RESUMO Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar a influência da irrigação com água salobra na produção de mudas de bambu (Bambusa vulgaris). O experimento foi desenvolvido na Fazenda Experimental Piroás (4° 14’ 53” S, 38° 45’ 10” W, e altitude de 230 m), no município de Redenção, Ceará, no delineamento inteiramente casualizado, com seis repetições. Os tratamentos foram constituídos de cinco condutividades elétricas da água de irrigação (CEa): 0,5 (testemunha); 1,5; 2,5; 3,5 e 4,5 dS m-1. Aos 120 dias após o início da aplicação dos tratamentos foram avaliadas: trocas gasosas foliares, índice relativo de clorofila (IRC), altura das plantas (H), produção de biomassa seca da parte aérea (MSPA), relação H/MSPA e teores de sódio e potássio nos caules e folhas. Com os dados de MSPA, H, fotossíntese e IRC foram calculados os índices de tolerância à salinidade. O incremento na CEa reduziu as trocas gasosas foliares, sendo a redução na taxa de fotossíntese provocada por causas estomáticas e não estomáticas. A salinidade afetou negativamente o crescimento e a qualidade das mudas de bambu, sendo os efeitos mais expressivos com valores de CEa iguais ou superiores a 2,5 dS m-1. Mudas de bambu apresentam retenção de Na+ nos caules e baixa relação Na+/K+ nas folhas. As mudas de bambu são tolerantes à salinidade até 1,5 dS m-1, sendo um indicativo que águas com esta salinidade podem ser utilizadas na produção de mudas desta espécie, sem perdas de crescimento e de qualidade.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of irrigation with brackish water on the production of bamboo seedlings (Bambusa vulgaris). The experiment was carried out at the Fazenda Experimental Piroás, in the municipality of Redenção, CE, Brazil (4° 14’ 53” S, 38° 45’ 10” W, and altitude of 230 m), in a completely randomized design with five treatments and six repetitions. The treatments consisted of five irrigation water electrical conductivity (ECw): 0.5 (control); 1.5; 2.5; 3.5 and 4.5 dS m-1. At 120 days after the beginning of the application of the treatments the leaf gas exchange, relative chlorophyll index (RCI), plant height (H), shoot dry matter (SDM), H/SDM ratio, and the concentrations of Na+ and K+ in stems and leaves were evaluated. Salt tolerance indexes were calculated based on SDM, H, photosynthesis rate and RCI. The increase in the ECw reduced leaf gas exchange, and the reduction in the photosynthesis rate was caused by stomatal and non-stomatal effects. The salinity affected negatively the growth and quality of bamboo seedlings, with the greatest effects being with ECw equal to or greater than 2.5 dS m-1. Bamboo seedlings present Na+ retention in the stems and low Na+/K+ ratio in the leaves. Bamboo seedlings are tolerant to salinity up to 1.5 dS m-1, indicating that waters with this salinity can be used for seedling production of this species, without loss of growth and quality.

ABSTRACT In broiler production, the litter is reused for consecutives flocks, and it is treated during down time between flocks to reduce its microbial load. Although covering the litter with a plastic canvas is a common litter treatment in the field, there is little scientific information available on its efficacy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of covering broiler litter with a plastic canvas for eight days on litter microbiological, physical, and chemical parameters, and on the intestinal microbiota and immunity of broilers. In the first trial, reused litter from a previous flock was distributed into three treatments, with six replicates each: L1 (negative control, litter free from Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) and Eimeria maxima (EM) and not covered), L2 (positive control, litter with SE and EM, and not covered), and L3 (litter with SE and EM, and covered with plastic canvas for eight days). Litter total bacteria, Enterobacteria, Lactobacillus, SE, and EM counts, and litter pH, temperature, moisture, and ammonia emission were determined on days 1 and 8. In the second trial, broilers were housed on those litters according to the treatments described above, and their intestinal microbiota, gut CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes and macrophages, and liver and intestinal pro-inflammatory interleukin (IFN-γ, IL-1β e IL-18) levels were evaluated on days 14 and 28. A significant reduction of litter bacterial populations was observed in the litter covered with plastic canvas. A significantly higher mRNA IFN-γ gene expression (12.5-fold) was observed in the jejunum and liver of broilers reared on the litter with Enterobacteria counts. No EM reduction was observed in the covered litter. Covering reused broiler litter with plastic canvas reduces initial litter bacterial load as a result of the interaction between physical and chemical parameters.

