RESUMO Atualmente é crescente o interesse pela investigação de compostos bioativos de fontes naturais. Nesse contexto, o presente estudo investigou o conteúdo fenólico, capacidade antioxidante e atividade antimicrobiana do extrato hidroalcoólico (EHA) das cascas do caule e folhas de Stryphnodendron adstringens (Mart.) Coville. Partes da planta foram extraídas com etanol: água (1:1) e filtradas a vácuo para obtenção do extrato bruto. O conteúdo fenólico foi determinado pelo método de Folin-Ciocalteu. A atividade antioxidante foi medida pelo teste DPPH. A atividade antimicrobiana dos extratos foi avaliada contra cocos Gram-positivos: Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) e Staphylococcus epidermidis (cepa isolada de paciente); bacilos Gram-negativos: Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922) e Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853). A zona de inibição e concentração inibitória mínima (CIM) dos extratos vegetais foram avaliadas pelo método de disco difusão em ágar e microdiluição em caldo, respectivamente. O conteúdo fenólico total dos EHAs foi maior nas cascas do caule (970,4 mg GAE/g) do que nas folhas (693,8 mg GAE/g). No ensaio DPPH, todos os extratos apresentaram alta atividade antioxidante, acima de 75% na concentração de 100 μg/mL. Sobre a atividade antimicrobiana, todos os EHAs apresentaram efeitos contra bactérias Gram-positivas S. aureus e S. epidermidis, cuja CIM variou de 7,81 μg/mL a 62,5 μg/mL. Essa descoberta é importante, uma vez que esses patógenos geralmente são resistentes a uma variedade de antibióticos amplamente conhecidos. Portanto, esses resultados são promissores e indicam o uso de S. adstringens (Mart.) Coville (Barbatimão) como antioxidante natural em alimentos, medicamentos e também apontam para seu uso na terapia antimicrobiana.

ABSTRACT There is currently growing interest in the investigation of bioactive compounds from natural sources. In this context, this study investigated the phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and antimicrobial activity of the hydroalcoholic extract (EHA) of the stem barks and leaves of Stryphnodendron adstringens. Plant parts were extracted with ethanol:water (1:1) and filtered in a vacuum to obtain the crude extract. Phenolic content was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu method. Antioxidant activity was measured using the DPPH test. The antimicrobial activity of extracts was evaluated against Gram-positive cocci: Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Staphylococcus epidermidis (strain isolated from a patient); and Gram-negative bacilli: Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853). The zone of inhibition and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the plant extracts were evaluated by the agar diffusion disc method and broth microdilution, respectively. Total phenolic content of the EHAs was higher in stem barks (970.4 mg GAE/g) than in leaves (693.8 mg GAE/g). In the DPPH assay, all extracts showed high antioxidant activity, above 75% at the concentration of 100 μg/mL. About antimicrobial activity, all the EHAs showed effects against Gram-positive bacteria S. aureus andS. epidermidis, whose MIC ranged from 7.81 μg/mL to 62.5 μg/mL. This finding is important since these pathogens are generally resistant to a variety of widely known antibiotics. Therefore, these results are promising and indicate the use of S. adstringens (Mart.) Coville as a natural antioxidant in foods, medicines and also point to its use in antimicrobial therapy.

ABSTRACT This study evaluated the response to fertilization at advanced ages in Eucalyptus stands. Fertilization at advanced ages (FA) was applied in stands managed according to tall shaft and coppice regimes. All stands received operational fertilization from the company. It was used as the basis to the network of continuous forestry inventory plots (P-IFC) of the company. Connected to the P-IFC, twin-plots received FA throughout four age classes, 30 to 35, 42 to 47, 54 to 59 and 66 to 70 months. The FA presented a biological response and provided volumetric gains of 17 and 51% for stands with tall shaft and coppice, respectively. The most significant responses to the FA was seen at younger ages of the forest in the tall shaft regime. Despite the biological response, the volumetric gains did not provide financial returns in either regime due to the elevated doses applied.

