The AIDS epidemic in the Amazon region: a spatial case-control study in Rondonia, Brazil

OBJETIVO Analisar mudanças espaciais no risco de Aids e a relação entre incidência da doença e variáveis socioeconômicas. MÉTODOS Estudo caso-controle espacial, de base populacional, realizado em Rondônia, Brasil, com 1.780 casos notificados pelo Sistema de Vigilância Epidemiológica e os controles a partir de dados demográficos de 1987 a 2006. Os casos foram agrupados em cinco períodos de cinco anos consecutivos. Um modelo aditivo generalizado foi ajustado aos dados. O status dos indivíduos (caso ou controle) foi considerado como a variável dependente e independente: um alisamento ( spline ) bidimensional das coordenadas geográficas e variáveis socioeconômicas municipais. Os valores observados para o teste Moran I foram comparados com a distribuição de referência dos valores obtidos em condições de aleatoriedade espacial. RESULTADOS O risco de Aids apresentou padrão espacial e temporal marcado. A incidência associou-se a indicadores socioeconômicos municipais, como urbanização e capital humano. As maiores taxas de incidência de Aids ocorreram em municípios ao longo da rodovia BR-364; os resultados do teste Moran I mostram correlação espacial positiva associada à contiguidade dos municípios com a rodovia, no terceiro e quarto períodos (p = 0,05). CONCLUSÕES A incidência da doença foi maior em municípios de maior riqueza econômica e urbanização e naqueles cortados pelas estradas principais de Rondônia. O rápido desenvolvimento associado à ocupação de regiões remotas pode ser acompanhado por aumento de riscos à saúde.

Phosphate distribution in the sediments along a cascade of reservoirs - (Paranapanema River, SE, Brazil)

Total phosphorus concentrations in the sediment of a cascade of 8 reservoirs located in the Paranapanema River (SE, Brazil) were analysed during two consecutive seasonal periods (2000 and 200 1). The reservoirs of Jurumirim, Chavantes, Salto Grande, Canoas 11, Canoas 1, Capivara, Taquarucu and Rosana were built during the last five decades with the purpose of hydroelectric generation. The sampling points were distributed along a 700 km of river stretch in 19 stations distributed in the river-reservoirs zones and main tributaries as well as in 5 stations representing the adjacent wetlands. The nutrient concentration was determined in samples from surface layers of sediment. Temporal and spatial changes were observed for both years. Three different areas could be identified along the river, considering not only Tot-P variations but also others physical and chemical characteristics such as organic matter concentration, nitrogen concentration of sediment and 02, pH, conductivity and Eh measured in the bottom layer of the water column. Higher values of Tot-P were found in the middle and lower region of the Paranapanema basin (maximum value of 1.96 mg g(-1) in Tibagi River in October/2001). Agricultural practices and cattle raising are the main external sources of nutrient in these regions. Superficial or sub-superficial watershed drainage and tributaries entrances are important nutrient contributors, leading to an increasing accumulation of nutrient in the sediment. This process seems to be especially important in the middle region of the Paranapanema Valley, were the values of Tot-P were higher comparing to the other areas.

Avaliação da dinâmica do uso da terra na bacia do arroio Santa Bárbara - pelotas (Brasil), no período de 1953 a 2006

Land use dynamics is a consequence of socioeconomic system cycles. In this context, this work was developed aiming to evaluate land use alterations in Santa Bárbara watershed (Pelotas - Brazil), during 53 years (1953 - 2006), evidencing socioeconomic elements that contributed to this process. For land use dynamic analysis, maps of 1953, 1965, 1995 e 2006 were elaborated. Spatial changes that happened in Santa Bárbara watershed represent a regional process: pasture areas had decrease while culture lands had a gradual increase. This conjuncture is a consequence of the crisis in livestock destined to salted and dried meat production and of the food industry growth in Pelotas that impelled urban expansion, forest area reduction and artificial water reservoirs increase. © Scripta Nova, 2010.

