The effect of Schistosoma mansoni infection on child morbidity in the State in Bahia, Brazil: II — Analysis at the individual level

The present investigation was carried out on a sample of 840 children (5 to 16 years old) from ten small towns of the State of Bahia in northeastern Brazil. The objetive was to study, by using a cross sectional methodology, the evolution of schistosomiasis morbidity (hepatic and splenic enlargement) in children, and the role of the intensity of S. mansoni infection in this process. The children were analised in three age groups (5 to 8, to 12 and 13 to 16 years old) and classified as uninfected, mildly infected, moderately infected and heavily infected according to the number of eggs in the stool. In children aged 5 to 8 years, increasing egg counts were not associated with increasing frequencies of hepatic or splenic enlargement. In the 9 to 12 years old group and association was observed with the prevalence of hepatic enlargement, but not with the prevalence of spleen enlargement. In the oldest group, 13 to 16 years old, an association was observed with the prevalence of enlargement of both organs. It was evident that in this population schistosomiasis morbidity develops in the early period of life as a gradual process starting with liver enlargement and followed by spleen enlargement some years later. It was found that the intensity of infection has a fundamental role in this process, although there is a latent period of some years before clinical splenomegaly appears in moderate-heavily infected children. The Authors suggest that the prevalence of splenomegaly in the 13 to 16 years old group is a good measure of the community level of schistosomiasis morbidity and could be used to measure the impact of control programs.

Clinical and immunopathological spectrum of American cutaneous leishmaniasis with special reference to the disease in Amazonian Brazil: a review

The wide variety of Leishmania species responsible for human American cutaneous leishmaniasis combined with the immune mechanisms of the host results in a large spectrum of clinical, histopathological, and immunopathological manifestations. At the middle of this spectrum are the most frequent cases of localized cutaneous leishmaniasis (LCL) caused by members of the subgenera Leishmania and Viannia, which respond well to conventional therapy. The two pathogenicity extremes of the spectrum generally recognized are represented at the hypersensitivity pole by mucocutaneous leishmaniasis (MCL) and at the hyposensitivity pole by anergic diffuse cutaneous leishmaniasis (ADCL). Following the present study on the clinical, histopathological and immunopathological features of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Amazonian Brazil, we propose the use of the term "borderline disseminated cutaneous leishmaniasis" for the disseminated form of the disease, due to parasites of the subgenera Leishmania and Viannia, which might be regarded as intermediate between LCL and the extreme pathogenicity poles MCL and ADCL.

POPULATION STRUCTURE AND SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF Bauhinia cheilantha (Bong.) Steud. IN TWO FRAGMENTS AT DIFFERENT REGENERATION STAGES IN THE CAATINGA, IN SERGIPE, BRAZIL

ABSTRACTThis study aimed to analyze the vertical and diameter structure and the spatial distribution pattern of Bauhinia cheilantha in two Caatinga fragments in Sergipe, Brazil, at different regeneration stages. Thirty plots were demarcated in area I (Canindé de São Francisco and Poço Redondo), which has vegetation regeneration, and 25 plots in area II (Porto da Folha) with preserved vegetation, both having 400 m2. All B. cheilanthaindividuals had their height and circumference (circumference at breast height > 6 cm) measured. Possible differences in height and diameter at breast height were tested in the two populations by using Student’s T-test. The distribution pattern of species was calculated through Payandeh’s index. We sampled 154 B. cheilantha individuals, equivalent to 33.3% of the plots in area I and in 1,027 individuals in area II, totaling 100% frequency. Height and the diameter of the two populations were statistically different, where AI achieved all values lower than AII. The spatial distribution pattern of B. cheilantha found in both areas was aggregate, with values of 11.85 and 9.00, respectively. Thus, it became clear that the population in AII is at a more advanced successional status than AI, due to its longer conservation time.

O latim no contexto letrado do Brasil Colonial

O Grupo de Pesquisa A Escrita no Brasil Colonial estuda, ao longo dos últimos dez anos, documentos literários e não literários no contexto lusitano e brasileiro dos séculos XVI ao XVIII. Há muitos registros de textos escritos em latim, nessa época, que dialogam com os problemas da terra, da literatura, da religião, das atividades artesanais e que foram produzidos tanto tanto em manifestações coletivas, como as academias histórico-literárias, quanto individualmente, por autores que optaram por expor suas idéias nesse idioma. Apresentaremos, neste texto, alguns letrados do Brasil Colonial que recorreram ao latim como expressão literária.

