Thermal stability of porous sol-gel phosphosilicates and their surface area stabilisation by lanthanum addition

The thermal stability of porous sol-gel phosphosilicates was studied by comparing the textural features upon calcination between 400 and 550 °C. A significant loss of surface area and pore volume were observed; the first is due to thermal coarsening of the nanoparticles, and the pore volume reduction was ascribed to sintering of the most external nanoparticles producing less void volume. Lanthanum addition was investigated as thermal stabilizer. For the mesoporous phosphosilicate composition, lanthanum addition enhanced the surface area, showing a 45% and 50% improvement with respect to the La-free counterpart; the effect was much less visible for the macroporous composition.

Influência da seca extrema na dinâmica fitoplanctônica de um reservatório da região tropical semiárida: uma abordagem morfofuncional

Droughts are climatic phenomena whose frequency has increased in the last decades and also compromised drinkable water supplies in semiarid regions. The lack of rain combined with high evaporation rates promotes a significant reduction of the volume of reservoirs in these regions. Shallower conditions favors nutrients concentration and phytoplankton overgrowth, including potentially toxic cyanobacteria blooming. Therefore, there is a tendency to the intensification of eutrophication in those reservoirs during drought periods. Phytoplankton can respond quickly to environmental conditions related to light and nutrient availability by changes in algal biomass and composition, therefore it is considered a good predictor of environmental variables. Two functional approaches - Reynolds’s Functional Groups (FG) and Kruk’s Morphologically Based Functional Groups (MBFG) - were used to assess which environmental variables were responsible for phytoplankton dynamics, in addition to compare which functional approach explains environmental changes better. This study highlights that the reduction of 90% in the volume of a tropical reservoir of Brazilian semi-arid region, as well as light limitation and nutrient increase, can promote phytoplankton overgrowth. Multivariate analyses using both functional approaches indicated a clear separation between high volumes and low volumes conditions, showing that light and nutrient availability were the main variables that better explained the combination of functional groups. The composition of phytoplankton assemblage changed from species of meso-eutrophic habitats (FG: F and J; MBFG: VI), to organisms of eutrophic and turbid environments (FG: SN and M; MBFG: VIII and VII) during shallower conditions. Both ecological approaches described properly the phytoplankton dynamics according to light and trophic state alterations related to the water volume reduction, therefore they can be considered as equivalent approaches for using in similar environments.

Os impactos na qualidade da água e do solo de um manancial tropical do semiárido devido ao uso e ocupação e evento de seca extrema

Human activities alter soil features, causing the deterioration of its quality. Land use and occupation in drainage basins of water supply reservoirs can change the environmental soil quality and, thus, lead to the expansion of the soil potential of being a diffuse pollution source. In the Brazilian semiarid region, the soils are generally shallow with high susceptibility to erosion, favoring the sediment and nutrients input into the superficial waterbodies, contributing to the eutrophication process. Moreover, this region has high temperatures and high evapotranspiration rates, that are generally higher than the precipitation rates, causing a negative hydric balance and big volume losses by evaporation. The water volume reduction increases the nutrients’ concentration and, therefore, exacerbates the eutrophication process, deteriorating the water quality. Thereby, we hypothesized that the eutrophication process of semiarid reservoirs is intensified both by the extreme climatic events of prolonged drought, and by the diffuse pollution due to the basin land use and occupation. The study aimed to test whether the land use and occupation activities of the basin and the severe drought events intensify the eutrophication process of a semiarid tropical reservoir. To verify the influence of human activities carried out in the water supply of drainage basin on the soil quality and the eutrophication process, we conducted the mapping of the kind of use and occupation, as well the calculation of erosion for each activity and the soil quality evaluation of the riparian zone and water quality of the water supply. For the water analyses, the samplings were carried out monthly in the deeper point, near dam. For the soil, deformed composite samples were taken for the physical and chemical attributes analysis, according to the identified land use and occupation classes. The results showed that extreme droughts drastically reduces the water volume and elevates the nutrients concentration, contributing, thus, to a bigger degradation of water quality. Furthermore, we verified that human activities in the drainage basin promote the diffuse pollution, by increasing the soil susceptibility to erosion and nutrients contents. Summarizing, our results support the investigated hypothesis that activities of land use and occupation and extreme drought generate a combined effect that provide the intensification of eutrophication process of semiarid reservoirs.

Alteração do estado trófico durante um evento de seca prolongada e seus impactos na biomassa algal de um manancial tropical da região semiárida

The main consequence of eutrophication is an increase in algal biomass, mainly cyanobacterial blooms. The high evaporation and low precipitation, characteristics of semiarid regions, contribute to the nutrients availability increase in drought periods and consequent aggravation of eutrophic condition in reservoirs. Climate changes tend to intensify eutrophication symptoms, mostly in a semiarid region. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of an extended drought in algal biomass in Parelhas’s Boqueirão, a mesotrophic reservoir located in a semiarid tropical region. The low volume was associated to water quality degradation and to the high nutrients concentrations and low water transparency. The increase in nutrients availability in the water column, consequence of reduced precipitation and low reservoir’s volume, provided the necessary resources for algal growth and allowed a change in trophic state in Boqueirão reservoir. This study showed how an extended drought decreases water quality. The effect of drought in Boqueirão was late detected due to the reservoir´s low initial nutrients concentration. The reservoir´s volume reduction increased the nutrient availability along with the algal biomass increase and the reservoir´s trophic state change of mesotrophic to eutrophic.

Considerações anatómicas sobre o envelhecimento do aparelho estomatognático

Introdução: com o crescente aumento da expectativa de vida, o conhecimento das alterações anatómicas e fisiológicas que ocorrem no aparelho estomatognático durante o envelhecimento é de suma importância para a correta avaliação do paciente idoso. Objetivos: descrição e abordagem das principais estruturas anatómicas do indivíduo, adulto e idoso. Estabelece-se uma anatomia comparativa e evolutiva durante o processo de envelhecimento. Pretende-se contribuir para o conhecimento e reflexão sobre o tema em questão e demonstrar a aplicabilidade deste conhecimento em contexto clínico. Métodos: realizou-se pesquisa bibliográfica, nas bases de dados Pubmed, b-on SciElo e Elsevier, no período entre 2006-2016. Resultados: Maxila - ocorre reabsorção óssea, alteração no contorno do arco da maxila, retrusão maxilar, rotação da maxila no sentido horário, diminuição gradual e constante do ângulo maxilar e redução vertical da altura maxilar. Mandíbula - aumento do ângulo da mandíbula, diminuição da densidade e volume ósseo. Articulação gonfose e Articulação Temporo-Mandibular - pode ocorrer tanto anquilose, como perda das estruturas de suporte. Observa-se degeneração e/ou perfuração do disco radicular e alteração do formato do côndilo. Dentes - cáries radiculares, fraturas dentárias e desgaste dentário. Ocorrem modificações histológicas no esmalte, dentina e polpa dentária. Periodonto: reabsorção do osso alveolar, gengiva atrófica com tendência a migração apical, deposição apical das camadas incrementais e desgaste de cemento exposto, ligamento periodontal fino, irregular e diminuição do espaço periodontal. Conclusões: as alterações anatómicas decorrentes do envelhecimento fisiológico são múltiplas. O Médico Dentista diante de um paciente idoso, deverá conhecer e distinguir entre uma alteração decorrente do envelhecimento fisiológico e uma alteração patológica, para o correto diagnóstico clínico e uma excelente decisão terapêutica. O Médico Dentista deverá contribuir para o envelhecimento saudável e para tal deve ser conhecedor em pleno da temática do presente trabalho.

Carbon-supported ionic liquids as innovative adsorbents for CO2 separation from synthetic flue-gas

Fixed-bed thermodynamic CO2 adsorption tests were performed in model flue-gas onto Filtrasorb 400 and Nuchar RGC30 activated carbons (AC) functionalized with [Hmim][BF4] and [Emim][Gly] ionic liquids (IL). A comparative analysis of the CO2 capture results and N2 porosity characterization data evidenced that the use of [Hmim][BF4], a physical solvent for carbon dioxide, ended up into a worsening of the parent AC capture performance, due to a dominating pore blocking effect at all the operating temperatures. Conversely, the less sterically-hindered and amino acid-based [Emim][Gly] IL was effective in increasing the AC capture capacity at 353 K under milder impregnation conditions, the beneficial effect being attributed to both its chemical affinity towards CO2 and low pore volume reduction. The findings derived in this work outline interesting perspectives for the application of amino acid-based IL supported onto activated carbons for CO2 separation under post-combustion conditions, and future research efforts should be focused on the search for AC characterized by optimal pore size distribution and surface properties for IL functionalization.

Myotonic syndromes: analysis of factors with pathogenetic and prognostic significance

Background: The natural history of Myotonic Dystrophy type 1 is largely unclear, longitudinal studies are lacking. Objectives: to collect clinical and laboratory data, to evaluate sleep disorders, somatic and autonomic skin fibres, neuropsychological and neuroradiological aspects in DM1 patients. Methods: 72 DM1 patients underwent a standardized clinical and neuroradiological evaluation performed by a multidisciplinary team during 3 years of follow-up. Results: longer disease duration was associated with higher incidence of conduction disorders and lower ejection fraction; higher CVF values were predictors for a reduced risk of cardiopathy. Lower functional pulmonary values were associated with class of expansion and were negatively associated with disease duration; arterial blood gas parameters were not associated with expansion size, disease duration nor with respiratory function test. Excessive daytime sleepiness was not associated with class of expansion nor with any of the clinical parameters examined. We detected apnoea in a large percentage of patients, without differences between the 3 genetic classes; higher CVF values were predictors for a reduced risk of apnoea. Skin biopsies demonstrated the presence of a subclinical small fibre neuropathy with involvement of the somatic fibres. The pupillometry study showed lower pupil size at baseline and a lower constriction response to light. The most affected neuropsychological domains were executive functions, visuoconstructional, attention and visuospatial tasks, with a worse performance of E1 patients in the visuoperceptual ability and social cognition tasks. MRI study demonstrated a decrease in the volumes of frontal, parietal, temporal, occipital cortices, accumbens, putamen nuclei and a more severe volume reduction of the isthmus cingulate, transverse temporal, superior parietal and temporal gyri in E2 patients. Discussion: only some clinical parameters could predict the risk of cardiopathy, pulmonary syndrome and sleep disorders, while other clinical aspects proved to be unpredictable, confirming the importance of periodic clinical follow-up of these patients.

A structural MRI study of motor conversion disorder: evidence of reduction in thalamic volume.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate potential abnormalities in subcortical brain structures in conversion disorder (CD) compared with controls using a region of interest (ROI) approach. METHODS: Fourteen patients with motor CD were compared with 31 healthy controls using high-resolution MRI scans with an ROI approach focusing on the basal ganglia, thalamus and amygdala. Brain volumes were measured using Freesurfer, a validated segmentation algorithm. RESULTS: Significantly smaller left thalamic volumes were found in patients compared with controls when corrected for intracranial volume. These reductions did not vary with handedness, laterality, duration or severity of symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: These differences may reflect a primary disease process in this area or be secondary effects of the disorder, for example, resulting from limb disuse. Larger, longitudinal structural imaging studies will be required to confirm the findings and explore whether they are primary or secondary to CD.

