The influence of oral contraceptives of ethinyl estradiol combined

The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the cardiorespiratory and metabolic variables at the peak of exercise (up to physical exhaustion) and at the anaerobic threshold (AT) during a ramp-type-ergospirometric test (R-ET) on users and nonusers of oral contraceptives (OCs). 28 sedentary women divided into 3 groups: 10 nonusers of OCs (22.8±2.4 years); 10 users of OCs of ethinyl-estradiol (EE) combined with gestodeno (23.4±4.0 years); and 8 users of OCs of EE combined with desogestrel (23.2±5.0 years). The OC groups included women undergoing combined monophasic OC for at least 8 months. The volunteers were subjected to a complete clinical check-up, R-ET on a cycloergometer with power increments of 20 W/min, carried out on 7th and 10th day of the menstrual cycle. The Heart reat (HR) recorded beat-to-beat from a one-channel heart monitor (MINISCOPE II Instramed-Porto Alegre-RS-Brazil), the power and ventilatory variables were recorded breath-by-breath using an ergospirometer (CPX/D MedGrafics–Breeze-St.-Paul-Minnesota-USA). The AT was determined from a visual analysis of the loss of parallelism between the VO2 and the VCO2. Kruskal-Wallis tests with α = 5% was used. The mean values of the variables of VO2, Heart rate (HR), and power did not present a statistical difference (p\u3e0.05) at the peak of the exercise and at the AT in a comparison of the experimental groups. Contraceptive therapy of EE combined with gestodene or with desogestrel did not affect the cardiorespiratory responses

Comparative analysis of cardiopulmonary responses of healthy sedentary men and men after acute myocardial infarction

The aim of this study was to assess the aerobic capacity of men after acute myocardial infarction (G-AMI) and of healthy sedentary men (G-C) at the anaerobic threshold (AT) and at the peak of the exercise (up to physical exhaustion) during a ramp-type ergospirometric test (R-ET). Methods: 22 volunteers divided into two groups: G-AMI (n=10), 55.6 ± 9.7 years old, undergoing β-blocking therapy (atenolol, dosage 46 ± 9.4 mg/day), Killip classification grade I, and G-C (n=12), 53.3 ± 3.2 years old. The G-C subjects took no type of medication. Experimental protocol: R-ET, with power increments of 10W/min for the G-AMI and of 15W/min for the G-C. The evaluated variables were: heart rate (HR), ventilatory and metabolic, recorded breath-by-breath using an ergospirometer (CPX/D MedGrafics – Breeze, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA). Statistical Analysis: Mann-Whitney tests α = 5%. The power, cardiovascular, ventilatory and metabolic variables obtained from the R-ET at the peak of the exercise, for G-AMI and G-C, presented a statistically significant difference (p0.05). Conclusion: The lower aerobic capacity at the peak of the exercise can be attributed to the use of β-blocking therapy and to prolonged bed rest

Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training vs. Sprint Interval Training on Anthropometric Measures and Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Healthy Young Women

Purpose: To compare the effects of 8 weeks of two types of interval training, Sprint Interval Training (SIT) and High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), on anthropometric measures and cardiorespiratory fitness in healthy young women.Methods: A randomized clinical trial in which 49 young active women [age, 30.4 ± 6.1 years; body mass index, 24.8 ± 3.1 kg.m−2; peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak), 34.9±7.5 mL.kg−1.min−1] were randomly allocated into a SIT or HIIT group. The SIT group performed four bouts of 30 s all-out cycling efforts interspersed with 4 min of recovery (passive or light cycling with no load). The HIIT group performed four bouts of 4-min efforts at 90–95% of peak heart rate (HRpeak) interspersed with 3 min of active recovery at 50–60% of HRpeak. At baseline and after 8 weeks of intervention, waist circumference, skinfolds (triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, abdominal, and thigh), body mass and BMI were measured by standard procedures and cardiorespiratory fitness was assessed by cardiorespiratory graded exertion test on an electromagnetically braked cycle ergometer.Results: The HIIT and SIT groups improved, respectively, 14.5 ± 22.9% (P < 0.001) and 16.9 ± 23.4% (P < 0.001) in VO2peak after intervention, with no significant difference between groups. Sum of skinfolds reduced 15.8 ± 7.9 and 22.2 ± 6.4 from baseline (P < 0.001) for HIIT and SIT groups, respectively, with greater reduction for SIT compared to HIIT (P < 0.05). There were statistically significant decreases in waist circumference (P < 0.001) for the HIIT (−3.1 ± 1.1%) and SIT (−3.3 ± 1.8%) groups, with no significant difference between groups. Only SIT showed significant reductions in body weight and BMI (p < 0.05).Conclusions: Eight weeks of HIIT and SIT resulted in improvements in anthropometric measures and cardiorespiratory fitness, even in the absence of changes in dietary intake. In addition, the SIT protocol induced greater reductions than the HIIT protocol in the sum of skinfolds. Both protocols appear to be time-efficient interventions, since the HIIT and SIT protocols took 33 and 23 min (16 and 2 min of effective training) per session, respectively

Multiplex PCR for detection of plasmid-mediated colistin resistance determinants, mcr-1, mcr-2, mcr-3, mcr-4 and mcr-5 for surveillance purposes

