Effects of β-(1→3,1→6)-d-glucan and density of diets on the blood profiles of immunologically challenged weaned piglets

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of two levels of the β-(1→3,1→6)-d-glucan (0 and 500ppm) from yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and two levels of energy (3300 and 3450kcalMEkg(-1)) on the hematological, immunological and, biochemical profiles of thirty-six 21-days-old weaned piglets, challenged with 150μgkg(-1) of BW lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from Escherichia coli serotype 055:B5. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design in a 2×2 factorial arrangement with nine replicates per treatment and, one animal per experimental unit. The data were analyzed in accordance with the multivariate analysis procedure of SAS and, the treatment means of parametric and non-parametric data were compared by Bonferroni's test (P<0.05) and, by Dunn's test (P<0.05), respectively. The data of the blood profiles of alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase and, creatinine showed that LPS did not cause kidney or liver damage in the animals. The addition of beta-glucan in the diets did not prove the robustness of its effect and biological relevance when provided with low nutrient-density. However, its addition combined with the high-nutrient-density diets showed less marked hypoglobulinemia in piglets, which may have contributed to the decreasing of the synthesis of inflammatory mediators.

Hormonal contraceptive use before hCG remission does not increase the risk of gestational trophoblastic neoplasia following complete hydatidiform mole: a historical database review

To re-evaluate the safety of hormonal contraceptives (HC) after uterine evacuation of complete hydatidiform mole (CHM). Historical database review. Charing Cross Hospital Gestational Trophoblastic Disease Centre, London, United Kingdom. Two thousand four hundred and twenty-three women with CHM of whom 154 commenced HC while their human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) was still elevated, followed between 2003 and 2012. We compared time to hCG remission between HC users and nonusers. The relationship between HC use and gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) development was assessed. The relationship between HC use and a high International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) risk score was determined. Time to hCG remission, risk of developing postmolar GTN and proportion of women with high FIGO risk score. No relationship was observed between HC use with mean time to hCG remission (HC users versus non-users: 12 weeks in both, P = 0.19), GTN development (HC users versus non-users: 20.1 and 16.7%, P = 0.26) or high-risk FIGO score (HC users versus nonusers: 0% and 8%, P = 0.15). Moreover, no association between HC and GTN development was found, even when an age-adjusted model was used (OR = 1.37, 95% CI 0.91-2.08, P = 0.13). The use of current HC is not associated with development of postmolar GTN or delayed time to hCG remission. Therefore, HC can be safely used to prevent a new conception following CHM regardless of hCG level. Non-concurrent cohort study to re-evaluate the safety of low dose HCs after uterine evacuation of CHM.

Desenvolvimento de uma chave para apoio no diagnóstico e na tomada de decisão de ações de recuperação ambiental de cursos d'água e adjacências

Pós-graduação em Engenharia Civil e Ambiental - FEB

Singularidades do tipo D(q,p)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Vanishing of Ext and Tor over complete intersections

Let (R,m) be a local complete intersection, that is, a local ring whose m-adic completion is the quotient of a complete regular local ring by a regular sequence. Let M and N be finitely generated R-modules. This dissertation concerns the vanishing of Tor(M, N) and Ext(M, N). In this context, M satisfies Serre's condition (S_{n}) if and only if M is an nth syzygy. The complexity of M is the least nonnegative integer r such that the nth Betti number of M is bounded by a polynomial of degree r-1 for all sufficiently large n. We use this notion of Serre's condition and complexity to study the vanishing of Tor_{i}(M, N). In particular, building on results of C. Huneke, D. Jorgensen and R. Wiegand [32], and H. Dao [21], we obtain new results showing that good depth properties on the R-modules M, N and MtensorN force the vanishing of Tor_{i}(M, N) for all i>0. We give examples showing that our results are sharp. We also show that if R is a one-dimensional domain and M and MtensorHom(M,R) are torsion-free, then M is free if and only if M has complexity at most one. If R is a hypersurface and Ext^{i}(M, N) has finite length for all i>>0, then the Herbrand difference [18] is defined as length(Ext^{2n}(M, N))-(Ext^{2n-1}(M, N)) for some (equivalently, every) sufficiently large integer n. In joint work with Hailong Dao, we generalize and study the Herbrand difference. Using the Grothendieck group of finitely generated R-modules, we also examined the number of consecutive vanishing of Ext^{i}(M, N) needed to ensure that Ext^{i}(M, N) = 0 for all i>>0. Our results recover and improve on most of the known bounds in the literature, especially when R has dimension two.

