Contribution of lung function in predicting distance covered in the 6-min walk test in obese Brazilian women

Obesity affects the respiratory system through various mechanisms, including systemic inflammation and direct mechanical hindrance due to fat deposition in the chest and abdomen. In addition, changes in the neural control of respiration and increases in thoracic blood volume can promote abnormalities in lung function. Thus, determining relationships between the distance covered in the 6-min walk test (6MWT) and demographic and lung function variables may help us better understand the mechanisms involved in reduced functional exercise capacity in obesity. To explore the determinants of the 6-min walking distance (6MWD) and evaluate the influence of lung function on the distance covered, 263 obese Brazilian women performed the 6MWT and underwent spirometry and respiratory muscle strength measurement. The mean age was 41.8±11.1 years. The mean body mass index (BMI) was 45±8 kg/m². The 6MWD showed correlations with height (r=0.319), age (r=-0.281), weight (r=-0.370), BMI (r=-0.561), forced vital capacity (FVC, r=0.443), expiratory peak flow (r=0.278), maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP, r=0.326), and maximal expiratory pressure (r=0.259), all with P<0.0001. In the stepwise forward regression analysis, BMI, FVC, age, and MIP were the independent predictive variables for 6MWD, explaining 41% of its variability. The reference equation including lung function was as follows: 6MWD (m) = 513.6 - (4.439 × BMI_kg/m2) + (1.136 × FVC_%predicted) - (1.048 × age_yrs) + (0.544 × MIP_%predicted). Thus, the inclusion of lung function in a reference equation for 6MWD contributes to a better prediction of the distance covered in this population.

Diagnóstico do conhecimento da biodiversidade de plantas vasculares nas unidades de conservação do estado de São Paulo

Resumo Com base em dados publicados sobre a ocorrência de espécies de plantas vasculares no estado de São Paulo, avaliamos a performance das unidades de conservação (UCs) na proteção dessas espécies, considerando especialmente aquelas endêmicas do estado e as ameaçadas de extinção. Das 648 espécies de samambaias e licófitas no estado, 71% ocorrem em UCs, 10 são endêmicas de São Paulo e 30 estão ameaçadas de extinção. Pouco menos da metade das espécies de samambaias e licófitas ameaçadas não foram registradas em UCs, e três são endêmicas do estado. Para as plantas com semente, das 8.521 espécies registradas, 48% ocorrem em UCs, 361 são endêmicas do estado e 676 estão ameaçadas de extinção. Entretanto, 65% das espécies ameaçadas estão desprotegidas, e 51 destas são endêmicas do estado, a maioria nativa da Mata Atlântica. Muitas UCs ainda possuem grande lacuna de conhecimento sobre a flora, de esforço de coleta de material botânico e de registro em herbários, com destaque para as Reservas Particulares do Patrimônio Natural (RPPNs). Nossos dados reforçam a necessidade de ampliação de coletas botânicas em UCs, bem como a criação de novas áreas no estado, a fim de proteger espécies ameaçadas e endêmicas da flora paulista.

BioTIME: A database of biodiversity time series for the Anthropocene

MOTIVATION

The BioTIME database contains raw data on species identities and abundances in ecological assemblages through time. These data enable users to calculate temporal trends in biodiversity within and amongst assemblages using a broad range of metrics. BioTIME is being developed as a community-led open-source database of biodiversity time series. Our goal is to accelerate and facilitate quantitative analysis of temporal patterns of biodiversity in the Anthropocene.

MAIN TYPES OF VARIABLES INCLUDED

The database contains 8,777,413 species abundance records, from assemblages consistently sampled for a minimum of 2 years, which need not necessarily be consecutive. In addition, the database contains metadata relating to sampling methodology and contextual information about each record.

SPATIAL LOCATION AND GRAIN

BioTIME is a global database of 547,161 unique sampling locations spanning the marine, freshwater and terrestrial realms. Grain size varies across datasets from 0.0000000158 km2 (158 cm2) to 100 km2 (1,000,000,000,000 cm2).

TIME PERIOD AND GRAIN

BioTIME records span from 1874 to 2016. The minimal temporal grain across all datasets in BioTIME is a year.

MAJOR TAXA AND LEVEL OF MEASUREMENT

BioTIME includes data from 44,440 species across the plant and animal kingdoms, ranging from plants, plankton and terrestrial invertebrates to small and large vertebrates.

SOFTWARE FORMAT

.csv and .SQL.

Avaliação in vitro da Resistência de União de Resinas de Incremento Único (Bulk Fill)

Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a resistência de união de duas resinas bulk fill e compará-las com uma resina convencional de alta contração de polimerização. Quinze terceiros molares foram preparados com cavidades Classe I de Black (4x4x4mm) e divididos aleatoriamente em 3 grupos (n5), de acordo com o material restaurador: Filtek Z100 (3M) (controle), Filtek Bulk Fill (3M) e SonicFill (Kerr). As cavidades foram restauradas com o sistema adesivo Adper Single Bond 2 (3M). No grupo controle, foram colocados 4 incrementos de resina composta de 1 mm e fotoativados por 40 segundos cada. As resinas bulk fill foram aplicadas em incremento único de 4 mm e polimerizadas pelo mesmo tempo. Após 24h de armazenamento em água destilada, os dentes receberam cortes longitudinais, excluindo as extremidades, para obtenção de espécimes em forma de palito com área de aproximadamente 1,0 mm2. Os palitos foram fixados com cianoacrilato e testados, sob força de tração, em uma máquina universal de ensaios. Os valores de resistência de união foram analisados com ANOVA e pós-teste de Tukey (p<0,05). Houve diferença estatística significante entre Filtek Z100 e Filtek Bulk Fill (p0,038), com menor resistência de união para Filtek Bulk Fill. Quando comparada Filtek Z100 e SonicFill, não houve diferença estatística (p>0,05). Conclui-se que as resinas bulk fill avaliadas geraram diferentes resistências de união quando comparadas a Filtek Z100, utilizada com a técnica incremental em cavidades Classe I, no qual a SonicFill obteve resultado similar e a Filtek Bulk Fill teve a adesão piorada.Palavras-chave: Composite Resins. Filtek Bulk Fill. Tensile Strength.

Registros de espécies vasculares em unidades de conservação e implicações para a lista da flora ameaçada de extinção no estado de São Paulo

Resumo O conhecimento sobre a ocorrência de espécies ameaçadas de extinção é fundamental para o planejamento da conservação da biodiversidade. Neste estudo, atualizamos as informações referentes a dois dos 11 critérios utilizados para a elaboração da lista de espécies da flora ameaçada de extinção no estado de São Paulo, referentes à: i) ocorrência desconhecida e ii) ocorrência exclusiva da espécie em unidades de conservação (UC). Fizemos o levantamento da ocorrência das espécies de plantas vasculares nas UCs consultando os registros on-line de material depositado em herbário e revimos a necessidade de alteração na categoria de ameaça ou de exclusão de espécies da lista atual. Registramos 4846 espécies em 59 UCs. Nossos resultados apontam a necessidade de exclusão de 148 espécies da lista, das quais 82 não atendem mais ao critério de ocorrência desconhecida e 66 não obedecem mais o critério de ocorrência exclusiva em UCs. Outras 55 espécies deverão sofrer alteração em sua categoria de ameaça e 39 permanecerão inalteradas. Embora cerca de 60% das espécies da flora paulista já estejam em unidades de conservação, é urgente a necessidade de se estabelecer estratégias para proteger os 40% restantes, criando novas UCs de proteção integral ou ampliando as já existentes.

Complex spatial and temporal variation of subtropical benthic macrofauna under sewage impact

To better understand variation in sewage-impacted benthic macrofauna from subtropical tidal flats over time and space, we applied a five-factor linear model at a hierarchy of spatial (Condition - Contaminated or Non-Contaminated, Tidal Flat and Plot) and temporal scales (Season and Fortnight). The Contaminated site showed high levels of coprostanol and the presence of Paranais cf frici as markers or indicators of organic enrichment. Differences between Seasons were more pronounced for the faunal variation patterns than for the other parameters, with lower species richness and abundance in summer. There were significant interactions between Fortnight and Tidal Flat for most variables, reflecting marked heterogeneity within Tidal Flats. Benthic community has significantly changed over short periods of time. These rapid changes may lead to erroneous interpretations and mask the true sources of variation. Our results clearly demonstrate the need to better understand benthic temporal variability even at small scales.

Thermal effects on photon-induced quantum transport in a single quantum dot

We theoretically investigate laser induced quantum transport in a single quantum dot attached to electrical contacts. Our approach, based on a nonequilibrium Green function technique, allows us to include thermal effects on the photon-induced quantum transport and excitonic dynamics, enabling the study of non-Markovian effects. By solving a set of coupled integrodifferential equations, involving correlation and propagator functions, we obtain the photocurrent and the dot occupation as a function of time. Two distinct sources of decoherence, namely, incoherent tunneling and thermal fluctuations, are observed in the Rabi oscillations. As temperature increases, a thermally activated Pauli blockade results in a suppression of these oscillations. Additionally, the interplay between photon and thermally induced electron populations results in a switch of the current sign as time evolves and its stationary value can be maximized by tuning the laser intensity.

Spin-polarized STM for a Kondo adatom

We investigate the bias dependence of the tunneling conductance between a spin-polarized (SP) scanning tunneling microscope (STM) tip and the surface conduction states of a normal metal with a Kondo adatom. Quantum interference between tip-host metal and tip-adatom-host metal conduction paths is studied in the full range of the Fano parameter q. The spin-polarized STM gives rise to a splitting of the Kondo peak and asymmetry in the zero-bias anomaly, depending on the lateral tip-adatom distance. For increasing lateral distances, the Kondo peak splitting shows a strong suppression and the spin-polarized conductance exhibits the standard Fano-Kondo profile.

Differences in functional and structural properties of segments of the rat tail artery

The investigation of resistance vessels is generally costly and difficult to execute. The present study investigated the diameters and the vascular reactivity of different segments of the rat tail artery (base, middle, and tail end) of 30 male Wister rats (EPM strain) to characterize a conductance or resistance vessel, using a low-cost simple technique. The diameters (mean +/- SEM) of the base and middle segments were 471 +/- 4.97 and 540 +/- 8.39 microm, respectively, the tail end was 253 +/- 2.58 microm. To test reactivity, the whole tail arteries or segments were perfused under constant flow and the reactivity to phenylephrine (PHE; 0.01-300 microg) was evaluated before and after removal of the endothelium or drug administration. The maximal response (Emax) and sensitivity (pED50) to PHE of the whole tail and the base segment increased after endothelium removal or treatment with 100 microM L-NAME, which suggests modulation by nitric oxide. Indomethacin (10 microM) and tetraethylammonium (5 mM) did not change the Emax or pED50 of these segments. PHE and L-NAME increased the pED50 of the middle and the tail end only and indomethacin did not change pED50 or Emax. Tetraethylammonium increased the sensitivity only at the tail end, which suggests a blockade of vasodilator release. Results indicate that the proximal segment of the tail artery possesses a diameter compatible with a conductance vessel, while the tail end has the diameter of a resistance vessel. In addition, the vascular reactivity to PHE in the proximal segment is nitric oxide-dependent, while the tail end is dependent on endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor.

Influence of He-Ne laser therapy on the dynamics of wound healing in mice treated with anti-inflammatory drugs

We determined the effects of helium-neon (He-Ne) laser irradiation on wound healing dynamics in mice treated with steroidal and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents. Male albino mice, 28-32 g, were randomized into 6 groups of 6 animals each: control (C), He-Ne laser (L), dexamethasone (D), D + L, celecoxib (X), and X + L. D and X were injected im at doses of 5 and 22 mg/kg, respectively, 24 h before the experiment. A 1-cm long surgical wound was made with a scalpel on the abdomens of the mice. Animals from groups L, D + L and X + L were exposed to 4 J (cm(2))-1 day-1 of He-Ne laser for 12 s and were sacrificed on days 1, 2, or 3 after the procedure, when skin samples were taken for histological examination. A significant increase of collagen synthesis was observed in group L compared with C (168 +/- 20 vs 63 +/- 8 mm(2)). The basal cellularity values on day 1 were: C = 763 +/- 47, L = 1116 +/- 85, D = 376 +/- 24, D + L = 698 +/- 31, X = 453 +/- 29, X + L = 639 +/- 32 U/mm(2). These data show that application of L increases while D and X decrease the inflammatory cellularity compared with C. They also show that L restores the diminished cellularity induced by the anti-inflammatory drugs. We suggest that He-Ne laser promotes collagen formation and restores the baseline cellularity after pharmacological inhibition, indicating new perspectives for laser therapy aiming to increase the healing process when anti-inflammatory drugs are used.

Increasing prevalence of epiglottitis in the adult

Epiglottitis in the adult is probably more prevalent than is generally recognized. The condition is potentially lethal unless diagnosed early. Any adult patient with acute painful dysphagia should receive indirect laryngoscopy to rule out epiglottitis, particularly when there are few signs to support the initial presentation of a sore throat. An adequate, timely airway should be secured. This should be done by tracheotomy, in our opinion. The diagnosis can be made on clinical presentation and no time should be wasted in instituting proper treatment.