Relacionamento amoroso: experiências afetivo-sexuais dos jovens na atualidade

Love experiences have changed along time and have set new meanings, especially for young people. Thus, this qualitative research aimed at understanding the meanings of love relationships, hooking up and dating in the vision of ten adolescents between 17 and 23 years old using a questionnaire. The results revealed that the hooking up is permeated by kisses, fondling and even by sexual intercourse in a short period of time and often through the intermediary of a friend at the time of the conquest. The commitment of dating, on the other hand, is established when love is present in the relationship. Therefore, adolescents revealed that opt for dating, which can begin in the hooking up. However, in the opinion of the participants, the young people's preference nowadays is the hooking up.

Glycaspis brimblecombei Moore, 1964 (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) on eucalyptus: oviposition non-preference and antibiosis

Forest plantations with Eucalyptus spp. (L'H,r) in Brazil are highly yielding. However, this activity is more and more threatened due to interactions with phytophagous insects, especially by exotic species, such as the red gum lerp psyllid Glycaspis brimblecombei Moore (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). This study aimed to evaluate the resistance in eucalyptus against the psyllid in oviposition and biological development assays, attempting to identify potential genotypes resistant to the pest for forest plantations. In addition, we tested the hypothesis of that concentration of total phenolics and lignin, and amount of epicuticular wax were associated with the expression of resistance. Results showed that there was variation in the levels of resistance among the genotypes assessed. Oviposition non-preference was observed on Eucalyptus citriodora (Hook) in free-choice and no-choice tests, and Clone FP10 was least preferred in the no-choice test. The genotypes E. citriodora and Clone FP6 provided 100 % nymphal mortality, and Clones FP7 and FP9 also affected negatively the G. brimblecombei development by lengthening the duration of the nymphal stage and reducing adult emergence. Clone FP6 had higher concentration of total phenolics and larger contact angle formed between the water droplet and leaf surface, which may be associated with thicker layer of epicuticular wax on the leaves, and one of the causes of high nymphal mortality. Thus, the use of the resistant genotypes of eucalyptus screened against G. brimblecombei is a promising and viable alternative for forest plantations infested with this pest.

Thermoregulatory consequences of salt loading in the lizard Pogona vitticeps

Previous research has demonstrated that dehydration increases the threshold temperature for panting and decreases the thermal preference of lizards. Conversely, it is unknown whether thermoregulatory responses such as shuttling and gaping are similarly influenced. Shuttling, as an active behavioural response, is considered one of the most effective thermoregulatory behaviours, whereas gaping has been proposed to be involved in preventing brain over-heating in lizards. In this study we examined the effect of salt loading, a proxy for increased plasma osmolality, on shuttling and gaping in Pogona vitticeps. Then, we determined the upper and lower escape ambient temperatures (UETa and LETa), the percentage of time spent gaping, the metabolic rate ((V) over dot(O2)), the evaporative water loss (EWL) during gaping and non-gaping intervals and the evaporative effectiveness (EWL/(V) over dot(O2)) of gaping. All experiments were performed under isotonic (154 mmol l(-1)) and hypertonic saline injections (625, 1250 or 2500 mmol l(-1)). Only the highest concentration of hypertonic saline altered the UETa and LETa, but this effect appeared to be the result of diminishing the animal's propensity to move, instead of any direct reduction in thermoregulatory set-points. Nevertheless, the percentage of time spent gaping was proportionally reduced according to the saline concentration; (V) over dot(O2) was also decreased after salt loading. Thermographic images revealed lower head than body surface temperatures during gaping; however this difference was inhibited after salt loading. Our data suggest that EWL/(V) over dot(O2) is raised during gaping, possibly contributing to an increase in heat transfer away from the lizard, and playing a role in head or brain cooling.

Estimation of a preference map of new consumers for spatial load forecasting simulation methods using a spatial analysis of points

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Identities among actin-encoding cDNAs of the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and other eukaryote species revealed by nucleotide and amino acid sequence analyses

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

Structural and functional evidence for membrane docking and disruption sites on phospholipase A2-like proteins revealed by complexation with the inhibitor suramin

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

Differences in larval nutritional requirements and female oviposition preference reflect the order of fruit colonization of Zaprionus indianus and Drosophila simulans

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Structural and functional insights into the conductive pili of Geobacter sulfurreducens revealed in molecular dynamics simulations

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

Estudo da formação de domínios em membranas modelos induzidos por peptídeos antimicrobianos e sua ação interfacial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Protein Hydrolysates Are Avoided by Herbivores but Not by Omnivores in Two-Choice Preference Tests

