Morphological analysis of three populations of Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) nuneztovari Gabaldón (Diptera: Culicidae) from Colombia

Based on the results of comparative analyses of 1,039 specimens of several progenies of Anopheles nuneztovarifrom three localities in Colombia, eight costal wing spot patterns were observed. Patterns I and III were the most frequent: 77.96% and 11.36%, respectively. Using the diagnostic characters ratio of the length of the basal dark area of hind tarsomere II/length of hind tarsomere II, ratio of the length of the humeral pale spot/length of the pre-humeral dark spot, and the ratio of the length of the subcostal pale spot/length of the distal sector dark spot (DS-III2/Ta-III2, HP/PHD, SCP/DSD) approximately 5% of the adult females were misidentified as a species of Nyssorhynchus, different from An. nuneztovari. Approximately 5% of the specimens showed DS-III2/Ta-III2 ratio less than 0.25 (range 0.21 - 0.24), and among them 3.34% shared a HP/PHD ratio less than 1.50. Consequently, 1.52% of An. nuneztovari individuals can be misidentified as Anopheles oswaldoi. In those specimens with the DS-III2/Ta-III2 ratios higher than 0.25, 34.45% displayed SCP/DSD values greater than 0.50 and of these, 3.65% displayed HP/PHD values greater than 1.8. This combination of characters could lead one to misidentify samples of An. nuneztovari as Anopheles rangeli. Similarly, 2.43% of the females could be identified erroneously as either Anopheles aquasalis or Anopheles benarrochi. Individuals with a HP/PHD ratio greater than 2.0, could be misidentified as Anopheles trinkae, Anopheles strodei or Anopheles evansae. A distinct combination of diagnostic characters for An. nuneztovari from Colombia is proposed.

Atenção domiciliar como mudança do modelo tecnoassistencial

OBJETIVO: Analisar práticas de atenção domiciliar de serviços ambulatoriais e hospitalares e sua constituição como rede substitutiva de cuidado em saúde. PROCEDIMENTOS METODOLÓGICOS: Estudo qualitativo que analisou, com base na metodologia de caso traçador, quatro serviços ambulatoriais de atenção domiciliar da Secretaria Municipal de Saúde e um serviço de um hospital filantrópico do município de Belo Horizonte, MG, entre 2005 e 2007. Foram realizadas entrevistas com gestores e equipes dos serviços de atenção domiciliar, análise de documentos e acompanhamento de casos com entrevistas a pacientes e cuidadores. A análise foi orientada pelas categorias analíticas integração da atenção domiciliar na rede de saúde e modelo tecnoassistencial. ANÁLISE DOS RESULTADOS: A implantação da atenção domiciliar foi precedida por decisão político-institucional tanto com orientação racionalizadora, buscando a diminuição de custos, quanto com vistas à reordenação tecnoassistencial das redes de cuidados. Essas duas orientações encontram-se em disputa e constituem dificuldades para conciliação dos interesses dos diversos atores envolvidos na rede e na criação de espaços compartilhados de gestão. Pôde-se identificar a inovação tecnológica e a autonomia das famílias na implementação dos projetos de cuidado. As equipes mostraram-se coesas, construindo no cotidiano do trabalho novas formas de integrar os diferentes olhares para transformação das práticas em saúde. Foram observados desafios na proposta de integrar os diferentes serviços de caráter substitutivo do cuidado ao limitar a capacidade da atenção domiciliar de mudar o modelo tecnoassistencial. CONCLUSÕES: A atenção domiciliar possui potencial para constituição de uma rede substitutiva ao produzir novos modos de cuidar que atravessam os projetos dos usuários, dos familiares, da rede social e dos trabalhadores da atenção domiciliar. A atenção domiciliar como modalidade substitutiva de atenção à saúde requer sustentabilidade política, conceitual e operacional, bem como reconhecimento dos novos arranjos e articulação das propostas em curso.

New Genotype of Dengue Type 3 Virus Circulating in Brazil and Colombia Showed a Close Relationship to Old Asian Viruses

Dengue type 3 genotype V viruses have been recently detected in Brazil and Colombia. In this study, we described another Brazilian isolate belonging to this genotype. Phylogenetic analysis including dengue type 3 viruses isolated worldwide showed that Brazilian and Colombian viruses were closely related to viruses isolated in Asia more than two decades ago. The characteristic evolutionary pattern of dengue type 3 virus cannot explain the close similarity of new circulating viruses with old viruses. Further studies are needed to confirm the origin of the new dengue type III genotype circulating in Brazil and Colombia.

Serological Survey for Antibodies to Encephalitozoon cuniculi in Ownerless Dogs From Urban Areas of Brazil and Colombia

There are 3 strains of Encephalitozoon cuniculi that occur in mammals. Strain III is associated with clinical disease in dogs, although some can be asymptomatic carriers and excrete spores in their urine. Several cases of human E. cuniculi infection caused by strain III have been observed in immunocompromised patients, indicating that E. cuniculi should be considered a zoonotic agent. Encephalitozoon cuniculi can cause fatal disease in maternally-infected or young dogs. Clinical signs in these animals included blindness, encephalitis, retarded growth rate, and nephritis. Encephalitozoon cuniculi has also been associated with primary renal failure in adult dogs. The present study used the direct agglutination test (DAT, cut-off 1:50) and the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT, cut-off 1:10) to examine the prevalence of antibodies to E. cuniculi in dogs from Brazil and Colombia. Using the DAG, 31 (27.4%) of 113 dogs from Brazil and 47 (18.5%) of 254 dogs from Colombia were seropositive. Nine (14.3%) of 63 dogs from Brazil and IS (35.3%) of the 51 dogs from Colombia were seropositive by indirect immunofluorescent antibody test. These results indicate that dogs from Brazil and Colombia are exposed to E. cuniculi.

Croton rufolepidotus (Euphorbiaceae s. str.), a New Species from Antioquia, Colombia

Crown rufolepidotus Caruzo & Riina (Euphorbiaceae s. str.), a new species from Colombia, is here described and illustrated. The new species is endemic to an area of lowland secondary forests in Antioquia. Morphological characters indicate that this species belongs to Croton sect. Cleodora (Klotzsch) Baill. due to its arborescent habit, petiolar glands, 15 to 25 stamens, as well as the pistillate flowers with imbricate sepals and multifid styles.

A new species of land planarian of Gigantea Ogren and Kawakatsu, 1990 (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida, Terricola) from Colombia, with taxonomic remarks on the genus

A new species of land planarian from Colombia, Gigantea maupoi sp. nov., is described herein. The penis papilla of the new species is provided with numerous accessory genital organs, or mgo. These mgo are of a unique morphology, consisting of a very strong barrel-shaped circular muscle coat and an underlying longitudinal one, both derived from the subepithelial musculature of the penis papilla. The central mass of each mgo contains secretions and 8-15 canalicula that open to the male atrium on the central region of the organ. Differences in structures constituting the mgo and details of the muscular systems and of the reproductive organs among the 11 Gigantea species from literature and from type material of G. bistriata (Hyman, 1962), G. chiriquii (Hyman, 1962), and G. sandersoni (Prudhoe, 1949) reexamined here show that the genus is heterogeneous.

HJV Hemochromatosis, Iron Overload, and Hypogonadism in a Brazilian Man: Treatment with Phlebotomy and Deferasirox

Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP), Brazil[2008/54131-0]

Engineering from within: Habibie the man and Indonesia’s reformasi

Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, even now, remains a deeply puzzling figure for scholars and commentators concerned with matters Indonesian, Western and Indonesian alike.