OBJETIVO: Descrever as principais características em mulheres com câncer de mama, de acordo com o perfil imuno-histoquímico. MÉTODOS: A população foi composta a partir de coorte hospitalar formada por mulheres com diagnóstico de câncer de mama efetuado entre 2003 e 2005 (n = 601) e atendidas em centro de referência em assistência oncológica de Juiz de Fora-MG. Foram selecionadas apenas 397 mulheres que possuíam imunohistoquímica completa. Para definição dos grupos segundo perfil imuno-histoquímico, optou-se por classificação baseada na avaliação dos receptores de estrógeno e de progesterona, índice de proliferação celular Ki67 e superexpressão de HER2. De acordo com os diferentes fenótipos, foram definidos cinco subtipos: luminal A, luminal B-HER2 negativo, luminal B-HER2 positivo, triplo negativo e HER2 superexpresso. RESULTADOS: A maioria dos pacientes tinha pele branca (80,7%) e era pós-menopausada (64,9%), com idade média de 57,4 anos (±13,5). Ao diagnóstico, 57,5% delas tinha tumor de tamanho > 2,0 cm, e 41,7% exibiam comprometimento linfonodal. Os subtipos mais frequentes foram luminal B-HER2 negativo (41,8%) e triplo negativo (24,2%). No subtipo luminal A, 72,1% das pacientes eram pós-menopausadas, enquanto que os maiores percentuais na pré-menopausa foram observados nos subtipos luminal B-HER2 positivo e triplo negativo (45,2% e 44,2%, respectivamente). Verificou-se maior frequência de tumores > 2,0 cm e com linfonodos comprometidos nos subtipos triplo negativo e HER2 positivo. CONCLUSÃO: Esta pesquisa possibilitou avaliar a distribuição das principais características clinicopatológicas e relacionadas aos serviços de saúde em coorte de mulheres brasileiras com câncer de mama, segundo os subtipos tumorais imuno-histoquímicos.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the main characteristics of women with breast cancer, according to the immunohistochemical profile. METHODS: The population comprised a hospital cohort, consisting of women diagnosed with breast cancer between 2003 and 2005 (n = 601) and treated at a referral center for cancer care in Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil. Only 397 women who had complete immunohistochemistry analysis were selected. To define the groups according to the immunohistochemical profile, the assessment of estrogen and progesterone receptors, Ki-67 cell proliferation index, and overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) was chosen. According to the different phenotypes, five subtypes were defined: luminal A, luminal B HER2 negative, luminal B HER2 positive, triple negative, and HER2 overexpression. RESULTS: Most patients were white (80.7%) and post-menopausal (64.9%), with a mean age of 57.4 years (± 13.5). At diagnosis, 57.5% had tumor size > 2.0 cm, and 41.7% had lymph node involvement. The most common subtypes were luminal B - HER2 negative (41.8%) and triple negative (24.2%). In the luminal A subtype, 72.1% of patients were post-menopausal, while the highest percentage of premenopausal women were observed in the luminal B - HER2 positive and triple negative subtypes (45.2% and 44.2%, respectively). A higher frequency of tumors > 2.0 cm and lymph node involvement was observed in triple negative and HER2 positive subtypes. CONCLUSION: This study allowed the distribution assessment of the main clinical and pathological characteristics and those related to health services in a cohort of Brazilian women with breast cancer, according to the immunohistochemical tumor subtypes.

Human rhinoviruses (HRV) are usually associated with mild respiratory symptoms in children. However, some studies have found that HRV can cause severe disease, especially when the patient is co-infected with a second virus. In this study, 532 nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPAs) were collected over a nine-year period from children at the Clinics Hospital of Uberlândia. The collected NPAs were then tested for HRV RNA using the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Eighty-three specimens from children diagnosed with lower respiratory tract illness (LRTI) were positive for HRV RNA and were then tested for the presence of eight other respiratory viruses. A second virus was detected in 37.3% (31/83) of the samples. The most frequent clinical diagnosis was bronchiolitis, followed by other LRTI and then pneumonia. The frequency of severe disease in children infected with more than one virus was not significantly different from the frequency of severe disease in children infected with HRV alone. Children infected with both HRV and parainfluenza virus (1.5 m.o.) were significantly younger than those infected by HRV alone (5.0 m.o.) (p = 0.0454). Overall, these results suggest that infection with a second virus does not lead to a higher frequency of severe syndromes in children presenting with LRTI.

Human adenoviruses (HAdV) are a major cause of acute respiratory diseases (ARD), gastroenteritis, conjunctivitis and urinary infections. Between November 2000-April 2007, a total of 468 nasopharyngeal aspirate samples were collected from children with ARD at the Clinics Hospital of Uberlândia. These samples were tested by immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and 3% (14/468) tested positive for the presence of HAdV. By performing polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect HAdV DNA in samples that tested negative or inconclusive for all viruses identifiable by IFA (respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza viruses 1, 2 and 3, influenza viruses A and B and HAdV), as well as negative for rhinoviruses by reverse transcription-PCR, additional 19 cases were detected, for a total of 33 (7.1%) HAdV-positive samples. Nucleotide sequences of 13 HAdV samples were analyzed, revealing that they belonged to species B, C and E. Further analyses showed that species C (HAdV-2) was the most prevalent among the sequenced samples. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing the presence of HAdV-4 in Brazil. We also detected an isolate that was 100% identical to a part of the feline adenovirus hexon gene sequence.

Este estudo foi realizado em reflorestamentos com eucalipto da V & M Florestal Ltda., em João Pinheiro, MG. O objetivo foi verificar o efeito da espécie de eucalipto cultivada, da idade da planta, assim como da vegetação nativa que circunda os talhões, sobre a densidade de sauveiros. Os dados foram obtidos dos trabalhos de pesquisa do Sistema Monitorado de Combate a Formigas Cortadeiras da V & M Florestal (Simfor), realizados em todos os talhões reflorestados com eucalipto, de diferentes idades, entre 1991 e 1996. A densidade de sauveiros aumentou a partir do início da floresta manejada até o terceiro ano de idade e permaneceu estável a partir daí. A presença das faixas de vegetação nativa reduziu a densidade de sauveiros nos talhões de eucalipto que elas margeiam, e os fragmentos de floresta nativa apresentaram efeito contrário ao das faixas.

The effects of eucalyptus species and ages, as well as the native vegetation around the eucalyptus plantation, on leaf-cutting ant nests density was studied in a reforested area of V & M Florestal Co., in João Pinheiro, MG, Brazil. Data were obtained from the leaf-cutting ant monitoring program (Simfor) of the company, from the entire planting fields, with different ages, from 1991 to 1996. As a result, the number of leaf-cutting ant nests increased from the beginning up to three years of age of the forest, but maintained the same number afterwards. Native vegetation strips reduced the number of nests in the reforested areas, while native forest fragments showed an opposite effect.