Fibronectin in human gallbladder bile: cholesterol pronucleating and/or mucin "link" protein?

Some biliary proteins (pronucleators) seem to be essential factors for cholesterol crystal formation and crystal growth in bile. A recent study suggests that fibronectin is such a pronucleator in bile. Fibronectin also seems to closely interact with intestinal mucin. Since biliary mucin plays an important role in gallstone formation, such an interaction in bile may be of relevance in cholesterol gallstone formation. To more clearly elucidate the role of fibronectin in cholesterol gallstone disease, we measured the concentration of fibronectin in native bile of cholesterol gallstone patients and checked its influence on the cholesterol nucleation time of model bile. We further looked for a molecular interaction between biliary fibronectin and gallbladder mucin. We found that fibronectin is present in gallbladder bile of gallstone patients in low concentrations (2.6 +/- 1.2 micrograms/ml). Bile fibronectin did not interact with gallbladder mucin. Moreover, in a wide range of concentrations fibronectin had no influence on the nucleation time of model bile. We conclude that fibronectin does not seem to play a major role in cholesterol gallstone disease

A COMUNICAÇÃO E AS TECNOLOGIAS DE “REALIDADE AUMENTADA” E “GAMIFICAÇÃO”

Este ensaio pretende refletir sobre o campo da comunicação e relacioná-la às reflexões sobre a forma como as organizações planejam, criam e mensuram suas interações com seus públicos de interesse. No intuito de pensar o uso das tecnologias, McLuhan (1967) mostrou que os meios técnicos não são meras máquinas, neutros, ou ainda, avesso ao humano. Entendemos que é preciso dar espaço a uma compreensão ampliada do fenômeno da interação por meios digitais, uma compreensão na qual a recursividade entre as experiências off-line e as online seja vista como algo normal e a tecnologia que a sustenta seja também pensada desde o seu projeto inicial como existindo para um mundo não dissociado, onde realidade virtual e as relações face a faceestão integradas uma à outra.

Desempenho Social no Agronegócio Brasileiro: aplicando DEA no segmento de usinas de processamento de cana de açúcar

A importância das questões sócio-ambientais nas empresas advém da crescente demanda, por parte da sociedade, de informações a respeito dos impactos que as atividades empresariais exercem sobre os trabalhadores, a comunidade e o meio ambiente. Ou seja, a sociedade passa a cobrar das empresas uma consciência social corporativa, que representa o nível de compromisso com a busca de soluções para os problemas sócio-ambientais existentes. A partir daí as empresas começaram a ter que provar que o seu custo-benefício é positivo, porque agrega valor à economia e à sociedade, porque respeita os direitos humanos de seus colaboradores e, ainda, porque desenvolve todo o seu processo operacional sem agredir o meio ambiente. É neste contexto que se insere este trabalho, que tem por objetivo verificar, através da aplicação de Análise Envoltória de Dados (DEA), a relação entre capacidade de investimento e benefícios sócio-ambientais, de forma que quanto maiores forem os benefícios para uma menor capacidade de investimento, maior será a eficiência e, por conseguinte, o desempenho sócio-ambiental da empresa. Os resultados do estudo de dezenove usinas de processamento de cana de açúcar no Brasil mostram que a Agrovale (principal benchmark) é a melhor e a São José Estiva a de pior desempenho sócio-ambiental. Além disso, observou-se uma relação entre desempenho sócio-ambiental e tamanho (medido pela receita), onde as maiores empresas tinham desempenho melhores. Por fim, o investimento ambiental se mostrou como a variável que mais precisa de incrementos.------------------------------------------------------The importance of the social and environmental tags in companies come from the growing demand, by the society itself, of information concerning to the impacts that the business generate over the employees, the community and the environmental. It means that the society demands from the companies a corporate social consciousness, which is the commitment level with the search of solutions to the social and environmental dilemmas that exist. From this on the organizations began to have to prove that its cost-benefit is positive, because it adds value to the economy and to the society, because respects the employees´ human rights and, thus, because it developes all its operational process without damaging the environmental. Is in this context that this research is related, which has the main focus to verify, through the applying of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), the relation between investment capacity and social and environmental benefits, in a way that the higher are the benefits to a lower investment capacity, higher will be the efficiency and, consequently, the social and environmental performance. The study results of nineteen sugar cane processing industries in Brazil show that the Agrovale (top benchmark) is the best one and São José Estiva is the worst in terms of social and environmental performance. Besides, it was observed a relation between social and environmental performance and the size (measured by the income), where the bigger companies had best performances. To sum with, the environmental investment were showed as the key point which needs more increases.Desempenho Sócio-ambiental, Agronegócio, DEA, Social and Environmental Performance, Agribusiness, Agribusiness, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Análise do desempenho organizacional sob as perspectivas socioambiental e de imagem corporativa: um estudo apoiado em DEA sobre os seis maiores bancos no Brasil

