Treatment of acromegaly patients at the Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM): Experience Report

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment of acromegaly patients at the Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro. METHODS: Cross-sectional and retrospective study of thirty cases treated over a period of two decades. RESULTS: 17 men (56.7%) aged 14-67 years and 13 women aged 14-86 years were analyzed. Twenty-one patients underwent transphenoidal surgery, whichwas associated with somatostatin receptor ligands in 11 patients (39.3%), somatostatin receptor ligands + radiotherapyin 5 patients (17.8%), radiotherapy in 3 patients (10.7%), and radiotherapy + somatostatin receptorligands + cabergoline in 1 patient (3.6%). Additionally, 2 patients underwent radiotherapy and surgeryalone. Six patients received somatostatin receptor ligands before surgery, and 2 were not treated due to refusal and death. Nine patients have died, and 20 are being followed; 13 (65%) have growth hormonelevels o1 ng/mL, and 11 have normal insulin-like growth factor 1 levels. CONCLUSION: The current treatment options enable patients seen in regional reference centers to achieve strict control parameters, which allows them to be treated close to their homes

Morphological aspects of opossum (Didelphis aurita) pancreas during intramarsupial development

Abstract: This study reported the relevant morphological features found in the pancreas of the Brazilian opossum Didelphis aurita, a marsupial mammal, during its intramarsupial development. Newborns and young opossums removed from the pouch were divided into groups according to their average body length. The animals with few hours of intramarsupial life had visibly immature pancreas, due to the presence of early arrangement of endocrine and exocrine components. There was an only very large pancreatic duct, and blood vessels full of nucleated erythrocytes. In the individuals who were in the second third of intramarsupial development, the exocrine components were arranged in developing acini and endocrine cells were found arranged in early islets. The presence of connective tissue and the division of the organ into lobes became more evident at this stage. In the last third of the external gestation, we found better structured acini with relatively small lumens. The islets were well-organized, and the presence of connective tissue around them was the most evident. Morphometric analyses showed considerable variations in the proportion of pancreatic structural components between the stages of intramarsupial development, indicating that marsupial pancreas undergoes morphological modifications and grows during the period of external gestation. Keywords: Embryo; Marsupials; Digestive system; Organogenesis.

Chemical composition, antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and redox properties in vitro of the essential oil from Remirea maritima Aubl. (Cyperaceae)

Methods: The essential oil from the roots and rhizomes of RMO were obtained by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger apparatus, and analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Here, we evaluated free radical scavenging activities and antioxidant potential of RMO using in vitro assays for scavenging activity against hydroxyl radicals, hydrogen peroxide, superoxide radicals, and nitric oxide. The total reactive antioxidant potential (TRAP) and total antioxidant reactivity (TAR) indexes and in vitro lipoperoxidation were also evaluated. The ability of RMO to prevent lipid peroxidation was measured by quantifying thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS). NO radical generated at physiological pH was found to be inhibited by RMO, that showed scavenging effect upon SNP-induced NO production at all concentrations. Antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory properties were evaluated by acetic acid writhing reflex, Formalin-induced nociception and Carrageenan-induced edema test. - Results: The majors compounds identified was remirol (43.2%), cyperene (13.8%), iso-evodionol (5.8%), cyperotundone (5.7%), caryophyllene oxide (4.9%), and rotundene (4.6%). At the TRAP assay, RMO concentration of 1 mg.mL−1 showed anti-oxidant effects and at concentration of 1 and 10 ng.mL−1 RMO showed pro-oxidant effect. RMO at 1 mg.mL−1 also showed significant anti-oxidant capacity in TAR measurement. Concentrations of RMO from 1 ng.mL−1 to 100 μg.mL−1 enhanced the AAPH-induced lipoperoxidation. RMO reduced deoxyribose oxidative damage, induced by the Fenton reaction induction system, at concentrations from 1 ng.mL−1 to 100 μg.mL−1. We observed that RMO caused a significant increase in rate of adrenaline auto-oxidation. On the other hand RMO did not present any scavenging effect in H2O2 formation in vitro. The results of this study revealed that RMO has both peripheral and central analgesic properties. The RMO, all doses, orally (p.o.) administered significantly inhibited (p < 0.05, p < 0.01 and p < 0.001) the acetic acid-induced writhings and two phases of formalin-induced nociception in mice. - Conclusion: The RMO demonstrated antioxidant and analgesic profile which may be related to the composition of the oil

