STUDY OF THE PREVALENCE OF Capillaria hepatica IN HUMANS AND RODENTS IN AN URBAN AREA OF THE CITY OF PORTO VELHO, RONDÔNIA, BRAZIL

Introduction: Hepatic capillariosis, caused by Capillaria hepatica (Calodium hepaticum) (Bancroft, 1893), Travassos, 1915 (Nematoda, Trichinelloidea, Capillariidae), is a common zoonosis in rodents but is rare in humans. Seventy-two cases in humans have been reported worldwide since the first case was described by MACARTHUR in 192417,27. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Capillaria hepatica in humans and rodents in an urban area of Porto Velho, the capital of Rondônia, in Brazil. Methods: After conducting a census of the area, 490 residents were randomly selected, and, after signing a term of consent, provided blood samples that were screened for anti-Capillaria hepatica antibodies. Simultaneously, rats were captured to assess the prevalence of this parasite in rodents by histopathological examination in liver sections. Results: A prevalence of 1.8% was found among residents who had specific antibodies at a dilution of 1:150, indicating exposure to parasite eggs; 0.8% of the subjects also had positive titers at a dilution of 1:400, indicating true infection. The prevalence in rats was 2%. Conclusions: The prevalence of infection with this parasite among humans and rats was low. While the prevalence encountered among humans was within the limits reported in the literature, the prevalence among rodents was much lower.

Segurança de peões em meios urbanos: caso de estudo cidade do Porto

Este trabalho tem como objetivo o estudo da segurança dos peões, com incidência na questão da circulação e travessias pedonais dentro de zonas urbanas. Pretendeu-se identificar as vias mais problemáticas, com maior incidência de atropelamentos dos peões, de modo a estudar as causas. Após esse estudo, e o estudo de soluções para o problema, pode-se garantir ao peão uma melhor qualidade na mobilidade dentro dos meios urbanos. Falando na segurança de peões, é impreterível falar da sinistralidade. Foi abordado o tema e executado um estudo para análise do posicionamento de Portugal na União Europeia. Fez-se um estudo entre os anos 2010 a 2014, constatando-se que Portugal teve uma melhoria de 2010 a 2013. Já em 2014 teve um ligeiro decréscimo no melhoramento dos resultados. Em relação ao número de peões mortos por milhão de habitantes, a análise fez-se no período de tempo compreendido de 2010 a 2014, e a nível europeu pôde-se verificar, que de 2010 a 2012 Portugal teve uma melhoria significativa. Já 2013 foi um ano com maus resultados e obteve-se um decréscimo na melhoria que se havia conseguido, mas em 2014 conseguiu-se uma boa recuperação ficando nesse ano na décima sexta posição. Foi também analisada a França, para se fazer uma comparação com Portugal, e concluímos que França tem os melhores resultados a nível da sinistralidade, sendo um País com melhores condições de transporte, melhorando assim o nível de sinistralidade. Foram referidos também alguns temas publicados, que são uma forma de dar a conhecer as consequências de alguns maus hábitos da população, assim como algumas doenças normais da sociedade em geral e como se refletem na condução. Para se melhorar a segurança dos peões, existem as técnicas de acalmia, tendo sido feita uma abordagem ao tema. No caso de estudo Cidade do Porto, foram analisados os resultados em relação aos anos de 2013, 2014 e os três primeiros meses de 2015. Os resultados obtidos e suas análises, apontam para a necessidade de uma maior formação quer do peão, quer do condutor, uma vez que grande parte dos sinistros são mortes por atravessamento fora do local de passagem ou excesso de velocidade dos condutores. Assim será necessário intervir também a nível da acalmia. Existem ainda muitas áreas a melhorar, para a obtenção de resultados brilhantes no nosso país, mas se todos caminharmos na mesma direção rapidamente chegaremos ao topo dos objetivos pretendidos que é salvar todos os dias mais vidas.