REDUCTION OF URINE VOLUME AMELIORATES ADRIAMYCIN-INDUCED NEPHROPATHY

1. Adriamycin, a commonly used antineoplastic antibiotic, induces glomerular lesions in rats, resulting in persistent proteinuria and glomerulosclerosis.2. The effect of urine volume on the progression of adriamycin-induced nephropathy was studied in 70 male Wistar rats (180-200 g) observed for 30 weeks and separated into 4 groups: healthy control group (HCG, N = 10) inoculated iv with 1 ml of saline, and nephrotic groups inoculated iv with a single dose of adriamycin of 3 mg/kg body weight. The nephrotic rats were separated into 3 groups (N = 20): nephrotic control group (NCG) receiving only adriamycin; dehydrated nephrotic group (DNG) water deprived for 36 h within each 48-h period, and furosemide nephrotic group (FNG) treated with 12 mg/dl furosemide, and 0.9 g/dl NaCl in the drinking water.3. The 30-week survival rates of the DNG (100%) and HCG (100%) were significantly higher than those of the NCG (85%) and FNG (55%).4. The proteinuria observed in the HCG (range, 7.38 +/- 0.7 to 13.6 +/- 1.27 mg/24 h) was significantly lower than that observed for all the nephrotic groups throughout the experiment. The DNG presented significantly less proteinuria (range, 42.71 +/- 6.83 to 140.10 +/- 19.22 mg/24 h) than the NCG (range, 35.32 +/- 7.64 to 250.00 +/- 25.91 mg/24 h) from week 10 on. There was no significant difference between the mean 24-h proteinuria of the NCG (range, 35.32 +/- 7.64 to 250.00 +/- 25.91 mg/24 h) and the FNG (range, 35.82 +/- 7.91 to 221.54 +/- 26.74).5. The mean frequency of damaged glomeruli was 0.3% +/- 0.3 for HCG, 42% +/- 6% for CNG, 40.8% +/- 8% for DNG, and 47% +/- 14% for FNG. The median value of the tubulointerstitial lesion, evaluated by a semiquantitative method, was 0 in HCG, 10 in CNG, 8.5 in DNG and 9.5 in FNG(P<0.05 for all groups compared to HCG).6. The data indicate that reduction of urine volume has a protective effect on adriamycin-induced nephropathy.

Effect of dialysate sodium reduction on body water volume, blood pressure, and inflammatory markers in hemodialysis patients - A prospective randomized controlled study

Accumulating evidence suggests an association between body volume overload and inflammation in chronic kidney diseases. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of dialysate sodium concentration reduction on extracellular water volume, blood pressure (BP), and inflammatory state in hemodialysis (HD) patients. In this prospective controlled study, adult patients on HD for at least 90 days and those with C-reactive protein (CRP) levels ≥ 0.7 mg/dL were randomly allocated into two groups: group A, which included 29 patients treated with reduction of dialysate sodium concentration from 138 to 135 mEq/L; and group B, which included 23 HD patients not receiving dialysate sodium reduction (controls). Of these, 20 patients in group A and 18 in group B completed the protocol study. Inflammatory, biochemical, hematological, and nutritional markers were assessed at baseline and after 8 and 16 weeks. Baseline characteristics were not significantly different between the two groups. Group A showed a significant reduction in serum concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-6 over the study period, while the BP and extracellular water (ECW) did not change. In Group B, there were no changes in serum concentrations of inflammatory markers, BP, and ECW. Dialysate sodium reduction is associated with attenuation of the inflammatory state, without changes in the BP and ECW, suggesting inhibition of a salt-induced inflammatory response. Copyright © 2013 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.

Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome in Men is Associated with Reduction of Relative Gray Matter Volume in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex Compared to Healthy Controls

Although chronic pelvic pain syndrome impairs the life of millions of people worldwide, the exact pathomechanisms involved remain to be elucidated. As with other chronic pain syndromes, the central nervous system may have an important role in chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Thus, we assessed brain alterations associated with abnormal pain processing in patients with chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

DWI charge reduction study. Volume I: summary.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, D.C.

DWI charge reduction study. Volume II: system descriptions.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, D.C.