Shannon entropy of brain functional complex networks under the influence of the psychedelic Ayahuasca

The entropic brain hypothesis holds that the key facts concerning psychedelics are partially explained in terms of increased entropy of the brain's functional connectivity. Ayahuasca is a psychedelic beverage of Amazonian indigenous origin with legal status in Brazil in religious and scientific settings. In this context, we use tools and concepts from the theory of complex networks to analyze resting state fMRI data of the brains of human subjects under two distinct conditions: (i) under ordinary waking state and (ii) in an altered state of consciousness induced by ingestion of Ayahuasca. We report an increase in the Shannon entropy of the degree distribution of the networks subsequent to Ayahuasca ingestion. We also find increased local and decreased global network integration. Our results are broadly consistent with the entropic brain hypothesis. Finally, we discuss our findings in the context of descriptions of "mind-expansion" frequently seen in self-reports of users of psychedelic drugs.Comment: 27 pages, 6 figure

Linezolid Resistance in Brazilian Staphylococcus hominis Strains Is Associated with L3 and 23S rRNA Ribosomal Mutations

Univ São Paulo, Sch Pharm, Dept Clin Anal, BR-05508 São Paulo, BrazilHosp Beneficencia Portuguesa, Lab Clin Microbiol, São Paulo, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Lab Alerta, São Paulo, SP, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Inst Biomed Sci, Dept Microbiol, BR-05508 São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Lab Alerta, São Paulo, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc

Perímetro abdominal se asocia a la ingesta de alimentos, factores sociodemográficos y de comportamiento entre los adultos en el sur de Brasil: un estudio basado en la población

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the abdominal perimeter determinants in adults who live in the city of Lages, Sc. Design: A population-based cross-sectional study in adults from 20 to 59 years-old of the urban area (n=2.022). The dependent variable is the abdominal perimeter, the independent variables are: age, skin color self-reported, marital status, number of children, per capita income, education, physical activity, smoking, nutrition, self-reported diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, body weight index. The differences between the mean perimeters were tested using ANOVA test and multiple linear regression for confounding adjustment. Results: The response rate was 98.2%, 52.3% were women. The mean abdominal perimeter for men was 93.66 cm (SD 13.8) and for women 92.80 cm (SD 14.5). There was a positive association of abdominal circumference with age (p<0.001) and negative regarding education. The abdominal perimeter means were higher for those insufficiently active (p<0.001), for former smokers (p<0.001), for those who consumed meat without fat removal (p = 0.001), for those who consumed fruit less than 5 times a week (p<0.001) and for those who were overweight (p<0.001). Remained positively associated with changes in abdominal obesity, insufficient physical activity, smoking, former smoker and consumption of meat without fat removal. All proximal variables remained positively associated with abdominal perimeter. Conclusions: The results have confirmed that diet, lifestyle and sociodemographic conditions determine a different distribution in abdominal fat, it is needed actions to promote a healthy lifestyle312621628Objetivo: El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar los determinantes del perímetro abdominal en adultos que viven en la ciudad de Lages, SC. Diseño: Estudio transversal de base poblacional en adultos 20-59 años de edad, de la zona urbana (n= 2022). La variable dependiente fue el perímetro abdominal y las variables independientes fueron: edad, color de la piel auto dicho, estado civil, número de hijos, renta per cápita, nivel educacional, actividad física, tabaquismo, nutrición, diabetes mellitus auto dicho, presión arterial alta e índice de masa corporal. Las diferencias entre los promedios de perímetros se probaron a través de la ANOVA y de la regresión lineal múltiple, ajustada para los factores de confusión. Resultados: La tasa de respuesta fue de un 98,2%, de los cuales un 52,3% eran mujeres. El perímetro abdominal promedio para los hombres fue 93,66 cm (SD= 13,8 cm) y para las mujeres 92,80 cm (SD= 14,5). Hubo asociación positiva entre la circunferencia abdominal y la edad (p<0,001) y negativa entre la circunferencia abdominal y el nivel educacional. El promedio de perímetro abdominal fue más grande en personas insuficientemente activas (p<0,001), en los ex fumadores (p<0,001), en los que consumen carne sin la eliminación de grasa (p=0,001), en aquellos que consumían frutos menos de 5 veces a la semana (p<0,001) y en los que tenían sobrepeso (p<0,001). Se mantuvo una asociación positiva con los cambios en la obesidad abdominal, la insuficiente actividad física, el tabaquismo, ex fumador y el consumo de carne sin la eliminación de grasa. Todas las variables proximales se mantuvieron asociadas positivamente con el perímetro abdominal. Conclusiones: Los resultados confirman que la dieta, el estilo de vida y las condiciones sociodemográficas determinan una distribución diferente de la grasa abdominal, siendo necesarias acciones para promover un estilo de vida saludablesem informaçã

Profile of opioid prescriptions for intubated and mechanically ventilated neonates

Objective: to identify factors that affect the decision of prescribing opioids for intubated and ventilated neonates Method: retrospective study of intubated and ventilated newborn infants for periods longer than one hour, admitted to the NICU from January 1995 to June 1997. During this period, 203 patients fulfilled inclusion criteria and data of 176 charts were reviewed. Charts were analyzed regarding demographic data, characteristics of analgesia and respiratory support, invasive procedures performed and clinical entities diagnosed during the period of mechanical ventilation. Discriminative analysis was used to understand factors that lead to opioid use by some of these patients. Results: Ninety-seven neonates received at least one dose of opioids during the period of mechanical ventilation. None of these patients was evaluated with pain scales, and in 63% of them we could not retrieve any reason for opioid prescription in their charts. Discriminative analysis showed that the main differences between groups were birthweight, gestational age, oxygenation index at intubation, and number of arterial sticks during the first 72 hours of mechanical ventilation. The most mature and heaviest neonates with a more severe respiratory insufficiency received opioid analgesia during ventilation. Conclusion: the decision to use opioids in intubated and ventilated neonates was based on the infants' aspect and respiratory status. It did not consider the pain these patients might be suffering and it was not based on the evaluation of pain.Objetivo: identificar fatores que levaram os médicos a prescreverem opióides a recém-nascidos em ventilação mecânica. Método: estudo retrospectivo de pacientes em ventilação mecânica por cânula traqueal, por mais de 1 hora, internados em UTI neonatal entre janeiro de 1995 a junho de 1997. Nesse período, 203 recém-nascidos preencheram o critério de inclusão, recuperando-se 176 prontuários. Os prontuários foram analisados quanto a dados demográficos, características da analgesia e do suporte ventilatório, procedimentos invasivos realizados e entidades mórbidas diagnosticadas durante o período de ventilação. Para entender os fatores que determinaram o uso da analgesia em parte dessa população, utilizou-se a análise discriminante. Resultados: Nos 97 pacientes que receberam > 1 dose de opióides durante a ventilação, a analgesia foi iniciada, em média, até 24 horas após o início da ventilação. As escalas de avaliação da dor não foram usadas em nenhum paciente e, em 63%, não havia relato do motivo para a analgesia. A análise discriminante mostrou que as variáveis que diferenciaram os grupos submetidos ou não à analgesia foram: peso ao nascer, idade gestacional, índice de oxigenação e número de punções arteriais. Os neonatos com maior chance de receberem alguma dose de opióide durante a ventilação foram os de peso mais elevado, idade gestacional mais avançada, índice de oxigenação mais acentuado no início da ventilação e maior necessidade de gasometrias, ou seja, os bebês mais maduros e com doença respiratória mais grave. Conclusão: os médicos não levam em conta a dor propriamente dita e nem a avaliam para decidirem pela necessidade de analgesia no neonato em ventilaçãoUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) - Escola Paulista de Medicina (UNIFESP-EPM)UNIFESP-EPM Disciplina de Pediatria NeonatalUNIFESP-EPM Disciplina de BioestatísticaUNIFESP, - Escola Paulista de Medicina (UNIFESP-EPM)UNIFESP, EPM Disciplina de Pediatria NeonatalUNIFESP, EPM Disciplina de BioestatísticaSciEL

0001/2009 - Integração Semântica de Modelos

Para a realização eficiente das suas atividades, é essencial que a equipe de administração de dados (ADs) tenha acesso aos artefatos que permitam conhecer os conceitos sobre o domínio dos dados que estão sob sua responsabilidade. Dentre os artefatos disponíveis estão, por exemplo, modelos de processo de negócio e as ontologias de domínio. Este trabalho propõe uma abordagem de enriquecimento semântico de modelos de processos, modelos lógicos de dados e esquemas de banco de dados com uma ontologia de domínio através de ferramentas conhecidas do mercad

R534C mutation in hERG causes a trafficking defect in iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes from patients with type 2 long QT syndrome

