The aim of this study was to characterize the normality of the fetal circulatory system through the time between ventricular systoles of the ductus venosus in the three gestational trimesters in healthy fetuses using nonlinear methods of the complexity of the signal. A prospective cohort study was conducted at the Instituto de Medicina Integral Prof. Fernando Figueira (IMIP) from December 2019 to May 2020. Pregnant women between 11 and 14 weeks, with intrauterine pregnancy and healthy fetus were included. Patients with multiple gestation, positive screening for congenital malformation, including heart disease, and under 18 years of age were excluded. Doppler velocimetry ultrasonography of the ductus venosus was performed between the 11th and 14th weeks, 20th and 24th weeks, and 28th and 32nd weeks of gestation, and then the sound signal was extracted and segmented from the videos. To compare the means between the gestational trimesters of the approximate entropy (ApEn) and Lempel-Ziv complexity (CLZ) of the time between ventricular systoles, the Friedman test was used, with a significance level of 5%. No statistically significant difference was found between the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd trimesters regarding the mean ApEn (P=0.281) and CLZ (P=0.595) of the time between ventricular systoles of the ductus venosus. Ductus venosus systolic time was not sensitive to differentiate fetal cardiovascular dynamics between gestational trimesters. This study pioneered the characterization of cardiovascular normality by nonlinear parameters of the fetal ductus venosus in all three trimesters.

Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) regulates various physiological pathways and has a pivotal role in glucose homeostasis. The objective of this study was to verify the association of a haplotype constituted by two single nucleotide polymorphisms (rs2268894 and rs6741949) in the DPP4 gene with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and fasting glycemia-related variables in a sample of Brazilian older adults, taking serum levels and enzymatic activity of DPP4 into account. Clinical, biochemical, and anthropometric characteristics as well as DPP4 serum levels and enzymatic activity were determined in 800 elderly (≥60 years old) individuals. Assessment of polymorphic sites was performed by real-time PCR whereas haplotypes were inferred from genotypic frequencies. Statistical analyses compared measures and proportions according to T2DM diagnosis and DPP4 haplotypic groups. The most common haplotype consisted of the T-rs2268894/G-rs6741949 string, which was 20% more frequent among non-diabetics. Considering non-diabetic patients alone, carriers of the T/G haplotype had significantly lower levels of blood glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR index, and DPP4 activity. Among diabetic patients, the T/G haplotype was associated with lower DPP4 levels whereas glycemic scores were not affected by allelic variants. Our results suggested that the genetic architecture of DPP4 affects the glycemic profile and DPP4 serum levels and activity among elderly individuals according to the presence or absence of T2DM, with a possible implication of the T/G haplotype to the risk of T2DM onset.

The apolipoprotein B (APOB) gene contains several polymorphic sites described as risk modifiers for cardiovascular events. The objective of this study was to verify the association of the classic APOB Xba I polymorphism (rs693) with atherosclerotic risk factors in a segment of the Brazilian elderly population considering their usual dietary intake. Clinical and biochemical characteristics as well as total caloric and fat intake data were determined from 644 elderly individuals. Polymorphism analysis was performed by conventional polymerase chain reaction followed by enzyme restriction. Statistical analyses compared measures and proportions according to different APOB genotypic combinations. Statistically significant association was found between Xba I polymorphism and serum LDL, total cholesterol, and total lipid levels, with important elevations among T homozygotes compared to the other genotypes. There was homogeneity in all other parameters analyzed (including intake pattern), with a tendency for reduced levels of circulating apolipoprotein B among TT individuals. Our results pointed out that genetic variation in APOB affected the lipemic profile of elderly individuals in a context not biased by diet, generating a pattern suggestive of secretory disorder of lipoprotein particles, with possible implication in atherosclerotic risk.

