[Evolution of the serotypes causing invasive pneumococcal disease along 2008-2022 in a Level 2 Public Hospital of the Madrid Region, in relation to their inclusion in different conjugate vaccines]. / Evolución de los serotipos causantes de enfermedad neumocócica invasiva aislados durante 2008-2022 en un Hospital Público Madrileño de nivel dos, en relación con su inclusión en diferentes vacunas conjugadas.

OBJECTIVE: The use of conjugate vaccines against Streptococcus pneumoniae originates changes in the invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). The aim of this study was to in vestigate the evolution of S. pneumoniae serotypes isolated in the Hospital Universitario de Getafe between 2008 and 2022. METHODS: 313 of S. pneumoniae strains were studied. Serotyping was carried out by latex agglutination (Pneumotest-latex) and the Quellung reaction. In addition, the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined against penicillin, erythromycin and levofloxacin by the concentration gradient method (E-test) according the EUCAST breakpoints. RESULTS: The most frequent serotypes throughout the study period were 8, 3, 19A, 1, 11A and 22F corresponding to 46.6% of the isolates. Along 2008-2012 the serotypes 3, 1, 19A, 7F, 6C and 11A represented altogether 53.6% of the isolates. Between 2013 and 2017 the serotypes 3, 8, 12F, 19A, 22F and 19F grouped 51% of the isolates. During 2018-2022 the serotypes 8, 3, 11A, 15A, 4 and 6C included the 55.5% of the cases. In total 5 strains (1.6%) were penicillin resistant, 64 (20.4%) erythromycin resistant and 11 (3.5%) levofloxacin resistant. The MIC50 and MIC90 levels maintained stables along the time. CONCLUSIONS: The conjugate vaccines use with different serotype coverage conditioned a decrease of the vaccine-included and an increase of non-covered. Despite these changes, the global antimicrobial susceptibility patterns to erythromycin and levofloxacin maintained relatively stables. The resistance a penicillin was low, not finding this type of resistant strains in the last study period.

Hydraulic variability of tropical forests is largely independent of water availability.

Tropical rainforest woody plants have been thought to have uniformly low resistance to hydraulic failure and to function near the edge of their hydraulic safety margin (HSM), making these ecosystems vulnerable to drought; however, this may not be the case. Using data collected at 30 tropical forest sites for three key traits associated with drought tolerance, we show that site-level hydraulic diversity of leaf turgor loss point, resistance to embolism (P50 ), and HSMs is high across tropical forests and largely independent of water availability. Species with high HSMs (>1 MPa) and low P50 values (< -2 MPa) are common across the wet and dry tropics. This high site-level hydraulic diversity, largely decoupled from water stress, could influence which species are favoured and become dominant under a drying climate. High hydraulic diversity could also make these ecosystems more resilient to variable rainfall regimes.

Phosphorus limitation of early growth differs between nitrogen-fixing and nonfixing dry tropical forest tree species.

Tropical forests are often characterized by low soil phosphorus (P) availability, suggesting that P limits plant performance. However, how seedlings from different functional types respond to soil P availability is poorly known but important for understanding and modeling forest dynamics under changing environmental conditions. We grew four nitrogen (N)-fixing Fabaceae and seven diverse non-N-fixing tropical dry forest tree species in a shade house under three P fertilization treatments and evaluated carbon (C) allocation responses, P demand, P-use, investment in P acquisition traits, and correlations among P acquisition traits. Nitrogen fixers grew larger with increasing P addition in contrast to non-N fixers, which showed fewer responses in C allocation and P use. Foliar P increased with P addition for both functional types, while P acquisition strategies did not vary among treatments but differed between functional types, with N fixers showing higher root phosphatase activity (RPA) than nonfixers. Growth responses suggest that N fixers are limited by P, but nonfixers may be limited by other resources. However, regardless of limitation, P acquisition traits such as mycorrhizal colonization and RPA were nonplastic across a steep P gradient. Differential limitation among plant functional types has implications for forest succession and earth system models.

Leaf habit affects the distribution of drought sensitivity but not water transport efficiency in the tropics.

Considering the global intensification of aridity in tropical biomes due to climate change, we need to understand what shapes the distribution of drought sensitivity in tropical plants. We conducted a pantropical data synthesis representing 1117 species to test whether xylem-specific hydraulic conductivity (KS ), water potential at leaf turgor loss (ΨTLP ) and water potential at 50% loss of KS (ΨP50 ) varied along climate gradients. The ΨTLP and ΨP50 increased with climatic moisture only for evergreen species, but KS did not. Species with high ΨTLP and ΨP50 values were associated with both dry and wet environments. However, drought-deciduous species showed high ΨTLP and ΨP50 values regardless of water availability, whereas evergreen species only in wet environments. All three traits showed a weak phylogenetic signal and a short half-life. These results suggest strong environmental controls on trait variance, which in turn is modulated by leaf habit along climatic moisture gradients in the tropics.

Reduced ecosystem resilience quantifies fine-scale heterogeneity in tropical forest mortality responses to drought.

Sensitivity of forest mortality to drought in carbon-dense tropical forests remains fraught with uncertainty, while extreme droughts are predicted to be more frequent and intense. Here, the potential of temporal autocorrelation of high-frequency variability in Landsat Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), an indicator of ecosystem resilience, to predict spatial and temporal variations of forest biomass mortality is evaluated against in situ census observations for 64 site-year combinations in Costa Rican tropical dry forests during the 2015 ENSO drought. Temporal autocorrelation, within the optimal moving window of 24 months, demonstrated robust predictive power for in situ mortality (leave-one-out cross-validation R2  = 0.54), which allows for estimates of annual biomass mortality patterns at 30 m resolution. Subsequent spatial analysis showed substantial fine-scale heterogeneity of forest mortality patterns, largely driven by drought intensity and ecosystem properties related to plant water use such as forest deciduousness and topography. Highly deciduous forest patches demonstrated much lower mortality sensitivity to drought stress than less deciduous forest patches after elevation was controlled. Our results highlight the potential of high-resolution remote sensing to "fingerprint" forest mortality and the significant role of ecosystem heterogeneity in forest biomass resistance to drought.

Investigation of Salmonella spp. in free-range chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) in Southern Rio Grande do Sul / Pesquisa de Salmonella spp. em galinhas coloniais (Gallus gallus domesticus) no sul do Rio Grande do Sul

Salmonelose é uma doença causada por bactérias do gênero Salmonella, com importância para saúde pública e animal. Dentre os sorotipos hospedeiro-específicos, destaca-se o Gallinarum, que possui os biovares Gallinarum e Pullorum adaptados às aves e amplamente difundidos pelo mundo. Os dados sobre a ocorrência de Salmonella spp. em criações avícolas alternativas no Brasil são escassos. O objetivo deste estudo foi pesquisar a ocorrência de Salmonella spp. em galinhas coloniais encaminhadas para necropsia ao LRD/FV/UFPel. Foram realizadas análises histopatológicas, microbiológicas e moleculares das colônias bacterianas isoladas de 12 amostras de órgãos de galinhas domésticas dos municípios de Pelotas e Piratini, no Rio Grande do Sul. Na análise microbiológica, foram isoladas bactérias do gênero Salmonella sorotipo Gallinarum das 12 amostras, sendo 10/12 bioquimicamente compatíveis com biovar Gallinarum e 2/12 com biovar Pullorum. Na análise molecular PCR 11/12, 91,7% foram identificadas genotipicamente como Salmonella spp. O presente estudo demonstrou uma elevada frequência de isolamento de Salmonella Gallinarum biovar Gallinarum em aves sintomáticas criadas em regime extensivo. Além disso, os dados epidemiológicos das aves analisadas demonstram que a infecção por Salmonella Gallinarum nesses casos está associada ao contato com aves silvestres e falhas de manejo sanitário.(AU)

The Use of Silica Microparticles to Improve the Efficiency of Optical Hyperthermia (OH).

