Economic efficiency of Rhipicephalus microplus control and effect on beef cattle performance in the Brazilian Cerrado.

The cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus causes significant economic losses to cattle production systems and is a main barrier to the introduction of Bos taurus breeds and their crosses in Brazil. These breeds have the genetic potential to generate animals that are more productive, but they are also more susceptible to R. microplus. One of the alternatives for conventional tick control is the use of strategic control, aiming at delaying or even preventing the development of its resistance to acaricides. The present study aimed to evaluate the economic losses caused by tick infestation on the productive performance of two breeds of beef cattle and to evaluate the economic efficiency of tick strategic control and its impacts on beef cattle production systems. Animal weights were obtained from the literature and were used to calculate the weight loss in kilograms (kg) and the economic loss (US$) caused by R. microplus infestation. The cost/loss ratio of performing strategic control was also calculated. The data show that tick infestation causes economic losses to the breeds and groups of animals evaluated and reduces animal performance (weight loss). The results show a loss of US$34.61/animal in the backgrounding phase and US$7.97/animal in the finishing phase for Brangus animals and its crosses. In conclusion, the data show that strategic control is economically efficient for Brangus animals in the backgrounding phase, independent of the methods used for acaricide application

Método 'Impactos-Nanotec' para avaliação dos impactos ambientais: estudo de caso das nanotecnologias na agricultura.

Resumo: A Nanotecnologia está baseada na crescente capacidade da tecnologia moderna de manipular átomos e partículas em nanoescala, com aplicações em diversas áreas de atuação desde a medicina, meio ambiente e agricultura. Apesar das nanotecnologias apresentarem propriedades físicas específicas, a avaliação dos impactos associados ao seu emprego e liberação no meio ambiente ainda não é uma prática corrente. Neste cenário, o presente trabalho propõe o estudo de caso de nanopartículas na agricultura, através do levantamento de indicadores, utilizando uma metodologia empregada para estudo de transgênicos, adaptada para um novo software de avaliação de risco de nanoproduto

Nanotecnologia na agricultura: prospecção dos indicadores de impactos ambientais e sociais.

Resumo: A Nanotecnologia está baseada na crescente capacidade da tecnologia moderna de manipular átomos e partículas em nanoescala, com aplicações em diversas áreas de atuação, desde a medicina, meio ambiente e agricultura. Apesar das nanotecnologias apresentarem propriedades físicas específicas, a avaliação dos impactos associados ao seu emprego e liberação no meio ambiente ainda não é uma prática corrente. Neste cenário, o presente trabalho propõe um estudo de caso sobre as nanopartículas na agricultura, através da formulação de indicadores de impacto a partir de levantamento da literatura científica

Validation of the Italian version of the Non-Communicating Children's Pain Checklist-Postoperative Version

BACKGROUND: This study evaluated the validity and reliability of the Italian version of the Non-Communicating Children's Pain Checklist-Postoperative version (I-NCCPC-PV). METHODS: The original NCCPC-PV version was translated into Italian following the guidelines for "the translation, adaptation, and validation of instruments or scales for cross-cultural healthcare research". We tested the Italian NCCPC-PV version (I-NCCPC-PV) in 40 children (3-18 years of age) with severe to profound Intellectual Disability and no verbal communication. Each child's behavior was observed by a parent or caregiver and by an external observer in a quiet situation and a painful one. They independently assessed the child's level of pain using the translated Italian version of the NCCPCPV (I-NCCPC-PV). RESULTS: The results from 80 assessments showed that children's behavioral signs differed significantly between painful and calm situations (p < 0.001). The inter-rater reliability was poor in a quiet condition (ICC 0.62) and fair in a painful situation (ICC 0.77). The inter-rater agreement was good in both calm and painful conditions (72.50% and 77.50% respectively). CONCLUSION: The Italian version of the NCCPC-PV (I-NCCPC-PV) can be used for pain assessment in children with Intellectual Disability who lack verbal communication

Interação entre procedimentos de castração e manejo alimentar na fase de terminação sobre o desempenho e a qualidade do novilho precoce.

Na pecuária de corte a castração é uma prática comum que visa modificar a composição do ganho de peso corporal dos animais. Com o presente estudo objetivou-se avaliar o efeito de diferentes métodos de castração, em pesos e planos nutricionais distintos em novilhos precoces

Semente esverdeada de soja e sua qualidade fisiológica.

Fatores que predispõem a soja à expressão de semente esverdeada; Pigmentos das plantas; Degradação das clorofilas; Efeitos da coloração esverdeada no grão de soja e seus derivados; Efeitos da época da ocorrência de estresses de déficit hídrico e elevadas temperaturas sobre a expressão de semente esverdeada; Efeitos de semente esverdeada sobre a qualidade fisiológica da mesma; Remoção de semente esverdeada na operação de beneficiamento.bitstream/CNPSO-2009-09/25641/1/circular38.pd

A missense mutation in the MLKL brace region promotes lethal neonatal inflammation and hematopoietic dysfunction

MLKL is the essential effector of necroptosis, a form of programmed lytic cell death. We have isolated a mouse strain with a single missense mutation, Mlkl(D139V), that alters the two-helix 'brace' that connects the killer four-helix bundle and regulatory pseudokinase domains. This confers constitutive, RIPK3 independent killing activity to MLKL. Homozygous mutant mice develop lethal postnatal inflammation of the salivary glands and mediastinum. The normal embryonic development of Mlkl(D139V) homozygotes until birth, and the absence of any overt phenotype in heterozygotes provides important in vivo precedent for the capacity of cells to clear activated MLKL. These observations offer an important insight into the potential disease-modulating roles of three common human MLKL polymorphisms that encode amino acid substitutions within or adjacent to the brace region. Compound heterozygosity of these variants is found at up to 12-fold the expected frequency in patients that suffer from a pediatric autoinflammatory disease, chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO). Necroptosis is a regulated form of inflammatory cell death driven by activated MLKL. Here, the authors identify a mutation in the brace region that confers constitutive activation, leading to lethal inflammation in homozygous mutant mice and providing insight into human mutations in this region