Ultrassonografia quantitativa do fígado de gatos hígidos: nota prévia

The ultrasonographic exam presents divergence in the interpretation of its findings, due to subjective and individual analysis. The livers of 18 healthy cats were evaluated by the ultrasonographic exam, making use of the gray-level histograms method. There were taken measures referring to the echogenicity (LMEAN), echotexture (NMOST/NALL) and echo amplitude standard deviation (SD). The mean values and standard deviations observed in this clinical assay were: LMEAN 5.6 ±1.08, NMOST/NALL 28.31 ±3.84 e SD 11.48 ±1.77. The gray-level histograms method is very important for the standardizing of hepatic echogenicity and echotexture values, helping in the diagnosis and monitoring of diffuse hepatopathies.O exame ultrassonográfico apresenta divergência na interpretação dos seus achados, devido à análise subjetiva e individual. Avaliou-se ultrassonograficamente a quantificação dos níveis de cinza de fígado de 18 gatos hígidos pela técnica de histograma, obtendo-se medidas referentes à ecogenicidade (LMEAN), ecotextura (NMOST/NALL) e desvio padrão da amplitude do eco (SD). As médias e desvio padrão dos valores encontrados foram para LMEAN 5,6 ±1,08, NMOST/NALL 28,31 ±3,84 e SD 11,48 ±1,77. Ressalta-se a importância da técnica do histograma na padronização de valores de normalidade referentes à ecogenicidade e ecotextura do fígado, favorecendo o diagnóstico e o monitoramento de hepatopatias difusas

Ultrassonografia quantitativa do fígado em gatos com tirotoxicose induzida

Este estudo avaliou ultrassonograficamente o fígado de gatos submetidos à tirotoxicose induzida pela técnica de histograma dos níveis de cinza com o objetivo de melhor avaliar possíveis alterações hepáticas decorrentes do excesso de hormônios tiroidianos. Para isto, foram utilizados nove gatos hígidos, adulto-jovens, que receberam diariamente 150µg/kg de levotiroxina sódica, por 60 dias. O histograma hepático não demonstrou diferença estatística ao nível de 5% de significância entre os momentos avaliados; entretanto, as variações dos valores das variáveis estudadas sugeriram a promoção de aumento da heterogeneidade e diminuição da ecogenicidade do parênquima hepático quando comparado ao momento inicial. A avaliação citopatológica e histopatológica revelou quadro de hepatite tirotóxica em todos os animais.This study evaluated ultrasonographically the liver of cats submitted to induced thyrotoxicosis by the technique of gray-level histogram with the objective of better evaluating the possible hepatic alterations decurring from the excess of the thyroid hormones. For that, there were used nine adult-young healthy cats, which received daily 150ìg/kg of sodic levotiroxin, for 60 days. The hepatic histogram has not demonstrated statistical differences in the 5% level of significance between the evaluated moments; however, the variations of the studied variables' values suggested an increasing of the heterogeneity and a decreasing of the echogenicity of the hepatic parenchyma when compared to the initial moment. The cytopathologic and histopathologic evaluations have shown of a clinical picture of thyrotoxic hepatitis in all the animals

High anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroconversion rates before the second wave in Manaus, Brazil, and the protective effect of social behaviour measures: results from the prospective DETECTCoV-19 cohort

Background: The city of Manaus, Brazil, has seen two collapses of the health system due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We report anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid IgG antibody seroconversion rates and associated risk factors in Manaus residents before the second wave of the epidemic in Brazil. Methods: A convenience sample of adult (aged ≥18 years) residents of Manaus was recruited through online and university website advertising into the DETECTCoV-19 study cohort. The current analysis of seroconversion included a subgroup of DETECTCoV-19 participants who had at least two serum sample collections separated by at least 4 weeks between Aug 19 and Oct 2, 2020 (visit 1), and Oct 19 and Nov 27, 2020 (visit 2). Those who reported (or had no data on) having a COVID-19 diagnosis before visit 1, and who were positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid IgG antibodies at visit 1 were excluded. Using an in-house ELISA, the reactivity index (RI; calculated as the optical density ratio of the sample to the negative control) for serum anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid IgG antibodies was measured at both visits. We calculated the incidence of seroconversion (defined as RI values ≤1·5 at visit 1 and ≥1·5 at visit 2, and a ratio >2 between the visit 2 and visit 1 RI values) during the study period, as well as incidence rate ratios (IRRs) through cluster-corrected and adjusted Poisson regression models to analyse associations between seroconversion and variables related to sociodemographic characteristics, health access, comorbidities, COVID-19 exposure, protective behaviours, and symptoms. Findings: 2496 DETECTCoV-19 cohort participants returned for a follow-up visit between Oct 19 and Nov 27, 2020, of whom 204 reported having COVID-19 before the first visit and 24 had no data regarding previous disease status. 559 participants were seropositive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid IgG antibodies at baseline. Of the remaining 1709 participants who were seronegative at baseline, 71 did not meet the criteria for seroconversion and were excluded from the analyses. Among the remaining 1638 participants who were seronegative at baseline, 214 showed seroconversion at visit 2. The seroconversion incidence was 13·06% (95% CI 11·52–14·79) overall and 6·78% (5·61–8·10) for symptomatic seroconversion, over a median follow-up period of 57 days (IQR 54–61). 48·1% of seroconversion events were estimated to be asymptomatic. The sample had higher proportions of affluent and higher-educated people than those reported for the Manaus city population. In the fully adjusted and corrected model, risk factors for seroconversion before visit 2 were having a COVID-19 case in the household (IRR 1·49 [95% CI 1·21–1·83]), not wearing a mask during contact with a person with COVID-19 (1·25 [1·09–1·45]), relaxation of physical distancing (1·31 [1·05–1·64]), and having flu-like symptoms (1·79 [1·23–2·59]) or a COVID-19 diagnosis (3·57 [2·27–5·63]) between the first and second visits, whereas working remotely was associated with lower incidence (0·74 [0·56–0·97]). Interpretation: An intense infection transmission period preceded the second wave of COVID-19 in Manaus. Several modifiable behaviours increased the risk of seroconversion, including non-compliance with non-pharmaceutical interventions measures such as not wearing a mask during contact, relaxation of protective measures, and non-remote working. Increased testing in high-transmission areas is needed to provide timely information about ongoing transmission and aid appropriate implementation of transmission mitigation measures. Funding: Ministry of Education, Brazil; Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Amazonas; Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/WHO.World Health OrganizationRevisión por pare

