Evaluation of three recombinant proteins for the development of ELISA and immunochromatographic tests for visceral leishmaniasis serodiagnosis.

BACKGROUND Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) is an infectious disease that is a significant cause of death among infants aged under 1 year and the elderly in Brazil. Serodiagnosis is a mainstay of VL elimination programs; however, it has significant limitations due to low accuracy. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to evaluate three recombinant Leishmania infantum proteins (rFc, rC9, and rA2) selected from previous proteomics and genomics analyses to develop enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunochromatographic tests (ICT) for the serodiagnosis of human VL (HVL) and canine VL (CVL). METHODS A total of 186 human (70 L. infantum-infected symptomatic, 20 other disease-infected, and 96 healthy) and 185 canine (82 L. infantum-infected symptomatic, 27 L. infantum-infected asymptomatic, and 76 healthy) sera samples were used for antibody detection. FINDINGS Of the three proteins, rA2 (91.5% sensitivity and 87% specificity) and rC9 (95.7% sensitivity and 87.5% specificity) displayed the best performance in ELISA-HVL and ELISA-CVL, respectively. ICT-rA2 also displayed the best performance for HVL diagnosis (92.3% sensitivity and 88.0% specificity) and had high concordance with immunofluorescence antibody tests (IFAT), ELISA-rK39, IT-LEISH?, and ELISAEXT. ICT-rFc, ICT-rC9, and ICT-rA2 had sensitivities of 88.6%, 86.5%, and 87.0%, respectively, with specificity values of 84.0%, 92.0%, and 100%, respectively for CVL diagnosis. MAIN CONCLUSIONS The three antigens selected by us are promising candidates for VL diagnosis regardless of the test format, although the antigen combinations and test parameters may warrant further optimisation

Technical analysis of a hybrid solid oxide fuel cell/gas turbine cycle.

The relatively high operating temperature of the solid oxide fuel cell allows for a highly efficient conversion to power, internal reforming, and high-quality by-product heat for cogeneration or a bottoming cycle. Besides, high-temperature fuel cells offer a good opportunity for coupling to a gas turbine. Fuel cell systems have demonstrated minimal air pollutant emissions and low greenhouse gas emissions. This paper focuses on the investigation and technical analysis of a direct internal reforming solid oxide fuel cell (DIR-SOFC) and a gas turbine (GT) system. The technical analysis comprises of an energy and exergy analysis of the hybrid cycle, using the Gibbs function minimization technique for the methane steam reforming process. The assessment is performed to determine the influence of the hybrid cycle operating temperature and pressure, steam-to-carbon ratio and fuel and oxidant usage in the fuel cell. Equilibrium calculations are made to find the ranges of inlet steam-to-carbon ratio and the operating current density of the fuel cell. After that, a hybrid system consists of a DIR-SOFC and a GT is evaluated using computer simulation. The results showed that the fuel cell is the main power producer system at the design point. The high-energy efficiency (around 62%) and exergy efficiency (around 58%) are achieved by the hybrid cycle compared to fuel cell efficiency (about 40%) and the GT (around 38%). The power ratio (SOFC/GT) found was 1.50. An analysis varying the fuel cell current density and the GT pressure ratio was performed showing that the fuel cell power production decreases about 7% with increasing current density when the GT becomes the main power-producing equipment. However, the system energy efficiency decreases with the reduction of power produced by the fuel cell

Effects of different environmental enrichment items on the behavior of the endangered Lear's Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari, Psittacidae) at Belo Horizonte Zoo, Brazil.

Environmental enrichment is a technique applied to enhance welfare of captive animals by introducing items that create a complex and stimulate enclosure. In poor environments, animals can exhibit abnormal and stereotypic behaviors due to boredom and stress. Animals behaving normally and with high levels of welfare are suitable and preferred to participate in conservation efforts such as reintroductions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of environmental enrichment items on the behavior of the endangered Lear's Macaws held at the Belo Horizonte Zoo, Brazil. Ninety hours of behavioral data were collected, divided into three equal-length treatments: baseline, enrichment and post-enrichment. Data were collected using focal sampling with instantaneous recordings every minute. Environmental enrichment decreased the expression of abnormal behaviors and increased macaw activities. Thus, environmental enrichment proved to be effective in the maintenance of normal behaviors and should be continually used to increase the welfare of Lear's Macaws

Iron Quadrangle, Brazil : elemental concentration determined by k0-instrumental neutron activation analysis. Part II: kale samples.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of mining activity on elemental concentrations in kale grown around a mining area. Two sites studied are in the Iron Quadrangle, Minas Gerais, Brazil, considered one of the richest mineral-bearing regions in the world. One site is near mineral exploration activity and the other is an ecological area. A comparator site outside the Iron Quadrangle was also analyzed. This work focused on the determination of the elemental concentrations in kale applying the k0-instrumental neutron activation analysis. As the Brazilian legislation specifies values for soil only, the results for kale were compared to the literature values and it was found that the vegetable does not present any health risks

Theoretical and experimental studies of the controlled release of tetracycline incorporated into bioactive glasses.

Several authors have studied the release profile of drugs incorporated in different devices. However, to the best of our knowledge, although many studies have been done on the release of tetracycline, in these release devices, no study has investigated if the released compound is actually the tetracycline, or, instead, a degraded product. This approach is exploited here. In this work, we analyse the influence of two drying methods on the tetracycline delivery behaviour of synthesised glasses using the sol-gel process. We compare the drying methods results using both theoretical models and practical essays, and analyse the chemical characteristic of the released product in order to verify if it remains tetracycline. Samples were freeze-dried or dried in an oven at 37?C and characterised by several methods such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), differential thermogravimetric analysis (DTG), differential thermal analyses (DTA) and gas adsorption analysis (BET). The released concentration of tetracycline hydrochloride was studied as a function of time, and it was measured by ultraviolet spectrophotometry in the tetracycline wavelength. The drug delivery profiles were reasonably consistent with a diffusion model analysis. In addition, we observed higher release rates for the freeze-dried compared to those dried in an oven at 37?C. This higher release can be attributed to larger pore size for the freeze-dried sample systems with tetracycline, which promoted more water penetration, improving the drug diffusion. The analysis of the solution obtained in the release tests using high-performance liquid chromatography- mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) confirmed that tetracycline was being released

The 2dF-SDSS LRG and QSO Survey: the LRG 2-point correlation function and redshift-space distortions

We present a clustering analysis of luminous red galaxies (LRGs) using nearly 9000 objects from the final, three-year catalogue of the 2dF-SDSS LRG and QSO (2SLAQ) Survey. We measure the redshift-space two-point correlation function, ξ(s) and find that, at the mean LRG redshift of shows the characteristic downturn at small scales (1 h−1 Mpc) expected from line-of-sight velocity dispersion. We fit a double power law to ξ(s) and measure an amplitude and slope of s0 = 17.3+2.5−2.0 h−1 Mpc, γ = 1.03 ± 0.07 at small scales (s 4.5 h−1 Mpc). In the semiprojected correlation function, wp(σ), we find a simple power law with γ = 1.83 ± 0.05 and r0 = 7.30 ± 0.34 h−1 Mpc fits the data in the range 0.4 < σ < 50 h−1 Mpc, although there is evidence of a steeper power law at smaller scales. A single power law also fits the deprojected correlation function ξ(r), with a correlation length of r0 = 7.45 ± 0.35 h−1 Mpc and a power-law slope of γ = 1.72 ± 0.06 in the 0.4 < r < 50 h−1 Mpc range. But it is in the LRG angular correlation function that the strongest evidence for non-power-law features is found where a slope of γ = −2.17 ± 0.07 is seen at 1 < r < 10 h−1 Mpc with a flatter γ = −1.67 ± 0.07 slope apparent at r 1 h−1 Mpc scales. We use the simple power-law fit to the galaxy ξ(r), under the assumption of linear bias, to model the redshift-space distortions in the 2D redshift-space correlation function, ξ(σ, π). We fit for the LRG velocity dispersion, wz, the density parameter, Ωm and β(z), where β(z) = Ω0.6m/b and b is the linear bias parameter. We find values of wz = 330 km s−1, Ωm = 0.10+0.35−0.10 and β = 0.40 ± 0.05. The low values for wz and β reflect the high bias of the LRG sample. These high-redshift results, which incorporate the Alcock–Paczynski effect and the effects of dynamical infall, start to break the degeneracy between Ωm and β found in low-redshift galaxy surveys such as 2dFGRS. This degeneracy is further broken by introducing an additional external constraint, which is the value β(z = 0.1) = 0.45 from 2dFGRS, and then considering the evolution of clustering from z 0 to zLRG 0.55. With these combined methods we find Ωm(z = 0) = 0.30 ± 0.15 and β(z = 0.55) = 0.45 ± 0.05. Assuming these values, we find a value for b(z = 0.55) = 1.66 ± 0.35. We show that this is consistent with a simple ����high-peak’ bias prescription which assumes that LRGs have a constant comoving density and their clustering evolves purely under gravity

The 2df SDSS LRG and QSO survey: evolution of the luminosity function of luminous red galaxies to z= 0.6

We present new measurements of the luminosity function (LF) of luminous red galaxies (LRGs) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and the 2dF SDSS LRG and Quasar (2SLAQ) survey. We have carefully quantified, and corrected for, uncertainties in the K and evolutionary corrections, differences in the colour selection methods, and the effects of photometric errors, thus ensuring we are studying the same galaxy population in both surveys. Using a limited subset of 6326 SDSS LRGs (with 0.17 < z < 0.24) and 1725 2SLAQ LRGs (with 0.5 < z < 0.6), for which the matching colour selection is most reliable, we find no evidence for any additional evolution in the LRG LF, over this redshift range, beyond that expected from a simple passive evolution model. This lack of additional evolution is quantified using the comoving luminosity density of SDSS and 2SLAQ LRGs, brighter than M0.2r− 5 log h0.7=−22.5, which are 2.51 ± 0.03 × 10−7 L⊙ Mpc−3 and 2.44 ± 0.15 × 10−7 L⊙ Mpc−3, respectively (<10 per cent uncertainty). We compare our LFs to the COMBO-17 data and find excellent agreement over the same redshift range. Together, these surveys show no evidence for additional evolution (beyond passive) in the LF of LRGs brighter than M0.2r− 5 log h0.7=−21 (or brighter than ∼L*). We test our SDSS and 2SLAQ LFs against a simple ‘dry merger’ model for the evolution of massive red galaxies and find that at least half of the LRGs at z≃ 0.2 must already have been well assembled (with more than half their stellar mass) by z≃ 0.6. This limit is barely consistent with recent results from semi-analytical models of galaxy evolution