The need of subsidy for the implementation of photovoltaic solar energy as supporting of decentralized electrical power generation in Brazil

The growing demand for electrical power and the limited capital invested to provide this power is forcing countries like Brazil to search for new alternatives for electrical power generation. The purpose of this paper is to present a technical and economic study on a 15 kW solar plant installed in an isolated community, highlighting the importance of the need for financial subsidy from the government. It evaluates the importance of parameters such as the annual interest rate, specific investment, the marginal cost of expanding the electrical power supply and the government subsidy on amortization time of capital invested. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.

Condicionantes da criação e desenvolvimento do curso de Ciências Sociais da Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências, e Letras de Marília

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Molecular analysis of community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from skin and soft tissue infections, Botucatu Medical School, Brazil

Community acquired methicillin Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) was first reported in 1981, infecting people without risk factors. These strains harbor the Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec (SCCmec) type IV, which contains the mecA gene codifying for methicillin resistance. CA-MRSA strains usually carry PVL (Panton-Valentine Leukocidin), a virulence factor responsible for tissue invasion, causing systemic infections and leading to serious complications. The aims of this work were to detect the mecA gene, SCCmec characterization and to detect the PVL gene of the S. aureus strains isolated from patients diagnosed with skin and soft tissue infections attending the Dermatology Service, of the Botucatu Medical School, Brazil. Among 127 collected samples, 66 (51.9%) were S. aureus and, from these, 7 (10.6%) harbored mecA gene, 3 (42%) with cassette type IV, and none of these samples carried the PVL gene, but it was detected in 10 (15.1%) samples of S. aureus methicillin sensitive (MSSA). Our study suggests the S. aureus strains that harbor PVL gene and MRSA are present in the community as important pathogens.

Oxacillin Resistance and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile of Staphylococcus saprophyticus and Other Staphylococci Isolated from Patients with Urinary Tract Infection

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

Competition and phylogeny determine community structure in Mullerian co-mimics

Until recently, the study of negative and antagonistic interactions (for example, competition and predation) has dominated our understanding of community structure, maintenance and assembly(1). Nevertheless, a recent theoretical model suggests that positive interactions (for example, mutualisms) may counterbalance competition, facilitating long-term coexistence even among ecologically undifferentiated species(2). Mullerian mimics are mutualists that share the costs of predator education(3) and are therefore ideally suited for the investigation of positive and negative interactions in community dynamics. The sole empirical test of this model in a Mullerian mimetic community supports the prediction that positive interactions outweigh the negative effects of spatial overlap(4) (without quantifying resource acquisition). Understanding the role of trophic niche partitioning in facilitating the evolution and stability of Mullerian mimetic communities is now of critical importance, but has yet to be formally investigated. Here we show that resource partitioning and phylogeny determine community structure and outweigh the positive effects of Mullerian mimicry in a species-rich group of neotropical catfishes. From multiple, independent reproductively isolated allopatric communities displaying convergently evolved colour patterns, 92% consist of species that do not compete for resources. Significant differences in phylogenetically conserved traits (snout morphology and body size) were consistently linked to trait-specific resource acquisition. Thus, we report the first evidence, to our knowledge, that competition for trophic resources and phylogeny are pivotal factors in the stable evolution of Mullerian mimicry rings. More generally, our work demonstrates that competition for resources is likely to have a dominant role in the structuring of communities that are simultaneously subject to the effects of both positive and negative interactions.

Reproduction of the fish community of Passa Cinco Stream, Corumbataí River sub-basin, São Paulo State, Southeastern Brazil

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

Temporary fragmentation of a marginal lake and its effects on zooplankton community structure and organization

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

Feeding patterns in a fish community of Baia da Onça, a floodplain lake of the Aquidauana River, Pantanal, Brazil

The stomach contents of 24 species of fish and unidentified species from four genera in a floodplain lake of the Pantanal were studied. Fish were collected during the dry season when the lake was isolated from the main river. A community food ingestion index (feeding index weighted by consumer biomass, FIWCB, where 0 < FIWCB < 1) was calculated to quantify feeding patterns. Detritus and algae ingested by Curimatidae were responsible for 46.5% of the FIWCB, while that for algae ingested by Loricariidae (armoured catfish) accounted for 13.2%. The importance of detritus in fish diets is discussed as a strategy for shortening food chains, thereby increasing community efficiency, and as a consequence, fish biomass. It was learnt that the main route of energy flow in this perennial lake was through the detritus chain. The floodplain lakes function as a dry season feeding ground for small-sized species of fish, which are potential prey for the more highly valued larger species of fish.

Phytoplankton community response to hydrological variations in oxbow lakes with different levels of connection to a tropical river

Changes to the structure of the phytoplankton community and to the physical and chemical variables of the water were investigated in oxbow lakes with different levels of connection to a tropical river and subject to annual hydrological pulse variations. The selected lentic environments are located at the mouth region of the main tributary in a reservoir built for water storage and electric power generation. The temporal variation of phytoplankton in the studied lentic environments can be attributed mainly to the hydrological level of the river. A similar variation pattern of the ecological attributes was observed in the structure of the phytoplankton community in the connected lakes and Paranapanema River, evidencing the high degree of association that the lacustrine systems maintain with the river. The highest values of richness and diversity for connected environments were observed at the end of the emptying period and in the drought. However, considering the isolated lake, the highest values of these attributes were recorded during the flooding period. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in non-outbreak skin infections

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

Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in non-outbreak skin infections

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