ERGONOMIA E SEGURANÇA EM ATIVIDADES EXTRATIVISTAS NO ESTADO DO ACRE

A ergonomia é a ciência que estuda a adaptação do trabalho ao homem, tendo como objetivo a melhoria das condições de saúde, segurança e bem estar do trabalhador. Apesar de existirem diversos estudos de ergonomia em vários setores, ao que tange atividades extrativistas, ainda são poucas as informações obtidas. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo analisar e compreender as condições de trabalho, saúde e segurança das atividades na coleta e transporte de castanha e açaí na Reserva Extrativista Cazumbá - Iracema no Estado do Acre, a fim de propor sugestões à referida categoria a partir da análise dos fatores ergonômicos. As variáveis analisadas foram os fatores humanos, ambientais (clima e iluminação), carga física, posturas adotadas e o manuseio de cargas. Foram avaliados ao total 40 trabalhadores. De acordo com os resultados, os trabalhadores tinham idade média de 35 anos, peso médio de 69 kg, baixo índice de analfabetismo (2,3%), de origem predominantemente rural (94,1%), tendo um consumo alto de bebidas alcoólicas (49%) e tabaco (15%). A maioria dos trabalhadores já tiveram acidentes em suas atividades. A exposição ao calor e a iluminância foram considerados elevados e inadequados entre os horários de 12 e 13:30 horas. A carga física foi considerada moderadamente pesada na maioria das operações, destacando-se o transporte de castanha e a coleta do açai, sendo considerados pesados. As posturas mais prejudiciais foram observadas na coleta do açaí e no transporte de castanha. O manuseio de cargas apresentou alto risco de lesão nas atividades de transporte de castanha. Para melhoria das condições de trabalho, saúde, bem estar e segurança, deve haver uma conscientização a fim de diminuir os vícios e fiscalização para que haja o uso devido dos equipamentos de proteção individual. Ainda assim, os trabalhadores devem ser treinados e conscientizados para utilizar medidas adequadas de controle onde os níveis de exposição a iluminância são elevados. Também necessita-se de adoção de tempo de repouso por hora efetiva de trabalho nas atividades de coleta do açaí e transporte de castanha. A fim de evitar danos a coluna do trabalhador, é necessário a adoção de pausas durante as atividades de coleta e transporte de ambas as cadeias analisadas. E com relação ao manuseio de cargas é necessária uma reorganização ergonômica a fim de reduzir o peso manuseado para execução da atividade de transporte de castanha. Palavra - chave: Processo Produtivo, Unidades de Conservação, Condições de Trabalho

Effects of the fungicide metiram in outdoor freshwater microcosms: responses of invertebrates, primary producers and microbes

The ecological impact of the dithiocarbamate fungicide metiram was studied in outdoor freshwater microcosms, consisting of 14 enclosures placed in an experimental ditch. The microcosms were treated three times (interval 7 days) with the formulated product BAS 222 28F (Polyram®). Intended metiram concentrations in the overlying water were 0, 4, 12, 36, 108 and 324 μg a.i./L. Responses of zooplankton, macroinvertebrates, phytoplankton, macrophytes, microbes and community metabolism endpoints were investigated. Dissipation half-life (DT50) of metiram was approximately 1–6 h in the water column of the microcosm test system and the metabolites formed were not persistent. Multivariate analysis indicated treatment-related effects on the zooplankton (NOECcommunity = 36 μg a.i./L). Consistent treatment-related effects on the phytoplankton and macroinvertebrate communities and on the sediment microbial community could not be demonstrated or were minor. There was no evidence that metiram affected the biomass, abundance or functioning of aquatic hyphomycetes on decomposing alder leaves. The most sensitive populations in the microcosms comprised representatives of Rotifera with a NOEC of 12 μg a.i./L on isolated sampling days and a NOEC of 36 μg a.i./L on consecutive samplings. At the highest treatment-level populations of Copepoda (zooplankton) and the blue-green alga Anabaena (phytoplankton) also showed a short-term decline on consecutive sampling days (NOEC = 108 μg a.i./L). Indirect effects in the form of short-term increases in the abundance of a few macroinvertebrate and several phytoplankton taxa were also observed. The overall community and population level no-observed-effect concentration (NOECmicrocosm) was 12–36 μg a.i./L. At higher treatment levels, including the test systems that received the highest dose, ecological recovery of affected measurement endpoints was fast (effect period < 8 weeks)

[Follow-up in a boy with Leydig cell tumor after selective surgery]

A 8(6/12) year-old-boy presented with precocious puberty and a slightly enlarged left testis. After a detailed examination a Leydig cell tumour was diagnosed. Surgical exploration revealed an encapsulated tumour, 2.7 cm in length, which was selectively removed without orchidectomy. Within one year the clinical signs of pubertal precocity disappeared, the bone age did not further advance and height velocity declined from 8.2 cm / year (+3.9 SDS) to 4.1 cm/year (-1.0 SDS). Physiologically, he entered puberty at the chronological age of twelve years, presenting at that age, in comparison to his peer group, a slightly decreased pubertal growth spurt. However, bearing in mind that being precocious in puberty he started in fact his pubertal growth spurt at a far earlier age, therefore, this acceleration of height before operation has to be added to the centimetres gained during pubertal development thereafter resuiting consequently in an absolute normal pubertal growth spurt. This underlines the fact that the individual growth spurt and, therefore, the total amount of centimetres gained is very much robust. Ten years later, the patient ended up well within his familial target height and remained free of disease. We report on a long-term follow-up of a prepubertal boy after testis-sparing surgery for Leydig-cell-tumour

Modeling and Simulation of Pathways in Menopause

The analytical representation and simulation of complex molecular pathways can contribute to understanding and evaluating physiological as well as pathological processes. We are interested in modeling the processes of menopause to stratify women in terms of the genotypic and environmental components and their implications for development of individualized risk of postmenopausal disorders, e.g., breast and ovarian cancer, cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis. We have initiated this study using the UltraSAN package to analyze the pathway associated with estrogen production. This model incorporates detailed information about the hormone factors affecting estrogen production, and the simulations carried out are based on published experimental data corresponding to hormone levels during the course of the normal female reproductive cycle. The agreement between the experimental data and the simulation is typically less than 2 ng/ml or 2 pg/ml respectively for progesterone and estradiol output. This approach further permits inclusion of information about an SNP observed in the gene coding for the enzyme aromatase as a model to study the impact of reduced enzymatic activity on hormone levels