803 research outputs found
A ineficácia na aplicabilidade da medida sócioeducativa de internação
A pesquisa tem por objetivo destacar quais são os principais fatores que fazem com que a medida sócioeducativa de internação não seja eficaz, fazendo assim com que não haja ressocialização e reeducação dos menores infratores, sendo esse o objetivo principal de tal medida. Demonstrados esses fatores, utiliza-se na pesquisa exemplos de sucesso em outros países onde existem a medida de internação similares ao que ocorre no Brasil, comprovando-se assim que existe a possibilidade de alcançar a eficácia na aplicação dessas medidas, bastando para tanto ajustes. Fora feita uma entrevista com funcionários da Unidade de Intenação do Plano Piloto para que assim fossem obtidos dados que comprovassem a ineficácia da medida sócioeducativa no Brasil, especificamente em Brasília e suas motivações. Com a entrevista foi possível ouvir de funcioários da área as possíveis soluções para que se alcançe o objetivo principal da pesquisa, que persiste na tentativa de buscar soluções para a eficácia na aplicação da medida sócioeducativa de internação. Por fim, foram propostas soluções que seriam o treinamento de funcionários dos estabelecimentos, melhoria nas estruturas dos estabelecimentos, criação de atividades que entretenham os internos, para que assim consigamos atinjir a eficácia na aplicabilidade da medida sócioeducativa de internação Brasil utilizando-se da atual legislação do Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente
Heterofucan from Sargassum filipendula Induces Apoptosis in HeLa Cells
Fucan is a term used to denominate a family of sulfated polysaccharides rich in sulfated l-fucose. Heterofucan SF-1.5v was extracted from the brown seaweed Sargassum filipendula by proteolytic digestion followed by sequential acetone precipitation. This fucan showed antiproliferative activity on Hela cells and induced apoptosis. However, SF-1.5v was not able to activate caspases. Moreover, SF-1.5v induced glycogen synthase kinase (GSK) activation, but this protein is not involved in the heterofucan SF-1.5v induced apoptosis mechanism. In addition, ERK, p38, p53, pAKT and NFκB were not affected by the presence of SF-1.5v. We determined that SF-1.5v induces apoptosis in HeLa mainly by mitochondrial release of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) into cytosol. In addition, SF-1.5v decreases the expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 and increased expression of apoptogenic protein Bax. These results are significant in that they provide a mechanistic framework for further exploring the use of SF-1.5v as a novel chemotherapeutics against human cervical cancer
Quantum Biochemistry Screening and In Vitro Evaluation of Leishmania Metalloproteinase Inhibitors
Funding Information: Global Health and Tropical Medicine funded this research: Grant number IHMT-UID/multi/04413/2013 and Grant number PTDC/CVT-CVT/28908/2017, FCT-Portugal. Funding Information: We would like to thank to CNPq/Brazil, CAPES/Brazil and FCT/Portugal for grants and fellowships. C.J.G.M., J.W.d.F.O., T.K.d.B.P., F.L.d.S.J. and B.A.-C. thank the financial support (PhD and Post-doctoral fellowships) provided by Capes/Brazil. M.S.S. and H.A.O.R. thank CNPq/Brazil for the Research Grant (Bolsa de Produtividade em Pesquisa). We also would like to thank the Department of Materials Engineering at UFRN for allowing the use of their scanning electron microscope, and the Department of Biochemistry at UFRN for allowing the use of their flow cytometer. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors.Leishmanolysin, also known as major promastigote protease (PSP) or gp63, is the most abundant surface glycoprotein of Leishmania spp., and has been extensively studied and recognized as the main parasite virulence factor. Characterized as a metalloprotease, gp63 can be powerfully inactivated in the presence of a metal chelator. In this study, we first used the structural parameters of a 7-hydroxycoumarin derivative, L1 compound, to evaluate the theoretical–computational experiments against gp63, comparing it with an available metal chelator already described. The methodology followed was (i) analysis of the three-dimensional structure of gp63 as well as its active site, and searching the literature and molecular databases for possible inhibitors; (ii) molecular docking simulations and investigation of the interactions in the generated protein–ligand complexes; and (iii) the individual energy of the gp63 amino acids that interacted most with the ligands of interest was quantified by ab initio calculations using Molecular Fraction with Conjugated Caps (MFCC). MFCC still allowed the final quantum balance calculations of the protein interaction to be obtained with each inhibitor candidate binder. L1 obtained the best energy quantum balance result with −2 eV, followed by DETC (−1.4 eV), doxycycline (−1.3 eV), and 4-terpineol (−0.6 eV), and showed evidence of covalent binding in the enzyme active site. In vitro experiments confirmed L1 as highly effective against L. amazonensis parasites. The compound also exhibited a low cytotoxicity profile against mammalian RAW and 3T3 cells lines, presenting a selective index of 149.19 and 380.64 µM, respectively. L1 induced promastigote forms’ death by necrosis and the ultrastructural analysis revealed disruption in membrane integrity. Furthermore, leakage of the contents and destruction of the parasite were confirmed by Spectroscopy Dispersion analysis. These results together suggested L1 has a potential effect against L. amazonensis, the etiologic agent of diffuse leishmaniasis, and the only one that currently does not have a satisfactory treatment.publishersversionpublishe
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Rarity of monodominance in hyperdiverse Amazonian forests.