Análise temporal do uso do solo e comparação entre os índices de vegetação ndvi e savi no município de Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo - SP usando imagens landsat-5

This work aims to analyze the land use evolution in the city of Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo - SP through supervised classification of Landsat-5 TM satellite images according to the maximum likelihood (Maxlike), as well as verifying the mapping accuracy through Kappa index, comparing NDVI and SAVI vegetation indexes in different adjustment factors for the canopy substrate and determining the vegetal coverage percentage in all methods used on 2007, May 26 th; 2009, January 7 th and 2009, April 29 th. The Maxlike classification showed several spatial changes in land use over the study period. The most appropriated vegetation indexes were NDVI and SAVI - 0,25 factor, which showed similar values of vegetal coverage percentage, but discrepant from the inferred value for Maxlike classification.

Aglomeração urbana de Londrina: integração territorial e intensificação de fluxos

Pós-graduação em Geografia - FCT

Dengue no Brasil: abordagem geográfica na escala nacional

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A expansão da agroindústria sucroalcooleira e a questão do desenvolvimento da microrregião de Dracena-SP

Pós-graduação em Geografia - FCT

Dinâmica temporal e composição florística da comunidade arbórea de floresta ombrófila densa montana, Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar, SP, Brasil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

O efeito da estrutura da matriz na percepção de aves na paisagem

Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas (Zoologia) - IBRC

Disturbance chemical cues determine changes in spatial occupation by the convict cichlid Archocentrus nigrofasciatus

I studied the effect of disturbance chemical cues on fish that make trade-offs between foraging in an open area and remaining in a safe refuge. I used convict cichlids Archocentrus nigrofasciatus that were either visually exposed to a predator (n = 8) or exposed to water conditioned by chemical cues from disturbed conspecifics (n = 8). Fish visually exposed to a predator decreased their ingestion rate and spent more time in the refuge than in the foraging area, while fish receiving water from frightened conspecifics did not alter their ingestion rate or time spent in the refuge and foraging site, but increased their spatial occupation (i.e., motion). These results suggest that convict cichlids recognized the predator by visual cues. Moreover, disturbance cues are a form of threatening public information that may increase fish spatial occupation due to increased exploring behaviour; but is not sufficiently alarming to alter feeding or increase refuge use. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Short-term temporal changes in the spatial variability model of CO2 emissions from a Brazilian bare soil

In this work, the spatial variability model of CO2 emissions and soil properties of a Brazilian bare soil were investigated. Carbon dioxide emissions were measured on three different days at contrasted soil temperature and soil moisture conditions, and soil properties were investigated at the same points where emissions were measured. One spatial variability model of soil CO2 emissions was found for each measurement day, and these models are similar to the ones of soil properties studied in an area of 100 x 100 m. (C) 2000 Elsevier B.V. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neonatal anoxia in rats: hippocampal cellular and subcellular changes related to cell death and spatial memory

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

Automated Nuclear Analysis of Leishmania major Telomeric Clusters Reveals Changes in Their Organization during the Parasite's Life Cycle

Parasite virulence genes are usually associated with telomeres. The clustering of the telomeres, together with their particular spatial distribution in the nucleus of human parasites such as Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei, has been suggested to play a role in facilitating ectopic recombination and in the emergence of new antigenic variants. Leishmania parasites, as well as other trypanosomes, have unusual gene expression characteristics, such as polycistronic and constitutive transcription of protein-coding genes. Leishmania subtelomeric regions are even more unique because unlike these regions in other trypanosomes they are devoid of virulence genes. Given these peculiarities of Leishmania, we sought to investigate how telomeres are organized in the nucleus of Leishmania major parasites at both the human and insect stages of their life cycle. We developed a new automated and precise method for identifying telomere position in the three-dimensional space of the nucleus, and we found that the telomeres are organized in clusters present in similar numbers in both the human and insect stages. While the number of clusters remained the same, their distribution differed between the two stages. The telomeric clusters were found more concentrated near the center of the nucleus in the human stage than in the insect stage suggesting reorganization during the parasite's differentiation process between the two hosts. These data provide the first 3D analysis of Leishmania telomere organization. The possible biological implications of these findings are discussed.

Spatial-temporal distribution of fire-protected savanna physiognomies in Southeastern Brazil

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Changes in ichthyofauna composition along a gradient from clearwaters to blackwaters in coastal streams of Atlantic forest (southeastern Brazil) in relation to environmental variables

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