Estimativas de ganho genético por diferentes critérios de seleção em genótipos de alfafa

Este estudo foi desenvolvido objetivando comparar diferentes critérios de seleção, indicar o método de seleção que propicia maiores estimativas de ganho genético e identificar genótipos superiores de alfafa quanto a características produtivas, morfológicas e bromatológicas. Foram avaliadas a produção de matéria seca, altura de planta, tolerância a doenças, aceitação fenotípica pelos animais, proteína bruta, digestibilidade in vitro da matéria seca, fibra em detergente neutro e relação caule/folha de 92 acessos provenientes do INTA-Argentina, tendo como testemunha o Crioula. Os Índices de Mulamba & Mock, distância do genótipo ao ideótipo e Elston foram os mais adequados a esse tipo de estudo. Os genótipos Sequel, CUF 101, Siriver 2, Florida 77, Diamond, Sequel 2, LE N 2, Medina, Kern, Rio Grande, DK 166, DK 181, Perla SP INTA, WL 516, Rocio, LE Semit 711 e LE N 3 foram os indicados à seleção pelos maiores índices de Mulamba e Mock, distância do genótipo ao ideótipo e índice de Elston

Prevalence of and risk factors for tuberculosis among healthcare workers in Chinese tuberculosis facilities

Background China is one of 22 countries with a high tuberculosis (TB) burden in the world. Healthcare workers (HCWs) have a high risk of contracting Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection due to insufficient infection control practices. We conducted a cross-sectional study to explore the prevalence of TB and its associated risk factors among HCWs in Chinese TB facilities. Methods Two hundred and forty-one TB facilities employing a total of 9663 HCWs were selected from 12 provinces in China to represent healthcare settings at the provincial, prefectural, and county levels. Structured questionnaires were used to collect information on TB infection control practices and HCWs in those facilities. Data was double entered into EpiData 3.1; TB prevalence and associated risk factors were analyzed using SPSS 21.0 with bivariate and multivariate regression models. Results The results showed that 71 HCWs had been diagnosed with TB, accounting for a prevalence of 760/100 000. The multivariate analysis showed that associated risk factors included belonging to the age group of 51 years and above (aOR: 6.17, 95% CI: 1.35–28.28), being a nurse (aOR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.15–8.32), implementation of 0–9 items of management measures (aOR = 2.57, 95% CI: 1.37–4.80), and implementation of 0–1 items of ventilation measures (aOR = 2.42, 95% CI: 1.31–4.47). Conclusion This was the first national large sampling survey on TB prevalence among HCWs in China. It was found that the implementation of TB infection control practices in some facilities was poor. The TB prevalence in HCWs was higher than that in the general population. Therefore, TB infection control practices in Chinese medical facilities should be strengthened

A crowd of BashTheBug volunteers reproducibly and accurately measure the minimum inhibitory concentrations of 13 antitubercular drugs from photographs of 96-well broth microdilution plates

Tuberculosis is a respiratory disease that is treatable with antibiotics. An increasing prevalence of resistance means that to ensure a good treatment outcome it is desirable to test the susceptibility of each infection to different antibiotics. Conventionally, this is done by culturing a clinical sample and then exposing aliquots to a panel of antibiotics, each being present at a pre-determined concentration, thereby determining if the sample isresistant or susceptible to each sample. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of a drug is the lowestconcentration that inhibits growth and is a more useful quantity but requires each sample to be tested at a range ofconcentrations for each drug. Using 96-well broth micro dilution plates with each well containing a lyophilised pre-determined amount of an antibiotic is a convenient and cost-effective way to measure the MICs of several drugs at once for a clinical sample. Although accurate, this is still an expensive and slow process that requires highly-skilled and experienced laboratory scientists. Here we show that, through the BashTheBug project hosted on the Zooniverse citizen science platform, a crowd of volunteers can reproducibly and accurately determine the MICs for 13 drugs and that simply taking the median or mode of 11–17 independent classifications is sufficient. There is therefore a potential role for crowds to support (but not supplant) the role of experts in antibiotic susceptibility testing

A sobrecarga do familiar cuidador no âmbito domiciliar: uma revisão integrativa da literatura La sobrecarga del familiar cuidador en el entorno domiciliario: una revisión de la literatura Overload of family caregiver at home: an integrative literature review

Trata-se de uma revisão integrativa de literatura que teve como objetivo identificar as evidências acerca dos fatores geradores de sobrecarga e suas consequências para os familiares cuidadores de adultos ou idosos. A revisão abrangeu 27 estudos em base de dados, com as palavras-chave cuidadores, família e sobrecarga, no período de 1999 a 2009. Foram desveladas quatro categorias: a imposição de ser o cuidador, o cuidar solitário, a dependência do ser cuidado e o desgaste biopsicossocial do cuidador. Os resultados demonstram que a imposição do papel de cuidador, a falta de apoio dos outros familiares, o grau de dependência do enfermo relacionada à patologia, e o desgaste físico e psicológico são os principais fatores geradores de sobrecarga dos familiares cuidadores. Verifica-se a necessidade de maior suporte dos profissionais de saúde no sentido de apoiar e estar disponível aos familiares cuidadores nas intercorrências das atividades cuidativas no domicílio.<br>Se trata de una revisión integradora de la literatura dirigida a identificar la evidencia de los factores que causan sobrecarga y sus consecuencias para los familiares cuidadores de adultos o ancianos. La revisión abarcó 27 estudios en base de datos con los descriptores cuidadores, familia y sobrecarga, de 1999 a 2009. Cuatro categorías se desvelaron: la imposición de ser el cuidador, el cuidado solitario, la dependencia del ser cuidado y el desgaste biopsicosocial del cuidador. Los resultados muestran que la imposición del rol de cuidador, la falta de apoyo de otros familiares, el grado de dependencia del enfermo relacionado con la patología y el desgaste físico y psicológico son los principales factores generadores de sobrecarga de familiares cuidadores. Se constata la necesidad de mayor soporte de profesionales de la salud para apoyar y estar a disposición de los familiares cuidadores en las complicaciones de las actividades cuidadoras en hogar.<br>This is an integrative literature review that aims to identify evidences on the factors causing overload and their consequences for family caregivers of adults or the elderly. The review covered 27 studies at databases, using the keywords caregivers, family, and overload, in the period from 1999 to 2009. Four categories came up: the imposition of being a caregiver, taking care alone, the dependence of the person that receives care, and the bio-psychosocial weariness of the caregiver. The results showed that the imposition of the role of caregiver, lack of support from other family members, level of dependency of the patient related to the pathology, and physical and psychological weariness are the main factors causing overload in family caregivers. The need for more support and availability by health professionals to family caregivers in their home activities is evident