Influência dos aspectos clínicos e assistenciais na qualidade de vida das pessoas com doença venosa crônica com e sem úlcera venosa

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico

Eosinófilos sanguíneos e fecais em crianças infectadas por helmintos e protozoários

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico

Valores de referência para cobre e zinco no plasma e no eritrócito em adultos universitários na cidade de Natal-RN

This study aimed builds reference values for copper and zinc, of healthy adults in Natal-RN, and to identify the influence of the gender, age, body mass index (BMI) and diet, on those values. They were assessed 123 healthy students of the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), both genders, with age between 19 and 41 years. The project was approved by the Ethics Committee in Research of UFRN. BMI was determined and the food consume was accomplished through a 24h recordatory. Dietary was evaluated as the energy, macronutrients, copper and zinc, according to the recommendations of National Academy of Sciences (2001; 2002). Analyses of the copper and zinc concentrations in the plasma and erythrocytes were accomplished by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The casuistic came quite homogeneous as for the distribution for gender and age, being the largest number of individuals between the 19 and 24 years old. Most of the volunteers presented anthropometric nutritional state inside of the normality patterns. Chronic diseases family antecedents and sedentarysm were observed. Diet was characterized with low consumption of zinc, appropriate of copper and of lipids. Average concentrations of plasma copper (p=0,002), erythrocyte copper (μg/dL, p=0,036; μg/gHb, p=0,038), and plasma zinc (p=0,022) were different among the genders, what was demonstrated by the largest values of copper in the female gender and larger of zinc in the masculine. Plasma copper values still suffered interference of the variables: energy, carbohydrate and copper consumption, all classified in agreement with the median, besides the protein classified according to the percentage contribution for the dietary total energy. The study allowed to establish reference values for erythrocyte zinc (1.261,6-1.344,0 μg/dL e 51,0-54,3 μg/gHb) and to suggest "indicative" of reference values for plasma (108,4 130,2 μg/dL) and erythrocyte (female = 85,0 91,4 μg/dL; masculine = 80,2 86,5 μg/dL) copper and plasma zinc (female = 98,8 105,8 μg/dL; masculine = 104,6 111,6 μg/dL)

Educação para a cidadania e ensino superior

El presente trabajo discute la Educación para la Ciudadanía en la Educación Superior, destacando los desafíos y las potencialidades de la Universidade do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte (UERN); que organiza su acción política y pedagógica conforme a las exigencias de la actual política educacional para este nivel de educación. Analiza la relación de ésta con la Educación Básica a partir del estudio del Proyecto Pedagógico del Curso de Ciencias Sociales discutiendo la educación para la ciudadanía y la formación ciudadana de los futuros profesores de la educación básica en consonancia con la LDB 9.394/96, con las Directrices Curriculares Nacionales para los cursos de Docencia y además para programas y políticas de orientación para la educación superior que resultaron de la conquistas de los movimientos sociales y que son propuestos por medio de las siguientes secretarías: Secretaria de Educação Continuada, Alfabetização e Diversidade (SECAD) y Secretaria de Educação Superior (SESu). La reflexión incluye el estudio de tales temáticas en el eje de temas emergentes que organizan el debate educacional, sobretodo en América Latina, y los desafíos de las universidades que actúan en el contexto de la periferia en la desconstrucción del dominio simbólico del colonialismo cultural y la construcción de la globalización alternativa y contra hegemónica a la globalización neoliberal. El estudio evidencia que la idea de ciudadanía en la sociabilización contemporánea presenta una ambigüedad política consecuente de los procesos de globalización creciente siendo necesario que la perspectiva de la educación para la ciudadanía adoptada en la formación de los profesionales de a educación sea re politizada a partir de la noción de ciudadanía colectiva y multicultural apoyada en los principios de democracia y justicia social, construida en las interfaces de la educación escolar y prácticas educativas en lo entorno social, y en los espacios políticos de organización y movilización colectiva en torno de las conquistas por los derechos civiles, sociales, políticos y culturales, y la inclusión de temas y valores emergentes en la educación que interligados e interdependientes, garanticen su efectividad

The improvement of the anti-hyperalgesic effect of ketamine and of its isomers by the administration of ifenprodil

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Mortality Risk in Insects

Understanding how and why insect numbers fluctuate through time and space has been a central theme in ecological research for more than a century. Life tables have been used to understand temporal and spatial patterns in insect numbers. In this study, we estimated cause-of-death probabilities for phytophagous insects using multiple decrement life tables and the irreplaceable mortality analytic technique. Multiple decrement life tables were created from 73 insect life tables published from 1954 to 2004. Irreplaceable mortality (the portion of mortality that cannot be replaced by another cause) from pathogens, predators, and parasitoids was 8.6 +/- 7.2, 7.8 +/- 4.9, and 6.2 +/- 1.6%, respectively. In contrast, the mean irreplaceable mortality from all non-natural enemy mortality factors (mortality from factors other than natural enemies) was 35.1 +/- 4.4%. Irreplaceable mortality from natural enemies was significantly lower compared with non-natural enemy factors. Our results may partially explain cases of unsuccessful efficacy in classical biological control, after successful establishment, by showing low irreplaceable mortality for natural enemies, including 5.2 +/- 1.6% for introduced natural enemies. We suggest that the environment (i.e., the degree of environmental stability) influences the magnitude of the irreplaceable mortality from natural enemies. Our results lead to several testable hypotheses and emphasize that it is not possible to estimate the effect of any mortality factor without considering its interaction with competing mortality factors, which has far-reaching consequences for population biology and applied ecology.

Survey for natural Neospora caninum infection in wild and captive birds

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

Compositional analysis for an unbiased measure of soil aggregation

Soil aggregation is an index of soil structure measured by mean weight diameter (MWD) or scaling factors often interpreted as fragmentation fractal dimensions (D-f). However, the MWD provides a biased estimate of soil aggregation due to spurious correlations among aggregate-size fractions and scale-dependency. The scale-invariant D-f is based on weak assumptions to allow particle counts and sensitive to the selection of the fractal domain, and may frequently exceed a value of 3, implying that D-f is a biased estimate of aggregation. Aggregation indices based on mass may be computed without bias using compositional analysis techniques. Our objective was to elaborate compositional indices of soil aggregation and to compare them to MWD and D-f using a published dataset describing the effect of 7 cropping systems on aggregation. Six aggregate-size fractions were arranged into a sequence of D-1 balances of building blocks that portray the process of soil aggregation. Isometric log-ratios (ilrs) are scale-invariant and orthogonal log contrasts or balances that possess the Euclidean geometry necessary to compute a distance between any two aggregation states, known as the Aitchison distance (A(x,y)). Close correlations (r>0.98) were observed between MWD, D-f, and the ilr when contrasting large and small aggregate sizes. Several unbiased embedded ilrs can characterize the heterogeneous nature of soil aggregates and be related to soil properties or functions. Soil bulk density and penetrater resistance were closely related to A(x,y) with reference to bare fallow. The A(x,y) is easy to implement as unbiased index of soil aggregation using standard sieving methods and may allow comparisons between studies. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tendências genéticas para escores visuais de conformação, precocidade e musculatura à desmama de bovinos Nelore

Os objetivos neste estudo foram estimar os coeficientes de herdabilidade e a mudança genética nos escores visuais de conformação (C), precocidade (P) e musculatura (M) à desmama de bovinos Nelore e avaliar as mudanças promovidas pelo programa de seleção ao qual os animais foram submetidos. Foram utilizados dados de 56.076 animais nascidos entre 1990 e 2002. Os componentes de variância foram estimados por máxima verossimilhança restrita e os valores genéticos foram preditos pelo método dos modelos mistos aplicando-se um modelo animal. As tendências genéticas foram estimadas pela regressão dos valores genéticos sobre o ano de nascimento dos animais. Os coeficientes de herdabilidade do efeito direto estimados foram de 0,122±0,012; 0,153±0,012; e 0,124±0,012 e, para o efeito materno, de 0,043±0,010; 0,038±0,009; e 0,056±0,010 para C, P e M, respectivamente. As tendências genéticas diretas estimadas foram de 0,013; 0,022 e 0,018 pontos de escore ao ano para C, P e M, respectivamente, o que representa incremento anual de 0,42; 0,67 e 0,60% ao ano em relação à média fenotípica. As tendências genéticas do efeito materno foram de -0,0020; -0,0010; e -0,0009 pontos de escore ao ano para C, P e M, respectivamente, o que representa uma mudança anual de -0,07; -0,03; e -0,03% na média fenotípica da população.

Avaliação de diferentes tipos de atmosferas modificadas na vida útil de carambolas minimamente processadas

Este trabalho teve por objetivo a avaliação da vida útil potencial de carambolas cv. Golden Star, minimamente processadas, armazenadas em diferentes tipos de embalagens plásticas, para a concepção da atmosfera modificada. Os frutos colhidos fisiologicamente maturos apresentaram coloração verde-amarelada, sólidos solúveis (SS) médios de 6,8 ºBrix e massa média de 185 g. Antes da aplicação dos tratamentos, os frutos foram selecionados, higienizados em solução de hipoclorito de sódio (NaOCl) a 100 mg. L-1, resfriados por 12 horas a 15 ± 0,5 °C, seccionados transversalmente, sendo então novamente higienizados em solução de NaOCl a 10 mg.L-1, por 3 minutos. em seguida, os pedaços em forma de estrelas foram acondicionados em bandejas rígidas de poliestireno, com capacidade para 250 g, e revestidas com os seguintes materiais: T1: filme plástico perfurado de polietileno de baixa densidade (PEBD), de 0,006 mm; T2: filme plástico poliolefínico com antiembassamento da Dupont® (AGF), de 0,015 mm; T3: filme plástico poliolefínico da Dupont® (HF), de 0,015 mm; T4: filme plástico de PEBD, de 60 µm; T5: filme plástico de PEBD, de 80 µm; T6: filme plástico de polipropileno (PP), de 22 µm, e T7: bandeja rígida de polietileno tereftalato (PET), com capacidade para 500 mL, com tampa do mesmo material. As embalagens foram então armazenadas em câmara frigorífica a 12 ± 0,5 °C e 90 ± 3% de U.R, por 18 dias. Observou-se que não houve diferença significativa quanto aos sólidos solúveis (SS) e acidez titulável (AT). O maior número de microrganismos e valor de pH foram observados nos frutos embalados nos filmes plásticos de PEBD de 0,006 mm, AGF e HF de 0,015 mm da Dupont®. Entretanto, os frutos acondicionados nas embalagens PET apresentaram o maior teor de ácido ascórbico. da mesma forma, somente nas embalagens PET é que se conseguiu modificação atmosférica eficiente do ponto de vista da manutenção dos atributos de qualidade durante o AR. Assim, esse tratamento proporcionou adequado controle microbiológico e manutenção das características de qualidade por 18 dias para as carambolas minimamente processadas.

Thermal analysis of chitosan based networks

In this work two kinds of material were studied: chitosan cross-linked with glutaraldehyde and in a blend with PEO. The resulting products as well as chitosan and PEO raw materials, were analyzed by TG/DTG, DSC and DMTA to determinate the in?uence of cross-linking and PEO addition on thermal properties of the resulting materials. It was observed by thermogravimetry that the water-polymer interaction will be different for the cross-linked material compared to the blend, according to the specific site availability. The in?uence of such modifications (cross-linking and PEO addition), on chitosan thermal stability was also studied. The DSC results showed a good agreement with the TG/DTG results, reinforcing the interpretation given for TG/DTG results. DMTA results indicate that glass transition temperature is around 50 degrees C for the polymer under study. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Splice variants of the human ZC3H14 gene generate multiple isoforms of a zinc finger polyadenosine RNA binding protein

The human ZC3H14 gene encodes an evolutionarily conserved Cys(3)His zinc finger protein that binds specifically to polyadenosine RNA and is thus postulated to modulate post-transcriptional gene expression. Expressed sequence tag (EST) data predicts multiple splice variants of both human and mouse ZC3H14. Analysis of ZC3H14 expression in both human cell lines and mouse tissues confirms the presence of multiple alternatively spliced transcripts. Although all of these transcripts encode protein isoforms that contain the conserved C-terminal zinc finger domain, suggesting that they could all bind to polyadenosine RNA, they differ in other functionally important domains. Most of the alternative transcripts encode closely related proteins (termed isoforms 1, 2. 3, and 3short) that differ primarily in the inclusion of three small exons, 9, 10, and 11, resulting in predicted protein isoforms ranging from 82 to 64 kDa. Each of these closely related isoforms contains predicted classical nuclear localization signals (cNLS) within exons 7 and 11. Consistent with the presence of these putative nuclear targeting signals, these ZC3H14 isoforms are all localized to the nucleus. In contrast, an additional transcript encodes a smaller protein (34 kDa) with an alternative first exon (isoform, 4). Consistent with the absence of the predicted cNLS motifs located in exons 7 and 11, ZC3H14 isoform 4 is localized to the cytoplasm. Both EST data and experimental data suggest that this variant is enriched in testes and brain. Using an antibody that detects endogenous ZC3H14 isoforms 1-3 reveals localization of these isoforms to nuclear speckles. These speckles co-localize with the splicing factor, SC35, suggesting a role for nuclear ZC3H14 in mRNA processing. Taken together, these results demonstrate that multiple transcripts encoding several ZC3H14 isoforms exist in vivo. Both nuclear and cytoplasmic ZC3H14 isoforms could have distinct effects on gene expression mediated by the common Cys(3)His zinc finger polyadenosine RNA binding domain. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Physical environment modulates the behavioral responses induced by chemical stimulation of dorsal periaqueductal gray in mice

In order to investigate the relationship between behaviors elicited by chemical stimulation of the dorsal periaqueductal gray (dorsal PAG) and spontaneous defensive behaviors to a predator, the excitatory amino acid D,L-homocysteic acid (5 nmol in 0.1 mu l), was infused into the dorsal PAG and behavioral responses of mice were evaluated in two different situations, a rectangular novel chamber or the Mouse Defense Test Battery (MDTB) apparatus. During a 1-min period following drug infusion, more jumps were made in the chamber than in the MDTB runway but running time and distance traveled were significantly higher in the runway. Animals were subsequently tested using the standard MDTB procedure (anti-predator avoidance, chase and defensive threat/attack). No drug effects on these measures were significant. In a further test in the MDTB apparatus, the pathway of the mouse during peak locomotion response was blocked 3 times by the predator stimulus (anesthetized rat) to determine if the mouse would avoid contact. Ninety percent of D,L-homocysteic treated animals made direct contact with the stimulus (rat), indicating that D,L-homocysteic-induced running is not guided by relevant (here, threat) stimuli. These results indicate that running as opposed to jumping is the primary response in mice injected with D,L-homocysteic into the dorsal PAG when the environment enables flight. However, the lack of responsivity to the predator during peak locomotion suggests that D,L-homocysteic-stimulation into the dorsal PAG does not induce normal antipredator flight. (c) 2006 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Análise da relação entre alterações do padrão do sono e dor lombo-pélvica em mulheres no segundo trimestre gestacional

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior

Estudo imuno-histoquímico da expressão da glut-1 e mensuração do índice angiogênico (CD34) em adenomas pleomórficos, carcinomas adenóides císticos e carcinomas mucoepidermóides de glândulas salivares

The expression of glucose transporter protein 1 (GLUT-1), as well the angiogenesis has been associated to clinical behavior and aggressiveness in tumors of various origin. It is believed that the expression of this protein denotes metabolic demand of the tumor cells and, thus its influence upon the formation of new blood vessels. Pleomorphic adenoma (PA) and the adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) and mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) represent, respectively, the most commom benign and malignant tumors of salivary glands. The aim of this study was to analyze and compare the immunohistochemical expression of GLUT-1 and its correlation with angiogenesis in cases of PAs, ACCs and MECs considering their histological grades. The sample consisted of 20 PAs, 20 ACCs and 10 MECs. The cases were analyzed and classified according to their histological grades. The expression of GLUT-1 was evaluated in the parenchyma lesions, establishing the percentage of immunopositive cells, according to the following scores: 0 (no cell immunomarked), 1 (up to 25% of tumor cells immunostained), 2 (25 - 50% of tumor cells immunostained) and 3 (more than 50% of tumor cells immunostained). The angiogenic index was analyzed by counting the microvessels immunostained by anti-CD34 antibody, in 5 fields (200X). The analysis of the expression of GLUT-1 in tumor parenchyma showed statistically significant differences between benign and malignant groups (p = 0.022). The average number of microvessels in PAs was 40.4, 21.2 in ACCs and 66.5 in MECs, with significant differences between groups (p <0.001). When compared to the expression of GLUT-1 and angiogenic index as a whole, there was no significant correlation between the number of microvessels and the expression of GLUT-1 (r = 0.211, p = 0.141). In conclusion, the results of this study suggest not only that differences in biological behavior between PAs, ACCs and MECs may be associated to the expression of GLUT-1, but also that benign and malignant salivary gland present differences in the average number of microvessels, with higher levels considered more aggressive tumors. Furthermore, the number of newly formed microvessels can be independent of the metabolic demand of the tumor cells