MAPA DE ISOYETAS DE LA SUBREGION DE HEREDIA

Trata sobre la información meteorológica, se contruye el mapa de isoyetas de la subregión de Heredia, para obtener los datos de los años 1960 a 1979.

Perfis temporais NDVI MODIS, na cana-soca, de maturação tardia

This paper describes the development of a relational database and a tool for viewing MODIS NDVI temporal profile, using data from MOD09Q1 product, specifically the surface bidirectional reflectance factor relative to the RED and NIR wavelength, mosaic of 8-day temporal composition, and the quality band, in sugarcane fields in the state of São Paulo, for analysis of the late stubble-cane maturation. From sugarcane farms were obtained the historical data about yield, soil, variety, location of the each pixel for each subregion monitored. All data were integrated in a database developed in PostgreSQL. The tool was implemented using Java language and allowed a fast and automatic way of analyzing sugarcane phenological patterns. It concluded that the MODIS NDVI temporal profile using data from MOD09Q1 product is able to subsidize the monitoring of phenological changes in the sugarcane.

Uso de sistemas de informação geográfica em campanhas de vacinação contra a raiva

OBJETIVO: Desenvolver método para planejamento e avaliação de campanhas de vacinação contra a raiva animal. MÉTODOS: O desenvolvimento da metodologia baseou-se em sistemas de informação geográfica para estimar a população e a densidade animal (canina e felina) por setores censitários e subprefeituras do município de São Paulo, em 2002. O número de postos de vacinação foi estimado para atingir uma dada cobertura vacinal. Foram utilizadas uma base de dados censitários para a população humana, e estimativas para razões cão:habitante e gato:habitante. RESULTADOS: Os números estimados foram de 1.490.500 cães e 226.954 gatos em São Paulo, uma densidade populacional de 1.138,14 animais domiciliados por km². Foram vacinados, na campanha de 2002, 926.462 animais, garantindo uma cobertura vacinal de 54%. O número total estimado de postos no município para atingir uma cobertura vacinal de 70%, vacinando em média 700 animais por posto foi de 1.729. Estas estimativas foram apresentadas em mapas de densidade animal, segundo setores censitários e subprefeituras. CONCLUSÕES: A metodologia desenvolvida pode ser aplicada de forma sistemática no planejamento e no acompanhamento das campanhas de vacinação contra a raiva, permitindo que sejam identificadas áreas de cobertura vacinal crítica.

An alternative multi-region BEM technique for three-dimensional elastic problems

The main objective of this work is to present an alternative boundary element method (BEM) formulation for the static analysis of three-dimensional non-homogeneous isotropic solids. These problems can be solved using the classical boundary element formulation, analyzing each subregion separately and then joining them together by introducing equilibrium and displacements compatibility. Establishing relations between the displacement fundamental solutions of the different domains, the alternative technique proposed in this paper allows analyzing all the domains as one unique solid, not requiring equilibrium or compatibility equations. This formulation also leads to a smaller system of equations when compared to the usual subregion technique, and the results obtained are even more accurate. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bounds on integrals of the Wigner function

The integral of the Wigner function over a subregion of the phase space of a quantum system may be less than zero or greater than one. It is shown that for systems with 1 degree of freedom, the problem of determining the best possible upper and lower bounds on such an integral, over an possible states, reduces to the problem of finding the greatest and least eigenvalues of a Hermitian operator corresponding to the subregion. The problem is solved exactly in the case of an arbitrary elliptical region. These bounds provide checks on experimentally measured quasiprobability distributions.

Effects of age and alcohol exposure during early life on pyramidal cell numbers in the CA1-CA3 region of the rat hippocampus

We have previously shown that exposing rats to a relatively high dose of ethanol during early postnatal life can result in an alteration in spatial learning ability. The hippocampal formation is known to be involved in the control of this ability. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether exposure of rats to ethanol during early postnatal life had either immediate or delayed effects on the numbers of pyramidal cells in the CA1-CA3 subregion of the hippocampus. Wistar rats were exposed to a relatively high daily dose of ethanol at postnatal day 10-15 by placing them for 3 h/day in a chamber containing ethanol vapor. Groups of ethanol-treated (ET), separation control (SC), and mother-reared control (MRC) rats were anesthetized and killed at 16 and 30 days of age by perfusion with phosphate-buffered 2.5% glutaraldehyde. The Cavalieri principle was used to determine the volumes of the CA1 and CA2+CA3 regions. The physical disector method was used to estimate the numerical density of neurons in each of the subdivisions. The total number of pyramidal cells was calculated by multiplying the appropriate estimates of the numerical density by the volume. There were significant age-related reductions in the total numbers of pyramidal cells at 16-30 days of age irrespective of the groups examined. Ethanol treated rats were found to have slightly but significantly fewer pyramidal cell neurons than either the MRC or SC groups. These observations indicate that pyramidal cells in the hippocampus may be vulnerable to a relatively high dose of ethanol exposure during this short period of early postnatal life. (C) 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Special issue on methods and learning in functional MRI: Introductory remarks

This special issue represents a further exploration of some issues raised at a symposium entitled “Functional magnetic resonance imaging: From methods to madness” presented during the 15th annual Theoretical and Experimental Neuropsychology (TENNET XV) meeting in Montreal, Canada in June, 2004. The special issue’s theme is methods and learning in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and it comprises 6 articles (3 reviews and 3 empirical studies). The first (Amaro and Barker) provides a beginners guide to fMRI and the BOLD effect (perhaps an alternative title might have been “fMRI for dummies”). While fMRI is now commonplace, there are still researchers who have yet to employ it as an experimental method and need some basic questions answered before they venture into new territory. This article should serve them well. A key issue of interest at the symposium was how fMRI could be used to elucidate cerebral mechanisms responsible for new learning. The next 4 articles address this directly, with the first (Little and Thulborn) an overview of data from fMRI studies of category-learning, and the second from the same laboratory (Little, Shin, Siscol, and Thulborn) an empirical investigation of changes in brain activity occurring across different stages of learning. While a role for medial temporal lobe (MTL) structures in episodic memory encoding has been acknowledged for some time, the different experimental tasks and stimuli employed across neuroimaging studies have not surprisingly produced conflicting data in terms of the precise subregion(s) involved. The next paper (Parsons, Haut, Lemieux, Moran, and Leach) addresses this by examining effects of stimulus modality during verbal memory encoding. Typically, BOLD fMRI studies of learning are conducted over short time scales, however, the fourth paper in this series (Olson, Rao, Moore, Wang, Detre, and Aguirre) describes an empirical investigation of learning occurring over a longer than usual period, achieving this by employing a relatively novel technique called perfusion fMRI. This technique shows considerable promise for future studies. The final article in this special issue (de Zubicaray) represents a departure from the more familiar cognitive neuroscience applications of fMRI, instead describing how neuroimaging studies might be conducted to both inform and constrain information processing models of cognition.

AIDS in Latin America: assessing the current status of the epidemic and the ongoing response

Background This article provides a summary of the current status of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Latin America, as well as an outline of the diverse responses to it. Methods A search of international databases (Pubmed and ISI-Web of Science), regional databases (Scielo and Lilacs), regional and national documents and UNAIDS reports. Data are presented according to subregion. Results In Mexico HIV remains concentrated among urban men who have sex with men (MSM), and has been growing among injecting drug users (IDU) and in rural areas in relation to migration. An increasing proportion of women among those affected is observed in all countries in Central America, the most affected region, as well as increasing the impact on other vulnerable groups, such as indigenous populations. The Andean Countries have urban epidemics concentrated among MSM. In Peru, non-traditional vulnerable populations were identified. In the Southern Cone heterosexual transmission became more relevant, probably in connection with IDU epidemics and is increasingly affecting lower income groups. Incidence rates have been declining since 2002 in Brazil, the first country to guarantee free, universal access to antiretrovirals, where one-third of drug-nave patients are still initiating treatment at an advanced stage. Generally, access to treatment has improved as a result of support from the Global Fund and other initiatives, but there are concerns regarding coverage, equity and sustainability. Conclusions HIV is still concentrated among MSM in Latin America. Non-traditional vulnerable groups such as migrants and lower income populations, usually considered part of the general population, deserve attention. Programmes confronting sexual exclusion are still needed. Access to treatment has improved over time, but inequalities persist.

