First Description Of The Immature Stages Of Hemilucilia Segmentaria (diptera: Calliphoridae).

The immature stages oí Hemilucilia segmentaria (Fabricius, 1805) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) are described. Egg morphology and structures such as the cephalopharyngeal skeleton, anterior and posterior spiracles, and the dorsal spines between the prothorax and mesothorax from first, second and third instar larvae are characterized, using light and scanning electron microscopy. This species is abundant in Neotropical forests and, because of its necrophagous behavior, is of substantial medico-legal importance for estimating the postmortem interval in criminal investigations. Information presented herein may be useful to differentiate among eggs and larvae of closely related species and to supplement the database for blowfly identification.40271-8

Eimeria Curvata N. Sp.(apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) In Columbina Talpacoti And Scardafella Squammata (aves: Columbidae) From Brazil.

Eimeria curvata is a new coccidian described in the doves Columbina talpacoti and Scardafella squammata from western of the State of São Paulo, Brazil. The oocysts are ovoid to ellipsoid, 18.3 (17-19) microm x 15.5 (15-17) microm, with a shape index of 1.2 (1.1-1.3). The wall is colorless, smooth and double-layered. A polar granule is present, but there is no micropyle or oocyst residuum. The sporocysts are elongate, 12.3 (11.5-13) microm x 5.8 (5.5-6) microm with a curved anterior portion and a smooth, thin, single-layered wall. The Stieda body is protuberant and nipple-like; there is no substieda body. The sporozoites lie head-to-tail in the sporocyst and contain a large refractile body at the extremities. The sporocyst residuum contains small granules uniformly distributed in the middle of the sporocyst. The prevalence of E. curvata n. sp. was 17.4% and 12.8% in C. talpacoti and S. squammata, respectively.9553-

A Checklist Of Arthropods Associated With Pig Carrion And Human Corpses In Southeastern Brazil.

Necrophagous insects, mainly Diptera and Coleoptera, are attracted to specific stages of carcass decomposition, in a process of faunistic succession. They are very important in estimating the postmortem interval, the time interval between the death and the discovery of the body. In studies done with pig carcasses exposed to natural conditions in an urban forest (Santa Genebra Reservation), located in Campinas, State of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil, 4 out of 36 families of insects collected - Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae, Muscidae (Diptera) and Dermestidae (Coleoptera) - were considered of forensic importance, because several species were collected in large numbers both visiting and breeding in pig carcasses. Several species were also observed and collected on human corpses at the Institute of Legal Medicine. The species belonged to 17 different families, 6 being of forensic importance because they were reared from human corpses or pig carcasses: Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae, Muscidae, Piophilidae (Diptera), Dermestidae, Silphidae and Cleridae (Coleoptera). The most important species were: Diptera - Chrysomya albiceps, Chrysomya putoria, Hemilucilia segmentaria, Hemilucilia semidiaphana (Calliphoridae), Pattonella intermutans (Sarcophagidae), Ophyra chalcogaster (Muscidae), Piophila casei (Piophilidae); Coleoptera - Dermestes maculatus (Dermestidae), Oxyletrum disciolle (Silphidae) and Necrobia rufipes (Cleridae).95135-

Comparison of attraction patterns of Hermetia illucens (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) associated to buried Rattus norvergicus carcasses with steroid hormones treatment

Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) é uma espécie abundante em todo o continente americano. No entanto, ainda há poucos estudos no Brasil abordando aspectos em relação a sua biologia e ecologia, em particular associados a estudos forenses. Neste trabalho, nós observamos os efeitos de hormônios esteróides na decomposição corporal de Rattus norvergicus, variedade Wistar enterrados na atração de H. illucens. Além da presença de diversas espécies de larvas e adultos de insetos freqüentemente encontrados em carcaças nessas condições, observou-se uma grande quantidade de imaturos de H. illucens. Essa espécie representou aproximadamente 22% de todos os espécimes coletados, tendo aparecido somente nos animais que receberam tratamento com esteróides sexuais dos tipos testosterona, progesterona e estradiol. Dentre esses, a maior abundância foi verificada nos que haviam recebido testosterona (68%). A presença de imaturos de H. illucens, apenas nos animais que receberam o tratamento com esteróides, em experimentos realizados em dois anos consecutivos revela uma possível atração/seleção dessa espécie por corpos com quantidades aumentadas de hormônios sexuais. Esse comportamento pode ser particularmente útil para a entomologia forense no que diz respeito à estimativa do intervalo pós-morte (IPM), particularmente quando tem como base informações sobre o ciclo de vida e ecologia de insetos necrófagos.Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) is an abundant species in the entire American continent. Nevertheless, there are few studies in Brazil dealing with aspects of its biology and ecology, particularly associated with forensic studies. In this study we intended to observe the effects of steroids hormones in the corporal decomposition of buried Rattus norvergicus from the Wistar variety in the attraction of H. illucens. Besides the presence of several insect species commonly found in carcasses, a great amount of immature H. illucens was observed. This species represented approximately 22% of all collected specimens and it was only found in the animals that have received treatment with sexual steroids, such as testosterone, progesterone and estradiol. Among the animals under treatment, the greater abundance was verified in those who had received testosterone (68%). The presence of immatures of H. illucens only in the animals that received hormone treatments in experiments accomplished in two consecutive years strongly suggests a possible attraction of this species for bodies with different amounts of sexual hormones. This behavior can also be relevant for the forensic entomology in regard to the post-mortem interval (PMI) estimation, particularly when the PMI is based on information about the necrophagous insect's life cycle and ecology

Broken symmetry of row switching in 2D Josephson junction arrays

We present an experimental and theoretical study of row switching in two-dimensional Josephson junction arrays. We have observed novel dynamic states with peculiar percolative patterns of the voltage drop inside the arrays. These states were directly visualized using laser scanning microscopy and manifested by fine branching in the current-voltage characteristics of the arrays. Numerical simulations show that such percolative patterns have an intrinsic origin and occur independently of positional disorder. We argue that the appearance of these dynamic states is due to the presence of various metastable superconducting states in arrays.Comment: 4 Pages, 6 Figure

Complete mitochondrial genomes of three species of fresh flies of forensic entomology interest from the genus Sarcophaga (Sarcophagidae) from Portugal and Brazil

The Sarcophagidae family of fresh flies bears strong importance in the context of forensic entomology due to their application in the estimation of the Post Mortem Interval (PMI). Sarcophaga is the major genus in the Sarcophagidae family and includes cosmopolitan species, which are distributed worldwide. In this communication, we present the analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) of two species from Portugal – S. melanura and S. dux – and one from Brazil – S. ruficornis. The mtDNA of these species range from 14,882 bp to 15,190 bp and have 22 tRNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes (PCG), and two rRNAs distributed along both strands. Our data include the first record of complete Sarcophaga mtDNA sequences from species collected in Portugal and in Brazil. These genomes represent an advance in the understanding about this group, expand the database, and can be used for the development of new markers for species identification41237239CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES25/2014; 23038.006839 / 2014-33; 0092/ 17-7This work was funded by Coordenac¸~ao de Aperfeic¸oamento de Pessoal de N ıvel Superior (CAPES) (Edital Ci^ encias Forenses no. 25/2014, Process 23038.006839 / 2014-33), International postdoc fellowship (CAPES 0092/ 17-7) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient ıfico e Tecnologico (CNPq). Financial support was also provided by CESAM (UID/ AMB/50017 - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007638), and by FCT/MCTES through national funds (PIDDAC). Co-funding was provided by the FEDER, within the PT2020 Partnership Agreement and Compete 202