Diversity and Physiological Characterization of D-Xylose-Fermenting Yeasts Isolated from the Brazilian Amazonian Forest

Background: This study is the first to investigate the Brazilian Amazonian Forest to identify new D-xylose-fermenting yeasts that might potentially be used in the production of ethanol from sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysates. Methodology/Principal Findings: A total of 224 yeast strains were isolated from rotting wood samples collected in two Amazonian forest reserve sites. These samples were cultured in yeast nitrogen base (YNB)-D-xylose or YNB-xylan media. Candida tropicalis, Asterotremella humicola, Candida boidinii and Debaryomyces hansenii were the most frequently isolated yeasts. Among D-xylose-fermenting yeasts, six strains of Spathaspora passalidarum, two of Scheffersomyces stipitis, and representatives of five new species were identified. The new species included Candida amazonensis of the Scheffersomyces clade and Spathaspora sp. 1, Spathaspora sp. 2, Spathaspora sp. 3, and Candida sp. 1 of the Spathaspora clade. In fermentation assays using D-xylose (50 g/L) culture medium, S. passalidarum strains showed the highest ethanol yields (0.31 g/g to 0.37 g/g) and productivities (0.62 g/L.h to 0.75 g/L.h). Candida amazonensis exhibited a virtually complete D-xylose consumption and the highest xylitol yields (0.55 g/g to 0.59 g/g), with concentrations up to 25.2 g/L. The new Spathaspora species produced ethanol and/or xylitol in different concentrations as the main fermentation products. In sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic fermentation assays, S. stipitis UFMG-XMD-15.2 generated the highest ethanol yield (0.34 g/g) and productivity (0.2 g/L.h), while the new species Spathaspora sp. 1 UFMG-XMD-16.2 and Spathaspora sp. 2 UFMG-XMD-23.2 were very good xylitol producers. Conclusions/Significance: This study demonstrates the promise of using new D-xylose-fermenting yeast strains from the Brazilian Amazonian Forest for ethanol or xylitol production from sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysates.

Classifying A-field and B-field configurations in the presence of D-branes. Part II: Stacks of D-branes

In the paper of Bonora et al. (2008) [3] we have shown, in the context of type II superstring theory, the classification of the allowed B-field and A-field configurations in the presence of anomaly-free D-branes, the mathematical framework being provided by the geometry of gerbes. Here we complete the discussion considering in detail the case of a stack of D-branes, carrying a non-abelian gauge theory, which was just sketched in Bonora et al. (2008) [3]. In this case we have to mix the geometry of abelian gerbes, describing the B-field, with the one of higher-rank bundles, ordinary or twisted. We describe in detail the various cases that arise according to such a classification, as we did for a single D-brane, showing under which hypotheses the A-field turns out to be a connection on a canonical gauge bundle. We also generalize to the non-abelian setting the discussion about "gauge bundles with non-integral Chern classes", relating them to twisted bundles with connection. Finally, we analyze the geometrical nature of the Wilson loop for each kind of gauge theory on a D-brane or stack of D-branes.

Is missing maxillary lateral incisor in complete cleft lip and palate a product of genetics or local environment?

Objective: To test the null hypothesis: Subjects with isolated complete unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) show no differences in overall frequency of tooth agenesis (hypodontia), comparing a subsample with cleft-side maxillary lateral incisor (MxI2) agenesis to a subsample without cleftside MxI2 agenesis. Findings could clarify the origins of cleft-side MxI2 agenesis. Materials and Methods: Tooth agenesis was identified from dental radiographs of 141 subjects with UCLP. The UCLP cohort was segregated into four categories according to the status and location of MxI2 in the region of the unilateral cleft: group M: subjects with one tooth, located on the mesial side of the alveolar cleft; group D: subjects with one tooth, located on the distal side of the alveolar cleft; group MD: subjects with two teeth present, one mesial and one distal to the cleft; and group ABS: subjects with lateral incisor absent (agenesis) in the cleft area. Results: The null hypothesis was rejected. Among UCLP subjects, there was a twofold increase (P < .0008) in overall frequency of tooth agenesis outside the cleft region in a subsample with cleftside MxI2 agenesis (ABS), compared to a subsample presenting with no agenesis of the cleft-side MxI2 (M+D+MD). Conclusions: Cleft-side MxI2 agenesis in CLP subjects appears to be largely a genetically controlled anomaly associated with cleft development, rather than a collateral environmental consequence of the adjacent cleft defect, since increased hypodontia involving multiple missing teeth observed remote from a cleft clearly has a significant genetic basis. (Angle Orthod. 2012;82:959-963.)

