Effects of physical exercise in biochemical parameters and dorsolateral prostate lesions: data from a rat model of prostate cancer

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is among the most prevalent cancers worldwide. Physical exercise is widely recognized due to its beneficial effects. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of physical exercise on biochemical pa- rameters and in dorsolateral prostate lesions in a rat model of PCa. Materials and Methods: Ninety-five male Wistar Unilever rats were randomly divided into eight groups sacrificed at 35 (groups I) or 61 weeks of age (groups II): control sedentary groups (Cont+Sed I (n = 10); Cont+Sed II (n = 10)); induced sedentary group (PCa+Sed I (n = 10); PCa+Sed II (n = 15)); control exercised groups (Cont+EX I (n = 10); Cont+EX II (n = 10)) and induced exercised groups (PCa+EX I (n = 10); PCa+EX II (n = 20)). All procedures were approved (DGAV, no. 021326). Animals from exercised groups started the exer- cise program in a treadmill at 8 weeks of age, for 28 weeks or 53 weeks. The animals were trained 5 days/week, 60 min per day. Prostate lesions were induced at 12 weeks of age, with sequential administration of flutamide, testosterone propion- ate and N-methyl-N-nitrosourea, and subcutaneous implants of crystalline testosterone. Animals were sacrificed at 35 or 61 weeks of age. Peripheral blood of all animals was col- lected by intracardiac puncture. A complete necropsy was performed. The dorsolateral prostate tissues sections were processed for histological analysis. Data were analysed using SPSS 25. p 0.05). Dorsolateral prostate lesions were classified as dysplasia, prostatic intraep- ithelial neoplasia (PIN) and microinvasive carcinoma. The number of prostate lesions was higher in animals from groups II than in those from groups I, mainly in PCa+Sed II animals when compared with PCa+Sed I (p 0.05). Conclusions: Overall, the animals sacrificed at 61 weeks of age developed more dorsolateral prostate lesions than ani- mals sacrificed at 35 weeks of age, which may be related to a longer testosterone exposure

The influence of physical exercise on oestrogen and androgen receptor expression in a chemically and hormonally-induced rat model of prostate cancer

Background: Oestrogen (ER) and androgen (AR) recep- tors play an important role in normal prostate development and are also implied in prostate cancer (PCa) development. Several studies suggested that physical activity may decrease the risk of PCa development and also changes sexual hor- mones and their receptors. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of physical exercise on ERα and AR expression in a rat model of chemically and hormonally-induced PCa. Materials and Methods: Fifty-five male Wistar Unilever rats of 12 weeks of age were randomly divided into four groups: control sedentary (n = 10), control exercised (n = 10), induced sedentary (n = 15) and induced exercised (n = 20). Animals from exercised groups started the exercise training in a treadmill (Treadmill Control LE 8710, Harvard Apparatus, USA), at the age of 8 weeks, for 35 weeks (5 days/week). The protocol for PCa induction started at 12 weeks of age and consisted of sequential administration of flutamide (50 mg/kg, TCI Chemicals), testosterone propion- ate (100 mg/kg, TCI Chemicals) and N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (30 mg/kg, Isopac®, Sigma Chemical Co.), followed by sub- cutaneous implants of crystalline testosterone. Animals were sacrificed at 61 weeks of age and a complete necropsy was performed. All experiments were approved by DGAV (no. 021326). Antibodies for Erα (1:500, clone 6F11, Novocastra) and AR (clone PG21, Merck Millipore) were used for the immunohistochemical study. The staining extension was evaluated in normal prostate tissue and in dorsolateral pros- tate lesions (hyperplasia, dysplasia, prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) and microinvasive carcinoma) and assessed to five levels (0%, 75%), con- sidering the extension of immunopositive tissue. Data was analysed with SPSS 25.Results: The normal prostate tissue and dorsolateral prostate lesions of animals from all groups were immunopositive for Erα and AR. However, the groups showed high immunoposi- tivity for AR and low positivity for Erα ( 0.05). The malignant lesions (PIN and microinvasive carcinoma) showed lower AR expression when compared with normal prostate tissue in all groups. Conclusions: As expected, the AR expression was lower in malignant lesions. Inversely to that reported in other studies, the exercise training did not modify the ERα and AR expres- sion, which may be related to the duration and type of exer- cise performed

Analysis of Conceptual Definitions of Agribusiness Using the Conceptual Bibliographic Method

