Sewage contamination under water scarcity effects on stream biota: biofilm, grazers, and their interaction.

One of the most common anthropogenic impacts on river ecosystems is the effluent discharge from wastewater treatment plants. The effects of this contamination on stream biota may be intensified in Mediterranean climate regions, which comprise a drought period that leads to flow reduction, and ultimately to stagnant pools. To assess individual and combined effects of flow stagnation and sewage contamination, biofilm and gastropod grazers were used in a 5-week experiment with artificial channels to test two flow velocity treatments (stagnant flow/basal flow) and two levels of organic contamination using artificial sewage (no sewage input/sewage input). Stressors' effects were determined on biofilm total biomass and chlorophyll (Chl) content, on oxygen consumption and growth rate of the grazers (Theodoxus fluviatilis), and on the interaction grazer-biofilm given by grazer's feeding activity (i.e., biofilm consumption rate). The single effect of sewage induced an increase in biofilm biomass and Chl-a content, simultaneously increasing both grazers' oxygen consumption and their feeding activity. Diatoms showed a higher sensitivity to flow stagnation, resulting in a lower content of Chl-c. Combined stressors interacted antagonistically for biofilm total biomass, Chl-b contents, and grazers's feeding rate. The effect of sewage increasing biofilm biomass and grazing activity was reduced by the presence of flow stagnation (antagonist factor). Our findings suggest that sewage contamination has a direct effect on the functional response of primary producers and an indirect effect on primary consumers, and this effect is influenced by water flow stagnation.

Water quality assessment of rivers using diatom metrics across Mediterranean Europe: a methods intercalibration exercise.

The European Water Framework Directive establishes a framework for the protection of water resources. However, common water management tools demand common understanding of assessment methods, so quality goals are equally met. Intercalibration of methods ensures the comparability of biological elements across similar geographical areas. Many aspects can influence the outcome of intercalibration: data sampling, treatment methods, taxonomic reliability of databases, choice of metrics for ecological quality status classification, and criteria for selecting reference sites. This study describes the potentials and constraints of the intercalibration of indices using diatoms for assessment of Mediterranean rivers. Harmonisation of diatom taxonomy and nomenclature was based on a previous ring test which took place at the European level. Four diatom indices (Indice de Polluosensibilité Spécifique-IPS, Indice Biologique Diatomées-IBD 2007, Intercalibration Common Metric Italy-ICMi and Slovenian Ecological Status assessment system) were intercalibrated using data from six European Mediterranean countries (Cyprus, France, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain). Boundaries between High/Good and Good/Moderate quality classes were harmonised by means of the Intercalibration Common Metric (ICM). Comparability between countries was assured through boundary bias and class agreement. The national boundaries were adjusted when they deviated more than a quarter of a class equivalent (0.25) from the global mean. All national methods correlated well with the ICM, which was sensitive to water quality (negatively correlated to nutrients). Achnanthidium minutissimum sensu lato was the most discriminative species of Good ecological status class. Planothidium frequentissimum, Gomphonema parvulum and Nitzschia palea were the most contributive to Moderate ecological status class. Some taxa were discriminative for both Good and Moderate ecological status classes due to low indication and ecological discriminative power but also due to differences in taxonomy between countries. This intercalibration exercise allowed establishment of common water quality goals across Mediterranean Europe, which is substantiated with the ICM.

Granuloma piogénico de gran tamaño: reporte de un caso / Pyogenic granuloma: case report

El Granuloma Piogénico (GP) es una lesión no neoplásica de la cavidad bucal y de la piel relativamente poco frecuente y extremadamente rara en el tracto gastrointestinal. En la cavidad bucal donde es a menudo encontrada sobre tejido queratinizado. Se considera una hiperplasia inflamatoria. Clínicamente es una lesión uniforme o exofítica lobulada, pequeña, pápulas rojas eritematosas sobre una base pediculada o a veces sésil y que habitualmente sangra. El diámetro varía de pocos milímetros a varios centímetros. El propósito de este artículo es presentar un caso de Granuloma Piogénico, y valorar los factores que intervienen en su patogenia, así como la clínica, diagnóstico diferencial y tratamiento

Pyogenic granuloma (PG) is a non-neoplastic tumor lesion of the bucal cavity and skin relatively rare and extremely rare in the gastrointestinal tract. In the bucal cavity where it is often found on keratinized tissue. It is considered an inflammatory hyperplasia. Clinically it is an uniform or lobulated exophytic lesion, small, red erythematous papules on a pedunculated or sometimes sessile base that usually bleed. The diameter varies from a few millimeters to several centimeters. The purpose of this paper is to present a case of pyogenic granuloma, and evaluate the factors involved in its pathogenesis and the clinical differential diagnosis and treatment

Flúor e sua atuação sobre os pacientes especiais / Fluoride and its action on special care in dentistry

Este artigo é uma revisão da literatura sobre os vários aspectos da utilização do flúor, com relação à sua administração no universo dos chamados Pacientes Especiais, seus efeitos colaterais e suas particularidades

Atenção odontológica aos pacientes especiais / Dental attention to special patients

Os autores fazem uma abordagem dos problemas odontológicos com relação aos chamados pacientes clínicamente comprometidos, sendo analisado os distúrbios físicos e clínicos com o desenvolvimento de ordem geral e oral