Effect of Complete Revascularization on 10-Year Survival of Patients With Stable Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease MASS II Trial

Background-The importance of complete revascularization remains unclear and contradictory. This current investigation compares the effect of complete revascularization on 10-year survival of patients with stable multivessel coronary artery disease (CAD) who were randomly assigned to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). Methods and Results-This is a post hoc analysis of the Second Medicine, Angioplasty, or Surgery Study (MASS II), which is a randomized trial comparing treatments in patients with stable multivessel CAD, and preserved systolic ventricular function. We analyzed patients who underwent surgery (CABG) or stent angioplasty (PCI). The survival free of overall mortality of patients who underwent complete (CR) or incomplete revascularization (IR) was compared. Of the 408 patients randomly assigned to mechanical revascularization, 390 patients (95.6%) underwent the assigned treatment; complete revascularization was achieved in 224 patients (57.4%), 63.8% of those in the CABG group and 36.2% in the PCI group (P = 0.001). The IR group had more prior myocardial infarction than the CR group (56.2% X 39.2%, P = 0.01). During a 10-year follow-up, the survival free of cardiovascular mortality was significantly different among patients in the 2 groups (CR, 90.6% versus IR, 84.4%; P = 0.04). This was mainly driven by an increased cardiovascular specific mortality in individuals with incomplete revascularization submitted to PCI (P = 0.05). Conclusions-Our study suggests that in 10-year follow-up, CR compared with IR was associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality, especially due to a higher increase in cardiovascular-specific mortality in individuals submitted to PCI.

Complete fusion enhancement and suppression of weakly bound nuclei at near barrier energies

We consider the influence of breakup channels on the complete fusion of weakly bound systems in terms of dynamic polarization potentials. It is argued that the enhancement of the cross section at sub-barrier energies may be consistent with recent experimental observations that nucleon transfer, often leading to breakup, is dominant compared to direct breakup. The main trends of the experimental complete fusion cross sections are analyzed in the framework of the DPP approach. The qualitative conclusions are supported by CDCC calculations including a sequential breakup channel, the one neutron stripping of Li-7 followed by the breakup of Li-6.

Prevalence of enamel defects in permanent teeth of patients with complete cleft lip and palate

Objective: To evaluate the prevalence, types, location, and characteristics of enamel defects in anterior permanent teeth of patients with complete unilateral and bilateral cleft lip and palate, as well as the relation with the cleft. Setting: Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil. Participants: Eighty patients of both genders, 12 years and older, with unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and palate. Methods: A single examiner carried out clinical examination under artificial light with a dental probe and mirror after drying teeth according to the modified DDE index. Results: Seventy-four of 80 patients presented with at least one tooth affected by enamel defects: 165 of 325 evaluated teeth (50.8%) presented enamel defects, with hypoplasia being the most prevalent (50.7%), followed by diffuse opacity (23.1%) and demarcated opacity (18.4%). The most affected tooth was 21 (36.5%), followed by 11 (34%), located at the middle (40%) and incisal (33%) thirds. Most defects occur at the buccal surface (47.7%), followed by the distal (22.7%), the mesial (19%), and the palatal (10.6%) surfaces. A significant relationship was found between the cleft side and enamel defects. Conclusion: Upper anterior teeth of patients with complete cleft lip and palate present a high prevalence of enamel defects; the highest percentage on the cleft side suggests that the cleft does influence the occurrence of enamel defects in permanent teeth.

Search for time-integrated cp violation in $d^0 \rightarrow k^+k^-$ and $d^0 \rightarrow \pi^+\pi^-$ decays at lhcb.