The relationship between prevalent medial meniscal intrasubstance signal changes and incident medial meniscal tears in women over a 1-year period assessed with 3.0 T MRI

Objective Intrasubstance meniscal signal changes not reaching the articular surface on fast spin echo (FSE) sequences are considered to represent mucoid degeneration on MRI. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of prevalent intrasubstance signal changes with incident tears of the medial meniscus detected on 3.0 T MRI over a 1-year period. Materials and methods A total of 161 women aged a parts per thousand yen40 years participated in a longitudinal 1-year observational study of knee osteoarthritis. MRI (3.0 T) was performed at baseline and 12-month follow-up. The anterior horn, body, and posterior horn of the medial meniscus were scored by two experienced musculoskeletal radiologists using the Boston-Leeds Osteoarthritis Knee Score (BLOKS) system. Four grades were used to describe the meniscal morphology: grade 0 (normal), grade 1 (intrasubstance signal changes not reaching the articular surface), grade 2 (single tears), and grade 3 (complex tears and maceration). Fisher`s exact test and the Cochran-Armitage trend test were performed to evaluate whether baseline intrasubstance signal changes (grade 1) predict incident meniscal tears/maceration (grades 2 and/or 3) in the same subregion of the medial meniscus, when compared to subregions without pathology as the reference group (grade 0). Results Medial meniscal intrasubstance signal changes at baseline did not predict tears at follow-up when evaluating the anterior and posterior horns (left-sided p-values 0.06 and 0.59, respectively). No incident tears were detected in the body. Conclusion We could not demonstrate an association between prevalent medial meniscal intrasubstance signal changes with incident tears over a 1-year period.

Modulation of respiratory responses to chemoreflex activation by L-glutamate and ATP in the rostral ventrolateral medulla of awake rats

Moraes DJA, Bonagamba LGH, Zoccal DB, Machado BH. Modulation of respiratory responses to chemoreflex activation by L-glutamate and ATP in the rostral ventrolateral medulla of awake rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 300: R1476-R1486, 2011. First published March 16, 2011; doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00825.2010.-Presympathetic neurons in the different anteroposterior aspects of rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) are colocalized with expiratory [Botzinger complex (BotC)] and inspiratory [pre-Botzinger complex (pre-BotC)] neurons of ventral respiratory column (VRC), suggesting that this region integrates the cardiovascular and respiratory chemoreflex responses. In the present study, we evaluated in different anteroposterior aspects of RVLM of awake rats the role of ionotropic glutamate and purinergic receptors on cardiorespiratory responses to chemoreflex activation. The bilateral ionotropic glutamate receptors antagonism with kynurenic acid (KYN) (8 nmol/50 nl) in the rostral aspect of RVLM (RVLM/BotC) enhanced the tachypneic (120 +/- 9 vs. 180 +/- 9 cpm; P < 0.01) and attenuated the pressor response (55 +/- 2 vs. 15 +/- 1 mmHg; P < 0.001) to chemoreflex activation (n = 7). On the other hand, bilateral microinjection of KYN into the caudal aspect of RVLM (RVLM/pre-BotC) caused a respiratory arrest in four awake rats used in the present study. Bilateral P2X receptors antagonism with PPADS (0.25 nmol/50 nl) in the RVLM/BotC reduced chemoreflex tachypneic response (127 +/- 6 vs. 70 +/- 5 cpm; P < 0.001; n = 6), but did not change the chemoreflex pressor response. In addition, PPADS into the RVLM/BtC attenuated the enhancement of the tachypneic response to chemoreflex activation elicited by previous microinjections of KYN into the same subregion (188 +/- 2 vs. 157 +/- 3 cpm; P < 0.05; n = 5). Our findings indicate that: 1) L-glutamate, but not ATP, in the RVLM/BtC is required for pressor response to peripheral chemoreflex and 2) both transmitters in the RVLM/BtC are required for the processing of the ventilatory response to peripheral chemoreflex activation in awake rats.

Assessment of synovitis with contrast-enhanced MRI using a whole-joint semiquantitative scoring system in people with, or at high risk of, knee osteoarthritis: the MOST study

