Visual processing of optic flow and motor control in the human posterior cingulate sulcus

Previous studies have shown that the human posterior cingulate contains a visual processing area selective for optic flow (CSv). However, other studies performed in both humans and monkeys have identified a somatotopic motor region at the same location (CMA). Taken together, these findings suggested the possibility that the posterior cingulate contains a single visuomotor integration region. To test this idea we used fMRI to identify both visual and motor areas of the posterior cingulate in the same brains and to test the activity of those regions during a visuomotor task. Results indicated that rather than a single visuomotor region the posterior cingulate contains adjacent but separate motor and visual regions. CSv lies in the fundus of the cingulate sulcus, while CMA lies in the dorsal bank of the sulcus, slightly superior in terms of stereotaxic coordinates. A surprising and novel finding was that activity in CSv was suppressed during the visuomotor task, despite the visual stimulus being identical to that used to localize the region. This may provide an important clue to the specific role played by this region in the utilization of optic flow to control self-motion.

Upstream control of Agulhas Ring shedding

Rings shed in the Agulhas Retroflection region play an important role in the global thermohaline circulation. The shedding of these rings has been considered very irregular. In this paper, we present evidence for remote control of the timing and frequency of the ring shedding events. This turns out to be a far more regular process, at a frequency of 4–5 cycles per year. The movement of the Agulhas Retroflection, and thereby the shedding of rings, is timed by incoming eddies from the upstream regions. Eddies from the Mozambique Channel, and from the East Madagascar current reach the retroflection region at the frequency of 4–5 times per year. The existence of these eddies can be related to incoming Rossby waves that cross the Indian Ocean and reach the Agulhas Current system. These may in turn be part of a basin-wide oscillation. The irregularity found in ring shedding statistics can be ascribed to processes occurring between the actual shedding and the first unambiguous observation of a separated ring.

Evaluation on the effectiveness of actions for controlling infestation by rodents in Campo Limpo region, Sao Paulo Municipality, Brazil

Rodents are responsible for the transmission of more than 60 diseases both to human beings and to domestic animals. The increase in rodent infestation in a given area brings several health problems to the nearby population. Thus, when infestation increases, it is time to take intervention measures. Although many countries have implemented programs aimed at controlling rodent infestation, literature on studies evaluating the effectiveness of intervention measures in urban areas is scarce. Aimed at contributing to the understanding of rodents` population dynamics in urban areas, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the control methods proposed by ""Programa de Vigilancia e Controle de Roedores do Municipio de Sao Paulo`` (Program for Rodents Surveillance and Control in Sao Paulo Municipality), conducted on Jardim Comercial District. As a first step, a survey to assess infestation rates was conducted in 1529 dwellings located in the area studied. After that, a chemical control upon rodents was accomplished in every dwelling infested. One week and six months after completion of control measures, a new evaluation on infestation rates was carried out, in order to verify the effectiveness of the procedures taken and to estimate the re-infestation capacity. Initial infestation rate was 40.0%, and the final infestation rate, 14.4%. Therefore, the effectiveness of the control methods utilized was 63.8%. It can thus be concluded that the control methods applied were quite effective.

Abundance and seasonality of Diptera (Insecta) in a poultry house in the northeast region of the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil

Modem production systems accommodate broody hens in high densities, leading to the accumulation of excrement under the cages. This substrate is excellent for the development of sinantropic flies. Thus, the accomplishment of surveys in these places becomes essential, in order to plan better strategies of control. The present work aimed at studying the entornofauna and the seasonality of the species of dipterous present in the Crisdan poultry house located in the Municipality of Sao Joao da Boa Vista, the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. In the period of January of 2001 to December of 2002, 1,012,595 flies were captured using the ""jug-trap"". The species were identified: Drosophi-la repleta (Wollaston, 1858), Musca domestica (Linnaeus, 1758), Ophyra spp., Hennetria illucens (Linnaeus, 1758), Fannia canicularis (Linnaeus, 1761), Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794), and Sepsidae. More frequently D. repleta and M. domestica had added 99.47% of the dipterous. Increased rainfall and the collection months influenced the sampling of dipterous (P < 0.05). Drosophila repleta was the most abundant species, representing 91% of all captured flies. However, this diptera did not develop at the surveyed site since immatures were not captured therein.

Incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in Cheese Manufacturing Plants from the Northeast Region of Sao Paulo, Brazil

The incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in three cheese manufacturing plants from the northeastern region of Sao Paulo, Brazil, was evaluated from October 2008 to September 2009. L. monocytogenes was found in samples from two plants, at percentages of 13.3% (n = 128) and 9.6% (n = 114). Samples of raw and pasteurized milk, water, and Minas Frescal cheese were negative for L. monocyto genes, although the pathogen was isolated from the surface of Prato cheese and in brine from one of the plants evaluated. L. monocytogenes was also isolated from different sites of the facilities, mainly in non food contact surfaces such as drains, floors, and platforms. Serotype 4b was the most predominant in the plants studied. The results of this study indicate the need for control strategies to prevent the dispersion of L. monocytogenes in the environment of cheese manufacturing plants.

Relation of pretreatment sequence diversity in NS5A region of HCV genotype 1 with immune response between pegylated-INF/ribavirin therapy outcomes

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection frequently persists despite substantial virus-specific immune responses and the combination of pegylated interferon (INF)-alpha and ribavirin therapy. Major histocompatibility complex class I restricted CD8+ T cells are responsible for the control of viraemia in HCV infection, and several studies suggest protection against viral infection associated with specific HLAs. The reason for low rates of sustained viral response (SVR) in HCV patients remains unknown. Escape mutations in response to cytotoxic T lymphocyte are widely described; however, its influence in the treatment outcome is ill understood. Here, we investigate the differences in CD8 epitopes frequencies from the Los Alamos database between groups of patients that showed distinct response to pegylated alpha-INF with ribavirin therapy and test evidence of natural selection on the virus in those who failed treatment, using five maximum likelihood evolutionary models from PAML package. The group of sustained virological responders showed three epitopes with frequencies higher than Non-responders group, all had statistical support, and we observed evidence of selection pressure in the last group. No escape mutation was observed. Interestingly, the epitope VLSDFKTWL was 100% conserved in SVR group. These results suggest that the response to treatment can be explained by the increase in immune pressure, induced by interferon therapy, and the presence of those epitopes may represent an important factor in determining the outcome of therapy.

The role of proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 alpha in the fatty-acid -dependent transcriptional control of interleukin-10 in hepatic cells of rodents

Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is an endogenous factor that restrains hepatic insulin resistance in diet-induced steatosis Reducing IL-10 expression increases proinflammatory activity in the steatotic liver and worsens insulin resistance As the transcriptional coactivator proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1 alpha) plays a central role in dysfunctional hepatocytic activity in diet-induced steatosis, we hypothesized that at least part of the action of PGC-1 alpha could be mediated by reducing the transcription of the IL-10 gene Here, we used immunoblotting, real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunocytochemistry, and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay to investigate the role of PGC-1 alpha in the control of IL-10 expression in hepatic cells First, we show that, in the intact steatotic liver, the expressions of IL-10 and PGC-1 alpha are increased Inhibiting PGC-1 alpha expression by antisense oligonucleotide increases IL-10 expression and reduces the steatotic phenotype. In cultured hepatocytes, the treatment with saturated and unsaturated fatty acids increased IL-10 expression. This was accompanied by increased association of PGC-1 alpha with c-Maf and p50-nuclear factor (NF) kappa B, 2 transcription factors known to modulate IL-10 expression In addition, after fatty acid treatment. PGC-1 alpha, c-Maf, and p50-NF kappa B migrate from the cytosol to the nuclei of hepatocytes and bind to the IL-10 promoter region Inhibiting NF kappa B activation with salicylate reduces IL-10 expression and the association of PGC-1 alpha with p50-NF kappa B Thus, PGC-1 alpha emerges as a potential transcriptional regulator of the inflammatory phenomenon taking place in the steatotic liver (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc All rights reserved

Epidemiology and control of frontier malaria in Brazil: lessons from community-based studies in rural Amazonia

