A self-organizing map clustering approach to support territorial zoning

This work aims to evaluate three strategies for analyzing clusters of ordinal categorical data (thematic maps) to support the territorial zoning of the Alto Taquari basin, MS/MT. We evaluated a model-based method, another based on the segmentation of the multi-way contingency table, and the last one based on the transformation of ordinal data into intervals and subsequent analysis of clusters from a proposed method of segmentation of the Self-Organizing Map after the neural network training process. The results showed the adequacy of the methods based on the Self-Organizen Map and the segmentation of the contingency table, as these techniques generated unimodal clusters with distinguishable groups.Supported by National Council for Scientific and Technological Development –CNPq, Brazil, and by National Funds through the Portuguese funding agency, FCT -Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia within project 2022.06822.PTDC. The work of Pedro Oliveira was also supported by the doctoral Grant PRT/BD/154311/2022 financed by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), and with funds from European Union, under MIT Portugal Progra

Fauna terrestre da maior cavidade em granito do Hemisfério Sul, sudeste do Brasil: um habitat negligenciado

Studies focusing cave fauna on granitic caves are relatively rare when compared to carbonatic ones and no one considered replicas in the sampling to test fauna distribution patterns. We describe the terrestrial fauna of Riacho Subterrâneo cave through four sampling occasions (replicas) in different seasons. We analyzed seasonality and substrate preference of terrestrial invertebrates and discussed the importance of this neglected habitat as a refuge for fauna. Furthermore, we stressed the importance of the replicas in order to detect subterranean biodiversity patterns. The cave represents the greatest richness considering igneous rocks in Brazil (199 taxa) and has an important role as refuge for epigean fauna, besides the maintenance of troglophilic and trogloxene populations.Keywords: subterranean microhabitats, igneous rock, Neotropical Region, seasonality, refuge.Estudos com foco em fauna de cavidades graníticas são relativamente raros comparados àqueles em rochas carbonáticas, e nenhum deles considerou a realização de réplicas para teste de padrões de distribuição da fauna. Descrevemos a fauna terrestre da Gruta do Riacho Subterrâneo por meio de quatro ocasiões de amostragem (réplicas) em diferentes estações do ano. Analisamos a influência da sazonalidade e a preferência por substratos da comunidade de invertebrados terrestres e discutimos a importância deste habitat negligenciado como refúgio para a fauna. Ainda, discutimos a importância da realização de réplicas para detectar padrões de biodiversidade subterrânea. A cavidade apresenta a maior riqueza biológica dentre as cavidades em rochas ígneas no Brasil (199 táxons) e desempenha um papel importante como refúgio para fauna epígea, além de manutenção de populações troglófilas e trogloxenas.Palavras-chave: micro-habitats subterrâneos, rocha ígnea, Região Neotropical, sazonalidade, refúgio

Autoimmune hepatitis in 828 Brazilian children and adolescents: clinical and laboratory findings, histological profile, treatments, and outcomes

In this large clinical series of Brazilian children and adolescents, autoimmunehepatitis-1 was more frequent, and patients with autoimmune hepatitis-2 exhibited higherdisease remission rates with earlier response to treatment. Patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1 had a higher risk of death.sentation, laboratory findings, histological profile, treatments, and outcomes of children andadolescents with autoimmune hepatitis.Methods: The medical records of 828 children and adolescents with autoimmune hepatitiswere reviewed. A questionnaire was used to collect anonymous data on clinical presentation,biochemical and histological findings, and treatments.Results: Of all patients, 89.6% had autoimmune hepatitis-1 and 10.4% had autoimmunehepatitis-2. The female sex was predominant in both groups. The median age at symptomonset was 111.5 (6; 210) and 53.5 (8; 165) months in the patients with autoimmune hepatitis1 and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively. Acute clinical onset was observed in 56.1% and58.8% and insidious symptoms in 43.9% and 41.2% of the patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively. The risk of hepatic failure was 1.6-fold higher forautoimmune hepatitis-2. Fulminant hepatic failure occurred in 3.6% and 10.6% of the patientswith autoimmune hepatitis-1 and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively; the risk was 3.1-foldhigher for autoimmune hepatitis-2. The gamma globulin and immunoglobulin G levels were sig-nificantly higher in autoimmune hepatitis-1, while the immunoglobulin A and C3 levels werelower in autoimmune hepatitis-2. Cirrhosis was observed in 22.4% of the patients; biochem-ical remission was achieved in 76.2%. The actuarial survival rate was 93.0%. A total of 4.6%underwent liver transplantation, and 6.9% died (autoimmune hepatitis-1: 7.5%; autoimmunehepatitis-2: 2.4%).Conclusions: In this large clinical series of Brazilian children and adolescents, autoimmunehepatitis-1 was more frequent, and patients with autoimmune hepatitis-2 exhibited higherdisease remission rates with earlier response to treatment. Patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1 had a higher risk of death.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A list of land plants of Parque Nacional do Caparaó, Brazil, highlights the presence of sampling gaps within this protected area

Brazilian protected areas are essential for plant conservation in the Atlantic Forest domain, one of the 36 global biodiversity hotspots. A major challenge for improving conservation actions is to know the plant richness, protected by these areas. Online databases offer an accessible way to build plant species lists and to provide relevant information about biodiversity. A list of land plants of “Parque Nacional do Caparaó” (PNC) was previously built using online databases and published on the website "Catálogo de Plantas das Unidades de Conservação do Brasil." Here, we provide and discuss additional information about plant species richness, endemism and conservation in the PNC that could not be included in the List. We documented 1,791 species of land plants as occurring in PNC, of which 63 are cited as threatened (CR, EN or VU) by the Brazilian National Red List, seven as data deficient (DD) and five as priorities for conservation. Fifity-one species were possible new ocurrences for ES and MG states