Candomblé

.MEDEIROS, José. Candomblé. São Paulo, Insituto Moreira Salles, 2009, 110 pp.O contexto do livro de fotografias, Can-domblé, de José Medeiros começa seis anos an-tes de sua primeira edição no distante ano de1951, momento em que a revista francesa ParisMatch levou às suas páginas certa matéria jor-nalística com farto material fotográfico realiza-do por Henri-George Clouzot, intitulada “LesPossédées de Bahia” (As Possuídas da Bahia)apresentando em suas linhas claro caráter pre-conceituoso contra o candomblé1, polêmicaque não tardou para que intelectuais como Ro-ger Bastide realizassem severas críticas

\"We did not come to an alliance\": faces of the conflict between adherents of pentecostals and afro-brazilian religions

A exacerbação da beligerância contra as religiões afro-brasileiras, seus adeptos e símbolos, é uma das faces do pentecostalismo que nas últimas duas décadas e meia tem ganho amplo destaque no debate público brasileiro. Blogueiros e jornalistas, militantes do movimento negro e de outros movimentos sociais, assim como delegados, advogados, juízes, sociólogos e antropólogos têm participado ativamente desse fenômeno que já possui agenda própria de investigação nas ciências sociais desde a década de 1990. Observar como os cientistas sociais abordaram este tema até o final da década de 2000 e analisar um estudo de caso, também ocorrido no final desta década, são os principais empreendimentos que esta investigação visa realizar. Para tanto, construo no corpo deste trabalho duas partes inter-relacionadas que analisam algumas faces deste tema de pesquisa que ficou conhecido como \"o conflito entre adeptos das religiões pentecostais e afro-brasileiras\" na esfera pública brasileira. Na primeira parte desta investigação, constituída na forma de um balanço teórico, procuro apresentar como os termos \"guerra santa\" e \"intolerância religiosa\" são centrais nos principais trabalhos que versaram sobre o tema ou o tangenciaram de tal forma que contribuíram para a constituição desse fenômeno com uma agenda própria. Na segunda parte desta investigação tomo como objeto privilegiado de pesquisa um estudo de caso exemplar do conflito entre pentecostais e religiões afro-brasileiras, ocorrido em junho de 2008 na cidade do Rio de Janeiro, quando quatro jovens \"invadem\" um centro espírita no bairro do Catete, suscitando amplo debate sobre o tema, que tem na prática discursiva dos mais diversos atores sociais a presença constante dos termos \"intolerância religiosa\", \"liberdade religiosa\" e \"liberdade de expressão religiosa\"The exacerbation of belligerence against afro-brazilian religions, their churchgoers and symbols, is one of the faces of pentecostalism in the past two and half decades has ample prominence in brazilian public debate. Bloggers and journalists, militant black movement and other social movements, as well as delegates, lawyers, judges, sociologists and anthropologists have actively participated in this phenomenon that already gets its own research agenda in the social sciences since the 1990s. Investigate how social scientists have addressed this phenomenon until the late 2000s and analyze a case study are the main projects that this research aims to accomplish. To do so, this work get two interdependent parties who seek to analyze some faces of this theme of research that became known as \"the conflict between adherents of pentecostal and afro-brazilian religions\" in the brazilian public sphere. In the first part of this investigation, constituted as a state-of-the-art, I try to make it clear that the terms \"guerra santa\" and \"religious intolerance\" are central to the principal investigations of around the theme, which contributed to the establishment of this phenomenon with its own research agenda in the social sciences . In the second part of this research, I take as a privileged object of research a case study example of the conflict between pentecostals and afro-brazilian religions occurred in June 2008 in the city of Rio de Janeiro, when four young \"invade\" a spiritualist center in Catete, generating widespread debate on the issue, which has in the discursive practice of many social actors the centrality of the terms \"religious intolerance\", \"religious liberty\" and \"freedom of religious expression\

Photoacoustic spectroscopy of aromatic amino acids in proteins

This paper concerns the use of photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) to study the presence of aromatic amino acid in proteins. We examined the aromatic amino acids in six proteins with well-known structures using absorption spectra of near ultraviolet PAS over the wavelength range 240-320 nm. The fundamental understanding of the physical and chemical properties that govern the absorption of light and a subsequent release of heat to generate a transient pressure wave was used to test the concept of monitoring aromatic amino acids with this method. Second derivative spectroscopy in the ultraviolet region of proteins was also used to study the regions surrounding the aromatics and the percentage area in each band was related in order to determine the contribution in function of the respective molar extinction coefficients for each residue. Further investigation was conducted into the interaction between sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) and bothropstoxin-I (BthTx-I), with the purpose of identifying the aromatics that participate in the interaction. The clear changes in the second derivative and curve-fitting procedures suggest that initial SDS binding to the tryptophan located in the dimer interface and above 10 SDS an increased intensity between 260 and 320 nm, demonstrating that the more widespread tyrosine and phenylalanine residues contribute to the SDS/BthTx-I interactions. These results demonstrate the potential of near UV-PAS for the investigation of membrane proteins/detergent complexes in which light scattering is significant

A micelle nucleation model for the interaction of dodecyl sulphate with Lys49-phospholipases A(2)

Bothropstoxin-I (BthTx-I) is a Lys49-PLA(2) from the venom of Bothrops jararacussu that lacks detectable catalytic activity, yet causes rapid Ca2+-independent membrane damage. With the aim of understanding the interaction between BthTx-I and amphiphilic molecules, we have studied the interaction of sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) with the protein. Circular dichroism and attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared spectra of BthTx-I reveal changes in the alpha-helical organization of the protein at an SDS/BthTx-I molar ratio of 20-25. At SDS/BthTx-I ratios of 40-45 the alpha-helices return to a native-like conformation, although fluorescence emission anisotropy measurements of 2-amino-N-hexadecyl-benzamide (AHBA) demonstrate that the total SDS is below the critical micelle concentration when this transition occurs. These results may be interpreted as the result of SDS accumulation by the BthTx-I homodimer and the formation of a pre-micelle SDS/BthTx-I complex, which may subsequently be released from the protein surface as a free micelle. Similar changes in the alpha-helical organization of BthTx-I were observed in the presence of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes, suggesting that protein structure transitions coupled to organization changes of bound amphiphiles may play a role in the Ca2+-independent membrane damage by Lys49-PLA(2)s. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

An ultraviolet photoacoustic spectroscopy study of the interaction between Lys49-phospholipase A(2) and amphiphilic molecules

We have used near ultraviolet photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) over the wavelength range 240-320 nm to investigate the complex formed between the homodimeric bothropstoxin-I, a lysine-49-phospholipase A(2) from the venom of Bothrops jararacussu (BthTx-I), with the anionic amphiphile sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). At molar ratios > 10, the complex developed a significant light scatter, accompanied by a decrease in the intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence intensity emission (ITFE) of the protein, and an increase in the near UV-PAS signal. Difference PAS spectroscopy at SDS/BthTx-I ratios 10, the intensity between 260 and 320 nm increases demonstrating that the more widespread tyrosine and phenylalanine residues contribute to the SDS/BthTx-I interaction. PAS signal phase changes at wavelengths specific for each aromatic residue suggest that the Trp77 becomes more buried on SDS binding, and that protein structural changes and dehydration may alter the microenvironments of Tyr and Phe residues. These results demonstrate the potential of near UV-PAS for the investigation of membrane proteins/detergent complexes in which light scatter is significant. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Understanding the Formation of the Self-Assembly of Colloidal Copper Nanoparticles by Surfactant: A Molecular Velcro

Self-assembly procedure is employed to synthesize colloidal copper nanoparticles (ccNPs) with cationic surfactant in an environmentally friendly method. Scanning electron microscopy images provide a clear view of the ccNPs formed having an approximate size of 15 nm. The X-ray diffraction reveals that the ccNPs have the two types of copper oxide as well as the metallic copper. The new procedure shows that the cationic surfactant CTAB plays an important role in the understanding and development of self-assembly. There is a strong relationship between the ccNPs formation with the critical micelle concentration of the CTAB which influences both shape and size. The outcomes allowed the development of a molecular model for the ccNPs synthesis showing that the CTAB monomer on the surface has the function of a molecular velcro making the linkage of ccNPs to form an agglomerate with size around 600 nm. Finally, with the emerging new technologies, the synthesis of copper oxide takes a new perspective for their applicability in diverse integrated areas such as the flexible electronics and energy