Effect of the planting position of slips in the pineapple cv 'Pérola' cultivation

Foram testadas duas posições de plantio: muda na posição convencional, e muda inclinada (± 45°). Empregou-se o delineamento estatístico inteiramente casualizado. A análise estatística demonstrou significância ao nível de 1% em favor do tratamento com plantio de muda na posição convencional (vertical) para as seguintes variáveis: peso, tamanho, e diâmetro do fruto; altura das plantas, e número de filhotes. As respectivas médias foram de: 1.172,3 g, 10,6 cm, 15,7 cm; 86,0 cm e 5,9. A análise de variância não demonstrou significância estatística para tamanho e peso da coroa, acidez total, sólidos solúveis totais e número de folhas.The effect of two pineapple (Ananas comosus (L) Merr.) Cv. 'Pérola' planting systems were studied as following: slips in the vertical planting position and slips in the inclined planting position. There were statistical difference at the level of 1% to weight, diameter and length of the fruit, number of the slips and plant height from the vertical system. No statistical difference was found to crown, crown weight, total fruit acidity, total soluble solids and number of leaves

Influência do tamanho e peso das mudas de abacaxi, Ananas comosus (L.) MERR. No desenvolvimento da planta e qualidade do fruto

The purpose of this work was to study the influence of the size and weight of the pineapple slips on its development and fruit quality. Four treatments were tested: A) Slips with 50-55 cm length and 185-200g weight; B) slips with 40-45 cm length and 135-150 g weight; C) slips with 30-35 cm length and 85-100 g weight; D) slips with 20-25cm length and 55-70g weight. The best results were obtained from slips with 50-55cm length and 185-200g weight with a high statistical significance to the following characteristics: plant highness, leaf number, crown weight, slips number and crown size. Slips with 20-25 cm length and 55-70 g weight (D), slips with 50-55cm length and 185-200g weight (A), and slips with 40-45 cm length and 135-150 g weight (B) were in the first group according to crown weight and crown size. About fruit quality there was a high significant difference. The best results in diameter, size, weight and pith diameter were obtained from the slips having 50-55 cm length and 185-200g weight (A). There was no significant difference to juice percentage, total acidity and total solids solubles. Plants from slips with 50-55 cm length and 185-200g weight showed early production in a 534-day cycle from the planting time to flowering.O trabalho apresenta resultados relativos ao estudo da influência do tamanho e peso da muda tipo filhote no desenvolvimento da planta e qualidades do fruto do abacaxi cultivar Pérola, em experimento realizado na baixada fluminense. Ficou evidenciado que plantas oriundas de mudas com 50-55cm de comprimento e peso de 185-200g (tratamento A) e com 40-45cm de comprimento e peso de 135-150g (tratamento B) apresentaram maior desenvolvimento com médias de 93,4cm e 80,9cm de altura, respectivamente. O mesmo efeito foi constatado para a altura dos escapos, com os mesmos tratamentos A e B em primeiro lugar, com as alturas médias do escapo, respectivamente, de 40,36cm e 37,96cm. O estudo do diâmetro do escapo apresentou resultados idénticos, para os mesmos tratamentos, com as médias respectivas de 2,16cm e 1,87cm. Para o número médio de filhotes produzidos o tratamento A colocou-se em primeiro plano, com a média de 6,34 filhotes por planta. Quanto ao peso da coroa, as plantas oriundas dos tratamentos D (mudas com 20-25cm de comprimento e 55-70g) e dos tratamentos A e B, já identificados, produziram coroas mais pesadas, com as médias, respectivamente, de 89,0g, 77,36g e 76,92g, sem diferença estatística entre eles. No que concerne ao tratamento da coroa, constatou-se que as mudas dos tratamentos D, A e B produziram plantas com coroas maiores, com médias respectivas de 21,7cm, 20,0cm e 18,8cm, sem existir diferença estatística entre si. Foi constatado que frutos oriundos dos tratamentos A e B são maiores, com média de 19,60cm e 15,44cm de comprimento; 11,5 cm e 10,8 cm de diâmetro a 1.372g e 956g de peso, respectivamente. O diâmetro da medula foi maior para frutos do tratamento A, com 2,38cm, em média. A porcentagem de suco, a acidez total e os sólidos solúveis totais não mostraram diferenças significativas entre os tratamentos. No estudo do período do plantio à floração foi observado que plantas oriundas de mudas com maior tamanho e peso são mais precoces, florescendo em 534 dias, enquanto as oriundas de mudas com menor tamanho e peso levaram mais tempo, em média 557 dias

Cutaneous manifestations of thrombophilia

O escopo deste artigo é revisar os estados de hipercoagulabilidade sangüínea (trombofilias) mais provavelmente encontrados por dermatologista. Seus sinais cutâneos incluem o livedo reticular, necrose cutânea, ulcerações e isquemia digital, púrpura retiforme, além de úlceras nas pernas. Revisamos seu tratamento adequado, bem como ressaltamos as manifestações cutâneas que impõem pesquisa laboratorial de trombofilias e os exames indicados nessas situações.The aim of this article is to review the hypercoagulable states (thrombophilia) most probably found by dermatologists; their cutaneous signs including livedo racemosa, skin necrosis, digital ischemia and ulcerations, retiform purpura and leg ulcers; their appropriate treatment; to describe the skin manifestations that require laboratory tests for thrombophilias and the tests indicated in these clinical conditions

A novel leptospiral protein increases ICAM-1 and E-selectin expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

It has been reported previously that activation of vascular endothelium by outer membrane proteins of the spirochetes Borrelia sp. and Treponema sp. resulted in enhanced expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules. To investigate the role of leptospiral proteins in this process, a predicted lipoprotein encoded by the gene LIC10365 was selected, which belongs to a paralogous family that presents a domain of unknown function, DUF1565. The LIC10365 gene was cloned and the protein expressed in Escherichia coli C43 (DE3) strain using the vector pAE. The recombinant protein tagged with N-terminal hexahistidine was purified by metal-charged chromatography and was used to assess its ability to activate cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. The rLIC10365 activated endothelium in such a manner that E-selectin and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) became upregulated in a dose-dependent fashion. The LIC10365-encoded protein was identified in vivo in the renal tubules of animal during experimental infection with Leptospira interrogans. Collectively, these results implicate the LIC10365-coding protein of L. interrogans as a potential effector molecule in the promotion of a host inflammatory response. This is the first report of a leptospiral protein capable of up-regulating the expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and E-selectin.Instituto de Biotecnologia y Biologia Molecula

A novel leptospiral protein increases ICAM-1 and E-selectin expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

It has been reported previously that activation of vascular endothelium by outer membrane proteins of the spirochetes Borrelia sp. and Treponema sp. resulted in enhanced expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules. To investigate the role of leptospiral proteins in this process, a predicted lipoprotein encoded by the gene LIC10365 was selected, which belongs to a paralogous family that presents a domain of unknown function, DUF1565. The LIC10365 gene was cloned and the protein expressed in Escherichia coli C43 (DE3) strain using the vector pAE. The recombinant protein tagged with N-terminal hexahistidine was purified by metal-charged chromatography and was used to assess its ability to activate cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. The rLIC10365 activated endothelium in such a manner that E-selectin and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) became upregulated in a dose-dependent fashion. The LIC10365-encoded protein was identified in vivo in the renal tubules of animal during experimental infection with Leptospira interrogans. Collectively, these results implicate the LIC10365-coding protein of L. interrogans as a potential effector molecule in the promotion of a host inflammatory response. This is the first report of a leptospiral protein capable of up-regulating the expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and E-selectin.Instituto de Biotecnologia y Biologia Molecula

Evaluation of the Expression and Protective Potential of Leptospiral Sphingomyelinases

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease of global distribution, which affects both animals and humans. Pathogenic leptospires, the bacteria that cause this disease, require iron for their growth, and these spirochetes probably use their hemolysins, such as the sphingomyelinases, as a way to obtain this important nutrient from host red blood cells during infection. We expressed and purified the leptospiral sphingomyelinases Sph1, Sph2, Sph4, and SphH in a heterologous system. However, the recombinant proteins were not able to lyse sheep erythrocytes, despite having regular secondary structures. Transcripts for all sphingomyelinases tested were detected by RT-PCR analyses, but only Sph2 and SphH native proteins could be detected in Western blot assays using Leptospira whole extracts as well as in renal tubules of infected hamsters. Moreover, antibodies present in the serum of a human patient with laboratory-confirmed leptospirosis recognized Sph2, indicating that this sphingomyelinase is expressed and exposed to the immune system during infection in humans. However, in an animal challenge model, none of the sphingomyelinases tested conferred protection against leptospirosis.Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecula

DXA, bioelectrical impedance, ultrasonography and biometry for the estimation of fat and lean mass in cats during weight loss

Background: Few equations have been developed in veterinary medicine compared to human medicine to predict body composition. The present study was done to evaluate the influence of weight loss on biometry (BIO), bioimpedance analysis (BIA) and ultrasonography (US) in cats, proposing equations to estimate fat (FM) and lean (LM) body mass, as compared to dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) as the referenced method. For this were used 16 gonadectomized obese cats (8 males and 8 females) in a weight loss program. DXA, BIO, BIA and US were performed in the obese state (T0; obese animals), after 10% of weight loss (T1) and after 20% of weight loss (T2). Stepwise regression was used to analyze the relationship between the dependent variables (FM, LM) determined by DXA and the independent variables obtained by BIO, BIA and US. The better models chosen were evaluated by a simple regression analysis and means predicted vs. determined by DXA were compared to verify the accuracy of the equations. Results: The independent variables determined by BIO, BIA and US that best correlated (p < 0.005) with the dependent variables (FM and LM) were BW (body weight), TC (thoracic circumference), PC (pelvic circumference), R (resistance) and SFLT (subcutaneous fat layer thickness). Using Mallows'Cp statistics, p value and r(2), 19 equations were selected (12 for FM, 7 for LM); however, only 7 equations accurately predicted FM and one LM of cats. Conclusions: The equations with two variables are better to use because they are effective and will be an alternative method to estimate body composition in the clinical routine. For estimated lean mass the equations using body weight associated with biometrics measures can be proposed. For estimated fat mass the equations using body weight associated with bioimpedance analysis can be proposed.Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP), Sao PauloBrazilFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP), Sao Paulo-Brazil [04/15416-9]Mogiana Alimentos S.A. (Guabi), Campinas, BrazilMogiana Alimentos S.A. (Guabi), Campinas, Brazi

A novel leptospiral protein increases ICAM-1 and E-selectin expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

It has been reported previously that activation of vascular endothelium by outer membrane proteins of the spirochetes Borrelia sp. and Treponema sp. resulted in enhanced expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules. To investigate the role of leptospiral proteins in this process, a predicted lipoprotein encoded by the gene LIC10365 was selected, which belongs to a paralogous family that presents a domain of unknown function, DUF1565. The LIC10365 gene was cloned and the protein expressed in Escherichia coli C43 (DE3) strain using the vector pAE. The recombinant protein tagged with N-terminal hexahistidine was purified by metal-charged chromatography and was used to assess its ability to activate cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. The rLIC10365 activated endothelium in such a manner that E-selectin and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) became upregulated in a dose-dependent fashion. The LIC10365-encoded protein was identified in vivo in the renal tubules of animal during experimental infection with Leptospira interrogans. Collectively, these results implicate the LIC10365-coding protein of L. interrogans as a potential effector molecule in the promotion of a host inflammatory response. This is the first report of a leptospiral protein capable of up-regulating the expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and E-selectin.Instituto de Biotecnologia y Biologia Molecula