Defensive behaviors of Leptodactylus rhodomystax (Anura: Leptodactylidae) from northern Brazil

The study of defensive behaviors in anurans can lead to new hypotheses for a better understanding of prey-predator interactions. Herein, based on field observations, we described for the first time defensive behaviors of Leptodactylus rhodomystax. The studied individual displayed stretching limbs posture and evidenced hidden aposematism. Hidden aposematism was occasionally described to occur with stretching limbs posture. Our observations suggest that synergistic defense mechanisms in anurans may be more common than currently known.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

Diet of four lizards from an urban forest in an area of amazonian biome, eastern amazon

This study described the diet and niche overlap of four lizards from an urban fragment in Amapá state. The samplings were performed through pitfall traps and active visual search. In the stomach analysis, Formicidae and Coleoptera represented 50.79% of the total items. The highest niche overlap value was between Gonatodes humeralis and Tropidurus hispidus, which was not expected due to habitat use. The foraging strategies of all lizards observed have been previously mentioned by several authors. Several studies cite the diet of lizards being basically composed of invertebrates, with few variations, as also demonstrated in this study.Este estudio describió la dieta y la superposición de nicho de cuatro lagartos de un fragmento urbano en el estado de Amapá. Los muestreos se realizaron a través de trampas y búsqueda visual activa. En el análisis estomacal, Formicidae y Coleoptera representaron el 50.79% del total de ítems. El valor de superposición de nicho más alto fue entre Gonatodes humeralis y Tropidurus hispidus, que no se esperaba debido a la diferencia en el uso del hábitat. La estrategia de alimentación de todos los lagartos observados ha sido mencionada anteriormente por varios autores. Varios estudios indican que la dieta de los lagartos se compone básicamente de invertebrados, con pocas variaciones, como también se demostró en este estudio.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

Herpetofauna of an urban environmental protection area in an Amazon forest remnant of Amapá state, northern Brazil

The herpetofauna of Amazonia biome is one of the richest in the world. However, there is a lack of information on its richness and distribution. Here we provide a list of the herpetofauna from the Environmental Protection Area of Lagoa dos Índios, state of Amapá, Brazil, in the northern Amazon Forest. Sampling effort was conducted by active search in three distinct transects from January to May 2018 (rainy season) and August to December 2019 (drought season). We recorded 46 species composing the local herpetofauna, being 18 amphibians and 28 reptiles. Scinax ruber, Gonatodes humeralis and Helicops angulatus were the most abundant species. Regarding the conservation status, two species are categorized as Date Data deficient, (Lysapsus bolivianus and Eunectes deschauenseei), and one as Vulnerable (Podocnemis unifilis) in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Podocnemis unifilis is also considered Near Threatened in the Brazilian Red List of Endangered Species. Our results suggest that local biodiversity is still underestimated and, if expanded, could increase the species richness in the area. This study represents preliminary trends and raise further questions concerning the herpetofauna assemblage of Eastern Brazilian Amazonia.El bioma de la herpetofauna de la Amazonia es uno de los más ricos del mundo. Sin embargo, falta información sobre su riqueza y distribución. Aquí proporcionamos una lista de la herpetofauna del Área de Protección Ambiental de Lagoa dos Índios, estado de Amapá, Brasil, en el norte de la Selva Amazónica. El esfuerzo de muestreo se realizó mediante búsqueda activa en tres transectos distintos de enero a mayo de 2018 (temporada de lluvias) y de agosto a diciembre de 2019 (temporada de sequía). Registramos 46 especies que componen la herpetofauna local, siendo 18 anfibios y 28 reptiles. Scinax ruber, Gonatodes humeralis y Helicops angulatus fueron las especies más abundantes. En cuanto al estado de conservación, dos especies están categorizadas como Datos deficientes en fecha, (Lysapsus bolivianus y Eunectes deschauenseei), y una como Vulnerable (Podocnemis unifilis) en la Lista Roja de la Unión Internacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza. Podocnemis unifilis también se considera Casi Amenazada en la Lista Roja Brasileña de Especies Amenazadas. Nuestros resultados sugieren que la biodiversidad local todavía se subestima y, si se amplía, podría aumentar la riqueza de especies en el área. Este estudio representa tendencias preliminares y plantea más preguntas sobre el conjunto de herpetofauna de la Amazonia brasileña oriental.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

The il1β have a protective action in the acute phase of the pilocarpine-induced epilepsy model

INTRODUCTION: There is contradictory information regarding the of effects il1β and il1rn in epilepsy. We aimed to evaluate the effect of silencing both genes in the acute phase of the pilocarpine-induced epilepsy model. METHODS: We used RNA interference in order to achieve gene silencing. RESULTS: We obtained significant gene silencing in the central nervous system. In addition, we observed phenotypic effects including differences in mortality rates of animals 5 days after pilocarpine injections. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that il1β seems to have a protective effect in the acute phase of the pilocarpine-induced epilepsy model.INTRODUÇÃO: Existem contradições na literatura quanto aos efeitos dos genes il1β e il1rn nas epilepsias. Nosso objetivo foi avaliar os efeitos do silenciamento desses dois genes na fase aguda do modelo de epilepsia induzido pela pilocarpina. MÉTODOS: Para alterar a expressão dos genes il1β e il1rn utilizamos a técnica de interferência por RNA. RESULTADOS: Obtivemos taxas de silenciamento significativas para os dois genes no sistema nervoso central. Observamos efeitos fenotípicos significativos, incluindo a alteração na taxa de mortalidade dos animais 5 dias após a indução do modelo. CONCLUSÕES: A il1β parece exercer um papel protetor na fase aguda do modelo de epilepsia induzido pela pilocarpina.UNICAMP FCM Departamento de Genética MedicaUSP Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto Departamento de BiologiaUNICAMP Centro Multidisciplinar de Investigação BiológicaUSP IFSC Departamento de Física e BioinformáticaUNIFESP-EPM Departamento de FisiologiaUNIFESP-EPM Departamento de Neurologia e NeurocirurgiaUNICAMP FCM Departamento de Clínica MédicaUNICAMP FCM Departamento de NeurologiaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de FisiologiaUNIFESP, EPM Depto. de Neurologia e NeurocirurgiaSciEL

The BLue Amazon Brain (BLAB): A Modular Architecture of Services about the Brazilian Maritime Territory

We describe the first steps in the development of an artificial agent focused on the Brazilian maritime territory, a large region within the South Atlantic also known as the Blue Amazon. The "BLue Amazon Brain" (BLAB) integrates a number of services aimed at disseminating information about this region and its importance, functioning as a tool for environmental awareness. The main service provided by BLAB is a conversational facility that deals with complex questions about the Blue Amazon, called BLAB-Chat; its central component is a controller that manages several task-oriented natural language processing modules (e.g., question answering and summarizer systems). These modules have access to an internal data lake as well as to third-party databases. A news reporter (BLAB-Reporter) and a purposely-developed wiki (BLAB-Wiki) are also part of the BLAB service architecture. In this paper, we describe our current version of BLAB's architecture (interface, backend, web services, NLP modules, and resources) and comment on the challenges we have faced so far, such as the lack of training data and the scattered state of domain information. Solving these issues presents a considerable challenge in the development of artificial intelligence for technical domains