We describe the epidemiology of malaria in a frontier agricultural settlement in Brazilian Amazonia. We analysed the incidence of slide-confirmed symptomatic infections diagnosed between 2001 and 2006 in a cohort of 531 individuals (2281.53 person-years of follow-up) and parasite prevalence data derived from four cross-sectional surveys. Overall, the incidence rates of Plasmodium vivax and P. falciparaum were 20.6/100 and 6.8/100 person-years at risk, respectively, with a marked decline in the incidence of both species (81.4 and 56.8%, respectively) observed between 2001 and 2006. PCR revealed 5.4-fold more infections than conventional microscopy in population-wide cross-sectional surveys carried out between 2004 and 2006 (average prevalence, 11.3 vs. 2.0%). Only 27.2% of PCR-positive (but 73.3% of slide-positive) individuals had symptoms when enrolled, indicating that asymptomatic carriage of low-grade parasitaemias is a common phenomenon in frontier settlements. A circular cluster comprising 22.3% of the households, all situated in the area of most recent occupation, comprised 69.1% of all malaria infections diagnosed during the follow-up, with malaria incidence decreasing exponentially with distance from the cluster centre. By targeting one-quarter of the households, with selective indoor spraying or other house-protection measures, malaria incidence could be reduced by more than two-thirds in this community. (C) 2010 Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Association between particulate matter from biomass burning and respiratory diseases in the southern region of the Brazilian Amazon

Objective. To investigate the short-term effects of exposure to particulate matter from biomass burning in the Amazon on the daily demand for outpatient care due to respiratory diseases in children and the elderly. Methods. Epidemiologic study with ecologic time series design. Daily consultation records were obtained from the 14 primary health care clinics in the municipality of Alta Floresta, state of Mato Grosso, in the southern region of the Brazilian Amazon, between January 2004 and December 2005. Information on the daily levels of fine particulate matter was made available by the Brazilian National Institute for Spatial Research. To control for confounding factors ( situations in which a non-causal association between exposure and disease is observed due to a third variable), variables related to time trends, seasonality, temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, and calendar effects ( such as occurrence of holidays and weekends) were included in the model. Poisson regression with generalized additive models was used. Results. A 10 mu g/m(3) increase in the level of exposure to particulate matter was associated with increases of 2.9% and 2.6% in outpatient consultations due to respiratory diseases in children on the 6th and 7th days following exposure. Significant associations were not observed for elderly individuals. Conclusions. The results suggest that the levels of particulate matter from biomass burning in the Amazon are associated with adverse effects on the respiratory health of children.

Transport control in fusion plasmas by changing electric and magnetic field spatial profiles

For magnetically confined plasmas in tokamaks, we have numerically investigated how Lagrangian chaos at the plasma edge affects the plasma confinement. Initially, we have considered the chaotic motion of particles in an equilibrium electric field with a monotonic radial profile perturbed by drift waves. We have showed that an effective transport barrier may be created at the plasma edge by modifying the electric field radial profile. In the second place, we have obtained escape patterns and magnetic footprints of chaotic magnetic field lines in the region near a tokamak wall with resonant modes due to the action of an ergodic magnetic limiter. For monotonic plasma current density profiles we have obtained distributions of field line connections to the wall and line escape channels with the same spatial pattern as the magnetic footprints on the tokamak walls. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reservoir Management For Flood And Drought Protection Using Infinite Horizon Model Predictive Control

Model Predictive Control (MPC) is a control method that solves in real time an optimal control problem over a finite horizon. The finiteness of the horizon is both the reason of MPC's success and its main limitation. In operational water resources management, MPC has been in fact successfully employed for controlling systems with a relatively short memory, such as canals, where the horizon length is not an issue. For reservoirs, which have generally a longer memory, MPC applications are presently limited to short term management only. Short term reservoir management can be effectively used to deal with fast process, such as floods, but it is not capable of looking sufficiently ahead to handle long term issues, such as drought. To overcome this limitation, we propose an Infinite Horizon MPC (IH-MPC) solution that is particularly suitable for reservoir management. We propose to structure the input signal by use of orthogonal basis functions, therefore reducing the optimization argument to a finite number of variables, and making the control problem solvable in a reasonable time. We applied this solution for the management of the Manantali Reservoir. Manantali is a yearly reservoir located in Mali, on the Senegal river, affecting water systems of Mali, Senegal, and Mauritania. The long term horizon offered by IH-MPC is necessary to deal with the strongly seasonal climate of the region.

