Análise histológica em tecido epitelial sadio de ratos Wistar (in vivo) irradiados com diferentes intensidades do ultrassom

CONTEXTUALIZAÇÃO: O Ultrassom (US) é um dos recursos físicos amplamente utilizado e pesquisado nos tratamentos de fisioterapia. Sabe-se que diante de uma escassa literatura sobre efeitos do US em tecidos sadios, muitos profissionais fisioterapeutas acabam realizando aplicações infundadas de métodos e parâmetros. OBJETIVO: Avaliar possíveis alterações histológicas e morfométricas do tecido sadio in vivo de ratos Wistar irradiados com diferentes intensidades de US. MÉTODOS: Trinta ratos da linhagem Wistar, distribuídos aleatoriamente em cinco grupos de seis animais cada foram tratados na região dorsal do lado direito numa área de 4cm². O lado esquerdo serviu como controle. O tratamento foi feito durante quatro dias com 2 minutos de irradiação. Verificou-se a intensidade de saída com dosímetro de precisão antes das aplicações. Analisou-se a histologia e a morfometria por meio do software Image Tool. RESULTADOS: Observou-se um discreto infiltrado inflamatório e adelgaçamento das fibras da derme, principalmente dos grupos irradiados com 1.5 e 2W/cm². Notou-se também um aumento na espessura da epiderme nas amostras dos animais irradiados. Para avaliar os resultados quantitativos, utilizou-se como análise estatística ANOVA one way e o teste post hoc de Tukey. Na espessura da epiderme, obtiveram-se diferenças significativas entre grupo controle e os grupos irradiados com 1.0, 1.5 e 2.0W/cm². CONCLUSÃO: Sob ação do US nas doses maiores houve alterações na epiderme e derme, respectivamente, o aumento da espessura e proliferação com adelgaçamento das fibras colágenas, o que alerta para possíveis implicações do uso do US em estética.

Morphological evidences indicate that the interference of cimetidine on the peritubular components is responsible for detachment and apoptosis of Sertoli cells

Cimetidine, referred as antiandrogenic agent, has caused alterations in the seminiferous tubules, including alterations in the peritubular tissue and death of myoid cells by apoptosis. Regarding the structural and functional importance of the peritubular tissue for the maintenance of Sertoli cells (SC), we purpose to investigate the SC-basement membrane interface, focusing the morphological features of SC and their interaction with the basement membrane in the affected tubules by cimetidine. Ten animals were distributed into two groups, control (CG) and cimetidine (CmG) which received saline solution and 50 mg of cimetidine per kg of body weight, respectively, for 52 days. The testes were fixed, dehydrated and embedded for analyses under light and transmission electron microscopy. Paraffin sections were submitted to the TUNEL method; sections of testes embedded in glycol methacrylate were submitted to PAS method and stained by H&E for morphological and quantitative analyses of Sertoli Cells. In the CmG, the SC nuclei were positive to the TUNEL method and showed typical morphological alterations of cell death by apoptosis (from early to advanced stages). A significant reduction in the number of Sertoli Cells was probably due to death of these cells by apoptosis. A close relationship between SC nuclear alterations (including a high frequency of dislocated nuclei from the basal portion) and damage in the peritubular tissue was observed. The ultrastructural analysis showed a parallelism between the gradual advancement of apoptotic process in SC and detachment of the anchoring sites (hemidesmosomes) of SC plasma membrane from the lamina densa. The presence of portions of lamina densa underlying the detached hemidesmosomes indicates a continuous deposition of lamina densa, resulting in the thickening of the basal lamina. The results indicate a possible disarrangement of the SC cytoskeleton, including the focal adhesion structure. These alterations are related to SC apoptosis and probably result from disturbs induced by cimetidine on the peritubular tissue.

Estudo epidemiológico de disfonias em crianças de 4 a 12 anos

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

Stem protective tissue in Erythroxylum tortuosum (Erythroxylaceae), a fire tolerant species from cerrado

The origin and structure are described of the secondary protective tissue in the stem of Erythorxylum tortuosum Mart., a fire tolerant shrubby species common in Brazilian cerrado. The highly tortuous stems are covered with thick bark which is more developed at the base of the stem. After fire in the cerrado, rhytidome fragments of the burned stem flake off, revealing newly formed cork. The first periderm appears near of the terminal buds and is iniated by periclinal divisions in subepidermal cells giving rise to radial rows of cells. The first phellogen is discernible only after the differentiation of the several radial rows of cork cells. Other phellogens have their origin in successively deeper layers of the cortex. The sucessive periderms are discontinuous around the circumference. The collapsed cells with phenolic substances and the accumulated dead cells cause the formation of discontinuous blackish lines, which delimit the sucessive periderms in the rhytidome. The rhytidome contains large quantities of sclereids developed from cell wall thickening of cortex cells. The occurrence of periderm, in the young parts of the stem and of rhytidome in the older parts represents pyrophytic characteristics and may explain, in part, the fire tolerance of this species.

