This study aims to analyze Tetragonisca angustula honey from southwestern Bahia for its physicochemical characteristics, phenolic compounds and glioma cell inhibitory effect, in samples from different periods of the year, dry (DP) and rainy (RP) period. The analyses showed that samples obtained in the DP and RP are statistically different for the physicochemical profile (p < 0.05). DP honey has a darker color, greater acidity, content of reducing sugars and ash and lower moisture, when compared to RP. The content of total phenolics and flavonoids was determined spectrometrically, using the Folin-Ciocalteu method and reaction with aluminum chloride, respectively, and there was no statistical difference between the samples (p > 0.05). For the extraction of phenolic compounds, dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction was used, besides analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV), which identified chlorogenic acid and quantified caffeic acid and rutin (1.7723 and 0.9384 μg 100 mg-1 honey, respectively). Glioma cell inhibition effect lines were observed for DP at concentrations 1000 ng mL-1 of honey. Principal component analysis (PCA) proposes the physicochemical parameters as the main distinguishing factors between the DP and RP samples. DP samples showed similarity for the parameters ash content, acidity and reducing sugars and the samples of the RP had consonance between pH and moisture.

Abstract A numerical model based on the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method is developed for calculating discharge currents and fields produced due air ionization between two electrodes. Electric conductivity σ of the ionized channel between two electrodes is calculated using non-linear equations, i.e., σ is obtained using functions of time. The functions for calculating σ are adapted and proposed in this work for each stage of the plasma formation and disrupting processes. The proposed numerical model is validated by making comparisons among the obtained FDTD results and experimental data published in literature. In order to perform the validation procedures, an experimental setup from literature is numerically reproduced using the proposed FDTD methodology.

Abstract Lycopene is a hydrocarbon-carotenoid commonly found in red fruits intake with major function correlated to antioxidative capacity in several pathological conditions, including cancer and cardiovascular diseases. Recently, lycopene has been associated with hematopoiesis, although the effects on B lymphocyte differentiation and antibody production are poorly understood. In this work, the principal aim was to investigate whether lycopene affects B lymphopoiesis and terminal differentiation into plasma cells. Distinct in vivo and in vitro strategies based on lycopene supplementation were used direct in Balb/c mice or in culture systems with cells derived of these mice. In the bone marrow, lycopene expanded B220+IgM- progenitor B cells and B220+IgM+ immature B lymphocytes. In the spleen, lycopene induced terminal CD138+ plasma cell generation. In the blood, we found prominent IgA and low IgM levels after lycopene administration. Interestingly, the pattern of peritoneal IgM+ and IgA+ B cells indicated a significant IgM-to-IgA class switching after lycopene injection. These data indicated that lycopene induces B cell differentiation into IgA-producing plasma cells. Thus, a new cellular function has been attributed to lycopene for B lymphocyte biology and possibly associated with humoral responses and mucosal immunity.

This work reports the synthesis, structure and catalytic activity of a novel ruthenium(II) complex, [RuCl(dppb)(44bipy)(4-pic)]PF6 (where dppb = 1,4-bis(diphenylphosphine)butane; 44bipy = 4,4’-dimethyl-2,2’-dipyridyl; 4-pic = 4-picoline). The molecular structure and catalytic activity were studied by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), UV-Vis and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies, cyclic voltammetry, and X-ray crystallography, while the electronic structure was investigated by density-functional theory (DFT) and time dependent DFT (TD-DFT) methods. Electrochemical studies showed the substitution of the chlorido ligand from the precursor by the 4-pic ligand, exhibiting the RuII/RuIII process at 1.21 V. The structure of the compound was optimized using DFT simulations and showed data similar to the X-ray structure. The UV-Vis absorption spectrum showed a good agreement with TD-DFT simulations. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energies were determined at the Becke, 3-parameter, Lee-Yang-Parr (B3LYP) level. The study of the catalytic activity in the transfer hydrogenation of ketones by the 1H NMR showed efficient transfer hydrogenation reaction at 60 ºC, employing acetophenone as substrate and resulting in a high conversion. The formation of two ruthenium-hydride species was observed.

BACKGROUND: Knife wounds are common and represent a major burden to the South African healthcare system. This study reviews trends in spectrum, management and outcome of these injuries at a single trauma centre in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). METHODS: The regional hybrid electronic registry (HEMR) was reviewed for the period January 2013 - December 2018, and all patients who suffered a knife-related assault were identified and reviewed. RESULTS: During the period under review, a total of 2117 patients suffered a knife-related assault. Regions injured were as follows: head 445, neck 572, face 258, chest 939, abdomen 649, pelvic/urogenital 49, upper limb 418, and lower limb 105. The median ISS was 9 (4-10). Imaging comprised 1242 chest X-rays, 315 abdominal X-rays, 162 abdominal ultrasounds/ FAST, and 929 CT scans of which 634 were CT angiograms. A total of 783 (37%) patients required an operation. The rate of laparotomy was 447/649 (69%) and of thoracotomy/sternotomy/thoracoscopy 95/939 (10%). The rate of vascular exploration for upper and lower limb vascular injury was 101/523 (19%). Mortality was 49/2117 (2.3%). CONCLUSION: Although our clinical outcomes over this period appear to be consistent, suggesting a familiarity with managing knife-related trauma, the persistently high rate of knife-related injury suggests that we have failed to develop a preventative strategy to try and reduce this scourge.

Abstract Breast cancer is the most frequent and lethal neoplastic disease among women worldwide. Psidium Guajava is a promising functional food against cancer, owing to a variety of bioactive compounds. This study aimed to evaluate the anticarcinogenic potential of Pedro Sato (PS), Hitigio (HI) and Tsumori (TS) guava cultivars fruit pulp extracts in MDA-MB-435 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. The antioxidant capacity of the extracts and their effect on cell viability, cell cycle and apoptosis were assessed. Additionally, the concentration of carotenoids, total phenolics, ascorbic acid and other physicochemical parameters were evaluated. PS pulp extract showed the highest in vitro antioxidative activity by all tested methods, as well as the highest content of lycopene and total phenolics, while TS pulp extract presented the highest concentration of β-carotene. After 48 hours treatment, all guava cultivars’ extracts caused reduction of MDA-MB-435 and MCF-7 cells viability, with PS and HI being the most effective extracts. All guava extracts caused MDA-MB-435 and MCF-7 cell count reduction in G0/G1 and G2/M phases and increased apoptosis. The present results strongly suggest that guava pulp exerts antiproliferative effect on breast adenocarcinoma cells.

Abstract This work evaluated the effect of grape juice, red wine and resveratrol in liver parameters of rats submitted to high-fat diet. Experimental model was conducted with groups of adult females Rattus norvegicus: control (CG); high-fat (HG); grape juice (JG); red wine (RW) and resveratrol solution (RG). The high-fat diet significantly altered hepatocytes and Kupffer cells in all treated groups. HG group presented severe steatosis followed hepatocyte ballooning and tissue damages. JG group minimized hepatic histological lesion caused by high-fat diet and WG group also induced steatosis and inflammation in hepatocytes, similar to HG. Still, resveratrol protected the tissue against fatty liver disease by reducing fat infiltration and inflammation, indicating possible therapeutic effects on the liver. Cell cycle analysis showed that HG promoted damage to the tissue, reducing the viable cell content and increasing apoptosis, even when associated with wine consumption or isolated resveratrol. However, JG protected the liver against cell damage generated by the diet. Consumption of grape juice, even associated with a high-fat diet, represents a promising protection of the liver against cellular damage, but red wine further affects the tissue, and resveratrol alone was able to reduce damage but did not minimize cellular damage to the liver.

