametropic errors were found 70.84% of the children. The most prevalent refractive errors were Hypermetropic Astigmatism (49.62%) and Hypermetropia (32,98%). Anisometropia was found in 1.78% children. Other ocular disabilities accounted for 10.21% of the examined children, such as strabismus (3.36%), eyelid changes, allergic conjunctivitis, congenital dacryostenosis, optic atrophy, corioretinitis and congenital glaucoma. Conclusion: The frequence of ocular problems observed let us to conclude the screening programs are valid surveys on decreasing rates of preventable blindness in our country.

Neuroendocrine alterations impair enamel mineralization, tooth eruption and saliva in rats.

Neonatal administration of monosodium glutamate (MSG) in rats causes definite neuroendocrine disturbances which lead to alterations in many organ systems. The possibility that MSG could affect tooth and salivary gland physiology was examined in this paper. Male and female pups were injected subcutaneously with MSG (4 mg/g BW) once a day at the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th and 10th day after birth. Control animals were injected with saline, following the same schedule. Lower incisor eruption was determined between the 4th and the 10th postnatal days, and the eruption rate was measured between the 43rd and the 67th days of age. Pilocarpine-stimulated salivary flow was measured at 3 months of age; protein and amylase contents were thereby determined. The animals treated with MSG showed significant reductions in the salivary flow (males, -27%; females, -40%) and in the weight of submandibular glands (about -12%). Body weight reduction was only about 7% for males, and did not vary in females. Saliva of MSG-treated rats had increased concentrations of total proteins and amylase activity. The eruption of lower incisors occurred earlier in MSG-treated rats than in the control group, but on the other hand the eruption rate was significantly slowed down. The incisor microhardness was found to be lower than that of control rats. Our results show that neonatal MSG treatment causes well-defined oral disturbances in adulthood in rats, including salivary flow reduction, which coexisted with unaltered protein synthesis, and disturbances of dental mineralization and eruption. These data support the view that some MSG-sensitive hypothalamic nuclei have an important modulatory effect on the factors which determine caries susceptibility.

Ultramorfologia e Histologia da Glândula Salivar do Tórax de Polistes versicolor (Olivier) (Vespidae), Comparada com a de Outros Hymenoptera

The salivary system of the Hymenoptera consists of the mandible, hypopharynx and thoracic salivary glands. It is very important because it is related to various aspects of the life of the insects, such as pheromone production, feeding the young, food digestion and nest building. Adult Polistes versicolor (Olivier) individuals were dissected, the thoracic salivary glands removed and processed for scanning electronic microscopy and histological examination. The P. versicolor thoracic salivary gland presents alveolar secretory units, consists of pseudoacines and does not have a reservoir. Four types of cells are present in the gland. The T1 and T2 cells make up the pseudoacines and differ mainly by the many secretory vessels in T2. There is a cluster of T3 cells at the base of the gland duct collectors, also with secretory characteristics. The secretion produced in the pseudoacines is conducted by canals and ducts to the outside, and the latter are made of T4 cells. The comparison of these characteristics with those of different Hymenoptera species, already studied, showed that the thoracic salivary gland cannot be used as a single comparison factor in evolutionary studies.

A new interpretation of the defense glands of neotropical Ruptitermes (Isoptera, Termitidae, Apicotermitinae)

Suicidal altruism has been reported for some species of eusocial insects, in which the individual dies in defense of the society. The termites of the genus Ruptitermes are known for the suicidal behavior of the workers which liberate a sticky defensive secretion by body bursting. In the present paper it is given a new interpretation of the defense glands of Neotropical Ruptitermes based on the morphological analysis of three species collected at Rio Claro, SP, Brazil. Before the current study, the suicidal defensive behavior was attributed to the dehiscence of the salivary gland reservoirs. The defense or dehiscent glands of Neotropical Ruptitermes are pair structures rounded in shape that are independent of the salivary glands. The dehiscent glands consist of multiple secretory units that are kept together by thin connective tissue. Each secretory unit is composed of one cell generally with one peripheral nucleus and characteristic secretion. The three species studied here present some histological differences in the secretory units, probably related to the chemical composition of the secretion.

Immunohistochemistry as a fundamental tool for the differential diagnosis of polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma

Polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma (PLGA) is a subtype of salivary gland carcinoma with a marked predilection for the minor salivary glands. The diagnosis of this lesion can be a challenge in incisional biopsies because of its similarity to other salivary neoplasms and the difficulty of analyzing its infiltrative nature and neurotropism. Diagnosis can be facilitated, however, by immunohistochemistry, a technique that has become a fundamental tool to the pathologist. The purpose of this study was analyze the immunohistochemical aspects of 4 cases that were examined in the São José dos Campos School of Dentistry. The patients included 4 women, ages 32 to 57 years (mean, 50 years), who reported an intraoral painless lesion, ranging in size from 1 to 3 cm (mean, 1.75 cm) with a variable evolution period. Histologically, the lesions showed similar aspects, characterized by polymorphous growth pattern, including solid, cribriform, trabecular, papillary, and single-file arrays. The tumors showed positivity to cytokeratins (Cks) 7 and 8 and vimentin, variable expression for Ck 14, and a negative reaction to Cks 13 and 19 and muscle-specific actin. PLGA is a tumor of the salivary gland that must be distinguished from other neoplasms for therapeutic and prognostic considerations, and the panel of antibodies employed in this study was effective for its diagnosis.

A meniralização dental e a atividade salivar estão reduzidas em filhotes de ratas espontaneamente hipertensas (SHR)

Several pathologies have been diagnosed in children of hypertensive mothers; however, some studies that evaluated the alterations in their oral health are not conclusive. This study analyzed the salivary gland activity and dental mineralization of offsprings of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Thirty-day-old SHR males and Wistar rats were studied. The salivary flow was evaluated by injection of pilocarpine, the protein concentration and salivary amylase activity, by the Lowry method and kinetic method at 405 nm, respectively. Enamel and dentin mineralization of the mandibular incisors was quantified with aid of the microhardness meter. The results were analyzed by the ANOVA or Student's t test (p<0.05). It was noticed that the salivary flow rate (0.026 mL/min/100 g±0.002) and salivary protein concentration (2.26mg/mL±0.14) of SHR offspring were reduced compared to Wistar normotensive offspring (0.036 mL/min/100 g±0.003 and 2.91 mg/mL±0.27, respectively), yet there was no alteration in amylase activity (SHR: 242.4 U/mL±36.9; Wistar: 163.8 U/mL±14.1). Microhardness was lower both in enamel (255.8 KHN±2.6) and dentin (59.9 KHN±0.8) for the SHR teeth compared to the Wistar teeth (enamel: 328.7 KHN±3.3 and dentin: 67.1 KHN±1.0). These results suggest that the SHR offspring are more susceptible to development of pathologies impairing oral health, once they presented lesser flow and salivary protein concentration and lower dental mineralization.

New evidence for nucleolar dominance in hybrids of Drosophila arizonae and Drosophila mulleri

Drosophila mulleri (MU) and D. arizonae (AR) are cryptic species of the mulleri complex, mulleri subgroup, repleta group. Earlier cytogenetic studies revealed that these species have different regulatory mechanisms of nucleolar organizing activity. In these species, nucleolar organizing regions are found in both the X chromosome and the microchromosome. In the salivary glands of hybrids between MU females and AR males, there is an interspecific dominance of the regulatory system of the D. arizonae nucleolar organizer involving, in males, amplification and activation of the nucleolar organizer from the microchromosome. The authors who reported these findings obtained hybrids only in that cross-direction. More recently, hybrids in the opposite direction, i.e., between MU males and AR females, have been obtained. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate, in these hybrids, the association of the nucleoli with the chromosomes inherited from parental species in order to cytogenetically confirm the dominance patterns previously described. Our results support the proposed dominance of the AR nucleolar organizer activity over that of MU, regardless of cross-direction. ©FUNPEC-RP.

Age and Morphological Changes in the Epiponini Wasp Polybia paulista Von Ihering (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

The division of labor is a central theme in the study of social insects. In bees and wasps, this activity is regulated by age polyethism. Important physiological and morphological changes have been widely studied in the polyethism of honeybee workers. In contrast, this is a relatively unexplored subject in social vespids. Our goal was to determine if there are detectable morphological changes in the body of the Epiponini wasp Polybia paulista Von Ihering or in certain glands in relation to age polyethism. We observed changes in the body weight, the salivary gland, and the mandibular gland that were associated with age, and our results suggest that social relationships and task performance are important to these changes. This contrasts with observations in Polistes and is different from the Apis mellifera Linnaeus age polyethism model. © 2013 Sociedade Entomológica do Brasil.

Caracterização histoquímica e determinação do ciclo secretor da glândula salivar do tórax de Polistes versicolor (Olivier, 1791) (Hymenoptera: vespidae)

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