Hábitos alimenticios de la rana bromélicola Phyllodytes edelmoi Peixoto, Caramaschi & Freire, 2003 (Anura: Hylidae) del Estado de Alagoas, Noreste de Brasil

El género de hílidos Phyllodytes está compuesto por 12 especies distribuidas en el este de Brasil y conocidas por habitar estrictamente bromeliáceas. En este estudio se exploran los hábitos alimenticios de P. edelmoi y se testea la selectividad de las presas por la especie comparando las presas encontradas en los estómagos con la disponibilidad de presas en las bromelias. Nuestros resultados muestran que P. edelmoi consume grandes cantidades de hormigas a lo largo del año, por lo que podría considerarse una especie "especializada en hormigas". Este comportamiento alimenticio especializado podría ser considerado una sinapomorfia para el género Phyllodytes.The hylid frog genus Phyllodytes comprised 12 species distributed in eastern Brazil and knownto strictly inhabit inside bromeliads. In this study, we explore the feeding habits of P. edelmoiand test the prey selectivity of the species by comparing the prey items in the stomachs contentswith the availability of preys in bromeliads. Our results show that P. edelmoi consumes highamounts of ants along the year, and therefore it could be considered an ?ant specialist? species.This specialist feeding behaviour could be considered a synapomorphy of the genus Phyllodytes.Fil: Araujo-Vieira, Katyuscia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia”; ArgentinaFil: Ubiratan G. Silva. Universidade Federal de Alagoas; BrasilFil: Jhonatan Guedes dos Santos. Universidade Federal de Alagoas; BrasilFil: Thame G. Ferreira. Departamento de Ecologia E Biomonitoramento; BrasilFil: Gabriel O. Skuk. Universidade Federal de Alagoas; Brasi

Plant litter dynamics in the forest-stream interface: Precipitation is a major control across tropical biomes

Riparian plant litter is a major energy source for forested streams across the world and its decomposition has repercussions on nutrient cycling, food webs and ecosystem functioning. However, we know little about plant litter dynamics in tropical streams, even though the tropics occupy 40% of the Earth's land surface. Here we investigated spatial and temporal (along a year cycle) patterns of litter inputs and storage in multiple streams of three tropical biomes in Brazil (Atlantic forest, Amazon forest and Cerrado savanna), predicting major differences among biomes in relation to temperature and precipitation regimes. Precipitation explained most of litter inputs and storage, which were generally higher in more humid biomes (litterfall: 384, 422 and 308 g m-2 y-1, storage: 55, 113 and 38 g m-2, on average in Atlantic forest, Amazon and Cerrado, respectively). Temporal dynamics varied across biomes in relation to precipitation and temperature, with uniform litter inputs but seasonal storage in Atlantic forest streams, seasonal inputs in Amazon and Cerrado streams, and aseasonal storage in Amazon streams. Our findings suggest that litter dynamics vary greatly within the tropics, but point to the major role of precipitation, which contrasts with the main influence of temperature in temperate areas. © 2017 The Author(s)

N-acetylcysteine Counteracts Adipose Tissue Macrophage Infiltration and Insulin Resistance Elicited by Advanced Glycated Albumin in Healthy Rats

Background: Advanced glycation endproducts elicit inflammation. However, their role in adipocyte macrophage infiltration and in the development of insulin resistance, especially in the absence of the deleterious biochemical pathways that coexist in diabetes mellitus, remains unknown. We investigated the effect of chronic administration of advanced glycated albumin (AGE-albumin) in healthy rats, associated or not with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) treatment, on insulin sensitivity, adipose tissue transcriptome and macrophage infiltration and polarization.Methods: Male Wistar rats were intraperitoneally injected with control (C) or AGE-albumin alone, or, together with NAC in the drinking water. Biochemical parameters, lipid peroxidation, gene expression and protein contents were, respectively, determined by enzymatic techniques, reactive thiobarbituric acid substances, RT-qPCR and immunohistochemistry or immunoblot. Carboxymethyllysine (CML) and pyrraline (PYR) were determined by LC/mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and ELISA.Results: CML and PYR were higher in AGE-albumin as compared to C. Food consumption, body weight, systolic blood pressure, plasma lipids, glucose, hepatic and renal function, adipose tissue relative weight and adipocyte number were similar among groups. In AGE-treated animals, insulin resistance, adipose macrophage infiltration and Col12a1 mRNA were increased with no changes in M1 and M2 phenotypes as compared to C-albumin-treated rats. Total GLUT4 content was reduced by AGE-albumin as compared to C-albumin. NAC improved insulin sensitivity, reduced urine TBARS, adipose macrophage number and Itgam and Mrc mRNA and increased Slc2a4 and Ppara. CD11b, CD206, Ager, Ddost, Cd36, Nfkb1, Il6, Tnf, Adipoq, Retn, Arg, and Il12 expressions were similar among groups.Conclusions: AGE-albumin sensitizes adipose tissue to inflammation due to macrophage infiltration and reduces GLUT4, contributing to insulin resistance in healthy rats. NAC antagonizes AGE-albumin and prevents insulin resistance. Therefore, it may be a useful tool in the prevention of AGE action on insulin resistance and long-term complications of DM