RESUMO: O hábito de pastejo praticado pelos bovinos pode ser positiva ou negativamente influenciado pela estrutura da pastagem onde esse animal está inserido. Vários são os fatores que determinam a estrutura da pastagem, e a presença de plantas daninhas pode ser considerada um dos principais. O presente trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar o efeito de espécies com e sem estruturas contundentes sobre o comportamento de pastejo de bovinos em áreas de pastagens. O experimento foi conduzido em faixa no delineamento de blocos completos casualizados com quatro repetições, onde os tratamentos foram dispostos em faixas 4 x 3: quatro espécies de plantas daninhas (Zanthoxylum rhoifolium, Cnidoscolus urens, Dasyphyllum brasiliensis e Luehea divaricata) associados a três faixas de proximidade das plantas daninhas: 0-50, 50-100 e 100-150 cm de distância em relação ao caule principal da planta daninha estudada. O consumo de forragem pelos animais foi mensurado determinando-se a oferta real de forragem aos 0, 3, 6, 9 e 15 dias após o início de pastejo animal (DAP). A presença de arbustos nocivos influencia o comportamento de pastejo de bovinos. A influência no consumo é mais evidente quando existem plantas que promovem desconforto animal. Z. rhoifolium, C. urens e D. brasiliensis e foram as daninhas de maior influência negativa sobre o acesso ao alimento entre as espécies que possuem unidades contundentes. A influência negativa no pastejo é maior na faixa mais próxima à planta, ou seja, 0-50 cm de distância do caule principal da daninha.

ABSTRACT: The grazing behavior practice by bovines can be positive or negatively influenced by the pasture structure where the animal is inserted. Several factors determine the pasture structure and the presence of weeds is considered one of the most important. This study aimed to assess the effect of species with and without stiff structures over the grazing behavior of bovines in pasture areas. The experimental design was a split block design with four replications, in which treatments were arranged in a 4 x 3 factorial design: four weed species (Zanthoxylum rhoifolium, Cnidoscolus urens, Dasyphyllum brasiliensis, and Luehea divaricata) associated with three proximity strips of weeds: 0-50, 50-100, and 100-150 cm in relation to the main stem of the studied weed. Forage intake by animals was measured by determining the real forage offers at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 15 days after the beginning of animal grazing (DAP). The presence of noxious shrubs influenced bovine grazing behavior. The influence on the intake is most evident in the presence of plants that promote animal discomfort. The species Z. rhoifolium, C. urens, and D. brasiliensis were the weeds with the greatest influence on feed access among the species that have stiff structures. The negative influence on grazing behavior is higher in the proximity strip closest to the plant, i.e. 0-50 cm from the main stem of the weed.

RESUMO Métodos observacionais subjetivos, como escore de locomoção (EL) e escore de condição corporal (ECC), têm sido amplamente utilizados para avaliação populacional de diferentes graus de claudicação e estado nutricional em bovinos. Este estudo objetivou verificar a associação longitudinal entre o escore de condição corporal e o escore de locomoção em vacas da raça Holandesa submetidas a um regime alimentar semiextensivo. O período experimental compreendeu dois anos de observações, em uma propriedade localizada no sul do Rio Grande do Sul. O grupo experimental foi constituído por 900 vacas lactantes, que foram avaliadas trimestralmente por dinâmica ortopédica pelo EL e do estado metabólico pelo ECC. A coleta desses dados foi realizada por três veterinários treinados. A fim de se verificar a correlação entre variáveis, utilizou-se o programa SAS, por meio do método de correlação de Pearson, para determinar a associação entre as variáveis avaliadas (EL e ECC), com nível de significância de 5%. A distribuição dos diferentes escores de locomoção durante o período foi a seguinte: 57,2% dos animais tiveram o escore de locomoção 1, ou seja, estavam saudáveis em relação ao sistema locomotor. O restante dos animais que apresentou algum grau de dificuldade de locomoção distribuiu-se da seguinte forma, segundo a intensidade: 21,6% dos animais apresentaram EL2, 15,5% deles EL3, 3,5% deles EL4 e 2,2% deles EL5. Quanto ao resultado da correlação, observou-se associação negativa (r= -0,57) entre ECC e EL (P= 0,03), com ECC médio de 2,97±0,33 e EL de 1,35±0,24 durante o período experimental. Portanto, há uma correlação negativa entre o escore de condição corporal e o escore de locomoção em vacas da raça Holandesa submetidas ao regime alimentar semiextensivo.

ABSTRACT Subjective observational methods such as locomotion score (LS) and body condition score (BSC) have been widely used for populations evaluation of different degrees of claudication and nutritional status in cattle. This study aimed to verify the longitudinal association between body condition score and locomotion score in Holstein cows submitted to a semi-extensive breeding regime. The experimental period comprised two years of observations at a property located in the South of Rio Grande do Sul. The experimental group consisted of 900 lactating cows, which were evaluated quarterly, being evaluated by orthopedic dynamics through LS and of the metabolic status through BCS. The collection of these data was performed by three trained veterinarians. To verify the correlation between variables, the SAS program was used using the Pearson Correlation method to determine the association between the variables evaluated (LS and BSC), at a significance level of 5%. The rest of the animals that showed some degree of locomotion difficulty, were distributed following intensity: 21.6% of LS2 animals, 15.5% of LS3 animals, 3.5% with LS4, and 2.2% with LS5, while 57,2% were without locomotion difficulty (LS1). Regarding the correlation result, a negative association (r= -0.57) was found between BSC and LS (P=0.03), with an overall of BSC of 2.97±0.33 and LS of 1, 35±0.24 during the experimental period. Therefore, there is a negative correlation between body condition score and locomotion score in Holstein cows submitted to the semi-extensive breeding regime.

RESUMO OBJETIVOS: Esse estudo teve como objetivo analisar a prevalência de insatisfação com o peso corporal e sua relação com atividade física e estado nutricional em adolescentes. MÉTODO: O estudo envolveu 2.288 adolescentes. A variável dependente foi a insatisfação com o peso corporal. As variáveis independentes foram a atividade física e estado nutricional. Os fatores de confusão foram: sexo e condição econômica. As associações entre as variáveis dependentes e independentes foram analisadas por meio do teste do qui-quadrado e a magnitude das associações foi estimada pela regressão de Poisson. RESULTADOS: Um total de 56,6% dos adolescentes não se declararam satisfeitos com seu peso, 17,9% queriam aumentar, enquanto que 37,7% queriam diminuir o seu peso. Entre meninos e meninas, a insatisfação como peso corporal associou-se com o estado nutricional, obesidade abdominal e atividade física em análises primárias. Após os ajustes, o estado nutricional e a obesidade abdominal permaneceram significativamente associados à insatisfação com o peso corporal em ambos os sexos. CONCLUSÕES: Uma elevada prevalência de insatisfação com o peso corporal foi identificada e associada com o estado nutricional e com obesidade abdominal em adolescentes.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the prevalence of body weight dissatisfaction and its relationship to physical activity and nutritional status in adolescents. METHOD: The study enrolled 2,288 adolescents. The dependent variable was body weight dissatisfaction. The independent variables were physical activity and nutritional status. The confounders were gender, and economic condition. Associations between dependent and independent variables were analyzed through the chi-square test and the magnitude of the associations was estimated by Poisson regression. RESULTS: A total of 56.6% of adolescents were not satisfied with their weight, with 17.9% wanting to increase it, while 37.7% wanted to decrease their weight. In boys and girls, body weight dissatisfaction was associated with nutritional status, abdominal obesity and physical activity in crude analyses. After adjustments, nutritional status and abdominal obesity remained significantly associated to body weight dissatisfaction in both sexes. CONCLUSION: A high prevalence of body weight dissatisfaction was identified, which was associated with the nutritional status and abdominal obesity in adolescents.

Contraception has gained room for debate in the last 40 years. The nurse as a professional that has active participation in this process to help. In practice, some people are opting to look for contraception and service in public health care. The objective was to evaluate the nurse's knowledge of contraceptive methods in the context of the Family Health Program (FHP) regarding contraceptive methods. Descriptive study with a quantitative focus, carried out between July and November 2007. The participants of the study were 71 nurses. Most of nurses, 59 (83.1%), were females and 22 (31%) worked there for about 4 to 6 years. Nurses showed a higher knowledge regarding natural contraceptive methods and the topics with the highest percentage of errors were barrier methods. It was found that the nurses' knowledge was not enough regarding contraceptive methods and therefore they need more training and updating for these professionals.

A contracepção vem ganhando mais espaços de discussão nos últimos 40 anos. O enfermeiro como profissional que tem participação ativa neste processo, deve auxiliar, efetivamente, as pessoas que optam pela contracepção e buscam o serviço público de saúde. Objetivou-se avaliar o conhecimento de enfermeiros sobre métodos contraceptivos no contexto do Programa Saúde da Família (PSF) acerca dos métodos contraceptivos. Estudo descritivo com abordagem quantitativa, realizado entre julho e novembro de 2007. Participaram do estudo 71 enfermeiros do pSf de Fortaleza. A maioria dos enfermeiros, 59 (83,1%), é do sexo feminino e 22 (31%) trabalham no PSF há cerca de 4 a 6 anos. Os enfermeiros demonstraram maior conhecimento acerca dos métodos contraceptivos naturais e os itens com maiores percentuais de erros foram os métodos de barreira. Verificou-se que o conhecimento dos enfermeiros sobre os métodos contraceptivos não foi adequado, necessitando de maior atualização e capacitação desses profissionais.

La anticoncepción ha ganado más espacio para el debate en los últimos 40 años. La enfermera como profesional que tiene participación activa en este proceso, debe ayudar, efectivamente, a las personas que optan por buscar la anticoncepción y el servicio de salud pública. El objetivo fue evaluar los conocimientos de las enfermeras acerca de los métodos anticonceptivos en el contexto del Programa de Salud de la Familia (PSF) acerca de los métodos anticonceptivos. Estudio descriptivo con enfoque cuantitativo, realizado entre julio y noviembre de 2007. Los participantes del estudio fueron 71 enfermeras del PSF de Fortaleza. La mayoría de las enfermeras, 59 (83,1%), es de sexo femenino y 22 (31%) trabajan en el PSF alrededor de 4 a 6 años. Las enfermeras demostraron un mayor conocimiento acerca de los métodos naturales de anticoncepción y los items con mayor porcentaje de errores fueron los métodos de barrera. Se encontró que el conocimiento de las enfermeras acerca de métodos anticonceptivos no era suficiente, necesitando más actualización y capacitación de estos profesionales.

The objective of the present study was to compare the effect of acute exercise performed at different intensities in relation to the anaerobic threshold (AT) on abilities requiring control of executive functions or alertness in physically active elderly females. Forty-eight physically active elderly females (63.8 ± 4.6 years old) were assigned to one of four groups by drawing lots: control group without exercise or trial groups with exercise performed at 60, 90, or 110% of AT (watts) and submitted to 5 cognitive tests before and after exercise. Following cognitive pretesting, an incremental cycle ergometer test was conducted to determine AT using a fixed blood lactate concentration of 3.5 mmol/L as cutoff. Acute exercise executed at 90% of AT resulted in significant (P < 0.05, ANOVA) improvement in the performance of executive functions when compared to control in 3 of 5 tests (verbal fluency, Tower of Hanoi test (number of movements), and Trail Making test B). Exercising at 60% of AT did not improve results of any tests for executive functions, whereas exercise executed at 110% of AT only improved the performance in one of these tests (verbal fluency) compared to control. Women from all trial groups exhibited a remarkable reduction in the Simple Response Time (alertness) test (P = 0.001). Thus, physical exercise performed close to AT is more effective to improve cognitive processing of older women even if conducted acutely, and using a customized exercise prescription based on the anaerobic threshold should optimize the beneficial effects.

The genetic diversity of a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at the exon 20 (T945M) of the leptin receptor gene (LEPR) and of three short tandem repeats (STRs BM7225, BMS694, and BMS2145) linked to LEPR was investigated in three beef cattle herds (Brangus Ibagé, Charolais, and Aberdeen Angus). A cheap and effective new method to analyze the T945M polymorphism in cattle populations was developed and the possible role of these polymorphisms in reproduction and weight gain of postpartum cows was evaluated. High levels of genetic diversity were observed with the average heterozygosity of STRs ranging from 0.71 to 0.81. No significant association was detected between LEPR markers and reproductive parameters or daily weight gain. These negative results suggest that the LEPR gene polymorphisms, at least those herein described, do not influence postpartum cows production.

