Rapid hamstrings/quadriceps strength capacity in professional soccer players with different conventional isokinetic muscle strength ratios

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

Proteins of Leishmania (Viannia) shawi confer protection associated with Th1 immune response and memory generation

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

Niobium filtration of conventional and high-frequency x-ray generator beams for intraoral radiography. Effects on absorbed doses, image density and contrast, and photon spectra

We have studied the effects of niobium beam filtration on absorbed doses, on image density and contrast, and on photon spectra with conventional and high-frequency dental x-ray generators. Added niobium reduced entry and superficial absorbed doses in periapical radiography by 9% to 40% with film and digital image receptors, decreased the radiation necessary to produce a given image density on E-speed film and reduced image contrast on D- and E-speed films. As shown by increased half-value layers for aluminum, titanium, and copper and by pulse-height analyses of beam spectra, niobium increased average beam energy by 6% to 19%. Despite the benefits of adding niobium on patient dose reduction and on narrowing the beams' energy spectra, the beam can be overhardened. Adding niobium, therefore, strikes the best balance between radiation dose reduction and beam attenuation, with its risks of increased exposure times, motion blur, and diminished image contrast, when it is used at modest thicknesses (30 μm) and at lower kVp (70) settings. © 1995 Mosby-Year Book, Inc.

Evolução no diagnóstico citológico do câncer de colo uterino - Novas tecnologias para o rastreamento citológico cervical

The cancer of the uterine cervix remains a serious public health problem in developing countries with low social-economic conditions. Papanicolaou smear has been used to screen women for cervical cancer since 1940, and it is widely recognized as an effective method for preventing cervical cancer. In Brazil, conventional Papanicolaou is the most common method used in diagnosis cytopathological routine, involving the morphological cell analysis by microscopic examination of cervical samples smeared on glass slides. On the other hand, the liquid cytology is an advantageous method whose specimen collected is put into a fluid alcohol based to guarantee the potential use of residual cellular material in cytobrush. Moreover, this method permits additional diagnostic studies, preserving the morphological cell features as the conventional one does. The aim of the present study was report the historical evolution of different cervical cytologic tests, emphasizing the advantages and disadvantages between conventional Papanicolaou method and new technologies in liquid based cytology.

Interaction between total-etch and self-etch adhesives and conventional and self-adhesive resin cements

The aim of this study was to compare the bond strength to enamel between resin cements combined with total-etch and self-etch adhesive systems and a self-adhesive cement. Eighty bovine incisors had their buccal surface ground flat exposing a plane area in the enamel. Eighty Artglass resin cylinders measuring 3 mm in diameter and 4 mm in height were fabricated. The teeth were divided into eight groups of 10 teeth each and the resin cylinders were cemented with different adhesive systems and resin cements; G1: RelyX Unicem (self-adhesive cement); G2: H 3PO 4 + Single Bond + RelyX ARC; G3: AdheSE + Variolink II; G4: H 3PO 4 + Excite + Variolink II; G5: Xeno III + Enforce; G6: H 3PO 4 + Prime&Bond NT + Enforce; G7: Biatite Primers 1 and 2 + Bistite II DC; G8: H 3PO 4 + Bistite Primers 1 and 2 + Bistite II DC. After application of the adhesives, the cylinders were cemented according to manufacturer instructions. The specimens were submitted to 2000 thermal cycles at a temperature ranging from 5±5°C to 55±5°C, and shear bond strength was then tested at a variety of 1 mm/min. The data were analyzed by ANOVA and the Tukey's test (á=5%), obtaining a p value of 0.00. The following mean (±standard deviation) bond strength values were observed for each group: G1: 5.14(±0.99)a; G3: 16.23(±4.69)b; G7: 17.82(±3.66)b; G5: 18.48(±2.88)bc; G8: 20.15(±4.12)bc; G4: 22.85(±3.08)cd; G2: 24.96(±2.89)d; G6: 26.07(±1.69)d. Groups followed by the same letters did not differ significantly. For most of the resin cements tested, the application of adhesive systems using acid etching resulted in a higher bond strength when compared to the self-etch adhesive systems and to the self-adhesive cement.

