Práticas Organizacionais e Estrutura de Relações no Campo do Desenvolvimento Metropolitano

The aim of this study is to examine the relationships between the organizations responsible for urban planning in the towns of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba, Brazil, and how these relationships influence urban development practices. In the article we establish a definition of organizational practices in accordance with social practices and, empirically, we enquire how the urbanism model of the capital city of Paraná State impacts on the towns in the region. The theoretical frame of reference is characterized by the institutional theory in its structurationist approach. When describing the research strategy, we outline the relationships between the organizations of the towns of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba through a social network analysis. Meanwhile, the urban development practices were identified based on secondary data and statements by 62 public managers. The results show a low density in direct relationships between town halls, with the network becoming more dense when State Government departments are involved. Despite the low level of direct influence of Curitiba’s urbanism on the other towns of the metropolitan region, characteristics of domination, signification and legitimization reveal some isomorphic practices and the presence of Brazilian cultural factors influencing the way public organizations act

Long term betaine supplementation regulates genes involved in lipid and cholesterol metabolism of two muscles from an obese pig breed

This study evaluates the effects of betaine supplementation (1 g kg−1 for 20 weeks) on the regulation of genes involved in lipid and cholesterol metabolism of Longissimus lumborum and Biceps femoris from obese Alentejano pigs. Betaine supplementation led to an increase in total cholesterol in both muscles, complementing results previously published indicating a significant increase on the intramuscular lipid content. The expression of twelve genes involved in lipogenesis, lipolysis/FA oxidation, FA transport, and cholesterol metabolism, as well as two transcription factors were also evaluated. Genes related to lipid and cholesterol synthesis plus FA transport were consistently up-regulated in both muscles of betaine fed pigs. On the other hand, genes related to lipolysis/FA oxidation were not affected or down-regulated by betaine supplementation. Our data suggest that the underlying mechanism regulating IMF and cholesterol accumulation in Alentejano pigs supplemented with betaine is associated with the up-regulation of genes involved in lipid synthesis, FA transport, and cholesterol synthesis

Determinants of the Sympatric Host-Pathogen Relationship in Tuberculosis

Major contributions from pathogen genome analysis and host genetics have equated the possibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis co-evolution with its human host leading to more stable sympatric host-pathogen relationships. However, the attribution to either sympatric or allopatric categories depends on the resolution or grain of genotypic characterization. We explored the influence on the sympatric host-pathogen relationship of clinical (HIV infection and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis [MDRTB]) and demographic (gender and age) factors in regards to the genotypic grain by using spacer oligonucleotide typing (spoligotyping) for classification of M. tuberculosis strains within the Euro-American lineage. We analyzed a total of 547 tuberculosis (TB) cases, from six year consecutive sampling in a setting with high TB-HIV coinfection (32.0%). Of these, 62.0% were caused by major circulating pathogen genotypes. The sympatric relationship was defined according to spoligotype in comparison to the international spoligotype database SpolDB4. While no significant association with Euro-American lineage was observed with any of the factors analyzed, increasing the resolution with spoligotyping evidenced a significant association of MDRTB with sympatric strains, regardless of the HIV status. Furthermore, distribution curves of the prevalence of sympatric and allopatric TB in relation to patients' age showed an accentuation of the relevance of the age of onset in the allopatric relationship, as reflected in the trimodal distribution. On the contrary, sympatric TB was characterized by the tendency towards a typical (standard) distribution curve. Our results suggest that within the Euro-American lineage a greater degree of genotyping fine-tuning is necessary in modeling the biological processes behind the host-pathogen interplay. Furthermore, prevalence distribution of sympatric TB to age was suggestive of host genetic determinisms driven by more common variants.Luso-American Development Foundation: (LACR Award program - 2007), European Community fund: (FEDER)

Geoclimatic, demographic and socioeconomic characteristics related to dengue outbreaks in Southeastern Brazil: an annual spatial and spatiotemporal risk model over a 12-year period

Dengue fever is re-emerging worldwide, however the reasons of this new emergence are not fully understood. Our goal was to report the incidence of dengue in one of the most populous States of Brazil, and to assess the high-risk areas using a spatial and spatio-temporal annual models including geoclimatic, demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. An ecological study with both, a spatial and a temporal component was carried out in Sao Paulo State, Southeastern Brazil, between January 1st, 2007 and December 31st, 2019. Crude and Bayesian empirical rates of dengue cases following by Standardized Incidence Ratios (SIR) were calculated considering the municipalities as the analytical units and using the Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation in a Bayesian context. A total of 2,027,142 cases of dengue were reported during the studied period. The spatial model allocated the municipalities in four groups according to the SIR values: (I) SIR<0.8; (II) SIR 0.8<1.2; (III) SIR 1.2<2.0 and SIR>2.0 identified the municipalities with higher risk for dengue outbreaks. “Hot spots” are shown in the thematic maps. Significant correlations between SIR and two climate variables, two demographic variables and one socioeconomical variable were found. No significant correlations were found in the spatio-temporal model. The incidence of dengue exhibited an inconstant and unpredictable variation every year. The highest rates of dengue are concentrated in geographical clusters with lower surface pressure, rainfall and altitude, but also in municipalities with higher degree of urbanization and better socioeconomic conditions. Nevertheless, annual consolidated variations in climatic features do not influence in the epidemic yearly pattern of dengue in southeastern Brazil

Food bioactive compounds and emerging techniques for their extraction: Polyphenols as a case study

Experimental studies have provided convincing evidence that food bioactive compounds (FBCs) have a positive biological impact on human health, exerting protective effects against noncommunicable diseases (NCD) including cancer and cardiovascular (CVDs), metabolic, and neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs). These benefits have been associated with the presence of secondary metabolites, namely polyphenols, glucosinolates, carotenoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, saponins, vitamins, and fibres, among others, derived from their antioxidant, antiatherogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antithrombotic, cardioprotective, and vasodilator properties. Polyphenols as one of the most abundant classes of bioactive compounds present in plant-based foods emerge as a promising approach for the development of efficacious preventive agents against NCDs with reduced side effects. The aim of this review is to present comprehensive and deep insights into the potential of polyphenols, from their chemical structure classification and biosynthesis to preventive effects on NCDs, namely cancer, CVDs, and NDDS. The challenge of polyphenols bioavailability and bioaccessibility will be explored in addition to useful industrial and environmental applications. Advanced and emerging extraction techniques will be highlighted and the high-resolution analytical techniques used for FBCs characterization, identification, and quantification will be considered.FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) through the CQM Base Fund-UIDB/00674/ 2020, the Programmatic Fund- UIDP/00674/2020, and the PhD fellowship SFRH/BD/116895/2016 granted to João Gonçalves. Madeira 14–20 Program, project PROEQUIPRAM-Reforço do Investimento em Equipamentos e Infraestruturas Científicas RAM (M1420-01-0145-FEDER-000008), ARDITIAgência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação through the project M1420-01-0145-FEDER-000005-Centro de Química da Madeira-CQM+ (Madeira 14–20 Program) and Project M1420-09-5369-FSE-000001 for the Post-Doctoral fellowship granted to JAMP. Núcleo Regional da Madeira da Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro (NRM-LPCC) for the professional internship granted to Joselin Aguiar. FCT for financial support by national funds FCT/MCTES to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020). National funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program-contract for L. Barros, and B.R. Albuquerque research grant (SFRH/BD/136370/2018). European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Regional Operational Program North 2020, within the scope of the project Mobilizador Norte-01-0247-FEDER-024479: ValorNatural®. FEDER-Interreg España-Portugal programme for financial support through the project 0377_Iberphenol_ 6_E and TRANSCoLAB 0612_TRANS_CO_LAB_2_P. R.C.G. Corrêa is a research grant recipient of Cesumar Institute of Science Technology and Innovation (ICETI).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Acute Conjunctivitis with Episcleritis and Anterior Uveitis Linked to Adiaspiromycosis and Freshwater Sponges, Amazon Region, Brazil, 2005

Medscape, LLC is pleased to provide online continuing medical education (CME) for this journal article, allowing clinicians the opportunity to earn CME credit. This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint sponsorship of Medscape, LLC and Emerging Infectious Diseases. Medscape, LLC is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide CME for physicians. Medscape, LLC designates this educational activity for a maximum of 0.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. All other clinicians completing this activity will be issued a certificate of participation. To participate in this journal CME activity: (1) review the learning objectives and author disclosures; (2) study the education content; (3) take the post-test and/or complete the evaluation at http://www.medscape.com/cme/eidExternal Web Site Icon; (4) view/print certificate.\ud Learning Objectives\ud \ud Upon completion of this activity, participants will be able to:\ud \ud Describe the mechanism of infection for adiaspiromycosis.\ud Identify the age group most susceptible to ocular adiaspiromycosis.\ud Describe presenting symptoms associated with ocular adiaspiromycosis.\ud Describe the frequency of ocular lesions associated with adiaspiromycosis.\ud Identify risk factors for ocular adiaspiromycosis

Human FOXN1-Deficiency Is Associated with αβ Double-Negative and FoxP3+ T-Cell Expansions That Are Distinctly Modulated upon Thymic Transplantation

Forkhead box N1 (FOXN1) is a transcription factor crucial for thymic epithelium development and prevention of its involution. Investigation of a patient with a rare homozygous FOXN1 mutation (R255X), leading to alopecia universalis and thymus aplasia, unexpectedly revealed non-maternal circulating T-cells, and, strikingly, large numbers of aberrant double-negative αβ T-cells (CD4negCD8neg, DN) and regulatory-like T-cells. These data raise the possibility that a thymic rudiment persisted, allowing T-cell development, albeit with disturbances in positive/negative selection, as suggested by DN and FoxP3+ cell expansions. Although regulatory-like T-cell numbers normalized following HLA-mismatched thymic transplantation, the αβDN subset persisted 5 years post-transplantation. Involution of thymus allograft likely occurred 3 years post-transplantation based on sj/βTREC ratio, which estimates intrathymic precursor T-cell divisions and, consequently, thymic explant output. Nevertheless, functional immune-competence was sustained, providing new insights for the design of immunological reconstitution strategies based on thymic transplantation, with potential applications in other clinical settings

Mutual information rate and bounds for it

The amount of information exchanged per unit of time between two nodes in a dynamical network or between two data sets is a powerful concept for analysing complex systems. This quantity, known as the mutual information rate (MIR), is calculated from the mutual information, which is rigorously defined only for random systems. Moreover, the definition of mutual information is based on probabilities of significant events. This work offers a simple alternative way to calculate the MIR in dynamical (deterministic) networks or between two data sets (not fully deterministic), and to calculate its upper and lower bounds without having to calculate probabilities, but rather in terms of well known and well defined quantities in dynamical systems. As possible applications of our bounds, we study the relationship between synchronisation and the exchange of information in a system of two coupled maps and in experimental networks of coupled oscillators