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In sexually colour dimorphic bird species, males can exhibit phenotypic variation, with males breeding in either dull female-like plumage or brightly coloured plumage. Two contradictory hypotheses predict that the male phenotype variation can influence the female investment in a given breeding attempt. Whereas females usually prefer males in bright coloured plumage, the “differential allocation hypothesis” predicts that females should invest more in their reproductive output when mating with them; while the “compensatory investment hypothesis” predicts that females should invest more when mating with non-preferred males. To test those predictions, we analysed reproductive data for two consecutive breeding seasons (2018–2019 and 2019–2020) of Lined Seedeaters Sporophila lineola. S. lineola is a socially monogamous songbird species in which males exhibit two breeding phenotypes, a black-and-white plumage being the most common, and a less common female-like brownish plumage. Our findings show that females mated with brownish males have a higher reproductive investment (i.e., egg volume) than those mated with black-and-white males. Despite the lower investment of females in egg volume, our results showed that black-and-white males have a higher nestling survival, producing more hatchings and fledglings per season than brownish males, which could suggest a higher fitness. Our findings indicate that investment allocation on the eggs and offspring survival rates can be attributed to the plumage colour of males.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of different light spectra on growth, development indices, survival and color preferences in Macrobrachium rosenbergiilarvae. First (trial 1, 25 days), prawns (100 larvae/L) were randomly allocated to 30 cylindrical plastic containers (1 L). This trial was designed with five treatments (light spectra) and six replications: red light, blue light, green light and white light or absence of light (controls) in the 12:12 light:dark (LD) cycle. Next (trial 2), 30 groups of five larvae in two different development stages (VII and XI) were allocated to a system of compartments with different lights: white, red, blue or green. This system was connected by tubes to enable light spectra choices. Final weight, weight gain, consumption and metamorphosis significantly improved under the white light condition versusthe other tested groups (p<0.05). Survival, the Larval Stage Index, the Larval Condition Index and final biomass clearly improved under the white light condition (p<0.05). Conversely, the red light and no light conditions obtained unsatisfactory results. White light was preferred in larvae stage VII (p<0.05), but this behavior changed to blue when prawns reached life stage XI (p<0.05). These findings suggest that white light may be the best choice to optimize larval growth and survival, while color preferences may vary with development stage.

This study’s objective was to evaluate the influence of thermal environment and air velocity during the rearing phase on European quail meat quality traits. A total of 1,152 one-day-old European quail chicks were placed inside floor pens within environmental chambers. Each experimental period was approximately 5 wks, with birds slaughtered at 37 d of age. The experimental design consisted of a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement of treatments in completely randomized design with 2 air velocities (0 and 2 m/s) × 4 air temperatures (severe cold [SC], moderate cold, thermal comfort, and moderate heat [MH]). ANOVA, with air velocity and thermal environment as fixed effects, was performed to evaluate the effect of main factors and their interaction on meat quality traits, using the GLM procedure (SAS 9.4). Least square means of treatments effects were compared using Tukey’s test (α = 0.05). Lightness (L∗), redness (a∗), and yellowness (b∗), of quail meat were affected by thermal environment and air velocity (P< 0.05). Initial and final L∗ values were greater for MH (P< 0.05). Meat from birds subjected to 2 m/s air velocity had lower final L∗, but no velocity effect was noted for initial L∗. Quail meat from SC presented higher initial and final a∗ values compared with the other thermal environment groups (P ≤ 0.001). Final a∗ was affected by air velocity (P< 0.05). Initial and final b∗ values for meat from MH were greater, 13.8 and 15.2, respectively, differing from the other treatment environments (P< 0.05). However, air velocity did not influence b∗ values (P> 0.05). Interactions were not significant for pHu (P= 0.993). Thawing loss and shear force were affected by treatments (P< 0.05) but not ultimate pH, drip loss, or sarcomere length. This study demonstrates that thermal environments and air velocity affect quail meat quality traits. Further investigation is recommended to explore effects of air velocity and thermal environment on muscle proteolysis of quail meat quality.

Au Brésil, la quasi-totalité des cas de paludisme (>99%) est concentré dans la région Amazonienne, la zone endémique du pays, et les personnes atteintes de paludisme dans des régions non endémiques sont rares. La transmission a été essentiellement éliminée dans le sud et le sud-est du Brésil (où se trouve l'État de Rio de Janeiro), mais des flambées de paludisme autochtone ont été signalées dans l'écosystème de la forêt Atlantique, en particulier dans ses vallées montagneuses. L'accumulation d'eau dans les broméliacées, plantes abondantes dans le biome de la forêt atlantique, correspond au site de reproduction par excellence du principal moustique vecteur Anopheles (Kerteszia) cruzii. Ce vecteur est capable d'effectuer des repas sanguins aussi bien près de la canopée des arbres qu'au niveau du sol, ce qui permet la transmission entre les primates non humains et les humains. En raison de cette particularité, les cas autochtones de la région sont connus sous le nom de paludisme de la forêt atlantique ou paludisme des broméliacées. Dans l'État de Rio de Janeiro, le Plasmodium simium, une espèce auparavant considérée comme spécifique aux singes, a été confirmée comme l'agent causal du paludisme zoonotique détecté dans cette région de forêt à partir de l'analyse des cas de 2015 et 2016. Le moustique vecteur s'infecte chez les primates non humains, qui agissent comme des réservoirs du parasite, et le transmet aux humains, qui présentent un paludisme avec une faible parasitémie et sans gravité. L'identification de la transmission du paludisme à P. simiumfait de la forêt atlantique brésilienne un deuxième foyer mondial de paludisme zoonotique.

A educação é parte importante do tratamento do diabetes melito (DM), e é por meio dela que os pacientes são capacitados para realizar o gerenciamento da sua doença. Existe uma gama variada de intervenções educativas já testadas nos pacientes com DM, não havendo, até o momento, um modelo universal definido que possa ser padronizado e reconhecido como eficaz para todos os indivíduos com a doença. Este artigo tem por objetivo revisar o efeito das diferentes modalidades de intervenções educativas para o autocuidado no controle glicêmico de pacientes com DM tipo 2, além de definir recomendações gerais para a utilização desta estratégia de tratamento.

SummaryThe knowledge of digestive processes correlated with the species of plant used by stingless bees is important for development of Meliponiculture, or stingless beekeeping, which is a lucrative activity in the Brazilian Amazon. The number and state of digestion of pollen grains in the midgut and rectum, as well as the pollinic diversity and activity of some digestive enzymes, were analyzed in different life stages of the stingless bee Melipona seminigrato compare the difference of digestion process in larvae, adult workers (nurse and forager) and virgin queens of Amazon stingless bees. Pollen consumption was found to be similar for nurse workers and virgin queens, while larvae consume significantly more pollen than other stages. A survey of pollinic diversity identified eight plant families, with the majority of digested pollen collected from the Melastomataceae (97.85%), and most undigested pollen from the Fabaceae (51%). The activity of hydrolytic enzymes was analyzed in larval food, pollen stored in the colony, and the midguts of bees at different life stages, whose comparisons revealed differences between each stage and caste.

Colorimetric indicator or freshness indicators hold great potential to reduce food waste. Films off açaí anthocyanins extract (AE) with different concentrations molars of two plasticizers glycerol (GLY) or triethyl citrate (TEC), for application fresh shrimp, real time were evaluated. The AE undergoes a visible pink/violet to green/yellowish color change in response to different pH's, which is an indicator of microbial spoilage in shrimp. The CI were exposed to ammonia, and analyzed through infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), ultraviolet spectroscopy, and visual colorimetric. The immobilization of the plasticizers into the CA polymer matrices were confirmed through FT-IR spectra and SEM micrographs. In vitrochromatic transition of the indicators exposed to ammonia vapors, were visually more perceptible when they were produced with 7.2 mols of GLY or 1.8, 3.6, and 7.2 mols of TEC. For the real-time analysis of the application of colorimetric indicators in gray shrimp samples, the indicators that had plasticizers showed perfect color change at the exact time of food deterioration. The colorimetric indicators developed in this study using different molar concentrations of plasticizers are simple, effective and a great eco-friendly alternative to chemical sensors already developed so far.

Neural crest cells give rise to many derivatives, including the neurons and glia of the peripheral nervous system, adrenomedulary cells, and melanocytes, and migrate through precise pathways that differ according to their axial level and/or state of specification. The migratory routes taken by neural crest cells are reported to be regulated by extracellular matrix molecules. We examined the possible influence of glycoconjugates on the establishment of barriers to neural crest access to ventral regions leading to the gut, by labeling stage-16–28 white Leghorn (WL) and Silky (SK) embryos with peanut agglutinin (PNA) at vagal, thoracic, and sacral levels. We observed a transitory expression of glycoconjugates that correlate with a barrier to the entrance of neural crest cells into the gut at the thoracic level, which is not present at vagal and sacral levels. In later stages, neural crest cells of melanocytic lineage were observed entering the gut in embryos of the SK chicken, a mutant with an altered pattern of pigmentation. The ventral regions occupied by melanoblasts in SK embryos were free of PNA labeling, while in WL embryos, in which PNA-positive molecules are strongly expressed, melanoblasts were restricted to peripheral regions. We suggest that PNA-binding glycoconjugates are good molecular marker for barriers that control the access of neural crest cells to the gut. Anat Rec Part A 273A:705–713, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

The aim of the present study was to understand how the use of different technologies, organizational structures and task control determine the workers' health-disease process. A better understanding of this issue will lead to suggestions and measures that can contribute positively to the modification of morbidity and mortality of glass industry workers. The study was conducted in two glass industries in São Paulo, Brazil, and one was automated and the other, manual. The methodology was based on an ergonomic analysis of the activities performed in the two workstations - the glass blow operators in the automated machine and that of the manual glass blow operators, and included direct observation of the work situation, interview with workers and a questionnaire based on previous knowledge of these two types of industry. The sample included 41 workers, 27 in IS machine and 14 in manual blow. The analyzed variables were characteristics of workers and work process. The comparison between the two industries showed statistically significant differences in relation to workers' perception of high level noise, bad work tools and complaints of leg pain and low back pain. The use of ergonomic methodology was perfectly adequate for the recognition of critical aspects of the workplace.

Biologically based polymeric packaging has been used as an alternative to petroleum-based polymers. The manufacture of cellulose acetate (CA) films stands out in the packaging field due to being derived from cellulose. Although promising the use of CA as packaging, this material requires the addition of processing aids, such as plasticizers. This work aimed to optimize the plasticizer effect of glycerol (GLY) and triethyl citrate (TEC), in different concentrations (1.8, 3.6, 5.4, and 7.2 mol), added into the CA. The films were characterized using mechanical strength tests, FTIR, TGA, SEM, and various other analysis technologies. Some CA film properties increased after GLY addition into the polymeric matrices, such as thickness, opacity and water vapor permeability. Films plasticized with TEC exhibited opposite behavior to those with GLY. These results indicate that the use of each plasticizer will vary according to the purpose of application in food packaging.

In this paper we relate that sera from paracoccidioidomycosis patients inhibited the mitogen-induced proliferative responses of normal mononuclear cells. Treatment of these sera with 2.5% polyethyleneglycol (PEG), a method classically used to precipitate immune complexes, significantly reduced their inhibitory activity. Immunoblot analysis of the PEG precipitates identified a 34-kDa polypeptide, recognized by rabbit anti-P. brasiliensis IgG. Patient mononuclear cells showed partial restoration of their proliferative capacity after 24 h culture in medium alone, which suggests release of membrane-bound molecules in the culture medium. These findings indicate that circulating P. brasiliensis antigens, complexed or not with antibodies, may play a negative immunoregulatory effect in the mitogen-induced proliferative responses of paracoccidioidomycosis patients.

To evaluate the relationship between cognitive performance and long-latency auditory evoked potentials in an elderly population.

•Linolenic acid is an essential fatty acid during larvae development.•The species has ability to increase DHA.•The species has ability to elongate and desaturate to obtain n-3HUFA from 18:3n.•Understanding the changes in fatty acid composition can lead to better nutritional.

Despite the contribution of awareness campaigns to the rise of organ donation rates in Brazil, younger folks are subject to few awareness actions. Records on the effect of informative campaigns at improving opinion and knowledge of undergraduates about organ donation are scarce. This study aimed to assess the effect of informative material about organ donation on changes in the trend of answers to a questionnaire compared to the answers of a control group.