Increasing Vegetable Diversity Consumption Impacts the Sympathetic Nervous System Activity in School-Aged Children

Evidence about the impact of vegetable and fruit diversity consumption on the autonomic nervous system (ANS) functioning is scarce. In this cross-sectional study (513 participants, 49.9% girls aged 7 to 12 years), we evaluated the association between vegetable and fruit diversity consumption and the ANS in school-aged children. Dietary intake was collected using a single 24-h recall questionnaire. Fruit and vegetable diversity consumption was estimated by summing up all the different individual vegetables and fruits consumed in one day. Pupillometry was used to assess pupillary light response, which evaluated the ANS activity. Adjusted linear regressions estimated the association between vegetable and fruit diversity consumption with pupillary light response measures. There was a positive and significant association between vegetable diversity consumption and the average dilation velocity, a measure related to the sympathetic nervous system activity (beta-coefficient = 0.03, 95%CI: 0.002; 0.07). Our findings show that vegetable diversity consumption is associated with the ANS response, a possible early link between diet and health in school-aged children

Efeitos da decomposição do palhiço da cana-de-açúcar na capacidade de retenção de água num latossolo vermelho amarelo.

O presente trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar os efeitos da aplicação da vinhaça, complementada ou não com nitrogênio, e de um produto biológico, na decomposição dos restos culturais provenientes da colheita de cana crua, na capacidade de retenção de água do solo na primeira e segunda socas, da variedade de cana-de-açúcar SP80-1842, na Usina da Pedra, localizada em Serrana, Estado de São Paulo. Foi utilizado o delineamento em Blocos Casualisados, em quatro repetições. A parcela foi constituída de seis linhas de cana-de-açúcar, espaçadas com 1,50 m entre si, com um comprimento total de 12,00 m. Os tratamentos estudados envolveram a aplicação de vinhaça, enriquecida ou não com nitrogênio e um biodecompositor. As características físicas do solo não foram alteradas pela aplicação da vinhaça, nitrogênio ou decompositor biológico.Organizado por Adilson de Oliveira Junior, Regina Maria Villas Bôas de Campos Leite, César de Castro, Fábio Álvares de Oliveira, Odilon Ferreira Saraiva

Avaliação de serviços ecossistêmicos em sistemas agrossilvipastoris.

Agroecossistemas são sistemas ecológicos naturais modificados por práticas agropecuárias e/ou silviculturais para produzir alimentos, fibras e outros produtos para o bem-estar da sociedade. O grau de complexidade desses sistemas indica a capacidade em prover serviços ecossistêmicos (SE). O objetivo do estudo é apresentar uma avaliação biofísica e monetária de SE providos em sistemas de integração lavoura-pecuária-floresta (ILPF) e lavoura-pecuária (ILP), tendo como base a abordagem proposta pela Economia Ecológica e Avaliação Ecossistêmica do Milênio. O estudo compara os SE providos pelos sistemas ILP e ILPF com o cultivo de Eucalyptus e de culturas agrícolas (produção de grãos) sem integração em plantio direto, tendo como referência uma vegetação natural. Em termos do fluxo de SE os resultados da avaliação indicam que o sistema produtivo de maior complexidade ecológica (ILPF) apresenta desempenho melhor do que os sistemas menos complexos, como ILP, Eucalyptus e culturas agrícolas sem integração

Alkaloids in Erythrina

Erythrina species are used in popular medicine as sedative, anxiolytic, anti-inflammatory, and antihypertensive. In this work, we investigated the chemical composition of extracts obtained from leaves of E. falcata and E. crista-galli. The hypotensive potential of E. falcata and the mechanism of action were also studied. The extracts were obtained by maceration and infusion. The total content of phenolic compounds and flavonoids was estimated by spectrophotometric methods. The chemical constituents were studied performing a chromatographic analysis by UPLC-ESI-MS. For in vivo protocols, blood pressure and heart rate were measured by the invasive hemodynamic monitoring method. Different concentrations of extracts and drugs such as L-NAME, losartan, hexamethonium, and propranolol were administrated i.v. The results of total phenolic contents for E. falcata and E. crista-galli were 1.3193–1.4989 mgGAE/mL for maceration and 0.8771–0.9506 mgGAE/mL for infusion. In total flavonoids, the content was 7.7829–8.1976 mg RE/g for maceration and 9.3471–10.4765 RE mg/g for infusion. The chemical composition was based on alkaloids, suggesting the presence of erythristemine, 11β-methoxyglucoerysodine, erysothiopine, 11β-hydroxyerysodine-glucose, and 11-hydroxyerysotinone-rhamnoside. A potent dose-dependent hypotensive effect was observed for E. falcata, which may be related to the route of β-adrenergic receptors

Structural and optical characterization of Mg-doped GaAs nanowires grown on GaAs and Si substrates

