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The emergence and reemergence of mosquito-borne diseases in Brazil such as Yellow Fever, Zika, Chikungunya, and Dengue have had serious impacts on public health. Concerns have been raised due to the rapid dissemination of the chikungunya virus (CHIKV) across the country since its first detection in 2014 in Northeast Brazil. Faced with this scenario, on-site training activities in genomic surveillance carried out in partnership with the National Network of Public Health Laboratories have led to the generation of 422 CHIKV genomes from 12 Brazilian states over the past two years (2021-2022), a period that has seen more than 312 thousand chikungunya fever cases reported in the country. These new genomes increased the amount of available data and allowed a more comprehensive characterization of the dispersion dynamics of the CHIKV East-Central-South-African (ECSA) lineage in Brazil. Tree branching patterns revealed the emergence and expansion of two distinct subclades. Phylogeographic analysis indicated that the northeast region has been the leading hub of virus spread towards other regions. Increased frequency of C>T transitions among the new genomes suggested that host restriction factors from the immune system such as ADAR and AID/APOBEC deaminases might be driving CHIKV ECSA lineage genetic diversity in Brazil.

The goal of this study was to develop a method for ultrasound-guided percutaneous intraovarian injection in Wistar rats. Intraovarian administration of chemicals or needle aspiration of the ovary has been undertaken in some species, including humans, equines, and bovines. In rodents, which are widely used in scientific research, a technique for intraovarian injection without surgical exposure of the organ has not been described. The current study standardized the procedure of ovarian percutaneous injection of 0.9% sodium chloride guided by ultrasound in rats. The ovaries were measured by ultrasound imaging before and immediately after injection and showed a significant increase in ovarian length but not width. No clinical abnormalities were detected within 15 d after injection. These findings indicate that the steps of ultrasound localization of the organ, digital restraint, and correct needle insertion achieved successful intraovarian administration of saline without invasive surgery. These results document the feasibility of ultrasound-guided intraovarian percutaneous injection in rats and may be useful for future research on female reproduction and chemical sterilization.

The goal of this study was to develop a method for ultrasound-guided percutaneous intraovarian injection in Wistar rats. Intraovarian administration of chemicals or needle aspiration of the ovary has been undertaken in some species, including humans, equines, and bovines. In rodents, which are widely used in scientific research, a technique for intraovarian injection without surgical exposure of the organ has not been described. The current study standardized the procedure of ovarian percutaneous injection of 0.9% sodium chloride guided by ultrasound in rats. The ovaries were measured by ultrasound imaging before and immediately after injection and showed a significant increase in ovarian length but not width. No clinical abnormalities were detected within 15 d after injection. These findings indicate that the steps of ultrasound localization of the organ, digital restraint, and correct needle insertion achieved successful intraovarian administration of saline without invasive surgery. These results document the feasibility of ultrasound-guided intraovarian percutaneous injection in rats and may be useful for future research on female reproduction and chemical sterilization.

Resumo. Quando conectores de aço com cabeça são solicitados à tração, uma forma de ruptura é ocasionada pelo destacamento de uma região de concreto em torno do conector, em formato de cone. Sabe-se que o aumento do grau de fissuração na região do cone influencia negativamente na resistência do conjunto. Este trabalho apresenta uma modelagem computacional com base em uma série de ensaios experimentais caracterizados pelo arrancamento de conectores de aço embutidos em prismas bi-apoiados de concreto armado. A modelagem visou avaliar a influência do grau de fissuração na resistência do conjunto, onde variou-se a taxa de armadura de flexão de 0,3 até 3,2% entre os modelos, resultando em diferentes graus de fissuração. A análise numérica foi realizada usando o software MIDAS FEA. Foi feito um estudo paramétrico em um dos modelos, para ajustar as propriedades do concreto, sendo os alvos do estudo a resistência à tração, o módulo de elasticidade e a energia de fratura. Os valores definidos na análise foram extrapolados para os outros modelos. Foram determinadas cargas de ruptura e gráficos de carga x deslocamento para os modelos numéricos. Tais resultados foram comparados com os resultados experimentais, apresentando boa correlação, v dos modelos computacionais. Palavras-Chave: Conectores de aço com cabeça, arrancamento de conectores, vigas de concreto armado, análise não-linear

The role of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) in nociception has been explored in the last years. While in spinal cord their activation is frequently correlated with pain or acute noxious stimuli, supraspinally, this association is not so evident and remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate ERK1/2 activation in the spinal cord and brainstem nuclei upon neuropathy and/or an additional mechanical stimulus.Acute noxious mechanical stimulation was applied in the left hindpaw of anaesthetized SHAM-operated and chronic constriction injured (CCI, neuropathic pain model) rats. Other SHAM or CCI rats did not receive any stimulus. Immunohistochemistry against the phosphorylated isoforms of ERK1/2 (pERK1/2) was performed in lumbar spinal cord and brainstem sections to assess ERK1/2 activation.In the spinal cord, stimulation promoted an increase in pERK1/2 expression in the superficial dorsal horn of SHAM rats. No significant effects were caused by CCI alone. At supraspinal level, changes in ERK1/2 activation induced by CCI were observed in A5, locus coeruleus (LC), raphe obscurus (ROb), raphe magnus, dorsal raphe (DRN), lateral reticular and paragigantocellularis nucleus. CCI increased pERK1/2 expression in all these nuclei, with exception of LC, where a significant decrease was verified. Mechanical noxious stimulation of CCI rats decreased pERK1/2 expression in ROb and DRN, but no further changes were detected in either SHAM- or CCI-stimulated animals.ERK1/2 are differentially activated in the spinal cord and in selected brainstem nuclei implicated in nociception, in response to an acute noxious stimulus and/or to a neuropathic pain condition.

Made available in DSpace on 2022-04-28T21:00:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-03-01 The aim of the present study was to analyse esterase patterns in three triatomine species of Rhodnius genus. Four loci, Est 1, Est 2, Est 3 and Est 4, were found. The corresponding enzymes were characterized as carboxylesterases (E.C. 3.1.1.1) or cholinesterases (E.C. 3.1.1.8) based on inhibitory experiments, using eserine sulphate, malathion, mercury chloride, p-chloromercuribenzoate (pCMB) and iodoacetamide. Low genetic variability was observed: Est 1, Est 2 and Est 3 were monomorphic in Rhodnius domesticus, Rhodnius robustus and Rhodnius neivai, whereas locus Est 4 was polymorphic in the first two species. The UPGMA analysis based on esterase genotypic frequencies indicated greater similarity between R. domesticus and R. robustus when compared with R. neivai. The present study expands our knowledge about genetic variability among triatomines and accords with the hypothesis that R. domesticus is a species derived from R. robustus. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 The Royal Entomological Society. Departamento de Biologia Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo Departamento de Zoologia e Botânica Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo Departamento de Química e Ciências Ambientais Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo Departamento de Biologia Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo Departamento de Zoologia e Botânica Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo Departamento de Química e Ciências Ambientais Instituto de Biociências Letras e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, São Paulo

Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR) have been shown to play a role in the modulation of acute and inflammatory pain. Additionally, we have recently detected time-dependent changes in the mRNA expression of several mGluR subtypes in thalamic nuclei of monoarthritic (MA) rats. In the present study, mGluR1, -3, -4, and -7 subtype mRNA expression was analyzed by in situ hybridization with radioactively labelled oligonucleotide probes in cerebral cortical regions of normal and MA rats at 2, 4, and 14 days of the disease. The mGluR1, -4, and -7 mRNAs were at background level in normal rats and did not change in MA animals. In contrast, mGluR3 mRNA expression was abundant in normal rats and was significantly increased in cortical areas of MA rats at all time points. Higher changes were detected bilaterally at 4 days, predominantly in layers IV/V, in the motor, primary, and secondary somatosensory cortices (average increases of 50-75%), but maximum rises occurred in the contralateral cingulate cortex (+138%). No changes were detected in the auditory cortex. The present data show an up-regulation of mGluR3 mRNA expression in the motor, somatosensory, and limbic cortices of MA rats. This possibly reflects the occurrence of central mechanisms counteracting the increased transmission of nociceptive input arising from the inflamed paw and the impaired motor behavior of these rats. Changes in the cingulate cortex may be related to the motivational-affective component of nociception.