The development of services in the Caribbean

Includes bibliography

Impact of health legislation on the sale of anorectics in a city in the Amazon region

OBJETIVOS: O International Narcotics Control Board publicou em 2005 sua pesquisa anual que demonstrou que a população brasileira são um dos maiores consumidores de anorexígenos. No Brasil, a Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária publicou a resolução RDC 58/2007 com o objetivo de controlar a prescrição e comercialização deste tipo de medicamento. Em Belém, a maior cidade da Amazônia brasileira, esta resolução entrou em vigor em 2008, levando à inspeções em drogarias e farmácias. Este trabalho propõe avaliar o consumo de psicotrópicos anorexígenos e o impacto da RDC 58/2007 na prescrição e dispensação de anorexígenos nas drogarias e farmácias magistrais de Belém. METODOLOGIA: foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo, quantitativo e descritivo, com dados coletados do Departamento de Vigilância Sanitária de Belém, de 2005 a 2008. Os dados foram considerados quando p < 0,05. RESULTADOS: Um total de 1.641 balanços foram analisados oriundos de drogarias e farmácias magistrais. Anfepramona foi o medicamento mais dispensado, seguido do femproporex e manzidol. O maior consumo de anorexígenos ocorreu nas farmácias magistrais. Em 2008, houve uma redução significativa na dispensação de anorexígenos, tanto em drogarias quanto em farmácias magistrais. CONCLUSÕES: Este estudo demonstrou que houve uma diminuição na dispensação de anorexígenos após a entrada em vigor da RDC 58/2007, e as farmácias magistrais foram responsáveis por um elevado número na dispensação destes medicamentos. Esta resolução é um marco divisor no controle sanitário, para enorme benefício da saúde pública, contribuindo substancialmente para o uso racional de medicamentos no Brasil.

Insight into the Effects of Fe Addition on the Local Structure and Electronic Properties of SrTiO3

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Cardiovascular responses to injections of angiotensin II or carbachol into the rostral ventrolateral medulla in rats with AV3V lesions

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

An investigation into the influence of zinc precursor on the microstructural, photoluminescence, and gas-sensing properties of ZnO nanoparticles

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

An investigation into the effects of resonances on the time delay estimate for leak detection in buried plastic water distribution pipes

In water distribution systems, old metallic pipes have been replaced by plastic pipes due to their deterioration over time. Although acoustic methods are effective in finding leaks in metallic pipes, they have been found to be problematic when applied to plastic pipes due to the high damping within the pipe wall and the surrounding medium. This is responsible for the leak signal not traveling long distances. Moreover, the leak energy in plastic pipes is generally located at a narrow frequency range located at low frequencies. However, the presence of resonances can narrow even more this frequency range. In order to minimise the influence of background noise and resonances on the calculation of the time delay estimate, band-pass filters are often used to supress undesirable frequency components of the noise. The objective of this paper is to investigate the influence of resonances in the pipe system (pipe, valves, connections and hydrants), on the time delay estimate calculated using acoustic signals. Analytical models and actual leak data collected in a bespoke rig located in the United Kingdom are used to investigate this feature.

Neo-sex chromosomes of Ronderosia bergi: insight into the evolution of sex chromosomes in grasshoppers

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

Spermatophoric reaction reappraised: Novel insights into the functioning of the loliginid spermatophore based on Doryteuthis plei (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)

During copulation, spermatophores produced by male coleoid cephalopods undergo the spermatophoric reaction, a complex process of evagination that culminates in the attachment of the spermatangium (everted spermatophore containing the sperm mass) on the female's body. To better understand this complicated phenomenon, the present study investigated the functional morphology of the spermatophore of the squid Doryteuthis plei applying in vitro analysis of the reaction, as well as light and electron microscopy investigation of spermatangia obtained either in vitro, or naturally attached on females. Hitherto unnoticed functional features of the loliginid spermatophore require a reappraisal of some important processes involved in the spermatophoric reaction. The most striking findings concern the attachment mechanism, which is not carried out solely by cement adhesive material, as previously believed, but rather by an autonomous, complex process performed by multiple structures during the spermatophoric reaction. During evagination, the ejaculatory apparatus provides anchorage on the targeted tissue, presumably due to the minute stellate particles present in the exposed spiral filament. Consequently, the ejaculatory apparatus maintains the attachment of the tip of the evaginating spermatophore until the cement body is extruded. Subsequently, the cement body passes through a complex structural rearrangement, which leads to the injection of both its viscid contents and pointed oral region onto the targeted tissue. The inner membrane at the oral region of the cement body contains numerous stellate particles attached at its inner side; eversion of this membrane exposes these sharp structures, which presumably adhere to the tissue and augment attachment. Several naturally attached spermatangia were found with their bases implanted at the deposition sites, and the possible mechanisms of perforation are discussed based on present evidence. The function of the complex squid spermatophore and its spermatophoric reaction is revisited in light of these findings. J. Morphol. 2012. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

An Insight into the Sialotranscriptome of Triatoma matogrossensis, a Kissing Bug Associated with Fogo Selvagem in South America