We report an investigation on the morphological, structural, and optical properties of large size wurtzite GaAs nanowires, low doped with Mg, grown on GaAs(111) B and Si(111) substrates. A higher density of vertical nanowires was observed when grown upon GaAs(111) B. Very thin zinc-blende segments are observed along the axis of the nanowires with a slightly higher linear density being found on the nanowires grown on Si(111). Low temperature cathodoluminescence and photoluminescence measurements reveal an emission in the range 1.40-1.52 eV related with the spatial localization of the charge carriers at the interfaces of the two crystalline phases. Mg related emission is evidenced by cathodoluminescence performed on the GaAs epilayer. However, no direct evidence for a Mg related emission is found for the nanowires. The excitation power dependency on both peak energy and intensity of the photoluminescence gives a clear evidence for the type II nature of the radiative transitions. From the temperature dependence on the photoluminescence intensity, non-radiative de-excitation channels with different activation energies were found. The fact that the estimated energies for the escape of the electron are higher in the nanowires grown on Si(111) suggests the presence of wider zinc-blende segments. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC

Antibody indexes in COVID-19 convalescent plasma donors: Unanswered questions

OBJECTIVE: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is characterized by high contagiousness, as well as variable clinical manifestations and immune responses. The antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 is directly related to viral clearance and the antibodies’ ability to neutralize the virus and confer long-term immunity. Nevertheless, the response can also be associated with disease severity and evolution. This study correlated the clinical characteristics of convalescent COVID-19 patients with immunoglobulin A (IgA) and IgG anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. METHODS: This study included 51 COVID-19 health care professionals who were candidates for convalescent plasma donation from April to June 2020. The subjects had symptomatic COVID-19 with a polymerase chain reaction-confirmed diagnosis. We measured anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgA and IgG antibodies after symptom recovery, and the subjects were classified as having mild, moderate, or severe symptoms. RESULTS: Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were positive in most patients (90.2%). The antibody indexes for IgA and IgG did not differ significantly between patients presenting with mild or moderate symptoms. However, they were significantly higher in patients with severe symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed an association between higher antibody indexes and severe COVID-19 cases, and several hypotheses regarding the association of the antibody dynamics and severity of the disease in SARSCoV-2 infection have been raised, although many questions remain unanswered

Breeding specialty soybean cultivars for processing and value-added utilization at Embrapa in Brazil.

Through traditional genetic breeding, specialty characters are introduced into soybean, to make it more suitable for differents uses. To attend this special market, Embrapa Soybean released for commercial cultivation the cultivars BRS 213, BRS 257, BRS 216, BRS 267 and BRSMG 790A for production in organic or in conventional systems. The cultivars BRS 213 and BRS 257 are null lipoxygenases enzymes, and can prevent the development of the beany flavor observed in soybean products. These cultivars make available excellent raw materials for soyfood processing. The cultivar BRS 216 has high protein content and small seed size (10g/100 seeds), what makes it suitable for ?natto? (Japanese fermented food), and for production of soybean sprouts, as ?moyashi?. The cultivar BRS 258, is a conventional cultivar, highly productive that has mild flavor and seeds with yellow hilum. Cultivars BRS 267 and BRSMG 790A presents large seed size (>25g/100seeds), and superior flavor. These cultivars are suitable for ?tofu?, flours and soymilk. BRS 267 and BRSMG 790A can also be consumed as green vegetable soybean (edamame), when harvested at R6 stage (developed grains, but immature). Among Brazilian soybean cultivars there are differences for isoflavone content, and to increase concentration of isoflavones it is suggested sowing them in locations where average temperatures are cooler during the seed filling period

Diversity of lactic acid bacteria of the bioethanol process

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bacteria may compete with yeast for nutrients during bioethanol production process, potentially causing economic losses. This is the first study aiming at the quantification and identification of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) present in the bioethanol industrial processes in different distilleries of Brazil.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 489 LAB isolates were obtained from four distilleries in 2007 and 2008. The abundance of LAB in the fermentation tanks varied between 6.0 × 10⁵and 8.9 × 10⁸CFUs/mL. Crude sugar cane juice contained 7.4 × 10⁷to 6.0 × 10⁸LAB CFUs. Most of the LAB isolates belonged to the genus <it>Lactobacillus </it>according to rRNA operon enzyme restriction profiles. A variety of <it>Lactobacillus </it>species occurred throughout the bioethanol process, but the most frequently found species towards the end of the harvest season were <it>L. fermentum </it>and <it>L. vini</it>. The different rep-PCR patterns indicate the co-occurrence of distinct populations of the species <it>L. fermentum </it>and <it>L. vini</it>, suggesting a great intraspecific diversity. Representative isolates of both species had the ability to grow in medium containing up to 10% ethanol, suggesting selection of ethanol tolerant bacteria throughout the process.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study served as a first survey of the LAB diversity in the bioethanol process in Brazil. The abundance and diversity of LAB suggest that they have a significant impact in the bioethanol process.</p

Produção de milho na agricultura familiar.

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