Evaluation of the quality of wood from naturally fallen trees in the central Amazon

The objective of this study was to assess the quality and potential of wood from naturally fallen trees in the forest for product development and to provide subsidies for the use of raw material. The inventory of fallen trees was carried out along the road from the Experimental Station of Tropical Silviculture of the National Institute for Research in the Amazon (EEST / INPA) - Nucleus ZF-2, at km 23 of the ZF-2 road that starts to the left of km 50 of Highway BR-174 (Manaus-Boa Vista).  Only trees that had fall characteristics due to natural factors, that is, that had exposed roots, were considered for the inventory. It was also stipulated as a requirement for measurement the diameter class of trees of 25 cm ≤ DBH ≤ 45 cm. From each naturally fallen tree, the diameters (largest and smallest) and their length were measured. 5cm thick discs were removed from the trees to obtain samples for scientific identification of the wood and determination of physical properties. Based on the inventory, it was identified that many of the trees naturally fallen in the forest are in good conditions of use, considering their woody material and their volume. The Alexa grandiflora species presented the highest volume with 2,788 m³ for a single tree, followed by the species Ormósia sp. with 2,287 m³ and Protium tenuifolium Engl with a volume of 1,269 m³. Regarding the health of the inventoried trees, all from the species Byrsonima crispaJuss. had no sign of degradation, followed by the species Croton lanjouwensis and Ingá sp. The most frequent class was medium density with 9 species with a variation of 0.47g/cm3 to 0.62g /cm3. Eperua schomburgkiana Benth was the most dense with 0.78g /cm3.The levels of degradation found and the intrinsic characteristics of the species did not compromise the possibilities of using this wooden product, and can represent an excellent opportunity for economic return, contributing to minimize the pressures exerted around the living forest

Estudo da adaptação antropométrica de mobiliário residencial em madeira maciça produzido na cidade de Manaus

[EN] This article presents a brief study about the anthropometric adaptation of solid wood furniture, manufactured and commercialized in the city of Manaus. It searches to verify if the measures used to the production of tables and chairs (without adjustments) are in conformity with the current standard norms and patterns. Therefore, it were made: bibliographic collection, where topics referred to the situation of the furniture sector in Amazonas were approached, ergonomics and anthropometric and human body measures, in an effort to deepen the findings about the studied theme, by means of the knowledge of the main limitations and potentials to the investment in the improvement of the quality of the solid wood furniture without adjustments. In this section, there were an organization of the researched data to the creation of two tables, based on the dimensions of human body segments of extreme users (woman percentile 5% and man percentile 95%), presented by Felisberto and Paschoarelli (2000), following as well the recommendations of various authors of ergonomics, between them: Quaresma (2011), Kroemer and Grandjan (2005), Dul and Weerdemester (2004) and Moraes and Pequini (2000), enabling its usage as a parameter to the sizing of tables and chairs; field research, where there was the collection of data through search form for annotation of the measures obtained in loco on the carpentry shops, to be afterwards compared to the dimensions of the suggested tables; calculations of descriptive statistic (total amplitude, standard deviation and coefficient of variation), since they allow to appreciate the total number of values found in a class and map the differentiation among those obtained and recommended, and inferential, with the intension of facilitate the appreciation on the validity of the collected data by means of the implementation of the t Test of Student. With the obtained result, it was observed that the furniture in question is not produced based on ergonomic recommendations and/or any type of related study, as the measures analyzed were not found in conformity with the recommendations of the tables generated and the others were merely ignored. This fact ends up turning the products less attractive, in face of the discomfort created, when utilized by long periods of time, especially if compared to industrialized furniture, taking into consideration that those ones present the same condition of sizing with less Market price.[PT] Este artigo apresenta um breve estudo sobre a adaptação antropométrica de mobiliário de madeira maciça, produzido e comercializado na cidade de Manaus. Neste, buscou-se verificar se as medidas aplicadas à produção de mesas e cadeiras (sem ajustes) estão em conformidade com as normas e padrões técnicos vigentes. Para tanto, realizou-se: levantamento bibliográfico, abordando a situação do setor moveleiro no Amazonas, ergonomia e antropometria, buscando aprofundar os conhecimentos acerca da temática estudada, conhecendo-se as principais limitações e potenciais para investimento na melhoria da qualidade do mobiliário de madeira maciça sem ajustes. Organizou-se os dados pesquisados para a geração de duas tabelas, com base nas dimensões dos seguimentos corpóreos humanos de usuários extremos (mulher percentil 5% e homem percentil 95%), apresentando recomendações de diversos autores de ergonomia, , viabilizando seu uso como parâmetro para o dimensionamento de mesas e cadeiras. Além de pesquisa de campo, para anotação das medidas e comparação posterior com as dimensões das tabelas propostas; e cálculos de estatística descritiva, e inferencial, com o propósito de facilitar a apreciação acerca da validade dos dados coletados por meio da aplicação do teste de t de Student. Como resultado, observou-se que o mobiliário em questão não é produzido com base em recomendações ergonômicas e/ou quaisquer tipo de estudo relacionado, uma vez que as medidas analisadas encontravam-se em conformidade com as referencias adequadas e outras eram simplesmente ignoradas. Tornando os produtos inadequados, face ao desconforto gerado, quando utilizados por longos períodos, principalmente se comparados com móveis industrializados, tendo em vista que estes apresentam as mesmas condições de dimensionamento com menor preço de mercado.Albuquerque De Alencar, L.; Mazarelo Maciel Pacheco, K.; Vieira Sousa, M. (2016). Estudo da adaptação antropométrica de mobiliário residencial em madeira maciça produzido na cidade de Manaus. En Systems&design:beyond processes and thinking. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 764-789. https://doi.org/10.4995/IFDP.2015.3000OCS76478

Eficácia de intervenções imunomoduladoras para o tratamento da Esclerose Lateral Amiotrófica (ELA)

A esclerose lateral amiotrófica (ELA) é uma doença neurodegenerativa que afeta as células nervosas responsáveis pelo controle dos músculos voluntários, resultando em fraqueza muscular e atrofia. Nesse contexto, as intervenções imunomoduladoras têm como objetivo modular a resposta imune do organismo, ao reduzir a inflamação e possibilitar a neuroproteção, a partir do uso de anticorpos monoclonais, inibidores de citocinas e moduladores do sistema imunológico. No entanto, a eficácia de tais intervenções no tratamento da ELA ainda é incerta. Nesse sentido, o presente estudo tem como objetivo analisar a eficácia de intervenções imunomoduladoras para o tratamento da esclerose lateral amiotrófica. Para isso, foram selecionados cinco artigos que abordavam sobre a sua eficácia, por meio de uma estratégia de busca com recorte temporal entre 2017 e 2023, nas bases de dados PubMed (Medline), Cochrane Library e Embase. As intervenções imunomoduladoras, como o uso de inibidores de citocinas, têm demonstrado eficácia no tratamento da esclerose lateral amiotrófica (ELA). Além disso, há evidências de que a inflamação crônica pode estar envolvida em sua patogênese, o que sugere que a modulação do sistema imunológico pode ser uma abordagem terapêutica promissora. Em estudos clínicos recentes, a terapia com inibidores de citocinas mostrou-se capaz de reduzir a progressão da doença e melhorar a qualidade de vida dos pacientes com ELA. Ademais, há evidências que o uso de células-tronco pode melhorar o status funcional em pacientes com a doença. Entretanto, são necessários mais estudos, como ensaios clínicos randomizados e revisões sistemáticas com meta-análises, a fim de ratificar a eficácia das estratégias imunomoduladoras para a patologia

Biological evaluation of magnetic nanofibrous scaffolds of PLA-PEG-iron oxide aiming the development of dermal substitute

The skin acts as a protection against biomechanical stimuli, maintains homeostasis and is responsible for thermoregulation. When injured, the body is able to close the wound, but if the injury is large, the healing is impaired, and the body is exposed to infections. Tissue Engineering aims to develop living structures that could restore damaged skin. In addition to this application, this area has been explored for the production of dermal substitutes used in toxicological and efficacy tests of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. The so-called triad of Tissue Engineering is composed of cells, scaffolds and stimuli, and the choice of the scaffold material has an important role because it influences the formation of the tissue. The objective of this work was to evaluate the cellular growth of skin cells in a matrix of fibrous polymeric blends, testing its biocompatibility and capacity of proliferation of fibroblasts to build a national skin substitute in vitro. The associated colorimetry and immunofluorescence assays showed that the cells remained intact, without any morphological alteration, grew in depth and were able to produce endogenous extracellular matrix. In addition, the results on cell viability showed that the material is not cytotoxic. Therefore, it could be concluded that the scaffolds used in this work could be considered promising for the development of a dermal replacement.CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível SuperiorCNPq - Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e TecnológicoFAPEMIG - Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas GeraisUFU - Universidade Federal de UberlândiaTrabalho de Conclusão de Curso (Graduação)A pele age como uma proteção a estímulos biomecânicos, mantém a homeostase e é responsável pela termorregulação. Quando lesionada, o organismo é capaz de fechar a ferida, porém caso a lesão seja grande, a cicatrização é prejudicada e o organismo é exposto a infecções. A Engenharia Tecidual pode ser usada para desenvolver estruturas vivas que poderiam restaurar a pele danificada. Além dessa aplicação, essa área vem sendo explorada para produção de substitutos dérmicos usados em testes toxicológicos e de eficácia de produtos farmacêuticos e cosméticos. A chamada tríade da Engenharia Tecidual é composta por células, arcabouços e estímulos, sendo a escolha do material do arcabouço importante, pois influencia na formação do tecido. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o crescimento de fibroblastos em uma matriz de blenda polimérica fibrosa, testando sua biocompatibilidade e capacidade proliferativa de fibroblastos para construção de um substituto de pele nacional in vitro. Os ensaios de colorimetria e de imunofluorêscencia associados mostraram que as células se mantiveram íntegras, sem nenhuma alteração morfológica, cresceram em profundidade e conseguiram produzir matriz extracelular endógena. Ademais, os resultados sobre a viabilidade celular mostraram que o material não foi citotóxico. Portanto, pôde-se concluir que os arcabouços utilizados neste trabalho se mostraram promissores para o desenvolvimento de substituto dérmico

Low to Moderate Alcohol Consumption and Myocardial Ischemia on Exercise Stress Echocardiography

<div><p>Abstract Background: The impact of alcohol consumption on the development of myocardial ischemia remains uncertain. Studies diverge whether low to moderate alcohol consumption provides cardioprotection or whether it is a risk factor for myocardial ischemia. Objective: To study the relationship between low to moderate alcohol consumption and myocardial ischemia on exercise stress echocardiography (ESE). Methods: Cross-sectional study with 6,632 patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease undergoing ESE between January/2000 and December/2015. The patients were divided into two groups: G1, composed of 2,130 (32.1%) patients whose report showed maximal consumption of 1 drink per day on average for women or of 2 drinks per day for men; G2, composed of individuals denying any alcohol consumption. For comparing between the groups, Student t test was used for quantitative variables, and chi-square test or Fisher exact test, for categorical variables. The significance level adopted was p < 0.05. Logistic regression was also used to evaluate independent risk factors for myocardial ischemia. Results: G1 had a higher number of men (77.1%; p < 0.001), lower mean age (54.8 ± 10.3 years old; p < 0.001) and higher frequency of myocardial ischemia on ESE (p = 0.014). Age, male sex, dyslipidemia, systemic arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking and family history were independently associated with myocardial ischemia on ESE. Independent association between low to moderate alcohol consumption and myocardial ischemia on ESE (OR 0.96; 95%CI: 0.83 to 1.11) was not observed. However, age, male sex, smoking and dyslipidemia were associated with alcohol consumption. Conclusion: Low to moderate alcohol consumption was not an independent predictor of myocardial ischemia on ESE. Nevertheless, we observed a predominance of the male sex, dyslipidemia and smoking habit, important predictors of myocardial ischemia, in the group of alcohol consumers.</p></div