Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Heterogeneous contributions of change in population distribution of body mass index to change in obesity and underweight NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC)

From 1985 to 2016, the prevalence of underweight decreased, and that of obesity and severe obesity increased, in most regions, with significant variation in the magnitude of these changes across regions. We investigated how much change in mean body mass index (BMI) explains changes in the prevalence of underweight, obesity, and severe obesity in different regions using data from 2896 population-based studies with 187 million participants. Changes in the prevalence of underweight and total obesity, and to a lesser extent severe obesity, are largely driven by shifts in the distribution of BMI, with smaller contributions from changes in the shape of the distribution. In East and Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the underweight tail of the BMI distribution was left behind as the distribution shifted. There is a need for policies that address all forms of malnutrition by making healthy foods accessible and affordable, while restricting unhealthy foods through fiscal and regulatory restrictions

MATERIALS LETTERS

Acesso restrito: Texto completo. p. 1088-1090β-BiTaO4 powder was synthesized by the citrate method, using bismuth citrate and TaCl5 as precursors. The citrate gel was characterized by thermal analyses (TG and DTA), in order to determine the best polymerization temperature. The polymeric precursor is essentially amorphous and after calcination at 400 °C a mixture of tantalates, that are isomorphic to Bi3NbO7 and Bi5Nb3O15, starts to crystallize. At 600 °C, in addition to those phases, one could observe some peaks related to β-BiTaO4. Finally, at 800 °C β-BiTaO4 can be observed as a pure phase, with particle size estimated as 47 nm. The precursor polymeric method allowed obtaining β-BiTaO4 pure phase at temperatures significantly lower than those found for solid state reaction method

Materials Letters

Texto completo: acesso restrito. p.111–113Nano-spheres of hexagonal CdS were prepared by a sonochemical method using CdCl2 and Na2S2O3 as precursors, with different molar ratios of cadmium and sulfur in starting solutions, in ethylene glycol and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as a surfactant. The XRD patterns for all samples presented the set of peaks characteristic of CdS in hexagonal phase. The crystallite size decreases as the sulfur content increased in the starting solution as a consequence of the quick release of sulfide ions trapped in the micelles formed by the CTAB surfactant, which controls the CdS nanoparticles growth. The diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) results have shown that it is possible to tune the emission of visible light of the CdS semiconductor changing only the starting Cd:S ratios in this synthesis procedure

Validation of analytical method for rhynchophorol quantification and stability in inorganic matrix for the controlled release of this pheromone

Abstract A fast method for the identification and stability evaluation of the aggregation pheromone rhynchophorol, which is the main substance used for chemical communication by the beetle Rhynchophorus palmarum L., was validated. In addition, the technique was applied to the evaluation of two inorganic matrices, with the objective of using them as controlled-release devices. The analytical method showed good linearity (R2 = 0.9978), precision (CV% < 1.79), recovery (84–105%) and limits of detection (0.2 mg mL−1) and quantification (0.3 mg mL−1); in compliance with the validation legislation established by ANVISA. In the interaction study, the inorganic matrices zeolite L and Na-magadiite showed high rates of pheromone recovery without promoting its degradation for a period of 180 days, which is not reported in the literature for other matrices. The structures of the zeolite L/rhynchophorol and Na-magadiite/rhynchophorol composites showed slower release kinetics during the storage period when compared with pure pheromone, which is desirable since it extends the period of rhynchophorol release and decreases the negative effects caused by the environmental parameters

physica status solidi (c)

Texto completo: acesso restrito. p. 1593–1596We present the optical absorption spectrum of BiTaO4 using the photo acoustic spectroscopy (PAS) technique and first principles approach. Band gap have been estimated 2.65 and 2.45 eV using PAS method and DFT calculations, respectively. Position of reduction and oxidation level with respect to vacuum level are identified, which shows that BiTaO4 can be used as photocatalyst for hydrogen production. Electronic structure is explained by plotting total density of states (TDOS) (© 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development

Optimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was <1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified