Seed production of selected onion cultivars in Santa Catarina State, Brazil

A produção de sementes de cebola foi efetuada, com vernalização natural, na Estação Experimental de Caçador, Santa Catarina, entre os anos de 1977/78 e 1985/86. Os resultados médios de oito anos das cultivares EMPASC 351 - Seleção Crioula, Jubileu e Norte- 14, e de cinco anos da cv. Baia Periforme, mostraram que as produções estiveram entre 363 e 506 kg/ha de sementes, com 89 a 93% de poder germinativo; 11,1 a 13,8% de relação peso de sementes/bulbo; 2,1 a 2,9 g de sementes/umbela; 4,4 a 5,7 umbelas/bulbo; com plantios feitos na quarta semana de julho e colheitas iniciadas na primeira semana de janeiro. Os resultados evidenciaram que a região do Planalto Catarinense tem potencial para produção de semente de cebola em condições naturaisPurification and selection of 4 onion cultivars have been carried out for seed production, with natural vernalization, from 1977/78 to 1985/86, in highlands of Santa Catarina, Brazil. Onion seeds yielded between 363 and 506 kg/ha with 89 to 93% of germination rate; relation of seeds to bulbs of 11,1 to 13,8%; 2,1 to 2,9 g of seeds/inflorescence; 4,4 to 5,7 of inflorescences/bulb; medium planting date between 21 and 28 July, and beginning harvest between 6 to 9 January. The results indicate that the highlands of Santa Catarina present high potential for onion seed production in Southern Brazil, without artificial vernalizatio

Gene expression of estrogen and oxytocin receptors in the uterus of pregnant and parturient bitches

In the canine species, the precise mechanisms of pregnancy maintenance and the initiation of parturition are not completely understood. The expression of genes encoding the receptors for estrogen (ERα mRNA) and oxytocin (OTR mRNA) was studied in the endometrium and myometrium during pregnancy and parturition in dogs. Real-time PCR was performed to quantify the levels of ERα mRNA and OTR mRNA in the uterus of bitches during early (up to 20 days of gestation), mid (20 to 40 days) and late pregnancy (41 to 60 days), and parturition (first stage of labor). All tissues expressed ERα and OTR mRNA, and are thus possibly able to respond to eventual estrogen and oxytocin hormonal stimuli. No statistically significant differences in the expression of ERα mRNA were verified in the endometrium and myometrium throughout pregnancy and parturition, but expression of OTR mRNA increased at both parturition and late pregnancy. We concluded that the increase of endometrial and myometrial OTR mRNA expression in dogs is not an event dependent on estrogenic stimulation. Moreover, the contractility response of the canine uterus to oxytocin begins during pregnancy and maintains myometrial activity. The expression of OTR mRNA in canine uterine tissues varied over time, which supports an interpretation that the sensitivity and response to hormone therapy varies during the course of pregnancy and labor. Further studies are needed to elucidate the factors underlying the synthesis of uterine oxytocin receptors and the possible role of ERβ rather than ERα in the uterine tissues during pregnancy and parturition in dogs

The influence of canine brucellosis on morphofunctional features of epididymal spermatozoa: case report

ABSTRACT The present work reports a clinical case of a mongrel dog, with serological diagnosis of brucellosis, from which epididymal sperm analysis was performed. Sperm samples were collected from different segments of the epididymis (tail, corpus, and caput). Sperm samples were evaluated for computer-assisted motility analysis (CASA), spermatic morphology, mitochondrial activity and sperm plasmatic membrane and acrosomal integrity. Changes in sperm movement patterns were found (progressive motility, percentage of rapid sperm, percentage of rapid velocity, average pathway, curvilinear velocity, velocity straight line, amplitude of lateral head displacement, straightness and linearity), increase of total morphological defects (51%) and absence of sperm mitochondrial activity (20%) were verified, especially for cauda epididymides. We highlight that such changes can contribute to clinical diagnosis of Brucellosis in dogs and to the use of epididymal sperm in reproductive biotechnologies

Ocorrência e caracterização da tuberculose em caprinos leiteiros criados no estado de Pernambuco

Acreditou-se durante muito tempo que a espécie caprina era resistente à infecção por Mycobacterium bovis, porém tal hipótese foi desconsiderada quando relatos da enfermidade surgiram em vários países. No entanto, ainda permanecem desconhecidas certas características da tuberculose em caprinos e suas implicações na saúde pública e caprinocultura nacional. Objetivou-se com este trabalho descrever os aspectos nosológicos, radiológicos, anátomo-histopatológicos, baciloscópicos e biomoleculares da tuberculose em caprinos leiteiros com doença respiratória, naturalmente infectados e procedentes do estado de Pernambuco. Para isso foram tuberculinizadas 442 cabras com sintomas respiratórios e, destas, 3,4% (15/442) foram consideradas positivas ao teste. Dos animais positivos, sete foram monitorados clinicamente durante 12 meses, descrevendo-se os achados obtidos. O agente etiológico foi identificado através da reação em cadeia da polimerase, por amplificação de sequências genômicas do Complexo Mycobacterium tuberculosis e posteriormente de Mycobacterium bovis. Este é o primeiro diagnóstico molecular com caracterização do envolvimento do Mycobacterium bovis na tuberculose caprina no Brasil