Quantification and source identification of atmospheric particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their dry deposition fluxes at three sites in Salvador Basin, Brazil, impacted by mobile and stationary sources

The present work has aimed to determine the 16 US EPA priority PAH atmospheric particulate matter levels present in three sites around Salvador, Bahia: (i) Lapa bus station, strongly impacted by heavy-duty diesel vehicles; (ii) Aratu harbor, impacted by an intense movement of goods, and (iii) Bananeira village on Maré Island, a non vehicle-influenced site with activities such as handcraft work and fisheries. Results indicated that BbF (0.130-6.85 ng m-3) is the PAH with highest concentration in samples from Aratu harbor and Bananeira and CRY (0.075-6.85 ng m-3) presented higher concentrations at Lapa station. PAH sources from studied sites were mainly of anthropogenic origin such as gasoline-fueled light-duty vehicles and diesel-fueled heavy-duty vehicles, discharges in the port, diesel burning from ships, dust ressuspension, indoor soot from cooking, and coal and wood combustion for energy production.O presente trabalho apresenta o estudo sobre 16 HPAs prioritários em material particulado atmosférico de três sítios próximos a Salvador-BA: (i) Estação da Lapa, estação de ônibus da Região Metropolitana de Salvador; (ii) Porto de Aratu, impactado por intenso movimento de matérias-primas e (iii) Bananeira, localizado na Ilha de Maré, vilarejo que tem como principais atividades a pesca e artesanato. Resultados mostraram que o BbF (0,130-6,85 ng m-3) foi o HPA com as concentrações mais elevadas em Aratu e Bananeira e CRY (0,075-6,85 ng m-3) apresentou nível mais elevado na Lapa. As fontes de HPAs nos sítios estudados foram principalmente de origem antrópica, tais como veículos de pequeno e grande portes, carregamentos do porto, ressuspensão de partículas do solo, queima de diesel das embarcações e a queima de carvão e madeira para produção de energia.CNPqCoordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES)FINEPFAPESBPRONEXRECOMBIONordeste GenerationANEELFAPES

O CENTRO DE ASSISTÊNCIA JUDICIÁRIA DA UFF E SUA FUNÇÃO SOCIAL DENTRO DO ESTADO DEMOCRÁTICO DE DIREITO: a via de exercício dos Direitos Humanos e da aplicação da Justiça

A incapacidade do Estado em prestar o mínimo existencial acaba por mitigar, em muitos casos, a dignidade da pessoa humana, valor este norteador da República Federativa do Brasil. Tal fato faz com que os cidadãos busquem a intervenção do Poder Judiciário como única alternativa para efetivar seus direitos. Neste contexto, há vinte e três anos, foi criado o Centro de Assistência Judiciária da Universidade Federal Fluminense (CAJUFF), visando contribuir para a construção de uma sociedade consciente, livre e justa, bem como para efetivação dos direitos fundamentais

Relationship between pulmonary function and physical activity in daily life in patients with COPD

SummaryBackgroundIt remains unclear how closely the physical inactivity observed in patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) relates to the severity of their airflow limitation. Furthermore, it is unknown whether spirometric variables such as maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) and inspiratory capacity (IC) reflect the level of physical activity in daily life better than the forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1), the main spirometric variable used to determine the severity of COPD. The objective of the present study was to investigate the relationship between physical activity in daily life and the severity of COPD assessed by different spirometric variables: MVV, IC and FEV1.MethodsForty patients with COPD (21 men; 68±7 years; FEV1 41±14% predicted) were performed spirometry and assessment of the physical activity level in daily life using an accelerometer (SenseWear® Armband).ResultsMVV was significantly correlated to total energy expenditure per day, energy expenditure per day in activities demanding more than 3 metabolic equivalents (METs), number of steps per day and time spent per day in moderate and vigorous activities (0.42≤r≤0.52; p<0.01 for all). Correlation of these variables with IC and especially FEV1 was more modest, borderline or not statistically significant. There was no difference in time spent in vigorous activities among patients classified according to the FEV1-based GOLD stages II, III and IV, differently than that observed when patients were classified in groups according to their MVV.ConclusionIn COPD patients, MVV better reflects the physical activity level in daily life than FEV1 and IC

Rectosigmoidectomy in a patient with a prolapsed sigmoid tumor: case report

Modelo de estudo: Relato de caso. Objetivo do estudo: Relatar o caso de uma paciente com prolapso de tumor colorretal localizado no sigmóide. Metodologia: Relato de caso obtido de prontuário. Resultados: É relatado o caso de uma paciente que aguardava cirurgia para ressecção oncológica de um tumor colorretal, quando foi encaminhada ao serviço de urgências médicas com episódio de prolapso retal contendo massa tumoral pós-evacuação, sem redução espontânea. A paciente foi encaminhada à cirurgia de urgência e submetida a uma abordagem transabdominal, na qual o prolapso foi reduzido, em seguida realizada retossigmoidectomia segundo procedimento de Hartamann com colostomia terminal no cólon descendente. Conclusões: No caso relatado, por tratar-se de um paciente portador de tumor de sigmóide prolapsado, a abordagem de escolha foi a retosigmoidectomia abdominal, seguindo os preceitos oncológicos, com ligadura da artéria mesentérica inferior em sua origem. Importância do problema: O prolapso de tumor de sigmóide, uma situação clínica relativamente incomum na população adulta, e uma complicação mais rara quando se trata dos tumores colorretais, deve ser tratado imediatamente após o diagnóstico para se diminuir o risco de isquemia do segmento prolapsado e sempre que possível oferecer a cirurgia que siga os preceitos oncológicos de tratamento. Comentários: No caso relatado, foi necessário uma abordagem cirúrgica de urgência, sendo a via abdominal escolhida por respeito aos princípios da cirurgia oncológica e ao menor tempo cirúrgicoDesign of the study: Case report. Objectives: To report a case of a patient with colorectal tumor prolapse located in the sigmoid. Methodology: A retrospective case report obtained from medical records. Results: We report a case of a patient awaiting surgery for tumor resection of a colorectal tumor, when she was sent to the service of medical emergencies with an episode of post-evacuation rectal prolapse with a tumor without spontaneous reduction. The patient was referred to emergency surgery and underwent a transabdominal approach, in which the prolapse was reduced then followed by Hartmann's rectosigmodectomy surgical procedure. Conclusions: Sigmoid tumor prolapse require a surgical approach, the approach of choice was abdominal retosigmoidectomy, following the oncological principles, with ligation of the inferior mesenteric artery at its origin. Relevance: Sigmoid tumor prolapse, a relatively unusual clinical situation in adults, and more rare complication when it comes to colorectal tumors, it must be treated immediately after diagnosis to reduce the risk of ischemia prolapsed segment, and whenever possible offer surgery to follow the precepts of cancer treatment. Comments: In the case reported, an emergency surgical approach was necessary, and the abdominal route was chosen following the principles of cancer surgery and shorter surgical tim

A self-organizing map clustering approach to support territorial zoning

This work aims to evaluate three strategies for analyzing clusters of ordinal categorical data (thematic maps) to support the territorial zoning of the Alto Taquari basin, MS/MT. We evaluated a model-based method, another based on the segmentation of the multi-way contingency table, and the last one based on the transformation of ordinal data into intervals and subsequent analysis of clusters from a proposed method of segmentation of the Self-Organizing Map after the neural network training process. The results showed the adequacy of the methods based on the Self-Organizen Map and the segmentation of the contingency table, as these techniques generated unimodal clusters with distinguishable groups.Supported by National Council for Scientific and Technological Development –CNPq, Brazil, and by National Funds through the Portuguese funding agency, FCT -Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia within project 2022.06822.PTDC. The work of Pedro Oliveira was also supported by the doctoral Grant PRT/BD/154311/2022 financed by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), and with funds from European Union, under MIT Portugal Progra

Prioridades Axiológicas, Tempo de Serviço e Cidadania Organizacional

The objective of this research was to study the relationship between value priorities, tenure, and organizationalcitizenship. To our knowledge, personal value priorities have not been studied as antecedents of organizational behavior. Thesample was composed of 300 employees, men and women, with average age of 38.07 years. Two instruments were used: theSchwartz Value Inventory and the Organizational Citizenship Scale. Two groups of value priorities' subjects were considered:a high score group and a low score group. Three levels of organizational tenure were considered. The four second-order factorsof value priorities and the five organizational citizenship factors were considered for the analysis (Anova 2X3). Priorities ofself-transcendence, self-enhancement, collectivism and individualism values had a significant influence on several factors oforganizational citizenship. The impact of organizational tenure was limited to two factors: organizational climate and protectionof organizational patrimonyFoi objetivo desta pesquisa estudar a relação entre as prioridades axiológicas, o tempo de serviço e a cidadania organizacional. Os autores não têm conhecimento de que as prioridades axiológicas do indivíduo tenham sido estudadas comoantecedentes da cidadania organizacional. A amostra foi composta por 300 empregados, homens e mulheres, com idade média de 38,07 anos. Dois instrumentos de medida foram utilizados: o Inventário de Valores de Schwartz e a Escala de Cidadania Organizacional. Os sujeitos foram divididos em dois grupos de acordo com as suas prioridades axiológicas (escore alto e baixo). Os quatro fatores axiológicos de ordem superior e&nbsp; os cinco fatores de cidadania organizacional foram considerados para a análise estatística (Anova 2X3). As prioridades ao nível dos valores de autotranscendência, autopromoção, individualismo e coletivismo tiveram influência significativa sobre vários fatores de cidadania organizacional. O impacto do tempo de serviço foi limitado a dois fatores: clima organizacional externo e proteção&nbsp; ao patrimônio organizacional

Molecular Electrostatic Potential and Chemometric Techniques as Tools to Design Bioactive Compounds

In this chapter, firstly, we briefly review aspects of the approximation of quantum chemistry, molecular electrostatic potential (MEP), and chemometrics techniques, which are accredited as important tools in the development of chemical science and are frequently used in the study and design of bioactive compounds. Ultimately, we use MEP and pattern recognition (PR) techniques as tools to design nitrofuran compounds with biological activity against Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi). PR models (PCA, HCA, KNN, SDA, and SIMCA) were constructed and demonstrated that 23 nitrofurans can be classified into two classes or groups: more active and less active according to their degrees of activity against T. cruzi. Properties such as charge on the N atom of the nitro group (QN1); the difference between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy (GAP energy); molecular representation of structure based on electron diffraction code of signal 5, unweighted (Mor05u); and Moriguchi water–octanol partition coefficient (MlogP) are responsible for the classification into more active and less active studied nitrofurans. It is interesting to notice that these properties represent three distinct classes of interactions between the nitrofurans and the biological receptor: electronic (QN1 and GAP energy), steric (Mor05u), and hydrophobic (MlogP). The results of the application of PR models on the validation set evidenced two nitrofuran compounds (compounds 25 and 30) as more promising for synthesis and biological assays, which in the future can be used to validate our PR models

Comparative Genomics Provides Insights into the Taxonomy of Azoarcus and Reveals Separate Origins of Nif Genes in the Proposed Azoarcus and Aromatoleum Genera

© 2021 by the authors.Among other attributes, the Betaproteobacterial genus Azoarcus has biotechnological importance for plant growth-promotion and remediation of petroleum waste-polluted water and soils. It comprises at least two phylogenetically distinct groups. The “plant-associated” group includes strains that are isolated from the rhizosphere or root interior of the C4 plant Kallar Grass, but also strains from soil and/or water; all are considered to be obligate aerobes and all are diazotrophic. The other group (now partly incorporated into the new genus Aromatoleum) comprises a diverse range of species and strains that live in water or soil that is contaminated with petroleum and/or aromatic compounds; all are facultative or obligate anaerobes. Some are diazotrophs. A comparative genome analysis of 32 genomes from 30 Azoarcus-Aromatoleum strains was performed in order to delineate generic boundaries more precisely than the single gene, 16S rRNA, that has been commonly used in bacterial taxonomy. The origin of diazotrophy in Azoarcus-Aromatoleum was also investigated by comparing full-length sequences of nif genes, and by physiological measurements of nitrogenase activity using the acetylene reduction assay. Based on average nucleotide identity (ANI) and whole genome analyses, three major groups could be discerned: (i) Azoarcus comprising Az. communis, Az. indigens and Az. olearius, and two unnamed species complexes, (ii) Aromatoleum Group 1 comprising Ar. anaerobium, Ar. aromaticum, Ar. bremense, and Ar. buckelii, and (iii) Aromatoleum Group 2 comprising Ar. diolicum, Ar. evansii, Ar. petrolei, Ar. toluclasticum, Ar. tolulyticum, Ar. toluolicum, and Ar. toluvorans. Single strain lineages such as Azoarcus sp. KH32C, Az. pumilus, and Az. taiwanensis were also revealed. Full length sequences of nif-cluster genes revealed two groups of diazotrophs in Azoarcus-Aromatoleum with nif being derived from Dechloromonas in Azoarcus sensu stricto (and two Thauera strains) and from Azospira in Aromatoleum Group 2. Diazotrophy was confirmed in several strains, and for the first time in Az. communis LMG5514, Azoarcus sp. TTM-91 and Ar. toluolicum TT. In terms of ecology, with the exception of a few plant-associated strains in Azoarcus (s.s.), across the group, most strains/species are found in soil and water (often contaminated with petroleum or related aromatic compounds), sewage sludge, and seawater. The possession of nar, nap, nir, nor, and nos genes by most Azoarcus-Aromatoleum strains suggests that they have the potential to derive energy through anaerobic nitrate respiration, so this ability cannot be usefully used as a phenotypic marker to distinguish genera. However, the possession of bzd genes indicating the ability to degrade benzoate anaerobically plus the type of diazotrophy (aerobic vs. anaerobic) could, after confirmation of their functionality, be considered as distinguishing phenotypes in any new generic delineations. The taxonomy of the Azoarcus-Aromatoleum group should be revisited; retaining the generic name Azoarcus for its entirety, or creating additional genera are both possible outcomes.This research was funded by the BBSRC-Newton Fund (grant numbers BB/N013476/1 and BB/N003608/1). MC was funded by grant BIO2016-79736-R from the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain.Peer reviewe

Annona coriacea Mart. fractions promote cell cycle arrest and inhibit autophagic flux in human cervical cancer cell lines

Plant-based compounds are an option to explore and perhaps overcome the limitations of current antitumor treatments. Annona coriacea Mart. is a plant with a broad spectrum of biological activities, but its antitumor activity is still unclear. The purpose of our study was to determine the effects of A. coriacea fractions on a panel of cervical cancer cell lines and a normal keratinocyte cell line. The antitumor effect was investigated in vitro by viability assays, cell cycle, apoptosis, migration, and invasion assays. Intracellular signaling was assessed by Western blot, and major compounds were identified by mass spectrometry. All fractions exhibited a cytotoxic effect on cisplatin-resistant cell lines, SiHa and HeLa. C3 and C5 were significantly more cytotoxic and selective than cisplatin in SiHa and Hela cells. However, in CaSki, a cisplatin-sensitive cell line, the compounds did not demonstrate higher cytotoxicity when compared with cisplatin. Alkaloids and acetogenins were the main compounds identified in the fractions. These fractions also markedly decreased cell proliferation with p21 increase and cell cycle arrest in G2/M. These effects were accompanied by an increase of H2AX phosphorylation levels and DNA damage index. In addition, fractions C3 and C5 promoted p62 accumulation and decrease of LC3II, as well as acid vesicle levels, indicating the inhibition of autophagic flow. These findings suggest that A. coriacea fractions may become effective antineoplastic drugs and highlight the autophagy inhibition properties of these fractions in sensitizing cervical cancer cells to treatment.e FINEP (MCTI/FINEP/MS/SCTIE/DECIT-01/ 2013—FP XII-BIOPLAT), Barretos Cancer Hospital, CAPES, CNPq, FAPEMIG, UFSJ. RMR is a recipient of CNPq Productivity Gran

Triagem Inteligente: O Uso da Internet das Coisas na Classificação dos Riscos nas Emergências

Este artigo tem como objetivo apresentar a automação do processo de triagem de pacientes utilizando o atuador Arduino. O processo de triagem determina o nível de risco do paciente e sua execução pode tornar-se desnecessariamente complexa, sendo que, aproximadamente, 80% dos pacientes em serviços de emergência não necessitam de atendimento urgente. Portanto, a automatização deste processo pode provar-se bastante benéfica: os dados do paciente são analisados em tempo real, provendo um resultado seguro e em alta velocidade, garantindo prioridade a pacientes em risco e reduzindo o tempo de admissão dele