Human case of West Nile neuroinvasive disease in Portugal, summer 2015

A case of West Nile virus (WNV) infection was reported in the Algarve region, Portugal, in the first week of September 2015. WNV is known to circulate in Portugal, with occasional reports in horses and birds (2004 to 2011) and very sporadically human cases (in 2004 and in 2010). Here we present the clinical and laboratory aspects related to the first human case of West Nile neuroinvasive disease reported in Portugal

Promoting social plasticity in developmental disorders with non-invasive brain stimulation techniques

Being socially connected directly impacts our basic needs and survival. People with deficits in social cognition might exhibit abnormal behaviors and face many challenges in our highly social-dependent world. These challenges and limitations are associated with a substantial economical and subjective impact. As many conditions where social cognition is affected are highly prevalent, more treatments have to be developed. Based on recent research, we review studies where noninvasive neuromodulatory techniques have been used to promote Social Plasticity in developmental disorders. We focused on three populations where non-invasive brain stimulation seems to be a promising approach in inducing social plasticity: Schizophrenia, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Williams Syndrome (WS). There are still very few studies directly evaluating the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in the social cognition of these populations. However, when considering the promising preliminary evidences presented in this review and the limited amount of clinical interventions available for treating social cognition deficits in these populations today, it is clear that the social neuroscientist arsenal may profit from non-invasive brain stimulation techniques for rehabilitation and promotion of social plasticity

Effects of mechanical agitation and of the addition of grain refiner on the microstructure and mechanical properties of castings of the Al-Sn alloy

The aim of this article was to evaluate the effects of mechanical stirring and grain refiner addition in three different Al-10wt%Sn casting alloys on their resulting macro and microstructures and mechanical properties. These samples were obtained by using: i) die casting, ii) casting with mechanical stirring, iii) die casting using grain refiner (master alloy Al-5wt%Ti-1wt%B) and iv) die casting with grain refiner and mechanical stirring. Experimental results presented different mean grain sizes and different cooling rates when different casting procedures were applied. Cellular and dendritic morphologies were observed when ranges of cooling rates of about 0.6 to 0.75 ºC/s and of 1.75 to 2.55 ºC/s were employed, respectively. Porosity levels of all studied alloy samples were also analyzed. Results of the mechanical behavior, particularly, ultimate tensile strength, yield strength and specific elongation were correlated with mean grain sizes, dendritic arm and cellular spacings and porosity levels attained for the three different cast Al-10wt%Sn alloy samples. The control of the resulting microstructure of the as-cast product may be used as an alternative way to produce sound casting alloy components with improvement in the mechanical properties.O objetivo deste artigo foi avaliar os efeitos da agitação mecânica e de adição de refinador de grão na macro e microestrutura e propriedades mecânicas resultantes de três (03) diferentes procedimentos de fundição utilizando-se de uma liga Al-10%Sn. Os processos de fundição para obtenção das amostras foram: i)fundição por gravidade convencional, ii) fundição por gravidade com agitação mecânica do líquido em resfriamento, iii) fundição por gravidade com adição de refinadores de grão, particularmente adição de 1,5% (em peso) da liga-mãe Al-5%Ti-1%B e iv) fundição por gravidade com adição de refinador de grão e agitação mecânica. Resultados experimentais mostraram que os diferentes procedimentos de fundição propiciaram diferentes valores médios dos tamanhos dos grãos correlacionados com diferentes taxas de resfriamento. Taxas na ordem de 0,60 a 0,75 ºC/s propiciaram microestruturas celulares e taxas na ordem de 1,75 a 2,55 ºC/s resultaram em morfologias dendríticas. Foram avaliados também os níveis de porosidade entre as amostras estudadas. Foram correlacionados os resultados do comportamento mecânico, particularmente, limite de resistência à tração, limite de escoamento e alongamento específico com os tamanhos dos grãos, os espaçamentos dendríticos e celulares e os níveis de porosidade resultantes dos três diferentes procedimentos de obtenção das amostras. Conclui-se que o controle da microestrutura do lingote pode ser usado como um método alternativo para produzir componentes fundidos com melhores resultados de propriedades mecânicas e qualidade dos fundidos.906917Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Caracterização da composição tecidual da perna de cabritos do Alto Camaquã sacrificados aos 12 meses de idade.

CIC ENPOS

Borderline personality disorder and bias in the recognition of facial expressions of emotion: a pathway to understand the psychopathology

Background The identification of facial emotions is a key skill as it promotes rapid and accurate recognition of emotions and enables better communication and greater social adaptation. More recent studies have suggested that impaired social interactions may be related to deficits in social cognition and therefore in the recognition of facial expressions, contributing to social disturbance among individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Objective To present the results of an empirical study assessing the recognition of facial emotion expressions in women with BPD, having as reference a group of healthy women from the general population. Methods The subjects (40 female with BPD and 40 controls) were assessed with a dynamic task on a computer screen for recognition of facial expressions of emotion. Results The BPD group had a lower accuracy in perceiving emotions of fear and surprise and slowness in recognising happiness. Logistic regression analyses also identified an association between BPD and higher sensitivity in the recognition of anger. Discussion Women with BPD made more mistakes in the recognition of negative emotions, which can bias the behaviour and regulation of affective states, favouring in turn the emergence of some typical symptoms associated with BPD

Atualização em tuberculose bovina.

bitstream/CNPGC-2010/13225/1/COT121.pd

Automatic solid-phase extraction by programmable flow injection coupled to chromatographic fluorimetric determination of fluoroquinolones

Fluoroquinolones are broad-spectrum bactericidal agents applied for the treatment of human and veterinary diseases. Their common use and their incorrect disposal foster environmental contamination, namely in water resources, increasing the risk of antimicrobial resistance. Hence, a method based on automatic solid-phase extraction coupled to liquid chromatography and fluorimetric detection is proposed for the determination of fluoroquinolones in environmental waters. For the solid-phase extraction procedure, a commercially available molecularly imprinted polymer targeting fluoroquinolones was trapped inside a flow-through extraction column, integrated into a programmable flow injection system using multisyringe flow injection analysis, where all steps concerning sorbent conditioning, sample loading, matrix removal, and analyte elution were performed under computer control. The eluate resulting from the sample preparation was collected and transferred at-line to chromatographic analysis using a reversed-phase monolithic column coupled to a fluorimetric detector, and isocratic elution with methanol-phosphoric acid (pH 3.0; 5.0 mM) (17.5:82.5, v/v) at a flow rate of 3.5 mL min-1. Sample treatment and chromatographic analysis were performed in tandem, with sample throughput limited by the sample treatment step. Calibration curves based on fluorescence intensity vs. analyte mass were obtained in the range of 10 to 1000 pg for norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, and enrofloxacin with LOD values of 6-19 ng L-1 for a sample volume of 100 mL, and RSD < 11% at 0.7 ¿g L-1. The method was successfully applied to estuarine river water analysis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Características teciduais da paleta de cabritos do Alto Camaquã aos oito e aos doze meses de idade.

Salão Universitário