Digital versus conventional radiography for determination of primary incisor length

Aim: This in vitro study evaluated the accuracy of primary incisor lengths determined by digital and conventional radiography compared to the actual tooth length. Methods: Twenty extracted primary maxillary incisors were mounted in acrylic blocks. Tooth length was estimated by using a straight-line measurement provided by the distance measurement tool of a digital dental imaging system (Computed Dental Radiography, Schick Technologies Inc.) and conventional E-speed film radiographs by using a digital caliper. Two operators familiar with both radiographic methods performed the estimates. The estimated tooth lengths were compared to the actual tooth lengths measured with the digital caliper. Data were statistically analyzed by Dahlberg's equation, paired t test, Pearson's correlation coefficient and ANOVA at 5% significance level. Results: There were no statistically significant differences (p = 0.85) between tooth length estimated on digital and conventional radiographs. Admitting as clinically acceptable a 0.5-mm discrepancy between the actual tooth lengths and the radiographically estimated lengths, 60% of the radiographic measurements were considered as accurate. When the acceptable difference range was 1.0 mm, the accuracy of the radiographic measurements increased to 100%. Conclusions: Digital and conventional radiography provided similar tooth length measurements and were equivalent to the actual tooth lengths.

Bone mineral density on conventional and digitized images under different parameters of digitization and storage

Aim: To assess the bone mineral density on conventional and digitized images, comparing whether different parameters of digitization and storage change these values. Methods: Twenty radiographs were taken from five partially dentulous dry mandibles with an aluminum 7-mm stepwedge placed on the superior edge of the film. After processing, the films were digitized with a resolution of 600 and 2,400 d.p.i. and saved as TIFF and JPEG files. On every conventional and digitized image, circular regions of interest were selected for densitometry and radiographic contrast analysis. Results: Pearson's correlation coefficient showed a significant and strong mean gray values association between digitized and conventional images, differing from radiographic contrast that did not show a significant association. ANOVA did not reveal a statistically significant difference in bone density and radiographic contrast among the four digitized image groups, but the conventional image contrast was significantly lower. Conclusions: Bone mineral density did not differ in both conventional and digitized images. The parameters of image compression and resolution, tested in this study, did not change the results of densitometry and digitization process increased the radiographic contrast.

Cellular responses in the Malpighian tubules of Scaptotrigona postica (Latreille, 1807) exposed to low doses of fipronil and boric acid

Studies of sub-lethal effects of pesticide residues on stingless bees are scarce and morphological analysis of organs would add information to toxicological analysis in order to clarify the continuous exposure of Scaptotrigona postica to insecticides. The aim of this study was to evaluate the morphology and histochemistry of the Malpighian tubules (excretory organ) of S. postica exposed to fipronil or boric acid to detect cellular responses that indicate toxicity or adaptative mechanisms to stress induced by exposure of worker bees to low doses of these chemical compounds. Newly emerged bees were submitted to toxicological bioassays and morphological analyses by optical microscopy and Transmission Electron Microscopy, as well as histochemical methods, were performed to detect proteins and glycoconjugates. Additionally, immunohistochemical detection of DNA fragmentation and HSP70 (70-kDa Heat shock protein) were performed to detect cell death and stress response, respectively. Statistical analysis, for the bioassays conducted with ingestion of contaminated diet with boric acid at 0.75% (w/w) or with fipronil at 0.1μg/kg of food, showed that the survival of bees that ingested the contaminated diets were significantly different to the survival rate presented by the control group (P<0.0001). Although some characteristics indicative of initiation of cell death were observed, the cells remained metabolically active in the processes of excretion and inactivation of chemical compounds. The data from this study reinforce the importance of research on sublethal effects of low doses of pesticides on bees in an attempt to assess a possible realistic dose and evaluate the risk assessment of stingless bee S. postica foraging in the vicinity of cultivated fields and/or in green urban areas. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.

