Low Compliance to Handwashing Program and High Nosocomial Infection in a Brazilian Hospital

Background. It is a fact that hand hygiene prevents nosocomial infection, but compliance with recommended instructions is commonly poor. The purpose of this study was to implement a hand hygiene program for increase compliance with hand hygiene and its relationship with nosocomial infection (NI) and MRSA infection/colonization rates. Methods. Compliance to hand hygiene was evaluated in a hospital by direct observation and measured of health care-associated infections, including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, before and after an educational intervention, using visual poster, colorful stamps, and feedback of the results. Results. Overall compliance did not increase during intervention, only handwashing before and after patient contact has improved from 40% to 76% (P = 0.01) for HCWs, but NI and MRSA rates remained high and stable. Conclusion. In a combination of high prevalence of NI and low compliance to hand hygiene, the programme of measure does not motivate the HCW hand hygiene. Future interventions should employ incremental evaluation to develop effective hand hygiene initiatives

Amphibian Diversity: Where everything starts to flood, Cáceres Municipality, North Pantanal, Central-West Brazil

Faunal inventories contribute to our understanding of regional diversity, and are fundamental for policy and decision-making regarding the management and conservation of large natural areas. This study aimed to inventory and compile information on amphibian species occurring in the North Pantanal region, in the municipal limits of Cáceres, Mato Grosso, Brazil. We used three methods to inventory amphibian species: (1) fieldwork, (2) analysis of specimens deposited in scientific collections, and (3) literature reviews. We registered 49 amphibian species in Cáceres. Of them, 48 species belonged to the Anura order and were distributed across eight families and 20 genera, and one species belonged to the Gymnophiona order (Siphonops paulensis). The families Leptodactylidae (20 spp.) and Hylidae (17 spp.) were dominant in terms of richness, accounting for 75.5% of all species found in Cáceres. The remaining families had between four and one species each. The municipality is strongly influenced by non-forested formations (e.g., the Cerrado and Pantanal) and presents a high species richness for a non-forested location in Brazil. Our findings highlight Cáceres as one of the richest areas in amphibian species in the North Pantanal region, expanding our knowledge regarding frog diversity. This study provides a foundation for future conservation strategies and additional assessments of amphibian species in light of potential population declines and other emerging threats

Efficient synthesis of benzothiazine and acrylamide compounds

This article describes the synthesis of the new (2Z)-2-(4-methoxybenzylidene)-6-nitro-4H -benzo[1,4]thiazin-3-one, (2Z)-2-(4-methoxybenzylidene)-4-methyl-6-nitro-4H-benzo[1,4]thiazin-3-one, (2Z)-6-amino-2-(4-methoxybenzylidene)-4H -benzo[1,4]thiazin-3-one, (2Z)-6-butylamino-2-(4-methoxybenzylidene)-4-methyl-4H-benzo[1,4]-thiazin-3-one and (2E)-N-alkyl-N-(2-hydroxy-5-nitrophenyl)-3-phenylacrylamides and the spectroscopic data. The arylidenebenzothiazine compounds were prepared using the Knoevenagel condensation with substituted benzaldehydes in the presence of sodium methoxide in DMF. The presence of a nitro substituent in the 4-position, water and a slightly acid reaction medium in this condensation caused the rupture of the benzothiazine ring and subsequent formation of the phenylacrylamide compounds. A crystallographic data was presented for (2E)-3-(4-bromophenyl)-N-dodecyl-N -(2-hydroxy-5-nitrophenyl) acrylamide.CNPqCoordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES

Metabolomics applied to maternal and perinatal health: a review of new frontiers with a translation potential

The prediction or early diagnosis of maternal complications is challenging mostly because the main conditions, such as preeclampsia, preterm birth, fetal growth restriction, and gestational diabetes mellitus, are complex syndromes with multiple underlying mechanisms related to their occurrence. Limited advances in maternal and perinatal health in recent decades with respect to preventing these disorders have led to new approaches, and “omics” sciences have emerged as a potential field to be explored. Metabolomics is the study of a set of metabolites in a given sample and can represent the metabolic functioning of a cell, tissue or organism. Metabolomics has some advantages over genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics, as metabolites are the final result of the interactions of genes, RNAs and proteins. Considering the recent “boom” in metabolomic studies and their importance in the research agenda, we here review the topic, explaining the rationale and theory of the metabolomic approach in different areas of maternal and perinatal health research for clinical practitioners. We also demonstrate the main exploratory studies of these maternal complications, commenting on their promising findings. The potential translational application of metabolomic studies, especially for the identification of predictive biomarkers, is supported by the current findings, although they require external validation in larger datasets and with alternative methodologies

REMOÇÃO DO CORANTE REMAZOL VERMELHO DE MEIOS AQUOSOS UTILIZANDO ADSORVENTE MISTO COMPOSTO DE ASPERGILLUS NIGER E CAPIM ELEFANTE

The objective of this work was to evaluate the ability to remove the Remazol Red dye, from a synthetic aqueous solution, using mixed biomass of Aspergillus niger and Elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schum), under different temperature conditions (30, 40 and 50 ± 2 ºC), in concentrations ranging from 25 to 105 mg/L and time from 0 to 200 min. The kinetic study was characterized by the pseudo-second order model. The Langmuir isotherm model presented the best fit to the linearization technique and presented 3.42mg g -1 adsorption capacity for the model. The spontaneity of the adsorption reaction was obtained by Gibbs free energy. The thermodynamic study indicated that the adsorption was favorable and spontaneous, and that the increase in temperature causes a reduction in the adsorptive capacity.O descarte de efluentes têxteis não tratados nos meios aquosos pode ocasionar em um rápido esgotamento do oxigênio dissolvido, o que resulta em um desequilíbrio noecossistema. São vários os métodos utilizados na remoção de cor, e, dentre eles, a adsorção vem se mostrando como um método de tratamento simples, barato e eficiente. O objetivo deste trabalho consiste em avaliar a habilidade da biomassa mista de Aspergillus niger e capim elefante (Penissetum purpureum Schum) na remoção do corante Remazol Vermelho de uma solução aquosa sintética sob difrentes condições de temperatura (30, 40 e 50 °C), concentrações variando entre 25 e 105 mg/L, tempo de adsorção de 0 a 200 minutos e pH 2.0. O estudo cinético foi caracterizado pelo modelo de pseudo-segunda ordem. Já o modelo de Langmuir se mostrou o melhor ajuste linear das isotermas de adsorção, apresentando uma capacidade de adsorção de 3,42 mg g-1. A esponteneidade da reação de adsorção foi avaliada através daenergia lvire de Gibbs. O estudo termodinâmico indicou que a adsorção é favorável e espontânea, além de que o aumento da temperatura ocasiona em uma redução na capacidade de adsorção. Estes resultados obtidos em efluentes sintéticosdemonstram que o adsorvente misto produzido neste estudo é uma alternativa promissora no tratamento de efluentes contaminados com Remazol Vermelho

Produção e quantificação de celulases por meio da fermentação em estado sólido de resíduos agroindustriais

The objective of this study was to analyze and quantify the activity of enzymes endoglucanase and total cellulases produced by solid state fermentation of  waste from processing of cocoa, mango and  hog plum, used  the fungus Aspergillus niger as inoculant. To determine the effect of  enzyme production, an experiment was conducted in a factorial 3 x 5, in which three levels of water content (40, 50 and  60%) and five levels for the fermentation time (24, 48, 72 , 96 and 120 h). Fermentation was performed  at  30 °C in a bacteriological incubator refrigerated. The industrial residues shown to be highly effective in the production of enzymes from the solid-state fermentation, especially production of  endoglucanse residue from the sleeve has reached  the activity of  9.32 U /mL, and  cellulases produced  from  the total fermentation the residue of hog plum quantified with enzymatic activity 11.62 U/mL.O objetivo deste trabalho foi analisar e quantificar a atividade das enzimas CMCase, FPase produzidas através da fermentação em estado sólido dos resíduos do processamento do cacau, manga e seriguela; utilizou-se a espécie fúngica Aspergillus niger como inoculante. Para determinar o efeito da produção de enzimas, foi conduzido um experimento em esquema fatorial 3 X 5, no qual três níveis de teor de água (40, 50 e 60%) e cinco níveis para o tempo de fermentação (24, 48, 72 , 96 e 120 h). A fermentação foi realizada a 30 oC em estufa bacteriológica refrigerada. Os resíduos agroindustriais mostraram-se grande eficácia na produção de enzimas a partir da fermentação em estado sólido, com destaque para produção de endoglucanse a partir do resíduo de manga que atingiu a atividade de 9,32 U/mL  e celulases totais produzidas com a fermentação do resíduo de seriguela com atividade enzimática quantificada a 11,62 U/mL

PORTÃO DE GARAGEM AUTOMÁTICO EQUIPADO COM CONTROLE PID E INTERFACE EM MATLAB

Esta pesquisa foi desenvolvida a fim de atender aos pré requisitos expostos na disciplina de Práticas em Engenharia Mecatrônica III, no Centro Universitário Tiradentes. O trabalho apresenta a experiência da equipe de pesquisadores ao estudar sobre controle PID com interface gráfica em MATLAB, aplicado a um portão automático de garagem. A motivação por trás da pesquisa foi gerada pela possibilidade de se aprofundar o conhecimento em programação, controle de sistemas lineares e prototipagem, aplicando-os em uma ferramenta de uso cotidiano, a saber, um portão de garagem. O objetivo é aplicar um controle PID na velocidade do motor que aciona o portão, monitorando o seu funcionamento via supervisório. A importância de um sistema como este é encontrada no aumento da segurança residencial, uma vez que o controle e monitoramento do portão geram comodidade e praticidade ao usuário. Para realização do experimento, foi construído um protótipo em madeira MDF somado a um driver de DVD antigo e outros adicionais para controle do motor e sensoriamento de posição da porta. O sistema foi controlado pela plataforma Arduino com interface gráfica em MATLAB que apresenta resultados em tempo real. Os materiais reutilizados produziram economia e eficiência. Os resultados expostos apontam os imprevistos encontrados e falhas ainda não solucionadas, a fim de instruir demais pesquisas na mesma área

ANÁLISE FATORIAL GARANTIDA OU O SEU DINHEIRO DE VOLTA: UMA INTRODUÇÃO À REDUÇÃO DE DADOS

Esse artigo apresenta uma introdução intuitiva à analise fatorial. O principal objetivo é fornecer um guia prático para usuários com pouca familiaridade com o tema. Nosso público alvo são estudantes de graduação e pós-graduação em estágios iniciais de treinamento.  Metodologicamente, o desenho de pesquisa utiliza simulação básica e replica duas bases de dados (PNUD, 2010 e  Coopedge, Alvarez e Maldonado, 2008). Todas as análises estatísticas foram realizadas a partir do Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Com esse trabalho esperamos facilitar a compreensão e a aplicação de técnicas de redução de dados em Ciência Política.

Biological activities and physicochemical characterization of alkaline lignins obtained from branches and leaves of Buchenavia viridiflora with potential pharmaceutical and biomedical applications

Funding Information: The study was funded by Foundation for the State of Pernambuco (Process - FACE-04.03/19 ), AP Researcher Research Grant - FACEPE (Process BFP-0038-0 ) and National Council for Scientific and Technological Development grant - CNPq (Process 306865/2020-3 ). This research was also funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the GHTM ( UID/04413/2020 ). Thanks to MR4, who provided us with the Plasmodium falciparum strains that we used in the assays. We also thank the Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance of the Institute of Chemistry and Biotechnology (Federal University of Alagoas- UFAL) for the analysis of NMR. In addition to these, we would also like to thank Mil Madeiras Preciosas, a subsidiary of the Swiss group Precious Woods ( http://preciouswoods.com.br/ ) for providing samples of branches and leaves of Buchenavia viridiflora. Publisher Copyright: © 2022In this work, we investigated in vitro different biological activities of alkaline lignins extracted from the species Buchenavia viridiflora, a tree from the Amazon rainforest used as a wood product. The chemical composition results for the twig and leaves were, respectively (%): cellulose (30.88 and 24. 28), hemicellulose (21.62 and 23.03), lignin (29.93 and 25.46), extractives (13.06 and 20.52), and ash (4.51 and 6.72). The yield was higher for the lignin of the branches (67.9 %) when compared to the leaves (60.2 %). Lignins are of the GSH type, low molecular weight and thermally stable. They promoted moderate to low antioxidant activity, highlighting the lignin of the branches, which presented an IC50 of 884.56 μg/mL for the DPPH assay and an IC50 of 14.08 μg/mL for ABTS. In the cytotoxicity assays, they showed low toxicity against macrophage cells (IC50 28.47 and 22.58 μg/mL). In addition, they were not cytotoxic against splenocytes and erythrocytes at concentrations ranging from 100 to 6.25 μg/mL. These were able to promote splenocyte proliferation and induce the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines. And inhibit the growth of tumor cells with IC50 ranging from 12.63 to values >100 μg/mL and microbial at a concentration of 512 μg/mL. Finally, they showed antiparasitic activity by inhibiting the growth of chloroquine-sensitive and resistant Plasmodium falciparum strains. These findings reinforce that the lignins in this study are promising for potential pharmaceutical and biomedical applications.publishersversionpublishe