Diabetes Mellitus: Um estudo epidemiológico retrospectivo e observacional

ABSTRACT: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease in which hyperglycemia occurs and causes several changes throughout the patients' lives. Given the changes in all areas due to Covid-19, the epidemiological study carried out showed a drop in the incidence of cases of Diabetes Mellitus diagnosed in the period from January 1 2015 to July 31 2021, which may be related to the direction of the outpatients clinics for the exclusive care of patients who have contracted covid-19.RESUMO: O diabetes mellitus é uma doença crônica em que ocorre hiperglicemia e acarreta em várias alterações ao longo da vida dos pacientes. Diante das mudanças em todos os âmbitos devido a Covid-19, o estudo epidemiológico realizado mostrou queda na incidência dos casos de Diabetes Mellitus diagnosticado no período de 01 janeiro de 2015 até 31 de julho de 2021, podendo ser relacionado ao direcionamento dos ambulatórios para o atendimento exclusivo de pacientes que contraíram a covid-19.&nbsp

Xylanase from Fusarium heterosporum: Properties and influence of thiol compounds on xylanase activity

The properties of xylanase purified from Fusarium heterosporum that was grown in barley-brewing residue under solid-state fermentation and the effects of thiol compounds on the reactivation of the metal ion-inhibited xylanase were investigated. Xylanase was purified to homogeneity by ion exchange chromatography, and its molecular mass was estimated to be 19.5 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The optimum pH for the xylanase was 5.0, and it was stable in acidic pH (4.5 to 5.5), where it retained more than 87% of its activity after 24 h. The optimum temperature was 50°C, and it had a half-life of 53 min at 45°C. The apparent Km and Vmax values for the xylanase were 5.63 mg/ml and 800 μmol/mg/min, respectively. Ba2+, Ca2+, Mg2+ and the thiol compounds β-mercaptoethanol and dithiothreitol (DTT) enhanced xylanase activity, while Hg2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+ strongly inhibited enzyme activity. Furthermore, this xylanase had an alternative mode of regulation in the presence of thiol compounds because the enzyme was able to recover its catalytic activity after inhibition by heavy metal ions.Keywords: Hemicellulase, fungus, solid-state fermentation, barley brewing residue, thiol compoundsAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 13(9), pp. 1047-1055, 26 February, 201

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks

Heterogeneous contributions of change in population distribution of body mass index to change in obesity and underweight NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC)

From 1985 to 2016, the prevalence of underweight decreased, and that of obesity and severe obesity increased, in most regions, with significant variation in the magnitude of these changes across regions. We investigated how much change in mean body mass index (BMI) explains changes in the prevalence of underweight, obesity, and severe obesity in different regions using data from 2896 population-based studies with 187 million participants. Changes in the prevalence of underweight and total obesity, and to a lesser extent severe obesity, are largely driven by shifts in the distribution of BMI, with smaller contributions from changes in the shape of the distribution. In East and Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the underweight tail of the BMI distribution was left behind as the distribution shifted. There is a need for policies that address all forms of malnutrition by making healthy foods accessible and affordable, while restricting unhealthy foods through fiscal and regulatory restrictions

O avanço tecnológico e seus reflexos no currículo da escola

Este trabalho traz reflexões sobre o uso das novas tecnologias em sala de aula a partir das percepções de professores, pais e alunos. Proporcionado pela Universidade Federal do Rio Grande Sul, através do Curso de Especialização em Gestão Escolar, o estudo teve como objetivo compreender o avanço tecnológico e tornar possível a sua apropriação no currículo da escola. Para dar conta disso tivemos a pesquisa-ação como norteador, além dos autores que serviram de base para esta pesquisa: Ferreira (1998), Franco (2005), Gandin (1997), Pais (2008), Richardson (s/d), Tripp (2005), Valente (2003) e Veiga (2013). Esse estudo é de cunho qualitativo, instrumentado com um questionário realizado com a comunidade escolar. Os resultados evidenciam o medo e a insegurança dos professores, a preocupação dos pais e o interesse dos alunos com as novas tecnologias. Pode-se afirmar, ainda, que os professores estão cientes das suas dificuldades e o seu crescimento profissional está vinculado ao seu interesse pela busca de novos conhecimentos

Study of the physical-chemical and functional properties of an endo-1,4-B-xylanase from Aspergillus tamarii Kita and its application in the production of xylooligosaccharides