Dynamics of bone healing after osteotomy with piezosurgery or conventional drilling - histomorphometrical, immunohistochemical, and molecular analysis

Background: Piezosurgery is an osteotomy system used in medical and dental surgery. Many studies have proven clinical advantages of piezosurgery in terms of quality of cut, maneuverability, ease of use, and safety. However, few investigations have tested its superiority over the traditional osteotomy systems in terms of dynamics of bone healing. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the dynamics of bone healing after osteotomies with piezosurgery and to compare them with those associated to traditional bone drilling.Methods: One hundred and ten rats were divided into two groups with 55 animals each. The animals were anesthetized and the tibiae were surgically exposed to create defects 2 mm in diameter by using piezosurgery (Piezo group) and conventional drilling (Drill group). Animals were sacrificed at 3, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days post-surgery. Bone samples were collected and processed for histological, histomorphometrical, immunohistochemical, and molecular analysis. The histological analysis was performed at all time points (n = 8) whereas the histomorphometrical analysis was performed at 7, 14, 30 and 60 days post-surgery (n = 8). The immunolabeling was performed to detect Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF), Caspase-3 (CAS-3), Osteoprotegerin (OPG), Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor kappa-B Ligand (RANKL), and Osteocalcin (OC) at 3, 7, and 14 days (n = 3). For the molecular analysis, animals were sacrificed at 3, 7 and 14 days, total RNA was collected, and quantification of the expression of 21 genes related to BMP signaling, Wnt signaling, inflammation, osteogenenic and apoptotic pathways was performed by qRT-PCR (n = 5).Results: Histologically and histomorphometrically, bone healing was similar in both groups with the exception of a slightly higher amount of newly formed bone observed at 30 days after piezosurgery (p < 0.05). Immunohistochemical and qRT-PCR analyses didn't detect significant differences in expression of all the proteins and most of the genes tested.Conclusions: Based on the results of our study we conclude that in a rat tibial bone defect model the bone healing dynamics after piezosurgery are comparable to those observed with conventional drilling. © 2013 Esteves et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

Avaliação dos efeitos do inseticida imidacloprido para abelhas sem ferrão Scaptotrigona postica Latreille, 1807 (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini): Hellen Maria Soares. -

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Socialização linguageira, aspectos culturais e uso de code-switching em uma criança bilíngue

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Valorização do diagnóstico laboratorial, na identificação de Rhodococcus equi isolado do escarro de pacientes suspeitos de tuberculose

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

Characterization of monocarboxylate transporters (MCTs) expression in soft tissue sarcomas: distinct prognostic impact of MCT1 sub-cellular localization

Background: Soft tissue sarcomas (STSs) are a group of neoplasms, which, despite current therapeutic advances, still confer a poor outcome to half of the patients. As other solid tumors, STSs exhibit high glucose consumption rates, associated with worse prognosis and therapeutic response. As highly glycolytic tumors, we hypothesized that sarcomas should present an increased expression of lactate transporters (MCTs).Methods: Immunohistochemical expression of MCT1, MCT2, MCT4 and CD147 was assessed in a series of 86 STSs and the expression profiles were associated with patients' clinical-pathological parameters.Results: MCT1, MCT4 and CD147 were mainly observed in the plasma membrane of cancer cells (around 60% for MCTs and 40% for CD147), while MCT2 was conspicuously found in the cytoplasm (94.2%). Importantly, we observed MCT1 nuclear expression (32.6%). MCT1 and MCT4, alone or co-expressed with CD147 in the plasma membrane, were associated with poor prognostic variables including high tumor grade, disease progression and shorter overall survival. Conversely, we found MCT1 nuclear expression to be associated with low grade tumors and longer overall survival.Conclusions: The present work represents the first report of MCTs characterization in STSs. We showed the original finding of MCT1 expression in the nucleus. Importantly, opposite biological roles should be behind the dual sub-cellular localization of MCT1, as plasma membrane expression of MCT1 is associated with worse patients' prognosis, while nuclear expression is associated with better prognosis.

Cellular and Molecular Tissue Response to Triple Antibiotic Intracanal Dressing

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

Cellular behavior as a dynamic field for exploring bone bioengineering: A closer look at cell-biomaterial interface

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)