Resumo Na América do Sul, a oferta de água em diversas regiões, é uma condição limitante ao desenvolvimento socioeconômico. Observam-se impactos mais constantes nas áreas sociais e econômicas devido à estiagem, por exemplo, no Nordeste do Brasil (NEB) e Centro Oeste do Brasil (COB), principalmente em atividades como a agricultura, criação de animais, distribuição de energia elétrica e abastecimento de água e turismo. O objetivo deste trabalho foi investigar quantitativamente e qualitativamente as características de veranicos de cindo e dez dias no Brasil durante duas estações austrais e a relação destes eventos de seca em anos de contrastes climáticos como de El Niño, La Niña no Pacífico Tropical para o período de 1971-1999 e período futuro (2021-2050), com o intuito de aprimorar o conhecimento da variação sazonal das precipitações no país, com ênfase nos veranicos para potencializar ações socioeconômicas que dependam de suas variabilidades com menos riscos. Foram usados dados de precipitação diária (1971-1999) do banco de dados do National Center Environment Prediction-Climate Prediction Center-NCEP-CPC da National Ocean and Atmospheric Admistration - NOAA dos Estados Unidos sobre o Brasil, disponíveis em pontos de grade (1° x 1° de latitude e longitude). Para as comparações com esses dados observados e para os períodos futuros foram usados dados diários de precipitação simulados do projeto CMIP5 (Coupled Model lIntercomparison Project 5th Phase), de modelos nos períodos 1971-1999 e projetados para o período de 2021 a 2050, com configurações do experimento RCP8.5 para analisar a variabilidade atual observada de veranicos no Brasil e suas projeções futuras. Os resultados mostraram que para o período de 2021-2050 comparado as observações de 1971-1999, os modelos do CMIP5 projetaram uma maior probabilidade de mais eventos de veranicos de dez dias no COB e mais eventos menor ou igual cinco dias sobre o NEB para as estações de verão e outono.

Abstract In South America, the water disponibility in several regions is a limit condition on socioeconomic development. More constant impacts are observed in social and economic areas due to the drought, for example, in the Northeast of Brazil (NEB) and Central West of Brazil (COB), mainly in activities such as agriculture, animal husbandry, electricity distribution and Water supply and tourism. The objective of this work is to investigate quantitatively and qualitatively the characteristics of five and ten day dry spells in Brazil during the southern seasons and the relation of these drought events in climatic contrasts such as El Niño, La Niña in the Tropical Pacific (1971-1999) and future period (2021-2050) with the aim of improving the knowledge of the seasonal variation of rainfall in the country with emphasis on the dry spells to potentiate socioeconomic actions that depend on their variability with less scratches. Data of daily precipitation (1971-1999) from the National Center Environment Prediction - Climate Prediction Center - NCEP - CPC of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the United States on Brazil were used in grid points (1° x 1° of latitude and longitude). For the comparisons with these observed data and for the future periods will be used of the CMIP5 (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project 5th Phase) project, using daily precipitation data of models in the periods 1971-1999 and projected for the Period: 2021-2050, with configurations of the RCP8.5 experiment to analyze the current observed variability of in Brazil and its future projections. The results showed that for the period 2021-2050 compared to the 1971-1999 observations, the CMIP5 models projected a higher probability of more 10 events to dry spells of ten days in the COB and more events minor or equal the five days to five days dry spells over the NEB to summer and autumn season.

A thiourea derivative, N-[(phenylcarbonyl)carbamothioyl]benzamide, was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, thermal analysis, spectroscopic methods (Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), UV-Vis, Raman, matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF), tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)) and quantum-chemical calculations. The synthetic route was simple and efficient, conducted just by one-step and no purification step was needed. The compound crystallizes in a non-centrosymmetric orthorhombic crystal system with a P21 21 21 space group, with a= 5.06220(10) Å, b= 11.8623(3) Å, c= 21.9682(8) Å. The molecular conformation of the solid is stabilized by the N-H···O intramolecular hydrogen bond, which was present in the X-ray structure and was also found in the optimized geometry. The theoretical analysis showed that this strong interaction remains even when molecules are solvated, i.e., the rotation barrier and the hydrogen bond strength are greater than the solvent stabilization energy. In addition to this hydrogen bond effect, the relative position of phenyl groups has a certain influence on the chemical behavior of this thiourea and probably for other phenylthioureas.

Two mesoporous SBA-15 materials with different morphologies (spherical and fiber-shaped) were synthesized and evaluated as supports for nickel-based catalysts for polymerization reactions. The supports were pretreated with trimethylaluminum (TMA), and the catalyst dibromo-bis(4-amino-2,3,5,6-tetramethylimino)acenaphthene nickel(II) was attached to the supports and activated with TMA or MAO (methylaluminoxane). Characterization showed that the insertion of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTABr) as a cosurfactant led to spherical SBA-15 with a decrease in particle and pore sizes to 4.8 nm compared to 6.5 nm in traditional fiber-shaped SBA-15. The spherical SBA-15 showed thicker walls than the fiber-shaped SBA-15, attributed to the increase in functional groups of the cosurfactant. The different spherical and fiber-shaped morphologies did not show any significant difference in the productivity of polyethylene. The catalyst supported on spherical SBA-15 materials showed 58% productivity compared to its homogeneous analogue using TMA as a cocatalyst.

