An Acidic Thermostable Recombinant Aspergillus nidulans Endoglucanase Is Active towards Distinct Agriculture Residues

Aspergillus nidulans is poorly exploited as a source of enzymes for lignocellulosic residues degradation for biotechnological purposes. This work describes the A. nidulans Endoglucanase A heterologous expression in Pichia pastoris, the purification and biochemical characterization of the recombinant enzyme. Active recombinant endoglucanase A (rEG A) was efficiently secreted as a 35 kDa protein which was purified through a two-step chromatography procedure. The highest enzyme activity was detected at 50 ∘ C/pH 4. rEG A retained 100% of activity when incubated at 45 and 55 ∘ C for 72 h. Purified rEG A kinetic parameters towards CMC were determined as = 27.5 ± 4.33 mg/mL, max = 1.185 ± 0.11 mmol/min, and 55.8 IU (international units)/mg specific activity. Recombinant P. pastoris supernatant presented hydrolytic activity towards lignocellulosic residues such as banana stalk, sugarcane bagasse, soybean residues, and corn straw. These data indicate that rEG A is suitable for plant biomass conversion into products of commercial importance, such as second-generation fuel ethanol

A influência da distribuição espacial na qualidade do fuste de Euxylophora paraensis (Huber) em floresta de terra firme manejada na Amazônia Oriental / The influence of spatial distribution on the stem quality of Euxylophora paraensis (Huber) in a managed upland forest in the Eastern Amazon

A manutenção da diversidade tanto de espécies como de habitats, é fundamental para o sucesso de empreendimentos florestais na Amazônia. O objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar a influência da distribuição espacial na qualidade do fuste de Euxylhophora paraensis (Huber), em floresta de terra firme manejada na Amazônia Oriental. A área de estudo está localizada na Fazenda Rio Capim, pertencente a CKBV Florestal Ltda., no município de Paragominas estado Pará. Para a análise da influência da distribuição espacial na qualidade do fuste das árvores utilizou a geoestatística, a partir da modelagem de semivariograma e confecção de mapas de krigagem. De acordo com os dados observou-se que todas as avaliações tiveram melhor ajuste ao modelo esférico, que apresentou o maior coeficiente de determinação em relação aos outros modelos testados. A espécie florestal E. paraensis apresentou padrão de distribuição agregada, com alcance de 570 a 840 metros formando reboleiras de árvores na floresta estudada, indicando que maiores agregações favorecem maior qualidade do fuste esse delineamento ecológico deve ser avaliado nas tomadas de decisão sobre o manejo e sobrevivência da espécie

Vaginose bacteriana e repercussões durante a gestação: revisão integrativa

O desbalanço do microbioma vaginal, o aumento de bactérias anaeróbias, principalmente Gardnerella vaginalis e Mycoplasma hominis, podem levar a paciente a apresentar um quadro de vaginose bacteriana. Esse quadro em gestantes pode representar maior risco de desfechos indesejados, como parto prematuro e abortamento. Avaliar as repercussões das vaginoses bacterianas durante a gestação. Trata-se de uma revisão integrativa na base de dados PUBMED utilizando os descritores: “VAGINOSIS BACTERIAL AND PREGNANCY’’ para artigos publicados entre 2018 e 2024. A vaginose pode estar presente de 18,6% até 39,6% dos casos de corrimento vaginal. 50% das grávidas com vaginose podem estar assintomáticas durante a gestação. A vaginose está associada a até 4 vezes mais chances de parto prematuro. Bebês nascidos de mãe com vaginose precisam de cuidados mais especializados após o nascimento. A vaginose pode estar relacionada a sintomas como dispareunia, odor desagradável, prurido vulvar e impactar diretamente nos resultados gestacionais. É necessária ainda a realização de estudos mais robustos que abordem medidas que possar impactar diretamente na redução das influências gestacionais da vaginose bacteriana

Tannins, Peptic Ulcers and Related Mechanisms

This review of the current literature aims to study correlations between the chemical structure and gastric anti-ulcer activity of tannins. Tannins are used in medicine primarily because of their astringent properties. These properties are due to the fact that tannins react with the tissue proteins with which they come into contact. In gastric ulcers, this tannin-protein complex layer protects the stomach by promoting greater resistance to chemical and mechanical injury or irritation. Moreover, in several experimental models of gastric ulcer, tannins have been shown to present antioxidant activity, promote tissue repair, exhibit anti Helicobacter pylori effects, and they are involved in gastrointestinal tract anti-inflammatory processes. The presence of tannins explains the anti-ulcer effects of many natural products

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1,2,3,4,5,6 in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Photography-based taxonomy is inadequate, unnecessary, and potentially harmful for biological sciences

The question whether taxonomic descriptions naming new animal species without type specimen(s) deposited in collections should be accepted for publication by scientific journals and allowed by the Code has already been discussed in Zootaxa (Dubois & Nemésio 2007; Donegan 2008, 2009; Nemésio 2009a–b; Dubois 2009; Gentile & Snell 2009; Minelli 2009; Cianferoni & Bartolozzi 2016; Amorim et al. 2016). This question was again raised in a letter supported by 35 signatories published in the journal Nature (Pape et al. 2016) on 15 September 2016. On 25 September 2016, the following rebuttal (strictly limited to 300 words as per the editorial rules of Nature) was submitted to Nature, which on 18 October 2016 refused to publish it. As we think this problem is a very important one for zoological taxonomy, this text is published here exactly as submitted to Nature, followed by the list of the 493 taxonomists and collection-based researchers who signed it in the short time span from 20 September to 6 October 2016

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt