Exploring physicochemical and cytogenomic diversity of African cowpea and common bean

In sub-Saharan Africa, grain legumes (pulses) are essential food sources and play an important role in sustainable agriculture. Among the major pulse crops, the native cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and introduced common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) stand out. This paper has two main goals. First, we provide a comprehensive view of the available genetic resources of these genera in Africa, including data on germplasm collections and mapping biodiversity-rich areas. Second, we investigate patterns of physicochemical and cytogenomic variation across Africa to explore the geographical structuring of variation between native and introduced beans. Our results revealed that 73 Vigna and 5 Phaseolus species occur in tropical regions of Africa, with 8 countries accounting for more than 20 native species. Conversely, germplasm collections are poorly represented when compared to the worldwide collections. Regarding the nuclear DNA content, on average, V. unguiculata presents significantly higher values than P. vulgaris. Also, V. unguiculata is enriched in B, Mg, S, and Zn, while P. vulgaris has more Fe, Ca, and Cu. Overall, our study suggests that the physicochemical and cytogenomic diversity of native Vigna species is higher than previously thought, representing valuable food resources to reduce food insecurity and hunger, particularly of people living in African developing countriesinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Parasitas zoonóticos em fezes de cães em praças públicas do município de Itabuna, Bahia, Brasil

Avaliou-se a contaminação de praças públicas da área urbana do município de Itabuna, BA, Brasil, por parasitos zoonóticos presentes em fezes de cães. Foram coletadas 119 amostras fecais de cães em 10 praças. Logo após, estas fezes foram encaminhadas ao Laboratório de Parasitologia da UESC e analisadas pelo método de Mariano e Carvalho. Do total das amostras analisadas, 56,3% continham alguma forma evolutiva parasitária, sendo o parasita mais freqüente Ancylostoma sp. com 47,9%, seguido por 6,7% de Strongyloides stercortalis, 4,2% tanto para ovos de Toxocara canis quanto de Trichuris vulpis, 2,5% para cistos de Endolimax nana, e 0,8% tanto para cistos de Giardia intestinalis quanto para os de Entamoeba coli

Phenolic compounds from Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) attenuate oxidative stress and reduce blood cholesterol concentrations in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats

Abstract Background Phenolic compounds combine antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic activities and, consequently, are expected to prevent or minimize cardiometabolic risk. Methods To evaluate the effect of an aqueous extract (AQ) and non-esterified phenolic fraction (NEPF) from rosemary on oxidative stress in diet-induced hypercholesterolemia, 48 male 4-week old Wistar rats were divided into 6 groups: 1 chow diet group (C) and 5 hypercholesterolemic diet groups, with 1 receiving water (HC), 2 receiving AQ at concentrations of 7 and 140 mg/kg body weight (AQ70 and AQ140, respectively), and 2 receiving NEPF at concentrations of 7 and 14 mg/kg body weight (NEPF7 and NEPF14, respectively) by gavage for 4 weeks. Results In vitro, both AQ and NEPF had remarkable antioxidant activity in the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH●) assay, which was similar to BHT. In vivo, the group that received AQ at 70 mg/kg body weight had lower serum total cholesterol (−39.8%), non-HDL-c (−44.4%) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) levels (−37.7%) compared with the HC group. NEPF (7 and 14 mg/kg) reduced the tissue TBARS levels and increased the activity of tissular antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase). Neither AQ nor NEPF was able to ameliorate the alterations in the hypercholesterolemic diet-induced fatty acid composition in the liver. Conclusions These data suggest that phenolic compounds from rosemary ameliorate the antioxidant defense in different tissues and attenuate oxidative stress in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats, whereas the serum lipid profile was improved only in rats that received the aqueous extract

Malformação de Chiari tipo I: relato de dois casos com apresentações clínicas pouco usuais Type I Chiari malformation: report of two cases with unusual clinical presentation

Relatamos dois casos de malformação de Chiari do tipo 1, com apresentações clínicas pouco usuais. O primeiro caso refere-se a uma paciente de 17 anos, com quadro agudo de insuficiência respiratória e o segundo caso a uma paciente com síndrome vestibular associada a síndrome cerebelar leve e cefaléia. Em ambos os casos o exame neurológico demonstrou a presença de nistagmo do tipo "downbeating". Enfatizamos a valorização da semiologia neurológica, determinando a investigação complementar adequada e o tratamento efetivo.<br>We describe two patients with Chiari type I malformation with unusual clinical presentation. The first one with clinical picture of acute respiratory insuficiency and the second one with vestibular and mild cerebellar syndrome and headache. In both cases the neurological examination demonstrated the presence of "downbeating nystagmus". We emphasize the value of neurological semiology, determining a correct complementary evaluation and effective treatment