Pharmacological and local toxicity studies of a liposomal formulation for the novel local anaesthetic ropivacaine

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

Desenvolvimento da tiririca (Cyperus rotundus) influenciado pela presença e ausência de palha de cana-de-açúcar e herbicida

O trabalho objetivou avaliar o desenvolvimento de Cyperus rotundus plantado em diferentes profundidades na ausência e presença de imazapic e palha da cana-de-açúcar. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi inteiramente casualizado, analisado em esquema fatorial do tipo 2 x 2 x 6, constituindo-se de 24 tratamentos representados pela palha (2 níveis); herbicida (2 níveis) e profundidades de plantio dos tubérculos (6 níveis). Os tratamentos foram constituídos por 25 tubérculos plantados a: 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 e 10 cm de profundidade, com e sem a aplicação de imazapic (110 g ha-1), na condição de presença e ausência de camada de palha de cana-de-açúcar (15 t ha-1). Concluiu-se que o crescimento das manifestações epígeas foi inibido pelo herbicida somente até aos 60 dias após aplicação (DAA), na ausência e na presença da camada da palha. Nas raízes, a quantidade e viabilidade dos tubérculos foram reduzidas nos tratamentos com ausência da palha e profundidade de plantio mais superficial, na presença ou ausência da aplicação de imazapic.

Associação genética da prenhez aos 16 meses com o peso à desmama e o ganho de peso em animais da raça Nelore

Objetivou-se verificar a possibilidade de utilização da prenhez de novilhas aos 16 meses (Pr16) como critério de seleção e as possíveis associações genéticas entre prenhez em novilhas aos 16 meses e o peso à desmama (PD) e o ganho de peso médio da desmama ao sobreano (GP). Foram realizadas análises uni e bicaracterísticas para estimação dos componentes de co-variância, empregando-se um modelo animal linear para peso à desmama e ganho de peso da desmama ao sobreano e não-linear para Pr16. A estimação dos componentes de variância e da predição dos valores genéticos dos animais foi realizada por Inferência Bayesiana. Distribuições flat foram utilizadas para todos os componentes de co-variância. As estimativas de herdabilidade direta para Pr16, PD e GP foram 0,50; 0,24 e 0,15, respectivamente, e a estimativa de herdabilidade materna para o PD, de 0,07. As correlações genéticas foram -0,25 e 0,09 entre Pr16, PD e GP, respectivamente, e a correlação genética entre Pr16 e o efeito genético materno do PD, de 0,29. A herdabilidade da prenhez aos 16 meses indica que essa característica pode ser utilizada como critério de seleção. As correlações genéticas estimadas indicam que a seleção por animais mais pesados à desmama, a longo prazo, pode diminuir a ocorrência de prenhez aos 16 meses de idade. Além disso, a seleção para maior habilidade materna favorece a seleção de animais mais precoces. No entanto, a seleção para ganho de peso da desmama ao sobreano não leva a mudanças genéticas na precocidade sexual em fêmeas.

Surfactant systems for nasal zidovudine delivery: structural, rheological and mucoadhesive properties

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Adubação verde e sistemas de manejo do solo na produtividade do algodoeiro

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

Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester Effects in the Kidney During Ischemia and Reperfusion in Rats Anesthetized with Isoflurane

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

Hipertensão arterial experimental e prenhez em ratas: repercussões no peso da placenta e no índice placentário

