Projeto de concreto asfáltico usinado a quente de acordo com o Departamento Estadual de Infraestrutura com agregados de origem granítica

Artigo submetido ao Curso de Engenharia Civil da UNESC - como requisito parcial para obtenção do Título de Engenheiro Civil.O presente trabalho tem por objetivo a determinação das dosagens de um projeto de Concreto Asfáltico Usinado a Quente, com materiais existentes na região. Estes são de origem granítica e foram caracterizados através de ensaios realizados em laboratório, segundo especificações do Departamento Estadual de Infraestrutura. Contudo, pelos ensaios de granulometria do material granular, o mesmo não se enquadrou em nenhuma das faixas especificadas, aproximando-se da faixa B. Porém para enquadra-lo nessa faixa de trabalho houve necessidade acrescentar cinza pesada em sete porcento. Uma vez definida, desta forma a faixa da composição dos materiais, iniciou-se a mistura da mesma, com teores variados de betume, para obtenção do seu valor ótimo. Todos os corpos de prova, nos diferentes teores de betume foram realizados pelo Método Marshall. Este fornece todos os parâmetros para verificação da qualidade do traço obtido, que foi confirmada. Moldaram-se, também, três corpos de prova, no teor ótimo para o ensaio de Resistencia a Tração por Compressão Diametral, cujos resultados foram os esperados

Evidence for interspecific interactions in the ectoparasite infracommunity of a wild mammal

BACKGROUND : Co-infection with multiple parasite species is commonly observed in nature and interspecific interactions are likely to occur in parasite infracommunities. Such interactions may affect the distribution of parasites among hosts but also the response of infracommunities to perturbations. However, the response of infracommunities to perturbations has not been well studied experimentally for ectoparasite communities of small mammal hosts. METHODS : In the current study we used experimental perturbations of the ectoparasite infracommunity of sengis from Africa. We suppressed tick recruitment by applying an acaride and monitored the effects on the ectoparasite community. RESULTS : Our treatment affected the target as well as two non-target species directly. The experimental removal of the dominant tick (Rhipicephalus spp.) resulted in increases in the abundance of chiggers and lice. However, while these effects were short-lived in chiggers, which are questing from the environment, they were long-lasting for lice which spend their entire life-cycle on the host. In addition, the recruitment rates of some ectoparasite species were high and did not always correspond to total burdens observed. CONCLUSION : These findings indicate that infracommunity interactions may contribute to patterns of parasite burdens. The divergent responses of species with differing life-history traits suggest that perturbation responses may be affected by parasite life-history and that the ectoparasite infracommunity of sengis may lack resilience to perturbations. The latter observation contrasts with the high resilience reported previously for endoparasite communities and also suggests that anti-parasite treatments can affect the distribution of non-target species.NRF, the DST-NRF SARChI Chair of Behavioural Ecology and Physiology and the University of Pretoria.http://www.parasitesandvectors.comhb201

Evidence for interspecific interactions in the ectoparasite infracommunity of a wild mammal

BACKGROUND : Co-infection with multiple parasite species is commonly observed in nature and interspecific interactions are likely to occur in parasite infracommunities. Such interactions may affect the distribution of parasites among hosts but also the response of infracommunities to perturbations. However, the response of infracommunities to perturbations has not been well studied experimentally for ectoparasite communities of small mammal hosts. METHODS : In the current study we used experimental perturbations of the ectoparasite infracommunity of sengis from Africa. We suppressed tick recruitment by applying an acaride and monitored the effects on the ectoparasite community. RESULTS : Our treatment affected the target as well as two non-target species directly. The experimental removal of the dominant tick (Rhipicephalus spp.) resulted in increases in the abundance of chiggers and lice. However, while these effects were short-lived in chiggers, which are questing from the environment, they were long-lasting for lice which spend their entire life-cycle on the host. In addition, the recruitment rates of some ectoparasite species were high and did not always correspond to total burdens observed. CONCLUSION : These findings indicate that infracommunity interactions may contribute to patterns of parasite burdens. The divergent responses of species with differing life-history traits suggest that perturbation responses may be affected by parasite life-history and that the ectoparasite infracommunity of sengis may lack resilience to perturbations. The latter observation contrasts with the high resilience reported previously for endoparasite communities and also suggests that anti-parasite treatments can affect the distribution of non-target species.NRF, the DST-NRF SARChI Chair of Behavioural Ecology and Physiology and the University of Pretoria.http://www.parasitesandvectors.comhb201

Characterization of 14 polymorphic microsatellite loci developed for an Afrotherian species endemic to southern Africa, Elephantulus myurus (Macroscelidea : Macroscelididae)

Fourteen microsatellite loci were developed for the eastern rock sengi, Elephantulus myurus Thomas & Schwann, 1906 by incorporating genetic diversity from across its range in South Africa. Sengis are small mammals belonging to the order Macroscelidea, which comprises 19 species, all of which are endemic to Africa. The loci were amplified in 66 individuals from six localities. An average of 10.5 alleles per locus were identified, with observed and expected heterozygosity values ranging from 0.081 – 0.909 and 0.484 – 0.885, respectively. We also investigated cross-species amplification within the family and found variation in amplification success for five different species. The preliminary results from these amplification efforts could aid further studies into aspects of species diversity and biology. The markers described here represent the first set of variable nuclear markers for the genus Elephantulus, and, together with a set of 8 recently developed markers for Rhynchocyon petersi, Bocage 1880, the first markers for the Order Macroscelidea.National Research Foundation of South Africa (BvV), the University of Johannesburg and the DST-NRF SARChi Chair of Behavioural Ecology and Physiology (NCB). Electrophoresis of microsatellite markers was done at the Analytical Facility based at Stellenbosch University.http://link.springer.com/journal/133552018-02-27hb2016Zoology and Entomolog

Personality, hormonal correlates and parasite load in the eastern rock elephant shrew

Inter-individual variation in behaviour, or as it has now come to be known, personality, has been shown to affect many different components of fitness in animals. A concept that used to be thought of as background ‘noise’ has come to explain much of the variation we observe within populations and between individuals. The personality of an animal can affect how an animal utilises its environment. In a heterogeneous environment this may increase the potential to find limiting resources, such as mates. However, it may also result in different risks experienced by the animal, such as the number of parasites in may be exposed to. To date, links between personality and parasites have rarely been studied although it is a commonly held concept that more exploratory, bolder individuals should have greater parasite loads. As with individual differences in behaviour, individuals may differ in their circulating hormone profiles. Hence it has been proposed that personality can potentially be shaped by these circulating hormone concentrations with shyer individuals having higher corticosteroid (i.e. cortisol and corticosterone) concentrations while bolder ones may have higher testosterone levels. However, corticosteroids may also be elevated by stressors such as parasites. Similarly, animals that produce more testosterone may have reduced immune-abilities as suggested by the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis. These animals would also protect larger territories and fight rather than flee from potential conspecifics. Consequently, correlations between personality with both parasitic infestation and hormone concentrations have been suggested. In the current study we examined this relationship in the eastern rock sengi (Elephantulus myurus) or elephant shrew that is endemic to southern Africa. They are monogamous, sexually monomorphic and both sexes maintain and defend home ranges year-round. In the wild these animals also have large diversity of ectoparasites with two tick, one mite and one louse species being the most important. Burdens of these varied seasonally but not with sex. Personality was highly correlated across time and contexts suggesting a behavioural syndrome with reactive (more exploratory, bold and aggressive) and reactive (less exploratory, shy and submissive) types for E. myurus. In addition, personality was repeatable within individuals captured over a long term period. Personality scores suggested increasing reactivity with increasing body condition. At the same time only one of the four main ectoparasite species was affected by personality with burdens increasing with increasing reactivity. This suggests that correlations between personality and parasites may depend on the parasite species and that more studies should be done with multiple parasites when evaluating this relationship. We found consistently high levels of urinary C and low T throughout the study with no correlations of either hormone with our personality measures. The former may in part be due to the large abundances of ectoparasites while the monogamous mating system and year-round territorial defense by both sexes could account for low T. Consequently, the current study does not support some of the frequently assumed links between personality and other traits but highlights the need to explicitly consider mating system and multiple parasite species when addressing similar questions.Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2014.DST-NRF SARChI Chair of Behavioural Ecology and PhysiologyZoology and EntomologyMScUnrestricte

Effects of Different Orthoses on Neuromuscular Activity of Superficial and Deep Shoulder Muscles during Activities of Daily Living and Physiotherapeutic Exercises in Healthy Participants

Background: This study aimed to investigate the effects of different shoulder orthoses on the neuromuscular activity of superficial and deep shoulder muscles during activities of daily living (ADL) and physiotherapeutic exercises. Methods: Ten participants with healthy shoulders (31 ± 3 years, 23.1 ± 3.8 kg/m2) were randomized to receive a “shoulder sling”, an “abduction pillow” and a “variably adjustable orthosis” on the dominant side. With each orthosis, they completed seven ADL with and four physiotherapeutic exercises without wearing the orthoses. An electromyographic system was used to record the neuromuscular activity of three superficial (trapezius, deltoid, pectoralis major) and two deep shoulder muscles (infraspinatus, supraspinatus) using surface and intramuscular fine-wire electrodes. Results: The neuromuscular activity differs between the orthoses during ADL (p ≤ 0.045), whereby the “variably adjustable orthosis” mostly showed the highest activation levels associated with the worst subjective wearing comfort rated on a visual analog scale. In addition, differences exist between the physiotherapeutic exercises (p ≤ 0.006) demonstrating the highest activations of the infra- and supraspinatus muscles for assistive elevation and wipe across a table, middle for pendulum and lowest for continuous passive motion exercises. Conclusions: The neuromuscular activity of superficial and deep shoulder muscles differs between the orthoses during ADL and also between the physiotherapeutic exercises

Extent of myocardium at risk for left anterior descending artery, right coronary artery, and left circumflex artery occlusion depicted by contrast-enhanced steady state free precession and T2-weighted short tau inversion recovery magnetic resonance imaging

Background - Contrast-enhanced steady state free precession (CE-SSFP) and T2-weighted short tau inversion recovery (T2-STIR) have been clinically validated to estimate myocardium at risk (MaR) by cardiovascular magnetic resonance while using myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography as reference standard. Myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography has been used to describe the coronary perfusion territories during myocardial ischemia. Compared with myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography, cardiovascular magnetic resonance offers superior image quality and practical advantages. Therefore, the aim was to describe the main coronary perfusion territories using CE-SSFP and T2-STIR cardiovascular magnetic resonance data in patients after acute ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction. Methods and Results - CE-SSFP and T2-STIR data from 2 recent multicenter trials, CHILL-MI and MITOCARE (n=215), were used to assess MaR. Angiography was used to determine culprit vessel. Of 215 patients, 39% had left anterior descending artery occlusion, 49% had right coronary artery occlusion, and 12% had left circumflex artery occlusion. Mean extent of MaR using CE-SSFP was 44±10% for left anterior descending artery, 31±7% for right coronary artery, and 30±9% for left circumflex artery. Using T2-STIR, MaR was 44±9% for left anterior descending artery, 30±8% for right coronary artery, and 30±12% for left circumflex artery. MaR was visualized in polar plots, and expected overlap was found between right coronary artery and left circumflex artery. Detailed regional data are presented for use in software algorithms as a priori information on the extent of MaR. Conclusions - For the first time, cardiovascular magnetic resonance has been used to show the main coronary perfusion territories using CE-SSFP and T2-STIR. The good agreement between CE-SSFP and T2-STIR from this study and myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography from previous studies indicates that these 3 methods depict MaR accurately in individual patients and at a group level. Clinical Trial Registration - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifiers: NCT01379261 and NCT01374321