Class III glands in the abdomen of Meliponini

Class III tegumentar glands were studied in workers, as well as in queens and males when available, of 56 Meliponini species. The presence and development of these glands varies widely among and within species. However, the queen typically has more glands than do workers, and males rarely have any. Gland development in workers was evaluated by counting and determining the size of cells in histological sections. Laying queens were found to have more active gland cells than did virgins. Cell numbers and cell ultrastructure differed among glands similarly located in workers, queens and males. Cell size and ultrastructure also varied from tergite to tergite. In conclusion, since it is likely that most of them produce pheromones, the wide variability in these glands suggests that they are important to social interaction.

Phytochrome controls achene germination in Bidens pilosa L. (Asteraceae) by very low fluence response

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

Efeitos em curto prazo da aplicação de aloxana para indução de diabetes em ratos wistar

The present study aimed to verify action of alloxan in metabolic and immune parameters after 24 and 192 hours of the injection in Wistar rats. Thus, eight rats were fasted and received monohidrated alloxan Sigma (32 mg/kg body weight) via endovenous. Glycemia and trglyceridemia analyzes were performed before and 192 hours after alloxan application. After 24 hours, alloxan application increased water intake and decreased body mass, food intake and leucocytes counting. 192 hours after alloxan application, there was a recuperation in food intake and leucocytes counting. on the other hand, in this period there was an increase of glycemia and water intake and reduction of body mass. These results indicate that some of diabetic signs caused by alloxan occur in short-term after drug administration.

Effects of physical training on the immune system in diabetic rats

Aims: This study aims to investigate the influence of physical training on the immune system of diabetic rats. Materials and Methods: Adult male Wistar rats were distributed into Sedentary Control (SC), Trained Control (TC), Sedentary Diabetic (SD) and Trained Diabetic (TD) groups were used. Diabetes was induced by alloxan (32 mg/bw-i.v.). Training protocol consisted of swimming, at 32 18C, one hour/day, five days/week, supporting an overload equivalent to 5 of the body weight, during four weeks. At the end of the experiment the rats were sacrificed by decapitation and blood samples were collected for glucose, insulin, albumin, hematocrit determinations, total and differential leukocyte counting. Additionally, liver samples for glycogen analyses were obtained. Results: The results were analyzed by one way at a significance level of 5. Diabetes reduced blood insulin, liver glycogen stores and increased blood glucose and neutrophil count. Physical training restored glycemia, liver glycogen levels, neutrophils and lymphocytes count in diabetic rats. Conclusions: In summary, physical training was able to improve metabolic and immunological aspects in the experimental diabetic rats.

Gait and risk of falls associated with frontal cognitive functions at different stages of Alzheimer's disease

The decline in frontal cognitive functions contributes to alterations of gait and increases the risk of falls in patients with dementia, a category which included Alzheimer's disease (AD). The objective of the present study was to compare the gait parameters and the risk of falls among patients at different stages of AD, and to relate these variables with cognitive functions. This is a cross-sectional study with 23 patients with mild and moderate AD. The Clinical Dementia Rating was used to classify the dementia severity. The kinematic parameters of gait (cadence, stride length, and stride speed) were analyzed under two conditions: (a) single task (free gait) and (b) dual task (walking and counting down). The risk of falls was evaluated using the Timed Up-and-Go test. The frontal cognitive functions were evaluated using the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), the Clock Drawing Test (CDT) and the Symbol Search Subtest. The patients who were at the moderate stage suffered reduced performance in their stride length and stride speed in the single task and had made more counting errors in the dual task and still had a higher fall risk. Both the mild and the moderate patients exhibited significant decreases in stride length, stride speed and cadence in the dual task. Was detected a significant correlation between CDT, FAB, and stride speed in the dual task condition. We also found a significant correlation between subtest Similarities, FAB and cadence in the dual task condition. The dual task produced changes in the kinematic parameters of gait for the mild and moderate AD patients and the gait alterations are related to frontal cognitive functions, particularly executive functions.

Photodynamic inactivation of biofilms formed by Candida spp., Trichosporon mucoides, and Kodamaea ohmeri by cationic nanoemulsion of zinc 2,9,16,23-tetrakis(phenylthio)-29H, 31H-phthalocyanine (ZnPc)

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

The effects of rose bengal- and erythrosine-mediated photodynamic therapy on Candida albicans

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Immunohistochemical study of the expression of fatty acid synthase and Ki-67 in salivary gland tumors

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

Morphology and bacterial colonisation of tooth/ceramic restoration interface after different cement excess removal techniques

Objectives: To evaluate the influence of different protocols for resin cement removal during cementation on biofilm formation.Methods: Twenty-eight ceramic blocks, which were injected under pressure, were placed over enamel blocks obtained from freshly extracted bovine incisors. The ceramic blocks were cemented to the enamel blocks using a dual-cured resin cement and the excess resin was removed according to the experimental group: TS: Teflon spatula; BR: brush; BR+: brush and polishing; SB+: scalpel blade and polishing. After autoclaving, the samples were colonised by incubation in a sucrose broth suspension standardised with Streptococcus mutans in microaerophilic stove. Specimens were quantitatively analysed for bacterial adherence at the adhesive interface using confocal laser scanning microscopy and counting the colony forming units, and qualitatively analysed using SEM. The roughness (Ra/Rz/RSm) was also analysed. Data were analysed by 1-way ANOVA and Tukey's test (5%).Results: The roughness values ranged from 0.96 to 1.69 mu m for Ra (p > 0.05), from 11.59 to 22.80 mu m for Rz (p = 0.02 < 0.05) and from 293.2 to 534.3 mu m for RSm (p = 0.00). Bacterial adhesion varied between 1,974,000 and 2,814,000 CFU/ml (p = 0.00). Biofilm mean thickness ranged from 0.477 and 0.556 mu m (p > 0.05), whilst the biovolume values were between 0.388 and 0.547 mu m(3)/mu m(2) (p = 0.04). Lower values for roughness, bacterial adhesion, biofilm thickness and biovolume were found with BR, whilst TS presented the highest values for most of the parameters. SEM images confirmed the quantitative values.Conclusions: The restoration margin morphology and interface roughness affects bacterial accumulation. The brush technique promoted less bacterial colonisation at the adhesive interface than did the other removal methods.Clinical significance: The brush technique seems to be a good option for removing the excess resin cement after adhesive cementation in clinical practice, as indicated by its better results with lower bacterial colonisation. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Vinegar as an antimicrobial agent for control of Candida spp. in complete denture wearers

The use of denture is known to increase the carriage of Candida in healthy patients, and the proliferation of Candida albicans strains can be associated with denture-induced stomatitis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of vinegar as an antimicrobial agent for control of Candida spp. in complete upper denture wearers. Fifty-five patients were submitted to a detailed clinical interview and oral clinical examination, and were instructed to keep their dentures immersed in a 10% vinegar solution ( pH less than 3) overnight for 45 days. Before and after the experimental period, saliva samples were collected for detection of Candida, counting of cfu/mL and identification of species by phenotypical tests ( germ tube formation, chlamidoconidia production, and carbohydrate fermentation and assimilation). The results were analyzed using Spearman's correlation and Student's t-test (p=0.05). Candida yeasts were present in 87.3% of saliva samples before the treatment. A significant reduction was verified in CFU/mL counts of Candida after treatment. A positive correlation between Candida and denture stomatitis was verified, since the decrease of cfu/mL counts was correlated with a reduction in cases of denture stomatitis. Although it was not able to eliminate C. albicans, the immersion of the complete denture in 10% vinegar solution, during the night, reduced the amounts (cfu/mL) of Candida spp. in the saliva and the presence of denture stomatitis in the studied patients.

Avaliação de desinfetantes de superfície utilizados em Odontologia

Desinfecção de superfície é um procedimento realizado nas áreas externas do equipamento odontológico e demais itens do consultório. O objetivo deste trabalho foi analisar a ação de quatro desinfetantes utilizados em Odontologia: álcool etílico a 77°GL, composto fenólico (Duplofen), iodóforo (PVP-I) e solução de álcool etílico a 77°GL com 5% de clorexidina para desinfecção de superfície. Foram analisados quatro pontos em cada equipamento (carter, pia de lavagem de mãos, encosto de cabeça da cadeira e superfície frontal externa do refletor), utilizando-se a técnica de spray-wipe-spray. de cada ponto, foram coletadas amostras utilizando-se placas de superfície contendo ágar Mitis Salivarius bacitracina sacarose, ágar Sabouraud Dextrose com cloranfenicol, ágar MacConkey e ágar-sangue para contagem de estreptococos do grupo mutans, leveduras do gênero Candida, bactérias gram-negativas e contagem total de microrganismos, respectivamente (ufc/placa). Os resultados foram analisados estatisticamente utilizando-se teste t de Student para comparação entre as médias de ufc/placa. O desinfetante que demonstrou ser mais efetivo na redução microbiana foi a solução alcoólica de clorexidina, principalmente para bactérias gram-positivas. O iodo e o composto fenólico mostraram ser bastante eficazes na redução microbiana. O álcool etílico a 77°GL foi o menos eficaz dos quatro desinfetantes analisados, mas apesar de não ser indicado como desinfetante de superfície, mostrou, no presente trabalho, redução microbiana estatisticamente significativa após o processo de desinfecção.

Susceptibility of Candida albicans and Candida dubliniensis to erythrosine- and LED-mediated photodynamic therapy

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

Black hole entropy associated with the supersymmetric sigma model

By means of an identity that equates the elliptic genus partition function of a supersymmetric sigma model on the N-fold symmetric product (SX)-X-N of X ((SX)-X-N=X-N/S-N, where S-N is the symmetric group of N elements) to the partition function of a second-quantized string theory, we derive the asymptotic expansion of the partition function as well as the asymptotic for the degeneracy of spectrum in string theory. The asymptotic expansion for the state counting reproduces the logarithmic correction to the black hole entropy.

alpha alpha scattering in halo effective field theory

We study the two-alpha-particle (alpha alpha) system in an Effective Field Theory (EFT) for halo-like systems. We propose a power Counting that incorporates the subtle interplay of strong and electromagnetic forces leading to a narrow resonance at an energy of about 0.1 MeV. We investigate the EFT expansion in detail, and compare its results with existing low-energy aa phase shifts and previously determined effective-range parameters. Good description of the data is obtained with a surprising amount of fine-tuning. This scenario can be viewed as an expansion around the limit where, when electromagnetic interactions are turned off, the (8)Be ground state is at threshold and exhibits conformal invariance. We also discuss possible extensions to systems with more than two alpha particles. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Transverse-Momentum and Pseudorapidity Distributions of Charged Hadrons in pp Collisions at root s=7 TeV

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