O antagonismo do receptor de serotonina do tipo 7 da substância cinzenta periaquedutal dorsal reduz a ansiedade experimental basal, mas não aquela gerada pela retirada do etanol em ratos

Ethanol-dependent individuals who reduce or discontinue its use may present Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome, which is characterized by unpleasant signs and symptoms, such as anxiety, that may trigger relapses. Ethanol, a psychotropic drug, is able to promote behavioral and neurophysiological changes, acting on different neurotransmitter systems, including the serotonergic, which has also been directly associated with aversive states, including anxiety. This study aimed to investigate the participation of type 7 serotonin receptor (5-HT7) of the dorsal periaqueductal gray (DPAG) on basal experimental anxiety and that caused by ethanol withdrawal. For this, 75-100 days old Wistar rats were subjected to two experiments. On the first one, animals underwent stereotactic surgery for implantation of guide cannulas used for administration of the drug directly into the DPAG. After seven days, the animals received doses of 2.5; 5 and 10 nmols of type 7 receptor antagonist SB269970 (SB) or vehicle intra-DPAG and, ten minutes after, they were exposed to elevated plus maze (EPM). In the following day, the animals were submitted to the same treatment and tested in the open field (OF). In the second experiment, animals received increasing concentrations (2%, 4%, 6%) of ethanol as the only source of liquid diet or water (control group), both with free access to chow. Seventy two hours and ninety six hours after the ethanol withdrawal, animals received SB (2.5 and 5.0 nmols) intraDPAG ten minutes before the test in the LCE and OF, respectively. In experiment 1, the dose of antagonist 10 nmols was able of reversing the anxiety generated by EPM. In the experiment 2, ineffective SB doses on the LCE (2.5 and 5.0 nmol) were not able to reverse the anxiety caused by the ethanol withdrawal in the EPM, although the dose of 2.5 nmols of SB has reversed its hipolocomotor effect in this test. This result suggests that the 5-HT7 receptor is involved in the modulation of the basal experimental anxiety in rats, but not in the anxiety caused by ethanol withdrawal in the DPAG.

Flat-top supercontinuum and tunable femtosecond fiber laser sources at 1.9-2.5 μm

We report the high-energy flat-top supercontinuum covering the mid-infrared wavelength range of 1.9-2.5 μm as well as electronically tunable femtosecond pulses between 1.98-2.22 μm directly from the thulium-doped fiber laser amplifier. Comparison of experimental results with numerical simulations confirms that both sources employ the same nonlinear optical mechanism - Raman soliton frequency shift occurring inside the Tm-fiber amplifier. To illustrate that, we investigate two versions of the compact diode-pumped SESAM mode-locked femtosecond thulium-doped all-silica-fiber-based laser system providing either broadband supercontinuum or tunable Raman soliton output, depending on the parameters of the system. The first system operates in the Raman soliton regime providing femtosecond pulses tunable between 1.98-2.22 μm. Wide and continuous spectral tunability over 240 nm was realized by changing only the amplifier pump diode current. The second system generates high-energy supercontinuum with the superior spectral flatness of better than 1 dB covering the wavelength range of 1.9-2.5 μm, with the total output energy as high as 0.284 μJ, the average power of 2.1 W at 7.5 MHz repetition rate. We simulate the amplifier operation in the Raman soliton self-frequency shift regime and discuss the role of induced Raman scattering in supercontinuum formation inside the fiber amplifier. We compare this system with a more traditional 1.85-2.53 μm supercontinuum source in the external highly-nonlinear commercial chalcogenide fiber using the Raman soliton MOPA as an excitation source. The reported systems1 can be readily applied to a number of industrial applications in the mid-IR, including sensing, stand-off detection, medical surgery and fine material processing.

Purificação, modelagem e simulação da adsorção de bioprodutos por troca iônica em coluna de leito expandido

A produção de proteínas através de microrganismos tornou-se uma técnica muito importante na obtenção de compostos de interesse da indústria farmacêutica e alimentícia. Extratos brutos nos quais as proteínas são obtidas são geralmente complexos, contendo sólidos e células em suspensão. Usualmente, para uso industrial destes compostos, é necessário obtê-los puros, para garantir a sua atuação sem interferência. Um método que vem recebendo destaque especialmente nos últimos 10 anos é o uso da cromatografia de troca iônica em leito expandido, que combina em uma única etapa os passos de clarificação, concentração e purificação da molécula alvo, reduzindo assim o tempo de operação e também os custos com equipamentos para realização de cada etapa em separado. Combinado a este fato, a última década também é marcada por trabalhos que tratam da modelagem matemática do processo de adsorção de proteínas em resinas. Está técnica, além de fornecer informações importantes sobre o processo de adsorção, também é de grande valia na otimização da etapa de adsorção, uma vez que permite que simulações sejam feitas, sem a necessidade de gasto de tempo e material com experimentos em bancada, especialmente se é desejado uma ampliação de escala. Dessa forma, o objetivo desta tese foi realizar a modelagem e simulação do processo de adsorção de bioprodutos em um caldo bruto na presença de células, usando inulinase e C-ficocianina como objeto de estudo e purificar C-ficocianina utilizando resina de troca iônica em leito expandido. A presente tese foi então dividida em quatro artigos. O primeiro artigo teve como objeto de estudo a enzima inulinase, e a otimização da etapa de adsorção desta enzima em resina de troca iônica Streamline SP, em leito expandido, foi feita através da modelagem matemática e simulação das curvas de ruptura em três diferentes graus de expansão (GE). As máximas eficiências foram observadas quando utilizadas maiores concentrações de inulinase (120 a 170 U/mL), e altura de leito entre 20 e 30 cm. O grau de expansão de 3,0 vezes foi considerado o melhor, uma vez que a produtividade foi consideravelmente superior. O segundo artigo apresenta o estudo das condições de adsorção de C-ficocianina em resina de troca iônica, onde foi verificado o efeito do pH e temperatura na adsorção e após construída a isoterma de adsorção. A isoterma de adsorção da C-ficocianina em resina Streamline Q XL feita em pH 7,5 e a 25°C (ambiente), apresentou um bom ajuste ao modelo de Langmuir (R=0,98) e os valores qm (capacidade máxima de adsorção) e Kd (constante de equilíbrio) estimados pela equação linearizada da isoterma, foram de 26,7 mg/mL e 0,067mg/mL. O terceiro artigo aborda a modelagem do processo de adsorção de extrato não clarificado de C-ficocianina em resina de troca iônica Streamline Q XL em coluna de leito expandido. Três curvas de ruptura foram feitas em diferentes graus de expansão (2,0, 2,5 e 3,0). A condição de adsorção de extrato bruto não clarificado de C-ficocianina que se mostrou mais vantajosa, por apresentar maior capacidade de adsorção, é quando se alimenta o extrato até atingir 10% de saturação da resina, em grau de expansão 2,0, com uma altura inicial de leito de 30 cm. O último artigo originado nesta tese foi sobre a purificação de C-ficocianina através da cromatografia de troca iônica em leito expandido. Uma vez que a adsorção já havia sido estudada no artigo 2, o artigo 4 enfoca na otimização das condições de eluição, visando obter um produto com máxima pureza e recuperação. A pureza é dada pela razão entre a absorbância a 620 nm pela absorbância a 280 nm, e dizse que quando C-ficocianina apresenta pureza superior a 0,7 ela pode ser usada em como corante em alimentos. A avaliação das curvas de contorno indicou que a faixa de trabalho deve ser em pH ao redor de 6,5 e volumes de eluição próximos a 150 mL. Tais condições combinadas a uma etapa de pré-eluição com 0,1M de NaCl, permitiu obter C-ficocianina com pureza de 2,9, concentração 3 mg/mL, e recuperação ao redor de 70%.

Crassaminicella profunda gen. nov., sp nov., an anaerobic marine bacterium isolated from deep-sea sediments

A novel, anaerobic, chemo-organotrophic bacterium, designated strain Ra1766HT, was isolated from sediments of the Guaymas basin (Gulf of California, Mexico) taken from a depth of 2002 m. Cells were thin, motile, Gram-stain-positive, flexible rods forming terminal endospores. Strain Ra1766H(T) grew at temperatures of 25-45 degrees C (optimum 30 degrees C), pH 6.7-8.1 (optimum 7.5) and in a salinity of 5-60 g l(-1) NaCl (optimum 30 g l(-1)). It was an obligate heterotrophic bacterium fermenting carbohydrates (glucose and mannose) and organic acids (pyruvate and succinate). Casamino acids and amino acids (glutamate, aspartate and glycine) were also fermented. The main end products from glucose fermentation were acetate, butyrate, ethanol, H-2 and CO2. Sulfate, sulfite, thiosulfate, elemental sulfur, fumarate, nitrate, nitrite and Fe(III) were not used as terminal electron acceptors. The predominant cellular fatty acids were C-14 : 0, C-16:1 omega 7, C-16:1 omega 7 DMA and C-16:0. The main polar lipids consisted of phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine and phospholipids. The G +C content of the genomic DNA was 33.7 molo/o. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that strain Ra1766H(T) was affiliated to cluster XI of the order Clostridia les, phylum Firmicutes. The closest phylogenetic relative of Ra1766H(T) was Geosporobacter subterraneus (94.2% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity). On the basis of phylogenetic inference and phenotypic properties, strain Ra1766H(T) (=DSM 27501(T)=JCM 19377(T)) is proposed to be the type strain of a novel species of a novel genus, named Crassaminicella pro funda.

The preparation of a certified reference material of polar pesticides in freeze-dried water (CRM 606)

The preparation of a certified reference material of polar pesticides in freeze-dried water is described. The pesticides selected were atrazine, simazine, carbaryl, propanil, linuron, fenamiphos and permethrin which were added to 6000 litres of tap water at 50–80 μg · L–1 (200–320 μg · L–1 for permethrin) level in presence of NaCl (2.5 g · L–1) prior lyophilization. After the freeze-drying process the residue was rehomogenized, filled into amber glass bottles and stored at –20 °C, +4 °C and +20 °C. All pesticides were determined by HPLC/diode array detector, except permethrin which was determined by GC/ECD. The results obtained for atrazine, simazine, carbaryl, propanil, linuron and fenamiphos showed no within- or between-bottle inhomogeneity, however the material was non-homogeneous for permethrin and therefore this was withdrawn from further studies. With respect to the stability for over one year, all pesticides were stable at –20 °C. At +4 °C all pesticides were stable for at least 9 months and at +20 °C the stability was demonstrated only during the first month of storage. The content (mass fractions) of atrazine, simazine, carbaryl, propanil and linuron in freeze-dried water (CRM 606) was certified by an interlaboratory testing and a certification campaign.

Geochemistry Of Acid Mine Drainage From A Coal Mining Area And Processes Controlling Metal Attenuation In Stream Waters, Southern Brazil.

Acid drainage influence on the water and sediment quality was investigated in a coal mining area (southern Brazil). Mine drainage showed pH between 3.2 and 4.6 and elevated concentrations of sulfate, As and metals, of which, Fe, Mn and Zn exceeded the limits for the emission of effluents stated in the Brazilian legislation. Arsenic also exceeded the limit, but only slightly. Groundwater monitoring wells from active mines and tailings piles showed pH interval and chemical concentrations similar to those of mine drainage. However, the river and ground water samples of municipal public water supplies revealed a pH range from 7.2 to 7.5 and low chemical concentrations, although Cd concentration slightly exceeded the limit adopted by Brazilian legislation for groundwater. In general, surface waters showed large pH range (6 to 10.8), and changes caused by acid drainage in the chemical composition of these waters were not very significant. Locally, acid drainage seemed to have dissolved carbonate rocks present in the local stratigraphic sequence, attenuating the dispersion of metals and As. Stream sediments presented anomalies of these elements, which were strongly dependent on the proximity of tailings piles and abandoned mines. We found that precipitation processes in sediments and the dilution of dissolved phases were responsible for the attenuation of the concentrations of the metals and As in the acid drainage and river water mixing zone. In general, a larger influence of mining activities on the chemical composition of the surface waters and sediments was observed when enrichment factors in relation to regional background levels were used.

Correlation Between Testosterone And Psa Kinetics In Metastatic Prostate Cancer Patients Treated With Diverse Chemical Castrations.