Purpose: Agribusiness is a phenomenon of interest to science from several aspects, and this multiplicity of aspects taken simultaneously is a new way of trying to understand and explain it. Specific, unidisciplinary studies still predominate on a single element of agribusiness, such as finance, marketing, and production, among countless others. However, the trend is towards multifactorial studies because agribusiness is a phenomenon that cannot be classified solely as industry, commerce, or service or as a primary, secondary, or tertiary sector. Consolidated agribusiness is all of these things simultaneously, whose reality is delimited by science based on its conceptual definitions. Therefore, the definitions must be analyzed so that the current stage of scientific knowledge about the phenomenon can be understood, especially its limits, characteristics, and dynamics, which are the purposes of this study.   Theoretical Structure: The theoretical architecture of this study consisted of seeking to understand the phenomenon of agribusiness with socio-economic development, which is its most evident externality. It was carried out interdisciplinary, highlighting its integral reality based on what appears and can be identified in the conceptual definitions available in scientific publications. The justification for this procedure was the need to understand agribusiness from multiple scientific views so that its various aspects could be understood.   Design/Methodology/Approach: This study aimed to analyze the conceptual definitions of agribusiness in the scientific literature in studies published between 2015 and 2023. To this end, it established three guiding questions, which sought to identify the frontiers of knowledge about the phenomenon, its main attributes, and what logical scheme it is possible to find among its main defining characteristics. For this, the conceptual bibliographic method was used, which consists of formulating a problem and its breakdown into a response pattern, collecting data in scientific databases, organizing and analyzing data based on semantic resources, and generating responses from the diagrammatic layout of the data organization.   Findings: The results showed the existence of nine approaches to agribusiness (set, sum, activity, science, practice, configuration, industry, process, and transformation) and eight groups of attributes (transnational activities, commercialization, distribution logistics, supply logistics, companies, production, services, and agroecosystem). These discoveries allowed us to understand that agribusiness has an evolutionary dynamic that begins with the professionalization of the rural output and culminates with the irradiation of the reach of this production to transnational borders. Research, Practical, and Social Implications: These findings fundamentally affect how agribusiness is viewed. In Brazil, in particular, the prevalent mentality tends to distinguish agribusiness as a unique and exclusive form of large rural enterprises, almost all of which are already globalized, excluding small enterprises from this coverage, almost always classified as family farming. Suppose the family farmer establishes himself as an enterprise. In that case, he often receives the entire discriminatory range intended for the large agribusiness enterprise, discouraging his professionalization, an essential corollary of the germ of agribusiness. Professionalization involves replacing improvised methods of producing and managing the enterprise with rational aspects originating from science and introducing scientifically subsidized techniques and technologies.   Originality/Value: The main contribution of this study to science was the construction of an evolutionary dynamic of agribusiness, which begins with the professionalization of rural production and culminates with globalization. These findings suggest that the family farming stage needs to be broken so that the benefits of professionalization can lead to improved quality of life and desired socioeconomic development for producers and partners

What is Industry 4.0: a Review of the Literature Using the Conceptual Bibliographic Method

Purpose: Scientific production has tried to understand the various evolutionary intricacies of Industry 4.0, the so-called fourth industrial revolution. As discoveries increase and deepen, there must also be an effort to understand the frontiers of scientific knowledge, its most noticeable and studied aspects, and those attributes that have only now been perceived. It is, therefore, necessary to periodically take stock of what science knows about the phenomenon to understand where it is headed and which paths have already been taken. Therefore, the need to take inventory of the current state of knowledge about Industry 4.0 was the theoretical justification for this study.   Theoretical framework: The theoretical architecture of this study consisted of the transformations that the industrial revolutionary stages caused in production systems, firstly, and then for the entire society. It involves aspects from various areas of scientific knowledge to understand the different perceptions contained in the scientific literature on the phenomenon of Industry 4.0.   Design/Methodology/Approach: The conceptual bibliographic method was used to generate answers to three guiding questions: What are the main approaches to Industry 4.0? What are its main attributes? What is its irradiation logic? All conceptual definitions in scientific studies published in English and Portuguese available in the Google Scholar database from 2019 to 2020 were analyzed, with a total of 19 studies. The semantic analysis technique was used to identify the approaches and attributes, which were then organized by semantic proximity, constituting the semantic groupings on which the results were generated and interpreted.   Findings: The results showed the existence of eight groups of approaches (procedures, evolution, time, grouping, transformation, layer, organization, and model) and twelve groups of attributes (industrialization, transformation technologies, information technologies, integrated system, processes, society, quality, knowledge, planning, market, value chain, and automation). These discoveries made it possible to understand that Industry 4.0 has a driving force: knowledge, which spreads similarly in waves until it reaches the entire society and is not limited only to the interior of factories and economic organizations.   Research, Practical, and Social Implications: Two implications of these findings stand out. The first is the dynamic nature of implementing Industry 4.0 in organizations, whether economic or not, which is done more quickly if knowledge and technologies are available or more slowly when expertise and technologies are fragile or non-existent. The second is teleological since the purpose of Industry 4.0 and all industrial revolutions is to continually improve production processes, even though these benefits often generate unwanted externalities, such as environmental impacts. This means that the progress of knowledge and its developments cannot be stopped but can be directed towards other purposes.   Originality/Value: The main contribution of this study to science is to point out the current stage of the evolution of Industry 4.0 about previous revolutions. Three other contributions are also significant: identifying the main approaches to the phenomenon, its most prominent characteristics, and its irradiation dynamics

Aberrant p15, p16, p53, and DAPK Gene Methylation in Myelomagenesis: Clinical and Prognostic Implications

BACKGROUND: Aberrant DNA methylation is considered a crucial mechanism in the pathogenesis of monoclonal gammopathies. We aimed to investigate the contribution of hypermethylation of 4 tumor suppressor genes to the multistep process of myelomagenesis. METHODS: The methylation status of p15, p16, p53, and DAPK genes was evaluated in bone marrow samples from 94 patients at diagnosis: monoclonal gammopathy of uncertain significance (MGUS) (n = 48), smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM) (n = 8) and symptomatic multiple myeloma (MM) (n = 38), and from 8 healthy controls by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction analysis. RESULTS: Overall, 63% of patients with MM and 39% of patients with MGUS presented at least 1 hypermethylated gene (P < .05). No aberrant methylation was detected in normal bone marrow. The frequency of methylation for individual genes in patients with MGUS, SMM, and MM was p15, 15%, 50%, 21%; p16, 15%, 13%, 32%; p53, 2%, 12,5%, 5%, and DAPK, 19%, 25%, 39%, respectively (P < .05). No correlation was found between aberrant methylation and immunophenotypic markers, cytogenetic features, progression-free survival, and overall survival in patients with MM. CONCLUSIONS: The current study supports a relevant role for p15, p16, and DAPK hypermethylation in the genesis of the plasma cell neoplasm. DAPK hypermethylation also might be an important step in the progression from MGUS to MM.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Integrated human formation: guiding category of professional and technological education / Formação humana integrada: categoria diretora da educação profissional e tecnológica

The present study is a bibliographic investigation that sought to analyze how Professional and Technological Education (EPT, from the acronym in Portuguese) and understand the concept of integrated human formation. Thus, based on the contributions of Ramos (2009) and Ciavatta (2012), the concept of integrated human formation was analyzed, its main objectives and its importance for EPT to differ from a mere technical education still in force in our educational model. The methodology consisted of file and bibliographic review followed by content analysis. It was concluded that, due to the search for the understanding of a whole, integrality is necessary for Professional and Technological Education, so that it does not continue the reproduction of educational duality, in one of the two partialities of knowledge, not just general education and not just technical education, but the training of a complete man who has a professional qualification, an education that emancipates individuals, in a full understanding of the world. It seeks to free individuals from a fragmented worldview, forming them in all their fullness as a human being, a being who understands the importance of work, science, and culture

The influence of Castanea sativa Mill. flower extract on hormonally and chemically induced prostate cancer in a rat model

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men, with a huge impact on their health. The use of Castanea sativa Mill. flowers (CFs) in beverages has been reported, through ancestral claims, as having health benefits. In vitro research has evidenced the properties of CFs, such as antitumor and antioxidant activities. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of CF extract in an animal model of PCa. Forty male Wistar Unilever rats were randomly assigned to four groups: control, induced, control + CF, and induced + CF groups. Animals from the induced groups were exposed to a multistep protocol for PCa induction. The CF extract, rich in trigalloyl-HHDP-glucoside and obtained via decoction, was administered to the CF groups in drinking water (3 mg per animal per day) for 49 weeks. Animals were sacrificed at 61 weeks of age. Regarding the effects of CFs on dorsolateral prostate tumorigenesis, no significant differences were observed between the induced and induced + CF groups. However, animals exposed to the CF extract showed fewer inflammation areas on the dorsolateral prostate lobe than those not exposed to CF. Moreover, the CF extract alleviated the hepatic oxidative stress associated with the multistep protocol, resulting in lower levels of lipid peroxidation. These results suggest that CF extract has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. This journal is.This work was supported by European Investment Funds by FEDER/COMPETE/POCI - Operational Competitiveness and Internationalization and National Funds by FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, under the projects UIDB/04033/2020 (CITAB), UIDB/00690/2020 (CIMO), UIDB/50006/2020 (LAQV), UIDB/CVT/00772/2020 (CECAV), and UIDP/00616/2020 (CQ-VR), the project RUNawayPCa (POCI-01-0145- FEDER-016728 and PTDC/DTP-DES/6077/2014), and PhD fellowship SFRH/BD/136747/2018. L. Barros also acknowledges national funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program-contract for her contract. The Interreg Program received financial support from the Project IBERPHENOL, Project Number 0377_IBERPHENOL_6_E, cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through POCTEP 2014-2020.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio