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The displacement of species from equatorial latitudes to temperate locations following the increase in sea surface temperatures is among the significant reported consequences of climate change. Shifts in the distributional ranges of species result in fish communities tropicalisation, i.e., high latitude colonisations by typically low latitude distribution species. These movements create new interactions between species and new trophic assemblages. The Senegal seabream, Diplodus bellottii, may be used as a model to understand the population genetics of these invasions. In the last decades, this species has undergone an outstanding range expansion from its African area of origin to the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula, where now occurs abundantly. Mitochondrial and nuclear markers revealed a striking high haplotypic nucleotide and genetic diversity values, along with significant population differentiation throughout the present-day geographical range of the Senegal seabream. These results are not consistent with the central-marginal hypothesis, nor with the expectations of a leptokurtic distribution of individuals, as D. bellottii seems to be able to retain exceptional levels of diversity in marginal and recently colonised areas. We discuss possible causes for hyperdiversity and lack of geographical structure and subsequent implications for fisheries.

The study of toxicities induced by sorafenib, as well as the identification of possible mechanisms and biomarkers of these toxicities, is important to improve the treatment and quality of life of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. This study focused on toxicities, cellular oxidative stress, adherence, and quality of life of 11 patients with HCC treated with sorafenib. Dermatotoxicity, myelotoxicity, gastro toxicity, nephrotoxicity, pain, and fatigue were investigated. For oxidative stress analysis, the peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated and mitochondrial superoxide anion production was measured using MitoSOX Red test. Medication adherence was evaluated based on Morisky-Green and MedTake tests. Quality of life assessment was performed using EORTC QLQ C-30 and QLQ HCC18 questionnaires. The results showed that hand-foot syndrome (45.5%), thrombocytopenia (45.5%), diarrhea (54.5%), pain (54.5%), and fatigue (36.4%) were the most prevalent toxicities. A non-statistically significant change in the levels of superoxide anion was observed after the sorafenib treatment (Wilcoxon test, P = 0.4131). Moreover, 81.8% of patients had high adherence, 100% knew the correct indication of sorafenib, 81.8% knew the correct intake and drug regimen, and 36.4% knew the correct dose of antineoplastic. There was a significant worsening in the emotional and pain domains of quality of life after the sorafenib (Wilcoxon test, P = 0.0313 and P = 0.0313, respectively). A production of superoxide anion was not correlated with toxicities (Spearman's correlation and Mann-Whitney U tests, P > 0.05). This study suggests that oxidative stress might not be the mechanism of sorafenib toxicities.

Context: Fencing is a sport of agility, with a higher incidence of lower-limb injuries, of which the ankle sprain is the most prevalent. Injury prevention is very important to improve performance and decrease the withdrawal time of athletes. Proprioceptive training programs can be added to the training of athletes, since, in addition to easy application and low cost, proprioception has the function of stabilizing the ankle joint to prevent injuries., Objective: To verify the influence of a 12-week proprioceptive training program on dynamic neuromuscular control in fencing athletes., Design: The study was a clinical trial, and the athletes were allocated, for convenience, in the intervention group or in the control group., Setting: The study was developed in 4 stages (preintervention, intervention, postintervention, and follow-up of 3). The neuromuscular control during the star excursion balance test was evaluated., Participants: The participants were 19 fencing athletes (intervention group: 10, and control group: 9), aged 14-35 years, from a multisport club., Interventions: The athletes performed the proprioceptive training during 12 weeks, 3 times a week, with a duration of 30 minutes., Main Outcome Measures: Dynamic neuromuscular control., Results: The data and SE were considered for statistical analysis, submitted to the generalized estimates equations test with Bonferroni post hoc. The level of significance was .05. The distance reached in the star excursion balance test increased significantly in all 8 directions evaluated in the 2 legs of the intervention group., Conclusions: The proprioceptive training program was able to improve dynamic neuromuscular control in fencing athletes.

Human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is one of the main etiological agents of diseases of the lower respiratory tract and is often responsible for the hospitalization of children and the elderly. To date, treatments are only palliative and there is no vaccine available. Natural products show exceptional structural diversity and they have played a vital role in drug research. Several investigations focused on applied structural modification of natural products to improved metabolic stability, solubility and biological actions them. Quercetin is a flavonoid that presents several biological activities, including anti-hRSV role. Some works criticize the pharmacological use of Quercetin because it has low solubility and low specificity. In this sense, we acetylated Quercetin structure and we used in vitro and in silico assays to compare anti-hRSV function between Quercetin (Q0) and its derivative molecule (Q1). Q1 shows lower cytotoxic effect than Q0 on HEp-2 cells. In addition, Q1 was more efficient than Q0 to protect HEp-2 cells infected with different multiplicity of infection (0.1-1 MOI). The virucidal effects of Q0 and Q1 suggest interaction between these molecules and viral particle. Dynamic molecular results suggest that Q0 and Q1 may interact with F-protein on hRSV surface in an important region to adhesion and viral infection. Q1 interaction with F-protein showed ΔG= -14.22 kcal/mol and it was more stable than Q0. Additional, MTT and plate assays confirmed that virucidal Q1 effects occurs during adhesion step of cycle hRSV replication. In conclusion, acetylation improves anti-hRSV Quercetin effects because Quercetin pentaacetate could interact with F-protein with lower binding energy and better stability to block viral adhesion. These results show alternative anti-hRSV strategy and contribute to drug discovery and development., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Wireless Capsule Endoscopy (WCE) is a minimally invasive diagnosis tool for lesion detection in the gastrointestinal tract, reaching places where conventional endoscopy is unable to. However, the significant amount of acquired data leads to difficulties in the diagnosis by the physicians; which can be eased with computer assistance. This paper addresses a method for the automatic detection of tumors in WCE by using a two-step based procedure: region of interest selection and classification., Methods: The first step aims to separate abnormal from normal tissue by using automatic segmentation based on a Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM). A modified version of the Anderson method for convergence acceleration of the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm is proposed. The proposed features for both segmentation and classification are based on the CIELab color space, as a way of bypassing lightness variations, where the L component is discarded. Tissue variability among subjects, light inhomogeneities and even intensity differences among different devices can be overcome by using simultaneously features from both regions. In the second step, an ensemble system with partition of the training data with a new training scheme is proposed. At this stage, the gating network is trained after the experts have been trained decoupling the joint maximization of both modules. The partition module is also used at the test step, leading the incoming data to the most likely expert allowing incremental adaptation by preserving data diversity., Results: This algorithm outperforms others based on texture features selected from Wavelets and Curvelets transforms, classified by a regular support vector machine (SVM) in more than 5%., Conclusions: This work shows that simpler features can outperform more elaborate ones if appropriately designed. In the current case, luminance was discarded to cope with saturated tissue, facilitating the color perception. Ensemble systems remain an open research field. In the current case, changes in both topology and training strategy have led to significant performance improvements. A system with this level of performance can be used in current clinical practice., (© 2019 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.)

The West Indian (Trichechus manatus) and Amazonian (T. inunguis) manatees have a sympatric occurrence at the mouth of the Amazon River. A result of this interspecific encounter is the occurrence of hybrids, which are frequently found along the coasts of Amapá state in Brazil, French Guiana and Guyana. Here we present new genetic evidence indicating the occurrence of a hybrid swarm along the Guianas Shield coastline, which is an interspecific hybrid zone that also separates T. manatus populations located east (Brazil) and west (Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, Florida and Antilles). In addition, we suggest that this hybrid population occupies a peculiar mangrove-rich environment under strong influence of the Amazon River plume, which requires an independent management and should be considered a special conservation area.

Xenarthrans-anteaters, sloths, and armadillos-have essential functions for ecosystem maintenance, such as insect control and nutrient cycling, playing key roles as ecosystem engineers. Because of habitat loss and fragmentation, hunting pressure, and conflicts with domestic dogs, these species have been threatened locally, regionally, or even across their full distribution ranges. The Neotropics harbor 21 species of armadillos, 10 anteaters, and 6 sloths. Our data set includes the families Chlamyphoridae (13), Dasypodidae (7), Myrmecophagidae (3), Bradypodidae (4), and Megalonychidae (2). We have no occurrence data on Dasypus pilosus (Dasypodidae). Regarding Cyclopedidae, until recently, only one species was recognized, but new genetic studies have revealed that the group is represented by seven species. In this data paper, we compiled a total of 42,528 records of 31 species, represented by occurrence and quantitative data, totaling 24,847 unique georeferenced records. The geographic range is from the southern United States, Mexico, and Caribbean countries at the northern portion of the Neotropics, to the austral distribution in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. Regarding anteaters, Myrmecophaga tridactyla has the most records (n = 5,941), and Cyclopes sp. have the fewest (n = 240). The armadillo species with the most data is Dasypus novemcinctus (n = 11,588), and the fewest data are recorded for Calyptophractus retusus (n = 33). With regard to sloth species, Bradypus variegatus has the most records (n = 962), and Bradypus pygmaeus has the fewest (n = 12). Our main objective with Neotropical Xenarthrans is to make occurrence and quantitative data available to facilitate more ecological research, particularly if we integrate the xenarthran data with other data sets of Neotropical Series that will become available very soon (i.e., Neotropical Carnivores, Neotropical Invasive Mammals, and Neotropical Hunters and Dogs). Therefore, studies on trophic cascades, hunting pressure, habitat loss, fragmentation effects, species invasion, and climate change effects will be possible with the Neotropical Xenarthrans data set. Please cite this data paper when using its data in publications. We also request that researchers and teachers inform us of how they are using these data., (© 2019 The Authors. Ecology © 2019 The Ecological Society of America.)

This paper is concerned with the automatic evaluation of selected tasks performed by people with intellectual Disabilities. According to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) system, subjects must be divided into two groups: group with no difficulty (N) and group with difficulty (D) being this classification based on performances obtained in a conventional table (CT) soccer. Three tasks, with different levels of difficulty, were proposed for performance evaluation. Experimental results were obtained on the basis of the task execution in both a CT and a robotics table (RT) soccer. All participants were able to perform tasks with the joystick on the RT soccer and the automatic evaluation system identified differences in reaction times with and without red color flag in the participants, on RT soccer. One of the tasks was completely performed by all the participants by using the RT soccer.

Angioectasias are lesions that occur in the blood vessels of the bowel and are the cause of more than 8% of all gastrointestinal bleeding episodes. They are usually classified as bleeding related lesions, however current state-of-the-art bleeding detection algorithms present low sensitivity in the detection of these lesions. This paper proposes a methodology for the automatic detection of angioectasias in wireless capsule endoscopy (WCE) videos. This method relies on the automatic selection of a region of interest, selected by using an image segmentation module based on the Maximum a Posteriori (MAP) approach where a new accelerated version of the Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm is also proposed. Spatial context information is modeled in the prior probability density function by using Markov Random Fields with the inclusion of a weighted boundary function. Higher order statistics computed in the CIELab color space with the luminance component removed and intensity normalization of high reflectance regions, showed to be effective features regarding angioectasia detection. The proposed method outperforms some current state of the art algorithms, achieving sensitivity and specificity values of more than 96% in a database containing 800 WCE frames labeled by two gastroenterologists.

Space and environment are fundamental in influencing the community structure. However, their relative influences vary according to species' biological characteristics. Here we test whether differences in life-history traits mainly linked to dispersal abilities influence bat, rodent and marsupial beta diversity along spatial and environmental gradients. We expect bat beta diversity to be weakly related with space in comparison to dispersal-limited rodents and marsupials. Using data from communities distributed along the Atlantic Forest of South America, we calculated the total beta diversity and its turnover and nestedness components for each group. We estimated the strength of correlation of beta diversity and its components along spatial and environmental gradients, comparing their importance within and between groups. Space had the higher influence on rodent and marsupial beta diversity. For bats, both gradients influenced similarly their community composition. Between taxa, the influence of these gradients did not differ for rodents and marsupials, while bats presented a stronger relationship with environment compared to non-volant small mammals. Also, all groups presented a similar influence of the spatial gradients on their community structure, despite their differences in dispersal abilities. Our results suggest that differences in biological characteristics partially influence the community structure of these mammals, with their responses along space likely reflecting similar biogeographical dynamics affecting their distribution. Overall, our results improve the understanding of the processes structuring these communities, highlighting the benefits of comparative analyses within a beta diversity perspective to better understand the influence of multiple processes on the community assembly along geographical gradients.

Based on morphological and molecular phylogenetic markers and the fertility of sexual crosses, two novel species of Fusarium associated with Dactylopius opuntiae (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) and Aleurocanthus woglumi (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) from northeastern Brazil are described as Fusarium caatingaense and F. pernambucanum. Partial sequences of five loci were generated for 29 entomopathogenic Fusarium isolates. Multilocus phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that F. caatingaense and F. pernambucanum belong to the Incarnatum clade of the Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex (FIESC). These species displayed common morphological characters such as the production of various types of aerial conidia formed on monophialides and polyphialides and differ from each other mainly in the dimensions and morphology of their sporodochial conidia. Mating type polymerase chain reaction (PCR) revealed 17 MAT1-1 isolates and 12 MAT1-2 isolates, all of them heterothallic. Fertile perithecia were produced in 4.2% of infraspecific crosses of F. caatingaense and in 13.3% of infraspecific crosses of F. pernambucanum after 2-3 wk. Crosses between F. caatingaense and F. pernambucanum did not result in fertile perithecia. We demonstrate the existence of a sexual stage in species of the Incarnatum clade and describe the morphological characters of these sexual morphs for the first time. These results suggest that previously unknown sexual cycles contribute to the high genetic diversity within FIESC.

Strongyloides stercoralis is the main etiological agent of human strongyloidiasis. Severe strongyloidiasis is commonly associated to alcoholism, corticostereoid use, and human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) coinfection. Herein, we report a case of a 13-year-old boy coinfected with S. stercoralis and HTLV-1, excreting several parasitic forms in the stool. The parasitological examination of his feces showed a large amount of filariform (about 3,000 larvae per gram of feces) and rhabditiform larvae (about 2,000 larvae per gram of feces). In addition, free-living adult females (about 50 parasites per gram of feces) and eggs (about 60 eggs per gram of feces) were detected. The main laboratory findings pointed to high immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels (228 UI/mL) and eosinophila (11.6%). The patient was treated with three courses of ivermectin (200 µg/kg twice, 2 weeks apart), achieving the parasitological cure. An increase of about 19 times in interleucin (IL)-17 level was observed following the parasitological cure, in addition to a decrease in the white blood cell, eosinophil counts, and IgE levels. This is the first case report, to our knowledge, in which an S. stercoralis adult free-living female was described in human feces and where an increase in IL-17 levels after Strongyloides treatment in a HTLV-1 coinfected individual was observed. This finding raises the need for further studies about IL-17 immunomodulation in S. stercoralis and HTLV-1 coinfected patients.

Objective:: To investigate how dynamic neuromuscular control, postural sway, joint position sense, and incidence of ankle sprain are influenced by balance training in athletes compared with the control group in randomized clinical trials., Data Sources:: The search strategy included MEDLINE, Physical Therapy Evidence Database, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were published by June of 2018., Methods:: RCTs that evaluate the effectiveness of proprioception in these outcomes: dynamic neuromuscular control, postural sway, joint position, and the incidence of ankle sprains in athletes aged between 18 and 35 years. Two reviewers independently screened the searched records, extracted the data, and assessed risk of bias. The treatment effect sizes were pooled in a meta-analysis using the RevMan 5.2 software. Internal validity was assessed through topics suggested by Cochrane Collaborations., Results:: Of the 12 articles included ( n = 1817), eight were in the meta-analysis ( n = 1722). The balance training reduced the incidence of ankle sprains in 38% compared with the control group ( RR: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.43-0.90). In relation to the dynamic neuromuscular control, the training showed increase in the distance of reach in the anterior (0.62 cm, 95% CI: 0.13-1.11), posterolateral (4.22 cm, 95% CI: 1.76-6.68), and posteromedial (3.65 cm, 95% CI: 1.03-6.26) through the Star Excursion Balance test. Furthermore, training seems to improve postural sway and joint position sense., Conclusion:: Balance training reduces the incidence of ankle sprains and increases dynamic neuromuscular control, postural sway, and the joint position sense in athletes.

Excessive exposure to Mn can lead to its accumulation in the brain with neurotoxic consequences. In children, elevated Mn has been associated with deficits in certain neuropsychological domains such as cognition, motor function, memory and attention, and in some instances, hyperactivity and behavioral problems. The aim of this study was to evaluate behavioral effects in school-aged children living near a ferro-manganese alloy plant and examine their association with Mn exposure. Occipital hair, toenails and blood samples were collected from 225 children (7-12 years old) enrolled in four elementary schools with different levels of exposure to Mn, based on dust Mn deposition rates. Full data set collection was completed and run from 165 children. Mn in hair (MnH), toenails (MnTn), blood (MnB) and blood lead levels (PbB) were determined by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Children's behavior was assessed with the Child Behavior Check List (CBCL) reported by parents. Median levels and range of MnH, MnT and MnB were, respectively, 0.73 µg/g (0.16-8.79), 0.84 µg/g (0.15-9.29) and 8.98 μg/L (1.51-40.43). Median and range of PbB were 1.2 µg/dL (0.2-15.6). MnH and MnB were not associated with any scale of the CBCL behavior scores. We found a positive association between logMnTn and raw total CBCL score (β = 10.17, p = 0.034), adjusting for sex, age, maternal IQ and logPbB. Analyses using Generalized Additive Model showed non-linear associations between MnTn and externalizing behavior (p = 0.035), as well as with the related subscales: aggressive behavior (p = 0.045) and rule-breaking behavior (p = 0.024). Further positive associations were observed between MnTn and thought problems (p = 0.031) and social problems (p = 0.027). These findings corroborate previous studies showing an association between Mn exposures and externalizing behavior. Our results suggest that toenail Mn, as a biomarker of environmental exposure, is associated with disruptive behavior in children living near a ferro-manganese alloy plant., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Studies have demonstrated that, for urban children, dust represents the main exposure to sources of metals like lead (Pb) and manganese (Mn). We aimed to investigate the exposure to these metals and their association with intellectual deficit in children living in an industrial region. This cross-sectional study recruited volunteers from four elementary schools in the town of Simões Filho, Brazil. We evaluated 225 school-aged children (7⁻12 years) for blood lead (PbB) and manganese hair (MnH) and toenails (MnTn) by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Child and maternal IQs were estimated using the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale for Intelligence (WASI). Median and range PbB were 1.2 (0.3⁻15.6) μg/dL. MnH and MnTn medians (ranges) were 0.74 (0.16⁻8.79) μg/g and 0.85 (0.15⁻13.30) μg/g, respectively. After adjusting for maternal IQ, age and Mn exposure, child IQ drops by 8.6 points for a 10-fold increase in PbB levels. Moreover, an effect modification of Mn co-exposure was observed. In children with low MnTn, association between Pb and child IQ was not significant (β = -6.780, p = 0.172). However, in those with high MnTn, the association was increased by 27.9% (β = -8.70, p = 0.036). Low Pb exposure is associated with intellectual deficit in children, especially in those with high MnTn.

Introduction: The use of ketamine as an option in the treatment of depressive disorder is growing rapidly, supported by numerous clinical trials attesting its efficacy and safety. Esketamine, the S (+) enantiomer of ketamine, is the most widely used form in the anesthetic environment in some countries, and new studies have shown that it may also be effective in depression and with better tolerability. However, no study so far has directly compared esketamine with racemic ketamine. Here we propose a protocol of a clinical trial to evaluate esketamine as a noninferior medication when compared to ketamine in the treatment of patients with treatment-resistant depression., Methods/design: This study protocol is for a randomized, controlled, double-blind noninferiority clinical trial. Subjects will be 18 years or older, with major depression characterized as treatment-resistant. Participants will receive a single infusion of either esketamine (0.25 mg/kg) or ketamine (0.5 mg/kg) over 40 minutes. The primary outcome will be the difference in remission rates between the 2 treatment arms at 24 and 72 hours after drug infusion. Secondary outcomes will include other timepoints, measurements of cognition, dissociation, and blood biomarkers., Discussion: A head-to-head study is the best way to evaluate whether the esketamine is in fact comparable to the racemic ketamine in terms of both efficacy and safety, and, if positive, it would be an initial step to increase the access to that type of treatment worldwide., Ethics and Dissemination: The study was approved by the local Institutional Review Board (University Hospital Professor Edgard Santos-Federal University of Bahia-Number: 46657415.0.0000.0049). Subjects will only participate after voluntarily agreeing and signing the Informed Consent Form. The study findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at national and international conferences., Trial Registration: This trial has been registered in the Japan Primary Registries Network (JPRN): UMIN000032355, which is affiliated with the World Health Organization.

The human Respiratory Syncytial Virus (hRSV) is the main responsible for occurrences of respiratory diseases as pneumonia and bronchiolitis in children and elderly. M2-1 protein from hRSV is an important antitermination factor for transcription process that prevents the premature dissociation of the polymerase complex, making it a potential target for developing of inhibitors of the viral replication. The present study reports the interaction of the M2-1 tetramer with pera (Q1) and tetracetylated (Q2) quercetin derivatives, which were synthesized with the objective of generating stronger bioactive compounds against oxidation process. Fluorescence experiments showed binding constants of the M2-1/compounds complexes on order of 10 4 M -1 with one ligand per monomeric unit, being the affinity of Q2 stronger than Q1. The thermodynamic analysis revealed values of ΔH>0 and ΔS>0, suggesting that hydrophobic interactions play a key role in the formation of the complexes. Molecular docking calculations indicated that binding sites for the compounds are in contact interfaces between globular and zinc finger domains of the monomers and that hydrogen bonds and stacking interactions are important contributions for stabilization of the complexes. Thus, the interaction of the acetylated quercetin derivatives in the RNA-binding sites of M2-1 makes these potential candidates for viral replication inhibitors., (Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Second-harmonic generation microscopy represents an important tool to evaluate extracellular matrix collagen structure, which undergoes changes during cancer progression. Thus, it is potentially relevant to assess breast cancer development. We propose the use of second-harmonic generation images of tumor stroma selected on hematoxylin and eosin-stained slides to evaluate the prognostic value of collagen fibers analyses in peri and intratumoral areas in patients diagnosed with invasive ductal breast carcinoma. Quantitative analyses of collagen parameters were performed using ImageJ software. These parameters presented significantly higher values in peri than in intratumoral areas. Higher intratumoral collagen uniformity was associated with high pathological stages and with the presence of axillary lymph node metastasis. In patients with immunohistochemistry-based luminal subtype, higher intratumoral collagen uniformity and quantity were independently associated with poorer relapse-free and overall survival, respectively. A multivariate response recursive partitioning model determined 12.857 and 11.894 as the best cut-offs for intratumoral collagen quantity and uniformity, respectively. These values have shown high sensitivity and specificity to differentiate distinct outcomes. Values of intratumoral collagen quantity and uniformity exceeding the cut-offs were strongly associated with poorer relapse-free and overall survival. Our findings support a promising prognostic value of quantitative evaluation of intratumoral collagen by second-harmonic generation imaging mainly in the luminal subtype breast cancer.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: The species Acmella oleracea (L.) R.K. Jansen (Asteraceae), popularly known as jambú, is marketed in fairs as a female aphrodisiac and has several pharmacological activities already confirmed, among them the sexual stimulant action. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the oral administration of the hydroethanolic extract of A. oleracea flowers (EHAo) on wistar rats during the pre-mating, mating, and pre-implantation period., Material and Methods: During the treatment period, measurements of feed intake, water intake, weight, estrous cycle, behavior, reproductive parameters, biochemical parameters, hematological parameters, and histopathology of ovaries were performed daily., Results: In the gas chromatography analysis - mass spectrometry characterization, the compound (2E, 6Z, 8E) -N-isobutyldeca-2,6,8-trienamide (spilanthol) was detected as the majority compound at the 84% concentration. In the conditions of this study, EHAo did not cause maternal toxicity. However, in the estrous cycle, the frequency of the Proestrous (P) and Estrous (E) phase was significantly increased with the doses of 88.91 and 444.57mg/kg of the EHAo in relation to the control. On the other hand, the metaestrous (M) and diestrous (D) phases showed a significant reduction in their frequency in the groups treated with EHAo. Water intake increased significantly (p < 0.01), as well as the triglyceride levels, the total cholesterol and fractions (p < 0.05), and the percentage of neutrophils (p < 0.05)., Conclusion: It is concluded, therefore, that the treatment with EHAo, which is one of the forms popularly used, is safe in the concentrations and time of treatment studied as it is able to influence the estrous cycle without altering folliculogenesis and fertility., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Correct classification of cystoscopy images depends on the interpreter's experience. Bladder cancer is a common lesion that can only be confirmed by biopsying the tissue, therefore, the automatic identification of tumors plays a significant role in early stage diagnosis and its accuracy. To our best knowledge, the use of white light cystoscopy images for bladder tumor diagnosis has not been reported so far. In this paper, a texture analysis based approach is proposed for bladder tumor diagnosis presuming that tumors change in tissue texture. As is well accepted by the scientific community, texture information is more present in the medium to high frequency range which can be selected by using a discrete wavelet transform (DWT). Tumor enhancement can be improved by using automatic segmentation, since a mixing with normal tissue is avoided under ideal conditions. The segmentation module proposed in this paper takes advantage of the wavelet decomposition tree to discard poor texture information in such a way that both steps of the proposed algorithm segmentation and classification share the same focus on texture. Multilayer perceptron and a support vector machine with a stratified ten-fold cross-validation procedure were used for classification purposes by using the hue-saturation-value (HSV), red-green-blue, and CIELab color spaces. Performances of 91% in sensitivity and 92.9% in specificity were obtained regarding HSV color by using both preprocessing and classification steps based on the DWT. The proposed method can achieve good performance on identifying bladder tumor frames. These promising results open the path towards a deeper study regarding the applicability of this algorithm in computer aided diagnosis.

Background: Poor brain extraction in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has negative consequences in several types of brain post-extraction such as tissue segmentation and related statistical measures or pattern recognition algorithms. Current state of the art algorithms for brain extraction work on weighted T1 and T2, being not adequate for non-whole brain images such as the case of T2*FLASH@7T partial volumes., New Method: This paper proposes two new methods that work directly in T2*FLASH@7T partial volumes. The first is an improvement of the semi-automatic threshold-with-morphology approach adapted to incomplete volumes. The second method uses an improved version of a current implementation of the fuzzy c-means algorithm with bias correction for brain segmentation., Results: Under high inhomogeneity conditions the performance of the first method degrades, requiring user intervention which is unacceptable. The second method performed well for all volumes, being entirely automatic., Comparison With Existing Methods: State of the art algorithms for brain extraction are mainly semi-automatic, requiring a correct initialization by the user and knowledge of the software. These methods can't deal with partial volumes and/or need information from atlas which is not available in T2*FLASH@7T. Also, combined volumes suffer from manipulations such as re-sampling which deteriorates significantly voxel intensity structures making segmentation tasks difficult. The proposed method can overcome all these difficulties, reaching good results for brain extraction using only T2*FLASH@7T volumes., Conclusions: The development of this work will lead to an improvement of automatic brain lesions segmentation in T2*FLASH@7T volumes, becoming more important when lesions such as cortical Multiple-Sclerosis need to be detected., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The aim of the current study was to investigate the influence of chronic stretching on muscle performance (MP) by a systematic review. The search strategy included MEDLINE, PEDro, Cochrane CENTRAL, LILACS, and manual search from inception to June 2016. Randomized and controlled clinical trials, non-randomized, and single group studies that have analyzed the influence of flexibility training (FT) (using any stretching technique) on MP were included. Differently, studies with special populations (children, elderly, and people with any dysfunction/disease), and articles that have used FT protocols shorter than three weeks or 12 sessions were excluded. The MP assessment could have been performed by functional tests (e.g. jump, sprint, stretch-shortening cycle tasks), isometric contractions, and/or isotonic contractions. Twenty-eight studies were included out of 513. Seven studies evaluated MP by stretch-shortening cycle tasks, Ten studies evaluated MP by isometric contractions, and 13 studies assessed MP by isotonic contractions. We were unable to perform a meta-analysis due to the high heterogeneity among the included studies. In an individual study level analysis, we identified that 14 studies found positive effects of chronic stretching on MP. The improvements were observed only in functional tests and isotonic contractions, isometric contractions were not affected by FT. Therefore, FT might have an influence on dynamic MP. However, more studies are necessary to confirm whether FT can positively affect MP., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

To evaluate the antitumor properties of Cafestol four leukemia cell lines were used (NB4, K562, HL60 and KG1). Cafestol exhibited the highest cytotoxicity against HL60 and KG1 cells, as evidenced by the accumulation of cells in the sub-G1 fraction, mitochondrial membrane potential reduction, accumulation of cleaved caspase-3 and phosphatidylserine externalization. An increase in CD11b and CD15 differentiation markers with attenuated ROS generation was also observed in Cafestol-treated HL60 cells. These results were similar to those obtained following exposure of the same cell line to cytarabine (Ara-C), an antileukemic drug. Cafestol and Ara-C reduced the clonogenic potential of HL60 cells by 100%, but Cafestol spared murine colony forming unit- granulocyte/macrophage (CFU-GM), which retained their clonogenicity. The co-treatment of Cafestol and Ara-C reduced HL60 cell viability compared with both drugs administered alone. In conclusion, despite the distinct molecular mechanisms involved in the activity of Cafestol and Ara-C, a similar cytotoxicity towards leukemia cells was observed, which suggests a need for prophylactic-therapeutic pre-clinical studies regarding the anticancer properties of Cafestol., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Nowadays the diagnosis of bladder lesions relies upon cystoscopy examination and depends on the interpreter's experience. State of the art of bladder tumor identification are based on 3D reconstruction, using CT images (Virtual Cystoscopy) or images where the structures are exalted with the use of pigmentation, but none uses white light cystoscopy images. An initial attempt to automatically identify tumoral tissue was already developed by the authors and this paper will develop this idea. Traditional cystoscopy images processing has a huge potential to improve early tumor detection and allows a more effective treatment. In this paper is described a multivariate approach to do segmentation of bladder cystoscopy images, that will be used to automatically detect and improve physician diagnose. Each region can be assumed as a normal distribution with specific parameters, leading to the assumption that the distribution of intensities is a Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM). Region of high grade and low grade tumors, usually appears with higher intensity than normal regions. This paper proposes a Maximum a Posteriori (MAP) approach based on pixel intensities read simultaneously in different color channels from RGB, HSV and CIELab color spaces. The Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm is used to estimate the best multivariate GMM parameters. Experimental results show that the proposed method does bladder tumor segmentation into two classes in a more efficient way in RGB even in cases where the tumor shape is not well defined. Results also show that the elimination of component L from CIELab color space does not allow definition of the tumor shape.

Objective: Ghost cell odontogenic carcinoma is a very rare malignant neoplasm. Tumor volume may be a more precise alternative for determining size, which is usually measured by maximum linear dimension. The purpose of this case report is to highlight the importance of obtaining 3-dimensional (3-D) images of the tumor for volumetric analysis to improve the chances of surgical success. This report presents a case of ghost cell odontogenic carcinoma infiltrating the maxillary sinus through the palate. The lesion was surgically treated and subsequently selected for volumetric reconstruction and analysis of the tumor by using InVesalius software. In this case report, we describe the use of a pictorial technique in which the tumor volume was calculated to help predict the surgical results., Results: The tumor could be visualized in 3-D, with color improving the image of the segmented volume and thus increasing the perception of boundaries and depth., Conclusions: Recognition of the lesion shape by volumetric analysis can provide the surgical team with clearer information, thereby helping in surgical planning and consequently increasing the chances of surgical success., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Reproductive factors pose a risk for sporadic breast cancer (BC) development owing to the lifetime exposure to estrogen, a hormone responsible for cell proliferation in the breast. Because variants of the estrogen receptor (ER) alpha and beta genes have been associated with BC risk in numerous populations, the objective of the study was to determine whether the risk and severity of sporadic BC was associated with the rs2228480 (ESR1) and rs4986938 (ESR2) variants in a Brazilian population., Methods: A total of 253 DNA samples from sporadic BC patients and 257 DNA samples from healthy controls were studied. The samples were genotyped by PCR-RFLP. Epidemiological, clinical, and reproductive factors were analyzed. Statistical tests conducted included the χ 2 test, Fisher's exact test, and Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests or their parametric equivalents., Results: There was a high frequency of the rs2228480*GG genotype among the ER-positive tumors (OR=2.13; 95% CI=1.189-3.816) and it showed minor association with clinical stage 0 (OR=0.324; 95% CI=0.116-0.904). The rs2228480*GA genotype was associated with minor ER expression, whereas rs2228480*GG was associated with high expression of the progesterone receptor (PR). The frequency of rs4986938*GA was high among women who breastfed (OR=2.11; 95% CI=1.203-3.702), and it showed high association with clinical stage 0 (OR=4.383; 95% CI=1.606-11.96) whereas it had minor association with systemic arterial hypertension (OR=0.53; 95% CI=0.319-0.880). The rs2228480*GG/rs4986938*GG haplotype occurred at a low frequency among women who breastfed (OR=0.525; 95% CI=0.298-0.924) but it was associated with a high expression of PR., Conclusion: The rs2228480 and rs4986938 variants did not alter sporadic BC risk, but they did modulate the BC severity., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This study aimed to investigate the associations of XPC c.2815A>C, XPD c.934G>A and c.2251A>C, XPF c.2505T>C and ERCC1 c.354C>T single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of nucleotide excision repair pathway in outcome of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients treated with cisplatin (CDDP) chemoradiation. Patients with XPC c.2815AC or CC and XPD c.934GA or AA genotypes had 0.20 and 0.38 less chances of presenting moderate/severe ototoxicity and nausea, respectively. Patients with XPD c.934AA and c.2251AC or CC genotypes had 8.64, 12.29 and 3.55 more chances of achieving complete response (CR), consistent ototoxicity and nephrotoxicity, respectively. AA haplotype of XPD and ACT haplotype of XPD and ERCC1 SNPs were associated with 9.30 and 3.41 more chances of achieving CR and consistent nephrotoxicity, respectively. At 24 months of follow-up, patients with XPD c.934AA genotype presented lower progression-free survival and overall survival in Kaplan-Meier estimates, and differences between groups remained the same in univariate Cox analysis. Patients with XPD c.934AA genotype had 2.13 and 2.04 more risks of presenting tumor progression and death than others in multivariate Cox analysis. Our data present preliminary evidence that XPC c.2815A>C, XPD c.934G>A and c.2251A>C, and ERCC1 c.354C>T SNPs alter outcome of HNSCC patients treated with CDDP chemoradiation.

The distribution and demographic patterns of marine organisms in the north Atlantic were largely shaped by climatic changes during the Pleistocene, when recurrent glacial maxima forced them to move south or to survive in northern peri-glacial refugia. These patterns were also influenced by biological and ecological factors intrinsic to each species, namely their dispersion ability. The ballan wrasse ( Labrus bergylta ), the largest labrid fish along Europe's continental margins, is a target for fisheries and aquaculture industry. The phylogeographic pattern, population structure, potential glacial refugia and recolonization routes for this species were assessed across its full distribution range, using mitochondrial and nuclear markers. The existence of a marked population structure can reflect both recolonization from three distinct glacial refugia and current and past oceanographic circulation patterns. Although isolated in present times, shared haplotypes between continental and Azores populations and historical exchange of migrants in both directions point to a common origin of L. bergylta . This situation is likely to be maintained and/or accentuated by current circulation patterns in the north Atlantic, and may lead to incipient speciation in the already distinct Azorean population. Future monitoring of this species is crucial to evaluate how this species is coping with current environmental changes.

Cutaneous melanoma (CM) cells are resistant to apoptosis, and steroid hormones are involved in this process through regulation of TP53, MDM2, BAX, and BCL2 expression. We analyzed herein sex differences in outcomes of CM patients associated with TP53 c.215G>C, MDM2 c.309T>G, BAX c.-248G>A, and BCL2 c.-717C>A polymorphisms. DNA from 121 men and 116 women patients was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction and enzymatic digestion assays. At 60 months of follow-up, shorter progression-free survival (PFS) was seen in males with MDM2 GG + BCL2 AA (20.0 vs. 62.6%, P = 0.0008) genotype. Men carriers of the genotype had poor PFS (HR 3.78, 95% CI 1.30-11.0) than others. For women, shorter PFS was associated with TP53 GC or CC (61.4 vs. 80.8%, P = 0.01) and TP53 GC or CC + MDM2 TG or GG (59.1 vs. 85.4%, P = 0.01) genotypes at the same time. Women carriers of the genotypes had poor PFS (HR 2.46, 95% CI 1.19-5.09; HR 9.49, 95% CI 1.14-78.50) than others, respectively. Our data present, for the first time, preliminary evidence that inherited abnormalities on TP53, MDM2 and BCL2 genes, enrolled in apoptosis pathways, have a pivotal role in differences of outcomes in women and men with CM.

Aim: Since VEGF polymorphisms were associated with variable protein production, we analyzed herein their roles in outcome of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients., Methods: Genotypes of 85 patients with primary EOC were identified in DNA by real-time PCR. Progression-free survival and overall survival were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier method, univariate Cox model and bootstrap resampling study., Results: At 60 months of follow-up, progression-free survival was shorter in patients with VEGF c.-2578 CC genotype compared with others (52.7 vs 82.2%; p = 0.04). Those patients had 2.15 more chance of presenting disease progression than others (p = 0.04); bootstrap study validated the result (p = 0.03)., Conclusion: Our data suggest that VEGF c.-2578C>A polymorphism acts as a prognostic factor in EOC.

Background: Several factors are associated with the presence of chronic low back pain; one of them is the flexibility of the hamstring muscles that influences the posture of the pelvic spine., Objective: Investigate the influence of two different time periods of passive static stretching on the flexibility of the hamstring., Methods: Forty-six physiotherapy students were divided into two groups performing stretching exercises: 30 s and 60 s duration. The collections consisted of: (1) pre-test: evaluation of the flexibility of the hip and knee, using a manual goniometer by means of the following tests: Straight Leg Raise Test (SLR), Passive Hip Flexion Test (PHFT) and Modified Knee Extension Test (MKET), (2) intervention: stretching with different runtimes, (3) post-test: reappraisal of flexibility, conducted immediately after the intervention., Results: Significant difference was observed intra groups, group that did stretching exercises lasting 30 seconds (G30) (SLR p = 0.000. PHFT p = 0.003 and MKET p = 0.000) and group that did stretching exercises lasting 60 seconds (G60) (SLR p = 0.000. PHFT p = 0.001 and MKET p = 0.002). Comparing the groups, no significant difference was found (SLR p = 0.307; PHFT p = 0.904; MKET p = 0.132)., Conclusion: Thus it can be inferred that 30 seconds are sufficient for increased flexibility of young women. Therefore the time-treatment sessions can be optimized. Only the acute effect of stretching was observed; further investigation of the long-term effect is required.

This study aimed to evaluate whether GSTM1 and GSTT1 (presents or nulls), GSTP1 c.313A>G and NQO2 c.-102A>C polymorphisms, involved in xenobiotic detoxification pathways, alter outcomes of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients. DNA from 84 EOC patients diagnosed at the University of Campinas Academic Hospital from January 1995 and July 2007 was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism assays. The prognostic impact of genotypes of polymorphisms on progression-free survival and overall survival (OS) of EOC patients was examined using the Kaplan-Meier probability estimates and univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard ratio (HR) regression analyses. The significant results of Cox analyses were validated using a bootstrap resampling study (1000 replications). At 60 months of follow-up, lower OS was seen in patients with GSTT1 null genotype (50.0 vs. 76.7 %, P = 0.02) compared with the other genotype (Kaplan-Meier estimate). This outcome remained the same in univariate Cox analysis (HR 2.22, P = 0.02). After multivariate Cox analysis, patients with GSTT1 null (HR 2.11, P = 0.04, P bootstrap = 0.04) and NQO2 AA (HR 2.13, P = 0.03, P bootstrap = 0.04) genotypes were under greater risks of progressing to death when compared with those with others genotypes. Our data suggest, for the first time, that inherited abnormalities in xenobiotic detoxification pathway related to GSTT1 and NQO2 c.-102A>C polymorphisms act as independent prognostic factors for OS of EOC patients.

Purpose: We examined the influence of OGG1 c.977C>G (rs1052133), APEX1 c.444T>G (rs1130409), XRCC1 c.-77T>C (rs3213245), c.580C>T (rs1799782), c.839G>A (rs25489) and c.1196G>A (rs25487) single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), involved in base-excision repair (BER) pathway, on oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) risk and prognosis., Methods: Aiming to identify the genotypes, DNA from 200 consecutive OPSCC patients and 200 controls was analyzed by PCR-RFLP. The prognostic impact of genotypes of SNPs on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival of OPSCC patients was examined using the Kaplan-Meier estimates and Cox regression analyses., Results: XRCC1 c.580CT or TT genotypes (19.5 vs. 11.0 %, P = 0.04) and XRCC1 TTGG haplotype from c.-77T>C, c.580C>T, c.839G>A and c.1196G>A SNPs (17.5 vs. 10.0 %, P = 0.04) were more common in patients with OPSCC than in controls. Carriers of combined genotypes of c.580C>T and TTGG haplotype of XRCC1 gene were under 3.35- and 3.22-fold increased risk of OPSCC than others. For survival analysis, we selected only patients with tumor at stage IV. The median follow-up time was 24.5 months. At 24 months of follow-up, PFS was shorter in patients with OGG1 c.977CC genotype when compared with others genotypes (35.5 vs. 52.1 %, log-rank test, P = 0.03). After multivariate Cox analysis, patients with OGG1 c.977CC genotype had more chance to present tumor progression when compared with others (HR 1.68, P = 0.02)., Conclusions: Our data present, for the first time, evidence that inherited OGG1 c.977C>G; XRCC1 c.-77T>C, c.580C>T, c.839G>A and c.1196G>A abnormalities of DNA BER pathway are important determinants of OPSCC and predictors of patient outcomes.

This paper deals with the segmentation of angiodysplasias in wireless capsule endoscopy images. These lesions are the cause of almost 10% of all gastrointestinal bleeding episodes, and its detection using the available software presents low sensitivity. This work proposes an automatic selection of a ROI using an image segmentation module based on the MAP approach where an accelerated version of the EM algorithm is used to iteratively estimate the model parameters. Spatial context is modeled in the prior probability density function using Markov Random Fields. The color space used was CIELab, specially the a component, which highlighted most these type of lesions. The proposed method is the first regarding this specific type of lesions, but when compared to other state-of-the-art segmentation methods, it almost doubles the results.

The onset of muscle contraction has been an important element in the understanding of human motor control system as well as in the development of medical devices. This task is problematic in the study of spasticity using surface Electromyography (sEMG). In fact, spasticity is characterized by involuntary muscle contractions that can be seen as both, a non-stationary background if they are weak or a severe non-stationary EMG signal if they are strong. In other hand, these sEMG signals present a very low signal to noise ratio, beyond the added noise that contaminates this signal. The double threshold protocol presumes non-stationary muscle activation under a stationary environment which does not accommodate non-stationary background conditions. Apart from that the Shewhart protocol which makes part of the Double Threshold Protocol (DTP) presumes an initial segment containing only noise which can't be guaranteed under spastic conditions. These are the main causes of failures of state of the art approaches when applied to sEMG spastic muscles. This paper proposes dealing with these constraints by adapting the first threshold to the noise conditions via Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) estimation, which depends on the severity of the disease. The main idea is tuning the first threshold to low SNR conditions since it is where the DTP most degrades. This tuning is done in sEMG artificially contaminated at different SNRs where the multiple of standard deviation is heuristically determined based on experimentation. Noise is estimated in low energy segments instead of in an initial segment that can be contaminated by involuntary muscle contractions. The proposed algorithm was tested in sEMG signals from the Biceps Braquialis of 13 healthy individuals and in 9315 signals recorded in 23 subjects with spasticity. Improvements of more than 23% were obtained when compared with the classical DTP in moderate to severe spasticity.

The aim of the current study was to investigate the influence of static stretching on hamstring flexibility in healthy young adults by means of systematic review and meta-analysis. The search strategy included MEDLINE, PEDro, Cochrane CENTRAL, EMBASE, LILACS, and manual search from inception to June 2015. Randomized and controlled clinical trials studies that have compared static stretching to control group, and evaluated range of motion (ROM), were included. On the other hand, studies that have worked with special population such as children, elderly people, athletes, and people with any dysfunction/disease were excluded, as well as articles that have used contralateral leg as control group or have not performed static stretching. The meta-analysis was divided according to three types of tests. Nineteen studies were included out of the 813 articles identified. In all tests, the results favored static stretching compared to control group: passive straight leg raise (12.04; 95% CI: 9.61 to 14.47), passive knee extension test (8.58; 95% CI: 6.31 to 10.84), and active knee extension test (8.35; 95% CI: 5.15 to 11.55). In conclusion, static stretching was effective in increasing hamstring flexibility in healthy young adults.

The purpose of this pilot study was to explore whether individualized Reiki given to cancer patients at a Brazilian hospital improved symptoms and well-being. Data from 36 patients who received 5 Reiki sessions were collected using the MYMOP and were compared before and after their treatment and also with 14 patients who did not receive Reiki and who acted as a comparison group. Twenty-one patients reported feeling better, 12 felt worse, and 3 reported no change. Of the comparison group, 6 patients reported feeling better and 8 felt worse. The Reiki practice delivered as part of the integrative care in oncology did produce clinically significant effects, although not statistically significant results, for more than half of the patients undergoing cancer treatment.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the sexual function of survivors of cervical cancer (CC) in comparison to the control group of women without a history of cancer., Methods: This was an observational, analytical, case-control study. In the cancer group, women subjected to CC treatment of at least 3 months in the past were included (n = 37). For each survivor, one random selection from a base population control group was made (n = 37) of a woman without a history of cancer and with similar socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. The sexual function was evaluated through the female sex function index (FSFI) instrument. Data collection occurred through the application of questions in a face-to-face interview., Results: In the cancer group, 64.9 % related vaginal stenosis or shortening; 59.5 % were not sexually active and of those which had sexual relations, 80 % showed dysfunction. The total FSFI score varied between 9.60 and 35.10 in the cancer group and 23.90 and 36.00 in the control group. The means of the cancer group were statistically inferior (P < 0.05) to the control group in all the FSFI domains and in the total score. The mean total score was 21.72 in the cancer group, classified as sexual dysfunction when considering a score of 26 as the cutoff point., Conclusion: CC treatment was found to have a negative impact on the sexual function of women. Further, sexual function should be monitored routinely by interdisciplinary teams to provide comprehensive care with the objective of an improved quality of life post-cancer.

This study aimed to evaluate whether XPC A2920C, XPF T30028C, TP53 Arg72Pro, and GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphisms alter outcomes of cutaneous melanoma (CM) patients. DNA from 237 CM patients seen at the University of Campinas Teaching Hospital from April 2000 to February 2014 was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism assays. The prognostic impact of genotypes of polymorphisms on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) of CM patients were examined using the Kaplan-Meier probability estimates and univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. At 60 months of follow-up, shorter PFS and OS were seen in patients with XPF CC genotype (48.9 vs. 66.7 %, P = 0.002; 77.9 vs. 83.5 %, P = 0.006, respectively) and XPF CC + TP53 ArgArg (43.6 vs. 65.9 %, P = 0.007; 71.6 vs. 84.8 %, P = 0.006, respectively) compared with those with remaining genotypes (Kaplan-Meier estimates). Patients with XPF CC (hazard ratio (HR) 2.45, P = 0.002; HR 3.77, P = 0.005) and XPF CC + TP53 ArgArg (HR 2.67, P = 0.009; HR 4.04, P = 0.03) genotypes had more chance to present tumor progression in univariate and multivariate analyses, whereas patients with XPF CC (HR 2.78, P = 0.009) and XPF CC + TP53 ArgArg (HR 3.84, P = 0.01) genotypes were under greater risk of progressing to death in univariate analysis, compared with those with the remaining genotypes. The data suggest, for the first time, that inherited abnormalities in DNA repair pathway related to XPF 30028C and TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphisms act as prognostic factors for PFS and OS of CM patients.

Background: High meat intake and low consumption of vegetables, fruits and whole grains have been associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer in some relevant cohort studies conducted in distinct ethnic populations. The role of the dietary pattern on the risk of sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma (SCA) in Brazil is unknown; therefore, it was the aim of the present study., Methods: The dietary patterns of 169 patients with SCA and 101 controls were analysed by food frequency recall. Crude odds ratios were calculated and given within 95 % confidence intervals., Results: Patients reported higher average intakes of beef (32.0 ± 1.8 versus 23.7 ± 1.6, P = 0.0069), chicken (18.1 ± 0.9 versus 12.2 ± 0.8, P = 0.0002), and pork (8.9 ± 0.9 versus 3.4 ± 0.5, P < 0.0001). These individuals had a 1.025, 1.069, and 1.121-fold increased risk of SCA. Similar consumption of fish, vegetables, fruits and whole grains was reported by patients and controls., Conclusions: Meat consumption is greater in patients with SCA in the Brazilian population. Considering the study population - characterized by ethnic heterogeneity -, the environmental factor related to food habits may be associated with higher incidence of this disease in Brazil.

Spondias tuberosa Arruda, popularly named as umbu, is native from savanna-like vegetation and widely used for medicinal purposes, however, the toxicological profile is not available yet. This study evaluated the phytochemical profile and acute toxicity and citoxicity of Ethanolic Extract of Spondias tuberosa Arruda Bark (EEStb) in hematological, biochemical and histopathological parameters. Female Wistar rats were divided into: control (C) and animal treated single doses of 300mg/Kg (EEStb300) or 2.000mg/kg body weight (ESStb2.000) of the EEStb. After 24 hours and 14 days from gavage, the behavior, hematological, biochemical and histopathological parameters were assayed. Cytotoxicity effect was evaluated on HEp-2 cell lines. Neither EEStb300 nor EEStb2.000 produced mortality nor changes in body weight during the 14-days of observation, but EEStb2.000 reduced quietly the food and water intake as well as locomotor activity at first day. There were no changes in macroscopic, histopathological, biochemical and hematological parameters. EEStb in concentrations of 6.25- 50μg ml-1 on HEp-2 cell did not produce cytotoxic effect. These results suggest that EEStb did not cause acute toxicity and cytotoxic, suggesting a good safety rate for Spondias tuberosa Arruda.

Global governance is of key concern in the current debate over the workings of the world's computer network, and Brazil has played a notable role in this process, especially after approval of the Marco Civil da Internet (law 12.965, april 23, 2014), which defines Brazil's regulatory framework for the internet. Dubbed the internet bill of rights, this law sets out the principles, guarantees, rights, and duties of internet users and providers in Brazil. Based on the fundamental categories of net neutrality, internet users' right to privacy, and copyright discussions from the perspective of intellectual property, the article offers a comparative analysis of regulations in five countries: Brazil, Chile, Spain, the US, and France.

Objectives: We examined the influence of CYP1A1 A4889G and T6235C polymorphisms on the risk of sporadic breast cancer., Methods: DNA from 742 sporadic breast cancer patients and 742 controls was analyzed using the polymerase chain reaction, followed by the restriction fragment length polymorphism technique., Results: More patients had the CYP1A1 4889AG+GG genotype compared to controls (29.0% versus 23.2%, p=0.004). The G allele carriers had a 1.50-fold increased risk (95% CI: 1.14-1.97) of sporadic breast cancer compared to the other study participants. The frequency of the 4889AG+GG genotype among the Caucasian patients was higher than in the non-Caucasian patients (30.4% versus 20.2%, p=0.03) and controls (30.4% versus 23.2%, p=0.002). Caucasians and G allele carriers had a 1.61-fold increased risk (95% CI: 1.20-2.15) of sporadic breast cancer compared to other subjects. The CYP1A1 4889AG+GG genotype was more common among patients with a younger median age at first full-term pregnancy than among controls (33.8% versus 23.2%, p=0.001) and subjects whose first full-term pregnancies occurred at an older age (33.8% versus 26.1%, p=0.03). Women with the CYP1A1 4889AG+GG genotype and earlier first full-term pregnancies had a 1.87-fold (95% CI: 1.32-2.67) increased risk of sporadic breast cancer compared to the other study participants. Excess CYP1A1 4889AG+GG (39.8% versus27.1%, p=0.01) and 6235TC+CC (48.4% versus 35.9%, p=0.02) genotypes were also observed in patients with grade I and II tumors compared to patients with grade III tumors and controls (39.8% versus 23.2%, p=0.04; 48.4% versus 38.6%, p=0.04). The G and C allele carriers had a 2.44-fold (95% CI: 1.48-4.02) and 1.67-fold (95% CI: 1.03-2.69) increased risk, respectively, of developing grade I and II tumors compared to other subjects., Conclusions: The CYP1A1 A4889G and T6235C polymorphisms may alter the risk of sporadic breast cancer in Brazilian women.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the frequency and severity of nausea and vomiting using two different instruments and relate them to quality of life (QOL) in patients with cancer receiving antineoplastic treatment., Methods: Severity of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) was measured by Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) and a numerical scale. QOL was assessed using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General questionnaire., Key Findings: Of the 50 patients studied, 60.0% reported nausea (40.0% CTCAE grade 1; 66.7% moderate intensity on numerical scale) and 30.0% reported vomiting (46.7% CTCAE grades 1 and 2, each; 66.7% moderate intensity on numerical scale). CINV did not influence overall QOL., Conclusion: The frequency of CINV was high. There was no association between nausea/vomiting and overall QOL., (© 2015 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.)

We examined the influence of MLH1 c.-93G>A, MSH2 c.211 + 9C>G, MSH3 c.3133G>A and EXO1 c.1765G>A polymorphisms, involved in DNA mismatch repair (MMR), on head and neck (HN) squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) risk and prognosis. Aiming to identify genotypes, DNA from 450 HNSCC patients and 450 controls was analyzed by PCR-RFLP or real time PCR. MSH2 GG plus MSH3 GG (31.7% vs. 18.7%, p = 0.003) genotypes were higher in laryngeal SCC (LSCC) patients than in controls. Carriers of the respective combined genotype were under a 3.69 (95% CI: 1.54-8.81)-fold increased risk of LSCC. Interactions of tobacco and tobacco plus all the above-mentioned polymorphisms on HNSCC and LSCC risk were also evident in study (p = 0.001). At 60 months of follow-up, relapse-free survival (RFS) was shorter in patients with EXO1 GG genotype (54.8% vs. 61.1%, p = 0.03) and overall survival (OS) was shorter in patients with MSH3 GG genotype (42.8% vs. 52.5%, p = 0.02) compared to those with other genotypes, respectively. After multivariate Cox analysis, patients with EXO1 GG and MSH3 GG genotypes had worst RFS (HR: 1.50, 95% CI: 1.03-2.20, p = 0.03) and OS (HR: 1.59, 95% CI: 1.19-2.13, P = 0.002) than those with the remaining genotypes, respectively. Our data present, for the first time, evidence that inherited MLH1 c.-93G>A, MSH2 c.211 + 9C>G, MSH3 c.3133G>A, and EXO1 c.1765G>A abnormalities of DNA MMR pathway are important determinants of HNSCC, particularly among smokers, and predictors of patient outcomes., (© 2015 UICC.)

This paper addresses the problem of automatic detection of tumoral frames in endoscopic capsule videos by using features directly extracted from the color space. We show that tumor can be appropriately discriminated from normal tissue by using only color information histogram measures from the Lab color space and that light saturated regions are usually classified as tumoral regions when color based discriminative procedures are used. These regions are correctly classified if lightening is discarded becoming the tissue classifier based only on the color differences a and b of the Lab color space. While current state of the art systems for small bowel tumor detection usually rely on the processing of the whole frame regarding features extraction this paper proposes the use of fully automatic segmentation in order to select regions likely to contain tumoral tissue. Classification is performed by using Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) by using features from color channels a and b of the Lab color space. The proposed algorithm outperforms in more than 5% a series of other algorithms based on features obtained from the higher frequency components selected from Wavelets and Curvelets transforms while saving important computational resources. In a matter of fact the proposed algorithm is more than 25 times faster than algorithms requiring wavelet/curvelet and co-occurrence computations.

Aim: Although comparison between multi and single joint exercises has been conducted, there is insufficient evidence that these exercises could lead to different muscle activations. The aim of this study was to compare deltoid muscle activation during multi and single joint exercises., Methods: Twelve male participants (23.4±1.6 years) with at least one year of strength training experience were assessed performing inclined lat pull-down, reverse peck deck and seated row exercises. Surface electromyography was used to measure activation of anterior, middle and posterior portions of deltoid muscle during each exercise. Deltoid activation was recorded during maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) and during dynamic isoinertial exercises of ten maximum repetitions for inclined lateral pull-down, reverse peck deck and seated row., Results: There was no difference in activation of the anterior portion of deltoid muscle for any of the three exercises (P=0.08). The middle portion presented greater activation during the reverse peck deck (P=0.03) and during the seated row (P=0.03) compared to the inclined lat pull-down. For the posterior portion of deltoid muscle there was greater activation during the reverse peck deck (P=0.001) compared to the seated row and to the inclined lat pull-down., Conclusion: Results indicate that reverse peck deck and seated row should be more appropriate for recruitment of the middle portion of the deltoid muscle than the inclined lat pull-down. Differently, the reverse peck deck should be primarily used rather than the seated row and the lat pull-down for recruitment of the posterior portion of the deltoid muscle.