A pesquisa foi desenvolvida no Núcleo C do Perímetro Irrigado Curu Pentecoste, Ceará, em área de produção familiar e teve como objetivo a obtenção da eficiência de uso dos fatores de produção água e potássio para o cultivo da melancia com reúso de água da irrigação por sulcos em sistema localizado. O delineamento foi em blocos completos casualizados com parcelas subdivididas e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos de irrigação aplicados nas parcelas se constituíram de cinco níveis: 25, 75, 100, 150 e 200% da lâmina máxima evapotranspirada pela cultura e os níveis de potássio, dispostos nas subparcelas, aplicando-se as seguintes dosagens: sem a aplicação de K2O (testemunha), 30, 60 e 120 kg ha-1 de K2O. O nível de potássio associado à recomendação da análise de solo (60 kg ha-1) proporcionou a máxima eficiência média de uso da água além de um incremento de 180,6 kg ha-1 de melancia para cada kg ha-1 aplicado a mais de K2O.

The research was conducted at Irrigated Perimeter of Curu Pentecoste, in an area of family cultivation and aimed to obtain the efficiency of use of water and potassium in the watermelon crop with reuse of irrigation water in furrow irrigation system. A completely randomized block design with split plots and four replications was used. Five irrigation levels were applied to the plots: 25, 75, 100, 150 and 200% of maximum crop evapotranspiration. The following levels of potassium fertilization were applied in the subplots: 0, 30, 60 and 120 kg ha-1 of K2O. The potassium level associated with the recommendation of soil analysis (60 kg ha-1) provided the highest average efficiency of water use and resulted in an increase of 180.6 kg ha-1 of watermelon for each kg ha-1 of K2O applied.

With the development of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic, the isolation of mycobacteria from blood has become a common problem for clinical laboratories. In this study two methods were used for the recovery of mycobacteria from blood specimens obtained from AIDS patients: (1) direct inoculation in biphasic medium, and (2) a noncommercial lysis-centrifugaton method. A total of three consecutive blood samples were taken at 15-minute intervals from each of 50 AIDS patients with clinical suspicion of disseminated mycobacterial disease. Mycobacterium growth was noted in 70/138 blood specimens from 30 (60%) patients. These cultures yielded Mycobacterium tuberculosis in 19 (63%) and Mycobacterium avium complex organisms in 11 (37%) patients. Cultures using the lysis-centrifugation method were positive in 54% of the patients, while cultures using biphasic medium were positive in 44% (P > 0,05). The positivity for M. avium complex was higher with lysis-centrifugation (91%) than with biphasic medium (45,4%) (P < 0,05). However, the positivities for M. tuberculosis with the lysis-centrifugation method (89,5%) and direct inoculation in biphasic medium (100%) were similar (P > 0,05). The use of a noncommercial lysis-centrifugation technique is inexpensive, reliable, and can be an alternative method for the diagnosis of mycobacteremia in developing countries.

Con el desarrollo de la epidemia del síndrome de inmunodeficiencia adquirida (sida), el aislamiento de micobacterias de la sangre se ha convertido en un problema habitual de los laboratorios clínicos. En el presente estudio se evaluaron dos métodos para aislar micobacterias en muestras de sangre de pacientes de sida: 1) la inoculación directa en un medio bifásico y 2) un método no comercializado de lisis por centrifugación. A cada uno de los 50 pacientes de sida con sospecha de enfermedad micobacteriana diseminada se le extrajeron tres muestras de sangre consecutivas a intervalos de 15 minutos. En 70 de 138 muestras de sangre obtenidas de 30 (60%) pacientes se detectó crecimiento de micobacterias. A partir de estos cultivos, en 19 pacientes se aisló Mycobacterium tuberculosis y en 11 (37%), el complejo Mycobacterium avium. Los cultivos en que se utilizó el método de lisis por centrifugación fueron positivos en 54% de los pacientes, mientras que esta cifra se redujo a 44% en los cultivos en que se usó el método bifásico (P > 0,05). El porcentaje de muestras positivas al complejo M. avium fue mayor con el método de centrifugación por lisis (91%) que con el de inoculación directa en medio bifásico (45,4%) (P < 0,05). Sin embargo, los porcentajes de muestras positivas a M. tuberculosis detectadas con el método de lisis por centrifugación (89,5%) y con el de inoculación directa en un medio bifásico (100%) fueron similares (P > 0,05). La técnica no comercializada de centrifugación por lisis es barata, fiable y puede constituir un método alternativo para el diagnóstico de micobacteriemia en países en desarrollo.