As endo-1,4-?-xilanases (EC 3.2.1.8) formam o maior grupo de enzimas hidrolíticas envolvido na degradação da xilana, visto que catalisam a hidrólise aleatória de ligações glicosídicas do tipo ?-1,4 no interior da sua cadeia principal, produzindo xilooligossacarídeos de diferentes tamanhos. Na natureza, essas enzimas estão intimamente relacionadas ao fornecimento de energia para o desenvolvimento dos organismos que as produzem. Em geral, as xilanases são isoladas preferencialmente de bactérias e fungos, e têm demonstrado grande potencial na produção de pães, ração animal, alimentos, bebidas, xilitol e bioetanol. O presente trabalho propôs o isolamento de uma nova endo-1,4-?-xilanase por meio de técnicas de produção e purificação acessíveis que pudessem viabilizar economicamente a integração desse biocatalisador aos processos industriais. O fungo Aspergillus tamarii Kita, oriundo de uma amostra de solo da Mata Atlântica, mostrou-se um bom produtor de xilanases em meio de cultura Adams suplementado com bagaço de cevada, um subproduto das indústrias cervejeiras. Após a otimização do processo de fermentação submersa, o extrato enzimático exibiu duas xilanases em gel de atividade para proteínas nativas, identificadas por espectrometria de massas como glicosil hidrolases pertencentes às famílias 10 e 11. A sacarificação enzimática de três resíduos agroindustriais, com base em um delineamento experimental de misturas, demonstrou que a combinação ternária desses componentes, em iguais proporções, possui considerável relevância para a produção de açúcares fermentáveis, tais como glicose e xilose. Em ensaios de imobilização, a xilanase GH11 foi satisfatoriamente estabilizada em matrizes de caráter iônico e covalente. A imobilização por ligação covalente multipontual em glioxil-agarose elevou a temperatura ótima de atividade de 60 para 65 °C e ofertou um considerável ganho de termoestabilidade ao derivado, que apresentou meia vida de 60 minutos a 80 °C. Além disso, a estabilização da enzima nesse suporte permitiu a produção dos seguintes xilooligossacarídeos: xilobiose, xilotriose, xilotetraose e xilopentaose. A purificação da xilanase GH11 foi realizada por meio de uma única etapa cromatográfica de troca catiônica, com rendimento final de 36,72% e um fator de purificação de 7,43 vezes. A massa molecular da enzima foi estimada em 19,5 kDa. Ademais, a sua estrutura tridimensional foi predita por modelagem comparativa, exibindo como modelo final uma arquitetura do tipo ?-jelly roll, comum às xilanases da família 11. Em ensaios de caracterização, a xilanase apresentou melhor atividade em pH 5,5 e manteve atividade residual superior a 80% na faixa de pH compreendida entre 4,0 e 9,0, durante 24 horas. Em relação à temperatura, a sua atividade ótima foi observada a 60 °C, contudo, a sua termoestabilidade foi mais expressiva a 50 °C, retendo cerca de 70% da sua atividade inicial por 480 minutos. Para a xilana beechwood, os valores de velocidade máxima e constante de dissociação aparente foram iguais a 1.330,20 µmol/min/mg e 8,13 mg/mL, respectivamente. Na concentração de 5 mM, os metais pesados Co2+, Hg+, Pb2+ e Zn2+ apresentaram um ponderável efeito de inibição sobre a xilanase GH11, enquanto que os íons Ba2+ e Ni2+, assim como os compostos ?-mercaptoetanol e DTT, exibiram um aumento superior a 20% em sua atividade. Por fim, a análise em tempo real da atividade xilanásica revelou que o substrato xilopentaose corresponde ao menor xilooligossacarídeo capaz de ser eficientemente hidrolisado. Sendo assim, a nova endo-xilanase GH11 isolada do fungo A. tamarii Kita exibe uma série de propriedades físico-químicas favoráveis a sua aplicabilidade em escala industrial.The endo-1,4-?-xylanases (EC 3.2.1.8) form the largest group of hydrolytic enzymes involved in the degradation of xylan, since they catalyze the random hydrolysis of ?-1,4 glycosidic bonds within the main chain of this polysaccharide, producing xylooligosaccharides of different sizes. In nature, these enzymes are closely related to supplying energy for the development of the organisms that produce them. In general, xylanases are preferentially isolated from bacteria and fungi, which show great potential in industries as brewing, animal feed, food, beverage, xylitol and bioethanol. The present work proposed the isolation of a new endo-1,4-?-xylanase by available techniques of production and purification that can economically make feasible the integration of this biocatalyst to industrial processes. The fungus Aspergillus tamarii Kita, obtained from a soil sample of the Atlantic Forest, showed to be a good xylanase producer in Adams culture medium supplemented with barley bagasse, a byproduct of breweries. After the optimization of the submerged fermentation process, the crude enzymatic extract exhibited two xylanases in activity gel for native proteins, identified by mass spectrometry as glycosyl hydrolases belonging to families 10 and 11. The enzymatic saccharification of three agroindustrial residues, based on an experimental mixture design, showed that the ternary combination of these components, in equal proportions, has considerable relevance for the production of fermentable sugars, such as glucose and xylose. The xylanase GH11 was satisfactorily stabilized on matrices of ionic and covalent character in immobilization assays. Covalent multipoint immobilization on glyoxyl agarose raised its optimum temperature of activity from 60 to 65 °C and offered a considerable gain in thermostability to the derivative, which presented a half-life of 60 minutes at 80 °C. In addition, enzyme stabilization on this support allowed the production of the following xylooligosaccharides: xylobiose, xylotriose, xylotetraose and xylopentaose. Xylanase GH11 purification was carried out by means of a single cation exchange chromatographic step, with final yield of 36.72% and purification factor of 7.43 times. The molecular mass of this xylanase was estimated as 19.5 kDa. Moreover, its three-dimensional structure was predicted by comparative modeling, exhibiting a ?-jelly roll type folding as a final model, common to xylanases of family 11. In characterization tests, xylanase presented better activity at pH 5.5 and was considerably stable in the pH range of 4.0 to 9.0. Regarding temperature, its optimum activity was observed at 60 °C, however, its thermostability was more expressive at 50 °C, retaining about 70% of its initial activity for 480 minutes. In the presence of beechwood xylan, the values of maximum velocity and the constant of apparent dissociation were 1,330.20 µmol/min/mg and 8.13 mg/mL, respectively. At concentrations of 5 mM, the heavy metals Co2+, Hg+, Pb2+ and Zn2+showed an inhibition effect on the xylanase, whereas Ba2+ and Ni2+ ions, as well as ?-mercaptoethanol and DTT, exhibited an increase of more than 20% in their activity. Finally, the real-time analysis of xylanase activity revealed that the xylopentose substrate corresponds to the lowest xylooligosaccharide capable of being hydrolyzed. Thus, the new endo-xylanase GH11 isolated from the fungus A. tamarii Kita exhibits a series of physicochemical properties favorable to its applicability on an industrial scale

