Collection of Pollen Grains by Centris (Hemisiella) tarsata Smith (Apidae: Centridini): Is C. tarsata an Oligolectic or Polylectic Species?

Lia Goncalves, Claudia Ines da Silva, and Maria Luisa Tunes Buschini (2012) Collection of pollen grains by Centris (Hemisiella) tarsata Smith (Apidae: Centridini): Is C. tarsata an oligolectic or polylectic species? Zoological Studies 51(2): 195-203. Among pollinator species, bees play a prominent role in maintaining biodiversity because they are responsible, on average, for 80% of angiosperm pollination in tropical regions. The species richness of the bee genus Centris is high in South America. In Brazil, these bees occur in many types of ecosystems. Centris tarsata is an endemic species occurring only in Brazil. No previous studies considered interactions between plants and this bee species in southern Brazil, where it is the most abundant trap-nesting bee. Accordingly, the goals of this study were to investigate plants used by this species for its larval food supply and determine if this bee is polylectic or oligolectic in this region. This work was conducted in the Parque Municipal das Araucarias, Guarapuava (PR), southern Brazil, from Mar. 2002 to Dec. 2003. Samples of pollen were collected from nests of these bees and from flowering plants in grassland and swamp areas where the nests were built. All of the samples were treated with acetolysis to obtain permanent slides. The family Solanaceae was visited most often (71%). Solanum americanum Mill. (28.6%) and Sol. variabile Mart. (42.4%) were the primary pollen sources for C. tarsata in the study area. We found that although C. tarsata visited 20 species of plants, it preferred Solanum species with poricidal anthers and pollen grains with high protein levels. This selective behavior by females of C. tarsata indicates that these bees are oligolectic in their larval provisioning in this region of southern Brazil. http://zoolstud.sinica.edu.tw/Journals/51.2/195.pd

PROS1 novel splice-site variant decreases protein S expression in patients from two families with thrombotic disease

publishersversionpublishe

A Missense Variant in PLP2 in Holstein Cattle with X-Linked Congenital Mast Cell Tumor.

Congenital tumors occur infrequently in cattle. The aim of this study was to detail the clinicopathological phenotype of a Holstein calf with a congenital mast cell tumor and to identify the genetic cause by a whole-genome sequencing (WGS) trio-approach. An 18-day-old male Holstein calf was clinically examed and revealed multifocal, alopecic, thick and wrinkled skin lesions over the entire body. At 6 months of age, the general condition of the calf was characterized by retarded growth, poor nutritional status, and ulceration of the skin lesions. Histopathological examination revealed a primary cutaneous, poorly differentiated embryonal mast cell tumor with metastases in the lymph nodes and liver. Genetic analysis revealed a private X-linked variant in the PLP2 gene (chrX:87216480C>T; c.50C>T), which was present only in the genomes of the case (hemizygous) and his mother (heterozygous). It was absent in the sire as well as in 5365 control genomes. The identified missense variant exchanges the encoded amino acid of PLP2 at position 17 (p.Thr17Ile), which is classified as deleterious and affects a protein that plays a role in tumor growth and metastasis. Therefore, we suggested that the detected PLPL2 variant could be a plausible cause for this congenital condition in the affected calf

Hipercolesterolémia Familiar: Em Cada Amostra Sanguínea Uma Oportunidade Diagnóstica