The LHCb experiment at the LHC, by exploiting the high production cross section for $c\overline{c}$ quark pairs, offers the possibility to investigate $\mathcal{CP}$ violation in the charm sector with a very high precision.\\ In this thesis a measurement of time-integrated \(\mathcal{CP}\) violation using $D^0\rightarrow~K^+K^-$ and $D^0\rightarrow \pi^+\pi^-$ decays at LHCb is presented. The measured quantity is the difference ($\Delta$) of \(\mathcal{CP}\) asymmetry ($\mathcal{A}_{\mathcal{CP}}$) between the decay rates of $D^0$ and $\overline{D}^0$ mesons into $K^+K^–$ and $\pi^+\pi^-$ pairs.\\ The analysis is performed on 2011 data, collected at \(\sqrt{s}=7\) TeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1 fb\(^{-1}\), and 2012 data, collected at \(\sqrt{s}=8\) TeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2 fb\(^{-1}\).\\ A complete study of systematic uncertainties is beyond the aim of this thesis. However the most important systematic of the previous analysis has been studied. We find that this systematic uncertainty was due to a statistical fluctuation and then we demonstrate that it is no longer necessary to take into account.\\ By combining the 2011 and 2012 results, the final statistical precision is 0.08\%. When this analysis will be completed and published, this will be the most precise single measurement in the search for $\mathcal{CP}$ violation in the charm sector.

Scene Reconstruction And Understanding By RGB-D Sensors

This thesis investigates interactive scene reconstruction and understanding using RGB-D data only. Indeed, we believe that depth cameras will still be in the near future a cheap and low-power 3D sensing alternative suitable for mobile devices too. Therefore, our contributions build on top of state-of-the-art approaches to achieve advances in three main challenging scenarios, namely mobile mapping, large scale surface reconstruction and semantic modeling. First, we will describe an effective approach dealing with Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM) on platforms with limited resources, such as a tablet device. Unlike previous methods, dense reconstruction is achieved by reprojection of RGB-D frames, while local consistency is maintained by deploying relative bundle adjustment principles. We will show quantitative results comparing our technique to the state-of-the-art as well as detailed reconstruction of various environments ranging from rooms to small apartments. Then, we will address large scale surface modeling from depth maps exploiting parallel GPU computing. We will develop a real-time camera tracking method based on the popular KinectFusion system and an online surface alignment technique capable of counteracting drift errors and closing small loops. We will show very high quality meshes outperforming existing methods on publicly available datasets as well as on data recorded with our RGB-D camera even in complete darkness. Finally, we will move to our Semantic Bundle Adjustment framework to effectively combine object detection and SLAM in a unified system. Though the mathematical framework we will describe does not restrict to a particular sensing technology, in the experimental section we will refer, again, only to RGB-D sensing. We will discuss successful implementations of our algorithm showing the benefit of a joint object detection, camera tracking and environment mapping.

[Only a denture sore? Causes of a possible denture sore from a maxillary complete denture]

This case presentation documents the treatment sequence of a 74 years old patient who complained about a sore spot of the palatal mucosa underneath the complete denture. The intraoral examination revealed a dark spot, redness and swelling of the mucosa around this spot and halitosis. The mucosa exhibited a perforation of 3 x 10 mm in diameter. A radiographic 3-D picture showed an impacted canine tooth, which was partly covered by the palatal bone. Firstly the denture base was relieved and the swelling gradually disappeared. Then a biopsy was taken for histological analysis to exclude any malignant process. In local anesthesia the tooth was extracted, which exhibited a deep carious lesion of the entire crown. After surgery a visible collapse of the jaw crest was observed. During a period of two months the denture was relined with a soft material to improve its fit and to enhance the healing process. With a final rebasement, the existing denture could be adapted again and the patient continued to wear it.

A two-centre study on facial morphology in patients with complete bilateral cleft lip and palate at nine years of age

The aim of this study was to compare craniofacial morphology and soft tissue profiles in patients with complete bilateral cleft lip and palate at 9 years of age, treated in two European cleft centres with delayed hard palate closure but different treatment protocols. The cephalometric data of 83 consecutively treated patients were compared (Gothenburg, N=44; Nijmegen, N=39). In total, 18 hard tissue and 10 soft tissue landmarks were digitized by one operator. To determine the intra-observer reliability 20 cephalograms were digitized twice with a monthly interval. Paired t-test, Pearson correlation coefficients and multiple regression models were applied for statistical analysis. Hard and soft tissue data were superimposed using the Generalized Procrustes Analysis. In Nijmegen, the maxilla was protrusive for hard and soft tissue values (P=0.001, P=0.030, respectively) and the maxillary incisors were retroclined (P<0.001), influencing the nasolabial angle, which was increased in comparison with Gothenburg (P=0.004). In conclusion, both centres showed a favourable craniofacial form at 9-10 years of age, although there were significant differences in the maxillary prominence, the incisor inclination and soft tissue cephalometric values. Follow-up of these patients until facial growth has ceased, may elucidate components for outcome improvement.