International audiencePlasmid-mediated colistin resistance mechanisms have been identified worldwide in the past years. A multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) protocol for detection of all currently known transferable colistin resistance genes (mcr-1 to mcr-5, and variants) in Enterobacteriaceae was developed for surveillance or research purposes. Methods: We designed four new primer pairs to amplify mcr-1, mcr-2, mcr-3 and mcr-4 gene products and used the originally described primers for mcr-5 to obtain a stepwise separation of ca 200 bp between amplicons. The primer pairs and amplification conditions allow for single or multiple detection of all currently described mcr genes and their variants present in Enterobacteriaceae. The protocol was validated testing 49 European Escherichia coli and Salmonella isolates of animal origin. Results: Multiplex PCR results in bovine and porcine isolates from Spain, Germany, France and Italy showed full concordance with whole genome sequence data. The method was able to detect mcr-1, mcr-3 and mcr-4 as singletons or in different combinations as they were present in the test isolates. One new mcr-4 variant, mcr-4.3, was also identified. Conclusions: This method allows rapid identification of mcr-positive bacteria and overcomes the challenges of phenotypic detection of colistin resistance. The multiplex PCR should be particularly interesting in settings or laboratories with limited resources for performing genetic analysis as it provides information on the mechanism of colistin resistance without requiring genome sequencing

MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL : A data set of terrestrial, volant, and marine mammal occurrences in P ortugal

Mammals are threatened worldwide, with 26% of all species being includedin the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associatedwith habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mam-mals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change, and prey depletion formarine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems func-tionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is cru-cial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS INPORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublishedgeoreferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mam-mals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira thatincludes 105,026 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occur-ring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live obser-vations/captures (43%), sign surveys (35%), camera trapping (16%),bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radiotracking, and inquiries that represent lessthan 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: (1) burrowsjsoil moundsjtunnel, (2) capture, (3) colony, (4) dead animaljhairjskullsjjaws, (5) genetic confirmation, (6) inquiries, (7) observation of live animal (8),observation in shelters, (9) photo trappingjvideo, (10) predators dietjpelletsjpine cones/nuts, (11) scatjtrackjditch, (12) telemetry and (13) vocalizationjecholocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and100 m (76%). Rodentia (n=31,573) has the highest number of records followedby Chiroptera (n=18,857), Carnivora (n=18,594), Lagomorpha (n=17,496),Cetartiodactyla (n=11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n=7008). The data setincludes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened(e.g.,Oryctolagus cuniculus[n=12,159],Monachus monachus[n=1,512],andLynx pardinus[n=197]). We believe that this data set may stimulate thepublication of other European countries data sets that would certainly contrib-ute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting onthe development of more accurate and tailored conservation managementstrategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite thisdata paper when the data are used in publications.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Mammals in Portugal: a data set of terrestrial, volant, and marine mammal occurrences in Portugal

Mammals are threatened worldwide, with ~26% of all species being included in the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associated with habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mammals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change, and prey depletion for marine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems functionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is crucial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublished georeferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mammals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira that includes 105,026 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occurring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live observations/captures (43%), sign surveys (35%), camera trapping (16%), bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radiotracking, and inquiries that represent less than 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: (1) burrows | soil mounds | tunnel, (2) capture, (3) colony, (4) dead animal | hair | skulls | jaws, (5) genetic confirmation, (6) inquiries, (7) observation of live animal (8), observation in shelters, (9) photo trapping | video, (10) predators diet | pellets | pine cones/nuts, (11) scat | track | ditch, (12) telemetry and (13) vocalization | echolocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and 100 m (76%). Rodentia (n =31,573) has the highest number of records followed by Chiroptera (n = 18,857), Carnivora (n = 18,594), Lagomorpha (n = 17,496), Cetartiodactyla (n = 11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n = 7008). The data set includes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened (e.g., Oryctolagus cuniculus [n = 12,159], Monachus monachus [n = 1,512], and Lynx pardinus [n = 197]). We believe that this data set may stimulate the publication of other European countries data sets that would certainly contribute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting on the development of more accurate and tailored conservation management strategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite this data paper when the data are used in publications

Comparison of Modern and Pleistocene (MIS 5e) Coastal Boulder Deposits from Santa Maria Island (Azores Archipelago, NE Atlantic Ocean)

Modern and palaeo-shores from Pleistocene Marine Isotope Substage 5e (MIS 5e) featuring prominent cobble/boulder deposits from three locations, on the southern and eastern coast of Santa Maria Island in the Azores Archipelago, were compared, in order to test the idea of higher storminess during the Last Interglacial. A total of 175 basalt clasts from seven transects were measured manually in three dimensions perpendicular to one another. Boulders that exceeded the minimum definitional diameter of 25 cm contributed to 45% of the clasts, with the remainder falling into the category of large cobbles. These were sorted for variations in shape, size, and weight pertinent to the application of two mathematical formulas to estimate wave heights necessary for traction. Both equations were based on the “Nott-Approach”, one of them being sensitive to the longest axis, the other to the shortest axis. The preponderance of data derived from the Pleistocene deposits, which included an intertidal invertebrate fauna for accurate dating. The island’s east coast at Ponta do Cedro lacked a modern boulder beach due to steep rocky shores, whereas raised Pleistocene palaeo-shores along the same coast reflect surged from an average wave height of 5.6 m and 6.5 m. Direct comparison between modern and Pleistocene deposits at Ponta do Castelo to the southeast and Prainha on the island’s south shore produced contrasting results, with higher wave heights during MIS 5e at Ponta do Castelo and higher wave heights for the modern boulder beach at Prainha. Thus, our results did not yield a clear conclusion about higher storminess during the Last Interglacial compared to the present day. Historical meteorological records pit the seasonal activity of winter storms arriving from the WNW-NW against the scant record of hurricanes arriving from the ESE-SE. The disparity in the width of the marine shelf around Santa Maria Island with broad shelves to the north and narrow shelves to the south and east suggested that periodic winter storms had a more regular role in coastal erosion, whereas the rare episodic recurrence of hurricanes had a greater impact on southern and southeastern rocky shores, where the studied coastal boulder deposits were located