ISOLATION AND MOLECULAR IDENTIFICATION OF POTENTIALLY PATHOGENIC Escherichia coli AND Campylobacter jejuni IN FERAL PIGEONS FROM AN URBAN AREA IN THE CITY OF LIMA, PERU

SUMMARY Feral pigeons (Columbia livia) live in close contact with humans and other animals. They can transmit potentially pathogenic and zoonotic agents. The objective of this study was to isolate and detect strains of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli and Campylobacter jejuniof urban feral pigeons from an area of Lima, Peru. Fresh dropping samples from urban parks were collected for microbiological isolation of E. coli strains in selective agar, and Campylobacterby filtration method. Molecular identification of diarrheagenic pathotypes of E.coliand Campylobacter jejuni was performed by PCR. Twenty-two parks were sampled and 16 colonies of Campylobacter spp. were isolated. The 100% of isolates were identified as Campylobacter jejuni. Furthermore, 102 colonies of E. coli were isolated and the 5.88% resulted as Enteropathogenic (EPEC) type and 0.98% as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). The urban feral pigeons of Lima in Peru can act as a reservoir or carriers of zoonotic potentially pathogenic enteric agents.

HIGH PREVALENCE OF Blastocystis spp. INFECTION IN CHILDREN AND STAFF MEMBERS ATTENDING PUBLIC URBAN SCHOOLS IN SÃO PAULO STATE, BRAZIL

After a gastroenteritis outbreak of unknown etiology in the municipality ofSebastião da Grama, SãoPaulo, Brazil, we conducted a parasitological survey to establish the epidemiological profile of enteroparasitosis in children and staff members attending the public urban schools in operation in town. The cross-sectional study evaluated 172 children aged 11 months to 6 years old and 33 staff members aged 19 to 58 years old. Overall, 96 (55.81%) children and 20 (60.61%) staff members were mono-parasitized, while 58 (33.72%) children and 4 (12.12%) workers were poly-parasitized. Protozoa (88.37%; 72.73%) was more prevalent than helminthes (3.48%; 0%) in children and staff members respectively.Blastocystis spp. was the most prevalent parasite in children (86.63%) and staff members (66.67%). The age of 1 year old or less was found to be associated with increased prevalence of giardiasis [OR = 13.04; 95%CI 2.89-58.91; p = 0.00] and public garbage collection was identified as a protective factor against intestinal helminth infections [OR = 0.06; 95%CI 0.00-0.79; p = 0.03]. Although most of the children tested positive for Blastocystis spp. and also presented clinical signs/symptoms (62.2%), this association was not statistically significant [OR = 1.35; 95%CI 0.53-3.44; p = 0.51]. Intestinal parasites still represent a public health concern and this study underscores the importance of further investigations to better understand the pathogenic role ofBlastocystis spp.

Rhipicephalus sanguineus (ACARI: IXODIDAE) BITING A HUMAN BEING IN PORTOALEGRE CITY, RIO GRANDE DO SUL, BRAZIL

We report the finding of a female brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Acari: Ixodidae) on the scalp of a male patient inPorto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Human parasitism by this tick is rare and has seldomly been reported in the literature, despite its recognized importance since it can act as a vector of Rickettsia rickettsii, the agent of spotted fever.

Effects of Spatial Pattern of GreenSpace on Land Surface Temperature: A case study on Oasis City Aksu, northwest China

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies.

Semantic web approach for dealing with administrative boundary revisions: a case study of Dhaka City

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies.

Pro poor tourism for community development on Atauro Island, Timor-Leste

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

The effects of mega-events on city branding: The example of Warsaw and Euro 2012

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Ranking schools: a step toward increased accountability or a mere discriminatory practice?

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion of the effects of published school rankings based on average scores obtained by students on national exams. We study the effectiveness of this (low-stakes) accountability mechanism; we analyze whether students react to these rankings, by moving in or out of high-schools according to their scores and examine the movements of closing of schools. Our results suggest that families react strongly to published rankings. We also look at the changes in the socio-economic background of students of poorly performing schools in order to evaluate whether the publication of rankings has increased inequality, as feared by many observers. According to our results, published rankings do in fact reinforce stratification by income.

Geospatial assessment of pest-induced forest damage through the use of UAV-bases NIR imaging and Gi-technology

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies.

Enteroparasites prevalence among daycare and elementary school children of municipal schools, Rolândia, PR, Brazil

Coproparasitological analyses were performed on 191 daycare children and 434 elementary school children from urban and rural areas in Rolândia, Parana State, Brazil. The overall prevalence of enteroparasites was 15.2 % for daycare children and 52.5% for elementary school children. Risk factors are discussed.

Analysis of the progress of lifelong learning strategies of Portuguese Economics and Management Schools

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics