If fleas developed a rite, It would be related to the dog

This article highlights a set of Wittgensteinian remarks on James Frazer's texts found in The Golden Bough, put it inside the context of creation of a conceptual framework for his renewed philosophical approach after his return to Cambridge, a period comprehended between 1929-1932, and delimits the ritualistic value of his grammatical method of philosophy.

The Noether theorem for geometric actions and area preserving diffeomorphisms on the torus

We find that within the formalism of coadjoint orbits of the infinite dimensional Lie group the Noether procedure leads, for a special class of transformations, to the constant of motion given by the fundamental group one-cocycle S. Use is made of the simplified formula giving the symplectic action in terms of S and the Maurer-Cartan one-form. The area preserving diffeomorphisms on the torus T2=S1⊗S1 constitute an algebra with central extension, given by the Floratos-Iliopoulos cocycle. We apply our general treatment based on the symplectic analysis of coadjoint orbits of Lie groups to write the symplectic action for this model and study its invariance. We find an interesting abelian symmetry structure of this non-linear problem.

PREVENCAO DE TROMBOFLEBITES PELO USO DE HEPARINA EM PACIENTES TRATADOS COM ANFOTERICINA B

The authors studied the incidence of thrombophlebitis in 41 patients treated intravenously with amphotericin B. The patients were divided in two different group: Group 1: patients treated with amphotericin B and hydrocortisone with heparin (1000 UI); Group 2: patients treated with amphotericin B and hydrocortisone. The results showed 23.81% of incidence of thrombophlebitis in Group 1 and 90% in Group 2. Thrombophlebitis in Group 1 ranged from mild to moderate without any change during the drug therapy. In Group 2, the incidence was 66.67% and the thrombophlebitis were severe being necessary the withdrawn of the drugs in 35.0% of the cases. We concluded that heparin, in low doses, in association with amphotericin B, was an efficient drug preventing or reducing the development of thrombophlebitis.

Continuous wave ultraviolet frequency upconversion due to triads of Nd3+ ions in fluoroindate glass

We have observed ultraviolet upconversion fluorescence from the 4D3/2 and 2P3/2 levels of Nd3+ in fluoroindate glass under infrared pumping. It was found that the excitation of a large population in the 4F3/2 metastable level allows to achieve strong upconversion emissions at 354 and 382 nm. A simple rate equation model reproduces the temporal behavior of the upconverted emission and allows us to estimate the energy transfer rate among three Nd3+ ions participating in the process. © 1997 American Institute of Physics.

Frequency upconversion in Nd3+-doped fluoroindate glass

We report the observation of frequency upconversion in fluoroindate glasses with the following compositions: (mol%) (39 - x)InF3-20ZnF2-20SrF2-16BaF 2-2GdF3-2NaF-1GaF3-xNdF3 (x = 0.05, 0.1, 0.5, 1, 2, 3). The excitation source was a dye laser in resonance with the 4I9/2→(2G5/2, 2G7/2) transition of the Nd3+ ions. The upconverted fluorescence spectra show emissions from ∼ 350 to ∼ 450 nm, corresponding to transitions 4D3/2→4I9/2 ;4D3/2→4I11/2; 2P3/2→ 4I9/2; 4D3/2→4I13/2; 2P3/2→4I11/2; 4D3/2→4I15/2; and 2P3/2 → 4I13/2. The dependence of the fluorescence signals on the laser intensity indicates that two laser photons participate in the process. The temporal behavior of the signal indicates that energy transfer among the Nd3+ ions is the main mechanism which contributes to upconversion at 354 and 382 nm.

Violet and blue light amplification in Nd3+-doped fluoroindate glasses

We report optical gain at 382 and 414 nm from Nd3+-doped fluroindate glasses after excitation with lasers operating either at 583 or 532 nm. Stimulated emission due to a frequency upconversion process results in increase of the emitted violet and blue light intensity and emission line narrowing. Large optical gain is measured by pump-probe spectroscopy using samples with various Nd3+ concentrations. © 1999 American Institute of Physics.

Study of the presence of the spores of Clostridium botulinum in honey in Brazil

The isolation of Clostridium botulinum from honey samples is described. Botulism is characterized as an intoxication provoked by ingestion of contaminated foods with this toxin. Infant botulism happens by the ingestion of spores of C. botulinum together with food that in special conditions of the intestinal tract, such as those present in babies of less than 1 year old, will allow the germination and colonization of the intestine with production and absorption of botulinic toxin. The samples were subjected to dilution and to a thermal shock and cultivated in modified CMM (Difco). Cultures were subjected to Gram smears and toxicity tests in mice. The toxic cultures were purified in RFCA (Oxoid) plates and incubated in anaerobic jars. Positive samples were typed using the mouse assay neutralization test. From the 85 honey samples analyzed, six were positive for C. botulinum (7.06%), and identified as producers of type A, B, and D toxins.

Assignment of the bisulfide bridges in bothropstoxin-I, a Myonecrotic Lys49 PLA2 homolog from bothrops jararacussu snake venom

Bothropstoxin-I (BthTX-I), a Lys49 phospholipase A2 homolog with no apparent catalytic activity, was first isolated from Bothrops jararacussu snake venom and completely sequenced in this laboratory. It is a 121-amino-acid single polypeptide chain, highly myonecrotic, despite its inability to catalyze hydrolysis of egg yolk phospholipids, and has 14 half-cystine residues identified at positions 27, 29, 44, 45, 50, 51, 61, 84, 91, 96, 98, 105, 123, and 131 (numbering according to the conventional alignment including gaps, so that the last residue is Cys 131). In order to access its seven disulfide bridges, two strategies were followed: (1) Sequencing of isolated peptides from (tryptic + SV8) and chymotryptic digests by Edman-dansyl degradation; (2) crystallization of the protein and determination of the crystal structure so that at least two additional disulfide bridges could be identified in the final electron density map. Identification of the disulfide-containing peptides from the enzymatic digests was achieved following the disappearance of the original peptides from the HPLC profile after reduction and carboxymethylation of the digest. Following this procedure, four bridges were initially identified from the tryptic and SV8 digests: Cys50-Cysl31, Cys51-Cys98, Cys61-Cys91, and Cys84-Cys96. From the chymotryptic digest other peptides were isolated either containing some of the above bridges, therefore confirming the results from the tryptic digest, or presenting a new bond between Cys27 and Cys 123. The two remaining bridges were identified as Cys29-Cys45 and Cys44-Cysl05 by determination of the crystal structure, showing that BthTX-I disulfide bonds follow the normal pattern of group II PLA2s. © 2001 Plenum Publishing Corporation.

Putative pyrophosphate phosphofructose 1-kinase genes identified in sugarcane may be getting energy from pyrophosphate

Pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase (PPi-PFK) has been detected in several types of plant cells, but the gene has not been reported in sugar cane. Using Citrux paradixi PPi-PFK gene (AF095520 and AF095521) sequences to search the sugar cane EST database, we have identified both the α and β subunits of this enzyme. The deduced amino acid sequences showed 76 and 80% similarity with the corresponding α and β subunits of C. paradisi. A high degree of similarity was also observed among the PFK β subunits when the alignment of the sugar cane sequences was compared to those of Ricinus communis and Solanum tuberosum, it appears that α and β are two distinct subunits; they were found at different concentrations in several sugar cane tissues. It remains to be determined if the different gene expression levels have some physiological importance and how they affect sucrose synthesis, export, and storage in vacuoles. A comparison between the amino acid sequences of β PFKs from a variety of organisms allowed us to identify the two critical Asp residues typical of this enzyme's activity site and the other binding sites; these residues are tightly conserved in all members of this protein family. Apparently, there are catalytic residues on the β subunit of the pyrophosphate-dependent enzyme.

Preparation of a silica gel modified with 2-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole for adsorption of metal ions and electroanalytical application

Silica gel with a specific area of 382 m2 g-1 and an average pore diameter of 60 Å was chemically modified with 2-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole, for the purpose of selective adsorption of heavy metals ions and possible use as a chemically modified carbon paste electrode (CMCPE). The following properties of this functionalized silica gel are discussed: selective adsorption of heavy metal ions measured by batch and chromatographic column techniques, and utilization as preconcentration agent in a chemically modified carbon paste electrode (CMCPE) for determination of mercury(II). The chemical selectivity of this functional group and the selectivity of voltammetry were combined for preconcentration and determination. ©2006 Sociedade Brasileira de Química.

Direct and simultaneous determination of As, Cu, and Pb in Brazilian sugar cane spirits by graphite furnace AAS using tungsten permanent modifier with co-injection of Pd/Mg(N03)2

A method was developed using the multi-element graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry technique for the direct and simultaneous determination of As, Cu, and Pb in Brazilian sugar cane spirit (cachaça) samples. Also employed was the end-capped transversely heated graphite atomizer (THGA) with platforms pre-treated with W permanent modifier and co-injection of Pd/Mg(N03)2. Pyrolysis and atomization temperature curves were established in a cachaça medium (1+1; v/v) containing 0.2% (v/v) HN03 and spiked with 20 μg L-1 As and Pb and 200 μg L-1Cu. The effect of the concentration of major elements usually present in cachaça matrices (Ca, Mg, Na, and K) and ethanol on the absorbance of As, Cu, and Pb was investigated. Analytical working solutions of As, Cu, and Pb were prepared in 10% (v/v) ethanol plus 5.0 mg L-1 Ca, Mg, Na, and K. Acidified to 0.2% (v/v) HNO3, these solutions were suitable to build calibration curves by matrix matching. The proposed method was applied to the simultaneous determination of As, Cu, and Pb in commercial sugar cane spirits. The characteristic mass for the simultaneous determination was 16 pg As, 119 pg Cu, and 28 pg Pb. The pretreated tube lifetime was about 450 firings. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.6 μg L-1As, 9.2 μg L-1 Cu, and 0.3 μg L-1Pb. The found concentrations varied from 0.81 to 4.28 μg L-1As, 0.28 to 382 mg L-1 Cu and 0.82 to 518 μg L-1 Pb. The recoveries of the spiked samples varied from 94-112% (As), 97-111% (Cu), and 95-101% (Pb). The relative standard deviation (n=12) was 6.9%, 7.4%, and 7.7% for As, Cu, and Pb, respectively, present in a sample at 0.87 μgL-1, 0.81 mgL-1, and 38.9 μgL-1concentrations.

Genetic diversity of microsatellite loci in Leopardus pardalis, Leopardus wiedii and Leopardus tigrinus

The microsatellite loci FCA045, FCA077, FCA008, and FCA096 are highly variable molecular markers which were used to determine the genetic diversity in 148 captive Leopardus sp. The PCR-amplified products of microsatellite loci were characterized in ABI Prism 310 Genetic Analyzer. Allele numbers, heterozygosity, polymorphism information content, exclusive allele number, and shared alleles were calculated. Sixty-five alleles were found and their sizes ranged from 116 to 216 bp in four microsatellite loci. The heterozygosity ranged from 0.36 to 0.81 in Leopardus pardalis, 0.57 to 0.67 in L. tigrinus and 0.80 to 0.92 in L. wiedii. The polymorphism information content was from 0.80 to 0.88 in L. pardalis, 0.76 to 0.88 in L. tigrinus and 0.77 to 0.90 in L. wiedii. The margay (L. wiedii) showed the highest index of polymorphism among the three species in this study. These results imply that microsatellite DNA markers can help in the study of the genetic diversity of Leopardus specimens. ©FUNPEC-RP.

Crescimento de cultivares de mamoneira em função da aplicação de boro, durante a formação de mudas

It was objectified to quantify the initial growth of varieties of castor bean with boron fertilization. Had been tested to cultivate they AL-Guarani, Mirante 10 and Nordestina to the doses of 0; 0.25; 0.50; 0.75 and 1.0 mg kg -1 of B in controlled environment of greenhouse in the Sector of Cafeicultura of the Department of Agriculture of the UFLA. The characteristics valued were: height of plants, length of roots, leaf number, diameter of stem, mass of dry substance (MS) of leafs, of stem, the root and total. To cultivate Mirante 10 it was the one that got minor growth of the system of root. For leaf number to cultivate AL-Guarani it was superior to Mirante 10 and Nordestina. Also to cultivate better AL-Guarani if it detached how much to the production of total mass of MS, while to cultivate Mirante 10 produced more mass of MS than Nordestina.

Mutagenicidade de duas espécies do gěnero Alchornea avaliadas através de ensaios com Salmonella microssomo e teste do micronúcleo

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

Efectos sociales de la globalización sobre la economía campesina: reflexiones a partir de experiencias en México, Honduras y Nicaragua

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