The origin of green icebergs in Antarctica

A comparison of samples from a translucent green iceberg with a core from the Ronne Ice Shelf revealed an excellent agreement in isotopic composition, crystal structure, and incorporated sediment particles. Marine shelf ice which constitutes the basal portion of some ice shelves is considered to be the source of green icebergs. It most likely results from "ice pump" processes which produce large amounts of ice platelets in the water column beneath ice shelves. These subsequently accumulate and become compacted into bubble-free, desalinated ice. Iceberg and drift-buoy trajectories indicate that green icebergs observed in the Weddell Sea originate from the Amery Ice Shelf rather than from the Ronne Ice Shelf, although the latter ice shelf is also a potential source

Complete mitochondrial genomes from four species of the genus Oxysarcodexia (Sarcophagidae) with forensic entomology interest

The Sarcophagidae family is one of the most important in forensic entomology. Its richest genus, Oxysarcodexia, is well-distributed in Brazil and Latin America and includes species that can be used in forensic investigations to estimate the Post Mortem Interval (PMI). In this communication, we present the mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) of four Oxysarcodexia species: O. avuncula (one specimen), O. terminalis (one specimen), O. thornax (three specimens), and O. varia (one specimen). These mitochondrial genomes (mtDNA) range from 14,998 to 15,613 bp and have 22 tRNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes (PCG), and 2 rRNAs distributed along both strands. The mitogenomes from Oxysarcodexia showed in the present work represents an important contribution to the knowledge regarding the Sarcophagidae phylogenetic structure and is an important source of information for the development of novel DNA markers for forensic identification4143043

Complete mitochondrial genomes from three species of the genus Peckia (Sarcophagidae) with forensic entomology interest

Peckia is one of the most important genera in the Sarcophagidae family of flesh flies. This genus is distributed in Brazil and Latin America, and its species can be used to estimate the Post Mortem Interval (PMI) in forensic investigations. In this communication, we present four mitochondrial genomes (mtDNA) from three Peckia species: P. australis, P. collusor, and P. resona. These mtDNA range from 15,116 bp to 15,234 bp in length and have 22 tRNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes (PCG), and two rRNAs distributed along both the strands. These data expand the knowledge about the Sarcophagidae genomes and present, for the first time, four complete mtDNA sequences of the Peckia genus. We show novel complete mtDNA sequences of flesh fly species of forensic importance. Our data expand the knowledge on the molecular database for the identification of these species, and is an important step towards increasing the databases and can help on the identification of new species, particularly in the forensic context41220221CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESNão tem25/2014; 23038.006839/2014-33; 0092/ 17-7This work was funded by Coordenac¸~ao de Aperfeic¸oamento de Pessoal de N ıvel Superior (CAPES) (Edital Ciências Forenses no. 25/2014, Process 23038.006839/2014-33), International postdoc fellowship (CAPES 0092/ 17-7) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient ıfico e Tecnologico (CNPq). Financial support was also provided by CESAM (UID/ AMB/50017 - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007638), and by FCT/MCTES through national funds (PIDDAC). Co-funding provided by the FEDER, within the PT2020 Partnership Agreement and Compete 202

The Deposition of Metallic Phases on Polymers with Different Electronic Conductivity and Catalytic Activity

The growth of metallic phases and the kinetics of this process are mainly dependent on the electronic conductivity and catalytic activity of the substrate. In this work we used electrodes covered with different polymer films. The conductivity and the number of growth sites of these modified electrodes was changed by the monomer (in the polymer chain or by the polarization. We used the metallic conducting polyaniline as deposited material. From the experimental data current density i and change of mass m as function of time, we got informations about the different steps of electropolymerization as nucleation and growth of a homogeneous film. This investigation shows that the number of growing centers plays an important role and can be varied with the substrate. A modification with semiconducting or insulating polymers, of course, is not useful to accelerate the growth. Further characteristic quantities like the rate of the growth can be calculated and their in-situ-transients are depicted. Additionally the electronic behaviour of the used substrate can be characterized