Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P = 0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P = 0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P = 0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P = 0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P = 0.31). Conclusions: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. (Funded by Novartis; CANTOS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01327846.

Determinação da escala de coloração da casca e do rendimento em suco do maracujá-amarelo em diferentes épocas de colheita Determination of the peel color scale and juice yield of yellow passion fruits in different harvest seasons

Este trabalho teve como objetivo determinar uma escala de coloração da casca para identificar o estádio de maturação do maracujá-amarelo e avaliar o rendimento em suco, em diferentes épocas de colheita. Os experimentos foram constituídos de 2 épocas de colheita, contemplando a estação de menor temperatura e menor precipitação de chuvas (EP1-Maio/Setembro), a estação de maior temperatura e precipitação de chuvas (EP2-Outubro/Dezembro) e 7 estádios de maturação, com 10 repetições. Os resultados foram avaliados pelo teste de Tukey, a 5% de significância. O parâmetro b de Hunter foi utilizado como o indexador da mudança da coloração amarela. Verificou-se que a mudança de coloração ocorreu no sentido da base para o pedúnculo do fruto. Os frutos da época EP2 apresentaram a maior espessura de casca e o menor rendimento em suco, nos estádios iniciais de amadurecimento. Nos frutos com mais de 65,9% da casca amarelada, a época de colheita não influenciou na espessura da casca e no rendimento em suco, apresentando níveis máximos de suco. Frutos da época EP1 apresentaram o máximo rendimento a partir do estádio com 21,3% de cor amarela.<br>This work had the aim to determinate the peel color scale intended to identify the ripening stage of the yellow passion fruit and evaluate its juice yield in different harvest seasons. The experiments were constituted of 2 harvest seasons and they were accomplished during the period of low temperatures and less precipitation (EP1 - May/September) and high temperatures and more precipitation (EP2 - October/December), and seven ripening stages using ten replications. The results were compared by applying the Tukey test at the level of 5% of probability. Hunter b parameter was used as the yellowing index. It was verified that the yellow color progressed from the base to the fruit peduncle. Fruits from the EP2 season presented the lowest juice yield and the highest peel thickness in the early ripening stages. In fruits with at least 65% of yellow color peel, the harvest season did not influence in the peel thickness and in the juice yield, showing the highest level of juice. Fruits from the EP1 season showed the higher juice yield after 21,3% yellow color

Neotropical freshwater fisheries : A dataset of occurrence and abundance of freshwater fishes in the Neotropics

The Neotropical region hosts 4225 freshwater fish species, ranking first among the world's most diverse regions for freshwater fishes. Our NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set is the first to produce a large-scale Neotropical freshwater fish inventory, covering the entire Neotropical region from Mexico and the Caribbean in the north to the southern limits in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. We compiled 185,787 distribution records, with unique georeferenced coordinates, for the 4225 species, represented by occurrence and abundance data. The number of species for the most numerous orders are as follows: Characiformes (1289), Siluriformes (1384), Cichliformes (354), Cyprinodontiformes (245), and Gymnotiformes (135). The most recorded species was the characid Astyanax fasciatus (4696 records). We registered 116,802 distribution records for native species, compared to 1802 distribution records for nonnative species. The main aim of the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set was to make these occurrence and abundance data accessible for international researchers to develop ecological and macroecological studies, from local to regional scales, with focal fish species, families, or orders. We anticipate that the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set will be valuable for studies on a wide range of ecological processes, such as trophic cascades, fishery pressure, the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, and the impacts of species invasion and climate change. There are no copyright restrictions on the data, and please cite this data paper when using the data in publications