Biologia reprodutiva da surucucu Lachesis muta (Serpentes: Viperidae) da Floresta Atlântica brasileira

The Neotropical genus Lachesis Daudin, 1803 includes snakes restricted to the humid forests of Central and South America. The species L. muta is the most widely dispersed, occurring throughout the Amazon rainforest, and with an isolated population in the Atlantic Forest, from the north of the state of Ceará to the south of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We present information about the reproductive biology of L. muta from a large series of samples gathered in southern Bahia. Mature males L. muta are larger than females. Degree of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is 0.16. Vitellogenic follicles and eggs are not distributed equally throughout the year. Clutch size was 3–14 oviductal eggs and was positively correlated with female SVL. Testes volume and ductus deferens diameter in mature individuals did not vary significantly throughout the year. The reproductive pattern of L. muta differs from that of the phylogenetically related genera because L. muta is oviparous, and has a discontinuous cycle and reproductive synchrony between the sexes.O gênero Neotropical Lachesis Daudin, 1803 inclui serpentes restritas às florestas úmidas da América do Sul e Central. A espécie Lachesis muta é mais amplamente distribuída, ocorrendo em toda a Floresta Amazônica e com uma população isolada na Mata Atlântica, desde o norte do estado do Ceará, ao sul do estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Apresentamos informações sobre a biologia reprodutiva de L. muta a partir da análise de uma grande série de amostras recolhidas no sul da Bahia. Os machos maduros de L. muta foram maiores que as fêmeas. O grau de dimorfismo sexual (SSD) foi 0,16. Folículos vitelogênicos e ovos não foram distribuídos homogeneamente ao longo do ano. O tamanho da ninhada foi 3–14 ovos e positivamente correlacionado com o CRC das fêmeas. O volume testicular e o diâmetro dos ductos deferentes nos indivíduos maduros não apresentaram variação significativa ao longo do ano. O padrão reprodutivo de L. muta difere daquele de gêneros filogeneticamente relacionados, pois essa espécie é ovípara, tem ciclo descontínuo e sincronia reprodutiva entre os sexos

Antioxidant activity of Moringa oleifera tissue extracts

Moringa oleifera is an important source of antioxidants, tools in nutritional biochemistry that could be beneficial for human health; the leaves and flowers are used by the population with great nutritional importance. This work investigates the antioxidant activity of M. oleifera ethanolic (E1) and saline (E2) extracts from flowers (a), inflorescence rachis (b), seeds (c), leaf tissue (d), leaf rachis (e) and fundamental tissues of stem (f). The radical scavenging capacity (RSC) of extracts was determined using dot-blots on thin layer chromatography stained with a 0.4 mm 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) solution; spectrophotometric assays were recorded (515 nm). Antioxidant components were detected in all E1 and E2 from a, b and d. The best RSC was obtained with E1d; the antioxidants present in E2 reacted very slowly with DPPH. The chromatogram revealed by diphenylborinate-2-ethylamine methanolic solution showed that the ethanolic extract from the flowers, inflorescence rachis, fundamental tissue of stem and leaf tissue contained at least three flavonoids; the saline extract from the flowers and leaf tissue revealed at least two flavonoids. In conclusion, M. oleifera ethanolic and saline extracts contain antioxidants that support the use of the plant tissues as food sources.The authors acknowledge financial support from the Portuguese Fundacao para Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT) by the Post-doctoral grant SFRH/BPD/37349/2007. The Brazilian Programmes Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq) for research grants and fellowships (PMGP and LCBBC) and the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) are acknowledged for financial support

Isolation of a seed coagulant Moringa oleifera lectin

In this work hemagglutinating activity (HA) was investigated in distinct Moringa oleifera tissue extracts. A new lectin from seeds (cMoL) was purified and characterized; hemagglutinating and coagulating activities were evaluated. HA was detected in 0.15 M NaCl extracts from flowers and rachis inflorescence (5%, w/v), seeds, leaves, fundamental tissue of stem and steam bark (10%, w/v). cMoL isolated after saline extraction and guar gel column chromatography was active at pH range 4.0–9.0 agglutinating erythrocytes from rabbit and human blood types. Extracts of tissues and cMoL activities were carbohydrate inhibited; azocasein and asialofetuin abolished cMoL HA. The lectin was thermostable at 100 °C during 7 h. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reduced conditions revealed a main polypeptide band of 26.5 kDa; native basic cMoL was detected as a unique band. Seed lectin preparations and cMoL showed coagulant activity, similar to aluminium sulphate, the coagulant most widely used in water treatment.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Ciência e Tecnologia do Estado de Pernambuco (FACEPE)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Elite squash players nutrition knowledge and influencing factors

Background There is a reported mismatch between macronutrient consumption and contemporary macronutrient guidelines in elite standard squash players. Suboptimal dietary practices could be due to a lack of nutrition knowledge among players. Subsequently, the purpose of this study was to assess the sports nutrition knowledge of elite squash players through the Nutrition for Sport Knowledge Questionnaire (NSKQ) and provide an indication of whether players require nutrition support to increase their nutrition knowledge. Methods This cross-sectional study assessed the nutrition knowledge of 77 elite squash players via the NSKQ over the period of June 2020 to August 2020. Results Players conveyed average nutrition knowledge with a mean NSKQ score of 48.78 ± 10.06 (56.07% ± 11.56%). There were no significant differences in NSKQ score between male and female players (p = .532). There was found to be a weak positive association between world ranking and NSKQ score (r = .208) and age and NSKQ score (r = .281). Players who had a relevant undergraduate degree (e.g. BSc Sport & Exercise Science) had significantly greater NSKQ score than players with no relevant qualifications (p = .022). Players who consulted a sports nutritionist to obtain their main source of nutrition information were shown to have significantly greater knowledge than those who acquired knowledge from a sports scientist (p = .01) or the internet / social media (p = .007). Conclusions Players should consult with a sports nutritionist to increase their sport nutrition knowledge. Future research should quantify the effectiveness of a nutritional education intervention at increasing nutrition knowledge in players