Objetivo: estudar as repercussões da hipertensão sobre o peso da placenta e índice placentário. Métodos: foram utilizadas 82 ratas virgens da linhagem Wistar em idade de reprodução. Após a indução da hipertensão arterial experimental (Modelo Goldblatt I -- 1 rim-1 clipe) as ratas foram sorteadas para compor os 4 grandes grupos experimentais (controle, manipulação, nefrectomia e hipertensão). A seguir, as ratas foram distribuídas por sorteio em 8 subgrupos, sendo quatro prenhes (P) e quatro não-prenhes. Após acasalamento, dos quatro grupos prenhes obtivemos com o nascimento dos recém-nascidos (RN) os seguintes grupos: RN-C, RN-M, RN-N e RN-H, respectivamente, controle, manipulação, nefrectomizado e hipertenso. Resultados: quanto ao peso da placenta, o do grupo RN-C foi estatisticamente maior que o de todos os demais grupos. Por outro lado, verifica-se que o peso das placentas provenientes do grupo RN-M foi maior que o dos grupos RN-N e RN-H, os quais não diferiram entre si. Os índices placentários dos grupos P-C (Md = 0,1085) e P-M (Md = 0,1110) não diferiram entre si, mas foram menores que os dos grupos P-N (Md = 0,1175) e P-H (Md = 0,1211), os quais também não diferiram entre si. Conclusões: a hipertensão e a nefrectomia unilateral determinaram redução do peso das placentas e aumento do índice placentário, evidenciando repercussões no desenvolvimento placentário e fetal.

Lipid content and apoptosis of in vitro-produced bovine embryos as determinants of susceptibility to vitrification

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

Nicotine-Induced Damage Affects Gingival Fibroblasts in the Gingival Tissue of Rats

Background: Very limited information is available from in vivo studies about whether smoking and/or nicotine affect gingival tissues in the absence of plaque. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of the systemic administration of nicotine in the proliferation and counting of fibroblast-like cells in the gingival tissue of rats.Methods: Thirty adult male Wistar rats were randomly assigned into two groups to receive subcutaneous injections of a saline solution (control group = group C) or nicotine solution (group N; 3 mg/kg) twice a day. The animals were euthanized 37, 44, or 51 days after the first subcutaneous injection. Specimens were routinely processed for serial histologic sections. Five fields of view in the connective tissue adjacent to the gingival epithelium and above the alveolar bone crest of the maxillary first molar were selected for the counting of fibroblast-like cells. Data were statistically analyzed (P<0.05).Results: The intergroup analysis detected a lower number of fibroblast-like cells in group N compared to group C on days 37 (2.65 +/- 1.41 and 6.67 +/- 3.25, respectively), 44 (2.70 +/- 1.84 and 8.57 +/- 2.37, respectively), and 51(2.09 +/- 1.41 and 7.49 +/- 2.60, respectively) (P<0.05). The quantification of fibroblast-like cells showed no significant difference (P >0.05) in the intragroup analysis of control and nicotine throughout experimental periods. In the intergroup analysis, group N had reduced proliferating cell nuclear antigen positive fibroblasts compared to group C in all periods (P<0.05).Conclusion: The daily systemic administration of nicotine negatively affected, in vivo, the number and proliferation of fibroblast-like cells in the gingival tissue of rats. J Periodontol 2011;82:1206-1211.

Effect of a leukotriene inhibitor (MK886) on nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide production by macrophages of acutely and chronically stressed mice

We evaluated the effect of a leukotriene inhibitor (MK886) on nitric oxide (NO) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production by peritoneal macrophages of mice subjected to acute and chronic stress. Acute stress was induced by keeping mice immobilized in a tube for 2 h. Chronic stress was induced over a 7-day period by the same method, but with increasing duration of immobilization. The effects of MK886 were investigated in-vitro after incubation with peritoneal macrophages, and in-vivo by submitting mice to stress and treating them daily with MK886. Supernatants of macrophage cultures were collected for NO determination and adherent cells were used for H2O2 determination. Macrophages from mice submitted to acute or chronic stress showed no alterations in H2O2 production. However, macrophages of acutely and chronically stressed mice showed inhibition of NO after incubation with MK886 in-vitro. Administration of MK886 to chronically stressed mice increased generation of H2O2 and inhibited production of NO. Our data suggest an important role of leukotrienes in NO synthesis, which is important in controlling replication of several infectious agents, mainly in stressed and immunosuppressed animals.