Patient-specific cardiomyocytes obtained from induced pluripotent stem cells (CM-iPSC) offer unprecedented mechanistic insights in the study of inherited cardiac diseases. The objective of this work was to study a type 2 long QT syndrome (LQTS2)-associated mutation (c.1600C > T in KCNH2, p.R534C in hERG) in CM-iPSC. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from two patients with the R534C mutation and iPSCs were generated. In addition, the same mutation was inserted in a control iPSC line by genome editing using CRISPR/Cas9. Cells expressed pluripotency markers and showed spontaneous differentiation into the three embryonic germ layers. Electrophysiology demonstrated that action potential duration (APD) of LQTS2 CM-iPSC was significantly longer than that of the control line, as well as the triangulation of the action potentials (AP), implying a longer duration of phase 3. Treatment with the IKr inhibitor E4031 only caused APD prolongation in the control line. Patch clamp showed a reduction of IKr on LQTS2 CM-iPSC compared to control, but channel activation was not significantly affected. Immunofluorescence for hERG demonstrated perinuclear staining in LQTS2 CM-iPSC. In conclusion, CM-iPSC recapitulated the LQTS2 phenotype and our findings suggest that the R534C mutation in KCNH2 leads to a channel trafficking defect to the plasma membrane.Fil: Mesquita, Fernanda C. P.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Arantes, Paulo C.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Kasai Brunswick, Tais H.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Araujo, Dayana S.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Gubert, Fernanda. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Monnerat, Gustavo. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Silva dos Santos, Danúbia. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Neiman, Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación para la Lucha contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia; ArgentinaFil: Leitão, Isabela C.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Barbosa, Raiana A. Q.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Coutinho, Jorge L.. National Institute Of Cardiology; BrasilFil: Vaz, Isadora M.. Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Parana; BrasilFil: dos Santos, Marcus N.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Borgonovo, Tamara. Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Parana; BrasilFil: Cruz, Fernando E. S.. National Institute of Cardiology; BrasilFil: Miriuka, Santiago Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación para la Lucha contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia; ArgentinaFil: Medei, Emiliano H.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Campos de Carvalho, Antonio C.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; Brasil. National Institute of Cardiology; Brasil. National Institute for Science and Technology in Regenerative Medicine; BrasilFil: Carvalho, Adriana B.. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; Brasil. National Institute for Science and Technology in Regenerative Medicine; Brasi

Quinquangulin and Rubrofusarin: A Spectroscopy Study

In this work, excitation and emission spectra were evaluated in order to elucidate the properties of quinguangulin and rubrofusarin in water/ethanol mixture. The study demonstrates that the maximum excitation wavelength can be significantly modulated changing the proportion of organic solvent in the water/organic solvent system. Quinquangulin presented the higher wavelength of maximum excitation in an ethanol-water mixture containing 70% of water. Probably, the organization between ethanol and water molecules in this condition favors the formation of strong polar interactions with the pi* orbitals of naphthopyrones. It is interesting to register that the additional methyl group in quinquangulin seems to develop a decisive function related to the ability to formation of hydrogen bonds, altering significantly the mechanism of solute-solvent interaction. This work, which involves both theoretical and experimental analyses, demonstrates the relevance of the studies focused on solvent mixtures as well as emphasizes the potential of quinguangulin and rubrofusarin as photosensitizers.FAPESPFundacao AraucariaFAPEMIGCNPqCAPESUniv Fed Sao Joao Del Rei, Dept Zootecnia DEZOO, Campus Dom Bosco, BR-36301160 Sao Joao Del Rei, MG, BrazilUniv Vale Paraiba, Ave Shishima Hifumi 2911, BR-12244000 Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Quim, Rua Prof Arthur Riedel 275, BR-09972270 Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Uberlandia, Inst Quim, Lab Fotoquim & Ciencia Mat, Uberlandia, MG, BrazilUniv Fed Goias, Dept Quim, Campus Catalao, Catalao, Go, BrazilUniv Estadual Maringa, Dept Quim, Av Colombo 5790,Zona 07, BR-87020900 Maringa, Parana, BrazilUniv Fed Rio de Janeiro, Campus Macae,Rua Aloisio da Silva Gomes 50, BR-27930560 Rio De Janeiro, BrazilUniv Estadual Campinas, Inst Quim, BR-13083970 Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Rio Grande, Escola Quim & Alimentos, Campus Carreiros Pavilhao Quim, BR-96201900 Rio Grande, RS, BrazilUniv Fed ABC, Ctr Engn Modelagem & Ciencias Sociais Aplicadas, Ave Estados 500, BR-09210580 Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed ABC, Ctr Ciencias Nat & Humanas, Ave Estados 5001, BR-09210580 Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Quim, Rua Prof Arthur Riedel 275, BR-09972270 Sao Paulo, BrazilFAPESP: 06/56701-3Fundacao AraucariaFAPEMIGCNPq: 474019/2012-8CNPq: 303872/2009-8CAPESWeb of Scienc

Determination of angiotensin I-converting enzyme activity in equine blood: lack of agreement between methods of analysis

Angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) is a key regulator of blood pressure, electrolytes and fluid homeostasis through conversion of angiotensin I into angiotensin II. Recently, a genetic polymorphism of the ACE gene, which accounts for 47% of the variation of ACE activity in blood, has been advocated as a biomarker of athletic aptitude. Different methods of analysis and determination of ACE activity in plasma have been used in human and equine research without a consensus of a "gold standard" method. Different methods have often been used interchangeably or cited as being comparable in the existing literature; however, the actual agreement between assays has not been investigated. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated the level of agreement between three different assays using equine plasma obtained from 29 horses. Two spectrophotometric assays using Furylacryloyl-phenylalanyl-glycyl-glycine as substrate and one fluorimetric assay utilizing o-aminobenzoic acid-FRK-(Dnp)P-OH were employed. The results revealed that the measurements from the different assays were not in agreement, indicating that the methods should not be used interchangeably for measurement of equine ACE activity. Rather, a single method of analysis should be adopted to achieve comparable results and critical appraisal of the literature is needed when attempting to compare results obtained from different assays