Resumo O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar as atividades antibacteriana e antioxidante in vitro e o desempenho cicatricial in vivo de um polissacarídeo isolado de Glycyrrhiza glabra denominado PSG. Foi caracterizado estruturalmente por espectroscopia no infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FT-IR), que confirmou a presença de diferentes bandas funcionais de polissacarídeos. A capacidade antioxidante da PSG foi determinada in vitro e avaliada in vivo através do exame da capacidade de cicatrização de feridas. Trinta e dois ratos foram divididos aleatoriamente em quatro grupos: o grupo I foi tratado com soro fisiológico (controle negativo); o grupo II foi tratado com “CYTOL CENTELLA®”; o grupo III foi tratado com glicerol e o grupo IV foi tratado com polissacarídeo. A resposta aos tratamentos foi avaliada por parâmetros macroscópicos, histológicos e bioquímicos. Os dados revelaram que nossa amostra apresentou atividades antioxidantes potenciais e acelerou significativamente o processo de cicatrização da ferida, após dez dias de tratamento, comprovado pelos maiores escores de aparência da ferida e maior teor de colágeno confirmado pelo exame histológico, quando comparado ao controle e “CYTOL CENTELLA® ”. No geral, esses achados provaram que esse polissacarídeo isolado de Glycyrrhiza glabra pode ser considerado um polímero bioativo natural para processos terapêuticos em aplicações de cicatrização de feridas.

Abstract The present study aimed to evaluate the in vitro antibacterial and antioxidant activities and the in vivo wound healing performance of a polysaccharide isolated from Glycyrrhiza glabra named PSG. It was structurally characterized by Fourier transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, which confirmed the presence of different polysaccharides functional bands. The antioxidant capacity of PSG was determined in vitro and evaluated in vivo through the examination of wound healing capacity. Thirty two rats were randomly divided into four groups: group I was treated with physiological serum (negative control); group II was treated with “CYTOL CENTELLA®”; group III was treated with glycerol and group IV was treated with polysaccharide. The response to treatments was assessed by macroscopic, histologic, and biochemical parameters. Data revealed that our sample exhibited potential antioxidant activities and accelerated significantly the wound healing process, after ten days of treatment, proved by the higher wound appearance scores and a higher content of collagen confirmed by histological examination, when compared with control and “CYTOL CENTELLA®”. Overall, these findings proved that this polysaccharide isolated from Glycyrrhiza glabra could be considered as a natural bioactive polymer for therapeutic process in wound healing applications.

The objective of this work is the identification of cheese maturation time using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) data and analytical measurements associated with chemometrics techniques. Minas artisanal cheeses were collected from 8 producers matured at times 1, 7, 14, 21, 28, 45 and 60 days, fractioned in rind and crumb for moisture, water activity (aw), dry in fat extract, pH, acidity, ashes, protein, extent and depth of proteolysis, color and identification of functional groups in FTIR-ATR. Principal component analysis (PCA), multiple linear regression (MLR) and partial least squares (PLS) techniques were performed on the dataset. PCA was used to assess differences and similarities of the samples. The best results to predict the maturation time were using MLR for analytical measurements in the portion of the crumb, with coefficient of determination (R2) = 0.92, root mean square error of validation (RMSEV) = 5.4 days and PLS for FTIR-ATR with R2 = 0.92, RMSEV = 5.3 days. The results indicated that the FTIR-ATR was adequate to predict maturation times. Although, it does not eliminate the need for more detailed chemical analysis.

Mid-infrared spectroscopy (MID), chemical composition and physicochemical characteristics associated with chemometrics were used to rapidly detect and quantify the amount of cow’s milk added in buffalo’s milk. A total of 165 samples, divided into buffalo’s milk, buffalo’s milk added with cow’s milk (10 to 90%) and cow’s milk were evaluated to obtain fat, protein, lactose, total and defatted solids, urea, pH, acidity, cryoscopic index and band absorbances in the spectra associated with principal component analysis (PCA), multiple linear regression (MLR) and partial least squares regression (PLS). The treatments were separated into groups by PCA, allowing the classification of samples. MLR and PLS models were able to predict cow’s milk contents in buffalo’s milk. MID and results of the analytical measures studied when associated with chemometrics are efficient in the rapid quantitative detection of adulteration in buffalo’s milk.

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the response of social anxiety disorder (SAD) patients to threat scenarios. First-choice responses to 12 scenarios describing conspecific threatening situations and mean scores of defensive direction and defensive intensity dimensions were compared between 87 SAD patients free of medication and 87 matched healthy controls (HC). A significant gender difference in the first-choice responses was identified for seven scenarios among HCs but only for two scenarios among SAD patients. A significantly higher proportion of SAD patients chose "freezing" in response to "Bush" and "Noise" scenarios, whereas the most frequent response by HCs to these scenarios was "check out". SAD males chose "run away" and "yell" more often than healthy men in response to the scenarios "Park" and "Elevator", respectively. There was a positive correlation between the severity of symptoms and both defensive direction and defensive intensity dimensions. Factorial analysis confirmed the gradient of defensive reactions derived from animal studies. SAD patients chose more urgent defensive responses to threat scenarios, seeming to perceive them as more dangerous than HCs and tending to move away from the source of threat. This is consistent with the hypothesis that the physiopathology of anxiety disorders involves brain structures responsible for defensive behaviors.

Agricultores que adotaram o sistema plantio direto (SPD) pretendem não mais arar o solo para incorporar calcário com o objetivo de corrigir a acidez do solo, dai a busca de novos métodos para a correção dessa acidez. Dois experimentos foram realizados, no período 1993-1996, para avaliar a resposta de soja, trigo, milho, aveia e cevada a calcário aplicado na superfície de solos com 380 g kg-1 de argila (LEd-Passo Fundo) e com 580 g kg-1 de argila (LRd-Sarandi), manejados no sistema plantio direto. Os experimentos foram desenvolvidos no delineamento de blocos ao acaso, com três repetições. Os tratamentos foram escolhidos conforme a necessidade de calagem dos solos, determinada pelo método SMP, para pH 6,0, em amostras de solo coletadas na profundidade de 0-20 cm a saber: testemunha, calcário incorporado e cinco níveis de calcário aplicados na superfície dos solos (1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8 e 1/16 SMP). Apenas a soja, em 1994, e a soja e cevada, em 1996, mostraram respostas à aplicação do calcário. Na dose recomendada de calcário (1 SMP), não houve diferenças significativas entre calcário incorporado e não incorporado. Considerando as relações custo/benefício, as doses que proporcionaram maior retorno financeiro foram de 1/16 SMP, para o solo LEd, e de 1/8 SMP, para o solo LRd, quando se desconsiderou a cevada. Quando esta foi incluída na análise econômica, as doses que deram maior retorno financeiro foram de 1/4 e 1/2 SMP, para os solos LEd e LRd, respectivamente. Amostras de solo coletadas aproximadamente três anos após a aplicação do calcário revelaram que a adição de calcário na superfície dos solos corrigiu a acidez e aumentou significativamente o pH somente na camada de 0-5 cm. Conclui-se que não há inconveniência no uso de calcário na superfície de solos com acidez já corrigida pelo método convencional há alguns anos e que apresentem bom nível de nutrientes.

Alternative methods to correct soil acidity are needed because farmers who adopted no-tillage no longer want to plow soils to incorporate lime. Two experiments were carried out during the years 1993-1996 under no-tillage to evaluate the response of soybean, wheat, corn, oat and barley to lime applied on the surface of soils with 380 g kg-1 clay (LEd-Haplorthox) and with 580 g kg-1 clay (LRd-Haplorthox). A completely randomized block design, with three replications and seven treatments, was used. The treatments were established based on the SMP lime requirement method to reach pH 6.0, from soil samples taken from the 0-20 cm depth and were: control, incorporated lime and five levels of surface-applied lime (1 SMP, 1/2 SMP, 1/4 SMP, 1/8 SMP and 1/16 SMP). Only soybean in 1994, and soybean and barley in 1996, showed significant yield increases due to lime. At the recommended rate (1 SMP) there were no significant differences between incorporated and surface-applied lime. Considering the cost/benefit ratio, the lime rates which offered the highest financial return were 1/16 SMP, for the LEd soil, and 1/8 SMP, for the LRd soil, when barley was excluded from the economic analysis. When barley was included, the rates which gave the best return were 1/4 SMP and 1/2 SMP, respectively, for the LEd and LRd soils. Soil samples collected nearly three years after lime application showed that the addition of lime on the surface of soils, without incorporation, corrected soil acidity and significantly increased soil pH only in the 5 cm top layer. It is concluded that there is no drawback in using surface-applied lime on soils whose acidity was neutralized by incorporated lime several years before and which have a good nutrient level.

