Seasonal Botanical Composition and Available Forage of Natural Grasslands in the Southeastern Range Region of Rio Grande Do Sul, Brazil

The objective of the study was to verify the influence of climatic seasons on botanical composition and on available dry matter of grasslands in the physiographic region known as Serra do Sudeste (Southeastern Range), RS, Brazil. The climate is Cfb according to Koëppen`s classification. The experiment was conducted in two natural grasslands submitted to two pre-experimental stocking rates [area 1: 0.65 AU ha-1 (normal grazing); area 2: over 2.0 AU ha-1 (overgrazing); AU: Animal Unit = 500kg live weight]. Stocking rates throughout the experimental period (June 1996–July 1997) were 0.4 and 0.65 AU ha-1, over winter and the other seasons, respectively. The evaluations were made at the end of each season, using the Botanal package. There was a short forage supply over late autumn/early winter. The two species groupings warm-season grasses (70–78% of total dry matter) and broad leaves (18– 24%) were the main components of the vegetation in the lower layer of the two grasslands. Warm-season grasses had their participation slightly increased during the warmer seasons. The pre-experimental overgrazing of area 2 favoured the contribution of the minor groups cool-season grasses, warm-season legumes and cool-season legumes

A amplitude de distribuição dos glóbulos vermelhos (rdw) pode ser considerado como um marcador da atividade da doença de Crohn?

Introduction: Recently, it has been suggested an association between red cell distribution width (RDW) and Crohn’s disease activity index (CDAI), but its use is not yet performed in daily clinical practice. Objectives: To determine whether RDW can be used as a marker of Crohn’s disease (CD) activity. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study including patients with CD, observed consecutively in an outpatient setting between January 1st and September 30th 2013. Blood cell indices, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein were measured. CD activity was determined by CDAI (active disease if CDAI ≥ 150). Associations were analyzed using logistic regression (SPSS version 20). Results: 119 patients (56% female) were included in the study with a mean age of 47 years (SD 15.2). Twenty patients (17%) had active disease. The median RDW was 14.0 (13---15). There was an association between RDW and disease activity (p = 0.044). After adjustment for age and gender, this association remained consistent (OR 1.20, 95% CI 1.03---1.39, p = 0.016). It was also found that the association between RDW and disease activity was independent of hemoglobin and ESR (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.08---1.72, p = 0.01) and of biologic therapy (OR 1.19, 95% CI 1.03---1.37, p = 0.017). A RDW cutoff of 16% had a specificity and negative predictive value for CDAI ≥ 150 of 88% and 86%, respectively. Conclusion: In this study, RDW proved to be an independent and relatively specific marker of CD activity. These results may contribute to the implementation of this simple parameter, in clinical practice, aiming to help therapeutic decisions.Introduc¸ão: Recentemente, tem vindo a ser sugerida uma associac¸ão entre o valor de RDW e a atividade da doença de Crohn (DC), mas a sua utilização não está ainda implementada na prática clínica diária. Objetivos: Determinar se o RDW pode ser utilizado como marcador de atividade da DC. Métodos: Estudo transversal, em doentes com DC, observados consecutivamente em consulta de Doença Inflamatória Intestinal, entre 1 de janeiro e 30 de setembro de 2013. Analisaram-se índices do hemograma, proteína C reativa e velocidade de sedimentação. A gravidade da doença foi avaliada pelo Crohn’s disease activity index (doença ativa se CDAI≥150). As associações foram estudadas usando a regressão logística (SPSS Statistics V20). Resultados: Incluídos 119 doentes (56% do sexo feminino), com idade média de 47 anos (DP 15,2 anos). Vinte doentes (17%) tinham doença ativa. O valor do RDW mediano foi 14,0% (13-15). Verificou-se uma associação entre RDW e atividade da doença (p = 0,044). Após ajuste para a idade e o sexo, esta associação manteve-se consistente (OR 1,20; 95% CI 1,03-1,39; p = 0,016). Verificou-se ainda que a associação do valor do RDW com a atividade da doença foi independente do valor da hemoglobina e da velocidade de sedimentação (OR 1,36; 95% CI 1,08-1,72; p = 0,01) e da terapêutica biológica (OR 1,19; 95% CI 1,03-1,37; p = 0,017). Para um valor de corte de RDW de 16%, a especificidade e o valor preditivo negativo de CDAI≥ 150 foram de 88% e 86%, respetivamente. Conclusão: Neste estudo, o valor do RDW demonstrou ser um marcador independente e relativamente específico da atividade da doenc¸a de Crohn. Estes resultados poderão contribuir para a aplicação deste parâmetro simples, na prática clinica diária, visando auxiliar decisões terapêuticas

