Randomized clinical trial comparing the efficacy of the vaginal use of metronidazole with a Brazilian pepper tree (Schinus) extract for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis

A 7.4% vaginal extract of the Brazilian pepper tree (Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi) was compared with 0.75% vaginal metronidazole, both manufactured by the Hebron Laboratory, for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis, used at bedtime for 7 nights. The condition was diagnosed using the combined criteria of Amsel and Nugent in two groups of 140 and 137 women, aged between 18 and 40 years. Intention-to-treat analysis was performed. Women were excluded from the study if they presented delayed menstruation, were pregnant, were using or had used any topical or systemic medication, presented any other vaginal infections, presented hymen integrity, or if they reported any history suggestive of acute pelvic inflammatory disease. According to Amsel’s criteria separately, 29 patients (21.2%) treated with the extract and 87 (62.1%) treated with metronidazole were considered to be cured (P < 0.001). According to Nugent’s score separately, 19 women (13.9%) treated with the extract and 79 (56.4%) treated with metronidazole were considered to be cured (P < 0.001). Using the two criteria together, the so-called total cure was observed in 17 women (12.4%) treated with the extract and in 79 women (56.4%) treated with metronidazole (P < 0.001). In conclusion, the cure rate for bacterial vaginosis using a vaginal gel from a pepper tree extract was lower than the rate obtained with metronidazole gel, while side effects were infrequent and non-severe in both groups.

Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity in fruits of clone and ungrafted genotypes of yellow mombin tree

Yellow mombin is a fruit tree that grows spontaneously in the Semi-Arid Northeastern Brazil. Its fruits are still extractively exploited. The pulp of yellow mombin fruit stands out regarding the commercial aspect due to the characteristic flavor and aroma felt when consumed in diverse ways. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of bioactive compounds, total extractable polyphenols, and antioxidant activity of yellow mombin fruits (Spondias mombin, L.), from clone and ungrafted genotypes. The fruits were harvested at commercial maturity from twelve yellow mombin tree genotypes from an experimental orchard located at the municipality of Joao Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil, and evaluated for chlorophyll, carotenoids, yellow flavonoids, total extractable polyphenols, and antioxidant activity, which was measured by the β-carotene/linoleic acid method. The antioxidant activity showed a percentage of inhibition of oxidation higher than 75% for all genotypes evaluated at the time of 120 minutes. The fruits from clone genotypes showed a higher percentage of antioxidant activity.

Trophic cascades in boreal landscapes: top predator protection on tree seedlings and forest grouse

Changes in the abundance of top predators have brought about notable, cascading effects in ecosystems around the world. In this thesis, I examined several potential trophic cascades in boreal ecosystems, and their separate interspecific interactions. The main aim of the thesis was to investigate whether predators in the boreal forests have direct or indirect cascading effects on the lower trophic levels. First, I compared the browsing effects of different mammalian herbivores by excluding varying combinations of voles, hares and cervids from accessing the seedlings of silver birch (Betula pendula), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and Norway spruce (Picea abies). Additionally, I studied the effect of simulated predation risk on vole browsing by using auditory cues of owls. Moving upwards on the trophic levels, I examined the intraguild interactions between the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), and its mesopredator prey, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and the pine marten (Martes martes). To look at an entire potential trophic cascade, I further studied the combined impacts of eagles and mesopredators on the black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) and the hazel grouse (Tetrastes bonasia), predicting that the shared forest grouse prey would benefit from eagle presence. From the tree species studied, birch appears to be the most palatable one for the mammalian herbivores. I observed growth reductions in the presences of cervids and low survival associated with hares and voles, which suggests that they all weaken regeneration in birch stands. Furthermore, the simulated owl predation risk appeared to reduce vole browsing on birches in late summer, although the preferred grass forage is then old and less palatable. Browsing by voles and hares had a negative effect on the condition and survival of Scots pine, but in contrast, the impact of mammalian herbivores on spruce was found to be small, at least when more preferred food is available. I observed that the presence of golden eagles had a negative effect on the abundance of adult black grouse but a positive, protective effect on the proportion of juveniles in both black grouse and hazel grouse. Yet, this positive effect was not dependent on the abundance foxes or martens, nor did eagles seem to effectively decrease the abundance of these mesopredators. Conversely, the protection effect on grouse could arise from fear effects and also be mediated by other mesopredators. The results of this thesis provide important new information about trophic interactions in the boreal food webs. They highlight how different groups of mammalian herbivores vary in their effects on the growth and condition of different tree seedlings. Lowered cervid abundances could improve birch regeneration, which indirectly supports the idea that the key predators of cervids could cause cascading effects also in Fennoscandian forests. Owls seem to reduce vole browsing through an intimidation effect, which is a novel result of the cascading effects of owl vocalisation and could even have applications for protecting birch seedlings. In the third cascade examined in this thesis, I found the golden eagle to have a protective effect on the reproducing forest grouse, but it remains unclear through which smaller predators this effect is mediated. Overall, the results of this thesis further support the idea that there are cascading effects in the forests of Northern Europe, and that they are triggered by both direct and non‐lethal effects of predation.

Saman "kolikon" kolme puolta : David Galulan, Sir Robert Thompsonin ja Sir Frank Kitsonin vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin teorioiden vertailu ja niitä yhdistävät tekijät.

Toisen maailmansodan jälkeisenä ajanjaksona Iso-Britannia ja Ranska päätyivät useissa siirtomaissaan vastakumouksellisiin sodankäynnin konflikteihin. Nämä konfliktit kytkeytyivät siirtomaiden itsenäistymispyrkimyksiin ja kylmän sodan maailmanpoliittiseen tilanteeseen. Konflikteissa Ison-Britannian ja Ranskan siviili- ja sotilasviranomaiset kehittivät innovatiivisesti vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin menetelmiään. Läntisissä valtioissa tehtiin 1960-luvulla myös merkittävä määrä vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin tutkimusta. Tämän tutkimusjakson keskeisimpiä teoreetikkoja olivat ranskalainen David Galula (1919 - 1967) ja britit Robert Thompson (1916 - 1992) ja Frank Kitson (1926 -). Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena on selvittää, mitkä tekijät yhdistivät David Galulan, Robert Thompsonin ja Frank Kitsonin kumouksellisen ja vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin teorioita. Tutkimuksessa on käytetty metodina tulkitsevaa diskurssianalyysiä teoreetikkojen kumouksellisen ja vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin näkemysten tulkitsemiseksi. Tulkinta on suoritettu sitomalla teoriat historialliseen ja henkilöiden taustat käsittävään kontekstiin. Laadullisella sisällönanalyysillä on tunnistettu teoreetikkojen taustoista niitä tekijöitä, joilla voidaan katsoa olleen merkitystä teorioiden muodostumiselle. Diskurssianalyysin rinnalla on käytetty tapaustutkimusta Galulan, Thompsonin ja Kitsonin teorioiden ja heidän taustatekijöidensä vertaamiseksi. Keskeisen tutkimusaineiston muodostivat Galulan, Thompsonin ja Kitsonin vastakumouk-sellista sodankäyntiä käsittelevät kirjat sekä heidän kirjoittamansa muistelmat. Tätä tutkimusaineistoa täydennettiin teoreetikkoja ja vastakumouksellista sodankäyntiä käsittelevällä tutkimuskirjallisuudella. Tutkimuksen tärkeimpänä havaintona voidaan pitää sitä, että teoreetikkojen näkemykset kumouksellisesta ja vastakumouksellisesta sodankäynnistä ovat pitkälti yhteneväisiä. Tämän johtui siitä, että kumouksellinen sodankäynti havainnollistettiin pitkälti Mao Zedongin vallankumouksellisen sodankäynnin mallin kautta. Kumouksellisen sodankäynnin ytimeksi nähtiin syy tai aate, jota käytettiin kansan tuen voittamiseksi. Kaikki teoreetikot korostivat kumouksellisen sodankäynnin poliittista ulottuvuutta. Tämän takia vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin tuli olla ensisijaisesti poliittisesti johdettua toimintaa, jota turvallisuusjoukot tukevat. Teoreetikot näkivät asevoimien roolin ja toimintaperiaatteet vastakumouksellisessa sodankäynnissä pitkälti yhteneväisesti. Teoreetikkojen taustoissa havaittiin useita näkemysten yhtenäisyyttä selittäviä tekijöitä.

Herbert A. Simon and the concept of rationality: boundaries and procedures

This paper discusses Herbert A. Simon's conception of rationality in two of its principal general definitions: bounded rationality and procedural rationality. It argues that the latter is the one that better synthesizes the author's view about rational behavior and that the former fills mainly a critical function. They are complementarily used by Simon in this sense. In spite of that, it is argued that it is the low degree of specificity of the concept of bounded rationality one of the reasons for its relatively greater success.

Between Dugin’s Eurasianism and Mahan’s Sea Power Concept: Russia’s Geopolitical Discourse within Foucault’s ‘Discursive Tree’ before and After the Incorporation of the Crimea

The fall of 2013 could be characterized as a crossroad in the geopolitics of Eastern Europe, namely Ukraine. Two rivalry geopolitical projects have been developing throughout the post-Cold War years, and it seems that they reached a collision point in Ukraine; a country whose authorities have been for long switching sides between the European Union and the Russian Federation in their foreign policy commitments. The refusal/postponing to sign the Association Agreement with Brussels, an expected event by a large category of the Ukrainian society, by Yanukovich’s government led to the outset of the latter; and brought a pro-Western, anti-Russian government in Kyiv. It seems that Ukraine, after those events, has embarked definitively on the path of integration into the West (European Union and possibly NATO). The Russian Federation, who has been throughout Putin’s years engaged into the re-integration of post-Soviet space, reacted to these developments in an assertive manner by violating borders, agreements and the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Thus, the incorporation of the Crimea into the Russian Federation is the first in its kind in the post-Soviet space, despite the existence of various other conflicts that broke out in the region after the Soviet Union broke up. I will investigate in this thesis the nature of what will be labelled, in this work, the Crimean issue. I argue that the incorporation of the Crimean peninsula into the Russian Federation marks a new era in Russian geopolitical thinking that shapes, to a far extent, Russian foreign policy. Discourse analysis will be the methodological basis for this study, with a special focus on Michel Foucault’s Archaeology of Knowledge. The innovation that this research brings is the fact that it discusses Russian geopolitical discourse within the scope of Foucault’s ‘discursive tree’, with a reference to the Crimean issue. A wide range of primary sources will be consulted in this study such as presidential addresses to the Federal Assembly (2000-2014), Foreign Policy Concepts of the Russian Federation (2000, 2008), Russian maritime doctrines, as wells as Dugin’s Osnovy Geopolitiki (Foundations of Geopolitics), Mahan’s (The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660–1783) and other Eurasianism related literature.