Pharmacological and local toxicity studies of a liposomal formulation for the novel local anaesthetic ropivacaine

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

A scanning electron microscopy study of the seed and post-seminal development in Angelonia salicariifolia Bonpl. (Scrophulariaceae)

The external morphology of seeds and post-germination developmental stages of Angelonia salicariifolia Bonpl. (Scrophulariaceae) were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. Some structural features of the seed exotesta and seedling in Angelonia are presented for the first time and are of potential taxonomic value for this neotropical genus. The seeds are very small (0.9-1.7 mm long and 0.5-0.9 mm wide), ovate, with a reticulate-crested exotesta, reticules arranged uniformly in longitudinal rows, with a high density of microcilia-like projections on the cell wall of the reticule base and on the edge of the crests. The hilum is located beside the micropyle at the narrow end of the seed. Germination is epigeal. During germination the radicle develops, followed by elongation of the hypocotyl and primary root. At this stage dense root hairs develop on the lower part of the hypocotyl. The apical bud-located between the cotyledons-begins to develop after the cotyledons have unfolded. The cotyledons are equal in size, sessile and ovate. The seedlings have two types of trichomes, one characteristic of the cotyledons and first pair of leaves (glandular, sessile, four-celled head with quadrangular shape) and the other characteristic of the hypocotyl and epicotyl (stalked, erect, elongate and three-celled with dome-shaped unicellular head). (C) 2001 Annals of Botany Company.

In vitro and in vivo studies of the Interferon-alpha action on distinct Orthobunyavirus

Oropouche, Caraparu, Guama, Guaroa and Tacaiuma viruses (Orthobunyavirus genus) cause human febrile illnesses and/or encephalitis. To achieve a therapeutical agent to prevent and/or treat these diseases we evaluated the antiviral action of Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) on these orthobunyaviruses. In vitro results showed that all the studied orthobunyaviruses are susceptible to antiviral action of IFN-alpha, but this susceptibility is limited and dependent on both concentration of drug and treatment period. In vivo results demonstrated that IFN-alpha present antiviral action on Oropouche and Guaroa viruses when used as a prophylactic treatment. Moreover, a treatment initiated 3 It after infection prevented the death of Guaroa virus infected-mice. Additionally, mortality of mice was related to the migration and replication of viruses in their brains. Our results suggest that IFN-alpha could be potentially useful in the prevention of diseases caused by Oropouche virus and in the prevention and/or treatment of diseases caused by Guaroa virus. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lipid and energy contents in the bodies of queens of Atta sexdens rubropilosa Forel (Hymenoptera, Formicidae): pre-and post-nuptial flight

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Development of a Validated Stability-Indicating LC Assay and Stress Degradation Studies of Linezolid in Tablets

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

Pharmacological Evaluation and Preliminary Pharmacokinetics Studies of a New Diclofenac Prodrug without Gastric Ulceration Effect

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

Artificial neural networks for load flow and external equivalents studies

In this paper an artificial neural network (ANN) based methodology is proposed for (a) solving the basic load flow, (b) solving the load flow considering the reactive power limits of generation (PV) buses, (c) determining a good quality load flow starting point for ill-conditioned systems, and (d) computing static external equivalent circuits. An analysis of the input data required as well as the ANN architecture is presented. A multilayer perceptron trained with the Levenberg-Marquardt second order method is used. The proposed methodology was tested with the IEEE 30- and 57-bus, and an ill-conditioned 11-bus system. Normal operating conditions (base case) and several contingency situations including different load and generation scenarios have been considered. Simulation results show the excellent performance of the ANN for solving problems (a)-(d). (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Apparent digestibility of diets with different concentrations of lysine and energy in piglets with different body weights and post-weaning age

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

Correlations Between Pre- and Post-Fasting Growth in Nile Tilapia

We tested the correlation between growth rate before and after a food deprivation phase in twelve single held Nile tilapias, Oreochromis niloticus. The experiment was divided into three phases: before food deprivation (phase 1: 15 d), food deprivation (phase 2: 12 d) and refeeding (phase 3: 15 d). The specific growth rate - SGR, food conversion efficiency - FCE and feed ingestion increased significantly during phase 3. Positive and significant correlations were found either to SGR or to feed ingestion between Phase 1 and 3 but not for FCE. The SGR on phase 3, moreover, were positively correlated to FCE and feed ingestion, while on phase 1 SGR was positively correlated to FCE only. Thus, high pre-fasting SGR or feed ingestion reflects in likewise high post-fasting SGR or feed ingestion values. Moreover, since SGR and FCE are correlated to each other in both phase 1 and 3, but phase 3 SGR is also correlated to feed ingestion; we could suppose that hyperphagic behaviour could be the main compensatory mechanism. Accordingly, we suggest that a fish with an elevated growth performance shall display a proportionally raised post-fasting growth response in order to normalize its predetermined growth trajectory and resume its normal growth rate.

Phylogeography of endemic toads and post-Pliocene persistence of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

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

Dominance and Subordination Interactions Among Nestmates in Pre and Post-Emergence Phases of the Basal Eusocial Wasp Mischocyttarus (Monogynoecus) montei (Hymenoptera, Vespidae)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

In vitro and in vivo studies on CCR10 regulation by Annexin A1

The mode of action of annexin A1 (ANXA1) is poorly understood. By using rapid subtraction hybridization we studied the effects of human recombinant ANXA1 and the N-terminal ANXA1 peptide on gene expression in a human larynx cell line. Three genes showed strong downregulation after treatment with ANXA1. In contrast, expression of CCR10, a seven transmembrane G-protein coupled receptor for chemokine CCL27 involved in mucosal immunity, was increased. Moreover the reduction in CCR10 expression induced by ANXA1 gene deletion was rescued by intravenous treatment with low doses of ANXA1. These findings provide new evidence that ANXA1 modulates gene expression. (c) 2006 Federation of European Biochemical Societies. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Temperature dependence and magnetocrystalline anisotropy studies of self-assembled L1(0)-Fe55Pt45 ferromagnetic nanocrystals

Temperature dependence and uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy properties of the chemically synthesized 4 nm L1(0)-Fe55Pt45 nanoparticle assembly by a modified polyol route are reported. As-prepared nanoparticles are superparamagnetic presenting fcc structure, and annealing at 550 degrees C converts the assembly into ferromagnetic nanocrystals with large coercivity (H-C>1 T) in an L1(0) phase. Magnetic measurements showed an increasing in the ferromagnetically ordered fraction of the nanoparticles with the annealing temperature increases, and the remanence ratio, S=M-R/M-S congruent to 0.76, suggests an (111) textured film. A monotonic increase of the blocking temperature T-B, the uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy constant K-U, and the coercivity H-C with increasing annealing temperature was observed. Magnetic parameters indicate an enhancement in the magnetic properties due to the improved Fe55Pt45 phase stabilizing, and the room-temperature stability parameter of 67, which indicates that the magnetization should be stable for more than ten years, makes this material suitable for ultrahigh-density magnetic recording application.(c) 2007 American Institute of Physics.

Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamic Studies of Semi-Synthetic Piperidine Alkaloids as Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors

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

Seed morphology and post-seminal development of Tillandsia L. (Bromeliaceae) from the Campos Gerais, Paraná, Southern Brazil

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