To assess total testosterone and prostatic-specific antigen (PSA) kinetics among diverse chemical castrations, advanced-stage prostate cancer patients were randomized into three groups of 20: Group 1, Leuprolide 3.75 mg; Group 2, Leuprolide 7.5 mg; and Group 3, Goserelin 3.6 mg. All groups were treated with monthly application of the respective drugs. The patients' levels of serum total testosterone and PSA were evaluated at two time periods: before the treatment and 3 months after the treatment. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was utilized to verify the hypothesis of linear correlation between total testosterone and PSA levels. At the beginning the patients' age, stage, grade, PSA, and total testosterone were similar within the three groups, with median age 72, 70, and 70 years in Groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Three months after the treatment, patients who received Leuprolide 7.5 mg presented significantly lower median total testosterone levels compared with Goserelin 3.6 mg and Leuprolide 3.75 mg (9.5 ng/dL vs. 20.0 ng/dL vs. 30.0 ng/dL, respectively; p = .0072), while those who received Goserelin 3.6 mg presented significantly lower PSA levels compared with Leuprolide 7.5 mg and Leuprolide 3.75 mg (0.67 vs. 1.86 vs. 2.57, respectively; p = .0067). There was no linear correlation between total testosterone and PSA levels. Overall, regarding castration levels of total testosterone, 28.77% of patients did not obtain levels ≤50 ng/dL and 47.80% did not obtain levels ≤20 ng/dL. There was no correlation between total testosterone and PSA kinetics and no equivalence among different pharmacological castrations.

Applications Of Visual Evoked Potentials And Fourier-domain Optical Coherence Tomography In Parkinson's Disease: A Controlled Study.

The goal of this cross-sectional observational study was to quantify the pattern-shift visual evoked potentials (VEP) and the thickness as well as the volume of retinal layers using optical coherence tomography (OCT) across a cohort of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and age-matched controls. Forty-three PD patients and 38 controls were enrolled. All participants underwent a detailed neurological and ophthalmologic evaluation. Idiopathic PD cases were included. Cases with glaucoma or increased intra-ocular pressure were excluded. Patients were assessed by VEP and high-resolution Fourier-domain OCT, which quantified the inner and outer thicknesses of the retinal layers. VEP latencies and the thicknesses of the retinal layers were the main outcome measures. The mean age, with standard deviation (SD), of the PD patients and controls were 63.1 (7.5) and 62.4 (7.2) years, respectively. The patients were predominantly in the initial Hoehn-Yahr (HY) disease stages (34.8% in stage 1 or 1.5, and 55.8 % in stage 2). The VEP latencies and the thicknesses as well as the volumes of the retinal inner and outer layers of the groups were similar. A negative correlation between the retinal thickness and the age was noted in both groups. The thickness of the retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) was 102.7 μm in PD patients vs. 104.2 μm in controls. The thicknesses of retinal layers, VEP, and RNFL of PD patients were similar to those of the controls. Despite the use of a representative cohort of PD patients and high-resolution OCT in this study, further studies are required to establish the validity of using OCT and VEP measurements as the anatomic and functional biomarkers for the evaluation of retinal and visual pathways in PD patients.

Effectiveness Of The Endotracheal Tube Cuff On The Trachea: Physical And Mechanical Aspects.

The inflation pressure of the endotracheal tube cuff can cause ischemia of the tracheal mucosa at high pressures; thus, it can cause important tracheal morbidity and tracheal microaspiration of the oropharyngeal secretion, or it can even cause pneumonia associated with mechanical ventilation if the pressure of the cuff is insufficient. In order to investigate the effectiveness of the RUSCH® 7.5 mm endotracheal tube cuff, this study was designed to investigate the physical and mechanical aspects of the cuff in contact with the trachea. For this end, we developed an in vitro experimental model to assess the flow of dye (methylene blue) by the inflated cuff on the wall of the artificial material. We also designed an in vivo study with 12 Large White pigs under endotracheal intubation. We instilled the same dye in the oral cavity of the animals, and we analyzed the presence or not of leakage in the trachea after the region of the cuff after their deaths (animal sacrifice). All cuffs were inflated at the pressure of 30 cmH2O. We observed the passage of fluids through the cuff in all in vitro and in vivo experimental models. We conclude that, as well as several other cuff models in the literature, the RUSCH® 7.5 mm tube cuffs are also not able to completely seal the trachea and thus prevent aspiration of oropharyngeal secretions. Other prevention measures should be taken.

Long-term Efficacy And Safety Of Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate In Hiv-1-infected Adolescents Failing Antiretroviral Therapy: The Final Results Of Study Gs-us-104-0321.

