Development and Validation of Dimensional Clinical Personality Inventory 2 (IDCP-2) Algorithms to Assess ICD-11 Personality Trait Domain Qualifiers.

With the advent of the new diagnostic model for personality disorders in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), researchers and practitioners in World Health Organization signatory countries are urged to implement it. This study aims to develop a brief, reliable, and valid scale for assessing maladaptive personality traits according to the ICD-11 model, using the item pool of the Dimensional Clinical Personality Inventory (IDCP-2). Quantitative and qualitative criteria for item selection were applied to a sample of 251 Brazilian adults. As a result, the 25 items (five items per factor) were selected, demonstrating promising evidence of validity based on the internal structure with a database of 1,659 Brazilian adults. In addition, we found good evidence of validity based on relationships with external variables, particularly those related to personality pathology, in a sample of 617 Brazilian adults. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Production of activated carbon from exhausted coffee grounds chemically modified with natural eucalyptus ash lye and its use in the fluoride adsorption process.

The objective of this research was to produce an activated carbon (AC) from exhausted coffee grounds (ECG) and chemically activate it with natural lye from eucalyptus ash to subsequently evaluate the fluoride adsorption process in an aqueous medium. The thermal analysis of ECG was determined as well as solubilized extraction, alkalinity and calcium content of eucalyptus ashes. AC was characterized by elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), analysis of textural properties, pH and point of zero charge (PZC). The AC presented macroporosity and XRD confirmed the amorphous characteristic of cellulose-containing materials. Carboxylic acid functional group was identified in the AC surface, which can contribute to the adsorption of fluoride. The specific surface area of ECG and AC were 189.01 and 21.74 m2/g. The adsorption kinetics of fluoride revealed that equilibrium is reached around 800 min and the data followed the pseudo-second order model. The Freundlich model fitted the experimental data with the best quality and Freundlich's constant n allowed inferring that the adsorption is favorable and the isotherm appears to be L-type, with an initial downward curvature, which suggests less availability of active sites when increasing the adsorbent concentration.

Additional improvement in regional myocardial ischemia after intracardiac injection of bone marrow cells during CABG surgery.

Background: Post-procedure residual ischemia is associated with worse prognosis in patients with coronary artery diasease (CAD). Objective: We evaluated whether autologous bone marrow-derived cells (BMC) contribute to additional reduction in regional stress-induced myocardial ischemia (SIMI) in patients undergoing incomplete coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG). Methods: In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, we enrolled 143 patients (82% men, 58 ± 11 years) with stable CAD and not candidates for complete CABG. They received 100 million BMC (n = 77) or placebo (n = 66) injected into ischemic non-revascularized segments during CABG. The primary outcome was improvement on SIMI quantified as the area at risk in injected segments assessed by cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) 1, 6, and 12 months after CABG. Results: The reduction in global SIMI after CABG was comparable (p = 0.491) in both groups indicating sustained beneficial effects of the surgical procedure over 12 month period. In contrast, we observed additional improvement in regional SIMI in BMC treated group (p = 0.047). Baseline regional SIMI values were comparable [18.5 (16.2-21.0) vs. 18.5 (16.5-20.7)] and reached the lowest values at 1 month [9.74 (8.25; 11.49) vs. 12.69 (10.84; 14.85)] for BMC and placebo groups, respectively. The ischemia's improvement from baseline represented a 50% difference in regional SIMI in favor of the BMC transplanted group at 30 days. We found no differences in clinical and LVEF% between groups during the 12 month follow-up period. The 1 month rate of major adverse cerebral and cardiovascular events (MACCE) (p = 0.34) and all-cause mortality (p = 0.08) did not differ between groups 1 month post intervention. Conclusion: We provided evidence that BMC leads to additional reduction in regional SIMI in chronic ischemic patients when injected in segments not subjected to direct surgical revascularization. This adjuvant therapy deserves further assessment in patients with advanced CAD especially in those with microcirculation dysfunction. Clinical trial registration: https://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier NCT01727063.

Beneficial effects of physical exercise for ß-cell maintenance in a type 1 diabetes mellitus animal model.

NEW FINDINGS: What is the central question of this study? Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) leads to hyperglycaemia owing to pancreatic ß-cell destruction by the immune system. Physical exercise has been shown to have potentially beneficial protective roles against cytokine-induced pancreatic ß-cell death, but its benefits are yet to be proved and should be understood better, especially in the islet environment. What is the main finding and its importance? Physical exercise protects against ß-cell loss in a well-described animal model for T1D, induced by multiple low doses of streptozotocin. This seems to be related to reduced cytokine-induced ß-cell death and increased islet cell proliferation. Contributions of islet neogenesis and/or transdifferentiation of pancreatic non-ß-cells into ß-cells cannot be excluded. ABSTRACT: Physical exercise has beneficial effects on pancreatic ß-cell function and survival in a pro-inflammatory environment. Although these effects have been linked to decreased islet inflammation and modulation of pro-apoptotic pathways, little is known about the islet microenvironment. Our aim was to evaluate the effects of physical exercise in islet histomorphology in a mouse model of type 1 diabetes mellitus induced by multiple low doses of streptozotocin. As expected, induction of type 1 diabetes mellitus led to ß-cell loss and, consequently, decreased islet area. Interestingly, although the decrease in islet area was not prevented by physical exercise, this was not the case for the decrease in ß-cell mass. This was probably related to induction of ß-cell regeneration, because we observed increased proliferation and regeneration markers, such as Ki67 and Pcna, in islets of trained mice. These were found in the central and peripheral regions of the islets. An increase in the percentage of α- and δ-cells in these conditions, combined with an increase in proliferation and Pax4 labelling in peripheral regions, suggest that ß-cell regeneration might also occur by transdifferentiation. This agrees with the presence of cells double stained for insulin and glucagon only in islets of diabetic trained mice. In addition, this group had more extra-islet insulin-positive cells and islets associated with ducts than diabetic mice. Physical exercise also decreased nuclear factor-κB activation in islet cells of diabetic trained compared with diabetic untrained mice, indicating a decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokine-induced ß-cell death. Taken together, these findings indicate that preservation of ß-cell mass induced by physical exercise involves an increase in ß-cell replication and decrease in ß-cell death, together with islet neogenesis and islet cell transdifferentiation.

Association between anger expression and attempted suicide at a general emergency hospital in the south of Brazil.

INTRODUCTION: Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the world. For every person who commits suicide, twenty or more have attempted to take their own lives. The emotional state of anger is often associated with suicidal behavior. However, this association needs to be further clarified. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to investigate the profiles of traits and expressions of anger in inpatients admitted to a general emergency hospital after surviving a suicide attempt. METHODS: In this case-control study, a sample of 28 suicide survivors was matched for sex, age, and educational level with 56 controls. The State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory-2 was used to measure anger traits and expression. RESULTS: Suicide survivors scored higher for anger traits and expression and lower for anger control than the control group. They also had lower levels of state anger and willingness to express anger verbally than the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who attempted suicide and had high scores for anger expression (in and out) are inclined to have extreme difficulty in interpersonal relationships and rigidity towards change and are at higher risk of developing psychopathologies.

Serotonin mediates the panicolytic-like effect of oxytocin in the dorsal periaqueductal gray.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Oxytocin (OT) has been widely linked to positive social interactions, and there is great interest in OT as a therapy for a variety of neuropsychiatric conditions. Recent evidence also suggests that OT can play an important role in the mediation of anxiety-associated defensive responses, including a role for serotonin (5-HT) neurotransmission in this action. However, it is presently unknown whether OT additionally regulates the expression of panic-related behaviors, such as escape, by acting in the dorsal periaqueductal gray (dPAG), a key panic-regulating area. This study aimed to investigate the consequence of OT injection in the dPAG on escape expression and whether facilitation of 5-HT neurotransmission in this midbrain area is implicated in this action. METHODS: Male Wistar rats were injected with OT in the dPAG and tested for escape expression in the elevated T-maze (ETM) and dPAG electrical stimulation tests. Using the latter test, OT's effect was also investigated after previous intra-dPAG injection of the OT receptor antagonist atosiban, the preferential antagonists of 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A receptors, WAY-100635 and ketanserin, respectively, or systemic pretreatment with the 5-HT synthesis inhibitor p-CPA. RESULTS: OT impaired escape expression in the two tests used, suggesting a panicolytic-like effect. In the ETM, the peptide also facilitated inhibitory avoidance acquisition, indicating an anxiogenic effect. Previous administration of atosiban, WAY-100635, ketanserin, or p-CPA counteracted OT's anti-escape effect. CONCLUSIONS: OT and 5-HT in the dPAG interact in the regulation of panic- and anxiety-related defensive responses. These findings open new perspectives for the development of novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of anxiety disorders.

Anaerobic neonatal meningitis: A diagnostic challenge.

The most commonly identified pathogens related to bacterial meningitis are group B streptococcus and gram-negative enteric flora; anaerobic sepsis and meningitis are very rare. We report a case on a preterm and extremely low-birth weight infant who developed meningitis caused by Bacteroides fragilis and his mother who had postpartum sepsis also caused by the same agent.

Proposta de um protótipo de aplicativo Android para diagnósticos de enfermagem utilizando redes neurais artificiais / Propuesta de un protótipo de aplicativo Androide para diagnósticos de enfermería utilizando redes neuronales artificiales / A Proposal of an Android Application Prototype for Nursing Diagnoses Using Artificial Neural Networks

Introdução: A Sistematização da Assistência de Enfermagem deve ser implementada, principalmente nos quais há um nível de cuidado mais avançado com os pacientes, a exemplo das Unidades de Terapia Intensiva que são reconhecidamente locais nos quais se concentram grande especialização e tecnologias. Objetivo: Propor um modelo de um Sistema de Apoio à Decisão utilizando Redes Neurais Artificiais para a elaboração de Diagnósticos de Enfermagem através de um aplicativo para Android. Métodos: O presente estudo se caracteriza como metodológico e tecnológico do tipo prototipagem, no qual onde serão analisados os sinais vitais de pacientes internados em uma Unidade de Terapia Intensiva. Os dados serão obtidos a partir do banco de dados Monitoramento Inteligente Multiparâmetro em Terapia Intensiva que contém sinais fisiológicos e séries de sinais vitais capturados de monitores de pacientes, obtidos de sistemas de informações médicas hospitalares de milhares de pacientes em unidades de terapia intensiva. Resultados: O aplicativo, em fase final de implementação, está projetado com telas ativas trabalhadas junto com corpo de profissionais de enfermagem que opinaram sobre utilidades desejadas e primeiras impressões. Conclusões: No presente momento, os testes para o treinamento da Rede Neural Artificial estão acontecendo, e espera-se o uso de um aplicativo para a promoção dos diagnósticos de enfermagem advindo dos sinais vitais de pacientes, das avaliações sobre o estado geral, e informações do prontuário eletrônico do paciente, juntamente com o julgamento clínico e crítico do profissional enfermeiro(AU)

Introducción: La sistematización de la atención de enfermería debe ser implementada, especialmente en el caso de que haya un nivel más avanzado de atención con pacientes, como en las unidades de cuidados intensivos, que son lugares reconocidos donde se concentran gran experiencia y tecnologías. Objetivo: Proponer un modelo de un Sistema de Apoyo a la Decisión utilizando redes neuronales artificiales para la elaboración de diagnósticos de enfermería a través de una aplicación de Androide. Métodos: Este estudio se caracteriza por ser un tipo de prototipo metodológico y tecnológico en el que se analizarán los signos vitales de los pacientes ingresados en una unidad de cuidados intensivos. Los datos se obtendrán de la base de datos de Monitoreo Inteligente de Parámetros Intensivos de Cuidados Intensivos, que contiene señales fisiológicas y series de signos vitales capturados de monitores de pacientes, obtenidos de los sistemas de información médica hospitalaria de miles de pacientes en unidades de cuidados intensivos. Resultados: La aplicación, en su fase final de implementación, está diseñada con pantallas activas trabajadas junto con un cuerpo de profesionales de enfermería que dieron su opinión sobre las utilidades deseadas y las primeras impresiones. Conclusiones: En este momento, se están realizando pruebas para la capacitación de la Red Neural Artificial, y se espera utilizar una aplicación para promover diagnósticos de enfermería a partir de signos vitales del paciente, evaluaciones generales de salud e información del historial médico electrónico del paciente, junto con el juicio clínico y crítico de la enfermera profesional(AU)

Introduction: Systematization of nursing care must be implemented, especially in the case that there is a more advanced level of patient care, such as in intensive care units, which are recognized places where great experience and technologies are concentrated. Objective: To propose a model of a decision support system using artificial neural networks for the elaboration of nursing diagnoses through an Android application. Methods: This study is characterized by being a type of methodological and technological prototype in which the vital signs of patients admitted to an intensive care unit will be analyzed. The data will be obtained from the database of Smart Monitoring of Intensive Care Parameters, which contains physiological signals and vital sign series captured from patient monitors, and which are obtained from hospital medical information systems of thousands of patients in intensive care units. Results: The application, in its final phase of implementation, is designed with active screens worked together by a body of nursing professionals who gave their opinion on the desired benefits and first impressions. Conclusions: At this time, tests are being carried out to train the artificial neural network, and an application is expected to be used for promoting nursing diagnoses based on the patient's vital signs, general health evaluations, and information on the patient's electronic medical history, together with the clinical and critical judgment of the professional nurse(AU)

New therapeutic target for pediatric anaplastic ependymoma control: study of anti-tumor activity by a Kunitz-type molecule, Amblyomin-X.

EPNs comprise a heterogeneous group of neuroepithelial tumors, accounting for about 10% of all intracranial tumors in children and up to 30% of brain tumors in those younger than 3 years. Actually, the pattern therapy for low-grade EPNs includes complete surgical resection followed by radiation therapy. Total surgical excision is often not possible due to tumor location. The aim of this study was to evaluate, for the first time, the anti-tumor activity of Amblyomin-X in 4 primary cultures derived from pediatric anaplastic posterior fossa EPN, Group A (anaplastic, WHO grade III) and one primary culture of a high grade neuroepithelial tumor with MN1 alteration, which was initially misdiagnosed as EPN: i) by in vitro assays: comparisons of temozolomide and cisplatin; ii) by intracranial xenograft model. Amblyomin-X was able to induce cell death in EPN cells in a more significant percentage compared to cisplatin. The cytotoxic effects of Amblyomin-X were not detected on hFSCs used as control, as opposed to cisplatin-treatment, which promoted a substantial effect in the hAFSCs viability. TEM analysis showed ultrastructural alterations related to the process of cell death: mitochondrial degeneration, autophagosomes and aggregate-like structures. MRI and histopathological analyzes demonstrated significant tumor mass regression. Our results suggest that Amblyomin-X has a selective effect on tumor cells by inducing apoptotic cell death and may be a therapeutic option for Group AEPNs.

Activated carbon produced from waste coffee grounds for an effective removal of bisphenol-A in aqueous medium.

Bisphenol-A is widely used chemical in industry and unfortunately often detected in natural waters. Considered as an emerging pollutant, bisphenol-A represents an environmental problem due to its endocrine-disrupting behavior. The production of activated carbon from alternative precursors has shown to be attractive in the removal of emerging pollutants from the water. Activated carbon was produced from waste coffee by physical and chemical activation and applied in the removal of bisphenol-A. The samples were characterized by elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and analysis of textural properties. Bisphenol-A adsorption experiments showed that the chemically activated carbon was more efficient due to its high specific surface area (1039 m2/g) compared to the physically activated carbon (4.0 m2/g). The bisphenol-A adsorption data followed the pseudo-second-order model and Langmuir isotherm, which indicated a maximum adsorption capacity of 123.22 mg/g for chemically activated carbon. The results demonstrated a potential use of the coffee grounds as a sustainable raw material for the production of chemically activated carbon that could be used in water treatment.

Intravenous Grafts of Human Amniotic Fluid-Derived Stem Cells Reduce Behavioral Deficits in Experimental Ischemic Stroke.

Amniotic fluid has been investigated as new cell source for stem cells in the development of future cell-based transplantation. This study reports isolation of viable human amniotic fluid-derived stem cells, labeled with multimodal iron oxide nanoparticles, and its effect on focal cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in Wistar rats. Middle cerebral artery occlusion of 60 min followed by reperfusion for 1 h, 6 h, and 24 h was employed in the present study to produce ischemia and reperfusion-induced cerebral injury in rats. Tests were employed to assess the functional outcome of the sensorimotor center activity in the brain, through a set of modified neurological severity scores used to assess motor and exploratory capacity 24 h, 14, and 28 days after receiving cellular therapy via tail vein. In our animal model of stroke, transplanted cells migrated to the ischemic focus, infarct volume decreased, and motor deficits improved. Therefore, we concluded that these cells appear to have beneficial effects on the ischemic brain, possibly based on their ability to enhance endogenous repair mechanisms.

Evaluation of DSM-5 and ICD-11 personality traits using the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) in a Brazilian sample of psychiatric inpatients.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to test if the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) is an adequate instrument to evaluate psychiatric inpatients' pathological personality traits. METHODS: Inpatients (n = 130; mean age: 38.5 years; 62.3% female; 63.9% single) answered the PID-5 after clinical improvement of their psychiatric symptoms. The mean scores of the DSM-5 personality domains, facets and profiles, and ICD-11 domain traits were compared with the mean scores of a Brazilian normative sample (n = 656). We investigated the diagnostic performance of the scales to identify individuals with and without psychopathology. RESULTS: The final sample included mainly diagnoses of mood disorders. Except for Antagonism and Disinhibition, all DSM-5 personality domains and most facets as well as almost all DSM-5 personality disorder profiles (except Narcissist) and ICD-11 trait domains (except Detachment and Dissociality) of the inpatients presented high differences compared with the normative sample. In general, the PID-5 scales presented a high negative predictive value and a low positive predictive value to identify individuals with severe psychopathology. DISCUSSION: This study found high scores of pathological personality traits in a sample of Brazilian psychiatric inpatients. The PID-5 may be a promising instrument to measure pathological personality traits among psychiatric inpatients. Methodological and sample size limitations may have influenced the results. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Tropism of mesenchymal stem cell toward CD133+ stem cell of glioblastoma in vitro and promote tumor proliferation in vivo.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have demonstrated remarkable tropism of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) toward malignant gliomas, making these cells a potential vehicle for delivery of therapeutic agents to disseminated glioblastoma (GBM) cells. However, the potential contribution of MSCs to tumor progression is a matter of concern. It has been suggested that CD133+ GBM stem cells secrete a variety of chemokines, including monocytes chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1/CCL2) and stromal cell-derived factor-1(SDF-1/CXCL12), which could act in this tropism. However, the role in the modulation of this tropism of the subpopulation of CD133+ cells, which initiate GBM and the mechanisms underlying the tropism of MSCs to CD133+ GBM cells and their effects on tumor development, remains poorly defined. METHODS/RESULTS: We found that isolated and cultured MSCs (human umbilical cord blood MSCs) express CCR2 and CXCR4, the respective receptors for MCP-1/CCL2 and SDF-1/CXCL12, and demonstrated, in vitro, that MCP-1/CCL2 and SDF-1/CXC12, secreted by CD133+ GBM cells from primary cell cultures, induce the migration of MSCs. In addition, we confirmed that after in vivo GBM tumor establishment, by stereotaxic implantation of the CD133+ GBM cells labeled with Qdots (705 nm), MSCs labeled with multimodal iron oxide nanoparticles (MION) conjugated to rhodamine-B (Rh-B) (MION-Rh), infused by caudal vein, were able to cross the blood-brain barrier of the animal and migrate to the tumor region. Evaluation GBM tumors histology showed that groups that received MSC demonstrated tumor development, glial invasiveness, and detection of a high number of cycling cells. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, in this study, we validated the chemotactic effect of MCP-1/CCL2 and SDF-1/CXCL12 in mediating the migration of MSCs toward CD133+ GBM cells. However, we observed that, after infiltrating the tumor, MSCs promote tumor growth in vivo probably by release of exosomes. Thus, the use of these cells as a therapeutic carrier strategy to target GBM cells must be approached with caution.

Establishment of primary cell culture and an intracranial xenograft model of pediatric ependymoma: a prospect for therapy development and understanding of tumor biology.

BACKGROUND: Ependymoma (EPN), the third most common pediatric brain tumor, is a central nervous system (CNS) malignancy originating from the walls of the ventricular system. Surgical resection followed by radiation therapy has been the primary treatment for most pediatric intracranial EPNs. Despite numerous studies into the prognostic value of histological classification, the extent of surgical resection and adjuvant radiotherapy, there have been relatively few studies into the molecular and cellular biology of EPNs. RESULTS: We elucidated the ultrastructure of the cultured EPN cells and characterized their profile of immunophenotypic pluripotency markers (CD133, CD90, SSEA-3, CXCR4). We established an experimental EPN model by the intracerebroventricular infusion of EPN cells labeled with multimodal iron oxide nanoparticles (MION), thereby generating a tumor and providing a clinically relevant animal model. MRI analysis was shown to be a valuable tool when combined with effective MION labeling techniques to accompany EPN growth. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that GFAP/CD133+CD90+/CD44+ EPN cells maintained key histopathological and growth characteristics of the original patient tumor. The characterization of EPN cells and the experimental model could facilitate biological studies and preclinical drug screening for pediatric EPNs. METHODS: In this work, we established notoriously challenging primary cell culture of anaplastic EPNs (WHO grade III) localized in the posterior fossa (PF), using EPNs obtained from 1 to 10-year-old patients (n = 07), and then characterized their immunophenotype and ultrastructure to finally develop a xenograft model.

Prediction of intracranial hypertension through noninvasive intracranial pressure waveform analysis in pediatric hydrocephalus.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate a noninvasive device to assess intracranial pressure wave form in children with hydrocephalus. METHODS: A prospective and non-experimental descriptive-analytic study was performed. Fifty-six patients were enrolled in this study. They were divided in four groups: group A, children with clinically compensated hydrocephalus; B, surgically treated hydrocephalus; C, patients with acute intracranial hypertension due to hydrocephalus; and D, children without neurological disease (control). Data were collected through the installation of an extracranial deformation sensor, coupled to the children's scalp, which allowed registration of noninvasive intracranial pressure curves. Parameters obtained were analyzed: P2/P1 ratio, "classification P1 and P2 and P1 slope. RESULTS: P2/P1 index and "classification of P1 and P2" had a sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 100% for predicting intracranial hypertension. "P1 slope" presented no statistical difference. CONCLUSION: This study showed a useful and noninvasive method for monitoring intracranial pressure, which was able to indicate the intracranial hypertension in children with hydrocephalus and, thus, should be further investigated for clinical applications.

Panic-modulating effects of alprazolam, moclobemide and sumatriptan in the rat elevated T-maze.

The elevated T-maze was developed to test the hypothesis that serotonin plays an opposing role in the regulation of defensive behaviors associated with anxiety and panic. Previous pharmacological exploitation of this test supports the association between inhibitory avoidance acquisition and escape expression with anxiety and fear/panic, respectively. In the present study, we extend the pharmacological validation of this test by investigating the effects of other putative or clinically effective anxiety- and panic-modulating drugs. The results showed that chronic, but not acute injection of the reversible monoamine oxidase-A inhibitor moclobemide (3, 10 and 30mg/kg) inhibited escape expression, indicating a panicolytic-like effect. The same effect was observed after either acute or chronic treatment with alprazolam (1, 2 and 4mg/kg), a high potency benzodiazepine. This drug also impaired inhibitory avoidance acquisition, suggesting an anxiolytic effect. On the other hand, subcutaneous administration of the 5-HT1D/1B receptor agonist sumatriptan (0.1, 0.5 and 2.5µg/kg) facilitated escape performance, indicating a panicogenic-like effect, while treatment with α-para-chlorophenylalanine (p-CPA; 4days i.p injections of 100mg/kg, or a single i.p injection of 300mg/kg), which caused marked 5-HT depletion in the amygdala and striatum, was without effect. Altogether, these results are in full agreement with the clinical effects of these compounds and offer further evidence that the elevated T-maze has broad predictive validity for the effects of anxiety- and panic-modulating drugs.

Telehealth in Brazil: Contemporary Tool for Access to Health.

This work raises questions about telehealth in Brazil, especially the areas of diagnosis, treatment and monitoring at distance, emphasizing its importance for the improvement of health conditions. It was based on a literature review. Three successful experiences were selected as examples: The Minas Gerais Project Telecardio, the São Paulo University Teleaudiology and Telerehabilitiation of UnB. Despite the increase of telehealth experiences in Brazil, much remains to be done in regard to diagnosis, treatment and follow-up, with potential positive effects on health.

Morphology, ultrastructure and mineral uptake is affected by copper toxicity in young plants of Inga subnuda subs. luschnathiana (Benth.) T.D. Penn.

Toxic effects of copper (Cu) were analyzed in young plants of Inga subnuda subs. luschnathiana, a species that is highly tolerant to flooding and found in Brazil in wetlands contaminated with Cu. Plants were cultivated in fully nutritive solution, containing different concentrations of Cu (from 0.08 µmol to 0.47 mmol L(-1)). Symptoms of Cu toxicity were observed in both leaves and roots of plants cultivated from 0.16 mmol Cu L(-1). In the leaves, Cu clearly induced alterations in the thickness of the epidermis, mesophyll, palisade parenchyma, and intercellular space of the lacunose parenchyma. Also, this metal induced disorganization in thylakoid membranes, internal and external membrane rupture in chloroplasts, mitochondrial alterations, and electrodense material deposition in vacuoles of the parenchyma and cell walls. The starch grains disappeared; however, an increase of plastoglobule numbers was observed according to Cu toxicity. In the roots, destruction of the epidermis, reduction of the intercellular space, and modifications in the format of initial cells of the external cortex were evident. Cell walls and endoderm had been broken, invaginations of tonoplast and vacuole retractions were found, and, again, electrodense material was observed in these sites. Mineral nutrient analysis revealed higher Cu accumulation in the roots and greater macro- and micronutrients accumulation into shoots. Thus, root morphological and ultrastructural changes induced differential nutrients uptake and their translocations from root toward shoots, and this was related to membrane and endoderm ruptures caused by Cu toxicity.

Níveis de cálcio na manutenção da qualidade interna de ovos de codornas japonesas após armazenamento / Levels of calcium in the maintenance of internal egg quality of Japanese quails after storage

O objetivo com este estudo foi avaliar a influência de níveis crescentes de cálcio na dieta na melhoria da qualidade externa e consequente manutenção da qualidade interna de ovos de codornas em final de produção, armazenados por 14 dias em temperatura ambiente. Foram utilizadas 400 codornas japonesas com 46 a 58 semanas de idade, distribuídas em um delineamento inteiramente casualizado onde foram testados cinco níveis de cálcio: 2,95%, 3,25%, 3,55%, 3,85%, 4,15% Ca. Os parâmetros avaliados foram: espessura de casca, peso e porcentagem de casca, porcentagem de gema, porcentagem de albúmen, peso médio dos ovos e a perda de peso de ovos de codornas. Os resultados mostraram que os níveis crescentes de cálcio promoveram após o período de armazenamento (P<0,05) melhor espessura da casca, maior porcentagem de gema, menor porcentagem de albúmen e aumento no peso dos ovos sem influenciar significativamente o peso, porcentagem de casca e a perda de peso de ovos de codornas após o armazenamento em temperatura ambiente por 14 dias. Concluiu-se que a inclusão de níveis crescentes de cálcio na ração foi eficiente na manutenção da qualidade interna de ovos de codornas japonesas após o armazenamento em temperatura ambiente por 14 dias.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of increasing levels of dietary calcium in improving the external quality and consequent maintenance of internal quality quail eggs at the end of production, stored for 14 days at room temperature. 400 Japanese quails with 46-58 weeks of age, distributed in a completely randomized design where they were tested five calcium levels: 2.95%, 3.25%, 3.55%, 3.85%, 4.15% Ca. The parameters evaluated were: shell thickness, weight and percentage of shell, percentage of yolk, albumen percentage, average egg weight and weight loss of quail eggs. The results showed that increasing levels of calcium promoted after the storage period (P <0.05) better skin thickness, higher percentage of yolk, albumen and a lower percentage of increase in egg weight without significantly influence the weight percentage of bark and weight loss quail eggs after storage at room temperature for 14 days. It was concluded that the increasing levels of calcium in the diet was effective in maintaining the internal egg quality of Japanese quails after room temperature storage for 14 days.