Simple synthetic procedures have been applied to obtain luminescent carbon quantum dots, also referred as C-dots, from an abundant carbon source, that is, from the brewing industry waste. The synthetic procedures have been conducted aiming to investigate the effects of the oxidation stage on the properties of the nanomaterial. C-dots down- and up-conversion properties, as well as their potential for cellular imaging experiments in live (and adhered) cells, are disclosed herein.

Para determinar el estado de conservación de las coberturas de la tierra del Parque Nacional Yacambú para el periodo 2000-2008, se realizó un análisis de su estructura horizontal considerando su evolución temporal y composición estructural. La evolución temporal, lograda a partir de la superposición de mapas de cobertura obtenidos de imágenes de satélite, reveló que se presenta un alto grado de conservación de las coberturas en áreas distantes a las vías de acceso y una importante afectación, por expansión de la frontera agrícola, en las áreas limítrofes. La composición estructural, obtenida a través del cálculo de índices estructurales, apunta a procesos de fragmentación en algunas coberturas naturales.

An analysis of the horizontal structure of the land covers of Yacambú National Park was carried out in order to determine its conservation conditions during the period 2000-2008, taking temporal evolution and structural composition into account. The temporal evolution, achieved by overlaying cover maps obtained from satellite images, revealed the existence of a high degree of cover conservation in areas distant from access roads and an important deterioration in the bordering areas due to the expansion of the agricultural frontier. The structural composition obtained from calculating structural indexes point to fragmentation processes in some natural covers.

Para determinar o estado de conservação da cobertura da terra do Parque Nacional Yacambú no período de 2000 a 2008, realizou-se uma análise de sua estrutura horizontal, considerando sua evolução temporal e composição estrutural. A evolução temporal, obtida a partir da sobreposição de mapas de cobertura de imagens de satélite, revelou que ele tem um alto grau de conservação da cobertura em áreas afastadas das estradas, afetando, por expansão da fronteira agricultura, as áreas limítrofes. A composição estrutural, obtida por meio do cálculo de índices estruturais, aponta para processos de fragmentação em algumas coberturas naturais.

Descrevemos a atividade inibitória do IQG607, pentaciano(isoniazida)ferrato(II), frente a cepas de Mycobacterium tuberculosis tanto resistentes quanto sensíveis à isoniazida, assim como a toxicidade oral e a adaptação da síntese química do IQG607 para reatores maiores. O IQG607 representa um potencial agente quimioterápico que inibe um alvo molecular definido.

Here we describe the inhibitory activity of IQG607, pentacyano(isoniazid)ferrate(II), on isoniazid-sensitive and isoniazid-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, its oral toxicity, and efforts to adapt IQG607 synthesis to large chemical reactors. IQG607 represents a promising chemotherapeutic agent aiming at the inhibition of a validated and druggable molecular target.

It has been demonstrated that parotid glands of rats infected with Trypanosoma cruzi present severe histological alterations; changes include reduction in density and volume of the acini and duct systems and an increase in connective tissue. We evaluated the association between morphological changes in parotid glands, circulating testosterone levels and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) expression in experimental Chagas disease in rats. Animals at 18 days of infection (acute phase) showed a significant decrease in body weight, serum testosterone levels and EGF-R expression in the parotid gland compared with a control group. Since decreases in body weight could lead to a reduction in circulating testosterone concentration, we believe that the reduction in EGF-R expression in parotid glands of infected rats is due to alterations in testosterone levels and atrophy of parotid glands is caused by changes in EGF-R expression. Additionally, at 50 days (chronic phase) of infection parotid glands showed a normal histological aspect likely due to the normalization of the body weight. These findings suggest that the testosterone-EGF-R axis is involved in the histological changes.