A novel supramolecular organic-inorganic adduct containing alpha-Keggin-type [PW12O40](3-) anions and benzo-15-crown-5 molecules

The structure of the title compound, tris(hydroxonium) 12- phosphato-tetracosa- 2-oxo-dodecaoxododecatungsten hexakis( benzo-15-crown-5)±methanol±water (1/1/1), (H3O)3- [PW12O40] 6C14H20O5 CH3OH H2O (where C14H20O5 is benzo-15-crown-5), has been determined at 180 K. [PW12O40]3ÿ anions are typical of -Keggin structures, and the [H3O (C14H20O5)2]+ sandwich-type moieties contain a large number of short O O close contacts, suggesting strong hydrogen bonding within them

Effect of Quality of Dental Restorations and Time Elapsed Since Placement on Biofilm Retention

Svrha: U istraživanju se željela procijeniti povezanost zadržavanja biofilma i vremena proteklog otkako je postavljen na smolom restaurirane površine prednjih zuba. Metode: Uzorak se sastojao od 120 zuba 40 pacijenata obaju spolova u dobi između 16 i 60 godina. Ukupno je na njima bilo 230 restauriranih površina. Za mjerenje stupnja zadržavanja biofilma i površinske hrapavosti materijala te vrste kaviteta i rubova bili su potrebni indeks zadržavanja plaka i opseg restauracija (PRRI), a procjenjivala su se i vanjska svojstva preparacije kaviteta. Rezultati: Gotovo sve proučavane površine bile su postavljene prije jedne do pet godina. Najčešći PRRI za zadržavanje biofilma je bio II i IV, 83 posto uzoraka imalo je grubu površinu, a 46,5 posto kavitete II. razreda. subgingivno je bilo 62,2 posto rubova, a kod 38,6 posto zabilježen je višak korištenog restaurativnog materijala. Površinska hrapavost restauracije bila je usko povezana sa zadržavanjem biofilma i vremenom postavljanja (oba p<0,01). Vanjska svojstva restauracije (prekonturiranje, manjak materijala za restauraciju, spoj zub – restauracija) također su značajno bili povezani s vremenom proteklim od postavljanja (svi p<0,05). Zaključak: Vrijeme proteklo od postavljanja smolaste restauracije utječe na hrapavost površine i stupanj zadržavanja biofilma.Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate associations of biofilm retention on resin-restored surfaces of anterior teeth with quality and time elapsed since placement. Methods: The study sample comprised 120 teeth with 230 restored surfaces in 40 patients of both sexes aged 16–60 years. The Plaque Retention and Extension in Restoration Index (PRRI) was used to measure the degree of biofilm retention, and the surface roughness of the material, cavity type and margins, and external cavity preparation characteristics were also evaluated. Results: Most surfaces analysed had been placed 1–5 years previously. The most prevalent PRRI biofilm retention scores were III and IV, 83.0% of samples presented surface roughness, 46.5% of cavities were class III, 62.2% of surfaces had subgingival margins, and 38.6% retained excessive restorative material. Surface roughness was significantly associated with the degree of biofilm retention and time elapsed since placement (both p < 0.01). Three external cavity preparation characteristics (over-contouring, lack of restorative material, tooth–restoration interface) were also associated significantly with the time elapsed since placement (all p < 0.05). Conclusion: The time elapsed since the placement of resin restorations influences surface roughness and the degree of biofilm retention

Consórcios de caupi e milho em cultivo orgânico para produção de grãos e espigas verdes.

No período de outono-inverno-primavera de 2007, foi conduzido um estudo em Seropédica, Região Metropolitana do estado do Rio de Janeiro (Baixada Fluminense), com o objetivo de avaliar diferentes tipos de consórcio entre caupi (cv. Mauá) e milho (cv. AG-1051), em sistema orgânico de produção. O experimento foi instalado em área de Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo no delineamento de blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. Os tratamentos constaram de diferentes épocas ou intervalos de tempo de semeadura do caupi em relação à do milho, a saber: (E1) 21 dias antes do milho; (E2) 14 dias antes do milho; (E3) 7 dias antes do milho; e (E4) no mesmo dia do milho. Tratamentos correspondentes aos cultivos solteiros do caupi e do milho foram incluídos, ambos semeados na data do tratamento E4. O cultivo consorciado com o caupi não interferiu na produtividade do milho em espigas verdes e também em termos de comprimento e diâmetro basal dessas espigas, independentemente do intervalo entre semeaduras. Com referência ao caupi, a produtividade em grãos verdes no cultivo solteiro foi superior à dos consórcios com o milho. Os valores obtidos para os Índices de Equivalência de Área (IEA), foram todos acima de 1,0, indicando que os consórcios foram eficientes quanto ao desempenho agronômico/biológico. Considerando, ainda a produtividade de cada cultura participante do consórcio, a semeadura do caupi antecipada de 21 dias em relação à do milho afigura-se mais adequada ao manejo orgânico adotado e às condições edafoclimáticas da região

Conservation of marizeiro Geoffroea spinosa Jacq. seeds using different packagings and environments

O marizeiro ( Geoffroea spinosa Jacq.) \ue9 uma esp\ue9cie florestal importante, sobretudo por ser adaptada \ue0s condi\ue7\uf5es de matas ciliares do semi-\ue1rido e ecossistemas associados, ocorrendo em vastas \ue1reas do Nordeste brasileiro e no vale do rio S\ue3o Francisco, sempre restrita a ambientes sazonalmente inundados. Este trabalho teve como objetivos avaliar o efeito de diferentes tipos de embalagens e do per\uedodo de armazenamento sobre o processo germinativo e o vigor de sementes de Geoffroea spinosa Jacq. acondicionadas tamb\ue9m em diferentes ambientes. O experimento foi instalado no Laborat\uf3rio de Ecologia Vegetal do CCA/UFPB, seguindo um delineamento inteiramente casualizado. As sementes foram distribu\ueddas em dois ambientes (condi\ue7\uf5es naturais, no laborat\uf3rio e c\ue2mara fria), acondicionadas em dois tipos de embalagens (sacos de papel e sacos pl\ue1sticos) durante cinco per\uedodos de armazenamento: 0, 15, 30, 60 e 90 dias. Foram avaliados o teor de \ue1gua, o \uedndice de velocidade de emerg\ueancia, a massa seca e o comprimento de pl\ue2ntulas. Os dados foram submetidos \ue0 an\ue1lise de regress\ue3o polinomial. Na embalagem pl\ue1stica e no ambiente de c\ue2mara fria, houve menor redu\ue7\ue3o da viabilidade e do vigor ao longo do armazenamento. As sementes acondicionadas em sacos de papel e armazenadas em ambiente de laborat\uf3rio perderam rapidamente a viabilidade e o vigor a partir dos 30 dias de armazenamento.Geoffroea spinosa Jacq., commonly known as marizeiro in Brazil, is an important tree species, mainly because it is adapted to riparian forest conditions in semi-arid and associated ecosystems. The species occur in large areas of northeastern Brazil and in the S\ue3o Francisco river valley, always restricted to seasonally flooded environments. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different types of packaging and storage periods, as well the influence of environments on the process of seed germination and vigor of Geoffroea spinosa. The experiment was carried out at the Laboratory of Plant Ecology - CCA/UFPB, following a completely randomized design. The seeds were distributed among two environments (natural conditions in the laboratory and cold room), packed in two types of packaging (paper bags and plastic bags) for five periods of storage: 0; 15; 30; 60 and 90 days. Water content, the emergence velocity index, dry weight and length of seedlings were evaluated. The data were submitted to a polynomial regression analysis. In plastic packaging and the environment of the cold room there was less reduction of viability and vigor during storage. Seeds packed in paper bags and stored in a laboratory rapidly lost viability and vigor, after 30 days of storage

Glycoinositolphospholipids from Leishmania braziliensis and L. infantum: Modulation of Innate Immune System and Variations in Carbohydrate Structure

