Effects of meteo-oceanographic conditions on the weathering processes of oil spills in northeastern Brazil.

This paper presents the graphical results of the Lagrangian-model and the weathering processes associated with oil spills in the tropical South Atlantic, taking into account the meteorological and oceanographic conditions of the study region. The scenarios were created in the Brazilian-NE waters adjacent, with simulation times of 670 h, and densities of 35, 25, and 15API with volume of 1590 m3 were considered. The main results showed that the meteo-oceanographic characteristics of the study region influence the trajectories and weathering processes in the oil spill. The trajectories varied for each launch point and reached the continent severely in January and October. The associated weathering processes showed higher rates in September and lower rates in April, indicative of the influence of phenomena such as Intertropical Tropical Convergence Zone and warm pool in the South Atlantic region. Sea surface temperature and wind speed are key factors that correlate positively with these months.

Quantitative ecological risk assessment of oil spills: The case of the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago.

The upward trend in maritime oil transport increases the risk of oil spills, which have the potential to cause considerable damage to the marine environment. Therefore, a formal approach to quantify such risks is required. In mid-2010, a conservative Quantitative Ecological Risk Assessment based on population modeling, was performed in the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago. In this research, we enhance a previous assessment using the following models: (i) a Lagrangian approach to perform oil spill simulations, and (ii) the estimated frequency of accidents aggregating databases and expert opinions through a Bayesian-based method. Then, we quantify ecological risks as probabilities of half loss (i.e., 50 % population size decline) of a representative species of the archipelago's ecosystem. The results are summarized into risk categories to be straightforwardly communicated to the general public and provide reliable information that can aid decision-makers in coping with these events.

Axial Axis Metastasis.

Axial axis metastasis remains a challenge for surgical as well as other treatment modalities, like chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy. It is unequivocal that surgery provides pain improvements and preservation of neurological status, but this condition remains when associated with radiotherapy and other treatment modalities. In this review, we emphasize the current forms of surgical treatment in the different regions of the spine and pelvis. The evident possibility of percutaneous treatments is related to early or late cases, and in cases in which there are greater risks and instability to conventional surgeries associated with radiotherapy and have been shown to be the appropriate option for local control of metastatic disease.

Axial Axis Metastasis / Metástase do eixo axial

Abstract Axial axis metastasis remains a challenge for surgical as well as other treatment modalities, like chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy. It is unequivocal that surgery provides pain improvements and preservation of neurological status, but this condition remains when associated with radiotherapy and other treatment modalities. In this review, we emphasize the current forms of surgical treatment in the different regions of the spine and pelvis. The evident possibility of percutaneous treatments is related to early or late cases, and in cases in which there are greater risks and instability to conventional surgeries associated with radiotherapy and have been shown to be the appropriate option for local control of metastatic disease.

Resumo As metástases no eixo axial permanecem um desafio para o tratamento cirúrgico bem como para outras modalidades, como quimioterapia, imunoterapia e radioterapia. É inequívoco que a cirurgia proporciona melhorias na dor e na preservação do status neurológico; porém, há permanência desta condição quando associada à radioterapia e a outras modalidades de tratamento. Nesta revisão damos ênfase às formas de tratamento cirúrgico atuais nas diferentes regiões da coluna vertebral e pelve. A evidente possibilidade de tratamentos percutâneos está relacionada a casos iniciais ou tardios, bem como a casos em que há maiores riscos e instabilidade às cirurgias convencionais associadas à radioterapia, e tem se mostrado a opção adequada para o controle local da doença metastática.

A probabilistic epidemiological model for infectious diseases: The case of COVID-19 at global-level.

This study has developed a probabilistic epidemiological model a few weeks after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic (based on the little data available at that time). The aim was to assess relative risks for future scenarios and evaluate the effectiveness of different management actions for 1 year ahead. We quantified, categorized, and ranked the risks for scenarios such as business as usual, and moderate and strong mitigation. We estimated that, in the absence of interventions, COVID-19 would have a 100% risk of explosion (i.e., more than 25% infections in the world population) and 34% (2.6 billion) of the world population would have been infected until the end of simulation. We analyzed the suitability of model scenarios by comparing actual values against estimated values for the first 6 weeks of the simulation period. The results proved to be more suitable with a business-as-usual scenario in Asia and moderate mitigation in the other continents. If everything went on like this, we would have 55% risk of explosion and 22% (1.7 billion) of the world population would have been infected. Strong mitigation actions in all continents could reduce these numbers to, 7% and 3% (223 million), respectively. Although the results were based on the data available in March 2020, both the model and probabilistic approach proved to be practicable and could be a basis for risk assessment in future pandemic episodes with unknown virus, especially in the early stages, when data and literature are scarce.

Identifying low-quality patterns in accident reports from textual data.

Accident investigation reports provide useful knowledge to support companies to propose preventive and mitigative measures. However, the information presented in accident report databases is normally large, complex, filled with errors and has missing and/or redundant data. In this article, we propose text mining and natural language processing techniques to investigate low-quality accident reports. We adopted machine learning (ML) to detect and investigate inconsistencies on accident reports. The methodology was applied to 626 documents collected from an actual hydroelectric power company. The initial ML performances indicated data divergences and concerns related to the report structure. Then, the accident database was restructured to a more proper form confirming the supposition about the quality of the reports investigated. The proposed approach can be used as a diagnostic tool to improve the design of accident investigation reports to provide a more useful source of knowledge to support decisions in the safety context.

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 on health professionals via Bayesian estimation: a Brazilian case study before and after vaccines.

The increasing number of COVID-19 infections brought by the current pandemic has encouraged the scientific community to analyze the seroprevalence in populations to support health policies. In this context, accurate estimations of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies based on antibody tests metrics (e.g., specificity and sensitivity) and the study of population characteristics are essential. Here, we propose a Bayesian analysis using IgA and IgG antibody levels through multiple scenarios regarding data availability from different information sources to estimate the seroprevalence of health professionals in a Northeastern Brazilian city: no data available, data only related to the test performance, data from other regions. The study population comprises 432 subjects with more than 620 collections analyzed via IgA/IgG ELISA tests. We conducted the study in pre- and post-vaccination campaigns started in Brazil. We discuss the importance of aggregating available data from various sources to create informative prior knowledge. Considering prior information from the USA and Europe, the pre-vaccine seroprevalence means are 8.04% and 10.09% for IgG and 7.40% and 9.11% for IgA. For the post-vaccination campaign and considering local informative prior, the median is 84.83% for IgG, which confirms a sharp increase in the seroprevalence after vaccination. Additionally, stratification considering differences in sex, age (younger than 30 years, between 30 and 49 years, and older than 49 years), and presence of comorbidities are provided for all scenarios.

Treatment of Metastasis in the Appendicular Skeleton.

Bone metastases may evolve with events (pain, fractures and compression) that the orthopedic surgeon will encounter regardless of his subspecialty. Accumulated surgical knowledge is predictive for the prevention of impending fractures, as well as of pathological fractures. We will present a guide to properly evaluate and conduct a patient with bone implant for surgeons who are not specialists in this area.

Risk-based cost-benefit analysis of alternative vaccines against COVID-19 in Brazil: Coronavac vs. Astrazeneca vs. Pfizer.

We propose a probabilistic model to quantify the cost-benefit of mass Vaccination Scenarios (VSs) against COVID-19. Through this approach, we conduct a six-month simulation, from August 31st, 2021 to March 3rd, 2022, of nine VSs, i.e., the three primary vaccine brands in Brazil (CoronaVac, AstraZeneca and Pfizer), each with three different vaccination rates (2nd doses per week). Since each vaccine has different individual-level effectiveness, we measure the population-level benefit as the probability of reaching herd immunity (HI). We quantify and categorize the cost-benefit of VSs through risk graphs that show: (i) monetary cost vs. probability of reaching HI; and (ii) number of new deaths vs. probability of reaching HI. Results show that AstraZeneca has the best cost-benefit when prioritizing acquisition costs, while Pfizer is the most cost-beneficial when prioritizing the number of deaths. This work provides helpful information that can aid public health authorities in Brazil to better plan VSs. Furthermore, our approach is not restricted to Brazil, the COVID-19 pandemic, or the mentioned vaccine brands. Indeed, the method is flexible so that this study can be a valuable reference for future cost-benefit analyses in other countries and pandemics, especially in the early stages of vaccination, when data is scarce and uncertainty is high.

Treatment of Metastasis in the Appendicular Skeleton / Tratamento das metástases no esqueleto apendicular

Abstract Bone metastases may evolve with events (pain, fractures and compression) that the orthopedic surgeon will encounter regardless of his subspecialty. Accumulated surgical knowledge is predictive for the prevention of impending fractures, as well as of pathological fractures. We will present a guide to properly evaluate and conduct a patient with bone implant for surgeons who are not specialists in this area.

Resumo As metástases ósseas podem evoluir com eventos (dor, fraturas e compressão) com os quais o cirurgião ortopédico irá se depararar independentemente da sua subespecialidade. Os conhecimentos cirúrgicos acumulados são predicativos para a prevenção de fraturas iminentes, assim como de fraturas patológicas. Apresentaremos um guia para avaliar e conduzir de forma adequada um paciente com implante ósseo para cirurgiões que não sejam especialistas na área.

SerumCovid database: Description and preliminary analysis of serological COVID-19 diagnosis in healthcare workers.

Serological databases represent an important source of information to perceive COVID-19 impact on health professionals involved in combating the disease. This paper describes SerumCovid, a COVID-19 serological database focused on the diagnosis of health professionals, providing a preliminary analysis to contribute to the understanding of the antibody response to the SARS-CoV-2. The study population comprises 321 samples from 236 healthcare and frontline workers fighting COVID-19 in Vitória de Santo Antão, Brazil. Samples were collected from at least six days of symptoms to more than 100 days. The used immunoenzymatic assays were Euroimmun Anti-SARS-CoV-2 ELISA IgG and IgA. The most common gender in SerumCovid is female, while the most common age group is between 30 and 39 years old. However, no statistical differences were observed in either genders or age categories. The most reported symptoms were fatigue, headaches, and myalgia. Still, some subjects presented positive results for IgA after 130 days. Based on a temporal analysis, we have not identified general patterns as subjects presented high and low values of IgA and IgG with different evolution trends. Unexpectedly, for subjects with both serological tests, the outcome of IgA and IgG tests were the same (either positive or negative) for more than 80% of the samples. Therefore, SerumCovid helps better understand how COVID-19 affected healthcare and frontline workers, which increases knowledge about the infection and enables direct prevention actions.

Evaluation of Intramedullary Methods with Polymethylmethacrylate for Fixation of Bone Lesions of the Extremities.

Objective To evaluate the better potential and functional results in pain control in the treatment of pathological fractures and prophylactic fixation with an intramedullary nail associated with polymethylmethacrylate, compared with the utilization of an intramedullary nail in long bone tumor lesions. Methods From January 2012 to September 2017, 38 patients with 42 pathological lesions (fractures or impending fractures according to the Mirels criteria) were treated surgically. Sixteen patients allocated to the control group underwent a locked intramedullary nail fixation, and 22 patients with pathological lesions were allocated to treatment with an intramedullary nail associated with polymethylmethacrylate. Postoperatively, the patients were submitted to the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) rating scale, radiographic assessment, and to the assessment of events and complications related to the treatment. Results The evaluation using the MSTS questionnaire showed better functional results in the group associated with polymethylmethacrylate, in comparison with the control group, which obtained an average score of 16.375 out of a maximum of 30 points (54.6%). The group studied with association with polymethylmethacrylate obtained a mean of 22.36 points (74.5%). The procedure proved to be safe, with similar complication and severity rates, and with no statistical difference in comparison with the standard treatment. Conclusion Stabilization of tumor lesions with an internal fixation associated with the polymethylmethacrylate demonstrated early rehabilitation and improved the quality of life, allowing rapid functional recovery. The use of polymethylmethacrylate has advantages such as reduced bleeding, tumor necrosis and higher mechanical stability.