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Laringotraqueíte: reprodutibilidade da doença e comparação de métodos de diagnóstico

O vírus da laringotraqueíte (VLT) causa de leve a severa doença respiratório em galinhas, o propósito do nosso estudo foi usar um isolado brasileiro de VLT para reproduzir a doença em frangos através da infecção experimental e comparar três métodos de diagnóstico (nested PCR, isolamento viral e histopatologia) para detectar o VLT. Quarenta e oito frangos inoculados intratraquealmente com VLT e outros 48 com PBS, apresentaram sinais respiratórios leves 48 horas após a infecção (PI), mas nenhum sinal após o dia 10 PI. A cada dois dias, seis aves foram selecionados arbitrariamente do controle e do grupo infectado, sacrificados e as traquéias coletadas. Ambos nested PCR e isolamento viral detectaram o vírus do dia 2 até o dia 12 PI. No entanto, no dia 12 PI, a PCR detectou o DNA viral em 100% das amostras enquanto o isolamento viral detectou em somente 33% das amostras. Histopatologia da traquéia revelou corpúsculos de inclusão intranuclear nos dias 8 e 10 PI. Os resultados indicam que o VLT isolado de campo estudado é de baixa patogenicidade e que o protocolo de Nested PCR foi capaz de detectar amostras positivas por um período mais longo da infecção do que muitos testes de diagnósticos descritos.Infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) cause mild to severe respiratory disease in chickens, the purpose of our study being to use Brazilian isolate of ILTV to reproduce ILTV disease in chickens by experimental infection and to compare three diagnostic methods (nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR), virus isolation, histopathology) for detection of ILTV. Forty-eight chickens intratracheally inoculated with ILTV and a further 48 with PBS, showing mild respiratory signs 48 hours post infection (PI) but no signs of infection after day 10 PI. Every 2 days PI, six birds were arbitrarily selected from the control and infected groups, sacrificed and the trachea collected. Both the nested PCR and virus isolation detected the virus from day 2 until day 12 PI. However, at day 12 PI, PCR detected ILTV DNA in 100% of the samples while the virus isolation method detected ILTV in only 33% of the samples. Tracheal histopathology showed intranuclear inclusion bodies on days 8 and 10 PI. The results indicate that the field-isolate of ILTV studied by us is of low pathogenicity and that our nested PCR protocol was able to detect positive samples over a longer infection period than many ILTV diagnostic test already described

A política nacional de gestão do patrimônio da União: uma análise a partir da gestão dos imóveis não operacionais da extinta RFFSA

O objetivo do artigo é relatar os resultados de pesquisa que buscou avaliar a política de gestão do patrimônio imobiliário da União, no Brasil. O foco da pesquisa – qualitativa no método, exploratória no propósito, delineada como estudo de caso único e utilizando a pesquisa documental e roteiros de entrevistas semiestruturados como instrumentos de coleta de dados – foi orientado para o processo de gestão dos bens não operacionais da extinta RFFSA, buscando avaliar, sobretudo, as dificuldades e os desafios para a incorporação e a afetação de aproximadamente 52 mil imóveis. A pesquisa revelou que, a despeito do modelo de gestão patrimonial adotado a partir dos anos 2000, a Secretaria do Patrimônio da União (SPU) ainda apresenta as vicissitudes de uma instituição com tradição patrimonialista, reativa às demandas pelo uso do patrimônio, deixando de garantir o cumprimento da função social da propriedade pública.Revista do Serviço Público - RSP, v. 68, n. 3, p. 657-680Gestão Patrimonial. Bens PúblicosISSN eletrônico: 2357-8017 ISSN impresso: 0034-924