Introdução: A Hipercolesterolémia Familiar (HF) e uma doença hereditária autossómica dominante com uma incidência estimada de 1:500 na sua forma heterozigótica. Caracteriza-se pela existência de níveis de colesterol muito elevados, habitualmente superiores a 300 mg/dl, e que são evidentes desde os primeiros dias de vida. A ausência de um programa de rastreio universal faz do diagnóstico precoce um desafio sobretudo durante a idade pediátrica. O presente trabalho integra-se no Estudo Português de Hipercolesterolémia Familiar e tem como objectivo caracterizar do ponto de vista clinico, laboratorial e genético uma família com HF. Caso clinico: Jovem do sexo masculino de 19 anos seguido em consulta de endocrinologia pediátrica desde os 13 anos por apresentar, em avaliação laboratorial de rotina, colesterol total de 319 mg/ dL. Historia familiar de hipercolesterolemia (colesterol acima de 290 mg/dL) em cinco familiares em primeiro grau, com manifestações clinicas como arco corneano, xantelasmas e ainda morte prematura por enfarte agudo do miocárdio aos 51 anos (avo materna). O estudo genético identificou uma mutação heterozigótica C371X do gene que codifica o receptor LDL (RLDL) no caso index e familiares directos. Trata-se de uma mutação “nonsense” descrita pela primeira vez na população portuguesa e que condiciona uma redução de 50% no número de receptores de LDL (Haploinsuficiência). Conclusão: Nas idades pediátricas, face a ausência de sinais clínicos, a história familiar e o doseamento oportunístico do colesterol sérico, isto e em amostras colhidas por outras razoes, assumem-se como as duas abordagens fundamentais no diagnóstico de HF. As medidas dietéticas e a promoção de estilos de vida saudáveis são as intervenções de primeira linha que devem ser reforçadas perante a confirmação de HF em idade pediátrica. As terapêuticas farmacológicas são ainda tema de discussão na comunidade cientifica, com resultados dispares relativamente a segurança (risco-beneficio) da sua utilização em crianças pre-puberes

Kinematic Galileo and GPS Performances in Aerial, Terrestrial, and Maritime Environments

On 15 December 2016, the European Commission (EC) declared the provision of the Galileo Initial Services (IS). This marked a historical milestone in the Galileo program, towards the reaching of its Full Operational Capability. This allows users to navigate with performance-accuracy levels either matching or exceeding those obtained with other GNSS. Under the delegation of the EC, the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) has assumed the role of the Galileo Service Provider. As part of this service provision, the primary mission of the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) is to provide the EUSPA and the EC with independent means for monitoring and evaluating the performance of the Galileo services, the quality of the signals in space, and the performance of other GNSS. This mission includes significant contributions from cooperating entities in the European Union (EU) Member States (MS), Norway and Switzerland. In particular, for a detailed assessment of the Galileo performance, these contributions include (but are not limited to) periodic dynamic campaigns in three different environments (aerial, terrestrial, and maritime). These campaigns were executed in the frame of the GRC-MS Project and use multi-constellation receivers to compare the navigation performance obtained with different GNSS. The objective of this paper is to present the numerical results obtained from these campaigns, together with several considerations about the experimental setup, the methodology for the estimation of the reference («actual») trajectory, and the reasons for possible performance degradations

Parametric modeling for the study of helical surfaces in descriptive geometry

O estudo de superfícies na Geometria Descritiva (GD) reduz o grau de abstração inerente à sua natureza axiomática e aumenta a experiência concreta, promovendo uma reconciliação da disciplina com o mundo real, o que facilita o processo de aprendizagem. No entanto, a complexidade tridimensional e a dificuldade no traçado manual prejudicam o seu potencial pedagógico forçando aplicações mais simples. Este é o caso das superfícies helicoidais. Este trabalho propõe um modelo paramétrico geral para a geração computacional de helicoides em toda a sua complexidade para serem utilizados em situações de aprendizagem de GD. A metodologia para modelar os processos de desenho da GD está baseada na geometria vetorial. Como principais resultados, foram gerados modelos matemáticos paramétricos generalizados para hélices cilíndricas e helicoides que podem ser facilmente implementados em softwares paramétricos, como o Grasshopper, e em aplicativos de ensino específicos em linguagem de programação de alto nível.The study of surfaces in descriptive geometry (DG) reduces the degree of abstraction inherent in the axiomatic nature and increases your concrete experience, promoting reconciliation of the discipline with the real world, which facilitates the learning process. However, three-dimensional complexity and difficulty in manual drawing undermine its pedagogical potential by forcing more straightforward applications, which is the case of helicoids that due to your complexity are used only in basic applications in DG. This work proposes a general parametric model for the computational generation of helicoids in all their complexity to use in DG learning situations. The vector geometry is the basis of methodology for modeling the drawing processes of DG. Primary results, parametric generalized mathematical models were generated for helix and helicoids that allows implementing in parametric software, like the Grasshopper, and specific educational applications using high-level programming language, such as Object Pascal. The paper presents the results of these implementations, demonstrating the efficiency of generalized parametric models proposed