Evaluation of Intramedullary Methods with Polymethylmethacrylate for Fixation of Bone Lesions of the Extremities / Avaliação de métodos intramedulares com polimetilmetacrilato para fixação em lesões ósseas de extremidades

Abstract Objective To evaluate the better potential and functional results in pain control in the treatment of pathological fractures and prophylactic fixation with an intramedullary nail associated with polymethylmethacrylate, compared with the utilization of an intramedullary nail in long bone tumor lesions. Methods From January 2012 to September 2017, 38 patients with 42 pathological lesions (fractures or impending fractures according to the Mirels criteria) were treated surgically. Sixteen patients allocated to the control group underwent a locked intramedullary nail fixation, and 22 patients with pathological lesions were allocated to treatment with an intramedullary nail associated with polymethylmethacrylate. Postoperatively, the patients were submitted to the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) rating scale, radiographic assessment, and to the assessment of events and complications related to the treatment. Results The evaluation using the MSTS questionnaire showed better functional results in the group associated with polymethylmethacrylate, in comparison with the control group, which obtained an average score of 16.375 out of a maximum of 30 points (54.6%). The group studied with association with polymethylmethacrylate obtained a mean of 22.36 points (74.5%). The procedure proved to be safe, with similar complication and severity rates, and with no statistical difference in comparison with the standard treatment. Conclusion Stabilization of tumor lesions with an internal fixation associated with the polymethylmethacrylate demonstrated early rehabilitation and improved the quality of life, allowing rapid functional recovery. The use of polymethylmethacrylate has advantages such as reduced bleeding, tumor necrosis and higher mechanical stability.

Resumo Objetivo Avaliar o potencial melhor resultado funcional e controle álgico no tratamento de fraturas patológicas e fixações profiláticas tratadas com haste intramedular associada ao polimetilmetacrilato (PMMA) em comparação com o uso de haste intramedular em lesões tumorais em ossos longos. Métodos De janeiro de 2012 a setembro de 2017, 38 pacientes com 42 lesões patológicas (fraturas ou iminência segundo os critérios de Mirels) foram tratados cirurgicamente. Dezesseis pacientes submetidos a fixação com haste intramedular bloqueada foram alocados ao grupo controle e 22 pacientes com lesões patológicas foram alocados para tratamento com haste intramedular associada ao PMMA. No pósoperatório, foi realizada a submissão dos pacientes ao escore da Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS, na sigla em inglês) e à avaliação radiográfica do tratamento realizado, assim como à avaliação de intercorrências e complicações relacionadas ao tratamento. Resultados A avaliação através do questionário MSTS demonstrou melhor resultado funcional do grupo associado com PMMA quando comparado com o grupo controle, o qual obteve uma pontuação média de 16,375 em um máximo de 30 pontos (54,6%), enquanto o grupo em estudo com associação do PMMA obteve uma média de 22,36 pontos (74,5%). O procedimento mostrou-se seguro, taxas de complicações e gravidade semelhantes e sem diferença estatística quando comparado com o tratamento padrão. Conclusão A estabilização de lesões tumorais com fixação associada ao PMMA demonstrou reabilitação precoce e melhora na qualidade de vida, permitindo rápida recuperação funcional. A utilização do PMMA apresenta vantagens como diminuição do sangramento e da necrose tumoral e maior estabilidade mecânica.

Parasitic encephalitis caused by Stephanurus dentatus in a pig in Brazil.

A pig was in left lateral recumbency with limb spasticity, accentuated prostration, and strabismus, and was euthanized. During autopsy, yellowing of the leptomeninges at the ventral pons to medulla oblongata was noted. In the cerebellar peduncles, there was a focally extensive black-to-yellow area at the level of the vestibular nuclei. Histologic examination revealed a cross-section of a nematode larva, consistent with Stephanurus dentatus, bordered by edema and marked infiltration of mononuclear cells, plasma cells, and a few eosinophils. Vacuolation of the neuropil, with rare gitter cells and axonal spheroids, was also observed. We diagnosed parasitic encephalitis caused by S. dentatus migration based on the pathology findings and characterization of the parasite.

Long-term supplementation with phenolic compounds from jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) reduces adiposophaty and improves glucose, lipid, and energy metabolism.

Obesity is a critical public health problem worldwide that has been associated to non-communicable diseases (NCD), such as type 2 diabetes (T2DM), non-alcoholic fatty lipid diseases (NAFLD) and inflammatory diseases. Polyphenols from several food sources have been studied as one option against these health problems. Sabara jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) is a Brazilian berry rich in ellagic acid derivatives and anthocyanins. Here we investigated the effects of a phenolic-rich extract from Sabara jaboticaba (PEJ) in a diet-induced obesity animal model. PEJ at two doses, 50 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/kg body weight (BW) and 100 mg GAE/kg BW, were administered by daily gavage to obese C57BL/6J mice for 14 weeks. PEJ prevented the excessive body weight and adiposity, adipocyte hypertrophy, inflammation, hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, hypercholesterolemia, and hepatic lipid accumulation, as well as increased energy expenditure. In conclusion, polyphenols from Sabara jaboticaba presented several powerful therapeutic properties relevant for fighting obesity and associated health problems.

Convolutional neural network model based on radiological images to support COVID-19 diagnosis: Evaluating database biases.

As SARS-CoV-2 has spread quickly throughout the world, the scientific community has spent major efforts on better understanding the characteristics of the virus and possible means to prevent, diagnose, and treat COVID-19. A valid approach presented in the literature is to develop an image-based method to support COVID-19 diagnosis using convolutional neural networks (CNN). Because the availability of radiological data is rather limited due to the novelty of COVID-19, several methodologies consider reduced datasets, which may be inadequate, biasing the model. Here, we performed an analysis combining six different databases using chest X-ray images from open datasets to distinguish images of infected patients while differentiating COVID-19 and pneumonia from 'no-findings' images. In addition, the performance of models created from fewer databases, which may imperceptibly overestimate their results, is discussed. Two CNN-based architectures were created to process images of different sizes (512 × 512, 768 × 768, 1024 × 1024, and 1536 × 1536). Our best model achieved a balanced accuracy (BA) of 87.7% in predicting one of the three classes ('no-findings', 'COVID-19', and 'pneumonia') and a specific balanced precision of 97.0% for 'COVID-19' class. We also provided binary classification with a precision of 91.0% for detection of sick patients (i.e., with COVID-19 or pneumonia) and 98.4% for COVID-19 detection (i.e., differentiating from 'no-findings' or 'pneumonia'). Indeed, despite we achieved an unrealistic 97.2% BA performance for one specific case, the proposed methodology of using multiple databases achieved better and less inflated results than from models with specific image datasets for training. Thus, this framework is promising for a low-cost, fast, and noninvasive means to support the diagnosis of COVID-19.

Phenolic compounds from jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) ameliorate intestinal inflammation and associated endotoxemia in obesity.

Jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) is a Brazilian native fruit belonging to the Myrtaceae family. Previously it was demonstrated that phenolic-rich extracts from jaboticaba (PEJ) possess health-beneficial properties in diet-induced obesity; however, whether PEJ modulates the obesity-associated intestinal inflammatory status remains unclear. Thus, male C57BL/6J obese mice were fed a high-fat-sugar (HFS) diet and received PEJ at two doses, 50 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/kg body weight (BW) (PEJ1 group), and 100 mg GAE/kg BW (PEJ2 group), or water (HFS group) by oral gavage for 14 weeks. PEJ groups presented a reduced body weight gain and adiposity and were protected against insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. In addition, PEJ prevented metabolic endotoxemia linked to an attenuation of the HFS diet-induced intestinal inflammation via down-regulation of pro-inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), membrane transporter toll-like receptor-4 (TLR-4) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) in the colon. These anti-inflammatory effects appear to be involved, at least in part, with an inhibition of the colonic inflammasome pathway of obese mice.

Polyphenols of cambuci (Campomanesia phaea (O. Berg.)) fruit ameliorate insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis in obese mice.

Polyphenols from cambuci (CBC) (Campomanesia phaea (O. Berg.)), a Brazilian native fruit, were investigated on therapeutic actions mitigating insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis in high-fat-sucrose diet (HFS) induced obese mice. For this, C57BL/6J mice fed with a obesogenic and diabetogenic HFS diet were administered with either water or two CBC doses (36 or 74 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/kg body weight) by gavage from week 6 to week 14 (end-point) of HFS feeding. CBC reduced body weight gain, inflammation, hepatic steatosis, hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance, and insulin resistance in liver and skeletal muscle of obese mice, and such effects were associated with activation of Akt and AMPK in these tissues. In conclusion, polyphenols from CBC show important therapeutic actions ameliorating obesity-associated complications.

Effect of the phenolic compounds from Sabara jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell. ) Berg) in reducing health risks caused by obesity / Efeito dos compostos fenólicos da jabuticaba Sabará (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell. ) Berg) na redução dos riscos à saúde causados pela obesidade

Sabara jaboticaba (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) is a Brazilian native fruit from Atlantic Forest, rich in polyphenols and appreciated for consumption both in natura and in various preparations. This study aimed to evaluate whether phenolic compounds of Sabara jaboticaba, in the form of phenolic extract (PEJ), can reduce the health risks caused by obesity and associated health problems induced by a fat-sucrose-rich diet (HFSD) in C57BL/6J mice. Initially, for 14 weeks, 66 8-week-old male mice were randomly distributed into two groups: negative control (CH), fed with standard AIN96M diet and water ad libitum; positive control (HFS), fed with HFSD and water ad libitum. At the end of this stage, 10 animals from each group were euthanized under anesthesia and their organs and tissues collected. The remaining animals were redistributed into four groups for another 14 weeks: group CH, fed a standard diet and water; HFS group, fed with HFSD and water; PEJ1 group, fed with HFSD and PEJ at the dose of 50 mg equivalent of gallic acid (GAE)/kg of body weight (BW); group J100 fed with HFSD and PEJ at the dose of 100 mg GAE/kg BW. Food intake, BW, and fasting blood glucose (FBG) were measured weekly and water (CH and HFS) or PEJ (PEJ1 and PEJ2) were daily administered. In the 26th week the intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test (ipITT) was performed, in the 27th, the oral glucose tolerance test (oGTT), and, in the 28th, the analyzes related to energy homeostasis. At the end of the experiment, the animals were euthanized under anesthesia and their organs and tissues were collected. When compared to the HFS group, animals that received PEJ showed decrease in BW gain of approx. 30% and of approx. 45% in the gain of total white adipose tissues (WAT). In addition, the PEJ groups showed less hypertrophied adipocytes. Inflammation markers were significantly reduced in both treated groups. The FBG was approx. 13% lower for the PEJ groups compared to the HFS group. In addition, the mean values of ipITT, oGTT, insulin and HOMA-IR demonstrated that PEJ increased insulin sensitivity and decreased glucose intolerance. GLUT4 expression in the muscle was also increased in the treated groups. The fecal lipid content was lower in the PEJ groups when compared to the HFS group, suggesting that PEJ inhibited pancreatic lipase activity both in vitro and in vivo. In the PEJ groups, the levels of total cholesterol, LDL and NEFA were reduced and those of HDL increased. The hepatic concentration of TAG was also reduced by PEJ. Energy expenditure and UCP1 expression were higher for both supplemented groups when compared to the HFS group. PEJ positively altered the intestinal microbiota and the analysis of metabolites showed that animals treated with PEJ had different metabolomic profile. Together, these results demonstrated that polyphenols from jaboticaba may be used as adjuvants against obesity and associated health problems

