Phosphorus acquisition from phosphate rock by soil cover crops, maize, and a buckwheat-maize cropping system

Alternatives to enhance the consensual low phosphorus (P) use efficiency of agriculture may include use of phosphate rock (PR) and plant species with unequal ability to get soil and rock P interplanted in cropping systems to allow plants with higher ability to facilitate access to P of plants with lower ability. This study investigated (i) the maize and three soil cover crops on their capacity to acquire P from PR and (ii) measured P acquisition of maize interplanted with the soil cover crop with the highest capacity to acquire P shown in (i). Experiments were carried out in a greenhouse, with plants grown in single and mixed cropping in pots containing a sandy, low-P soil amended with Monocalcium Phosphate (McP) or the Brazilian PR Itafós. Plant biomass production with PR, in relation to McP, was 83.7 % for buckwheat, 83.6 % for forage radish, 51.8 % for maize, and 0.3 % for pigeon pea. Buckwheat showed capacity of acquiring P from PR; nevertheless, it did not increase growth or P nutrition of maize interplanted in the soil amended with PR, showing no significant P facilitation. The soil amended with McP showed competition between the two plants in the pots. Maize had a greater growth in mixed than in single cropping and this occurred at the expenses of buckwheat. Despite the P mobilization potential of buckwheat, its simple interplanting with maize did not produce positive results.

Late Pleistocene climatic changes promoted demographic expansion and population reconnection of a Neotropical savanna-adapted bird, Neothraupis fasciata (Aves: Thraupidae).

We performed phylogeographic and genetic structure analyses of Neothraupis fasciata joined with species distribution modelling to evaluate whether: (1) the distribution of genetic variability shows a pattern expected by the isolation-by-distance model; (2) the influence of the Pleistocene climate changes on species distribution; and (3) climate/climatic stability (hypothesis of climatic stability) as a predictor of population genetic diversity. Based on two molecular datasets (ND2 and FIB-5), the isolation-by-distance hypothesis was not supported. The mitochondrial haplotype network indicated the existence of historically isolated populations at the southern range of the species distribution, and recent population expansion was identified by both neutrality tests and extended Bayesian skyline plot analysis. Thus, the climatic changes during the Pleistocene might have promoted the reconnection of the partially isolated southern populations, which may have persisted in the plateaus during the cycles of savanna contractions. Subsequently, this species (re)colonized northern areas of the species present distribution, following the continuous vegetation on the São Francisco and Central plateaus about 60 kyr, and also reached the Amazonian savannas likely via the central corridor. Thus, our results indicated that the intrinsic relationship between the relief heterogeneity (plateaus and depressions) and the climatic fluctuations, mainly in the Pleistocene, promoted population reconnection and demographic expansion of N. fasciata.

Relationship between climatic factors and air quality with tuberculosis in the Federal District, Brazil, 2003-2012

Abstract Introduction: Despite the high rate of tuberculosis indicators in Brazil, the Federal District shows a low prevalence of the disease. Objective: To analyze the relationship between climatic factors and air quality with tuberculosis in the Brazilian Federal District. Methodology: This was an ecological and descriptive study comparing 3927 new cases of Tuberculosis registered at the Federal District Tuberculosis Control Program with data from the National Institute of Meteorology, Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, Brazilian Agricultural Research Institute, Brasilia Environmental Institute, and the Federal District Planning Company. Results: From 2003 to 2012, there has been a higher incidence of Tuberculosis (27.0%) in male patients in the winter (27.2%). Patients under 15 years of age (28.6%) and older than 64 years (27.1%) were more affected in the fall. For youth and adults (15-64 years), the highest number of cases was reported during winter (44.3%). The disease was prevalent with ultraviolet radiation over 17 MJ/m2 (67.8%; p = <0.001); relative humidity between 31.0% and 69.0% (95.8% of cases; p = <0.00); 12 h of daily sunlight or more (40.6%; p = 0.001); and temperatures between 20 °C and 23 °C (72.4%; p = <0.001). In the city of Taguatinga and surrounding area, pollution levels dropped to 15.2% between 2003 and 2012. Smoke levels decreased to 31.9%. In the Sobradinho region, particulate matter dropped to 13.1% and smoke to 19.3%, coinciding with the reduction of Tuberculosis incidence rates during the same period. Conclusion: The results should guide surveillance actions for Tuberculosis control and elimination and indicate the need to expand observation time to new climate indicators and air quality.