Serotoninergic receptors in the anteroventral preoptic region modulate the hypoxic ventilatory response

Hypothalamus is a site of integration of the hypoxic and thermal stimuli on breathing and there is evidence that serotonin (5-HT) receptors in the anteroventral preoptic region (AVPO) mediate hypoxic hypothermia. Once 5-HT is involved in the hypoxic ventilatory response (HVR), we investigated the participation of the 5-HT receptors (5-HT1, 5-HT2 and 5-HT7) in the AVPO in the HVR. To this end, pulmonary ventilation (V-E) of rats was measured before and after intra-AVPO microinjection of methysergide (a 5-HT1 and 5-HT2 receptor antagonist), WAY-100635 (a 5-HT1A receptor antagonist) and SB-269970 (a 5-HT7 receptor antagonist), followed by 60 min of hypoxia exposure (7% O-2). Intra-AVPO microinjection of vehicles or 5-HT antagonists did not change VE during normoxic conditions. Exposure of rats to 7% O-2 evoked typical hypoxia-induced hyperpnea after vehicle microinjection, which was not affected by methysergide. WAY-100635 and SB-269970 treatment caused an increased HVR, due to a higher tidal volume. Therefore, the current data provide the evidence that 5-HT acting on 5-HT1A and 5-HT7 receptors in the AVPO exert an inhibitory modulation on the HVR. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CONTROL of THE CENTRAL CHEMOREFLEX BY A5 NORADRENERGIC NEURONS IN RATS

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

Microscopic features of tick-bite lesions in anteaters and armadillos - Emas National Park and the Pantanal region of Brazil

The naturally occurring wildlife host associations between ticks and tick-borne pathogens found in the neotropics are poorly described. Understanding tick-bite lesions is important as these are the site of host reaction to and pathogen delivery by ticks. As part of a comprehensive study concerning established and emerging tick-host relationships. The present work describes some aspects of tick-bite lesions in anteaters and armadillos captured at the Emas National Park and the Pantanal region of Brazil. Biopsies were of skin were taken and examine. Tick feeding sites of all animals displayed an eosinophilic homogeneous mass, the cement cone, and, occasionally, a feeding cavity underneath the tick attachment site. At these locations the epidermis was usually thickened due to keratinocyte hyperplasia. The main dermal changes included tissue infiltration with a varying number of inflammatory cells, edema, hemorrhage. and vascular dilatation. Cellular infiltration of the dermis was predominantly composed of mononuclear cells, neutrophils. and eosinophils. Mast cells were also seen in both non-parasitized and parasitized skin but were found in higher numbers at perivascular sites and in parasitized skin. Basophils were not seen at tick attachment sites of anteaters or armadillos.

Phenology of Caryocar brasiliense in the Brazilian cerrado region

The objective was to study the phenology of Caryocar brasiliense Camb. (Caryocaraceae), a type of fruit of the Brazilian cerrado, in three areas (cerrado, pasture and in the campus of the Federal University of Minas Gerais) of the municipality of Montes Claros, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, during 3 years. The plants of C brasiliense presented linear growth with about 50 cm of height and 35 cm of crown width per year. Soils with loamy texture, dystrophic, rich in aluminum and with low pH favor the production of this species. C. brasiliense produced higher quantity of flowers in the middle third, followed by the apical and basal parts of the crown, while the fruit production was higher in the basal third, followed by the middle and apical parts of the canopy of this species. C brasiliense bloomed during the dry period and produced fruits in the rainy season. Its fruits presented about 6, 8 and 6 cm of width, length and height, respectively, and 160 g of gross weight. The extrativism without control has strong impact on the propagation of C brasiliense because only about 7.96 and 10.65% of plants up to 1.0 m height and 59.58 and 44.73% higher than 3.0 m (reproductive phase) was observed in the cerrado and pasture, respectively. This indicates that fruit collectors, practically, remove all fruits of this tree and thus they reduce, considerably, the propagation of C. brasiliense in the cerrado areas of Brazil. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.