Objectives To introduce a comprehensive and reliable scoring system for the assessment of whole-knee joint synovitis based on contrast-enhanced (CE) MRI. Methods Multicenter Osteoarthritis Study (MOST) is a cohort study of people with, or at high risk of, knee osteoarthritis (OA). Subjects are an unselected subset of MOST who volunteered for CE-MRI. Synovitis was assessed at 11 sites of the joint. Synovial thickness was scored semiquantitatively: grade 0 (< 2 mm), grade 1 (2-4 mm) and grade 2 (> 4 mm) at each site. Two musculoskeletal radiologists performed the readings and inter-and intrareader reliability was evaluated. Whole-knee synovitis was assessed by summing the scores from all sites. The association of Western Ontario and McMaster Osteoarthritis Index pain score with this summed score and with the maximum synovitis grade for each site was assessed. Results 400 subjects were included (mean age 58.8 +/- 7.0 years, body mass index 29.5 +/- 4.9 kg/m(2), 46% women). For individual sites, intrareader reliability (weighted kappa) was 0.67-1.00 for reader 1 and 0.60-1.00 for reader 2. Inter-reader agreement (kappa) was 0.67-0.92. For the summed synovitis scores, intrareader reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC)) was 0.98 and 0.96 for each reader and inter-reader agreement (ICC) was 0.94. Moderate to severe synovitis in the parapatellar subregion was associated with the higher maximum pain score (adjusted OR (95% CI), 2.8 (1.4 to 5.4) and 3.1 (1.2 to 7.9), respectively). Conclusions A comprehensive semiquantitative scoring system for the assessment of whole-knee synovitis is proposed. It is reliable and identifies knees with pain, and thus is a potentially powerful tool for synovitis assessment in epidemiological OA studies.

Subchondral Cystlike Lesions Develop Longitudinally in Areas of Bone Marrow Edema-like Lesions in Patients with or at Risk for Knee Osteoarthritis: Detection with MR Imaging-The MOST Study

Purpose: To assess the association of prevalent bone marrow edema-like lesions (BMLs) and full-thickness cartilage loss with incident subchondral cyst-like lesions (SCs) in the knee to evaluate the bone contusion versus synovial fluid intrusion theories of SC formation. Materials and Methods: The Multicenter Osteoarthritis study is a longitudinal study of individuals who have or are at risk for knee osteoarthritis. The HIPAA-compliant protocol was approved by the institutional review boards of all participating centers, and written informed consent was obtained from all participants. Magnetic resonance images were acquired at baseline and 30-month follow-up and read semiquantitatively by using the Whole-Organ Magnetic Resonance Imaging Score system. The tibiofemoral and patellofemoral joints were subdivided into 14 subregions. BMLs and SCs were scored from 0 to 3. Cartilage morphology was scored from 0 to 6. The association of prevalent BMLs and full-thickness cartilage loss with incident SCs in the same subregion was assessed by using logistic regression with mutual adjustment for both predictors. Results: A total of 1283 knees were included. After adjustment for full-thickness cartilage loss, prevalent BMLs showed a strong and significant association with incident SCs in the same subregion, with an odds ratio of 12.9 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 8.9, 18.6). After adjustment for BMLs, prevalent full-thickness cartilage loss showed a significant but much less important association with incident SCs in the same subregion (odds ratio, 1.4; 95% CI: 1.0, 2.0). There was no apparent relationship between severity of full-thickness cartilage loss at baseline and incident SCs. Conclusion: Prevalent BMLs strongly predict incident SCs in the same subregion, even after adjustment for full-thickness cartilage loss, which supports the bone contusion theory of SC formation. (C) RSNA, 2010

Patterns and levels of endemism in the Australian Wet Tropics rainforest: evidence from flightless insects

This study examines the level and pattern of endemism among 274 flightless rainforest insects found in the Wet Tropics region of Australia. Endemism is measured at two nested scales: (1) those confined to the Wet Tropics, termed 'regional endemics'; and (2) the subset of those species confined to a single subregion of the Wet Tropics, termed 'subregional endemics'. Fifty per cent of the regional endemic flightless insects are also subregional endemics compared with 15% of the known regional endemic vertebrates. The four subregions with the most endemic flightless insect species are the uplands of Mt Finnigan, Carbine, Bellenden-Ker/Bartle Frere and Atherton. Multiple regression suggests that the combination of rainforest area and shape explain the most variance (R-2 = 0.603) in the numbers of species of regional endemic insects. However, subregional endemism is not closely correlated with the size or shape of the subregions in which they occur, or a combination of these factors. Candidate refugial and recolonised subregions are identified, and are consistent with data from palaeoclimatic models and refugia identified using other taxa. We group upland subregions into larger areas of endemism using parsimony analysis of endemism. These groupings are consistent with our understanding of the history of the Wet Tropics rainforests.

O empreendedorismo como fator dinamizador da competitividade regional: o papel do financiamento

Dissertação de Mestrado em Finanças Empresariais

Sand fly evolution and its relationship to Leishmania transmission

The evolutionary relationships of sand flies and Leishmania are discussed in this report, which draws distinctions between co-association, co-evolution and co-speciation (or co-cladogenesis). Examples focus on Phlebotomus vectors of Le. infantum and Le. major in the Mediterranean subregion.