Staphylococcus saprophyticus from clinical and environmental origins have distinct biofilm composition

Biofilm formation has been shown to be critical to the success of uropathogens. Although Staphylococcus saprophyticus is a common cause of urinary tract infections, its biofilm production capacity, composition, genetic basis, and origin are poorly understood. We investigated biofilm formation in a large and diverse collection of S. saprophyticus (n = 422). Biofilm matrix composition was assessed in representative strains (n = 63) belonging to two main S. saprophyticus lineages (G and S) recovered from human infection, colonization, and food-related environment using biofilm detachment approach. To identify factors that could be associated with biofilm formation and structure variation, we used a pangenome-wide association study approach. Almost all the isolates (91%; n = 384/422) produced biofilm. Among the 63 representative strains, we identified eight biofilm matrix phenotypes, but the most common were composed of protein or protein-extracellular DNA (eDNA)-polysaccharides (38%, 24/63 each). Biofilms containing protein-eDNA-polysaccharides were linked to lineage G and environmental isolates, whereas protein-based biofilms were produced by lineage S and infection isolates (p < 0.05). Putative biofilm-associated genes, namely, aas, atl, ebpS, uafA, sasF, sasD, sdrH, splE, sdrE, sdrC, sraP, and ica genes, were found with different frequencies (3-100%), but there was no correlation between their presence and biofilm production or matrix types. Notably, icaC_1 was ubiquitous in the collection, while icaR was lineage G-associated, and only four strains carried a complete ica gene cluster (icaADBCR) except one that was without icaR. We provided evidence, using a comparative genomic approach, that the complete icaADBCR cluster was acquired multiple times by S. saprophyticus and originated from other coagulase-negative staphylococci. Overall, the composition of S. saprophyticus biofilms was distinct in environmental and clinical isolates, suggesting that modulation of biofilm structure could be a key step in the pathogenicity of these bacteria. Moreover, biofilm production in S. saprophyticus is ica-independent, and the complete icaADBCR was acquired from other staphylococci

Carbon isotope stratigraphy, magnetostratigraphy, and Ar-40/Ar-39 age of the Cretaceous South Atlantic coast, Namibe Basin, Angola

Peer reviewe

Experiências inovadoras em ensino e pesquisa da geometria descritiva

Este trabalho apresenta as principais contribuições do grupo de pesquisa Virtual Design (ViD) no processo de ensino-aprendizagem de Geometria Descritiva (GD) de acordo com os princípios do da aprendizagem baseada em projetos. Primeiramente, o artigo apresenta a base teórica que fundamenta as principais iniciativas do ViD aplicadas no processo de aprendizagem da GD, incluindo a aprendizagem baseada em projetos e a modelagem virtual. As iniciativas apresentadas incluem a aprendizagem baseada em um ciclo de experiências virtuais e concretas no contexto do projeto. Estas iniciativas que alimentam o processo de aprendizagem são os resultados das pesquisas acadêmicas do grupo de pesquisa ViD, as quais envolvem projetos de mestrado e doutorado, com repercussões no desenvolvimento de novos métodos, novas tecnologias e novos produtos e na qualidade da educação.This paper presents the main contributions of the research group Virtual Design (ViD) to the learning process of Descriptive Geometry (DG) in line with the principles of design-based learning. First, the paper presents the theoretical framework that bases the main ViD initiatives applied to the learning of DG, including design-based learning and physical and virtual modelling. The initiatives presented include a learning cycle based on concrete and virtual experiences in the design context. These initiatives that feed the learning of DG are the result of academic research of the Virtual Design research group, also involving Masters and PhD projects, with repercussions on the development of new methods, new technologies and new products, and the quality of education