Data envelopment analysis of information from the social balance sheets and about corporate images of these six banks was made for characteristics related to performance in two respects. First was the use of the social and environmental investment capacity and second was the achievement of corporate image gains from this investment. The relationship between this investment capacity and results was studied and compared to identify the efficiency and performance of each bank. Results show that the "Caixa Economica Federal" and the "Banco do Brasil" were the best at converting investment capacity into social and environmental benefits, while "Santander-Banespa" and "Bradesco" were best in terms of the capacity of usage of social and environmental investments to achieve image benefits. Consolidating these aspects over time in a multi-dimensional analysis, "Banco do Brasil" stands out.Este trabalho tem como objetivo, através da aplicação da análise envoltória de dados às informações dos balanços sociais e sobre imagem corporativa dos bancos que fazem parte da amostra, expor características do desempenho destes sob duas óticas: primeiramente, a da utilização da capacidade de investimento socioambiental e, depois, a da obtenção de ganhos de imagem corporativa a partir desse investimento. A lógica do estudo é observar a relação entre capacidade de investimento e benefícios socioambientais. De acordo com essa lógica, quanto maiores forem os benefícios para uma menor capacidade de investimento, maior será a eficiência e, por conseguinte, o desempenho socioambiental da empresa. Além disso, pretende-se verificar, a partir da hipótese de que investimentos socioambientais geram benefícios de imagem, qual a eficiência de conversão desses investimentos em ganhos de imagem corporativa para cada instituição analisada. Os resultados mostram que a CEF e o BB são os destaques positivos na conversão de capacidade de investimento em benefícios socioambientais, enquanto o Santander-Banespa e o Bradesco são os melhores em capacidade de utilização de investimentos socioambientais na obtenção de benefícios de imagem. Na consolidação dos modelos, ao longo do período, em uma análise multidimensional, destaca-se o BB

Left ventricular non-compaction: clinical features and cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging

Background: It is apparent that despite lack of family history, patients with the morphological characteristics of left ventricular non-compaction develop arrhythmias, thrombo-embolism and left ventricular dysfunction. METHODS: Forty two patients, aged 48.7 +/- 2.3 yrs (mean +/- SEM) underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) for the quantification of left ventricular volumes and extent of non-compacted (NC) myocardium. The latter was quantified using planimetry on the two-chamber long axis LV view (NC area). The patients included those referred specifically for CMR to investigate suspected cardiomyopathy, and as such is represents a selected group of patients. RESULTS: At presentation, 50% had dyspnoea, 19% chest pain, 14% palpitations and 5% stroke. Pulmonary embolism had occurred in 7% and brachial artery embolism in 2%. The ECG was abnormal in 81% and atrial fibrillation occurred in 29%. Transthoracic echocardiograms showed features of NC in only 10%. On CMR, patients who presented with dyspnoea had greater left ventricular volumes (both p < 0.0001) and a lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (p < 0.0001) than age-matched, healthy controls. In patients without dyspnoea (n = 21), NC area correlated positively with end-diastolic volume (r = 0.52, p = 0.0184) and end-systolic volume (r = 0.56, p = 0.0095), and negatively with EF (r = -0.72, p = 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Left ventricular non-compaction is associated with dysrrhythmias, thromboembolic events, chest pain and LV dysfunction. The inverse correlation between NC area and EF suggests that NC contributes to left ventricular dysfunction

Growth of native trees in Pinus taeda L. plantations with different basal area in Misiones

Native tree regeneration in forest plantations contributes to local biodiversity conservation. In this study we analyzed the response of native trees growth rates to stand basal area and the differences among species with different wood density in 10 Pinus taeda stands. Light wooded species exhibited a greater diametric growth rate than heavy wooded or intermediate. The diametric growth rate of the light wooded species responded negatively to stand basal area while no relationship was observed for heavy wooded or intermediate. The observed differences among species highlight that the management of pine plantations should be different depending on the species response to stand variables.Laboratorio de Investigación de Sistemas Ecológicos y AmbientalesInstituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuari

Innovative alternative technologies to extract carotenoids from microalgae and seaweeds