O efeito da adubação nitrogenada, aplicada em cobertura, na produção de matéria seca de aveia preta (Avena strigosa Schreb), estabelecida por meio de semeadura direta em campo nativo, sem dessecação por herbicidas, em solo pertencente à unidade de mapeamento Passo Fundo (Latossolo Vermelho-Escuro distrófico), foi estudado em três experimentos. O experimento 1 foi desenvolvido em 1994, com a finalidade de avaliar o efeito de doses de nitrogênio (0, 20, 40, 80, 160 e 320 kg ha-1 de N), cada uma aplicada em três parcelas (1/3 aos 30 dias da emergência de plantas, 1/3 após o primeiro corte e 1/3 após o segundo corte). O experimento 2 foi realizado em 1996, com o objetivo de estudar o efeito de diferentes combinações entre doses e épocas de aplicação de N antes do primeiro corte ou pastoreio. O experimento 3 foi instalado em 1996, com o propósito de estudar o efeito da adubação nitrogenada aplicada aos 27 dias da emergência, após o primeiro corte e após o segundo corte, nas doses de 0, 40, 80 e 160 kg ha-1 de N. Os tratamentos efetuados após o primeiro corte foram precedidos da aplicação de 40 kg ha-1 de N aos 27 dias, e os tratamentos realizados após o segundo corte foram precedidos da aplicação de 40 kg ha-1 de N aos 27 dias + 40 kg ha-1 de N após o primeiro corte. Nos três experimentos, usou-se delineamento experimental em blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. Os resultados evidenciaram forte limitação de N para a introdução de aveia-preta em semeadura direta sobre pastagens naturais, justificando economicamente a sua aplicação, em doses superiores às recomendadas para essa forrageira no sistema convencional de cultivo. O parcelamento da dose de N antes do primeiro corte não aumentou a eficiência da adubação nitrogenada para a produção de forragem de aveia-preta, cultivada em semeadura direta sobre pastagens nativas. Observou-se efeito residual de N, aplicado em cobertura, especialmente sobre o rendimento de matéria seca do corte posterior ao corte de avaliação do efeito imediato de N.

The effect of topdressed N on the dry matter production of no-till oat (Avena strigosa Schreb) planted onto native pasture, without desiccation with herbicides, in soil classified as Dark-Red Latosol (Haplorthox), was studied in three experiments. Experiment 1 was carried out in 1994 to evaluate the effect of rates of nitrogen (0, 20, 40, 80, 160, and 320 kg ha-1 ), split into three applications (1/3, 30 days after emergence of plants-DAE, 1/3 after the first cutting, and 1/3 after the second cutting), on the dry matter production of oat. Experiment 2 was carried out in 1996 with the objective of determining the effect of time of N application on the production of dry matter of oat. Experiment 3 was carried out in 1996 to evaluate the effect of N applied 27 DAE, and after the first and second cuttings, with rates of 0, 40, 80, and 160 kg ha-1. The treatments applied after the first cutting received 40 kg ha-1 of N at 27 DAE and those applied after the second cutting received 40 kg ha-1 of N at 27 DAE + 40 kg ha-1 of N after the first cutting. In all cases the experimental design was completely randomized blocks, with four replications. The results showed considerable N limitation for the introduction of oat under no-till into native pasture, economically supporting its application at levels exceeding the recommended amounts when this forage is grown under conventional tillage system. Splitting the rate of N before the first cutting did not increase the efficiency of fertilization for the production of oat forage, under no-till onto native pasture. Residual effect of topdressed N was observed, especially on dry matter production of the second cutting after N application.