Salmonella Enteritidis in Poultry: Retrospective in Brazil

In Brazil, Salmonella enteritidis (SE) emerged as a serious problem in poultry and public health as from 1993. Epidemiological studies, including fagotyping and complementary rRNA probe, suggest that SE entered Brazil via the importation of contaminated poultry genetic material, probably at the end of the eighties. The rate of growth of the Brazilian poultry industry in the nineties created favorable conditions for the maintenance and proliferation of SE in poultry production. Also, the indiscriminate use of antibiotics in chickens, especially quinolones, encouraged the maintenance of SE positive flocks. SE strains isolated from chickens have shown great sensitivity to the antibiotics commonly used in poultry, including the quinolones. However, an increase in antimicrobial resistance and multiresistance has been observed in strains of human origin. The latest surveys carried out in 2001 continue showing the presence of SE in poultry materials as the main serovar responsible for human food infections. Although chicken carcasses show high levels of contamination by SE, it is eggs and egg products - mainly home made mayonnaise - which are the products mostly responsible for outbreaks in humans. The use of specific vaccines in layers and parent stock has been used as an auxiliary tool in the control of SE. However, the most indicated procedure for the control of SE in poultry is the acquisition and production of SE free flocks. Animal feed and raw materials of animal origin are apparently of lesser importance in the perpetuation of the SE problem, although rodents appear to be important environmental reservoirs of SE in contaminated farms.Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) emergiu como um grande problema avícola e de saúde pública no Brasil a partir de 1993. Os estudos epidemiológicos, incluindo a fagotipagem e sonda complementar de rRNA, sugerem a entrada de SE no Brasil via importação de material genético avícola contaminado, provavelmente no final da década de 80. As taxas de crescimento da avicultura brasileira na década de 90 criaram condições favoráveis para a manutenção e proliferação da SE nos plantéis avícolas. Além disso, o uso indiscriminado de antibióticos em aves, particularmente as quinolonas, encorajou a manutenção de lotes positivos para SE. As cepas de SE isoladas de aves têm mostrado alta sensibilidade aos antibióticos de uso comum em avicultura, incluindo as quinolonas. Entretanto, o aumento da resistência antimicrobiana e multirresistência tem sido observado em cepas de origem humana. Os últimos levantamentos realizados no ano de 2001 continuam a mostrar que a SE em materiais avícolas é o principal sorovar responsável pelas infecções humanas. Embora as carcaças de frangos apresentem altas taxas de contaminação por SE, são os ovos e seus derivados - principalmente a maionese caseira - os principais responsáveis pelos surtos humanos. O uso de vacinas específicas em poedeiras e reprodutoras tem se mostrado uma ferramenta auxiliar no controle de SE. O procedimento mais indicado para o controle de SE na avicultura está na aquisição e produção de lotes livres do agente. As rações e matérias primas de origem animal parecem não ser tão importantes na perpetuação do problema de SE, porém, os roedores parecem ser reservatórios ambientais importantes de SE em granjas contaminadas.8510

Delivering maternal and childcare at primary healthcare level: The role of PMAQ as a pay for performance strategy in Brazil

BACKGROUND: Improving access and quality in health care is a pressing issue worldwide and pay for performance (P4P) strategies have emerged as an alternative to enhance structure, process and outcomes in health. In 2011, Brazil adopted its first P4P scheme at national level, the National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ). The contribution of PMAQ in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals related to maternal and childcare remains under investigated in Brazil. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the association of PMAQ with the provision of maternal and childcare in Brazil, controlling for socioeconomic, geographic and family health team characteristics. METHOD: We used cross-sectional quantile regression (QR) models for two periods, corresponding to 33,368 Family Health Teams (FHTs) in the first cycle and 39,211 FHTs in the second cycle of PMAQ. FHTs were analysed using data from the Brazilian Ministry of Health (SIAB and CNES) and the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE). RESULTS: The average number of antenatal consultations per month were positively associated with PMAQ participating teams, with larger effect in the lower tail (10th and 25th quantiles) of the conditional distribution of the response variable. There was a positive association between PMAQ and the average number of consultations under 2 years old per month in the 10th and 25th quantiles, but a negative association in the upper tail (75th and 90th quantiles). For the average number of physician consultations for children under 1 year old per month, PMAQ participating teams were positively associated with the response variable in the lower tail, but different from the previous models, there is no clear evidence that the second cycle gives larger coefficients compared with first cycle. CONCLUSION: PMAQ has contributed to increase the provision of care to pregnant women and children under 2 years at primary healthcare level. Teams with lower average number of antenatal or child consultations benefited the most by participating in PMAQ, which suggests that PMAQ might motivate worse performing health providers to catch up

Local labor market effects of public employment

This paper quantifies the impact of public employment on local labor markets in the long-run. We adopt two quantitative approaches and apply them to the case of Spanish cities. In the first, we develop a 3-sector (public, tradable and non-tradable) search and matching model embedded within a spatial equilibrium model. We characterize the steady state of the model, which we calibrate to match the labor market characteristics of the average Spanish city. The model is then used to simulate the local labor market effects of expanding public sector employment. In the second empirical approach, we use regression analysis to estimate the effects of public sector job expansions on decadal changes (1980-1990 and 1990-2001) in the employment and population of Spanish cities. This analysis exploits the dramatic expansion of public employment that followed the advent of democracy in the period 1980 to 2001. The instrumental variables' approach thatwe adopt uses the capital status of cities to instrument for changes in public sector employment. The two empirical approaches yield qualitatively similar results and, thus, cross-check each other. One additional public sector job creates about 1.3 jobs in the private sector. However, these new jobs do not translate into a substantial reduction in the local unemployment rate as better labor market conditions attract new workers to the city. Increasing public employment by 50% only reduces unemployment from 0.156 to 0.150