The essential role of the lipophosphoglycan (LPG) of Leishmania in innate immune response has been extensively reported. However, information about the role of the LPG-related glycoinositolphospholipids (GIPLs) is limited, especially with respect to the New World species of Leishmania. GIPLs are low molecular weight molecules covering the parasite surface and are similar to LPG in sharing a common lipid backbone and a glycan motif containing up to 7 sugars. Critical aspects of their structure and functions are still obscure in the interaction with the vertebrate host. In this study, we evaluated the role of those molecules in two medically important South American species Leishmania infantum and L. braziliensis, causative agents of visceral (VL) and cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL), respectively. GIPLs derived from both species did not induce NO or TNF-α production by non-primed murine macrophages. Additionally, primed macrophages from mice (BALB/c, C57BL/6, TLR2−/− and TLR4−/−) exposed to GIPLs from both species, with exception to TNF-α, did not produce any of the cytokines analyzed (IL1-β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-12p40, IFN-γ) or p38 activation. GIPLs induced the production of TNF-α and NO by C57BL/6 mice, primarily via TLR4. Pre incubation of macrophages with GIPLs reduced significantly the amount of NO and IL-12 in the presence of IFN-γ or lipopolysaccharide (LPS), which was more pronounced with L. braziliensis GIPLs. This inhibition was reversed after PI-specific phospholipase C treatment. A structural analysis of the GIPLs showed that L. infantum has manose rich GIPLs, suggestive of type I and Hybrid GIPLs while L. braziliensis has galactose rich GIPLs, suggestive of Type II GIPLs. In conclusion, there are major differences in the structure and composition of GIPLs from L. braziliensis and L. infantum. Also, GIPLs are important inhibitory molecules during the interaction with macrophages

Mapping human dispersals into the Horn of Africa from Arabian Ice Age refugia using mitogenomes

Rare mitochondrial lineages with relict distributions can sometimes be disproportionately informative about deep events in human prehistory. We have studied one such lineage, haplogroup R0a, which uniquely is most frequent in Arabia and the Horn of Africa, but is distributed much more widely, from Europe to India. We conclude that: (1) the lineage ancestral to R0a is more ancient than previously thought, with a relict distribution across the Mediterranean/Southwest Asia; (2) R0a has a much deeper presence in Arabia than previously thought, highlighting the role of at least one Pleistocene glacial refugium, perhaps on the Red Sea plains; (3) the main episode of dispersal into Eastern Africa, at least concerning maternal lineages, was at the end of the Late Glacial, due to major expansions from one or more refugia in Arabia; (4) there was likely a minor Late Glacial/early postglacial dispersal from Arabia through the Levant and into Europe, possibly alongside other lineages from a Levantine refugium; and (5) the presence of R0a in Southwest Arabia in the Holocene at the nexus of a trading network that developed after ~3 ka between Africa and the Indian Ocean led to some gene flow even further afield, into Iran, Pakistan and India

OCCURRENCE OF Calodium hepaticum (BANCROFT, 1893) MORAVEC, 1982 EGGS IN FECES OF DOGS AND CATS IN LAGES, SANTA CATARINA, BRAZIL

This study aims to report the incidence of Calodium hepaticum among dogs and cats, pets or stray animals, captured by the Zoonosis Control Center (CCZ) in Lages, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Fecal samples from 108 pet dogs and eight pet cats, and from 357 stray dogs and 97 stray cats, captured by CCZ, were analyzed within the period from July 2010 to November 2012. Coproparasitological exams were performed by techniques of sedimentation, centrifuge-flotation, and simple flotation. Among 465 fecal samples from dogs and 105 from cats, the overall spurious infections for C. hepaticum eggs were 1.05%. For dogs, this positivity was 0.43% and for cats it was 3.81%. The two positive dogs were stray and out of the four cats, three were stray and one was a pet. Although the occurrence of C. hepaticum eggs was low, these data reveal the existence of infected rodents, especially in public places, since, out of the six infected animals, five (83.33%) were stray. These results are discussed and analyzed with an emphasis on the risk to public health