Relationship between climatic factors and air quality with tuberculosis in the Federal District, Brazil, 2003-2012.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the high rate of tuberculosis indicators in Brazil, the Federal District shows a low prevalence of the disease. OBJECTIVE: To analyze the relationship between climatic factors and air quality with tuberculosis in the Brazilian Federal District. METHODOLOGY: This was an ecological and descriptive study comparing 3927 new cases of Tuberculosis registered at the Federal District Tuberculosis Control Program with data from the National Institute of Meteorology, Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, Brazilian Agricultural Research Institute, Brasilia Environmental Institute, and the Federal District Planning Company. RESULTS: From 2003 to 2012, there has been a higher incidence of Tuberculosis (27.0%) in male patients in the winter (27.2%). Patients under 15 years of age (28.6%) and older than 64 years (27.1%) were more affected in the fall. For youth and adults (15-64 years), the highest number of cases was reported during winter (44.3%). The disease was prevalent with ultraviolet radiation over 17MJ/m2 (67.8%; p=<0.001); relative humidity between 31.0% and 69.0% (95.8% of cases; p=<0.00); 12h of daily sunlight or more (40.6%; p=0.001); and temperatures between 20°C and 23°C (72.4%; p=<0.001). In the city of Taguatinga and surrounding area, pollution levels dropped to 15.2% between 2003 and 2012. Smoke levels decreased to 31.9%. In the Sobradinho region, particulate matter dropped to 13.1% and smoke to 19.3%, coinciding with the reduction of Tuberculosis incidence rates during the same period. CONCLUSION: The results should guide surveillance actions for Tuberculosis control and elimination and indicate the need to expand observation time to new climate indicators and air quality.

Análise clínica e de citocinas no fluido gengival de pacientes com periodontite agressiva - estudo longitudinal / Clinical and cytokines analyzes on the gingival fluid of patients with aggressive periodontitis - longitudinal study

O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar os parâmetros clínicos periodontais: profundidade clínica de sondagem, nível clínico de inserção e sangramento a sondagem e os níveis de IL-17, M-CSF, GM-CSF, MCP-1, ICAM-1 IL-8, IL-10, IL-1?, TNF-?, IL-4 no fluido gengival de pacientes portadores de periodontite agressiva, comparando esses valores aos dados obtidos de sujeitos periodontalmente saudáveis, além de comparar os dados clínicos e imunológicos iniciais aos obtidos após um ano de tratamento nos pacientes com periodontite agressiva. Foram selecionados 37 pacientes portadores de periodontite agressiva e oito pacientes periodontalmente saudáveis, utilizados como grupo controle. Após a realização do exame clínico periodontal em todos os dentes, foi escolhido um sítio profundo de cada paciente com paeriodontite e um sítio raso dos pacientes saudáveis para coleta do fluido gengival. Todos os pacientes receberam tratamento periodontal que consistiu de orientação de higiene bucal, raspagens, remoção de fatores de retenção do biofilme bacteriano, polimento e uso de antibióticos. As amostras obtidas foram processadas e analisadas com um painel de 10 citocinas através de um ensaio multiplex. As análises estatísticas mostraram que não houve diferença estatisticamente significante entre os doentes e os saudáveis em relação a GM-CSF, IL-4, IL-8 e MCP-1.

Quando foi feita a comparação longitudinal dos pacientes com periodontite agressiva, houve aumento após o tratamento para GM-CSF, ICAM-1, IL-4, IL-10, IL-17, MCP-1 e TNF-?. Com isso, pode-se concluir que mesmo após o tratamento periodontal com consultas trimestrais de manutenção e melhora dos parâmetros clínicos nos pacientes com PA que tinham um baseline mais inflamado, foi observado que alguns biomarcadores continuaram elevados, o que pode significar que esses pacientes continuam a apresentar atividade de doença ou que alguns desses biomarcadores não têm significância clínica para esses pacientes.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the periodontal clinical parameters: clinical probing depth, clinical attachment level and bleeding on probing and the IL-17, M-CSF, GM-CSF, MCP-1, ICAM-1, IL-8, IL-10, IL-1?, TNF-? and IL-4 levels in gingival crevicular fluid of aggressive periodontitis subjects, comparing these values with some data obtained from periodontal healthy patients, and also comparing clinic and immunologic initial data with the obtained after one year of treatment of aggressive periodontitis. The sample had 37 patients with aggressive periodontitis and 8 subjects clinically healthy, as control group. After the full periodontal examination, each patient with periodontitis had a deep site chosen, and a shallow site of the healthy ones, for collecting gingival fluid. All patients received periodontal treatment with oral hygiene, scaling, removal of retention factors, polishing and antibiotics. The obtained samples were processed and analyzed with a panel of 10 cytokines through a multiplex test. The statistical analyzes showed that there was no significant statistical difference between subjects with PA and healthy subjects with regard to GM-CSF, IL-4, IL-8 and MCP-1 levels.When longitudinal comparison of the subjects was made, it was noted some increase for GM-CSF, ICAM-1, IL-4, IL-10, IL-17, MCP-1 and TNF-?. Then, it can be concluded that, even after the periodontal treatment with trimestral maintenance and improvement on the clinical parameters, some biomarkers are still elevated, what can mean one of those possibilities: or the patients are still presenting some activity of the disease, or that some of these biomarkers don't have any clinical significance for this patients.