Macroinvertebrates associated with bryophyta in a first-order Atlantic Forest stream

This study describes the composition and structure of the benthic community associated with bryophytes in a first-order stream, located in a biological reserve of the Atlantic Forest, during two seasons. During three months of the dry season of 2007 and three months of the rainy season of 2008, samples of bryophytes attached to stones were collected randomly, along a 100 m stream reach. The structure of the community was analyzed through the mean density of individuals, Shannon's diversity index, Pielou's evenness, family richness, dominance index, and the percentage of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (% EPT). Chironomidae larvae were dominant in the two periods of study, followed by Ceratopogonidae in the rainy season, and Naididae in the dry season. The orders EPT contributed 14 families. The results showed that bryophytes constitute suitable habitat which is able to shelter an abundant and diversified benthic fauna in a small extension of the stream. This habitat provides refuge during spates, and thus minimizes downstream transport of the macroinvertebrate fauna.

Monte Carlo Simulation of Bony Heterogeneity Effects on Dose Profile for Small Irradiation Field in Radiotherapy

In the radiotherapy treatment planning of a lesion located in the head region with small field radiation beams, the heterogeneity corrections play an important role. In this work, we investigated the influence of a bony heterogeneity on dose profile inside a soft tissue phantom containing a bony material. PDD curves were obtained by simulation using the Monte Carlo code EGSnrc and employing Eclipse® treatment planning system algorithms (Batho, Modified Batho, Equivalent TAR and Anisotropic Analytic Algorithm) for a 15 MV photon beam and field sizes of 2×2 and 10×10 cm2. The Equivalent TAR method exhibited better agreement with Monte Carlo simulations for the 2×2 cm2 field size. The magnitude of the effect on PDD due to the bony heterogeneity for 1×1, 2×2 and 10×10 cm2 field sizes increases to 10, 5 and 3%, respectively

Loss of 5'-Methylthioadenosine Phosphorylase (MTAP) is Frequent in High-Grade Gliomas; Nevertheless, it is Not Associated with Higher Tumor Aggressiveness.

The 5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase (MTAP) gene is located in the chromosomal region 9p21. MTAP deletion is a frequent event in a wide variety of human cancers; however, its biological role in tumorigenesis remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to characterize the MTAP expression profile in a series of gliomas and to associate it with patients' clinicopathological features. Moreover, we sought to evaluate, through glioma gene-edited cell lines, the biological impact of MTAP in gliomas. MTAP expression was evaluated in 507 glioma patients by immunohistochemistry (IHC), and the expression levels were associated with patients' clinicopathological features. Furthermore, an in silico study was undertaken using genomic databases totalizing 350 samples. In glioma cell lines, MTAP was edited, and following MTAP overexpression and knockout (KO), a transcriptome analysis was performed by NanoString Pan-Cancer Pathways panel. Moreover, MTAP's role in glioma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion was evaluated. Homozygous deletion of 9p21 locus was associated with a reduction of MTAP mRNA expression in the TCGA (The Cancer Genome Atlas) - glioblastoma dataset (p < 0.01). In addition, the loss of MTAP expression was markedly high in high-grade gliomas (46.6% of cases) determined by IHC and Western blotting (40% of evaluated cell lines). Reduced MTAP expression was associated with a better prognostic in the adult glioblastoma dataset (p < 0.001). Nine genes associated with five pathways were differentially expressed in MTAP-knockout (KO) cells, with six upregulated and three downregulated in MTAP. Analysis of cell proliferation, migration, and invasion did not show any significant differences between MTAP gene-edited and control cells. Our results integrating data from patients as well as in silico and in vitro models provide evidence towards the lack of strong biological importance of MTAP in gliomas. Despite the frequent loss of MTAP, it seems not to have a clinical impact in survival and does not act as a canonic tumor suppressor gene in gliomas

Comparative study on myelotoxic and antineoplastic action of Synadenium umbellatum, Vitis vinifera and Resveratrol

Cancer is one of the pathologies that most challenge medicine, not only because of the complexity of its development, but also because of the difficulty of treatment that is not always effective. Due to the significant toxicity and adverse effects profile presented by the main chemotherapeutic agents used to treat neoplasm, there is a constant interest in the search for new drugs that may be a more effective alternative. Therefore, the search for new compounds of plant origin becomes an interesting tool for the discovery of drugs with antitumor activity. Synadenium umbellatum is a plant native to tropical Africa known as “cola-nota”, “hazel”, “cancerous”, “miraculous”, among others. The plant is used by the Brazilian population as having anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antineoplastic properties, among others. However, the literature is lacking on reports of the toxicity of Synadenium umbellatum macerate. Resveratrol is a polyphenolic compound found in different plant species, mainly in grape species (Vitis) and their seeds. Vitis vinifera is a species of grape easily found in several regions, also containing a high concentrations of phenolic compounds, including resveratrol in its fruits, leaves and seeds. Therefore, this study was aimed to evaluate the myelotoxicity of macerate, extract and resveratrol and their antitumor activity in Balb/c mice with Ehrlich tumor. The hematological evaluation was obtained by flow cytometry and the tumors were measured using a pachymeter and the tumor masses by means of weighing. No statistically significant difference was observed between results from the control group and the treatment groups. It was concluded that macerate, crude extract and resveratrol did not demonstrate a myelotoxic effect and did not cause a decrease in tumor mass1928086sem informaçã

Fauna used in popular medicine in Northeast Brazil

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Animal-based remedies constitute an integral part of Brazilian Traditional Medicine. Due to its long history, zootherapy has in fact become an integral part of folk medicine both in rural and urban areas of the country. In this paper we summarize current knowledge on zootherapeutic practices in Northeast of Brazil, based on information compiled from ethnobiological scientific literature.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In order to examine the diversity of animals used in traditional medicine in Northeast of Brazil, all available references or reports of folk remedies based on animals sources were examined. 34 sources were analyzed. Only taxa that could be identified to species level were included in assessment of medicinal animal species. Scientific names provided in publications were updated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The review revealed that at least 250 animal species (178 vertebrates and 72 invertebrates) are used for medicinal purposes in Northeast of Brazil. The inventoried species comprise 10 taxonomic categories and belong to 141 Families. The groups with the greatest number of species were fishes (n = 58), mammals (n = 47) and reptiles (n = 37). The zootherapeutical products are used for the treatment of different illnesses. The most widely treated condition were asthma, rheumatism and sore throat, conditions, which had a wide variety of animals to treat them with. Many animals were used for the treatment of multiple ailments. Beyond the use for treating human diseases, zootherapeutical resources are also used in ethnoveterinary medicine</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The number of medicinal species catalogued was quite expressive and demonstrate the importance of zootherapy as alternative therapeutic in Northeast of Brazil. Although widely diffused throughout Brazil, zootherapeutic practices remain virtually unstudied. There is an urgent need to examine the ecological, cultural, social, and public health implications associated with fauna usage, including a full inventory of the animal species used for medicinal purposes and the socio-cultural context associated with their consumption.</p