Spontaneous perirenal hematoma in a lupic patient on haemodialysis treatment and with renal cysts

The spontaneous perirenal hemorrhage usually presents as sudden pain in the side ipsilateral, no history of trauma. Acquired cystic kidney disease is a common finding in chronic hemodialysis patients. However, spontaneous bleeding from the rupture of the cyst is a rare clinical entity. We describe the case of a female patient, 45 years old, with controlled hypertension for 8 years, chronic renal failure for 15 years and lupus nephritis 2 years ago, undergoing hemodialysis three times a week since 2006, and who presented concurrently acquired cystic kidney disease. She was admitted to the emergency department complaining of sudden onset of pain in the thoraco-abdominal left. Perirenal hematoma was diagnosed by ultrasound and computed tomography of the abdomen. The patient underwent embolization of left renal artery, with good evolution.A hemorragia perirrenal espontânea apresenta-se mais comumente como dor súbita no flanco ipsilateral, sem história de trauma. A doença renal cística adquirida é um achado frequente em pacientes sob tratamento hemodialítico crônico. Entretanto, a hemorragia espontânea proveniente da ruptura dos cistos é uma entidade clínica rara. Descrevemos o caso de uma paciente do sexo feminino, 45 anos, portadora de hipertensão arterial sistêmica controlada há 8 anos, de insuficiência renal crônica por 15 anos e de nefrite lúpica há 2 anos, em tratamento hemodialítico três vezes por semana desde 2006, e que apresentava concomitantemente doença renal cística adquirida. Foi admitida no setor de emergência queixando-se de aparecimento súbito de dor em região toracoabdominal esquerda. Diagnosticou-se hematoma perirrenal por meio de ultrassonografia e tomografia computadorizada de abdômen. A paciente foi submetida à embolização da artéria renal esquerda, com boa evolução.Escola Paulista de MedicinaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL

Chemical constituents of methanolic extracts of Jatropha curcas L and effects on Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The biological activity of seven extracts from leaves of different Jatropha curcas L (Euphorbiaceae) accessions was evaluated on Spodoptera frugiperda. Methanol extracts were incorporated into an artificial diet and offered to the larval stage of S. frugiperda. The parameters evaluated were length of larval and pupal stages, mortality of larval and total cycle stage, and weight of pupae. The extracts of the EMB accessions showed the best result for larval mortality at 60.00 and 56.67%, compared with the control, respectively. Hexane partition of the methanol extract of the leaves of PM-14 accessions allowed the identification of phytosterols, phytol and n-alkanols

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Supporting Physiological Trait for Indirect Selection for Grain Yield in Drought-Stressed Popcorn

The identification of traits associated with drought tolerance in popcorn is a contribution to support selection of superior plants under soil water deficit. The objective of this study was to choose morphological traits and the leaf greenness index, measured on different dates, to estimate grain yield (GY) and popping expansion (PE), evaluated in a set of 20 popcorn lines with different genealogies, estimated by multiple regression models. The variables were divided into three groups: morpho-agronomic traits—100-grain weight (GW), prolificacy (PR), tassel length (TL), number of tassel branches, anthesis-silking interval, leaf angle (FA) and leaf rolling (FB); variables related to the intensity of leaf greenness during the grain-filling period, at the leaf level, measured by a portable chlorophyll meter (SPAD) and at the canopy level, calculated as the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). The inbred lines were cultivated under two water conditions: well-watered (WW), maintained at field capacity, and water stress (WS), for which irrigation was stopped before male flowering. The traits GY (55%) and PE (28%) were most affected by water restriction. Among the morpho-agronomic traits, GW and PR were markedly reduced (>10%). Under dry conditions, the FA in relation to the plant stalk tended to be wider, the FB curvature greater and leaf senescence accelerated (>15% at 22 days after male flowering). The use of multiple regression for the selection of predictive traits proved to be a useful tool for the identification of groups of adequate traits to efficiently predict the economically most important features of popcorn (GY and PE). The SPAD index measured 17 days after male flowering proved useful to select indirectly for GY, while, among the morphological traits, TL stood out for the same purpose. Of all traits, PR was most strongly related with PE under WS, indicating its use in breeding programs. The exploitation of these traits by indirect selection is expected to induce increments in GY and PE

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved