Behavior of Ectatomma brunneum (Formicidae: Ectatomminae) Preying on Dipterans in Field Conditions

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

Accuracy of zoomed digital image in the detection of periodontal bone defect: in vitro study

Objectives: (1) To evaluate the intraobserver agreement related to image interpretation and (2) to compare the accuracy of 100%, 200% and 400% zoomed digital images in the detection of simulated periodontal bone defects.Methods: Periodontal bone defects were created in 60 pig hemi-mandibles with slow-speed burs 0.5 mm, 1.0 mm, 1.5 mm, 2.0 mm and 3.0 mm in diameter. 180 standardized digital radiographs were made using Schick sensor and evaluated at 100%, 200% and 400% zooming. The intraobserver agreement was estimated by Kappa statistic (kappa). For the evaluation of diagnostic accuracy receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed followed by chi-square test to compare the areas under ROC curves according to each level of zooming.Results: For 100%, 200% and 400% zooming the intraobserver agreement was moderate (kappa = 0.48, kappa = 0.54 and kappa = 0.43, respectively) and there were similar performances in the discrimination capacity, with ROC areas of 0.8611 (95% CI: 0.7660-0.9562), 0.8600 (95% CI: 0.7659-0.9540), and 0.8368 (95% CI: 0.7346-0.9390), respectively, with no statistical significant differences (chi(2)-test; P = 0.8440).Conclusions: A moderate intraobserver agreement was observed in the classification of periodontal bone defects and the 100%, 200% and 400% zoomed digital images presented similar performances in the detection of periodontal bone defects.

Reliability of toluidine blue application in the detection of oral epithelial dysplasia and in situ and invasive squamous cell carcinomas

Objective, the objective of this study was to evaluate the reliability of in vivo staining with toluidine blue in the detection of oral epithelial dysplasia, in situ carcinoma, and invasive squamous cell carcinomas in potentially malignant epithelial lesions (PMELs) and superficial oral ulcerations suggesting malignancy.Study design. Fifty patients with PMELs and superficial oral ulcerations suggestive of malignancy were selected from those treated at the Oral Medicine Service, Faculty of Dentistry, Araraquara, Brazil. All lesions were submitted to staining with an aqueous solution of 1% toluidine blue, followed by biopsy and histologic analysis. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were calculated.Results. Histologic diagnosis revealed that 14% of the lesions analyzed were in situ carcinoma and invasive squamous cell carcinomas, 12% were epithelial dysplasias, 13% were keratosis, 40% were lichen planus, and 8% were other benign lesions. The sensitivity uf the staining was 77%, the specificity 67%, and the positive and negative predictive values 43.5% and 88.9%, respectivelyConclusions, Staining with toluidine blue was demonstrated to be highly reliable in the detection of in situ carcinoma acid invasive squamous cell carcinoma, because false-negative results for the lesions did not occur. Toluidine blue staining is an adjunct to clinical judgment and not a substitute for either judgment or biopsy.

Accuracy of Digital Images in the Detection of Marginal Micro leakage: An In Vitro Study

Purpose: To evaluate the accuracy of Image Tool Software 3.0 (ITS 3.0) to detect marginal microleakage using the stereomicroscope as the validation criterion and ITS 3.0 as the tool under study.Materials and Methods: Class V cavities were prepared at the cementoenamel junction of 61 bovine incisors, and 53 halves of them were used. Using the stereomicroscope, microleakage was classified dichotomously: presence or absence. Next, ITS 3.0 was used to obtain measurements of the microleakage, so that 0.75 was taken as the cut-off point, and values equal to or greater than 0.75 indicated its presence, while values between 0.00 and 0.75 indicated its absence. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated by point and given as 95% confidence interval (95% CI).Results: The accuracy of the ITS 3.0 was verified with a sensitivity of 0.95 (95% CI: 0.89 to 1.00) and a specificity of 0.92 (95% CI: 0.84 to 0.99).Conclusion: Digital diagnosis of marginal microleakage using ITS 3.0 was sensitive and specific.