Although optical hyperthermia could be a promising anticancer therapy, the need for high concentrations of light-absorbing metal nanoparticles and high-intensity lasers, or large exposure times, could discourage its use due to the toxicity that they could imply. In this article, we explore a possible role of silica microparticles that have high biocompatibility and that scatter light, when used in combination with conventional nanoparticles, to reduce those high concentrations of particles and/or those intense laser beams, in order to improve the biocompatibility of the overall procedure. Our underlying hypothesis is that the scattering of light caused by the microparticles would increase the optical density of the irradiated volume due to the production of multiple reflections of the incident light: the nanoparticles present in the same volume would absorb more energy from the laser than without the presence of silica particles, resulting either in higher heat production or in the need for less laser power or absorbing particles for the same required temperature rise. Testing this new optical hyperthermia procedure, based on the use of a mixture of silica and metallic particles, we have measured cell mortality in vitro experiments with murine glioma (CT-2A) and mouse osteoblastic (MC3T3-E1) cell lines. We have used gold nanorods (GNRs) that absorb light with a wavelength of 808 nm, which are conventional in optical hyperthermia, and silica microparticles spheres (hereinafter referred to as SMSs) with a diameter size to scatter the light of this wavelength. The obtained results confirm our initial hypothesis, because a high mortality rate is achieved with reduced concentrations of GNR. We found a difference in mortality between CT2A cancer cells and cells considered non-cancer MC3T3, maintaining the same conditions, which gives indications that this technique possibly improves the efficiency in the cell survival. This might be related with differences in the proliferation rate. Since the experiments were carried out in the 2D dimensions of the Petri dishes, due to sedimentation of the silica particles at the bottom, whilst light scattering is a 3D phenomenon, a large amount of the energy provided by the laser escapes outside the medium. Therefore, better results might be expected when applying this methodology in tissues, which are 3D structures, where the multiple reflections of light we believe will produce higher optical density in comparison to the conventional case of no using scattering particles. Accordingly, further studies deserve to be carried out in this line of work in order to improve the optical hyperthermia technique.

Genome-wide association study and functional analyses for clinical and subclinical ketosis in Holstein cattle.

Ketosis is one of the most frequent metabolic diseases in high-yielding dairy cows and is characterized by high concentrations of ketone bodies in blood, urine, and milk, causing high economic losses. The search for polymorphic genes, whose alleles have different effects on resistance to developing the disease, is of extreme importance to help select less susceptible animals. The aims of this study were to identify genomic regions associated with clinical and subclinical ketosis (ß-hydroxybutyrate concentration) in North American Holstein dairy cattle and to investigate these regions to identify candidate genes and metabolic pathways associated with these traits. To achieve this, a GWAS was performed for 4 traits: clinical ketosis lactation 1, clinical ketosis lactation 2 to 5, subclinical ketosis lactation 1, and subclinical ketosis lactation 2 to 5. The estimated breeding values from 77,277 cows and 7,704 bulls were deregressed and used as pseudophenotypes in the GWAS. The top-20 genomic regions explaining the largest proportion of the genetic variance were investigated for putative genes associated with the traits through functional analyses. Regions of interest were identified on chromosomes 2, 5, and 6 for clinical ketosis lactation 1; 3, 6, and 7 for clinical ketosis lactation 2 to 5; 1, 2, and 12 for subclinical ketosis lactation 1; and 20, 11, and 25 for subclinical ketosis lactation 2 to 5. The highlighted genes potentially related to clinical and subclinical ketosis included ACAT2 and IGF1. Enrichment analysis of the list of candidate genes for clinical and subclinical ketosis showed molecular functions and biological processes involved in fatty acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, and inflammatory response in dairy cattle. Several genomic regions and SNPs related to susceptibility to ketosis in dairy cattle that were previously described in other studies were confirmed. The novel genomic regions identified in this study aid to characterize the most important genes and pathways that explain the susceptibility to clinical and subclinical ketosis in dairy cattle.

Beyond leaf habit: generalities in plant function across 97 tropical dry forest tree species.

Leaf habit has been hypothesized to define a linkage between the slow-fast plant economic spectrum and the drought resistance-avoidance trade-off in tropical forests ('slow-safe vs fast-risky'). However, variation in hydraulic traits as a function of leaf habit has rarely been explored for a large number of species. We sampled leaf and branch functional traits of 97 tropical dry forest tree species from four sites to investigate whether patterns of trait variation varied consistently in relation to leaf habit along the 'slow-safe vs fast-risky' trade-off. Leaf habit explained from 0% to 43.69% of individual trait variation. We found that evergreen and semi-deciduous species differed in their location along the multivariate trait ordination when compared to deciduous species. While deciduous species showed consistent trait values, evergreen species trait values varied as a function of the site. Last, trait values varied in relation to the proportion of deciduous species in the plant community. We found that leaf habit describes the strategies that define drought avoidance and plant economics in tropical trees. However, leaf habit alone does not explain patterns of trait variation, which suggests quantifying site-specific or species-specific uncertainty in trait variation as the way forward.

Melittin-induced metabolic changes on the Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney cell line / [Mudanças metabólicas induzidas por melitina em células da linhagem Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney]

In this study, the toxic effects of melittin on Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney cells (MDBK) were analyzed with respect to mitochondrial functionality by reduction of MTT and flow cytometry, apoptosis potential, necrosis, oxygen reactive species (ROS) production, lipid peroxidation, and DNA fragmentation using flow cytometry and cell membrane destabilization by confocal microscopy. The toxicity presented dose-dependent characteristics and mitochondrial activity was inhibited by up to 78.24 ±3.59% (P<0.01, n = 6) in MDBK cells exposed to melittin (10µg/mL). Flow cytometry analysis revealed that melittin at 2µg/mL had the highest necrosis rate (P<0.05) for the cells. The lipoperoxidation of the membranes was also higher at 2µg/mL of melittin (P<0.05), which was further confirmed by the microphotographs obtained by confocal microscopy. The highest ROS production occurred when the cells were exposed to 2.5µg/mL melittin (P<0.05), and this concentration also increased DNA fragmentation (P<0.05). There was a significative and positive correlation between the lipoperoxidation of membranes with ROS (R=0.4158), mitochondrial functionality (R=0.4149), and apoptosis (R=0.4978). Thus, the oxidative stress generated by melittin culminates in the elevation of intracellular ROS that initiates a cascade of toxic events in MDBK cells.(AU)

Neste estudo, os efeitos tóxicos da melitina em células Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney (MDBK) foram analisados quanto à funcionalidade mitocondrial, por redução de MTT e citometria de fluxo, potencial de apoptose, necrose, produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio (ROS), peroxidação lipídica e fragmentação de DNA, utilizando-se citometria de fluxo e desestabilização da membrana celular, por microscopia confocal. A toxicidade apresentou características dose-dependentes e a atividade mitocondrial foi inibida até 78,24±3,59% (P<0,01, n = 6) em células MDBK expostas à melitina (10µg/mL). Análises por citometria de fluxo revelaram que a melitina a 2µg/mL apresentou o maior índice necrótico celular (P<0,05). A maior lipoperoxidação de membranas também foi na concentração de 2µg/mL de melitina (P<0,05), o que foi posteriormente confirmado por microscopia confocal. A maior produção de ROS aconteceu quando as células foram expostas a 2,5µg/mL de melitina (P<0,05), e essa concentração também aumentou a fragmentação de DNA (P<0,05). Houve uma significativa correlação positiva entre a lipoperoxidação de membranas e a produção de ROS (R=0,4158), funcionalidade mitocondrial (R=0,4149) e apoptose (R=0,4978). Portanto, o estresse oxidativo gerado pela melitina culminou na elevação de ROS intracelular, que inicia uma cascata de eventos tóxicos nas células MDBK.(AU)

Impact of the environment on the health: From theory to practice.

The Erice 56 Charter titled "Impact of the environment on the health: from theory to practice" was unanimously approved at the end of the 56th course of the "International School of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine G. D'Alessandro" held from 3rd to November 7, 2019 in Erice - Sicily (Italy) and promoted by the Study Group of "Environment and Health" of the Italian Society of Hygiene, Preventive Medicine and Public Health. The course, that included lectures, open discussions and guided working groups, was aimed to provide a general training on epidemiological and toxicological aspects of the environmental health impact, to be used by public health professionals for risk assessment, without forgetting the risk communications. At the end of the course 12 key points were agreed among teachers and students: they underlined the need of specific training and research, in the perspective of "One Health" and "Global Health", also facing emerging scientific and methodological issues and focusing on communication towards stakeholders. This Discussion highlight the need to improve knowledge of Health and Environment topic in all sectors of health and environmental prevention and management.

Cytokine release syndrome-associated encephalopathy in patients with COVID-19.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Neurological manifestations in coronavirus disease (COVID)-2019 may adversely affect clinical outcomes. Severe COVID-19 and uremia are risk factors for neurological complications. However, the lack of insight into their pathogenesis, particularly with respect to the role of the cytokine release syndrome (CRS), is currently hampering effective therapeutic interventions. The aims of this study were to describe the neurological manifestations of patients with COVID-19 and to gain pathophysiological insights with respect to CRS. METHODS: In this longitudinal study, we performed extensive clinical, laboratory and imaging phenotyping in five patients admitted to our renal unit. RESULTS: Neurological presentation included confusion, tremor, cerebellar ataxia, behavioral alterations, aphasia, pyramidal syndrome, coma, cranial nerve palsy, dysautonomia, and central hypothyroidism. Notably, neurological disturbances were accompanied by laboratory evidence of CRS. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) was undetectable in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Hyperalbuminorrachia and increased levels of the astroglial protein S100B were suggestive of blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction. Brain magnetic resonance imaging findings comprised evidence of acute leukoencephalitis (n = 3, one of whom had a hemorrhagic form), cytotoxic edema mimicking ischaemic stroke (n = 1), or normal results (n = 2). Treatment with corticosteroids and/or intravenous immunoglobulins was attempted, resulting in rapid recovery from neurological disturbances in two cases. SARS-CoV2 was undetectable in 88 of the 90 patients with COVID-19 who underwent Reverse Transcription-PCR testing of CSF. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with COVID-19 can develop neurological manifestations that share clinical, laboratory and imaging similarities with those of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell-related encephalopathy. The pathophysiological underpinnings appear to involve CRS, endothelial activation, BBB dysfunction, and immune-mediated mechanisms.

Differential gene expression in dairy cows under negative energy balance and ketosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Development of ketosis in high-producing dairy cows contributes to several animal health issues and highlights the need for a better understanding of the genetic basis of metabolic diseases. To evaluate the pattern of differential gene expression in the liver of cows under negative energy balance (NEB), and under subclinical and clinical ketosis, a meta-analysis of gene expression and genome-wide association studies results was performed. An initial systematic review identified 118 articles based on the key words "cow," "liver," "negative energy balance," "ketosis," "expression," "qPCR," "microarray," "proteomic," "RNA-Seq," and "GWAS." After further screening for only peer-reviewed and pertinent articles for gene expression during NEB and clinical and subclinical ketosis (considering plasma levels of ß-hydroxybutyrate), 20 articles were included in the analysis. From the systematic review, 430 significant SNPs identified by genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were assigned to genes reported in gene expression studies by considering chromosome and base pair positions in the ARS-UCD 1.2 bovine assembly. Venn diagrams were created to integrate the data obtained in the systematic review, and Gene Ontology enrichment analysis was carried out using official gene names. A QTL enrichment analysis was also performed to identify potential positional candidate loci. Twenty-four significant SNPs were located within the coordinates of differentially expressed genes located on chromosomes 2, 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 27, and 29. Three significant metabolic pathways were associated with NEB and subclinical and clinical ketosis. In addition, 2 important genes, PPARA (peroxisome proliferator activated receptor alpha) and ACACA (acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase α), were identified, which were differentially expressed in the 3 metabolic conditions. The PPARA gene is involved in the regulation of lipid metabolism and fatty liver disease and the ACACA gene encodes an enzyme that catalyzes the carboxylation of acetyl-coenzyme A to malonyl-coenzyme A, which is a rate-limiting step in fatty acid synthesis. Gene network analysis revealed co-expression interactions among 34 genes associated with functions involving fatty acid transport and fatty acid metabolism. For the annotated QTL, 9 QTL were identified for ketosis. The genes FN1 (fibronectin 1) and PTK2 (protein tyrosine kinase 2), which are mainly involved in cell adhesion and formation of extracellular matrix constituents, were enriched for QTL previously associated with the trait "ketosis" on chromosome 2 and for the trait "milk iron content" on chromosome 14, respectively. This integration of gene expression and GWAS data provides an additional understanding of the genetic background of NEB and subclinical and clinical ketosis in dairy cattle. Thus, it is a useful approach to identify biological mechanisms underlying these metabolic conditions in dairy cattle.

The shearing stress of baseball-spontaneous coronary artery dissection in a male athlete.

The following is a case report of an atypical presentation of spontaneous coronary artery disease. In this case, a male with risk factors, precipitated by an emotional stress, presented to the emergency room with atypical chest pain. Cardiac catheterization revealed tapering of the mid-left anterior descending artery, consistent with non-atherosclerotic spontaneous coronary artery disease. However due to repeat chest pain, a repeat cardiac catheterization was performed, revealing 100% occlusion of the mid-LAD. This case represents an atypical presentation of a pathology that is frequently missed, and underreported. This is important to discuss in order to increase awareness, as the management and follow up are actually conservative.

Apamin-induced alterations in J774 1. 6 macrophage metabolism / [Alterações induzidas por apamina no metabolismo de macrófagos J774 1. 6]

Among the immune system cells, macrophages have an important role. Apamin, a bee venom constituent, is important in the defense of these insects. Thus, we aimed to evaluate the metabolism of J774 1.6 macrophage cell line when exposed to isolated and purified apamin, using cytotoxicity tests by MTT reduction and analysis by flow cytometry (apoptosis / necrosis, production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), membranous lipoperoxidation (LPO), electrical potential of the mitochondrial membrane (mMP) and DNA fragmentation). None of the tested concentrations (10 to 100µg/mL) were cytotoxic according to MTT reductions. Apoptosis rates decreased at concentrations of 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0µg/mL (P<0.05), while necrosis rates increased (P<0.05). However, rates of healthy cells at the highest tested concentration (10µg/mL) did not differ from control (P>0.05). Apamin did not alter ROS, LPO, or DNA fragmentation. Therefore, all analyzed concentrations (1.25 to 10µg/mL) decreased mMP. Such decrease in apoptosis might be due to a suppression of mitochondrial pro-apoptotic messengers, as this peptide causes no oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, and DNA damage. Highly sensitive techniques are majorly important for proper interpretation of cellular toxicity mechanisms, combined with routine laboratory methods.(AU)

Das células do sistema imunológico, macrófagos desempenham um papel fundamental. Apamina, constituinte do veneno de abelhas, é importante na defesa destas. Objetivou-se avaliar o metabolismo da linhagem de macrófagos J774 1.6 expostos à apamina isolada e purificada, avaliando-se citotoxicidade por redução de MTT e análise por citometria de fluxo (apoptose / necrose, produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio (EROs), lipoperoxidação membranosa (LPO), potencial elétrico da membrana mitocondrial (MMP) e fragmentação do DNA). Nenhuma concentração testada (10 a 100µg / mL) foi citotóxica. As taxas de apoptose diminuíram nas concentrações 2,5, 5,0 e 10,0µg / mL (P<0,05), enquanto as de necrose aumentaram (P<0,05). Entretanto, as taxas de células saudáveis na maior concentração testada (10µg / mL) não diferiram do controle (P>0,05). A apamina não alterou as ERO, a LPO nem a fragmentação do DNA. Portanto, todas as concentrações analisadas (1,25 a 10µg / mL) diminuíram a mMP. Tal diminuição na apoptose pode ser por uma supressão de mensageiros pró-apoptóticos mitocondriais, já que este peptídeo não causa estresse oxidativo, peroxidação lipídica nem dano ao DNA. Técnicas altamente sensíveis são importantes para adequada interpretação dos mecanismos de citotoxicidade.(AU)

Scale invariance in a nonvibrating magnetic granular system.

A nonvibrating magnetic granular system is studied by using a time series approach. The system consists of steel balls confined inside a circular wall that surrounds a glass plate. Kinetic energy is provided to the particles by the application of an external vertical time-dependent magnetic field of different amplitudes. We carried out a characterization of the system dynamics through the measurement of the correlations present in the time series of positions, in the x-direction, of each particle. In particular, by performing Fourier spectral analysis, we find that the time series are fractal and scale invariant, in such a way that the corresponding Fourier power spectra follow a power law [Formula: see text], with [Formula: see text]. More specifically, we find that the values of [Formula: see text], and therefore the strength of the correlations, increase as the magnetic field also increases. In this way, the present system constitutes an experimental model to generate correlated random walks. Additionally, we show how the introduction of a constant magnetic field breaks down this scale invariance property in the positions of each particle. Finally, we confirm the above results by applying detrended fluctuation analysis.

A catastrophic tropical drought kills hydraulically vulnerable tree species.

Drought-related tree mortality is now a widespread phenomenon predicted to increase in magnitude with climate change. However, the patterns of which species and trees are most vulnerable to drought, and the underlying mechanisms have remained elusive, in part due to the lack of relevant data and difficulty of predicting the location of catastrophic drought years in advance. We used long-term demographic records and extensive databases of functional traits and distribution patterns to understand the responses of 20-53 species to an extreme drought in a seasonally dry tropical forest in Costa Rica, which occurred during the 2015 El Niño Southern Oscillation event. Overall, species-specific mortality rates during the drought ranged from 0% to 34%, and varied little as a function of tree size. By contrast, hydraulic safety margins correlated well with probability of mortality among species, while morphological or leaf economics spectrum traits did not. This firmly suggests hydraulic traits as targets for future research.

Infecção latente pelo herpesvírus bovino tipo 1 em búfalos (Bubalus bubalis) no Rio Grande do Sul / Bovine herpesvirus type 1 latent infection in buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) in Rio Grande do Sul

Apesar dos bovinos serem considerados os hospedeiros naturais do BoHV-1, estudos sorológicos têm sugerido que búfalos podem ser suscetíveis ao BoHV-1 e a outros alfa-herpesvírus geneticamente relacionados. O objetivo deste estudo foi detectar a presença de DNA viral de BoHV-1 em 202 amostras de gânglios trigêmeos de búfalos, pela técnica de semi-nested PCR, para detecção de um segmento do gene codificante da glicoproteína D (gD) do BoHV-1. Além disso, 242 amostras de soro foram analisadas pela técnica de soroneutralização (SN) para a detecção de anticorpos neutralizantes contra BoHV-1, BoHV-5 e BuHV. Todas as amostras clínicas foram coletadas em um matadouro na cidade de Pelotas, RS, Brasil. O DNA de BoHV-1 foi detectado em 61 (30,1%) gânglios, e os resultados da SN demonstraram que 27,6% dos animais apresentaram anticorpos contra, pelo menos, um dos vírus testados. O sequenciamento genômico e a análise de 14 amplicons confirmaram a presença do DNA do BoHV-1 nos tecidos analisados. Em resumo, os resultados indicam que o BoHV-1 está distribuído em rebanhos bubalinos provenientes da região Sul do Brasil. Entretanto, são necessárias investigações adicionais, no sentido de elucidar o papel exato dos búfalos na epidemiologia das infecções pelo BoHV-1.(AU)

Although bovines are natural hosts for BoHV-1, serologic studies in several countries have suggested that buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) may be susceptible to BoHV-1 and other genetically related alphaherpesvirus. This study aimed to investigate the presence of BoHV-1 DNA in trigeminal ganglia from 202 buffaloes by a semi-nested PCR to amplify partially the glycoprotein D (gD) gene of BoHV-1. Additionally, 242 serum samples were tested by serum neutralization (SN) for the detection of antibodies against BoHV-1, BoHV-5 and BuHV. All clinical samples were collected in a slaughterhouse located in Pelotas, RS, Brazil. BoHV-1 DNA was detected in 61 (30.1%) of the samples and SN revealed 27.6% of the animals with neutralizing antibodies against at least one of the tested viruses. Nucleotide sequencing of 15 amplicons followed by BLAST analysis confirmed the presence of BoHV-1 DNA in the analyzed tissues. Taken together, these data indicate that BoHV-1 infection is distributed in buffaloes in southern Brazil. However, the role of buffaloes in the BoHV-1 epidemiology needs further investigation.(AU)

Demodicosis ocular: una revisión / Ocular demodicosis: A review

Demodex folliculorum y Demodex brevis son ectoparásitos que habitan en la piel de los seres humanos. Han sido relacionados con alteraciones en la superficie ocular, tales como disfunción de glándulas de Meibomio, blefaritis, chalazión, etc. La demodicosis ocular se caracteriza por la presencia patognomónica de caspa cilíndrica en la base de las pestañas y diversos síntomas como picazón, lagrimeo e hiperemia, entre otros. Se realizó una revisión bibliográfica del rol de Demodex spp. en la enfermedad ocular, incluyéndose publicaciones científicas entre los años 2005-2018. Se registró una asociación importante de prevalencia e incidencia de Demodex spp. en enfermedades oculares. D. folliculorum se encontró con mayor frecuencia que D. brevis en la infestación ocular, incrementándose la prevalencia o incidencia de infestación por ambas especies con la edad del paciente. Se sugiere que en pacientes con blefaritis, u otra enfermedad infecciosa de la superficie ocular no resuelta con tratamiento antibacteriano, debería plantearse la búsqueda de Demodex spp

Demodex folliculorum and Demodex brevis are ectoparasites that inhabit the skin of humans. They have been related to alterations in the ocular surface, such as, dysfunction of Meibomian glands, blepharitis, chalazion, etc. Ocular demodicosis is characterised by the pathognomonic presence of cylindrical dandruff at the base of the eyelashes, and various symptoms including, among others, itching, lacrimation, and hyperaemia. A bibliographic review was carried out on the role of Demodex spp. in ocular disease, including publications made by the scientific society between 2005 and 2018. A significant relationship was found between prevalence and incidence of Demodex spp. in eye diseases. D. folliculorum is usually found more frequently than D. brevis in ocular infestation, with the prevalence or incidence of infestation by both species increasing with the age of the patient. In patients with blepharitis or other infectious diseases of the ocular surface, unresolved with antibacterial treatment, the search for Demodex spp. should be considered