ESSENTIAL AND VEGETABLE OILS: RAW MATERIALS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BIOPRODUCTS IN CLASSES IN EXPERIMENTAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. A schedule was prepared for three undergraduate classes for the discipline of experimental organic chemistry for obtaining bioproducts. As natural raw materials, lavender flowers and cinnamon peels were used to obtain hydrolates and essential oils (Class 1), coconut and avocado pulp to obtain vegetable oils and annatto seeds to obtain a natural dye (Class 2). Cosmetic bioproducts (Class 3), body emulsions similar to those found on the market, were obtained from the mixture of essential and vegetable oils and the addition of natural dye. The raw materials obtained can also be used in other classes of the discipline, complying with the principles of Green Chemistry. Essential oils, for example, can be used as samples for Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) classes and vegetable oils for the production of biodiesel.

Uma metodologia rápida e eficiente foi desenvolvida para separação de isômeros de isatinas utilizando a técnica de cromatografia contracorrente de alta velocidade. Os isômeros de derivados de isatinas foram preparados segundo a metodologia de Sandmeyer e separados com o sistema de solventes hexano:acetato de etila:etanol:água 1:0,5:0,5:1 (v/v/v/v).

A rapid and efficient method, using high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) technique, was developed for the separation of isomeric isatin derivatives, prepared following the Sandmeyer route. The biphasic solvent system composed of hexane:ethyl acetate:ethanol:water 1:0.5:0.5:1 (v/v/v/v) was used for all separations.

O artigo descreve a história da pereirina, um alcaloide extraído das cascas da Geissospermum vellosii Allemão, uma espécie de planta brasileira da família Apocynaceae, conhecida popularmente como Pau-pereira. A classificação botânica desta espécie e o emprego da pereirina na medicina popular foram as razões que acirraram a disputa entre os farmacêuticos brasileiros e estrangeiros pela glória de sua descoberta no Brasil do século XIX. Neste estudo constatou-se que a glória desta descoberta é do farmacêutico brasileiro Ezequiel Corrêa dos Santos e desta maneira, a pereirina é o primeiro alcaloide isolado no Brasil. As cascas do Pau-pereira foram, durante dois séculos, um importante remédio no combate a diversas doenças, devido às propriedades terapêuticas dos alcaloides presentes nas cascas da espécie e atualmente pesquisas estão sendo realizadas para comprovação científica de sua eficácia no combate a doenças virais como Aids, herpes e hepatite C.

This article describes the history of pereirina, an alkaloid extracted from Geissospermum vellosii Allemão barks, a Brazilian plant of Apocynaceae's family, popularly known as "pau-pereira". The botanical classification of this species and the use of pereirina in popular medicine were reasons for controversies and irritated disputes for the glory of the discovery among Brazilians and foreigners pharmacists. For two centuries, the pau-pereira's barks were important remedy to combat various diseases, because the therapeutic properties of alkaloids present in the barks of the species. The currently researches are being carried out for scientific proof of its effectiveness in combating viral diseases such as AIDS, herpes and hepatitis C.

O circovírus suíno 2 (PCV2) é geralmente associado à síndrome da circovirose suína, que é considerada uma importante doença de suínos e possui um sério impacto econômico na suinocultura mundial. Este trabalho descreve a construção de um plasmídeo recombinante que expressa a proteína estrutural do PCV2 e a avaliação das respostas imune humoral e celular por meio de vacinação em camundongos BALB/c. O candidato vacinal foi submetido a análises in vivo, determinando a capacidade de induzir resposta imune específica em camundongos. O DNA de um isolado brasileiro de PCV2 foi extraído e o gene que codifica para a proteína do capsídeo foi amplificado por PCR e inserido num plasmídeo de expressão. Grupos de camundongos BALB/c foram inoculados por via intramuscular e intradérmica a cada 15 dias, com 100µg e 50µg da construção vacinal, respectivamente. Outro grupo foi inoculado com 100µg do plasmídeo original, correspondente ao grupo controle. A soroconversão e a resposta celular dos grupos de camundongos BALB/c vacinados foram comparados como parâmetros de avaliação vacinal. A soroconversão foi avaliada por um teste de ELISA. Após 3 imunizações, as células esplênicas dos animais imunizados foram utilizadas nos ensaios de linfoproliferação. A soroconversão para o PCV2 foi detectada por ELISA nos animais inoculados com a construção vacinal quando comparados com o grupo controle. Nos ensaios de linfoproliferação foi observada uma grande proliferação celular nos animais inoculados comparados ao grupo controle. Portanto, o candidato vacinal demonstrou ser capaz de induzir tanto uma resposta humoral e celular nos camundongos inoculados.

Porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2) is generally associated with the porcine circovirosis syndrome, which is considered an important disease of swine and has potentially serious economic impact on the swine industry worldwide. This article describes the construction of a recombinant plasmid expressing the PCV2 structural protein and the evaluation of cellular and humoral immune responses produced by this recombinant vaccine in BALB/c mice. The vaccine candidate was obtained and analyzed in vivo, in an effort to determine the ability to induce a specific immune response in mice. DNA was extracted from a Brazilian PCV2 isolate and the gene coding for Cap protein was amplified by PCR and inserted into an expression plasmid. Groups of BALB/c mice were inoculated intra-muscularly and intradermally in a 15-day interval, with 100 µg and 50 µg of the vaccine construct, respectively. Another group was inoculated intramuscularly with 100 µg of empty plasmid, corresponding to the control group. Seroconversion and cellular response in BALB/c mice were compared and used for vaccine evaluation. Seroconversion was analyzed by ELISA. After a series of 3 immunizations the spleen cells of the immunized animals were used to perform lymphocyte proliferation assays. Seroconversion to PCV2 was detected by ELISA in the animals inoculated with the vaccine construct when compared with control groups. Lymphocyte proliferation assays showed a stronger cell proliferation in the inoculated animals compared with the control group. Thus, the vaccine candidate construct demonstrated to be able to induce both humoral and cellular responses in inoculated mice.

This work describes the historical importance and the use of hallucinogenic plants by different civilizations. A comparison between three Brazilian plants whose active principle is N,N-dimethyltriptamine (DMT), and three plant species native to Europe whose active principles are tropanic alkaloids was carried out and we observed these plants promoted different types of hallucinations.