Tropical forests are known for their high diversity. Yet, forest patches do occur in the tropics where a single tree species is dominant. Such "monodominant" forests are known from all of the main tropical regions. For Amazonia, we sampled the occurrence of monodominance in a massive, basin-wide database of forest-inventory plots from the Amazon Tree Diversity Network (ATDN). Utilizing a simple defining metric of at least half of the trees ≥ 10 cm diameter belonging to one species, we found only a few occurrences of monodominance in Amazonia, and the phenomenon was not significantly linked to previously hypothesized life history traits such wood density, seed mass, ectomycorrhizal associations, or Rhizobium nodulation. In our analysis, coppicing (the formation of sprouts at the base of the tree or on roots) was the only trait significantly linked to monodominance. While at specific locales coppicing or ectomycorrhizal associations may confer a considerable advantage to a tree species and lead to its monodominance, very few species have these traits. Mining of the ATDN dataset suggests that monodominance is quite rare in Amazonia, and may be linked primarily to edaphic factors
OBSERVATORIO TERRITORIAL Y AMBIENTAL ALENTEJO, EXTREMADURA, CENTRO (OTALEX C): DE GIS A IDE.
In the scope of the Spain-Portugal INTERREG projects and FEDER funded POCTEP program, OTALEX C (Territorial and Environmental Monitoring Alentejo Extremadura Center) project aims at studying of various territorial, socioeconomic and environmental indicators. It is the fundamental objective of this project, to develop a geo-portal accessible via internet, for anyone, so that the information will be useful in making decisions related to land use and therefore sustainable development of the environment.
Under this general framework over the past fifteen years, we have developed different projects that have set the standardization of data between Portugal and Spain, also was designed GIS systems, and developed regional models and indicator systems, culminating in the current Spatial Data Infrastructure SDI-OTALEX C
Antioxidant and Antiproliferative Activities of Heterofucans from the Seaweed Sargassum filipendula
Fucan is a term used to denominate a type of polysaccharide which contains substantial percentages of l-fucose and sulfate ester groups. We obtained five heterofucans from Sargassum filipendula by proteolytic digestion followed by sequential acetone precipitation. These heterofucans are composed mainly of fucose, glucose, glucuronic acid, galactose and sulfate. These fucans did not show anticoagulant activity in PT and aPTT tests. Their antioxidant activity was evaluated using the follow tests; total antioxidant capacity, scavenging hydroxyl and superoxide radicals, reducing power and ferrous ion [Fe(II)] chelating. All heterofucans displayed considerable activity, especially SF-1.0v which showed the most significant antioxidant potential with 90.7 ascorbic acid equivalents in a total antioxidant capacity test and similar activity when compared with vitamin C in a reducing power assay. The fucan antiproliferative activity was performed with HeLa, PC3 and HepG2 cells using MTT test. In all tested conditions the heterofucans exhibited a dose-dependent effect. The strongest inhibition was observed in HeLa cells, where SF-1.0 and SF-1.5 exhibited considerable activity with an IC50 value of 15.69 and 13.83 μM, respectively. These results clearly indicate the beneficial effect of S. filipendula polysaccharides as antiproliferative and antioxidant. Further purification steps and additional studies on structural features as well as in vivo experiments are needed to test the viability of their use as therapeutic agents
Doenças endocrinológicas com repercussões psiquiátricas: revisão sistemática / Endocrinological disorders with psychiatric repercussions: a systematic review
O objetivo do estudo foi realizar uma revisão sistemática de literatura sobre doenças endocrinológicas com repercussões psiquiátricas. Para isso, realizou-se uma revisão sistemática de literatura, através de uma busca nas bases de dados Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde, Google Scholar e Scientific Electronic Library Online, utilizando-se os descritores: Endocrinology, Mental Disorders, Psychiatric Symptoms, Cushing’s syndrome, Hyperthyroidism, Hypothyroidism, Addison disease. Através disso, foram selecionados 12 artigos que compunham os critérios de inclusão e exclusão do presente estudo. Dessa forma, destaca-se que os estudos evidenciaram que diversos são as repercussões psiquiátricas em pacientes com doenças endocrinológicas, variando desde transtornos de ansiedade, depressão, transtorno de déficit de atenção/hiperatividade e psicose, cabendo aos profissionais o diagnóstico correto e em tempo hábil para auxiliar na qualidade de vida do indivíduo.
MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL : A data set of terrestrial, volant, and marine mammal occurrences in P ortugal
Mammals are threatened worldwide, with 26% of all species being includedin the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associatedwith habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mam-mals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change, and prey depletion formarine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems func-tionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is cru-cial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS INPORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublishedgeoreferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mam-mals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira thatincludes 105,026 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occur-ring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live obser-vations/captures (43%), sign surveys (35%), camera trapping (16%),bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radiotracking, and inquiries that represent lessthan 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: (1) burrowsjsoil moundsjtunnel, (2) capture, (3) colony, (4) dead animaljhairjskullsjjaws, (5) genetic confirmation, (6) inquiries, (7) observation of live animal (8),observation in shelters, (9) photo trappingjvideo, (10) predators dietjpelletsjpine cones/nuts, (11) scatjtrackjditch, (12) telemetry and (13) vocalizationjecholocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and100 m (76%). Rodentia (n=31,573) has the highest number of records followedby Chiroptera (n=18,857), Carnivora (n=18,594), Lagomorpha (n=17,496),Cetartiodactyla (n=11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n=7008). The data setincludes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened(e.g.,Oryctolagus cuniculus[n=12,159],Monachus monachus[n=1,512],andLynx pardinus[n=197]). We believe that this data set may stimulate thepublication of other European countries data sets that would certainly contrib-ute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting onthe development of more accurate and tailored conservation managementstrategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite thisdata paper when the data are used in publications.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Geographic patterns of tree dispersal modes in Amazonia and their ecological correlates
Aim: To investigate the geographic patterns and ecological correlates in the geographic distribution of the most common tree dispersal modes in Amazonia (endozoochory, synzoochory, anemochory and hydrochory). We examined if the proportional abundance of these dispersal modes could be explained by the availability of dispersal agents (disperser-availability hypothesis) and/or the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits (resource-availability hypothesis).
Time period: Tree-inventory plots established between 1934 and 2019.
Major taxa studied: Trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 9.55 cm.
Location: Amazonia, here defined as the lowland rain forests of the Amazon River basin and the Guiana Shield.
Methods: We assigned dispersal modes to a total of 5433 species and morphospecies within 1877 tree-inventory plots across terra-firme, seasonally flooded, and permanently flooded forests. We investigated geographic patterns in the proportional abundance of dispersal modes. We performed an abundance-weighted mean pairwise distance (MPD) test and fit generalized linear models (GLMs) to explain the geographic distribution of dispersal modes.
Results: Anemochory was significantly, positively associated with mean annual wind speed, and hydrochory was significantly higher in flooded forests. Dispersal modes did not consistently show significant associations with the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits. A lower dissimilarity in dispersal modes, resulting from a higher dominance of endozoochory, occurred in terra-firme forests (excluding podzols) compared to flooded forests.
Main conclusions: The disperser-availability hypothesis was well supported for abiotic dispersal modes (anemochory and hydrochory). The availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits seems an unlikely explanation for the distribution of dispersal modes in Amazonia. The association between frugivores and the proportional abundance of zoochory requires further research, as tree recruitment not only depends on dispersal vectors but also on conditions that favour or limit seedling recruitment across forest types
Geography and ecology shape the phylogenetic composition of Amazonian tree communities
AimAmazonia hosts more tree species from numerous evolutionary lineages, both young and ancient, than any other biogeographic region. Previous studies have shown that tree lineages colonized multiple edaphic environments and dispersed widely across Amazonia, leading to a hypothesis, which we test, that lineages should not be strongly associated with either geographic regions or edaphic forest types.LocationAmazonia.TaxonAngiosperms (Magnoliids; Monocots; Eudicots).MethodsData for the abundance of 5082 tree species in 1989 plots were combined with a mega-phylogeny. We applied evolutionary ordination to assess how phylogenetic composition varies across Amazonia. We used variation partitioning and Moran's eigenvector maps (MEM) to test and quantify the separate and joint contributions of spatial and environmental variables to explain the phylogenetic composition of plots. We tested the indicator value of lineages for geographic regions and edaphic forest types and mapped associations onto the phylogeny.ResultsIn the terra firme and várzea forest types, the phylogenetic composition varies by geographic region, but the igapó and white-sand forest types retain a unique evolutionary signature regardless of region. Overall, we find that soil chemistry, climate and topography explain 24% of the variation in phylogenetic composition, with 79% of that variation being spatially structured (R2 = 19% overall for combined spatial/environmental effects). The phylogenetic composition also shows substantial spatial patterns not related to the environmental variables we quantified (R2 = 28%). A greater number of lineages were significant indicators of geographic regions than forest types.Main ConclusionNumerous tree lineages, including some ancient ones (>66 Ma), show strong associations with geographic regions and edaphic forest types of Amazonia. This shows that specialization in specific edaphic environments has played a long-standing role in the evolutionary assembly of Amazonian forests. Furthermore, many lineages, even those that have dispersed across Amazonia, dominate within a specific region, likely because of phylogenetically conserved niches for environmental conditions that are prevalent within regions
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