Increased Malbranchea pulchella β-glucosidase production and its application in agroindustrial residue hydrolysis: A research based on experimental designs

β-Glucosidases are a limiting factor in the conversion of cellulose to glucose for the subsequent ethanol production. Here, β-glucosidase production by Malbranchea pulchella was optimized using Composite Central Designs and Response Surface Methodologies from a medium designed. The coefficient of determination (R2) was 0.9960, F-value was very high, and the lack of fit was found to be non-significant. This indicates a statistic valid and predictive result. M. pulchella enzymatic extract was successfully tested as an enzymatic cocktail in a mixture design using sugarcane bagasse, soybean hull and barley bagasse. We proved that the optimization of the β-glucosidase production and the application in hydrolysis using unexpansive biomass and agricultural wastes can be accomplished by means of statistical methodologies. The strategy presented here can be useful for the improvement of enzyme production and the hydrolysis process, arising as an alternative for bioeconomy

Bioprospection and characterization of the amylolytic activity by filamentous fungi from Brazilian Atlantic Forest

<div><p>Abstract Filamentous fungi are widely diverse and ubiquitous organisms. Such biodiversity is barely known, making room for a great potential still to be discovered, especially in tropical environments - which are favorable to growth and species variety. Filamentous fungi are extensively applied to the production of industrial enzymes, such as the amylases. This class of enzymes acts in the hydrolysis of starch to glucose or maltooligosaccharides. In this work twenty-five filamentous fungi were isolated from samples of decomposing material collected in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. The two best amylase producers were identified as Aspergillus brasiliensis and Rhizopus oryzae. Both are mesophilic, they grow well in organic nitrogen-rich media produce great amounts of glucoamylases. The enzymes of A. brasiliensis and R. oryzae are different, possibly because of their phylogenetical distance. The best amylase production of A. brasiliensis occurred during 120 hours with initial pH of 7.5; it had a better activity in the pH range of 3.5-5.0 and at 60-75°C. Both fungal glucoamylase had wide pH stability (3-8) and were activated by Mn2+. R. oryzae best production occurred in 96 hours and at pH 6.5. Its amylases had a greater activity in the pH range of 4.0-5.5 and temperature at 50-65ºC. The most significant difference between the enzymes produced by both fungi is the resistance to thermal denaturation: A. brasiliensis glucoamylase had a T50 of 60 minutes at 70ºC. The R. oryzae glucoamylase only had a residual activity when incubated at 50°C with a 12 min T50.</p></div

Make EU trade with Brazil sustainable

Brazil, home to one of the planet's last great forests, is currently in trade negotiations with its second largest trading partner, the European Union (EU). We urge the EU to seize this critical opportunity to ensure that Brazil protects human rights and the environment