ABSTRACT This study aimed at proposing a new technical criteria for condemnation of turkey carcasses due to fowlpox in turkeys as a contribution for the work of the Brazilian Federal Meat Inspection Service. Skin samples from 30 carcasses of a flock of 840 turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), previously vaccinated for fowlpox and slaughtered in June 2013, were collected. Samples were submitted to histological examination under light microscopy. The virus was identified using standard PCR techniques. The main histological findings were hyperplasia and hydropic degeneration of the epithelium and the presence of intracytoplasmic eosinophilic inclusion bodies. PCR results yielded 83.3% positive and 16.7% negative samples. Fowlpox virus is species specific, and there are no reports of its occurrence in mammals. The macroscopic and microscopic findings of the skin lesions do not justify the total condemnation of carcasses of poultry affected with fowlpox, except in cases of cachexia or repulsive appearance, as established by SIF regulation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of turmeric (Curcuma longa), also known in Brazil as saffron, on the reduction of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli counts in chicken meat. Forty breast meat samples were divided in two groups (A and B). In group A, 10³-10(4)E. coli (ATCC 25922) cells were inoculated and group B samples were inoculated with 10(4)-10(5)S. aureus (ATCC 9801) cells, after which each group was divided in three samples. The first sample was analyzed immediately after inoculation. The second sample (control group) was stored at 4 ºC for 48 hours and turmeric at 1% (w/w) was added to the third sample, which was homogenized and then stored under the same conditions as the second sample. E. coli and S. aureus were enumerated in all samples. Mean bacterial counts determined for the control samples and for the samples with turmeric addition after 48h of storage were 1.83 x 10(4) CFU g-1 and 1.80 x 10(4) CFU g-1 for S. aureus, and 9.36 x 10³ CFU g-1 and 7.25 x 10³ CFU g-1 for E. coli, respectively. The results showed that there was no significant reduction in bacterial counts with the addition of 1% turmeric to chicken breast meat.

Storing hatchable eggs is a common practice in commercial hatcheries. However, storage time may negative effects on several performance parameters. An experiment was carried out to evaluate inverting egg position during storage of eggs laid by young and old layer breeders. Fertile eggs of 32 and 58-week-old breeders were stored for seven, 14, and 21 days at 18ºC ± 2ºC and 80% ± 10% relative humidity (RU). The following parameters were evaluated: egg weight loss, hatchability and hatchling weight, and embryodiagnosis results. Eggs stored with the small end up lost less weight during storage compared with the control eggs. Storing eggs for 14 days with the small end up reduced early embryo mortality, improving hatchability. In addition, hatchling weight increased. These results show that the detrimental effects of long storage periods may be alleviated when eggs are stored with the small end up to 14 days of storage.

We provide the first information on the morphology of the immature stages (egg, larva, and pupa), oviposition and larval behavior, and host plant, for the Brazilian crescent butterfly Ortilia liriope (Cramer), based on material from Santarém Municipality, Pará State, Northern Brazil. Females of O. liriope lay eggs in clusters. After hatching, larvae eat the exochorion and remain gregarious in all but the final instar. The host plant recorded in the study site is Justicia sp. (Acanthaceae). Despite the scarcity of data on the immature stages of Neotropical Melitaeini, we can already say that some morphological and behavioral traits observed in the immature stages of O. liriope are also present in all known genera in this tribe.

This study aimed at determining the minimum time required for the penetration of Salmonella Heidelberg inside the eggs after contact with contaminated material. Recently-collected brown and white eggs from laying hens between 45-50 weeks of age, reared in a commercial poultry house, were artificially contaminated by contact with wood shavings moistened with liquid inoculum of Salmonella Heidelberg in stationary-growth phase (10³-10(4) CFU g-1). According to type (white or brown), eggs were distributed into three different groups, with four replicates each: negative control group (no artificial contamination), positive control group (analyzed externally immediately after contamination and internally after the maximum storage period of the test group) and test group. Eggs were stored at controlled environmental temperature varying from 25ºC to 30ºC. In the test group, eggs contents (yolk and albumen) were pooled and analyzed after 1:00, 1:30, 2:00, 2:30, 3:00, 3:30, and 4:00 hours after contamination for the presence of Salmonella Heidelberg in 25g of this pool. The experimental unit consisted of five eggs in each test. The analysis protocol included pre-enrichment, selective enrichment, plating on selective agar, and biochemical and serological tests. The results obtained were submitted to logistic regression, which indicated that the presence of Salmonella Heidelberg was verified after 2:16 h and 2:44 h of contact with white and brown eggs, respectively.

INTRODUÇÃO: A percepção muscular das propriedades espaciais dos membros restringe o padrão, período e magnitude das forças exercidas durante a execução de atividades motoras. A importância central da percepção muscular, tanto para ações rotineiras quanto para ações especializadas, merece atenção da comunidade envolvida na área de reabilitação, uma vez que alterações em suas funções podem estar relacionadas a importantes limitações funcionais. Nesta revisão, os autores apresentam um resumo da pesquisa que pode ser utilizada para guiar o desenvolvimento de ferramentas de avaliação eficazes bem como programas de reabilitação que sejam especificamente direcionados para estas disfunções. OBJETIVOS: Quatro pontos específicos foram incluídos: primeiro, a apresentação da abordagem com base em informações relativas à percepção muscular de acordo com as leis da física; segundo, a identificação dos princípios centrais determinantes da percepção muscular que vem sendo revelada e apoiada por trabalhos empíricos; terceiro, um resumo dos relatos que investigaram e se os princípios identificados poderiam ser generalizados para a percepção muscular dos indivíduos com alterações motoras e sensitivas; e quarto, uma discussão preliminar sobre as implicações potenciais da pesquisa aqui apresentada, no tocante aos assuntos relacionados à reabilitação.

BACKGROUND: Muscle-based perception of the spatial properties of limbs constrains the patterning, timing and magnitude of muscle forces while performing motor activities. The centrality of muscle-based perception to both ordinary and skilled actions warrants attention from the rehabilitation community, since deficits in its functioning would be related to important functional limitations. In this overview, we summarize a body of research that may be used to guide the development of effective assessment tools and rehabilitation programs that are specifically directed towards such deficits. OBJECTIVES: There were four specific aims: first, to present an information-based approach to muscle-based perception that is grounded in physical laws; second to identify central principles underlying muscle-based perception that have been revealed and supported by empirical work; third, to summarize reports that have investigated whether the principles identified can be generalized to muscle-based perception in individuals with sensory-motor impairments; and fourth to provide a preliminary discussion of the potential implications of the research presented here for issues relating to rehabilitation.

CONTEXTO: Práticas maternas são comportamentos específicos, por meio dos quais as mães/cuidadores desempenham suas tarefas maternais. Estas práticas poderiam influenciar o desenvolvimento motor de lactentes. OBJETIVO: verificar a influência de práticas maternas, utilizadas no cuidado diário de lactentes saudáveis, sobre seu desenvolvimento motor do 6º ao 12º meses de vida. MÉTODO: Selecionados 14 lactentes, nascidos a termo e saudáveis, avaliados longitudinalmente no 6º, 9º e 12º meses de vida, utilizando-se a Alberta Infant Motor Scale. Em cada avaliação/idade a mãe respondeu a um questionário fechado sobre práticas, predominantemente adotadas no cuidado diário do lactente durante os períodos de vigília. Considerou-se neste estudo a postura predominantemente adotada pelo lactente, local preferencial de permanência e a forma de carregar o lactente no colo. RESULTADOS: No 9º mês de vida o desempenho motor dos lactentes foi influenciado positivamente pela predominância na postura de quatro apoios, em relação à sentada e prono ou supino e pela permanência no chão em relação ao carrinho de bebê. No 12º mês houve influência positiva da predominância na postura de quatro apoios e em pé. A postura predominante no 6º mês de vida e a forma de carregar o lactente no 6º, 9º e 12º meses de vida não influenciaram o desempenho motor do grupo estudado. CONCLUSÃO: Os resultados sugerem que as práticas que estimulam a adoção da postura de quatro apoios e a utilização do chão como local de permanência influenciam positivamente o desenvolvimento motor de lactentes saudáveis a partir do 6º mês de vida.

BACKGROUND: Child-rearing practices are defined as specific behavioral patterns used during maternal duties. These practices could influence infants' motor development. OBJECTIVE: To verify the influence of daily child-rearing practices on the motor development of healthy infants from their sixth to twelfth months of life. METHOD: Fourteen healthy full-term infants were selected and longitudinally assessed at the ages of six, nine and twelve months using the Alberta Infant Motor Scale. At each assessment, the mothers answered a closed questionnaire about their main daily childcare practices when the infant was awake. The infants' predominant posture, the places where they were usually kept and how mothers carried the infants in their arms were evaluated. RESULTS: Motor performance at the ninth month was positively influenced by predominance of the hands-and-knees crawling posture, in relation to sitting, prone or supine postures, and by staying on the floor in relation to being in a baby buggy. At the twelfth month, it was positively influenced by hands-and-knees crawling and standing postures. The predominant posture at the sixth month and the way of carrying the infants at six, nine and twelve months did not influence motor development in the study group. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that practices that stimulate adoption of the hands-and-knees crawling posture, and utilization of the floor as a place to keep the infant, positively influence the motor development of healthy infants from six months of age onwards.