Is there a proximal shift in the distribution of colorectal adenomas?

INTRODUCTION: Several studies have shown a proximal shift of colorectal cancer (CRC) during the last decades. However, few have analyzed the changing distribution of adenomas over time. AIM: The aim of this study was to compare the site and the characteristics of colorectal adenomas, in a single center, during two periods. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective, observational study in a single hospital of adenomas removed during a total colonoscopy in two one-year periods: 2003 (period 1) and 2012 (period 2). Patients with inflammatory bowel disease, familial adenomatous polyposis, hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer syndrome, or history of CRC were excluded from the study. The χ(2) statistical test was performed. P values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: During the two considered periods, a total of 864 adenomas from 2394 complete colonoscopies were analyzed: 333 adenomas from 998 colonoscopies during period 1 and 531 adenomas from 1396 colonoscopies during period 2. There was a significant increase in the proportion of adenomatous polyps in the proximal colon from period 1 to 2 (30.6% to 38.8% (p = 0.015)). Comparing the advanced features of adenomas between the two periods, it was noted that in period 2, the number of adenomas with size ≥1 cm (p = 0.001), high-grade dysplasia (p = 0.001), and villous features (p < 0.0001) had a significant increase compared to period 1. CONCLUSION: Incidence of adenomatous polyps in the proximal colon as well as adenomas with advanced features has increased in the last years. This finding may have important implications regarding methods of CRC screening

SentiBench - a benchmark comparison of state-of-the-practice sentiment analysis methods

In the last few years thousands of scientific papers have investigated sentiment analysis, several startups that measure opinions on real data have emerged and a number of innovative products related to this theme have been developed. There are multiple methods for measuring sentiments, including lexical-based and supervised machine learning methods. Despite the vast interest on the theme and wide popularity of some methods, it is unclear which one is better for identifying the polarity (i.e., positive or negative) of a message. Accordingly, there is a strong need to conduct a thorough apple-to-apple comparison of sentiment analysis methods, \textit{as they are used in practice}, across multiple datasets originated from different data sources. Such a comparison is key for understanding the potential limitations, advantages, and disadvantages of popular methods. This article aims at filling this gap by presenting a benchmark comparison of twenty-four popular sentiment analysis methods (which we call the state-of-the-practice methods). Our evaluation is based on a benchmark of eighteen labeled datasets, covering messages posted on social networks, movie and product reviews, as well as opinions and comments in news articles. Our results highlight the extent to which the prediction performance of these methods varies considerably across datasets. Aiming at boosting the development of this research area, we open the methods' codes and datasets used in this article, deploying them in a benchmark system, which provides an open API for accessing and comparing sentence-level sentiment analysis methods

Genetic diversity of Brazilian isolates of feline immunodeficiency virus

We isolated Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) from three adult domestic cats, originating from two open shelters in Brazil. Viruses were isolated from PBMC following co-cultivation with the feline T-lymphoblastoid cell line MYA-1. All amplified env gene products were cloned directly into pGL8MYA. The nucleic acid sequences of seven clones were determined and then compared with those of previously described isolates. The sequences of all of the Brazilian virus clones were distinct and phylogenetic analysis revealed that all belong to subtype B. Three variants isolated from one cat and two variants were isolated from each of the two other cats, indicating that intrahost diversity has the potential to pose problems for the treatment and diagnosis of FIV infection