A jabuticaba Sabará (Plinia jaboticaba (Vell.) Berg) é um fruto nativo da Mata Atlântica brasileira, rico em polifenóis e apreciado para o consumo tanto in natura quanto em preparos variados. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar se compostos fenólicos da jabuticaba Sabará, na forma de extrato fenólico (PEJ), são capazes de reduzir os riscos à saúde causados pela obesidade e problemas de saúde associados induzidos por uma dieta rica em lipídios e sacarose (HFSD) em camundongos C57BL/6J. Inicialmente, durante 14 semanas, 66 animais machos com oito semanas de vida foram distribuídos aleatoriamente em dois grupos: controle negativo (CH), alimentado com dieta padrão AIN96M e água ad libitum; controle positivo (HFS), alimentado com HFSD e água ad libitum. Ao final desta etapa, 10 animais de cada grupo foram eutanasiados sob anestesia e seus órgãos e tecidos coletados. Os animais restantes foram redistribuídos em quatro grupos por mais 14 semanas: grupo CH, alimentado com dieta padrão e água; grupo HFS, alimentado com HFSD e água; grupo PEJ1, alimentado com HFSD e PEJ na dose de 50 mg equivalente de ácido gálico (EAG)/kg de massa corporal (m.c.); grupo J100 alimentado com HFSD e PEJ na dose de 100 mg EAG/kg m.c. O consumo de ração, a massa corporal e a glicemia de jejum (FBG) foram medidos semanalmente e as gavagens de água (CH e HFS) ou PEJ (PEJ1 e PEJ2) foram realizadas diariamente. Na 26ª semana foi realizado o teste intraperitoneal de tolerância à insulina (ipITT), na 27ª o teste oral de tolerância à glicose (oGTT) e na 28ª as análises relacionadas a homeostase energética. Ao final do experimento os animais foram eutanasiados sob anestesia e seus órgãos e tecidos coletados. Quando comparados ao grupo HFS, animais que receberam o PEJ apresentaram ganho de massa corporal aprox. 30% menor e aprox. 45% menos massa total de tecidos adiposos brancos (TAB). Além disso, os grupos PEJ apresentaram adipócitos menos hipertrofiados. Marcadores de inflamação foram significativamente reduzidos em ambos os grupos tratados. A FBG foi aprox. 13% inferior para os grupos PEJ em relação ao grupo HFS. Além disso, os valores médios de ipITT, oGTT, insulina e HOMA-IR demonstraram que o PEJ aumentou a sensibilidade à insulina e diminuiu a intolerância à glicose. A expressão do GLUT4 no músculo estava aumentada nos grupos tratados. O conteúdo lipídico fecal dos grupos PEJ foi superior ao do grupo HFS, sugerindo que, assim como ocorreu in vitro, o extrato inibiu a atividade da lipase pancreática in vivo. Os níveis de colesterol total (PEJ1), LDL e NEFA foram reduzidos e os de HDL aumentados. A concentração hepática de TAG também foi reduzida pelo PEJ. O gasto energético e a expressão de UCP1 foram superiores para ambos os grupos suplementados quando comparados ao grupo HFS. PEJ alterou positivamente a microbiota intestinal e a análise de metabólitos mostrou que os animais tratados com PEJ possuíam perfil metabolômico diferente. Em conjunto, estes resultados demonstraram que os CFJS podem ser usados como adjuvantes no combate a obesidade e problemas de saúde associados