Effect of Baccharis dracunculifolia DC (Asteraeeae) extracts and its isolated compounds on macrophage activation

Baccharis dracunculifolia D.C. (Asteraceae), a shrub which grows wild in Brazil, is the main botanical source of Brazilian green propolis. Since Brazilian propolis shows an immunomodulatory activity, the goal of this work was to evaluate the action of B. dracunculifolia extracts and some of its isolated compounds on reactive oxygen intermediate (H2O2) production by macrophages obtained from male BALB/c mice. The results showed that the leaf (Bd-L) (25, 50, and 100 mu g mL(-1)), leaf rinse (Bd-LR) (25 mu g mL(-1)), and the root (Bd-R) (25 mu g mL(-1)) extracts enhanced H2O2 release by macrophages. A phytochemical study of the root and leaves of B. dracunculifolia was carried out. The chromatographic fractionation of Bd-R, using several techniques, afforded the isolation of baccharis oxide (1), friedelanol (2), viscidone (11), 11-hydroxy-10,11-dihydro-euparin (12), and 6-hydroxy-tremetona (13), while Bd-LR gave the following isolated compounds: baccharis oxide (1), friedelanol (2), isosakuranetin (3), aromadendrin-4'-methyl ether (4), dihydrocumaric acid (5), baccharin (6), hautriwaic acid lactone (7), hautriwaic acid acetate (8), drupanin (9), and cumaric acid (10). Among the isolated compounds, baccharis oxide (1) and friedelanol (2) increased H2O2 production at a concentration of 1001,M. This is the first time that the presence of compounds 7, 8, 12, and 13 in B. dracunculifolia has been reported. Based on these results it is suggested that the crude extracts and some isolated compounds from B. dracunculifolia display an immunomodulatory action.

Phenotype characterization of Staphylococcus species strains isolated from buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) milk

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

Expression and processing of recombinant sarafotoxins precursor in Pichia pastoris

Sarafotoxins are peptides isolated from the Atractaspisw snake venom. with strong constrictor effect on cardiac and smooth muscle. They are structurally and functionally related to endothelins. The sarafotoxins precursor cDNA predicts an unusual structure 'rosary-type', with 12 successive similar stretches of sarafotoxin (SRTX) and spacer, in the present work, the recombinant precursor of SRTXs was sub-cloned and expressed in the yeast Pichia pastoris. and secreted to the culture medium, Characterization by SDS-PAGE, immunoblot, mass spectrometry and biological activity, suggests that intact precursor was expressed but processing into mature toxins also occurred. Furthermore, our results indicate that the correct proportion of sarafotoxin types as contained in the precursor, is obtained in the yeast culture medium. Contractile effects of the expressed toxins, on rat and Bothrops jararaca isolated aorta, were equivalent to 5 X 10(-10) M and 5 x 10(-11) M of sarafotoxin b, respectively. The enzymes responsible for the complete maturation of sarafotoxins precursor are still unknown. Our results strongly suggest that the yeast Pichia pastoris is able to perform such a maturation process. Thus, the yeast Pichia pastoris may offer an alternative to snake venom gland to tentatively identify the molecular process responsible for SRTXs release. (C) 2001 Elsevier B.V. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Second order gauge theory

A gauge theory of second order in the derivatives of the auxiliary field is constructed following Utiyama's program. A novel field strength G = partial derivative F + fAF arises besides the one of the first order treatment, F = partial derivative A - partial derivative A + fAA. The associated conserved current is obtained. It has a new feature: topological terms are determined from local invariance requirements. Podolsky Generalized Eletrodynamics is derived as a particular case in which the Lagrangian of the gauge field is L-P alpha G(2). In this application the photon mass is estimated. The SU(N) infrared regime is analysed by means of Alekseev-Arbuzov-Baikov's Lagrangian. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Basins of attraction changes by amplitude constraining of oscillators with limited power supply

We investigate the dynamics of a Duffing oscillator driven by a limited power supply, such that the source of forcing is considered to be another oscillator, coupled to the first one. The resulting dynamics come from the interaction between both systems. Moreover, the Duffing oscillator is subjected to collisions with a rigid wall (amplitude constraint). Newtonian laws of impact are combined with the equations of motion of the two coupled oscillators. Their solutions in phase space display periodic (and chaotic) attractors, whose amplitudes, especially when they are too large, can be controlled by choosing the wall position in suitable ways. Moreover, their basins of attraction are significantly modified, with effects on the final state system sensitivity. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.