The library in colonial New York,

Mode of access: Internet.

Mites on Annonaceae species in northeast Brazil and in the state of Para

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Dung beetle assemblages (Coleoptera, Scarabaeinae) in Atlantic forest fragments in southern Brazil

Dung beetle assemblages (Coleoptera, Scarabaeinae) in Atlantic forest fragments in southern Brazil. The beetles of the subfamily Scarabaeinae are important organisms that participate in the cycle of decomposition, especially in tropical ecosystems. Most species feed on feces (dung) or carcasses (carrion) and are associated with animals that produce their food resources. Dung beetles are divided into three functional groups: rollers, tunnelers and dwellers. This present work aims to study the diversity of dung beetle communities inhabiting fragments of the Atlantic Forest, with the purpose of describing the ecology of the species in southern Brazil. This study was conducted in the region of Campos Novos, in Santa Catarina, where twenty sites of Atlantic forest fragments were sampled. Samplings of dung beetles were conducted using 200 pitfall traps, of which 100 were baited with human feces and another 100 with carrion. Size and environmental complexity were also measured for each forest fragment. A total of 1,502 dung beetles, belonging to six tribes, 12 genera and 33 species, were collected. Results of the Levin's index of niche breadth indicated that 11 species were categorized as being coprophagous, ten as generalists, and two as necrophagous. Most species are tunnelers (19), nine of rollers and four of dwellers. The great diversity of Scarabaeinae in the region of Campos Novos, including several rare species, adds important data to the Scarabaeinae fauna in the central-western region of Santa Catarina. It may also help choosing priority areas for conservation in the region, where human impact, with large areas of monoculture, increasingly threatens the fragments of Mixed Ombrophilous Forest.

Arquitetura, cidade e território no Brasil colonial: a contribuição dos carmelitas calçados da Bahia e Pernambuco (1580-1800)

This study investigates the religious group named 'shoe wearing carmelites' (or Calced Carmelites) from Brazil´s Order of Carmo, from 1580 until 1800, in the Capitaincy of Bahia de Todos os Santos (Recôncavo, city of Salvador and Sergipe) and in the Capitaincy of Pernambuco (Alagoas, Pernambuco and Itamaracá). The study does not include the religious group known as the 'Reformed' Carmelites from Goiana, Recife and Paraíba convents. The Order of Carmo is a religious order from the Roman Catholic Church, founded in the 12th century. By the 16th century they were split into 'Calced' and 'Discalced'. In 1580 the Calced ones came from Portugal to Brazil, built convents in urban areas and were able to acquire slaves, farms and other assets. As any other religious order, the Carmelites had their modus operandi. This work emphasizes the way they operated or acted in the city, either individually or in association with other Carmelite religious foundations elsewhere (networking). Their action affected, although indirectly, the building of some specific aspects of the architecture, the city and the territory in colonial Brazil. The main objective of this study is to demonstrate the impact of the Calced Carmelites from Bahia and Pernambuco upon the territory of colonial Brazil, which is analyzed according to three scales: 1) the region or interurban; 2) the city or intraurban; 3) the building or the architecture. The research employs the comparative method of analysis, especially for the architectural scale. The work demonstrates that although not acting as architects or urbanists, the Carmelites contributed to the formation of the colonial territory of Brazil, behaving as a well-articulated and hierarchized religious network, from an economic and social perspective. Moreover, they influenced the emergence and growth of several colonial urban nuclei, from Bahia to Pernambuco, mainly in the surroundings of their religious buildings. Finally, it is very clear this religious order’s contribution to colonial architecture, as it can be seen by the architectural characteristics of the convents and churches which have been analyzed, many of which still stand in a good state of conservation nowadays.