Calculation of the vacuum pressure gradient in field emission displays

The usual design of field-emission displays (FEDs) often results in high vacuum pressure gradients inside the glass plates of the device, and this is the main limitation to the widespread availability of large area FEDs. In this paper, we perform theoretical calculations using the finite element method for determining the pressure distributions in several pumping configurations, including a new FED configuration known as porous FED or pFED. The approach here is capable of clarifying the design issues influencing the final pressure relevant to the field-emission display devices. (C) 2001 Elsevier B.V. B.V. All rights reserved.

Behaviour of dispersion indices in pattern detection of a population of angico, Anadenanthera peregrina (Leguminosae)

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

Acephate and methamidophos residues in greenhouse and in field grown tomatoes

O aumento da produção hortícola em cultivo protegido necessita de estudos mais detalhados acerca da ocorrência de resíduos de agrotóxicos, devido às condições ambientais peculiares nesse sistema, no qual pragas de pouca importância no campo assumem relevância. Avaliou-se os resíduos dos inseticidas acefato e de seu metabólito metamidofós em tomate sob cultivo protegido e em campo. Os tratamentos aplicados foram: (a) testemunha; (b) uma aplicação de 75 g i.a. acefato.100 L-1 de água; (c) uma aplicação com 150 g i.a.100 L-1 de água; (d) quatro aplicações na dosagem de 75 g i.a.100 L-1 de água. As amostras foram tomadas a (-1), zero, 1, 3, 7, 14 e 21 dias após a última ou única aplicação. A determinação quantitativa foi feita por técnica de cromatografia em fase gasosa, usando-se detector fotométrico de chama. Os resíduos de acefato e de metamidofós nos frutos de cultivo protegido e de campo, sempre estiveram abaixo dos respectivos limites máximos de resíduos (LMRs) em todo o período de colheita das amostras. Ainda, o metabolismo de acefato a metamidofós foi muito baixo nos frutos, particularmente importante nas folhas, mas não foi bem caracterizado no solo. Os resíduos de acefato foram maiores no cultivo protegido do que no campo, especialmente em folhas e no solo, sendo também estáveis e persistentes, em geral até a amostragem de 7 dias após a aplicação.

In vitro detection of hepatitis C virus in platelets from uninfected individuals exposed to the virus

Introduction ,,,,,Despite hepatocytes being the target cells of hepatitis C virus (HCV), viral ribonucleic acid RNA has been detected in other cells, including platelets, which have been described as carriers of the virus in the circulation of infected patients. Platelets do not express cluster differentiation 81 CD81, the main receptor for the virus in hepatocytes, although this receptor protein has been found in megakaryocytes. Still, it is not clear if HCV interacts with platelets directly or if this interaction is a consequence of its association with megakaryocytes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the interaction of HCV with platelets from non-infected individuals, after in vitro exposure to the virus. ,,,, ,,,, ,,,,,Methods ,,,,,Platelets obtained from 50 blood donors not infected by HCV were incubated in vitro at 37°C for 48h with serum containing 100,000IU∕mL of genotype 1 HCV. After incubation, RNA extracted from the platelets was assayed for the presence of HCV by reverse transcription – polymerase chain reaction RT-PCR. ,,,, ,,,, ,,,,,Results ,,,,,After incubation in the presence of virus, all samples of platelets showed HCV RNA. ,,,, ,,,, ,,,,,Conclusions ,,,,,The results demonstrate that, in vitro, the virus interacts with platelets despite the absence of the receptor CD81, suggesting that other molecules could be involved in this association.

The use of Langmuir-Blodgett films of a perylene derivative and polypyrrole in the detection of trace levels of Cu2+ ions

Langmuir films of a tetracarboxylic perylene derivative and polypyrrole display condensed surface pressure isotherms that are shifted when Cu2+ ions are added to the ultrapure water subphase. These films were transferred onto interdigitated gold electrodes leading to Y-type Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films. The electrodes modified with 5-layer LB films were immersed into a flask with ultrapure water and water containing Cu2+ ions at concentrations ranging from mM to muM. Impedance measurements indicated a distinct electrical response for the two types of films. Although the materials chosen have no specificity for ionic metals, they can be combined for detecting trace levels of Cu2+, which may be exploited in water quality monitoring. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reconstruction of deformed defects in field theory from deformed zero modes and applications

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Evaluation of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis exoantigen in the detection of delayed dermal hypersensitivity in experimental and human paracoccidioidomycosis

The exoantigen of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis standardized by Camargo et al. [1] (AgR) was used to evaluate the in vivo and in vitro cell immune response of experimental animals and of patients with paracoccidioidomycosis (PBM). Fava Netto antigen (AgF) was tested in parallel as a control antigen. The study was conducted with mice and guinea pigs infected with P. brasiliensis or immunized with its fungal antigens, on patients with PBM and on their respective control groups. The cell immune response was analysed by skin tests, and by the macrophage and leucocyte migration inhibition tests (MMIT and LMIT) in the animals and in the patients, respectively. The skin test with AgR as paracoccidioidin was positive in infected or immunized mice and guinea pigs and negative in control animals. The skin tests with AgR (24 h) showed 96.7% positivity in patients with PBM and were negative in control individuals. Histopathological study of the in vivo tests in the different experimental models was consistent with a delayed hypersensitivity response (DHR). Immunohistochemical study of the skin tests of PBM patients demonstrated a predominance of T lymphocytes, confirming the nature of a DHR to the fungal antigens. The in vitro cell immune response showed variable results for the various experimental models, i.e. significant rates of MMIT in immunized mice, a tendency to positivity in infected guinea pigs, and the absence of migration inhibition in PBM patients. Taken together, the data indicate that the AgR is efficient as paracoccidioidin in the evaluation of DHR in PBM, with an optimum time of reading the test of 24 h.

Automation in fault detection using neural network and model updating

In this article, an implementation of structural health monitoring process automation based on vibration measurements is proposed. The work presents an alternative approach which intent is to exploit the capability of model updating techniques associated to neural networks to be used in a process of automation of fault detection. The updating procedure supplies a reliable model which permits to simulate any damage condition in order to establish direct correlation between faults and deviation in the response of the model. The ability of the neural networks to recognize, at known signature, changes in the actual data of a model in real time are explored to investigate changes of the actual operation conditions of the system. The learning of the network is performed using a compressed spectrum signal created for each specific type of fault. Different fault conditions for a frame structure are evaluated using simulated data as well as measured experimental data.

Diagnostic agreement of conventional and inverted scanned panoramic radiographs in the detection of the mandibular canal and the mental foramen.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic agreement of conventional panoramic radiographs and their inverted scanned images in the detection of the mandibular canal and mental foramen. A total of 77 panoramic radiographs obtained from the files of totally edentulous patients were used. Digitization was done by means of a scanner with brightness and contrast adjustment, as well as image inversion. The extension of mandibular canal was divided into anterior, middle, and posterior regions, and the presence of a radiopaque line that characterized the mandibular canal was classified according to a 5-point confidence scale. The mental foramen was classified in 4 types: continuous, separated, diffuse, and unidentified. Both conventional and inverted scanned panoramic radiographs were evaluated by 3 calibrated implantologists at 2 distinct moments with a minimum interval of 10 days between them. Intraexaminer agreement was evaluated by Kappa statistics by point and by 95% confidence interval. Because the intraexaminer level of agreement was low, interexaminer agreements could not be carried out. The results showed a substantial (in 2 situations), moderate (in 16 situations), and fair (in 18 situations) intraexaminer agreement for mandibular canal and a substantial (in 1 situation), fair (in 1 situation), and moderate (in 10 situations) intraeaminer agreement for mental foramen. There were no statistically significant differences in most instances. In conclusion, the diagnostic agreement of conventional and inverted scanned panoramic radiographs for detection of mandibular canal and mental foramen was low.

False alarms in damage detection approaches

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) denotes a system with the ability to detect and interpret adverse changes in structures in order to improve reliability and reduce life-cycle costs. The greatest challenge for designing a SHM system is knowing what changes to look for and how to classify them. Different approaches for SHM have been proposed for damage identification, each one with advantages and drawbacks. This paper presents a methodology for improvement in vibration signal analysis using statistics information involving the probability density. Generally, the presence of noises in input and output signals results in false alarms, then, it is important that the methodology can minimize this problem. In this paper, the proposed approach is experimentally tested in a flexible plate using a piezoelectric (PZT) actuator to provide the disturbance.