Triatoma matogrossensis is a Hemiptera that belongs to the oliveirai complex, a vector of Chagas' disease that feeds on vertebrate blood in all life stages. Hematophagous insects' salivary glands (SGs) produce potent pharmacologic compounds that counteract host hemostasis, including anticlotting, antiplatelet, and vasodilatory molecules. Exposure to T. matogrossensis was also found to be a risk factor associated with the endemic form of the autoimmune skin disease pemphigus foliaceus, which is described in the same regions where Chagas' disease is observed in Brazil. To obtain a further insight into the salivary biochemical and pharmacologic diversity of this kissing bug and to identify possible allergens that might be associated with this autoimmune disease, a cDNA library from its SGs was randomly sequenced. We present the analysis of a set of 2,230 (SG) cDNA sequences, 1,182 of which coded for proteins of a putative secretory nature.

Insights into the morphology of the Serra da Cangalha impact structure from geophysical modeling

Forward modeling is commonly applied to gravity field data of impact structures to determine the main gravity anomaly sources. In this context, we have developed 2.5-D gravity models of the Serra da Cangalha impact structure for the purpose of investigating geological bodies/structures underneath the crater. Interpretation of the models was supported by ground magnetic data acquired along profiles, as well as by high resolution aeromagnetic data. Ground magnetic data reveal the presence of short-wavelength anomalies probably related to shallow magnetic sources that could have been emplaced during the cratering process. Aeromagnetic data show that the basement underneath the crater occurs at an average depth of about 1.9 km, whereas in the region beneath the central uplift it is raised to 0.51 km below the current surface. These depths are also supported by 2.5-D gravity models showing a gentle relief for the basement beneath the central uplift area. Geophysical data were used to provide further constraints for numeral modeling of crater formation that provided important information on the structural modification that affected the rocks underneath the crater, as well as on shock-induced modifications of target rocks. The results showed that the morphology is consistent with the current observations of the crater and that Serra da Cangalha was formed by a meteorite of approximately 1.4 km diameter striking at 12 km s-1.

Field and Laboratory Studies Provide Insights into the Meaning of Day-Time Activity in a Subterranean Rodent (Ctenomys aff. knighti), the Tuco-Tuco

South American subterranean rodents (Ctenomys aff. knighti), commonly known as tuco-tucos, display nocturnal, wheel-running behavior under light-dark (LD) conditions, and free-running periods >24 h in constant darkness (DD). However, several reports in the field suggested that a substantial amount of activity occurs during daylight hours, leading us to question whether circadian entrainment in the laboratory accurately reflects behavior in natural conditions. We compared circadian patterns of locomotor activity in DD of animals previously entrained to full laboratory LD cycles (LD12:12) with those of animals that were trapped directly from the field. In both cases, activity onsets in DD immediately reflected the previous dark onset or sundown. Furthermore, freerunning periods upon release into DD were close to 24 h indicating aftereffects of prior entrainment, similarly in both conditions. No difference was detected in the phase of activity measured with and without access to a running wheel. However, when individuals were observed continuously during daylight hours in a semi-natural enclosure, they emerged above-ground on a daily basis. These day-time activities consisted of foraging and burrow maintenance, suggesting that the designation of this species as nocturnal might be inaccurate in the field. Our study of a solitary subterranean species suggests that the circadian clock is entrained similarly under field and laboratory conditions and that day-time activity expressed only in the field is required for foraging and may not be time-dictated by the circadian pacemaker.

Study of the osteoconductive capacity of hydroxyapatite implanted into the femur of ovariectomized rats

Osteoporosis is a global public health that affects postmenopausal women due to the deficiency of estrogen, a hormone that plays an important role in the microarchitecture of bone tissue. Osteoporosis predisposes to pathological bone fracture that can be repaired by conventional methods. However, depending on the severity and quantity of bone loss, the use of autogenous grafts or biomaterials such as hydroxyapatite might be necessary. The latter has received increasing attention in the medical field because of its good biological properties such as osteoconductivity and biocompatibility with bone tissue. The objective of this study was to evaluate using histologic and radiographic analyses, the osteogenic capacity of hydroxyapatite implanted into the femur of rats with ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis. Eighteen rats were divided into three groups with six animals in each: group nonovariectomized, bilaterally ovariectomized not receiving estrogen replacement therapy, and bilaterally ovariectomized submitted to estrogen replacement therapy. Defects were created experimentally in the distal epiphysis of the femur with a surgical drill and filled with porous hydroxyapatite granules. The animals were sacrificed 8 weeks after surgery. The volume of newly formed bone in the implant area was quantified by morphometrical methods. The results were analyzed by ANOVA followed by the Tukey test (P < 0.05). The hydroxyapatite granules showed good radiopacity. Histological analysis revealed less quantity of newly formed bone in the ovariectomized group not submitted to hormone replacement therapy. In conclusion, bone neoformation can be expected even in bones compromised by estrogen deficiency, but the quantity and velocity of bone formation are lower. Microsc. Res. Tech., 2011. (c) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.