HPV6b virus like particles are potent immunogens without adjuvant in man

Subjects with genital warts were immunized three times or more with HPV6b VLPs without adjuvant. All immunized subjects had DTH to HPV6b L1 protein. Of 32 subjects, nine had HPV6b specific antibody prior to immunization and 22 acquired antibody with immunization. VLP specific antibody increased following a single immunization in 6 of 8 subjects with low level antibody at recruitment. Complete regression of genital warts was observed in 25 of 33 evaluable subjects over the 20-week observation period. We conclude that immunization with HPV6b L1 VLPs without adjuvant induces immunity to the L1 protein epitopes recognised during natural infection, and may accelerate regression of warts. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multiple conformational epitopes are recognized by natural and induced immunity to the E7 protein of human papilloma virus type 16 in man

The reactivity of sera from patients with cervical cancer with the E7 protein of human papilloma virus type 16 (HPV16) was estimated using a novel non-radioactive immunoprecipitation assay and four established protein-and peptide-based immunoassays. Six of 14 sera from patients with cervical cancer and 1 of 10 sera from healthy laboratory staff showed repeated reactivity with E7 in at least one assay. Four of the 7 reactive sera were consistently reactive in more than one assay, but only one was reactive in all four assays. Following immunization with E7, 2 of 5 patients with cervical cancer had increased E7-specific reactivity, measurable in one or more assays. No single assay was particularly sensitive for E7 reactivity, or predictive of cervical cancer. Mapping of E7 reactivity to specific E7 peptides was unsuccessful, suggesting that natural or induced E7 reactivity in human serum is commonly directed to conformational epitopes of E7, These results suggest that each assay employed with is study measures a different aspect of E7 reactivity, and that various reactivities to E7 may manifest following HPV infection or immunization. This finding is of significance for monitoring of E7 immunotherapy and for serological screening for cervical cancer. Copyright (C) 2000 S.Karger, AG. Basel.

Spatial aspects of trade liberalization in Colombia: A general equilibrium approach

This paper offers some preliminary steps in the marriage of some of the theoretical foundations of new economic geography with spatial computable general equilibrium models. Modelling the spatial economy of Colombia using the traditional assumptions of computable general equilibrium (CGE) models makes little sense when one territorial unit, Bogota, accounts for over one quarter of GDP and where transportation costs are high and accessibility low compared to European or North American standards. Hence, handling market imperfections becomes imperative as does the need to address internal spatial issues from the perspective of Colombia`s increasing involvement with external markets. The paper builds on the Centro de Estudios de Economia Regional (CEER) model, a spatial CGE model of the Colombian economy; non-constant returns and non-iceberg transportation costs are introduced and some simulation exercises carried out. The results confirm the asymmetric impacts that trade liberalization has on a spatial economy in which one region, Bogota, is able to more fully exploit scale economies vis--vis the rest of Colombia. The analysis also reveals the importance of different hypotheses on factor mobility and the role of price effects to better understand the consequences of trade opening in a developing economy.

CHARACTERIZATION OF AGROINDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE SUCRO-ENERGETIC SECTORS OF BRASIL AND COLOMBIA

Concern about the growing demand of food and fuel has focused the attention on countries with conditions to provide for global requirements. Also, the build-up of an environmental awareness has compelled several governments to implement programs for the addition of biofuels to oil derivatives. Considering their relevance as world and South American producers, this study makes a characterization of the sucro-energetic sectors of Brazil and Colombia, based on a view of agro-industrial systems, industrial organization and transaction cost economy. The approach followed considered of a secondary information survey and in-depth interviews. The main differences found are centered on institutional development level and production volumes. However, the use of the same raw material, sugarcane, trade opening policies, cultural approaches and regional integration, are factors that could generate links of commercial exchange and technological cooperation between the two countries.

A second known species of Eratomyia Amorim & Rindal (Diptera, Rangomaramidae, Chiletrichinae) from Colombia

A second species of the genus Eratomyia Amorim & Rindal-E. risaralda, sp. n.-is described from Risaralda, Colombia, based on one male and three females. The female of Eratomyia is described for the first time. A number of striking modifications in the female terminalia shared with Chiletricha Chandler support the hypothesis that they are sister genera within the Rangomaramidae. The position of Chiletricha and Eratomyia within the Chiletrichinae is discussed.