Digestive disorders associated with the consumption of palm fiber (Elaeis guineensis) in feedlot cattle / Distúrbios digestivos associados ao consumo de fibra de dendê (Elaeis guineensis) em bovinos criados em regime de confinamento

Digestive disorders in cattle are associated with the breeding system and feed provided to the animals. Abomasal compaction is primarily related to the ingestion of forage with elevated levels of lignin, low quality, and difficult digestibility. In addition, the excess of fibrous food in the diet can lead to phytobezoars that may be responsible for intestinal obstruction disorders. This study aimed to describe pathological and clinical aspects of an outbreak of digestive disorders associated with the consumption of palm fiber (Elaeis guineensis). The outbreak struck a herd of 499 animals raised in a feedlot system after a change in diet that included an increase in the amount of palm fiber. Forty (8.01%) animals showed clinical signs such as fattening and regurgitation during rumination, and 21 (4.2%) animals died later. The cattle affected presented with apathy, emaciation, dehydration, distended abdomen, incomplete or absent ruminal movements, and congestive mucosa. Three animals were submitted to necropsy, and distended rumen and reticulum has a large amount of brownish liquid, long and tangled vegetable fibers with sand and stones. In two animals, the omasum had many rounded structures measuring approximately 5cm in diameter, made of vegetable fiber (phytobezoars). Abomasum of animals had similar material to the rumen, and one animal had compressed content. In two animals, dilatation was observed in the small intestine, and in the opening, the total obstruction of the lumen by phytobezoar was observed. During the follow-up of the slaughter of 76 cattle, 15 (19.7%) had phytobezoars of different sizes in the omasum and abomasum. The increased amount of oil palm fiber in animal feeding favored the occurrence of compression abomasum and intestinal obstruction phytobezoa, causing significant economic losses.(AU)

Alguns distúrbios digestivos em bovinos podem estar associados ao sistema de criação e alimentação dos animais. Entre estes estão à compactação de abomaso e a obstrução intestinal por fitobezoários, ambas relacionadas principalmente com a ingestão de alimentos com altos níveis de lignina e, consequentemente, de difícil digestibilidade. Neste trabalho são descritos os aspectos clínicos e patológicos de um surto de distúrbios digestivos em bovinos associados ao consumo de fibra de dendê (Elaeis guineensis). O surto acometeu um rebanho de 499 bovinos, criados em sistema de confinamento, após uma mudança na dieta que incluiu o aumento na quantidade de fibra de dendê. Após a mudança 40 animais (8,01%) apresentaram diarreia, distensão abdominal e regurgitação durante a ruminação e 21 animais (4,2%) morreram. Os bovinos examinados clinicamente apresentavam sinais de apatia, emagrecimento, desidratação, abdômen distendido, movimentos ruminais incompletos e ausentes, além de mucosas congestas. Três animais foram submetidos à necropsia e observou-se rúmen e reticulo distendidos e com grande quantidade de líquido acastanhado, fibras vegetais longas e emaranhadas e presença de areia e pedras. Em dois animais o omaso continha grande número de estruturas arredondadas medindo aproximadamente 5cm de diâmetro, constituídas de fibras vegetais (fitobezoários). No abomaso dos animais havia material semelhante ao do rúmen, sendo que um animal apresentou conteúdo compactado e um deles também tinha fitobezoários. Em dois animais foram observadas dilatação e obstrução total do lúmen do intestino delgado por fitobezoários. Durante o acompanhamento do abate de 76 bovinos, 15 (19,7%) apresentavam fitobezoários de diferentes tamanhos no abomaso e omaso. O aumento da quantidade de fibra de dendê na alimentação dos animais favoreceu a ocorrência de casos de compactação de abomaso e obstrução intestinal por fitobezoários, ocasionando perdas econômicas significativas.(AU)