Mundo de medo: inquisição e cristãos-novos nos espaços coloniais capitanias de Pernambuco, Itamaracá e Paraíba (1593-1595)

Founded in 1536, the Court of the Holy Office of the Portuguese Inquisition was established as an ecclesiastical institution, but at the same time subordinate to the real powers. Among the main victims of persecution effected by the Holy Office, were the New Christians - Jews forcibly converted in 1497 or their descendants - that due to their socio-religious were repeatedly accused of heresy. This paper conducted a survey that sought to understand the historical performance of the Inquisition in Brazil in the sixteenth century on the New Christians, especially those accused of secretly retaining the religious customs of the Mosaic law, given the investigative and punitive procedures employed by the Inquisition as part of a set of actions that produce social insecurities and producers / broadcasters of fear in the populations under scrutiny. In this sense, the approach was based on the analysis of documents produced on the first visit of inspection performed in Brazil inquisitorial sixteenth century, concerning the captaincy of Pernambuco and Paraiba Itamaracá (1593-1595), not excluding, however, the sources of the first stage of visitation that occurred between 1591-1593 in the province of Bahia de Todos os Santos, even though its use is ancillary and punctual. The objective of this research was to understand the consequences of inquisitorial procedures generated on the imaginary, and the Inquisition, using the expressions and signs of fears relating to individuals contained in the New Christian complaints to the Holy Office as documentary evidence of the fear caused by the Holy Tribunal. The adoption of specific behaviors by the New Christians in the home - these spaces are appropriate and adapted to the detriment of the religious practices of Judaism features - characterizes the spatial perspective of the study, thus indicating a further objective of the study: to understand how the New Christians experienced domestic spaces in a historical context marked by behavioral surveillance generally considered morally condemned and suspected of heresy. The research was conducted to analyze the complaints and quantitative survey of some indices of documentation for the understanding of overall charges and how individuals New Christians were concerned with the domestic space, using them to maintain criptojudaica religiosity, transformed places housing often esnogas, makeshift synagogue for meetings and celebrations of Judaizing New Christians. The formulations of Michel de Certeau on appropriations and meanings of space - presented by the author in the metaphor of "practice areas" - were integrated into the workforce in order to understand the ways in which the New Christians appropriated the colonial houses, designed these spaces a very specific language in the Crypto, in which women are prominent figures. The works of Jean Delumeau and Bartholomé Benassar integrate the discussion of the Inquisition and the sensibilities of fear in the work performed. The analysis allowed the documentation to understand the meaning and the extent related to the general fear that the Inquisition represented. Some complaints are indicative of fears that can be perceived implicitly based on behaviors and attitudes adopted by the New Christians, others, however, are direct expressions of fear caused by allusion or initiative of the actions of the Inquisition in colonial Brazil in the sixteenth century

Emerging Threats and Opportunities for Large-Scale Ecological Restoration in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil

Over the past 150 years, Brazil has played a pioneering role in developing environmental policies and pursuing forest conservation and ecological restoration of degraded ecosystems. In particular, the Brazilian Forest Act, first drafted in 1934, has been fundamental in reducing deforestation and engaging private land owners in forest restoration initiatives. At the time of writing (December 2010), however, a proposal for major revision of the Brazilian Forest Act is under intense debate in the National Assembly, and we are deeply concerned about the outcome. On the basis of the analysis of detailed vegetation and hydrographic maps, we estimate that the proposed changes may reduce the total amount of potential areas for restoration in the Atlantic Forest by approximately 6 million hectares. As a radically different policy model, we present the Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact (AFRP), which is a group of more than 160 members that represents one of the most important and ambitious ecological restoration programs in the world. The AFRP aims to restore 15 million hectares of degraded lands in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome by 2050 and increase the current forest cover of the biome from 17% to at least 30%. We argue that not only should Brazilian lawmakers refrain from revising the existing Forest Law, but also greatly step up investments in the science, business, and practice of ecological restoration throughout the country, including the Atlantic Forest. The AFRP provides a template that could be adapted to other forest biomes in Brazil and to other megadiversity countries around the world.

Recruitment and colonization of colonial ascidians (Tunicata: Ascidiacea) on intertidal rocks in Northeastern Brazil

Recruitment and colonization of colonial ascidians, starting on natural scraped substratum, was observed throughout one year, in quadrats marked on sea- and continental-rock faces in the sublittoral fringe of an exposed beach in the Northeast of Brazil. The species of the Didemnidae, Didemnum duplicatum Monniot, 1983, D. psammathodes Sluiter, 1895, and Polysyncraton amethysteum Van Name, 1902, and an unidentified species of Polycitoridae, Eudistoma sp. 1, were recruited. Presenting continuous recruitment of all species, the density of living and dead recruits and colonies was similar on both faces of the rocks. The highest rainfall during winter, affected significantly the recruits density of D. duplicatum and D. psammathodes. Different permanence periods were observed for colonies of each species. The longest permanence periods were assigned to the colonies of P. amethysteum and D. psammathodes, extending up to four and five months, respectively.