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Chenopodium ambrosioides L. essential oil and ethanol extract on control of canine Ancylostoma spp.

O uso de Chenopodium ambrosioides L. tem se mostrado promissor no controle de nematoides gastrintestinais. Objetivou-se verificar o rendimento e a composição química do óleo essencial de C. ambrosioides, assim como avaliar o efeito in vitro do extrato etanólico e do óleo essencial em L3 de Ancylostoma spp., e o efeito in vivo do óleo essencial para cães. Para a atividade larvicida as larvas de Ancylostoma spp. foram colocadas na presença do extrato etanólico nas concentrações de 0,005 g mL-1, 0,01 g mL-1, 0,02 g mL-1, 0,03 g mL-1, 0,04 g mL-1; 0,05 g mL-1, 0,06 g mL-1, 0,08 g mL-1, 0,1 g mL-1, 0,12 g mL-1 e 0,2 g mL-1, do óleo essencial nas concentrações de 50 µL mL-1, 100 µL mL-1 e 150 µL mL-1. Para o teste in vivo utilizaram-se 26 cães, hígidos, infectados naturalmente por Ancylostoma spp., divididos em três grupos: F1 - foram administrados biscoitos sem princípio ativo; F2 - biscoitos fitoterápicos com óleo essencial de C. ambrosioides L na concentração de 37,5 µL g-1; F3 biscoitos acrescido de formulação comercial a base de febantel, pirantel, praziquantel e ivermectina. Foi realizado hemograma completo e bioquímica sérica para AST, ALT, FA, ureia, creatinina, proteína total e albumina. Verificou-se o rendimento de 0,3% m v-1 do óleo essencial e na sua composição química a presença de ?-terpineno (1,24 %), o p-cimeno (4,83 %) e ascaridol, nos seus isômeros Z (87%) e E (5,04 %), como componente majoritário. O extrato etanólico de C. ambrosioides L., nas concentrações utilizadas, apresentou insuficiente atividade para o efeito larvicida. O óleo essencial na concentração de 150 µL mL-1 foi eficaz contra L3. A formulação de biscoito fitoterápico com óleo essencial C. ambrosioides L reduziu o número de ovos por grama de fezes dos cães.The use of Chenopodium ambrosioides L. has shown to be promising in the management of gastrointestinal nematodes. The objective of this study was to quantitate the yield and characterize the chemical composition of the essential oil of C. ambrosioides, as well as to evaluate the in vitro effect of the ethanolic extract and the essential oil in L3 of Ancylostoma spp. and the in vivo effect(s) of the essential oil in dogs. The effects of the ethanol extract and essential oil on Ancylostoma spp. were evaluated in vitro by exposing larvae to the extract at concentrations ranging from 0.005 g mL-1 to 0.2 g mL-1 and to essential oil at concentrations of 50, 100, and 150 ?L mL-1. For the in vivo test, 26 healthy dogs, naturally infected by Ancylostoma spp., were divided into three groups: F1 - cookies were administered without active principle; F2 - herbal cookies containing 37.5 ?L g-1 essential oil of C. ambrosioides L.; F3 - cookies plus a commercial formulation containing febantel, pyrantel, praziquantel, and ivermectin. Complete blood counts and serum biochemistry for AST, ALT, AF, urea, creatinine, total protein, and albumin were performed. The yield of the essential oil was 0.3% m v-1, and its major components included ?-terpinene (1.24%), p-cymene (4.83%), and ascaridol Z (87%) and E (5.04%) isomers. The concentrations of C. ambrosioides L. ethanol extract used were ineffective against Ancylostoma spp. larvae. The essential oil at a concentration of 150 ?L mL-1 was effective against L3 larvae. In the in vivo study in dogs, the herbal cookies containing C. ambrosioides L essential oil reduced the number of eggs per gram of feces

Ultrassonografia quantitativa do fígado em gatos com tirotoxicose induzida

Este estudo avaliou ultrassonograficamente o fígado de gatos submetidos à tirotoxicose induzida pela técnica de histograma dos níveis de cinza com o objetivo de melhor avaliar possíveis alterações hepáticas decorrentes do excesso de hormônios tiroidianos. Para isto, foram utilizados nove gatos hígidos, adulto-jovens, que receberam diariamente 150µg/kg de levotiroxina sódica, por 60 dias. O histograma hepático não demonstrou diferença estatística ao nível de 5% de significância entre os momentos avaliados; entretanto, as variações dos valores das variáveis estudadas sugeriram a promoção de aumento da heterogeneidade e diminuição da ecogenicidade do parênquima hepático quando comparado ao momento inicial. A avaliação citopatológica e histopatológica revelou quadro de hepatite tirotóxica em todos os animais