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In recent years, the use of Public Service Obligations (PSOs) in air transport policy has substantially increased. In remote regions, where air transport services are not profitable, the application of this subsidy program is crucial for the economic and social development of these regions. However, there is a great diversity in the provision of PSO services among different regions in Europe. Therefore, it is essential to assess the performances of the air carriers operating in different PSO routes. The present study uses Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to assess the efficiency of PSO routes within the European Union and compares them with the performances of the operating airlines, both when operating under this subsidy program and when operating their regular flights. First, DEA was applied to the annual data of several European airlines, and then applied to the data of their PSO routes, so that a comparison can be made between the performance obtained on regular flights and flights under the PSO regime. The results identify which airlines had the best and worst performances, as well as the routes and respective regions of Europe where the airlines tend to score higher and lower in terms of efficiency. Results suggest that the Nordic European countries and the United Kingdom were the regions where air carriers obtained the lowest results, and thus, this empirical evidence should support the public authorities to consider revisiting their PSO contracts, in order to improve their operation. info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion

The extract obtained from Mikania glomerata leaves rich in ent-kaurenoic acid (ERKA) shows cytotoxic activity in vitro, but its hydrophobic nature and thermosensitivity are issues to be solved prior to in vivo antitumor studies. The purpose of this study was to investigate the antitumor activity of inclusion complexes formed between ERKA and β-cyclodextrin (ERKA:β-CD) in rodents. ERKA:β-CD complexes obtained by malaxation (MX) and co-evaporation (CE) methods were firstly characterized regarding their physical properties, encapsulation efficiency, and cytotoxicity againts L929 cells. The antitumor activity study was then performed in mice with sarcoma 180 treated with saline, 5-fluouracil (5FU) and ERKA:β-CD at 30, 100 and 300 µg/kg. The weight, volume, percentage of inhibition growth, gross and pathological features and positivity for TUNEL, ki67, NFκB and NRF2 in the tumors were assessed. Serum lactate-dehydrogenase activity (LDH), white blood cells count (WBC) and both gross and pathological features of the liver, kidneys and spleen were also evaluated. The formation of the inclusion complexes was confirmed by thermal analysis and FTIR, and they were non-toxic for L929 cells. The MX provided a better complexation efficiency. ERKA:β-CD300 promoted significant tumor growth inhibition, and attenuated the tumor mitotic activity and necrosis content, comparable to 5-fluorouracil. ERKA:β-CD300 also increased TUNEL-detected cell death, reduced Ki67 and NF-kB immunoexpression, and partially inhibited the serum LDH activity. No side effect was observed in ERKA:β-CD300-treated animals. The ERKA:β-CD inclusion complexes at 300 µg/kg displays antitumour activity in mice with low systemic toxicity, likely due to inhibition on the NF-kB signaling pathway and LDH activity.

Summary Background Paediatric Early Warning Scores (PEWSs) are being used increasingly in hospital wards to identify children at risk of clinical deterioration, but few scores exist that were designed for use in emergency care settings. To improve the prioritisation of children in the emergency department (ED), we developed and validated an ED-PEWS. Methods The TrIAGE project is a prospective European observational study based on electronic health record data collected between Jan 1, 2012, and Nov 1, 2015, from five diverse EDs in four European countries (Netherlands, the UK, Austria, and Portugal). This study included data from all consecutive ED visits of children under age 16 years. The main outcome measure was a three-category reference standard (high, intermediate, low urgency) that was developed as part of the TrIAGE project as a proxy for true patient urgency. The ED-PEWS was developed based on an ordinal logistic regression model, with cross-validation by setting. After completing the study, we fully externally validated the ED-PEWS in an independent cohort of febrile children from a different ED (Greece). Findings Of 119 209 children, 2007 (1·7%) were of high urgency and 29 127 (24·4%) of intermediate urgency, according to our reference standard. We developed an ED-PEWS consisting of age and the predictors heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, consciousness, capillary refill time, and work of breathing. The ED-PEWS showed a cross-validated c-statistic of 0·86 (95% prediction interval 0·82–0·90) for high-urgency patients and 0·67 (0·61–0·73) for high-urgency or intermediate-urgency patients. A cutoff of score of at least 15 was useful for identifying high-urgency patients with a specificity of 0·90 (95% CI 0·87–0·92) while a cutoff score of less than 6 was useful for identifying low-urgency patients with a sensitivity of 0·83 (0·81–0·85). Interpretation The proposed ED-PEWS can assist in identifying high-urgency and low-urgency patients in the ED, and improves prioritisation compared with existing PEWSs. Funding Stichting de Drie Lichten, Stichting Sophia Kinderziekenhuis Fonds, and the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

OBJECTIVE To characterize the bulbospongiosus muscle (BSM) in patients with bulbar urethral strictures. MATERIALS AND METHODS We studied 21 patients divided into 2 groups: Stricture Group (n = 14; mean age = 62.00 years) with bulbar stricture submitted to open urethroplasty; and Control Group (n = 7; mean age = 60.14 years) with penile strictures (hypospadias cripples, penile cancer and/or penile infection) who were submitted to perineal urethrostomy. Samples of the BSM were dissected and histologic sections were stained by histochemical and immunohistochemical techniques. Histomorphometric analyzes were performed on photomicrographs. Means were statistically compared using the unpaired Student t test and the Mann-Whitney test (P RESULTS The etiology of bulbar urethral stricture was idiopathic in 2 cases (14.29%), post-TURP in 6 (42.86%), post open radical prostatectomy in 5 (35.71%) and post open prostatectomy in 1 case (7.14%). The average length of the stricture was 2.08 cm. The only parameter analyzed with significant difference between the groups was the vessels (significant difference between the control group: 5.11 ± 1.98% and stricture group: 3.57 ± 1.32%, P = .0460). The quantitative analysis of collagen (Control Group: 10.63 ± 5.37% and Stricture Group: 10.83 ± 4.55%, P = .9296); diameter of BSM muscle fibers (Control Group: 41.71 ± 14.63 µm and Stricture Group: 40.11 ± 8.59 µm, P = .76 and elastic system fibers (Control Group; 3.83 ± 1.54% and Stricture Group: 5.43 ± 2.90%, P = .2601) showed no significant difference. CONCLUSIONS Histologic analysis showed a significant decrease of the BSM vessels in urethral stricture, without changes in elastic fibers, collagen, nerves, and muscle fiber diameter. These findings show that the bulbar urethral stricture causes minimal alterations in the structure of the BSM.

Summary Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of low-intensity strength training with vascular occlusion on specific parameters of neural drive using amplitude and spectral analysis of surface electromyography. Equipment and methods Twenty individuals were assigned to one of two groups (low-intensity strength training with or without vascular occlusion). The first group performed three sets of knee extension exercises until failure, with a 90 seconds interval between sets, while the second group performed three sets of the mean repetitions of the first group. Both groups performed the exercises with the load set at 20% of estimated 1 maximal repetition. To assess electromyographic parameters, sessions 1, 7 and 12 were evaluated, specifically from the first to third repetitions and the 3 final repetitions. One maximal repetition was measured in the same collection times. Results Our findings demonstrated that low-intensity strength training with vascular occlusion improved muscular strength; however, it did not affect the neural drive, since there were no differences in the investigated parameters between sessions. Conclusion Low-intensity strength training with vascular occlusion is effective for producing muscular strength; however, it is not indicated for increases in neural activity.

Colletotrichum has been identified as responsible for the “dried fruit” disease in acai (Euterpe oleracea). Besides concern for acai pulp quality control, the characterization of Colletotrichum has been difficult, which has motivated the search for chemical markers in the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) profile for use as a tool in the identification of acai pulp contaminated by the fungus. Extracted VOCs by Headspace - Solid Phase Micro Extraction (HS-SPME) were identified through gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC–MS). From GC–MS analyzes 26 VOCs were identified, with a predominance of the terpenoids. Chemometrically, menthol and menthone were assigned as potential markers of the genus. The analysis of VOCs in acai pulps contaminated by Colletotrichum under different cultivation conditions enabled the detection of menthone. This result illustrated the selectivity of the culture medium and the potential of this tool for use in the quality control of acai pulp.

The medial preoptic area (mPOA) participates in the temperature and cardiovascular control. The mPOA receives inputs from limbic structures and sends projections to hypothalamus and brainstem. Moreover, stress elicits pronounced neuronal activation in mPOA, suggesting its involvement in central neural pathway mediating stress responses. In the present study, we report the effect of acute mPOA neurotransmission inhibition using cobalt chloride (CoCl2-nonselective synapse blocker) on the mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), body and tail temperature (Tbody and Ttail, respectively), as well as on the HR component of baroreflex. We also verified the participation of mPOA in the autonomic changes evoked by acute restraint stress (RS). Our results demonstrated that microinjection of CoCl2 into mPOA caused tachycardia, hyperthermia and a Ttail decrease, without altering MAP. The inhibition of mPOA with CoCl2 increased the sympathetic component of cardiac baroreflex when assessed 10min after its administration. In addition, pretreatment of mPOA with CoCl2 increased RS-evoked tachycardic and hyperthermic responses evoked by RS when compared with aCSF-treated animals, without affecting the RS-evoked pressor response and the fall in Ttail. In summary, our results suggest that mPOA exerts a tonic inhibitory influence on the sympathetic cardiac tone under both rest and stress conditions, modulating negatively the sympathetic component of baroreflex. Results also confirm the mPOA involvement in the control of body temperature because its inhibition was followed by a sustained increase in body temperature and vasoconstriction in the tail artery territory.

Old-growth tropical forests provide an essential climate regulation service to humans, functioning as carbon (C) sink due to the high productivity, species diversity, and variety of life forms, such as bamboos. Bamboos growth fast and display plastic functional traits, which favor the occupation of environments under different conditions, making them efficient C stockers in addition to providing raw material for local human populations. Asian bamboos are known to sequester considerable amounts of C in a short time, and although is likely that New World bamboo species have the same capacity, this perspective is rarely addressed. To evaluate the impact of a native bamboo on biomass and carbon stocks of an Atlantic Forest Protected Area, we first developed an allometric equation to estimate its live aboveground biomass (AGB) based on the destructive sampling method. We then compare our results to the AGB of forest components previously estimated for the same area, as well as to Asian and other Neotropical bamboo species to place our case study in a global scenario. In four 1-ha permanent plots in Sao Paulo State, Brazil, we made a census of all live culms and collected 20 healthy ones for equations purposes. The Merostachys neesii Rupr. (Poaceae) studied species has 343 clumps ha−1, 3663 culms ha−1, and 12.1 Mg ha−1 of biomass (5.2 Mg C ha−1) or 4% of total AGB and C stocks of the studied area. M. neesii's contributes as much as palms solely, but more than lianas and tree ferns together for the total AGB in the old-growth Montane Atlantic Forest we studied. These results show that the non-inclusion of bamboos may underestimate the role of terrestrial ecosystems in buffering anthropogenic CO2. The comprehension of bamboo ecology is crucial for conservation and management purposes, and it is relevant since, with global warming, the C stored may be released turning these ecosystems into source instead of a sink of C.

The power budget (PB) of a direct-detection ultra-dense wavelength division/subcarrier multiplexing (SCM) passive optical network (PON) is assessed numerically for downstream, when a low-complexity iterative signal-to-signal beat interference (SSBI) mitigation technique is employed. Each SCM signal, inserted in a 12.5 GHz width optical channel, is comprised of two or three electrically generated and multiplexed 16-quadrature-amplitude-modulation (QAM) or 32-QAM Nyquist pulse-shaped subcarriers, each with a 7% forward error correction bit rate of 10.7 Gbit/s. The PB and maximum number of optical network units (ONUs) served by each optical line terminal (OLT) are compared with and without SSBI mitigation. When SSBI mitigation is realized, PB gains up to 4.5 dB are attained relative to the PB in the absence of SSBI mitigation. The PB gain enabled by the SSBI mitigation technique proposed in this work increases the number of ONUs served per OLT at least by a factor of 2, for the cases of higher spectral efficiency. In particular, for a SCM signal comprised of three subcarriers, the maximum number of ONUs served per OLT is between 2 and 32, and between 8 and 64, in the absence of SSBI mitigation, and when SSBI mitigation is employed, respectively, depending on the fiber length (up to 50 km) and order of QAM.

CoFe2O4 and MnFe2O4 nanoparticles were obtained by hydrothermal synthesis method in aqueous and in gelatinous media, at 175 °C and 230 °C. The structural, morphological and magnetic characterization of all samples was performed using different techniques: XRD, SEM, TEM, SQUID magnetometry and 57Fe Mossbauer spectroscopy. Their ability to be used as nanoheaters for magnetic hyperthermia applications was evaluated by determining their heating efficiency in aqueous suspension. The mean size of the CoFe2O4 nanoparticles ranges from 4.2 to 6.7 nm, while larger nanoparticles with broader distributions were obtained for the MnFe2O4 nanoparticles (from 4.4 to 17 nm). It was shown that both the temperature of the thermal treatment and the medium influence the mean size and size distribution of the nanoparticles, with the gelatin-assisted synthesis method producing nanoparticles with the highest specific heating ability. MnFe2O4 nanoparticles synthesized at 175 °C in gelatine medium display one of the best reported heating efficiency for manganese ferrite with values comparable to those of commercial magnetic nanoparticles.

Brazilian propolis is popularly used as treatment for different diseases including the ones with inflammatory origin. Brazilian red propolis chemical profile and its anti-inflammatory properties were recently described however, its mechanism of action has not been investigated yet.Elucidate Brazilian red propolis major pathways of action on the modulation of neutrophil migration during the inflammatory process.The ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) activity was investigated for neutrophil migration into the peritoneal cavity, intravital microscopy (rolling and adhesion of leukocytes), quantification of cytokines TNF-α, IL-1β and chemokines CXCL1/KC, CXCL2/MIP-2, neutrophil chemotaxis induced by CXCL2/MIP-2, calcium influx and CXCR2 expression on neutrophils.EEP at 10mg/kg prevented neutrophil migration into peritoneal cavity (p 0.05), reduced leukocyte rolling and adhesion on the mesenteric microcirculation (p 0.05) and inhibited the release TNF-α, IL-1β, CXCL1/KC and CXCL2/MIP-2 (p 0.05). EEP at 0.01, 0.1 and 1µg/ml reduced the CXCL2/MIP-2-induced neutrophils chemotaxis (p 0.05) without affect cell viability (p 0.05).EEP at 1µg/ml decreased the calcium influx induced by CXCL2/MIP-2 (p0.05). On the other hand, none of EEP concentrations tested altered CXCR2 expression by neutrophils (p0.05).Brazilian red propolis appears as a promising anti-inflammatory natural product which mechanism seems to be by reducing leukocyte rolling and adhesion; TNF-α, IL-1β, CXCL1/KC and CXCL2/MIP-2 release; CXCL2/MIP-2-induced chemotaxis and calcium influx.

A novel hybrid method combining direct numerical simulation (DNS) and the Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes (RANS), denoted as a stress-blended method (SBM), has been developed. The SBM is targeted at simulating turbulent flows over arbitrary rough surfaces in which computational savings can be achieved by making the DNS domain as small as possible. Within the SBM framework, a RANS model is enforced above the roughness layer to prevent the momentum build-up which arises in simulations where the computational domain is too small to represent the largest eddies. The SBM is validated for turbulent channel flow, both for smooth wall turbulence and using a parametric forcing approach to mimic roughness effects, with a computational cost that scales linearly with Re τ . The method is then applied to selected subsets of a scanned grit-blasted surface. For the same subset, the roughness function is found to be within 1 % of available DNS. Comparisons of small and large subsets showed differences of over a factor of two in equivalent sand grain roughness, indicating the importance of choosing representative surface samples. Simulations in the fully rough regime are carried out using one to two orders of magnitude fewer points than in a typical DNS. Since no assumptions on the roughness properties or the flow structure (such as outer layer similarity) are made, we expect the SBM to be applicable to non-equilibrium turbulent boundary layer flows.

This study aims to evaluate the impacts of the activation of a hypothetical radiological dispersal device (RDD) on the urban critical infrastructure (health facilities and public transport). A densely populated urban region was chosen as a scenery. Additionally, the influence of local environmental factors in the post-detonation process was verified. The source term was Cs-137 due to its mobility in the environment and relative ease of access. The approach used for the evaluation of the consequences was a computer simulation by Gaussian modeling. The HotSpot Health Physics Codes software was applied in conjunction with the RESRAD-RDD software. The results suggest that there is a strong influence of the local atmospheric stability classes (Pasquill-Gifford classes) on both the total equivalent effective dose (TEDE) and soil contamination. Consequently, the impacts on critical urban infrastructure follow the same trend. The method used for comparing the simulated and reference limits was the proportional ratio. All calculated values for radioactive contamination were divided by the reference value adopted by the RESRAD-RDD model for urban critical infrastructure. The results indicate that the information compiled is useful to support the decision-making process, although it is not sufficient to provide care and support for longer periods than those considered in the initial response phase.

Cordia verbenacea DC (Boraginaceae), popularly known as “Erva Baleeira,” has been widely studied with respect to its chemical and pharmacological properties, and its anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-ulcerogenic activities have been demonstrated. The objective of this study was to determine the essential oil content with regard to time of collection of leaves and to evaluate the antibacterial activity and antibiotic-modifying activity of the oil, sabinene and sabinene hydrate against multidrug-resistant strains. GC/MS analysis showed that in samples of the essential oil obtained at different times over one year, there was qualitative and quantitative variation in chemical composition, with statistical significance (p

Aryl gem-disubstituted conjugated alkenols underwent oxidative cyclization affording 2,5,5-trisubstituted tetrahydrofurans in reasonable yields and good diastereoselectivities using the reductive termination variation of the Mukaiyama aerobic oxidative reaction. Under oxidative termination, the same alkenols produced diols and ketonic by-products via the double hydration and beta-scission competing pathways. Furthermore, the differences in alkenol reactivity under the reductive and oxidative termination conditions were investigated.

Medicinal plants are often the only therapeutic resource for many communities and ethnic groups. Cordia verbenacea DC., "Erva-baleeira," is one of the species of plants currently used to produce a phytotherapeutic product extracted from its leaves. The present study aimed to establish its chemical profile, antibacterial activity and resistance-modulating potential. The C. verbenacea extracts were prepared from fresh leaves using solvents as methanol and hexane. Ethyl Acetate was used for the preparation of the fraction. Phytochemical screening was carried out using HPLC-DAD for determination and quantification of the secondary metabolites present in the fractions. Antibacterial and resistance-modulation assays were performed to determine minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) using a microdilution assay. The data were subjected to statistical analysis with two-way ANOVA and Bonferroni posttests. Results of phytochemical prospecting and HPLC analysis of the fractions were in agreement with the literature. The natural products presented moderate antibacterial activity when considering the clinical relevance of a MIC of 256 μg/mL against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and 512 μg/mL against P. aeruginosa. However, when the fractions were combined with antibiotics we observed a synergic effect, as natural products enhanced the antibacterial effect of aminoglycosides, significantly decreasing the MIC of antibiotics at 12.5%-98.4%. We believe that the data obtained from phytochemical analysis and from antibacterial and resistance modulation assays of C. verbenacea extracts new can open perspectives in the search for new alternatives for the treatment of bacterial infections and stimulate the renewed use of antibiotics with reduced effectiveness due to resistance.

We measure the impact of the August 2011 bans on covered short-selling adopted by several European countries. Our results provide evidence that the impact on prices was short-lived: the positive price impact disappears after ten days. The short-selling restrictions did not contribute to reduce the volatility of the financial stocks subjected to the bans; on the contrary, our findings indicate that volatility actually increased by a greater extent for these stocks than for other financial stocks with similar characteristics. The bans also had a negative impact on liquidity. Moreover, stocks subjected to the bans exhibit a longer delay in the assimilation of negative market news during the banning span.

Credit analysis is a real-world classification problem where it is quite common to find datasets with a large amount of noisy data. State-of-the-art classifiers that employ error minimisation techniques, on the other hand, require a long time to converge, in order to achieve robustness. This paper explores ClusWiSARD, a clustering customisation of the WiSARD weightless neural network model, applied to two different credit analysis real-world problems. Experimental evidence shows that ClusWiSARD is very competitive with Support Vector Machine (SVM) w.r.t. accuracy, with the advantage of being capable of online learning. ClusWiSARD outperforms SVM in training time, by two orders of magnitude, and is slightly faster in test time.

This work presents a new extension to the artificial CPGs (Central Pattern Generators) based on Scheduling by Multiple Edge Reversal (SMER) proposed by Yang and Franca. The insertion of a total support phase between each particular swing and support legs phase was produced for all different hexapod gait patterns. Thus, pseudo-synchronous gait pattern transitions are easily allowed and walking stability is potentially improved. Moreover, the insertion of such new phases facilitates to work with two distinct time periods: (i) when legs are in the typical swing-support phases, i.e., carrying the body of the robot to its future position, and (ii) during total support phases. All new extended SMER-based gait patterns are presented by means of a kinematic analysis made through simulations of a hexapod walking robot.

High molar mass paraffins in the crude oil solidify with the reduction of temperature during offshore production, which can reduce production or even block outflow lines. Polymers can be used to inhibit the wax deposition. However, the efficiency of the additives depends on the type of oil and, because it is a complex mixture, this relationship still needs further investigation. The aim of this work is to evaluate the influence of different types of compounds present in petroleum on the action of poly(ethylene-vinyl acetate) as pour point reducers using model systems of paraffins in solvents. The study was carried out based on results of pour point, wax appearance temperature and polymer-solvent interaction. The results showed that only the asphaltenes (C5I and C7I) changed the pour point to lower values. The other compounds, such as naphthalene, naphthenic acid and adamantene, at the concentration used of 1 wt/v%, did not alter the melting point of the model systems or interfere with the additive action. On the other hand, by analyzing the influence of the solvent composition, it was observed that: (i) the wax solubility in the medium affected the WAT but did not affect the pour point (the higher the solubility of the paraffin in the medium, the lower the WAT is); and (ii) the solubility of the additive in the solvent medium did not affect the WAT but significantly affected the pour point (the higher the polymer-solvent interaction, the lower the pour point of the model-system containing the additive).

Species of the genus Cordia, Boraginaceae, are widely studied with regard to the various ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological aspects. They are found principally in tropical and subtropical regions of the American, Asian and African continents, where they occur in various countries. In the genus Cordia, there are many species cultivated for ornamental plants, wood and medicinal applications, where they are extensively utilized by traditional communities. In the last decades, scientific studies of Cordia species have intensified, demonstrating the great interest in phytochemical, biological and pharmacological studies. In this review, we describe the principal botanical aspects, ethnopharmacological information and evaluation of the bioactive and pharmacological properties of Cordia, its phytochemical constituents and the most common classes of secondary metabolites identified. The information reported in this work contributes scientifically to recognizing the importance of the genus Cordia as a target in the search for new biotechnological investments. Keywords: Bioactivity, Cordia, Ethnopharmacology, Phytochemical, Flavonoids, Terpenes

In this work we extend the results obtained by Gouezel in [12] to partially hyperbolic attractors. We study a forward invariant set K on a Riemannian manifold M whose tangent space splits as dominated decomposition T K M = E c u ⊕ E s , for which the center-unstable direction E c u is non-uniformly expanding on some local unstable disk. We prove that the (stretched) exponential decay of recurrence times for an induced scheme can be deduced under the assumption of (stretched) exponential decay of the time that typical points need to achieve some uniform expanding in the center-unstable direction. As an application of our results we obtain exponential decay of correlations and exponential large deviations for a class of partially hyperbolic diffeomorphisms considered in [1] .

Introduction “Erva-baleeira,” Cordia verbenacea DC. (Boraginaceae), is one of the species of plants currently exploited for the purpose of producing a phytotherapeutic product, which is extracted from the leaves. Methods Extracts of C. verbenacea were prepared from fresh leaves, and chloroform fractions were obtained from the different extracts for evaluation. Phytochemical screening was performed and the phytochemicals were quantified by HPLC-DAD. The microdilution assay was used to determine antibiotic and aminoglycoside-modifying activities (2.4–2500 μg/mL), and the results were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and Bonferroni post-test. Results Phytochemical screening and HPLC analysis of the fractions were in agreement with the literature, which describes the presence of several tannins and flavonoids in C. verbenacea leaves. The fractions showed moderate antibacterial activity when considering clinical relevance with a MIC of 128 μg/mL against a resistant strain of Staphylococcus aureus and 512 μg/mL against a resistant strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. However, when they were combined with antibiotics, synergism was observed, significantly lowering the MIC of the antibiotics by 12.5 (P Conclusions Our results indicated that the fractions of C. verbenacea, when combined with an antibiotic, demonstrated significant synergistic activity. Due the extensive use and sale of products derived from C. verbenacea may exert pressure on the populations of this species. The development of management plans for rational and sustainable use of the species and more studies with emphasis on the use of such fractions in the treatment of other diseases are necessary.

American visceral leishmaniasis is a zoonosis of the New World. Dogs are the main reservoir of the disease and there is much interest in the understanding of mechanisms implicated in protection against canine infection. Nevertheless, most studies in dogs have not been carried out in organs that are targets of infection. This work is first to report the profile of cytokines and parasite burdens, as determined by real-time PCR, in the lymph nodes of dogs naturally infected with Leishmania chagasi. With this purpose, 18 mongrel dogs were divided in three groups: control non-infected dogs (n=6) and naturally infected animals with L. chagasi, asymptomatic (n=6) and symptomatic (n=6). Parasite burden in lymph nodes was 73-fold greater in symptomatic than asymptomatic animals. Prescapular lymph nodes of asymptomatic dogs had the highest expression of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha and low parasite burden, indicating that these cytokines play a role in protection against infection. Highest expression of IL-10 and TGF-beta and high parasite burden were observed in symptomatic dogs, suggesting a role for these cytokines in the progression of disease. Hence, the balance of expression of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha (protective) and IL-10 and TGF-beta (disease progression) in lymph nodes determine parasite burden and clinical expression in naturally infected dogs.

Introduction The objective of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of methanol (MFEECC) and ethyl acetate (AFEECC) fractions, obtained from the ethanol extract of Croton campestris A. leaves. Methods Antibacterial and modulating activity (on bacterial resistance) was determined by micro dilution method to identify the MIC (Minimum Inhibitory Concentration), performed in triplicate and statistical significance tested by ANOVA (two-way) with Bonferroni post hoc test ( p Results In the antibacterial activity tests the fractions showed a MIC of ≥1024 μg/mL. In regards to modulation of bacterial resistance, MFEECC showed synergism when combined with antibiotic against bacterial strains. In the modulation tests, AFEECC potentiated the effects of amikacin against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa but had an antagonistic effect against Escherichia coli . AFEECC combined with gentamicin displayed antagonism against S. aureus and E. coli and an antagonistic effect against P. aeruginosa. When AFEECC was combined with Neomycin it resulted in antagonism against P. aeruginosa but did not affect S. aureus and E. coli . Conclusions The results indicate that the extracts and fractions obtained from C. campestris leaves could represent an alternative source of natural products capable of modifying and interfering with bacterial resistance to aminoglycosides.

SummaryAnimal host defense against infection requires the expression of defense genes at the right place and the right time. Understanding such tight control of host defense requires the elucidation of the transcription factors involved. By using an unbiased approach in the model Caenorhabditis elegans, we discovered that HLH-30 (known as TFEB in mammals) is a key transcription factor for host defense. HLH-30 was activated shortly after Staphylococcus aureus infection, and drove the expression of close to 80% of the host response, including antimicrobial and autophagy genes that were essential for host tolerance of infection. TFEB was also rapidly activated in murine macrophages upon S. aureus infection and was required for proper transcriptional induction of several proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines. Thus, our data suggest that TFEB is a previously unappreciated, evolutionarily ancient transcription factor in the host response to infection.