Marine microalgae and seaweeds (microalgae) represent a sustainable source of various bioactive natural carotenoids, including β-carotene, lutein, astaxanthin, zeaxanthin, violaxanthin and fucoxanthin. Recently, the large-scale production of carotenoids from algal sources has gained significant interest with respect to commercial and industrial applications for health, nutrition, and cosmetic applications. Although conventional processing technologies, based on solvent extraction, offer a simple approach to isolating carotenoids, they suffer several, inherent limitations, including low efficiency (extraction yield), selectivity (purity), high solvent consumption, and long treatment times, which have led to advancements in the search for innovative extraction technologies. This comprehensive review summarizes the recent trends in the extraction of carotenoids from microalgae and seaweeds through the assistance of different innovative techniques, such as pulsed electric fields, liquid pressurization, supercritical fluids, subcritical fluids, microwaves, ultrasounds, and high-pressure homogenization. In particular, the review critically analyzes technologies, characteristics, advantages, and shortcomings of the different innovative processes, highlighting the differences in terms of yield, selectivity, and economic and environmental sustainability

Stress corrosion crack initiation testing with tapered specimens in high-temperature water – results of a collaborative research project

The applicability of an accelerated test technique using tapered tensile specimens for investigating thestress corrosion crack (SCC) initiation behaviour of structural materials in high-temperature water wasassessed in the framework of a European collaborative research project (MICRIN – MItigation of CRackINitiation). The main advantage of using a tapered geometry is, that in a single test a stress gradient isobtained through the gauge length, and therefore a stress threshold for SCC initiation can bedetermined in a reasonable timeframe. This method was used to investigate two different materialsthat were known to be susceptible to SCC in light water reactor environment: a high-Si stainlesssteel and a Ni-base weld metal (Alloy 182). The results of the international test programmeconfirmed that the tapered specimen test methodology could be used to identify a SCC initiation stress threshold, albeit that significant scatter was present in the data

Efecto del raleo sobre el crecimiento diamétrico en plantaciones de <i>Araucaria angustifolia</i> de más de 50 años en el NE de Misiones

Araucaria angustifolia es el árbol nativo más plantado de Argentina y se puede manejar en largos ciclos de corta. Los raleos aplicados a lo largo del ciclo permiten la producción de bienes y estimulan el crecimiento de los árboles remanentes. Se realizó un muestreo para determinar si los árboles mayores de 50 años y mayores de 30 cm de DAP aumentan el crecimiento diamétrico como respuesta al raleo. El incremento diamétrico medido en parcelas permanentes indicó que los árboles crecieron más rápidamente en rodales raleados que en los que no se trataron. Este resultado se observó en los rodales entre los 57-63 años de edad y en árboles entre 30-70 cm de DAP.Laboratorio de Investigación de Sistemas Ecológicos y Ambientale

Establishment mechanisms of native trees in plantations of Pinus taeda L. in north of Misiones, Ergentina

La regeneración de árboles nativos en plantaciones forestales incrementa su diversidad biológica y disminuye sus efectos ambientales negativos. En Misiones las plantaciones de Pinus L. ocupan una importante superficie en una ecoregión de alto valor de conservación. En este trabajo se estudió el establecimiento por germinación de individuos arbóreos nativos en cinco rodales con diferente proporción de bosque nativo en el entorno, uso previo, edad y área basal. Además, se determinó el porcentaje de individuos establecidos por germinación o por rebrote en las especies más frecuentes. Se analizó si las diferencias de composición entre rodales estuvieron relacionadas con las diferencias en las características descritas. Las diferencias de proporción de bosque nativo en el entorno y el área basal se relacionaron con diferencias de composición de los rodales pero no se hallaron relaciones con la edad o el uso previo. Las plantaciones con más bosque nativo en el entorno presentaron mayor abundancia de especies propias de etapas maduras del Bosque Atlántico en tanto que, el establecimiento de especies pioneras ocurrió en rodales con reducida área basal por aplicación de raleos recientes. Se hallaron grupos diferenciados de especies con predominancia de establecimiento por germinación o una participación similar de germinación y rebrote.The regeneration of native trees in forest plantations increases its biological diversity and can reduce its negative environmental effects. In the Province of Misiones, Pinus L. plantations cover a large area in an ecoregion of high conservation value. The present study was carried out to describe the establishment from seeds of native trees in five stands with different cover percentage of native forest in the surroundings, land use history, age and basal area. In addition, the percentage of individuals produced from seeds or sprouts was determined for common regenerating species. The association of compositional differences between stands and their differences in the described features was analyzed. Differences in the cover percentage of native forest and basal area were associated with compositional differences but not relations were found with age or land use history. Stands with higher cover percentage of native forest in the surroundings exhibited higher abundance of tree species characteristic of mature stages of the Atlantic Forest while the establishment of pioneers was mainly observed in stands with low basal area and recently thinned. Well differenced species groups were identified in sprouts percentages since some species were only found as established from seeds while others exhibited similar proportions or higher frequency of sprouts.Laboratorio de Investigación de Sistemas Ecológicos y Ambientale