ABSTRACT
Fecal masses recently excreted and/or almost dry were collected weekly in a pasture of Brachiaria decumbens Stapf, from May 1990 to April 1992. The feces were conditioned in 15-liter opaque plastic buckets, containing lateral and top openings, where flasks were fastened for capturing Histeridae beetles present in these masses. Three thousand two hundred ninety-nine specimens were collected belonging to 11 species in the Genus: Phelister, Hister, Euspilotus, Acritus, and Xerosaprinus. The most frequent, constant, and abundant species were Phelister sp. nr. carinifrons and P. haemorrhous
Subject(s)
Animals , Coleoptera , Feces , Brazil , Pasture , SeasonsABSTRACT
A rapid test for diagnosis of malaria based on acridine orange staining of centrifuged blood samples in a microhematocrit tube (QBC) was compared with thick and thin peripheral blood smears in 2274 samples. Malaria was diagnosed in 239 (10.5%) patients by Leishman's staining technique and QBC method. The QBC method allowed detection of an additional 89 (3.9%) cases. Thus the prevalence rate of malaria during the study was 14.4%. In 1946 patients who were negative by the QBC technique, the Leishman's stained smears did not provide any help in malaria diagnosis. Analysis of the relative quantity of parasites in the specimens, in the QBC method, revealed that 80 out of 89 QBC positive but smear negative cases, had a very low parasite number (less than 10 parasites per QBC field). Although QBC method was superior to the smear for malarial parasite detection, species identification was not possible in 26 (7.9%) cases by this technique. In 95.7% (n = 314) QBC positive cases, the buffy coat in the QBC tube appeared pigmented (gray to black). The colour of the buffy coat was therefore considered by us as a predictor of positivity and could be taken as an indicator for a careful and more prolonged search for the parasites. Thus, the QBC technique has its advantages in terms of speed, sensitivity and ease, especially in an endemic area as ours, where the level of parasitaemia is low and more than 70 to 80 smears need to be examined per day. However, the age old Romanowsky stains still appear superior for species identification.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of the present study was to investigate the in vitro and in vivo effects of aluminum sulfate on delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALA-D) activity from the brain, liver and kidney of adult mice (Swiss albine). In vitro experiments showed that the aluminum sulfate concentration needed to inhibit the enzyme activity was 1.0-5.0 mM (N = 3) in brain, 4.0-5.0 mM (N = 3) in liver and 0.0-5.0 mM (N = 3) in kidney. The in vivo experiments were performed on three groups for one month: 1) control animals (N = 8); 2) animals treated with 1 g per cent (34 mM) sodium citrate (N = 8) and 3) animals treated with 1 g per cent (34 mM) sodium citrate plus 3.3 g per cent (49.5 mM) aluminum sulfate (N = 8). Exposure to aluminum sulfate in drinking water inhibited ALA-D activity in kidney (23.3 + ou - 3.7 per cent, mean + ou - SEM, P<0.05 compared to control), but enhanced it in liver (31.2 + ou - 15.0 per cent, mean + ou - SEM, P<0.05). The concentrations of aluminum in the brain, liver and kidney of adult mice were determined by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. The aluminum concentrations increased significantly in the liver (527 + ou - 3.9 per cent, mean + ou - SEM, P<0.05) and kidney (283 + ou - 1.7 per cent, mean + ou - SEM, P<0.05) but did not change in the brain of aluminum-exposed mice. One of the most important and striking observations was the increase in hepatic aluminum concentration in the mice treated only with 1 g per cent sodium citrate (34 mM) (217 + ou - 1.5 per cent, mean + ou - SEM, P<0.05 compared to control). These results show that aluminum interferes with delta-aminolevulinate dehydratase activity in vitro and in vivo. The accumulation of this element was in the order: liver > kidney > brain. Furthermore, aluminum had only inhibitory properties in vitro, while in vivo it inhibited or stimulated the enzyme depending on the organ studied.