Coping with globalization: Asian versus Latin American strategies of development, 1980-2010

When compared to Latin America, Asian economies since 1980 have grown faster and have done so with relatively modest inequalities. Why? A comparison of Asia and Latin America underlines the superiority of the nationalist capitalist model of development, which has often been pursued more explicitly in Asia, over that of a dependent capitalist model, which has often been pursued in Latin America. In comparison to Latin America, the Asian model has facilitated higher and less volatile rates of economic growth and a greater political room to pursue social democratic policies. The "tap root" of these alternate pathways is relative autonomy from global constraints: states and economies in Asia have been more nationalist and autonomous than in Latin America.

Evaluation of the diagnostic value of the tourniquet test in predicting severe dengue cases in a population from Belo Horizonte, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Introduction Dengue is prevalent in many tropical and sub-tropical regions. The clinical diagnosis of dengue is still complex, and not much data are available. This work aimed at assessing the diagnostic accuracy of the tourniquet test in patients with suspected dengue infection and its positivity in different classifications of this disease as reported to the Information System for Notifiable Disease in Belo Horizonte, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil between 2001 and 2006. Methods Cross-section analysis of the diagnostic accuracy of the tourniquet test for dengue, using IgM-anti-DENV ELISA as a gold standard. Results We selected 9,836 suspected cases, of which 41.1% were confirmed to be dengue. Classic dengue was present in 95.8%, dengue with complications in 2.5% and dengue hemorrhagic fever in 1.7%. The tourniquet test was positive in 16.9% of classic dengue cases, 61.7% of dengue cases with complications and 82.9% of cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever. The sensitivity and specificity of the tourniquet test were 19.1% and 86.4%, respectively. Conclusions A positive tourniquet test can be a valuable tool to support diagnosis of dengue where laboratory tests are not available. However, the absence of a positive test should not be read as the absence of infection. In addition, the tourniquet test was demonstrated to be an indicator of dengue severity.

Comparative studies on the growth and reproductive performances of Rhodnius prolixus reared on different blood sources

Host blood source was found to affect both the development and the reproductive performance of Rhodnius prolixus. The insects were reared on citrated human, rabbit, chicken, sheep and horse blood sources, through a membrane feeder, during an entire life cycle, from eggs to adults. Development and reproduction in terms of the number of unfed insects, number of moulting, mortality intermoulting period, number of egg/female, conversion of blood into egg (mg meal/egg) and percentage of hatch as effective physiological parameters were investigated. Our results showed that human or rabbit blood meals were more nutritionally efficient than the other blood samples used because (i) the insects developed faster, presented low mortality and about 80% of them reached the adult stage; and (ii) females oviposited an average of at least 100% more eggs. The inefficiency of chicken and horse blood sources as diets for R. prolixus was manifested in (i) a decrease of the amount of ingested blood and (ii) only a reasonable nutritional quality. The inadequacy of sheep blood was observed by a mortality extremely high, poor moulting response and drastic reduction in egg production.

DNA polymorphism of schistosomes and their snail hosts

Analysis of the genomes of schistosomes and one of their intermediate hosts, Biomphalaria glabrata, using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) demonstrated that intraspecific genetic polymorphism in the parasite is limited but in the snail is highly pronounced. This suggests an important role for the snail in the determination of the epidemiology of the disease. In addition to their intraspecific stability, schistosome derived RAPDs exhibit a high level of interspecific polymorphism and are thus ideal for the construction of phylogenetic trees. For the detection of intraspecific polymorphisms extensive variation in the mitochondrial DNA is being exploited for the development of a PCR based test for Schistosoma mansoni. Gene level polymorphisms are being analyzed by Low Stringency Single Specific Primer PCR.

Evaluation of an enzyme-linked immunoelectrotransfer blot test for the confirmatory serodiagnosis of human toxocariasis

To improve the serodiagnosis of human toxocariasis, a sensitive and specific enzyme-linked immunoelectrotransfer blot (EITB-IgG) test was developed and evaluated using Toxocara canislarvae excretory-secretory antigens for detecting anti-Toxocara IgG antibodies. The EITB-IgG profile of toxocariasis was characterized by comparing 27 sera from patients with toxocariasis, 110 sera from healthy subjects and 186 sera from patients with other helminth diseases (ascariasis, ancylostomiasis, trichuriasis, enterobiasis, strongyloidiasis, hymenolepiasis, diphyllobothriasis, taeniasis, cysticercosis, hydatidosis and fascioliasis). Antigenic bands of 24, 28, 30, 35, 56, 117, 136 and 152 kDa were predominantly recognized in sera from all patients with toxocariasis. However, only bands of 24-35 kDa were highly specific for Toxocara infection (98.3%), whereas other antigenic bands observed displayed cross-reactivity. Additionally, when the results of the EITB-IgG test were compared to those of the ELISA-IgG test, a 100% concordance was observed for positive results in human toxocariasis cases. The concordance for negative results between the two tests for healthy subjects and patients with other helminth diseases were 96.3% and 53.7%, respectively, showing that the EITB-IgG test has a higher specificity than ELISA. In conclusion, the EITB-IgG test is a very useful tool to confirm the serological diagnosis of human toxocariasis.

Seroreactivity to new Mycobacterium leprae protein antigens in different leprosy-endemic regions in Brazil

New Mycobacterium leprae protein antigens can contribute to improved serologic tests for leprosy diagnosis/classification and multidrug therapy (MDT) monitoring. This study describes seroreactivity to M. leprae proteins among participants from three highly endemic leprosy areas in Brazil: central-western Goiânia/Goiás (GO) (n = 225), Rondonópolis/Mato Grosso (MT) (n = 764) and northern Prata Village/Pará (PA) (n = 93). ELISA was performed to detect IgG to proteins (92f, 46f, leprosy IDRI diagnostic-1, ML0405, ML1213) and IgM to phenolic glycolipid-I (PGL-I). Multibacillary (MB) leprosy had positive rates for PGL-I that were similar to those for proteins; however, some anti-PGL-I-negative subjects were positive for proteins, suggesting that adding protein antigen to PGL-I can enhance the sensitivity of MB leprosy detection. In MT, different degrees of seroreactivity were observed and ranked for MB, former patients after MDT, paucibacillary (PB) leprosy, household contact (HHC) and endemic control (EC) groups. The seroreactivity of PB patients was low in GO and MT. HHCs from different endemic sites had similar IgG antibody responses to proteins. 46f and 92f were not recognised by most tuberculosis patients, ECs or HHCs within GO, an area with high BCG vaccination coverage. Low positivity in EC and HHC was observed in PA and MT. Our results provide evidence for the development of an improved serologic test that could be widely applicable for MB leprosy testing in Brazil.

Effect of gossypol on survival and reproduction of the zoophytophagous stinkbug Podisus nigrispinus (Dallas)

Effect of gossypol on survival and reproduction of the zoophytophagous stinkbug Podisus nigrispinus (Dallas). Gossypol is a sesquiterpene aldehyde found in cotton plants conferring resistance against herbivory. Although the effect of this sesquiterpenoid on insect pests of cotton is known, the interaction of this compound with zoophytophagous predators such as Podisus nigrispinus (Dallas) (Hemiptera, Pentatomidae) has not been studied so far. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the purified gossypol on nymphs and adults of P. nigrispinus. Nymphs and adults of this predator were fed on Tenebrio molitor pupae and supplemented with solutions of gossypol at concentrations of 0.00, 0.05, 0.10, and 0.20% (w/v) during the nymphal and adult stages or, only during the adult stage of P. nigrispinus. The nymphal stage of the predator was, on average, two days longer when suplemmented with gossypol. Emerged adults had lower fecundity and egg hatching, especially at the highest gossypol concentration (0.20%) ingested during the nymphal and adult stages. However, this predator was not affected when it ingested the compound only during the adult stage. P. nigrispinus can have delayed nymphal development and lower reproductive performance when ingesting the gossypol during the nymphal and adult stages, but only at higher concentrations of gossypol than that produced by cotton plants.

Behavioral and physiological methods for early quantitative assessment of spinal cord injury and prognosis in rats

Methods for reliable evaluation of spinal cord (SC) injury in rats at short periods (2 and 24 h) after lesion were tested to characterize the mechanisms implicated in primary SC damage. We measured the physiological changes occurring after several procedures for producing SC injury, with particular emphasis on sensorimotor functions. Segmental and suprasegmental reflexes were tested in 39 male Wistar rats weighing 250-300 g divided into three control groups that were subjected to a) anesthesia, b) dissection of soft prevertebral tissue, and c) laminectomy of the vertebral segments between T10 and L1. In the lesion group the SC was completely transected, hemisected or subjected to vertebral compression. All animals were evaluated 2 and 24 h after the experimental procedure by the hind limb motility index, Bohlman motor score, open-field, hot-plate, tail flick, and paw compression tests. The locomotion scale proved to be less sensitive than the sensorimotor tests. A reduction in exploratory movements was detected in the animals 24 h after the procedures. The hot-plate was the most sensitive test for detecting sensorimotor deficiencies following light, moderate or severe SC injury. The most sensitive and simplest test of reflex function was the hot-plate. The hemisection model promoted reproducible moderate SC injury which allowed us to quantify the resulting behavior and analyze the evolution of the lesion and its consequences during the first 24 h after injury. We conclude that hemisection permitted the quantitation of behavioral responses for evaluation of the development of deficits after lesions. Hind limb evaluation scores and spontaneous exploration events provided a sensitive index of immediate injury effects after SC lesion at 2 and 24 h. Taken together, locomotion scales, open-field, and hot-plate tests represent reproducible, quantitatively sensitive methods for detecting functional deficiencies within short periods of time, indicating their potential for the study of cellular mechanisms of primary injury and repair after traumatic SC injury.

Functional changes of dendritic cells in hypersensivity reactions to amoxicillin

A better understanding of dendritic cell (DC) involvement in responses to haptenic drugs is needed, because it represents a possible approach to the development of an in vitro test, which could identify patients prone to drug allergies. There are two main DC subsets: plasmacytoid DC (pDC) and myeloid DC (mDC). β-lactams form hapten-carrier conjugates and may provide a suitable model to study DC behavior in drug allergy reactions. It has been demonstrated that drugs interact differently with DC in drug allergic and non-allergic patients, but there are no studies regarding these subsets. Our aim was to assess the functional changes of mDC and pDC harvested from an amoxicillin-hypersensitive 32-year-old woman who experienced a severe maculopapular exanthema as reflected in interleukin-6 (IL-6) production after stimulation with this drug and penicillin. We also aim to demonstrate, for the first time, the feasibility of this method for dendritic cell isolation followed by in vitro stimulation for studies of drug allergy physiopathology. DC were harvested using a double Percoll density gradient, which generates a basophil-depleted cell (BDC) suspension. Further, pDC were isolated by blood DC antigen 4-positive magnetic selection and gravity filtration through magnetized columns. After stimulation with amoxicillin, penicillin and positive and negative controls, IL-6 production was measured by ELISA. A positive dose-response curve for IL-6 after stimulation with amoxicillin and penicillin was observed for pDC, but not for mDC or BDC suspension. These preliminary results demonstrate the feasibility of this methodology to expand the knowledge of the effect of dendritic cell activation by drug allergens.

Design and development of the architecture of an agricultural mobile robot

Parameters such as tolerance, scale and agility utilized in data sampling for using in Precision Agriculture required an expressive number of researches and development of techniques and instruments for automation. It is highlighted the employment of methodologies in remote sensing used in coupled to a Geographic Information System (GIS), adapted or developed for agricultural use. Aiming this, the application of Agricultural Mobile Robots is a strong tendency, mainly in the European Union, the USA and Japan. In Brazil, researches are necessary for the development of robotics platforms, serving as a basis for semi-autonomous and autonomous navigation systems. The aim of this work is to describe the project of an experimental platform for data acquisition in field for the study of the spatial variability and development of agricultural robotics technologies to operate in agricultural environments. The proposal is based on a systematization of scientific work to choose the design parameters utilized for the construction of the model. The kinematic study of the mechanical structure was made by the virtual prototyping process, based on modeling and simulating of the tension applied in frame, using the.

Platform for Plasmodium vivax vaccine discovery and development

Plasmodium vivax is the most prevalent malaria parasite on the American continent. It generates a global burden of 80-100 million cases annually and represents a tremendous public health problem, particularly in the American and Asian continents. A malaria vaccine would be considered the most cost-effective measure against this vector-borne disease and it would contribute to a reduction in malaria cases and to eventual eradication. Although significant progress has been achieved in the search for Plasmodium falciparum antigens that could be used in a vaccine, limited progress has been made in the search for P. vivax components that might be eligible for vaccine development. This is primarily due to the lack of in vitro cultures to serve as an antigen source and to inadequate funding. While the most advanced P. falciparum vaccine candidate is currently being tested in Phase III trials in Africa, the most advanced P. vivax candidates have only advanced to Phase I trials. Herein, we describe the overall strategy and progress in P. vivax vaccine research, from antigen discovery to preclinical and clinical development and we discuss the regional potential of Latin America to develop a comprehensive platform for vaccine development.

PRELIMINARILY DEVELOPMENT OF A MOISTURE-ACTIVATED BIORESORBABLE POLYMERIC PLATFORM FOR DRUG DELIVERY

Bioresorbable polymeric films were prepared by solvent casting using a tyrosine-derived polycarbonate and metronidazole (MDZ) as the model drug at 2.5%, 5% and 10% (w/w). Drug loading did not affect the water uptake, drug release, polymer degradation or erosion profiles. All devices released approximately 85% (w/w) of the drug within a 1.5 h period. This may be attributed to the rapid water uptake of the polymer. An increase in the water uptake correlated with a linear rate increase of the polymer degradation (0.968 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.999). Moreover, MDZ presented a remarkable plasticizing effect for the polymer and drug loading exerted a significant impact on the mechanical properties of the obtained films. The results obtained can be used to further the development of novel biocompatible and biodegradable polymeric platforms for the delivery of metronidazole and other drugs in a broad range of pharmaceutical applications.