Reports of long-term tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) treatment in HIV-infected adolescents are limited. We present final results from the open-label (OL) TDF extension following the randomized, placebo (PBO)-controlled, double-blind phase of GS-US-104-0321 (Study 321). HIV-infected 12- to 17-year-olds treated with TDF 300 mg or PBO with an optimized background regimen (OBR) for 24-48 weeks subsequently received OL TDF plus OBR in a single arm study extension. HIV-1 RNA and safety, including bone mineral density (BMD), was assessed in all TDF recipients. Eighty-one subjects received TDF (median duration 96 weeks). No subject died or discontinued OL TDF for safety/tolerability. At week 144, proportions with HIV-1 RNA <50 copies/mL were 30.4% (7 of 23 subjects with baseline HIV-1 RNA >1000 c/mL initially randomized to TDF), 41.7% (5 of 12 subjects with HIV-1 RNA <1000 c/mL who switched PBO to TDF) and 0% (0 of 2 subjects failed randomized PBO plus OBR with HIV-1 RNA >1000 c/mL and switched PBO to TDF). Viral resistance to TDF occurred in 1 subject. At week 144, median decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate was 38.1 mL/min/1.73 m (n = 25). Increases in median spine (+12.70%, n = 26) and total body less head BMD (+4.32%, n = 26) and height-age adjusted Z-scores (n = 21; +0.457 for spine, +0.152 for total body less head) were observed at week 144. Five of 81 subjects (6%) had persistent >4% BMD decreases from baseline. Some subjects had virologic responses to TDF plus OBR, and TDF resistance was rare. TDF was well tolerated and can be considered for treatment of HIV-infected adolescents.

Aplicação de métodos de calibração multivariada para a determinação simultânea de riboflavina (VB2), tiamina (VB1), piridoxina (VB6) e nicotinamida (VPP)

In this work, the artificial neural networks (ANN) and partial least squares (PLS) regression were applied to UV spectral data for quantitative determination of thiamin hydrochloride (VB1), riboflavin phosphate (VB2), pyridoxine hydrochloride (VB6) and nicotinamide (VPP) in pharmaceutical samples. For calibration purposes, commercial samples in 0.2 mol L-1 acetate buffer (pH 4.0) were employed as standards. The concentration ranges used in the calibration step were: 0.1 - 7.5 mg L-1 for VB1, 0.1 - 3.0 mg L-1 for VB2, 0.1 - 3.0 mg L-1 for VB6 and 0.4 - 30.0 mg L-1 for VPP. From the results it is possible to verify that both methods can be successfully applied for these determinations. The similar error values were obtained by using neural network or PLS methods. The proposed methodology is simple, rapid and can be easily used in quality control laboratories.

Estudo da circulação retrobulbar e do campo visual após dose única oral de citrato de sildenafil (Viagra®)

Purpose: To analyze the effects of 100 mg of sildenafil citrate (Viagra®) on the retrobulbar circulation and visual field. Methods: A double masked, placebo controlled study was conducted in 10 males with a mean age of 27.7 + 5.68 years. The right eye of each volunteer underwent orbital color Doppler imaging and automated perimetry (Humphrey, program 30-2, Full-Threshold Strategy) at 3 occasions: baseline, 1 hour after placebo and 1 hour after 100 mg of sildenafil. The foveal threshold and the mean deviation (MD) were analyzed by automated perimetry on the three occasions. Color Doppler imaging allowed the measurement of the peak systolic velocity (PSV), end diastolic velocity (EDV) and Pourcelot index (PI) in the central retinal artery and ophthalmic artery. Results: The foveal threshold and the mean deviation did not show a significant change following the administration of sildenafil. The ophthalmic artery peak systolic velocity and end diastolic velocity significantly increased after the administration of sildenafil (p<0.001). The hemodynamic parameters in the central retinal artery and the ophthalmic artery PI did not significantly change. Conclusions: Sildefanil citrate increased the blood flow velocities in the ophthalmic artery in normal subjects, with no significant changes in the foveal threshold and mean deviation in the automated perimetry.

Análise dos esforços de alta intensidade de jogadores de futebol profissional

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

Modelo para análise do ataque no futebol = : A model to analyze soccer offensive phase

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

Avaliações autonômicas e cardiovasculares em pessoas com lesão da medula espinhal nas situações de repouso, em um teste de estresse mental e durante exercício físico

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física