Culture of bovine ovarian follicle wall sections maintained the highly estrogenic profile under basal and chemically defined conditions

Follicle cultures reproduce in vitro the functional features observed in vivo. In a search for an ideal model, we cultured bovine antral follicle wall sections (FWS) in a serum-free defined medium (DM) known to induce 17β-estradiol (E2) production, and in a nondefined medium (NDM) containing serum. Follicles were sectioned and cultured in NDM or DM for 24 or 48 h. Morphological features were determined by light microscopy. Gene expression of steroidogenic enzymes and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) receptor were determined by RT-PCR; progesterone (P4) and E2 concentrations in the media were measured by radioimmunoassay. DM, but not NDM, maintained an FWS morphology in vitro that was similar to fresh tissue. DM also induced an increase in the expression of all steroidogenic enzymes, except FSH receptor, but NDM did not. In both DM and NDM, there was a gradual increase in P4 throughout the culture period; however, P4 concentration was significantly higher in NDM. In both media, E2 concentration was increased at 24 h, followed by a decrease at 48 h. The E2:P4 ratio was higher in DM than in NDM. These results suggest that DM maintains morphological structure, upregulates the expression of steroidogenic enzyme genes, and maintains steroid production with a high E2:P4 ratio in FWS cultures

A didactic proposal for the construction of the ellipse

The purpose of the present is to propose the construction of the ellipse in a didactic way in which the work deals with the exposure of a specific methodology for the 3rd year of high school when dealing with ellipse content. Followed by the results of the realization of a workshop aimed at the construction of the ellipse in a didactic way, constructed with low cost material, thereby proposing the teaching of mathematics in a more pleasant and effective way, where the ellipse equations were defined with the theoretical concept and afterwards, the gardener\u27s method was used to construct this curve in a terrain, using ropes and civil construction fasteners, so that the student could concretize and apply this content in practice. After that, it was used for construction in the classroom using thread threads or thin strings to make the tracing and to finish it used the Geogebra software to finish the work showing the perfection of the curve explained in the classroom. The didactic process carried out showed a real interest of the students mainly with the use of the field practice. In conclusion, teaching mathematics in a didactic and interactive way provides a favorable environment for learning, stimulating students with a critical sense and an investigative spirit

Serological Proteomic Screening and Evaluation of a Recombinant Egg Antigen for the Diagnosis of Low-Intensity \u3ci\u3eSchistosoma mansoni\u3c/i\u3e infections in endemic area in Brazil

Background Despite decades of use of control programs, schistosomiasis remains a global public health problem. To further reduce prevalence and intensity of infection, or to achieve the goal of elimination in low-endemic areas, there needs to be better diagnostic tools to detect low-intensity infections in low-endemic areas in Brazil. The rationale for development of new diagnostic tools is that the current standard test Kato-Katz (KK) is not sensitive enough to detect low-intensity infections in low-endemic areas. In order to develop new diagnostic tools, we employed a proteomics approach to identify biomarkers associated with schistosome-specific immune responses in hopes of developing sensitive and specific new methods for immunodiagnosis. Methods and findings Immunoproteomic analyses were performed on egg extracts of Schistosoma mansoni using pooled sera from infected or non-infected individuals from a low-endemic area of Brazil. Cross reactivity with other soil-transmitted helminths (STH) was determined using pooled sera from individuals uniquely infected with different helminths. Using this approach, we identified 23 targets recognized by schistosome acute and chronic sera samples. To identify immunoreactive targets that were likely glycan epitopes, we compared these targets to the immunoreactivity of spots treated with sodium metaperiodate oxidation of egg extract. This treatment yielded 12/23 spots maintaining immunoreactivity, suggesting that they were protein epitopes. From these 12 spots, 11 spots cross-reacted with sera from individuals infected with other STH and 10 spots cross-reacted with the negative control group. Spot number 5 was exclusively immunoreactive with sera from S. mansoni-infected groups in native and deglycosylated conditions and corresponds to Major Egg Antigen (MEA). We expressed MEA as a recombinant protein and showed a similar recognition pattern to that of the native protein via western blot. IgG-ELISA gave a sensitivity of 87.10% and specificity of 89.09% represented by area under the ROC curve of 0.95. IgG-ELISA performed better than the conventional KK (2 slides), identifying 56/64 cases harboring 1–10 eggs per gram of feces that were undiagnosed by KK parasitological technique. Conclusions The serological proteome approach was able to identify a new diagnostic candidate. The recombinant egg antigen provided good performance in IgG-ELISA to detect individuals with extreme low-intensity infections (1 egg per gram of feces). Therefore, the IgG-ELISA using this newly identified recombinant MEA can be a useful tool combined with other techniques in low-endemic areas to determine the true prevalence of schistosome infection that is underestimated by the KK method. Further, to overcome the complexity of ELISA in the field, a second generation of antibody-based rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) can be developed

Avaliação da qualidade em serviços públicos : relatório técnico

Faculdade UnB Gama (FGA

ANÁLISE EPIDEMIOLÓGICA DOS CASOS DE RAIVA HUMANA NO BRASIL ENTRE O PERÍODO DE 2007 A 2021

Rabies is an infectious disease, caused by a virus from the Rhabdoviridae family, Lyssavirus genus, whose infection occurs through contact with secretions contaminated by the virus, and presents with several important symptoms, mainly affecting the Central Nervous System, and with lethality of 100%. This is an epidemiological study between 2007 and 2021, using the DATASUS database, evaluating cases reported by SINAN. It was possible to verify that, in the period analyzed, there were 46 cases, with the northeast region being the most affected, followed by the south and southeast regions, with males being the most affected. The most affected age group was between 20 and 39 years old, followed by groups 1 to 4; 5 to 9 and 10 to 14, which can be explained by greater exposure to domestic animals. Therefore, more studies are needed indicating ways to prevent the main risk factors, in addition to encouraging post-exposure prophylaxis to avoid the disease.La rabia es una enfermedad infecciosa, causada por un virus de la familia Rhabdoviridae, género Lyssavirus, cuya infección se produce por contacto con secreciones contaminadas por el virus, y se presenta con varios síntomas importantes, afectando principalmente al Sistema Nervioso Central, y con una letalidad del 100%. . Se trata de un estudio epidemiológico entre 2007 y 2021, utilizando la base de datos DATASUS, evaluando los casos reportados por el SINAN. Se pudo verificar que, en el período analizado, hubo 46 casos, siendo la región noreste la más afectada, seguida por las regiones sur y sureste, siendo los hombres los más afectados. El grupo etario más afectado fue el de 20 a 39 años, seguido del grupo 1 al 4; 5 a 9 y 10 a 14, lo que puede explicarse por una mayor exposición a animales domésticos. Por tanto, se necesitan más estudios que indiquen formas de prevenir los principales factores de riesgo, además de fomentar la profilaxis post exposición para evitar la enfermedad.A raiva é uma doença infecciosa, causada por um vírus da família Rhabdoviridae, gênero Lyssavirus, cuja infecção ocorre através do contato com secreções contaminadas pelo vírus, e cursa com diversos sintomas importantes, acometendo, principalmente, o Sistema Nervoso Central, e tendo letalidade de 100%. Trata-se de um estudo epidemiológico entre 2007 a 2021, utilizando a base de dados do DATASUS, avaliando os casos notificados pelo SINAN. Foi possível verificar que, no período analisado, ocorreram 46 casos, sendo a região nordeste a mais acometida, seguida das regiões sul e sudeste, tendo o sexo masculino como o mais afetado. Já a faixa etária mais acometida foi entre 20 a 39 anos, seguida pelas faixas 1 a 4; 5 a 9 e 10 a 14, o que pode ser explicado pela maior exposição a animais domésticos. Assim, são necessários mais estudos apontando maneiras de prevenção quanto aos principais fatores de risco, além de incentivar a profilaxia pós-exposição para evitar a doença

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

Genome of Herbaspirillum seropedicae Strain SmR1, a Specialized Diazotrophic Endophyte of Tropical Grasses

The molecular mechanisms of plant recognition, colonization, and nutrient exchange between diazotrophic endophytes and plants are scarcely known. Herbaspirillum seropedicae is an endophytic bacterium capable of colonizing intercellular spaces of grasses such as rice and sugar cane. The genome of H. seropedicae strain SmR1 was sequenced and annotated by The Paraná State Genome Programme—GENOPAR. The genome is composed of a circular chromosome of 5,513,887 bp and contains a total of 4,804 genes. The genome sequence revealed that H. seropedicae is a highly versatile microorganism with capacity to metabolize a wide range of carbon and nitrogen sources and with possession of four distinct terminal oxidases. The genome contains a multitude of protein secretion systems, including type I, type II, type III, type V, and type VI secretion systems, and type IV pili, suggesting a high potential to interact with host plants. H. seropedicae is able to synthesize indole acetic acid as reflected by the four IAA biosynthetic pathways present. A gene coding for ACC deaminase, which may be involved in modulating the associated plant ethylene-signaling pathway, is also present. Genes for hemagglutinins/hemolysins/adhesins were found and may play a role in plant cell surface adhesion. These features may endow H. seropedicae with the ability to establish an endophytic life-style in a large number of plant species