THE CONQUEST OF CENTRAL BRAZIL: FRONTIERS AND FRONTS PIONEERING IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

The process of territorial formation in Brazil is examined in this paper in order to establish, through a study that favors more interior region of Portuguese America, a suitable analytical arsenal geohistorica an interpretation of the built legacy of colonial Lusitanian action on American soil. Thus, it is expected to recover some aspects not yet addressed conclusively by the specialized literature, the importance of colonial territorial nexus in the construction and maintenance of the substrate material on which the new politically independent state would claim jurisdiction after 1822. Through the examination of so-called western border, articulated through the contacts held between the cities network of Goias and the strong, prisons, villages and towns planned in Mato Grosso, outline an interpretation of regional dynamics in the moments preceding the running of the Brazilian political emancipation.

[impact Variables On The Decline In Infant Mortality In The State Of São Paulo, Brazil: 1998-2008].

This is an ecological, analytical and retrospective study comprising the 645 municipalities in the State of São Paulo, the scope of which was to determine the relationship between socioeconomic, demographic variables and the model of care in relation to infant mortality rates in the period from 1998 to 2008. The ratio of average annual change for each indicator per stratum coverage was calculated. Infant mortality was analyzed according to the model for repeated measures over time, adjusted for the following correction variables: the city's population, proportion of Family Health Programs (PSFs) deployed, proportion of Growth Acceleration Programs (PACs) deployed, per capita GDP and SPSRI (São Paulo social responsibility index). The analysis was performed by generalized linear models, considering the gamma distribution. Multiple comparisons were performed with the likelihood ratio with chi-square approximate distribution, considering a significance level of 5%. There was a decrease in infant mortality over the years (p < 0.05), with no significant difference from 2004 to 2008 (p > 0.05). The proportion of PSFs deployed (p < 0.0001) and per capita GDP (p < 0.0001) were significant in the model. The decline of infant mortality in this period was influenced by the growth of per capita GDP and PSFs.

Molecular And Morphological Evidence Reveals A New Species In The Phyllomedusa Hypochondrialis Group (hylidae, Phyllomedusinae) From The Atlantic Forest Of The Highlands Of Southern Brazil.

The taxonomic status of a disjunctive population of Phyllomedusa from southern Brazil was diagnosed using molecular, chromosomal, and morphological approaches, which resulted in the recognition of a new species of the P. hypochondrialis group. Here, we describe P. rustica sp. n. from the Atlantic Forest biome, found in natural highland grassland formations on a plateau in the south of Brazil. Phylogenetic inferences placed P. rustica sp. n. in a subclade that includes P. rhodei + all the highland species of the clade. Chromosomal morphology is conservative, supporting the inference of homologies among the karyotypes of the species of this genus. Phyllomedusa rustica is apparently restricted to its type-locality, and we discuss the potential impact on the strategies applied to the conservation of the natural grassland formations found within the Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome in southern Brazil. We suggest that conservation strategies should be modified to guarantee the preservation of this species.

Behavioral Changes Caused By Austrodiplostomum Spp. In Hoplias Malabaricus From The São Francisco River, Brazil.

Traira (Hoplias malabaricus) is a neotropical fish that is widely distributed in freshwater environments in South America. In the present study, we documented the occurrence of metacercariae of Austrodiplostomum spp. (Diplostomidae) in the eyes and cranial cavity of H. malabaricus and described parasite-induced behavioral changes in the host. The fish were collected from the upper São Francisco River, in the Serra da Canastra mountain range, Minas Gerais, transported alive to the laboratory, observed for 2 weeks, and subsequently examined for parasites. Of the 35 fish examined, 28 (80 %) had free metacercariae in the vitreous humor (mean intensity=95.4; mean abundance=76.3), and 24 (68.57 %) had free metacercariae in the cranial cavity, mainly concentrated below the floor of the brain, at the height of the ophthalmic lobe (mean intensity=12.91; mean abundance=8.85). Specimens of H. malabaricus with a high intensity of infection in the brain displayed changes in swimming behavior.