The objective of the present study was to determine the presence of hepatic iron overload in patients with chronic HCV infection and to correlate it with histologic alterations, HCV genotype and response to therapy. Liver tissue samples from 95 patients with chronic hepatitis C were divided into two groups: group I, presence of iron overload in hepatic tissue (Perls' staining) and group II, no iron overload. Hepatic iron overload was detected in 30 (31.6%) of 95 patients. Of the 69 patients tested by genotyping, 49 (71.01%) were genotype 1 and 20 (28.99%) genotype non-1. Iron overload was detected in 14 (28.6%) patients with genotype 1 and in 6 (30%) with genotype non-1 (P = 0.906). There was a significant difference in fibrosis stage between groups (P = 0.005). In group I (N = 30), one patient had stage F0/F1 of fibrosis, while in group II (N = 65), 22 (33.8%) patients had minimal or no fibrosis. Fibrosis stage F2/F3 was observed in 70% of group I patients compared to 46.2% of group II. Eighty-five patients were treated with a combination of interferon and ribavirin; 29 of them (34.1%) had a sustained virologic response and 8 (27.6%) of them had hepatic iron overload. Iron overload was detected in 18 (32.1%) of the 56 non-responders (P = 0.73). Hepatic iron overload was frequent among patients with chronic hepatitis C and was associated with a more severe stage of liver fibrosis. There was no association between iron overload and HCV genotype and response to interferon and ribavirin therapy.

We used 550 Braford and 214 Brangus-Ibagé bulls to study the association between Y chromosome morphology and the evaluation of breeding-soundness, karyotyping and breeding records were used to assess Y chromosome morphology. In general, no direct association was detected between the individual type of Y chromosome and reproductive fitness as previously estimated through breeding soundness examination. The type of breeding strategy used to form the synthetic breeds was also analyzed. The Braford breed is about 3/8 Zebu (Bos taurus indicus) and 5/8 Hereford (Bos taurus taurus) but when the breeding strategy used 1/4 Zebu animals to produce Braford bulls which were 3/8 Zebu a greater percentage of the bulls had to be culled due to reproductive problems. Our study shows that certain interactions between genotypes can be detrimental to the reproductive efficiency of 3/8 Zebu animals and that breeding strategies avoiding or favoring certain genotypes can be used to reduce the percentage of bulls from synthetic breeds that are culled due to problems with semen quality.

Este trabalho teve por objetivo verificar a viabilidade do uso de digitalizador de imagens manual, acoplado a um microcomputador, para a avaliação do consumo de folhas de soja, por lagartas de 5o instar de Anticarsia gemmatalis Hübner (Lep.: Noctuidae), em comparação com o método de pesagem e do planímetro, baseando-se na eficiência dos métodos e no tempo gasto para a avaliação. Os testes foram realizados utilizando-se folhas de soja `IAC 8' e lagartas criadas em dieta artificial. Foram realizados 2 tipos de teste: 1o) oferecimento de folíolos inteiros de soja às lagartas e, 2o) oferecimento de disco de folhas de área conhecida. No 1o teste comparou-se o método de pesagem com o digitalizador de imagens ("scanner"); no 2o experimento foram comparados o método do planímetro com o digitalizador de imagens que emprega o programa PCXAREA. Os resultados obtidos demonstraram que não existem diferenças nas medições de folíolos e discos de soja consumidos por A. gemmatalis quando comparados os métodos tradicionais (planímetro e pesagem) e o de digitalização de imagens. A medição com o digitalizador reduziu o tempo de avaliação em 88,5% e 87%, em relação ao planímetro e método de pesagem, respectivamente, sendo plenamente viável a sua utilização.

The viability of the use of an image analyzer (scanner), was compared with the use of leaf weight and planimeter techniques, to measure leaf area consumption by insects. The tests were conducted with 5th instar Anticarsia gemmatalis Hübner (Lep.: Noctuidae) larvae reared on artificial diet. Soybean leaves (cultivar "IAC - 8") were offered to velvetbean caterpilars held in Petri dishes. Two experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design: (1) with whole soybean leaves, and (2) with leaf disks. The image analyzer use was compared with the leaf weight method in the first experiment and with the planimeter. The image data was analyzed with PCXAREA software. There were no significant differences between the image analyzer and the standard techniques. The evaluation time with image analyzer reduced by 88.5 and 87% the time consumed with planimeter and leaf weight methods, respectively. Based on the results, it is concluded that the use of a scanner is viable for measuring leaf area consumption by insects.