Feline immunodeficiency virus infection in cats from São Paulo, Brazil

Os aspectos clínicos e epidemiológicos de três casos de Síndrome de Imunodeficiência Adquirida dos Felinos (SIDAF), relacionados à infecção pelo FIV são descritos neste estudo. Dois dos animais eram gatos siameses, com três anos de idade sendo um macho e uma fêmea e o terceiro, um gato doméstico de pelo curto, macho, com seis anos de idade. Os sintomas observados foram febre, icterícia, esplenomegalia, emaciação e fraqueza. As principais alterações hematológicas foram a anemia, não relacionada à Hemobartonelose, encontrada em dois gatos, neutrofilia encontrada nos três animais e linfopenia observada em um. A necrópsia realizada em dois dos animais revelou que a sepse foi a maior causa da piora das condições clínicas nos gatos infectados pelo FIV. Moraxella phenilpiruvica foi isolada do rim de um dos animais. Todos os gatos apresentaram testes sorológicos positivos para FIV e negativos para FeLV e manifestavam há longo tempo sinais clínicos relacionados à SIDAF.Clinical and epidemiological aspects of three cases of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome in cats related to FIV infection are described. Two of the patients were siamese, male and female, three years old cats and the third one was a male, six years old, short haired domestic cat. Fever, icterus, spleen enlargement, ematiation and weakness were the clinical signs observed. The main hematological alterations were anemia, apparently not related to hemobartonellosis, found in two of the cats, neutrophilia in all of them and lymphopenia observed in one. The necropsy made on two cats revealed that sepsis was the major cause of the worsening of clinical conditions of the FIV infected cats. Moraxella phenilpiruvica was isolated from kidney of one patient. All of the cats were FIV positive and FeLV negative and had been sick for a long time with clinical signs related to feline AIDS

Efeitos do treinamento aeróbio e resistido combinados na variabilidade da frequência cardíaca em mulheres na menopausa

Modelo de Estudo: Ensaio clínico controlado. Objetivo: Verificar a resposta de 16 semanas do treinamento aeróbio e resistido combinado sobre a modulação autonômica em mulheres na menopausa.Métodos: 17 mulheres foram divididas em dois grupos: grupo treino (GT: n=11) e grupo controle (GC:n=6). As variáveis de composição corporal foram estimadas pela absorptiometria radiológica de dupla energia. A modulação autonômica foi avaliada pela variabilidade da frequência cardíaca usando índices lineares. O protocolo de treinamento consistiu em 16 semanas, por 50 minutos de treinamento resistido e 30 minutos de treinamento aeróbio. Resultados: Para o GT houve incremento do índice rMSSD(ms)(pre:17,4±3,7 e pos:24,8±13,1, p<0,045), aumento dos intervalos entre batimentos cardíacos consecutivos (pre:891,2±80,2 e pos:974,1±71,4, p<0,003) e dos valores de frequência cardíaca(bpm) (pre:68,1±6,4 e pos:62,0±4,7, p<0,003), para os índices espectrais em unidades normalizadas, houve redução de LF(pre:52,2±13,1 e pos:44,5±12,4, p<0,025) e incremento de HF (pre:47,8±13,3 e pos:55,5±12,4, p<0,025).Não houve diferenças significantes para o GC. Conclusão: o treinamento aeróbio e resistido combinado promoveu benefícios sobre a modulação autonômica em mulheres na menopausa.Model of the study: Controlled clinical trial. Objective: To verify the effects of 16 weeks of combined aerobic and resistance training on cardiac autonomic modulation in menopausal women. Methods: 17 menopausal women were divided into two groups: the training group (TG: n=11) and control group (CG:n=6). The body composition variables were estimated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. The cardiac autonomic modulation was evaluated by heart rate variability using linear indexes. The training protocol consisted of 16 weeks of 50 minutes of resistance training and 30 minutes of aerobic training. Results: For the TG there was an increase in the rMSSD(ms) index (pre:17,4±3,7 and post:24,8±13,1,p<0,045), an increase in the duration of the intervals between the cardiac beats(ms) (pre:891,2±80,2 and post:974,1±71,4, p<0,003) and in the values of heart rate(bpm) (pre:68,1±6,4 and post:62,0±4,7, p<0,003), additionally for the spectral indexes in normalized units, changes for LF (pre:52,2±13,1 and post:44,5±12,4, p<0,025) and HF (pre:47,8±13,3 and post:55,5±12,4, p<0,025) were noticed, demonstrating increased parasympathetic and reduced sympathetic. There were no significant differences to CG. Conclusion: combined aerobic and resistance training promoted benefits to the autonomic modulation in menopausal women

Development and validation of an analytical method using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) to determine ethyl butylacetylaminopropionate in topical repellent formulations

Diseases caused by insects are frequent in poor countries, leading to epidemic scenarios in urban areas; e.g., Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya. For this reason, the development of a safe and efficient topical formulation is essential. Ethyl butylacetylaminopropionate (EB) is a mosquito repellent developed by Merck, which is used in products for adults, children and especially babies, due to its low allergenic potential. The aim of this work was to validate an analytical methodology to quantify EB in a new poloxamer-based formulation by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The quantification methodology was performed at 40 ºC using a Kromasil reverse-phase column (C18), with the dimensions of 250 x 4.6 mm. The mobile phase was acetonitrile:water (1:1) at a 1.0 mL/min flow-rate. The detector wavelength was set at 218 nm to detect EB. The methodology was considered validated since the results indicated linearity (R2>;0.99), specificity, selectivity, precision and accuracy (active recovery between 98% and 102%). It also presented limits of detection and quantification of 0.255 µg/mL and 0.849 µg/mL, respectively. The present study demonstrated the EB vehiculated in poloxamer gel is promising as a new insect repellent formulation, since it could be quantified and quality control evaluated

Multifunctional photoprotection: corrective makeup for cutaneous dyschromias

The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate a corrective and photoprotective makeup for patients with dyschromias. An emulsion was prepared and pigment mixtures were incorporated in the formulation, producing five shades of corrective makeup: BEIGE (I, II, III), BRONZE and TAN. The sun protection factor (SPF) and UVA/UVB ratio of the corrective makeup were determined using spectrophotometry with a Labsphere® analyser. The spreadability, occlusivity, stability, and photostability of the photoprotective formulations were also evaluated. For all formulations there was no statistical difference among them (p > 0.05) in terms of spreadability, occlusivity and SPF. They were considered to be photostable under solar radiation, with variations in SPF value and UVA/UVB ratio lower than 20%. The corrective makeup presented average-to-high UVB photoprotection and broad spectrum photoprotection. After 90 days, pH, density and SPF values showed no significant differences among formulations (p>0.05). All corrective makeup presented separation of the pigments, however, they returned to a homogeneous aspect and to the original color shade after shaking. The corrective makeup presented a fine texture, little brightness, and a homogeneous, dry-to-the-touch aspect. This work may benefit patients with dyschromias, improving their quality of life, besides promoting photoprotection and covering the skin blemishes

Development and characterization of photoprotective formulations containing keratin particles

This work deals with development and evaluation of MFQ protective formulation, which contains two organic filters, namely: octyl-p-methoxycinnamate (OMC) and benzophenone-3 (BP-3); a photostabilizing agent called ethylhexylmethoxycrylene (EHMCR) and keratin particles. The MFQ formulation was evaluated in order to measure its pH, spin-spin lattice relaxation time (T2H), occlusivity factor, formulation efficacy, photostability and skin permeation, as well as keratin particle properties. Keratin particle size increased when incorporated to formulation, however, it did not affect pH. The MFQ formulation was found to be photostable and photoprotective, as evidenced by sunlight photostability test, sun protection factor (SPF), UVA/UVB ratio and critical wavelength. Interaction between keratin particles and active substances (OMC, BP-3 and EHMCR) was evidenced by T2H measurements. Evidences suggest that keratin reduces the permeation of both UV filters employed along this study, therefore, it can be stated that keratin has a promising potential for use in sunscreen formulations

The role of diffusion tensor imaging and tractography for deep brain stimulation planning in treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder

Introduction: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common, chronic and long-lasting mental disorder. The current first-line therapy for OCD is high doses of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) and cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy. For patients with refractory symptoms, studies demonstrated that they may respond well to Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), a technique that can modulate altered neuronal activity. Some stimulation sites are currently being used as targets to DBS and showed good response, but further analyses are necessary to improve the location of the electrodes since some patients demonstrated a poor outcome. Neuroimaging that assess white matter such as diffusion tensor image and tractography can evaluate the quality of the targets and assess the tracts that are affected by the electric field of the electrodes used in the surgery. Our hypothesis is that the patient outcome depends on the trajectory of the tracts that are affected by the electric field.Objectives: Our aim is to investigate which tracts connected with the stimulation sites contribute to clinical improvement effects and weather is possible to predict the outcomes based on connectivity.Methodology: We analyzed 4 patients (2 female) with treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder undergoing deep brain stimulation targeting the anterior limb of the internal capsule/ nucleus accumbens (ALIC). We will perform tractography analysis of the fibers using the volume of active tissue (VTA) as the region of interest. We will relate the alteration in OCD symptom severity on Yale-Brown obsessive-compulsive scale (Y-BOCS) between the condition before surgery and one-year follow-up with the tracts involved with the stimulation sites using DTI data such as fractal anisotropy and mean diffusivity.Partial Results: Half of the patients did show great improvement and the other two maintained a bad outcome. We found that active stimulation of the ALIC more lateral and posterior of the nucleus was associated with a better outcome. Currently, the description of the tracts involved in patients with better outcomes is performed. The tracts involved with this result will be determined by analysis of DTI and tractography.Discussion and Conclusion: For a future perspective, the results will be important to improve the stimulation sites in DBS surgery resulting in better outcomes

Effect of in-office bleaching gels with calcium or fluoride on color, roughness, and enamel microhardness

Commercial bleaching gels with remineralizing agents were developed to reduce the adverse effects of dental bleaching. The present study evaluated the effects on teeth of in-office bleaching gels containing 35-40% hydrogen peroxide (HP) with Calcium (Ca) or Fluoride (F). Bovine enamel/dentin blocks (4x4x2.5 mm) were randomly divided into the following groups (n=12): no treatment (control); 35% HP (Whiteness HP, FGM); 35% HP with Ca (Whiteness HP Blue, FGM); 40% HP with F (Opalescence Boost, Ultradent). The specimens were analyzed for color (?L*, ?a*, ?b*, and ?E), roughness (Ra), and Knoop microhardness (KHN). The color and KHN data were submitted to ANOVA and Tukey?s test, while Ra values were analyzed using mixed models for repeated measures and Tukey-Kramer?s test (?=0.05). The bleached groups did not exhibit statistical differences among them for color. For roughness, 35% HP provided a slight increase of Ra, which was statistically different from the control. For microhardness, 35% HP and 40% HP with F presented KHN values that were statistically lower from the control, while the 35% HP with Ca did not statistically differ from the control. The presence of Ca or F in bleaching gels did not interfere with bleaching efficacy. However, only the enamel exposed to the bleaching gel containing Ca obtained microhardness values similar to unbleached enamel

Lazer e bem-estar espiritual em universitários

O objetivo deste artigo foi analisar se as atividades de lazer podem contribuir para o desenvolvimento do bem-estar espiritual na perspectiva de estudantes universitários. Trata de uma pesquisa de caráter qualitativo, transversal, exploratória, do tipo estudo de caso. A pesquisa foi realizada na unidade acadêmica da Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais, cidade de Ibirité. Participaram 108 estudantes (29,8±10,4 anos), sendo 61,1% do sexo feminino e 38,9% masculino. Em relação ao estado civil, 71,3% são solteiros, 38,9% são casados, e 5,6% são divorciados. Foi adotado um questionário semiestruturado elaborado pelos autores, e o Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire, validado para o português. Como principais resultados obteve-se uma média de 4,4 de concordância de que o lazer pode contribuir para o desenvolvimento do bem-estar espiritual; em relação ao resultado do Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire, a média geral foi de 3,8. Considera-se que os diversos benefícios que podem ser alcançados pela interface entre lazer e bem-estar espiritual, potencializam as estratégias de coping, resiliência, assim como a melhoria do desempenho acadêmico.

Medusa, a multithread 4-body decay fitting and simulation software

We present a new C++14 compliant application to perform physics data analyses of generic 4-body decays in massively parallel platforms. Medusa is highly based on Hydra, a header-only library which hides most of the complexities of writing parallel code for different architectures. Medusa has been tested through the measurement of the CP-violating phase ϕsin b-hadron decays exploiting the data collected by the LHCb experiment. Medusa executes the optimization of the full model, running over 500000 events, until 330 times faster than a non-parallelized program. Medusa is freely available on GitHub under GPL v.3.0 license