The influence of initial feeding on muscle development and growth in pacu Piaractus mesopotamicus larvae

The effects of different feeding schemes on pacu Piaractus mesopotamicus early development were evaluated with respect to growth, survival, muscle development, and differential gene expression of MyoD and myogenin. The pacu larvae (4 days post hatch-dph, 0.77 mg wet weight) were given six feeding treatments intentionally designed to cause variations in the larvae growth rate: (A) only artemia nauplii; (CD) only a commercial diet; (ED) only a semi-purified experimental diet; (ACD) and (AED) two treatments that involved weaning; and (S) starvation. Early weaning from artemia nauplii to the formulated diets (ACD and AED) affected growth and survival of the pacu larvae compared with the exclusive use of artemia (A). Starvation (S) and the commercial diet (CD) caused total mortality in pacu larvae at 18 dph. The experimental diet (ED) assured low fish survival and growth. The skeletal muscle morphology was not affected by the delay in somatic growth from early weaning onto the formulated diets. Three distinct muscle compartments were observed throughout the larval development in treatments A, ACD and AED: superficial, deep and intermediate, accompanied by muscle thickening. Severe undernourishment caused drastic differences in growth and in the morphology of the muscle fibers. Pacu larvae fed only formulated diets (CD and ED) showed muscle characteristics similar to the larvae in starvation (S) during the first 15 dph. At 27 and 35 dph, a slight increase in epaxial muscle mass was noted in larvae fed only the experimental diet (ED). At 35 dph, we observed a high frequency of fibers >= 40 mu m in the larvae that were weaned onto the formulated diets (ACD and AED), indicative of hypertrophy. In contrast, the larvae fed only artemia nauplii (A) displayed a larger number of fibers with diameters <= 20 mu m, which is indicative of hyperplasia. The expression of the MyoD and myogenin genes in pacu larvae at 35 dph was not affected by initial feeding (p>0.05). In conclusion, the formulated diets used impaired pacu larvae growth and survival; therefore, they were inadequate for pacu, at least at the times they were introduced. Artemia nauplii were the most adequate food source during first feeding of the pacu, and they produced bigger fish upon completion of the experiment. Moreover, the contribution of hyperplasia to the skeletal muscle growth appeared higher in fast- than in slow-growing pacu larvae. (C) 2011 Elsevier By. All rights reserved.

Morphological Organization of the Dorsal Protuberance of Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868) Ant's Larvae (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Rhamnolipids and PHAs: Recent reports on Pseudomonas-derived molecules of increasing industrial interest

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

Anatomia de raízes de nove espécies de Bromeliaceae (Poales) da região amazônica do estado de Mato Grosso, Brasil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Morphological architecture of Actinocephalus (Koern.) sano (Eriocaulaceae-Poales)

Actinocephalus exhibits perhaps more diversity in habit than any other genus of Eriocaulaceae. This variation is largely a result of differences in the arrangement of the paraclades. Based on the analysis of stem architecture of all 25 species of Actinocephalus, the following patterns were established: (1) leaf rosette, with no elongated axis, instead the axillary paraclades originating directly from the short aerial stem, (2) rosette axis continuing into an elongated axis with spirally arranged paraclades, (3) an elongated axis originating from a rhizome, with ramified paraclades, and (4) an elongated axis originating from a short aerial stem, with paraclades arranged in a subwhorl. The elongated axis exhibits indeterminate growth only in pattern 4. Patterns 3 and 4 are found exclusively in Actinocephalus; pattern I occurs in many other genera of Eriocaulaceae, while pattern 2 is also found in Syngonanthus and Paepalanthus. Anatomically, each stem structure (i.e., paraclade, elongated axis, short aerial stem, rhizome) is thickened in a distinctive way and this can be used to distinguish them. Specifically, elongated axes and paraclades lack thickening, thickening of short aerial stems results from the primary thickening meristem and/or the secondary thickening meristem. Thickening of rhizomes results from the activity of the primary thickening meristem. (c) 2008 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Handicrafts from Jalapao (TO), Brazil, and their relationship to plant anatomy

EICHEMBERG, M. T. and V. L. SCATENA (Universidade Estadual Paulista, Departamento de Botanica, Rio Claro, São Paulo, Brazil). J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 138:34-40. 2011.-Handicrafts from Jalapao (TO), Brazil, and their Relationship to Plant Anatomy. In the state of Tocantins, midwestern Brazil, communities from the region of Jalapao use scapes of "capim dourado" (golden grass - Syngonanthus nitens- Eriocaulaceae) and leaves of "buriti" (Mauritia flexuosa - Arecaceae) to make handicrafts (baskets and ornaments). The predominant biome of this area is cerrado (savanna), with a notable presence of buriti in the "veredas" (swampy forest-like vegetation), and of golden grass, which is one of the most common plants in humid grasslands. These traditional handicrafts represent a significant source of income for local communities. The whole scapes of Syngonanthus nitens are used due to their golden color, which is a reflection of such internal structures as thick walled cells and lignin in the epidermis and cortex. The strips called "seda" (silk) used to sew the scapes in the making of handicrafts come from young leaves of Mauritia,flexuosa. They are constituted by the adaxial epidermis and bundles of subepidermic fibers, both showing thick-walled cells. Since the cells of the bundles of sclerenchymatic fibers from the abaxial surface of buriti leaves present stegmata containing silica bodies, their mechanical properties are less adapted to the production of "silk", justifying the use of the leaf adaxial surface. Anatomical characteristics such as the thickening and composition of the cell walls of both species together with sociocultural factors, allow a better knowledge of the use of plant structures in the making of handicrafts.

Differential distribution of some extracellular matrix fibers in an experimentally denervated rat megaileum

Absence of enteric neurons is associated with thickening of the intestinal muscularis externa in Chagas' disease. The thickening is due to hyperplasia and hypertrophy of the smooth muscle cells and increased extracellular matrix components. The influence of the nervous system on the structure of the smooth muscle cells and its associated matrix has been poorly investigated. An experimental model of denervation of the ileum in rats was performed by application of the surfactant agent benzalkonium chloride that selectively destroys the myenteric plexus. Three months later, ileal tissue samples were obtained and studied by histochemistry and transmission electron microsocopy. Sham operated rats were used as controls. The diameter of collagen fibrils was evaluated in electron micrographs. The histopathological analysis showed thickening of the muscular layer. The thin and weakly arranged collagen and reticulin fibers surrounding the smooth muscle cells, observed in control cases by Picrosirius polarization (PSP) stain method, corresponded to a population of loosely packed thin collagen fibrils of uniform diameters (mean = 29.16 nm) at the ultrastructural level. In contrast, the thick and strongly birefringent fibers around the muscle cells, observed in the treated group, stained by PSP, corresponded to densely packed thicker fibrils with large variation in diameter (mean = 39.41 nm). Comparison of the data demonstrated statistically significant difference between the groups suggesting that the replacement of loosely arranged reticulin fibers by fibrous tissue (with typical collagen fiber), may alter the biomechanical function resulting in impairment of muscular contraction. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Diabetes induces stromal remodelling and increase in chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans of the rat ventral prostate

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

Photo-electrochemical investigation of anodic oxide films on cast Ti-Mo alloys I. Anodic behaviour and effect of alloy composition

The anodic behaviour of cast Ti-Mo alloys, having different Mo contents (6-20 wt.%), was investigated in acidic and neutral aerated aqueous solutions. All sample showed a valve-metal behaviour, owing to formation and thickening of barrier-type anodic oxides displaying interference colours Growth kinetics. of passive films is influenced by both anodizing electrolyte and composition of the starting alloy. This last parameter was found to change also the solid-state properties of the films, explored by photoelectrochemical and impedance spectroscopy experiments. Thicker films (U(f) = 8 V/MSE) grown on alloys richer in Mo showed more resistive character and a photocurrent sign inversion under negative bias, that revealed an insulating character, whereas corresponding films grown on alloys with lower Mo content, as well as thinner films, behaved as n-type semiconductors. Results are discussed in terms of formation of a mixed Ti-Mo oxide phase. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Morphology and anatomy of the vegetative organs and scapes from Aphorocaulon (Paepalanthus, Eriocaulaceae)

Estudou-se a anatomia de raízes, caules, folhas e escapos de espécies de Paepalanthus subseção Aphorocaulon. Estas plantas apresentam caules reduzidos com folhas em roseta, de onde crescem os paracládios (sistemas de inflorescências). As espécies apresentam raízes com epiderme unisseriada e córtex com células isodiamétricas. Tanto os caules reduzidos como os paracládios apresentam espessamento resultante da atividade do periciclo, denominado Meristema de Espessamento Primário (MEP). Ambos apresentam estrutura anatômica semelhante. Os escapos apresentam endoderme descontínua, periciclo sinuoso, o córtex apresenta costelas salientes (5-6). As folhas apresentam células epidérmicas alongadas no sentido longitudinal com paredes levemente espessadas, estômatos somente na face abaxial, com câmara subestomática especializada, feixes vasculares colaterais com bainha dupla. Essas estruturas anatômicas são comuns para as espécies da subseção Aphorocaulon. Algumas características anatômicas observadas nestas espécies são típicas de plantas que crescem nos campos rupestres.

Cementum, apical morphology and hypercementosis: a probable adaptive response of the periodontal support tissues and potential orthodontic implications

Information about orthodontic movement of teeth with hypercementosis is scarce. As cementum deposition continues to occur, cementum is expected to change the shape of the root and apex over time, but this has not yet been demonstrated. Nor has it ever been established whether it increases or decreases the prevalence of root resorption during orthodontic treatment. The unique biological function of the interconnected network of cementocytes may play a role in orthodontic movement and its associated root resorptions, but no research has ever been conducted on the topic. Unlike cementum thickness and hypercementosis, root and apex shape has not yet been related to patient age. A study of the precise difference between increased cementum thickness and hypercementosis is warranted. Hypercementosis refers to excessive cementum formation above and beyond the extent necessary to fulfill its normal functions, resulting in abnormal thickening with macroscopic changes in the tooth root, which may require the delivery of forces that are different from conventional mechanics in their intensity, direction and distribution. What are the unique features and specificities involved in moving teeth that present with hypercementosis? Bodily movements would be expected to occur, since inclination might prove difficult to achieve, but would the root resorption index be higher or lower?