BIOSSORVENTE DO PÓ DO MANDACARU (CEREUS JAMACARU DC) HIDROFOBIZADO PARA REMOÇÃO DE DIESEL EM CASOS DE DERRAMAMENTO

The spill of oil and its derivatives in water and soil has been a challenge in the world for decades due to the high toxicity and mobility of hydrocarbons. One of the most efficient methods to minimize this type of contamination is the use of sorrtion processes. Currently, synthetic sorbents are the most used in oil spillage, due to their excellent oleophilic and hydrophobic properties. However, due to its high costs several researches have been seeking alternative sorbents. Biosorbents have stood out as an alternative method in the removal of organic contaminants, because in addition to being biodegradable, they present high natural availability, low cost, and a good sorption capacity. The aim of this research was to hydrophobe madacaru (Cereus jamacaru DC.) with Carnaúba wax for use as sorbent material in diesel removal in cases of spillage. The material was characterized by FTIR, TG/DTG, DSC, Mev, Wetability/Contact Angle techniques. Hydrophobicization significantly increased the affinity of the oil material with a contact angle with water of 94º; the micrographs and FTIR confirmed that the surfaces of the Mandacaru were covered by carnauba wax, and the sorption results for diesel were satisfactory without reducing the sorption capacity by hydrophobicization (1.65±0.01 g/g).El derrame de petróleo y sus derivados en agua y suelo ha sido un desafío en el mundo durante décadas debido a la alta toxicidad y movilidad de los hidrocarburos. Uno de los métodos más eficientes para minimizar este tipo de contaminación es el uso de procesos de sorción. Actualmente, los sorbentes sintéticos son los más utilizados en el derrame de petróleo, debido a sus excelentes propiedades oleofílicas e hidrofóbicas. Sin embargo, debido a sus altos costos, varias investigaciones han estado buscando sorbentes alternativos. Los biosorbentes han destacado como un método alternativo en la eliminación de contaminantes orgánicos, pues además de ser biodegradables, presentan alta disponibilidad natural, bajo costo, y una buena capacidad de sorción. El objetivo de esta investigación fue hidrofóbico madacaru (Cereus jamacaru DC.) con cera de Carnaúba para su uso como material sorbente en la eliminación de diesel en casos de derrame. El material se caracterizó mediante técnicas FTIR, TG/DTG, DSC, Mev, Wetability/Contact Angle. La hidrofobicización aumentó significativamente la afinidad del material oleoso con un ángulo de contacto con el agua de 94º; las micrografías y el FTIR confirmaron que las superficies del Mandacaru estaban cubiertas por cera de carnauba, y los resultados de sorción para el diesel fueron satisfactorios sin reducir la capacidad de sorción por hidrofobicización (1,65±0,01 g/g).O derramamento de petróleo e seus derivados na água e no solo tem sido um desafio no mundo há décadas, devido à alta toxicidade e mobilidade dos hidrocarbonetos. Um dos métodos mais eficiente para minimizar esse tipo de contaminação é o uso dos processos de sorção. Atualmente, os sorventes sintéticos são os mais utilizados em derramamento de óleos, devido às suas ótimas propriedades oleofílicas e hidrofóbicas. Entretanto, devido seus custos elevados diversas pesquisas vêm buscando sorventes alternativos. Os biosorventes vêm se destacando como método alternativo na remoção de contaminantes orgânicos, pois além de serem biodegradáveis, apresentam alta disponibilidade natural, baixo custo, e uma boa capacidade de sorção. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi hidrofobizar o Madacaru (Cereus jamacaru DC.) com a cera de Carnaúba para uso como material sorvente na remoção de diesel em casos de derramamento. O material foi caracterizado pelas técnicas FTIR, TG/DTG, DSC, MEV, Molhabilidade/Ângulo de contato. A hidrofobização aumentou significativamente a afinidade do material por óleo com um ângulo de contato com a água de 94º; as micrografias e FTIR confirmaram que as superfícies do Mandacaru foram cobertas por cera de carnaúba, e os resultados de sorção para diesel foram satisfatórios sem diminuição da capacidade de sorção pela hidrofobização (1,65±0,01 g/g)

BALB/c Mice Infected with Antimony Treatment Refractory Isolate of Leishmania braziliensis Present Severe Lesions due to IL-4 Production

Leishmaniasis is a neglected disease that affects more than 12 million people worldwide. In Brazil, the cutaneous disease is more prevalent with about 28,000 new cases reported each year, and L. braziliensis is the main causative agent. The interesting data about the infection with this parasite is the wide variety of clinical manifestations that ranges from single ulcerated lesions to mucocutaneous and disseminated disease. However, experimental models to study the infection with this parasite are difficult to develop due to high resistance of most mouse strains to the infection, and the mechanisms underlying the distinct manifestations remain poorly understood. Here, the authors use a mouse experimental model of infection with different L. braziliensis isolates, known to induce diseases with distinct severity in the human hosts, to elucidate immune mechanisms that may be involved in the different manifestations. They showed that distinct parasite isolates may modulate host response, and increased IL-4 production and Arg I expression was related to more severe disease, resulting in longer length of disease with larger lesions and reduced parasite clearance. These findings may be useful in the identification of immunological targets to control L. braziliensis infection and potential clinical markers of disease progression

Ibicaba revisitada outra vez: espaço, escravidão e trabalho livre no oeste paulista

Ibicaba Farm, property of Senator Nicolau Pereira de Campos Vergueiro during the 19th century, was the subject of studies that focused on the experience with the sharecropping system. This article intends to undertake a revisit to Ibicaba through new lenses of observation. At first, it tries to insert Vergueiro's farm in the context of the changing World-economy of the first decades of the nineteenth century, and then highlight the importance of the spatial dimension of reality in this historical context. In the following two subitems, which constitute the core of the article, an analysis is made of the protocols - especially spatial - of control of the workers, used by the Vergueiros in order to extract the maximum of labor from slaves and sharecroppers, as well as the strategies that captives and immigrants used to escape from this surveillance. Finally, a brief recapitulation of the main points exposed and some considerations about the tensions that emerged in Ibicaba during the studied period are made.A Fazenda Ibicaba, propriedade do Senador Nicolau Pereira de Campos Vergueiro ao longo do século XIX, foi objeto de estudos que enfocaram a experiência com o sistema de parceria que ela abrigou. Este artigo pretende revisitar Ibicaba por meio de novas lentes de observação. Em um primeiro momento, buscar-se-á inserir a fazenda de Vergueiro no contexto de mudança pela qual a Economia-mundo passava nas primeiras décadas do Oitocentos para, em seguida, salientar a importância que a dimensão espacial da realidade cumpria nesse contexto histórico. Nos dois subitens seguintes, que constituem o núcleo do artigo, analisam-se os protocolos - sobretudo espaciais - de controle da mão de obra utilizados pelos Vergueiro, com vistas à máxima extração de trabalho de escravos e colonos, bem como as estratégias de que cativos e imigrantes lançaram mão para escapar dessa vigilância. Faz-se, ao fim, uma breve recapitulação dos principais pontos expostos e algumas considerações sobre as tensões que emergiram em Ibicaba durante o período estudado

Application of electro-Fenton process as alternative for degradation of Novacron Blue dye

The electrochemical removal of a synthetic solution containing 190 mg L 121 of Novacron Blue (NB) dye has been studied by electro-Fenton process using a carbon felt gas-diffusion O 2 cathode to produce in situ hydrogen peroxide by oxygen reduction. The effect of operating conditions (Fe 2 + concentration, applied current and pH solution on the efficiency of the process) was investigated. Results clearly showed that NB and their products may be effectively degraded by the \u2022OH radicals produced by the reaction between the Fe 2 + ions and the in situ electrogenerated H 2 O 2 at carbon felt gas-diffusion O 2 cathode. After 4 h of electrolysis, chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal was only 34% when no ferrous ions were added to the solutions, while the presence of ferrous ion greatly improved COD removal to more than 90%, depending on operating conditions. Spectrophotometric analysis indicated that the discoloration of the solution occurs in all operating conditions, while gas chromatographic / mass spectrometry analysis confirmed the degradation of NB dye via identification of the principal intermediates formed

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases

11 p.Background: Leishmania braziliensis is the main causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Brazil. Protection against infection is related to development of Th1 responses, but the mechanisms that mediate susceptibility are still poorly understood. Murine models have been the most important tools in understanding the immunopathogenesis of L. major infection and have shown that Th2 responses favor parasite survival. In contrast, L. braziliensis–infected mice develop strong Th1 responses and easily resolve the infection, thus making the study of factors affecting susceptibility to this parasite difficult. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here, we describe an experimental model for the evaluation of the mechanisms mediating susceptibility to L. braziliensis infection. BALB/c mice were inoculated with stationary phase promastigotes of L. braziliensis, isolates LTCP393(R) and LTCP15171(S), which are resistant and susceptible to antimony and nitric oxide (NO), respectively. Mice inoculated with LTCP393(R) presented larger lesions that healed more slowly and contained higher parasite loads than lesions caused by LTCP15171(S). Inflammatory infiltrates in the lesions and production of IFN-c, TNF-a, IL-10 and TGF-b were similar in mice inoculated with either isolate, indicating that these factors did not contribute to the different disease manifestations observed. In contrast, IL-4 production was strongly increased in LTCP393(R)-inoculated animals and also arginase I (Arg I) expression. Moreover, anti-IL-4 monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment resulted in decreased lesion thickness and parasite burden in animals inoculated with LTCP393(R), but not in those inoculated with LTCP15171(S). Conclusion/Significance: We conclude that the ability of L. braziliensis isolates to induce Th2 responses affects the susceptibility to infection with these isolates and contributes to the increased virulence and severity of disease associated with them. Since these data reflect what happens in human infection, this model could be useful to study the pathogenesis of the L. braziliensis infection, as well as to design new strategies of therapeutic intervention

Association between pluviometric index and the occurrence of acute appendicitis

Background: Epidemiological studies demonstrate, for unknown reasons, the prevalence of appendicitis in the summer and in young male adults, and there are controversies about its association with the rainy season. There are no studies in the State of Piauí about such association. Objective: To establish an association between the occurrence of appendicitis and the pluviometric precipitation index. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study that was carried out using the database of the pathology service at a public emergency hospital in Piauí, and the pluviometric precipitation index in the State of Piauí from January 2009 to April 2014, with data from the National Institute of Meteorology. Descriptive statistics and association measures were applied using the Pearson correlation coefficient and the χ2 test. Results: We found a predominance of appendicitis cases in male subjects, from 11 to 20 years of age, with a predominance of the monthly mean of appendicitis cases in the second semester, which conforms to the dry season in the State of Piauí. Pearson's correlation coefficient was −0.260. Conclusion: There is an association between the occurrence of appendicitis and the months of the year; however, this is a weak negative correlation between the monthly mean of cases of appendicitis and monthly pluviometric precipitation average in the State of Piauí. Resumo: Contexto: Estudos epidemiológicos demonstram, por razões desconhecidas, o predomínio dos casos de apendicite no verão e em adultos jovens do sexo masculino, havendo controvérsias sobre sua associação com o período chuvoso. Não há estudos realizados no Piauí sobre esta associação. Objetivo: Estabelecer uma associação entre a ocorrência de apendicite e o índice de precipitação pluviométrica. Metodologia: Realizou-se um estudo transversal através do banco de dados do serviço de patologia de um hospital de emergência público do Piauí e do índice de precipitação no Piauí de janeiro de 2009 a abril de 2014 do Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia. Aplicou-se estatística descritiva e medidas de associação pelo coeficiente de correlação de Pearson e pelo teste qui-quadrado. Resultados: Encontrou-se um predomínio dos casos de apendicite no sexo masculino, de 11 a 20 anos de idade, predomínio da média mensal de casos de apendicite no segundo semestre, coincidindo com o período de estiagem no Piauí. O coeficiente de correlação de Pearson foi de -0,260. Conclusão: Existe uma associação da ocorrência de apendicite com os meses do ano, porém se trata de uma fraca correlação negativa entre a média mensal de casos de apendicite com a média da precipitação pluviométrica mensal estadual no Piauí. Keywords: Appendicitis, association with, Atmospheric precipitation, Measures of occurrence of diseases, Statistical analysis, Palavras-chave: Apendicite, associação, Precipitação atmosférica, Medidas de ocorrência de doenças, Análise estatístic

Montmorillonite–Rifampicin Nanohybrid for pH-Responsive Release of the Tuberculostatic

The present work describes the development of a hybrid and pH-responsive system for rifampicin using the clay mineral ‘montmorillonite’ as a nanocarrier. The influence of operational variables on the drug incorporation process was evaluated using 24 factorial designs. Under optimized conditions, the experiment allowed an incorporated drug dose equivalent to 98.60 ± 1.21 mg/g. Hybrid systems were characterized by different characterization techniques (FTIR, XRD, TGA, DSC, and SEM) to elucidate the mechanism of interaction between the compounds used. Through in vitro release studies, it was possible to verify the efficacy of the pH-dependent system obtained, with approximately 70% of the drug released after sixteen hours in simulated intestinal fluid. The adjustment of the experimental release data to the theoretical model of Higuchi and Korsmeyer–Peppas indicated that the release of rifampicin occurs in a prolonged form from montmorillonite. Elucidation of the interactions between the drug and this raw clay reinforces its viability as a novel carrier to develop an anti-TB/clay hybrid system with good physical and chemical stability