Probabilistic analysis of degradation of façade claddings using Markov chain models

In this study, the time-dependent stochastic degradation of three types of claddings is analysed. For this purpose, 203 fac¸ades with stone claddings(directly adhered to the substrate), 195 with adhered ceramic claddings and 220 with painted surfaces were analysed. All the fac¸ades are located in Lisbon, Portugal. Their degradation condition was assessed through an extensive field work. Based on the data gathered, Markov chains are used to predict the degradation of claddings and to understand, in some detail, how the characteristics of the claddings contribute to the overall degradation. The results show that the distance from the sea and exposure to damp are significant to the degradation of all types of cladding. The type and size of stone plates also influence the degradation of stone claddings. The exposure to wind-rain action has a high impact on the degradation of ceramic claddings. The models proposed provide useful information on the probability of failure of the claddings; these results are fundamental in the context of insurance policies and in the definition of building maintenance plans

Tissue Localization and Extracellular Matrix Degradation by PI, PII and PIII Snake Venom Metalloproteinases: Clues on the Mechanisms of Venom-Induced Hemorrhage

20 páginas, 4 figuras, 3 tablas y 7 tablas en material suplementario.Snake venom hemorrhagic metalloproteinases (SVMPs) of the PI, PII and PIII classes were compared in terms of tissue localization and their ability to hydrolyze basement membrane components in vivo, as well as by a proteomics analysis of exudates collected in tissue injected with these enzymes. Immunohistochemical analyses of co-localization of these SVMPs with type IV collagen revealed that PII and PIII enzymes co-localized with type IV collagen in capillaries, arterioles and post-capillary venules to a higher extent than PI SVMP, which showed a more widespread distribution in the tissue. The patterns of hydrolysis by these three SVMPs of laminin, type VI collagen and nidogen in vivo greatly differ, whereas the three enzymes showed a similar pattern of degradation of type IV collagen, supporting the concept that hydrolysis of this component is critical for the destabilization of microvessel structure leading to hemorrhage. Proteomic analysis of wound exudate revealed similarities and differences between the action of the three SVMPs. Higher extent of proteolysis was observed for the PI enzyme regarding several extracellular matrix components and fibrinogen, whereas exudates from mice injected with PII and PIII SVMPs had higher amounts of some intracellular proteins. Our results provide novel clues for understanding the mechanisms by which SVMPs induce damage to the microvasculature and generate hemorrhage.This work was performed in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the PhD degree for Cristina Herrera at Universidad de Costa Rica.Peer reviewe

The influences of moisture content variation, number and width of gaps on the withdrawal resistance of self tapping screws inserted in cross laminated timber

A large experimental campaign comprised of 470 withdrawal tests was carried out, aiming to quantify the withdrawal resistance of self-tapping screws (STS) inserted in the side face of cross laminated timber (CLT) elements. In order to deeply understand the “CLT-STS” composite model, the experimental tests considered two main parameters: (i) simple and cyclic changes on moisture content (MC) and (ii) number and width of gaps. Regarding (i), three individual groups of test specimens were stabilized with 8%, 12% and 18% of moisture content and one group was submitted to a six month RH cycle (between 30% and 90% RH). Concerning (ii), different test configurations with 0 (REF), 1, 2 and 3 gaps, and widths equal to 0mm (GAP0) or 4mm (GAP4), were tested. The influences of MC and number of gaps were modeled by means of least square method. Moreover, a revision of a prediction model developed by Uibel and Blaß (2007) was proposed. The main findings of the experimental campaign were: the decrease of withdrawal resistance for specimens tested with MC=18% in most configurations; the unexpected increase of withdrawal resistance as the number of gaps with 0mm increased; and, the surprising increase of withdrawal resistance for REF specimens submitted to the RH cycle.The development of the present work was possible only thanks to the financial support of the 391 Portuguese Science Foundation (Fundação de Ciência e Tecnologia, FCT), through PhD grant SFRH / BD17392 / 79972 / 2011. Further, the valuable partnerships with the Institute of Timber Engineering and Wood393 Technology, at Graz University of Technology (Austria), and Rusticasa are gratefully acknowledged

Towards 100 % recycling of reclaimed asphalt in road surface courses: binder design methodology and case studies

Reclaimed Asphalt (RA) has shown great potential to be reused in new asphalt mixtures, however its incorporation in top asphalt pavement layers is still very limited (10-30%). In fact, despite the advantages that its use implies, RA content in road pavement surface courses is still restricted in most countries due to mainly legislation limitations, but also some technical issues. This paper aims at being a step further to improve the latter by providing a methodology that allows producing fundamental inputs for confidently performing mix design of asphalt mixtures incorporating up to 100% RA. The methodology consists in an advanced preliminary binder’s blend design that can be used with any type of RA and also in presence of rejuvenators. This procedure includes in the production of blending charts and laws that considers the uncertainties on accounting the extent of final binder content, Degree of Blending and Replaced Virgin Binder. The description of the methodology is accompanied with results of two extreme case studies consisting in the preliminary design of binders for asphalt mixtures with high content of two types of RA corresponding to extreme cases: the short-term aged RA (STA-RA), having a very soft residual binder (Pen> 20dmm) and the long-term aged RA, having a much harder residual binder (Pen <10dmm). As a result, the proposed methodology allowed assessing the feasibility of using up to 90% of RA and determining whether the use of rejuvenating agents was needed