Background: The negative sensory properties of casein hydrolysates (HC) often limit their usage in products intended for human consumption, despite HC being nutritious and having many functional benefits. Recent, but taxonomically limited, evidence suggests that other animals also avoid consuming HC when alternatives exist. Methodology/Principal Findings: We evaluated ingestive responses of five herbivorous species (guinea pig, mountain beaver, gopher, vole, and rabbit) and five omnivorous species (rat, coyote, house mouse, white-footed mouse, and deer mouse; N = 16–18/species) using solid foods containing 20% HC in a series of two-choice preference tests that used a nonprotein, cellulose-based alternative. Individuals were also tested with collagen hydrolysate (gelatin; GE) to determine whether it would induce similar ingestive responses to those induced by HC. Despite HC and GE having very different nutritional and sensory qualities, both hydrolysates produced similar preference score patterns. We found that the herbivores generally avoided the hydrolysates while the omnivores consumed them at similar levels to the cellulose diet or, more rarely, preferred them (HC by the white-footed mouse; GE by the rat). Follow-up preference tests pairing HC and the nutritionally equivalent intact casein (C) were performed on the three mouse species and the guinea pigs. For the mice, mean HC preference scores were lower in the HC v C compared to the HC v Cel tests, indicating that HC’s sensory qualities negatively affected its consumption. However, responses were species-specific. For the guinea pigs, repeated exposure to HC or C (4.7-h sessions; N = 10) were found to increase subsequent HC preference scores in an HC v C preference test, which was interpreted in the light of conservative foraging strategies thought to typify herbivores. Conclusions/Significance: This is the first empirical study of dietary niche-related taxonomic differences in ingestive responses to protein hydrolysates using multiple species under comparable conditions. Our results provide a basis for future work in sensory, physiological, and behavioral mechanisms of hydrolysate avoidance and on the potential use of hydrolysates for pest management.

Examination of Homalometron elongatum Manter, 1947 and Description of a New Congener from Eucinostomus currani Zahuranec, 1980 in the Pacific Ocean off Costa Rica

Homalometron elongatum is reexamined using heat-killed material that was not subjected to pressure during fixation from Gerres cinereus collected from San Juan Harbor, Puerto Rico, U.S.A. The new material is compared with some paratype specimens and differs by having a much less variable forebody length, and a median rather than submedian genital pore. Tegumental spines reportedly cover the anterior end of the body but we observed tegumental spines covering the entire body surface in both the paratype and new material. Homalometron lesliorum n. sp. is described from Eucinostomus currani from the Pacific coasts of Costa Rica and Nicaragua. The new species has three pairs of oral papillae surrounding the mouth and thus resembles three other congeners: H. elongatum, Homalometron carapevae, and Homalometron papilliferum. Homalometron lesliorum n. sp. is distinguished from the three species by having the anterior extent of the vitelline follicles at or above the base of the ventral sucker, compared with posterior to the ventral sucker at the level of the seminal vesicle (H. elongatum) or further posterior at the posterior margin of the ovary (H. carapevae and H. papilliferum). The four species are further differentiated from one another by sucker width ratio, tegumental spine size and distribution, egg size, host preference, and biogeography. Comparison of nuclear ribosomal DNA (3' end of 18S, internal transcribed spacer [ITS]1, ITS2, and 5' end of 28S) between H. elongatum and H. lesliorum n. sp. revealed one variable base (n = 162) at the 3' end of 18S, 12 variable bases (n = 476) at ITS1, 10 variable bases (n = 310) at ITS2, and 11 variable bases (n = 1,325) at the 5' end fragment of 28S. Nuclear ribosomal DNA from Homalometron pallidum and Homalometron armatum are included for further comparison with H. elongatum and H. lesliorum n. sp.

Estudo da formação de domínios em membranas modelos induzidos por peptídeos antimicrobianos e sua ação interfacial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Are the preference and selection patterns of hermit crabs for gastropod shells species- or site-specific?

Experimental analyses of hermit crabs and their preferences for shells are essential to understand the intrinsic relationship of the crabs` dependence on shells, and may be useful to explain their shell use pattern in nature. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of crab species and site on the pattern of shell use, selection, and preference in the south-western Atlantic hermit crabs Pagurus brevidactylus and Pagurus criniticornis, comparing sympatric and allopatric populations. Differently from the traditional approach to evaluate shell preference by simply determining the shell selection pattern (i.e., the number of shells of each type selected), preference was defined (according to [Liszka, D., Underwood, AJ., 1990. An experimental design to determine preferences for gastropod shells by a hermit-crab. J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol., 137(1), 47-62]) by the comparison of the number of crabs changing for a particular shell type when three options were given (Cerithium atratum, Morula nodulosa, and Tegula viridula) with the number of crabs changing for this same type when only this type was offered. The effect of crab species was tested at Cabelo Gordo Beach, where P. brevidacrylus was found occupying shells of C. atratum, M. nodulosa, and T viridula in similar frequencies, whereas P. criniticornis occupied predominantly shells of C atratum. In laboratory experiments the selection patterns of the two hermit-crab species for these three gastropods were different, with P criniticornis selecting mainly shells of C atratum, and R brevidactylus selecting more shells of M. nodulosa. The shell preference was also dependent on crab species, with P. criniticornis showing a clear preference for shells of C atratum, whereas P. brevidactylus did not show a preference for any of the tested shells. The effect of site was tested for the two species comparing data from Cabelo Gordo to Preta (P brevidactylus) and Araca beaches (P. criniticornis). The pattern of shell use, selection, and preference was demonstrated to be dependent on site only for P. brevidactylus. The results also showed that the shell use pattern of P criniticornis can be explained by its preference at both sites, whereas for P. brevidactylus it occurred only at Cabelo Gordo, where the absence of preference was correlated with the similar use of the three gastropod species studied. Finally, the results showed that the shell selection pattern cannot be considered as a measure of shell preference, since it overestimates crab selectivity. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.