Effects of chronic restraint stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats

Purpose: To investigate the effects of chronic stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats. Methods: Thirty-two male rats were assigned into four groups depending on the type of treatment (control or stressed) and the age at which stress was initiated (prepubertal or adult). Restraint stress stimuli were applied for six weeks. Stressed prepubertal and adult rats evaluated immediately after the last stress stimuli were named SP and SA groups, respectively. Age-matched rats were used as control groups (CP and CA). At the end of the experiment, the rats were euthanized, and prostate morphological parameters were evaluated and statistically compared. Results: Application of stress stimuli to the SP group resulted in reduced body weight, but no prostate morphological modification was noted. The SA group showed reduced testosterone level and prostatic epithelium surface density, in comparison to CA group. Further, the prostatic lumen surface density was increased in adult stressed animals, in comparison to adult controls. Conclusions: The stress stimuli promoted changes in hormonal and morphological parameters in the prostate of adult stressed rats. Prepubertal stressed animals did not presented modifications of prostate morphology.

Histomorphometric comparison of the corpus cavernosum of rats submitted to euthanasia with ketamine and xylazine or isoflurane

ABSTRACT Purpose: To compare the penile histoarchitecture of rats euthanized with isoflurane or with ketamine and xylazine. Methods: Fourteen male rats were divided into two groups: ISO, with animals euthanized with isoflurane; and K+X, with animals euthanized with ketamine (150 mg/kg) associated with xylazine (15 mg/kg). Immediately after the death, the penises were dissected, fixed in a 4% buffered formalin solution, and processed for histomorphometric analysis. The surface densities (Sv) of the corpus cavernosum structures (connective tissue, smooth muscle, sinusoidal space, and elastic fibers) were evaluated using Image J software. The distribution of collagen types I and III was qualitatively assessed. Statistical analyses were performed using the Student's t test for data comparison, considering it statistically significant when p < 0.05. Results: Regarding the Sv of connective tissue, smooth muscle and sinusoidal space, there were no differences between animals in both groups. On the other hand, the animals euthanized with the association of ketamine and xylazine showed the Sv of elastic fibers 24.8% higher in relation to animals euthanized with isoflurane. Conclusions: The euthanasia method affected one of the morphological parameters of the rat penises. The choice of euthanasia method must be standardized to reduce bias and to obtain reliable and reproducible results.

A fragilidade do sistema de saúde brasileiro e a vulnerabilidade social diante da COVID-19 / The fragility of the Brazilian health system and social vulnerability in front of COVID-19 / La debilidad del sistema de salud brasileño y la vulnerabilidad social ante la COVID-19

Objetivo: Demonstrar os possíveis impactos da pandemia da COVID-19, a vulnerabilidade social no cenário nacional e as possíveis medidas de contenção diante da nova pandemia. Métodos: Estudo bibliométrico exploratório no qual foram coletados dados dos últimos 10 anos nas seguintes plataformas de dados: Departamento de Informática do Sistema Único de Saúde (DATASUS), Informações em Saúde (TabNet) e Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE). Além disso, realizou-se uma busca em fontes secundárias (PubMed, Ministério da Saúde, Organização Mundial da Saúde, Periódicos CAPES e SciELO). Os descritores utilizados foram "ética baseada em princípios", "vulnerabilidade social", "bioética", "coronavírus", "pandemia". As análises e interpretações ocorreram entre fevereiro e março de 2020. Resultados: No Brasil, no período analisado, 25.262 casos de COVID-19 foram divulgados e 1.532 pessoas foram a óbito. Dados do IBGE de 2019 apontam cerca de 119,3 milhões de brasileiros vivendo em situação de miséria, com renda menor que um salário mínimo por mês. Além disso, segundo o Censo 2010, somente 3,8% da população brasileira tem acesso à água potável, o que pode dificultar medidas de prevenção. Conclusão: Há, diante do cenário da pandemia, a necessidade de uma maior atenção às pessoas que se encontram em vulnerabilidade social no Brasil.

Objective: To demonstrate the possible impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the social vulnerability on the national scene, and the possible controlling measures in the face of the new pandemic. Methods: This is an exploratory bibliometric study that collected data from the last 10 years on the following data platforms: Department of Informatics of the Unified Health System (DATASUS), Health Information (TabNet), and Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Moreover, a search was conducted on secondary sources (PubMed, Ministry of Health, World Health Organization, CAPES, and SciELO journals). The descriptors used were ethics based on principles, social vulnerability, bioethics, coronavirus, and pandemic. Analyzes and interpretations took place between February and March 2020. Results: In Brazil, 25,262 cases of COVID-19 were reported, and 1,532 people died in the period mentioned. IBGE data from 2019 point to about 119.3 million Brazilians living in extreme poverty, with income below one minimum wage per month. Besides, according to the 2010 Census, only 3.8% of the Brazilian population has access to drinking water, which can hinder preventive measures. Conclusion: Given the pandemic scenario, there is a need for more attention to people who are socially vulnerable in Brazil.

Objetivo: Demostrar los posibles impactos de la pandemia de la COVID-19, la vulnerabilidad social en el escenario nacional y las posibles medidas de restricción ante la nueva pandemia. Métodos: Estudio bibliométrico exploratorio en el cual se ha recogido datos de los últimos 10 años de las plataformas de datos a continuación: el Departamento de Informática del Sistema Único de Salud (DATASUS), las Informaciones de Salud (TabNet) e el Instituto Brasileño de Geografía y Estadística (IBGE). Además, se ha realizado una búsqueda de fuentes secundarias (PubMed, Ministerio de la Salud, Organización Mundial de la Salud, Periódicos CAPES y SciELO). Los descriptores utilizados fueron "ética basada en principios", "vulnerabilidad social", "bioética", "coronavirus", "pandemia". Los analices e interpretaciones se dieron entre febrero y marzo de 2020. Resultados: En Brasil, en el período analizado, 25.262 casos de COVID-19 han sido divulgados y, de ellos, 1.532 personas han muerto. Los datos del IBGE de 2019 apuntan cerca de 119,3 millones de brasileños viviendo en el estado de miseria con la renta menor que un sueldo mínimo al mes. Además de eso, según el Censo 2010, solamente el 3,8% de la población brasileña tiene el agua potable lo que puede dificultar las medidas de prevención. Conclusión: Ante el escenario de la pandemia existe la necesidad de más atención para las personas que están socialmente vulnerables en Brasil.