Biological treatment of the effluent from a bleached kraft pulp mill using basidiomycete and zygomycete fungi

Three white-rot fungi (Pleurotus sajor caju, Trametes versicolor and Phanerochaete chrysosporium) and one soft-rot fungi (Rhizopus oryzae) species confirmed their potential for future applications in the biological treatment of effluents derived from the secondary treatment of a bleached kraft pulp mill processing Eucalyptus globulus. Among the four species P. sajor caju and R. oryzae were the most effective in the biodegradation of organic compounds present in the effluent, being responsible for the reduction of relative absorbance (25-46% at 250 nm and 72-74% at 465 nm) and of chemical oxygen demand levels (74 to 81%) after 10 days of incubation. Laccase (Lac), lignin (Lip) and manganese peroxidases (MnP) expression varied among fungal species, where Lac and LiP activities were correlated with the degradation of organic compounds in the effluent treated with P. sajor caju. The first two axes of a principal component analysis explained 88.9% of the total variation among sub-samples treated with the four fungus species, after different incubation periods. All the variables measured contributed positively to the first component except for the MnP enzyme activity which was the only variable contributing negatively to the first component. Absorbances at 465 nm, LiP and Lac enzyme activities were the variables with more weight on the second component. P. sajor caju revealed to be the only species able to perform the biological treatment without promoting an increment in the toxicity of the effluent to the Vibrio fischeri, as it was assessed by the Microtox assay. The opposite was recorded for the treatments with the other three species of fungus. EC(50-5 min) values ranging between 28 and 57% (effluent concentrations) were recorded even after 10 to 13 days of treatment with P. chrysosporium, R. oryzae or with T. versicolor.

Can the curriculum be used to estimate critical velocity in young competitive swimmers?

The aims of the present study were to assess critical velocity using the swimmer curriculum in front crawl events and to compare critical velocity to the velocity corresponding to a 4 mmol·l(-1) of blood lactate concentration and to the velocity of a 30 min test. The sample included 24 high level male swimmers ranged between 14 and 16 years old. For each subject the critical velocity, the velocity corresponding to a 4 mmol·l(-1) of blood lactate concentration and the mean velocity of a 30 min test were determined. The critical velocity was also estimated by considering the best performance of a swimmer over several distances based on the swimmer curriculum. Critical velocity including 100, 200 and 400 m events was not different from the velocity of 4 mmol·l(-1) of blood lactate concentration. Critical velocity including all the swimmer events was not different from the velocity of a 30 min test. The assessment of critical velocity based upon the swimmer curriculum would therefore seem to be a good approach to determine the aerobic ability of a swimmer. The selection of the events to be included in critical velocity assessment must be a main concern in the evaluation of the swimmer. Key pointsCritical velocity using 100, 200 and 400 m events was not different from the velocity of 4 mmol·l(-1) of blood lactate concentration.Critical velocity using all the swimmer events was not different from the velocity of a 30 min test.The assessment of critical velocity based upon the swimmer curriculum seemed to be a good approach to determine the aerobic capacity of a swimmer.The decision on the events to be analysed must be a main concern in the evaluation of the swimmer critical velocity.

Association of estrogen receptor gene alpha polymorphisms with postmenopausal mammary density

Abstract #5003

Background: With the human genome studies, knowledge about polymorphisms started raising interest in a variety of fields and, in medicine, the evidence of direct action of polymorphisms on the arising and progression of diseases, disclosing the possibility of using them as disease predisposition markers. Substitutions, insertions or deletions which are transmitted through generations and reach frequencies equal or superior to 1% in the population are named polymorphisms. Knowing that the mammographic pattern is a multifactorial character, the objectives of this study were to evaluate a possible association of clinical characteristics and polymorphisms HaeIII, MspI and XbaI of the estrogen receptor gene alpha with postmenopausal mammary density. Materials and Methods: A prospective evaluation was made of 120 women who were not hormone therapy users and had no clinically or mammographically identified breast lesions. All of them underwent bilateral mammography, and the radiological density was determined by three independent observers, with two subjective evaluations based on the ACR-BIRADS® classification of mammographic patterns, 2003, and one computerized evaluation – the grey-scale histogram tool of the Adobe Photoshop® 7.0 software. Peripheral blood samples were obtained for DNA extraction, performed according to the GFX® Kit protocol from Amersham-Pharmacia. After DNA extraction, PCR-RFLP (Polymerase Chain Reaction - Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism) was carried out for an analysis of the polymorphisms present in intron 1 (HaeIII and XbaI) and in exon 1 (MspI) of the estrogen receptor gene. Results: There was a high degree of concordance among the observers in the determination of mammary density (Kappa, Pearson and Spearman - p<0.001). The associations of clinical characteristics with mammary density were: age (p=0.04), body mass index (p<0.0001), age at menarche (p=0.02), age at menopause (p=0.120), age at first delivery (p=0.120), parity (p=0.09). The relation between the allele distribution of the polymorphisms and the density was: XbaI (p=0.02), HaeIII (p=0.65), and MspI (p=0.65). Conclusion: Polymorphism XbaI and the clinical factors age, menarche and body mass index showed to be associated with postmenopausal mammary density.

Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(2 Suppl):Abstract nr 5003.

Procedures for estimation of modelling uncertainty in air quality assessment

The main objectives of this work focus, firstly, on a review of the current existent methodologies to estimate air quality modelling uncertainty, and, secondly, in the preparation of guidelines for modelling uncertainty estimation, which can be used by local and regional authorities responsible for air quality management. From the application exercise, it was concluded that it is possible to define a subset of statistical parameters able to reproduce the general uncertainties estimation. Concerning the quality indicators defined by EU directives, the results show that the legislated uncertainty estimation measures are ambiguous and inadequate in several aspects, mainly in what concerns the error measures for hourly and daily indicators based on the highest observed concentration. A relative error at the percentile correspondent to the allowed number of exceedances of the limit value was suggested and tested, showing that is a more robust and appropriate parameter for model performance evaluation.

Assessment of the accuracy of visual examination, bite-wing radiographs and DIAGNOdent on the diagnosis of occlusal caries

AIM

This was to evaluate the accuracy of the different methods for diagnosing occlusal caries in vivo, and to compare their performance in primary and permanent teeth.

STUDY DESIGN

Permanent teeth (199) and primary molars (65) with macroscopically intact occlusal surface, with caries lesions without cavitation (white spot) or with a darkened sulcus were selected. The teeth were examined by the following methods: visual inspection, bite-wing radiographs and DIAGNOdent. The validation method employed for asserting the existence of carious lesion was cavity preparation.

RESULTS

When the total sample was taken into consideration, laser (DIAGNOdent) provided the highest accuracy (74.8%). Even when the total sample was stratified, the laser accuracy was still high for both primary (88.4%) and permanent molars (70.4%). Visual inspection also provided a high accuracy for primary teeth (83.9%). The chi-square test showed a statistically significant difference between permanent and primary teeth considering occlusal caries diagnosis (p=0.0001). The Kappa coefficient showed good inter-examiner reproducibility for all methods. McNemar test revealed that the degree of intra-examiner agreement for visual inspection was lower than for the other methods.

CONCLUSIONS

As visual inspection also showed a high degree of accuracy, the laser method should be used as a complementary method in doubtful cases. Diagnostic methods of occlusal caries, in general, are more efficient in deciduous than in permanent teeth.

Foreign bodies aspirated in children: role of bronchoscopy

OBJECTIVE

To examine the diagnostic and therapeutic role of fiber-optic and rigid bronchoscopy in pediatric patients with foreign body inhalations.

METHODS

From January 1986 to December 2004, we observed 128 young patients with suspicion of foreign body aspiration. Patients were divided into 3 groups: group I, patients with negative chest X-ray; group II, patients with radiological direct signs; group III, patients with radiological indirect signs.

RESULTS

Removal of the foreign body was effected in 105 patients by rigid bronchoscopy and in 13 patients by fiber-optic bronchoscopy. In 3 group II patients a thoracotomy with a bronchotomy was necessary.

CONCLUSIONS

Fiber-optic bronchoscopy showed a diagnostic accuracy rate of 100 % but played a poor therapeutic role with a case resolution of 10.7 %. Rigid bronchoscopy was the main technique, permitting the removal of the tracheobronchial foreign body in 97.2 % of patients.

HLA-DRB1*04 and HLA-DQB1*03 association with the atrophic but not with the goitrous form of chronic autoimmune thyroiditis in a Brazilian population

Autoimmune chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis appears in two forms, goitrous and atrophic. The evidence available is not enough to prove that the goitrous precedes the atrophic form, but immunogenetic analysis suggests that they may be distinct entities. The distribution of HLA class II alleles DRB1* and DQB1* was verified in patients from the region of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil with both forms of thyroiditis. Ninety-one patients with primary hypothyroidism through autoimmune thyroiditis were classified as goitrous - 54 patients, 42.27 +/- 11.72 years old, having had hypothyroidism for 8.57 +/- 6.63 years - or atrophic - 37 patients, 42.72 +/- 12.01 years old, hypothyroidism for 6.73 +/- 4.07 years. The distribution of class II alleles was determined, DRB1* and DQB1* were genotyped after purifying DNA blood samples using the DNAzol technique, and the low-resolution PCR-SSP system was utilized for determination of generic alleles. Chi-square and Fisher's exact test were utilized to compare the distribution frequency of HLA alleles and the significant p-values were subjected to Bonferroni correction. We have demonstrated that the DRB1*04 allele is associated with autoimmune thyroiditis, and that there are genotypic differences regarding the presentation forms with a strong association between DRB1*04 and DQB1*03 and the atrophic form only.

A special ionisation chamber for quality control of diagnostic and mammography X ray equipment

A quality control program for X ray equipment used for conventional radiography and mammography requires the constancy check of the beam qualities in terms of the half-value layers. In this work, a special double-faced parallel-plate ionisation chamber was developed with inner electrodes of different materials, in a tandem system. Its application will be in quality control programs of diagnostic and mammography X ray equipment for confirmation of half-value layers previously determined by the conventional method. Moreover, the chamber also may be utilised for measurements of air kerma values (and air kerma rates) in X radiation fields used for conventional radiography and mammography. The chamber was studied in relation to the characteristics of saturation, ion collection efficiency, polarity effects, leakage current, and short-term stability. The energy dependence in response of each of the two faces of the chamber was determined over the conventional radiography and mammography X ray ranges (unattenuated beams). The different energy response of the two faces of the chamber allowed the formation of a tandem system useful for the constancy check of beam qualities.

[Human care: purification action]

This article was originated by a request of some professors of the Masters Course in Nursing. The theme "bath", as an act of care, was developed, initially, on the meaning of moves. The esthetic of body movement, to the sound of music, was represented graphically, allowing to reach constructs as: relationship, physical contact, sharing, pleasure, satisfaction, cleanliness, reaproximation. The concept of "bath", understood through research in different bibliography and idioms, was translated as "purification". The meaning of "purification" was studied with an anthropological view. Many practices and rituals were perceived through history and human experience and bring with them tools that may help Nursing to create and recreate the experience and concept of human care. These elements and some contributions to comprehend care are shown in this study.

Necrobiotic xanthogranuloma without periorbital involvement: an ultrastructural investigation

A case of necrobiotic xanthogranuloma without typical periorbital involvement is described at the ultrastructural level. The patient, a 58-year-old Italian man, presented in 1995 with a brief history of nodulo-papular lesions commencing on the lower limbs, and mild paraproteinemia. During 6 years of follow-up, anemia, neutropenia with marked lymphopenia, and increased ESR were found, while serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels decreased from hyper to hypo values. Systemic diseases, such as diabetes, malignancy, or extracutaneous lesions, often associated with NXG, have not developed. Conventional histology was distinctive for NXG, and immunohistochemistry confirmed that dermal histiocytes were not of Langerhans cell lineage. At ultrastructure, regeneration and degeneration ("regen-degen") features were observed in some individual deep dermal histiocytes, which have not been previously documented in the literature. Identification of giant histiocytes showing 'regen-degen'' aspects might prove to be a useful ultrastructural diagnostic marker for NXG.

Early activation of hepatic stellate cells and perisinusoidal extracellular matrix changes during ex vivo pig liver perfusion

In previous works, we observed during liver transplantation procedure, the early activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC) which acquire alpha-smooth muscle (SM) actin expression. In this study, we evaluated changes in HSC and in perisinusoidal extracellular matrix during ex vivo pig liver perfusion. Under general anesthesia, pig livers were flushed and removed, and then perfused ex vivo for 6 h with homologous blood. Liver biopsies were taken before and after washout, at 5 min perfusion, and then hourly. Tissues were processed for immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, confocal microscopy, in situ hybridization and electron microscopy. Before and after liver washout, alpha-SM actin was present in vessel walls but in very few lobular HSC. After 1 h perfusion, a strong reactivity for alpha-SM actin was present in HSC, particularly along dilated sinusoids. At the ultrastructural level, numerous microfilament bundles appeared in HSC cytoplasmic processes. During perfusion, type I and type IV collagens, type III procollagen, and fibronectin acquired a looser organisation in relation with the enlargement of perisinusoidal spaces; laminin appeared in perisinusoidal spaces around portal areas and fibrillin deposits increased. In situ hybridization studies showed an increase of the type I procollagen mRNA expression mainly in portal tracts and septa. Ex vivo liver perfusion induces: 1) an early activation of HSC which acquire the expression of alpha-SM actin, and 2) significant changes in the perisinusoidal extracellular matrix. These results are compatible with the view that HSC function as liver specific pericytes participating in the regulation of sinusoidal blood pressure.

Expression and cellular localization of fibrillin-1 in normal and pathological human liver

BACKGROUND

The expression and the distribution of fibrillin-1 and elastin were studied in normal and pathological human liver samples.

METHODS

As controls, histologically normal/subnormal liver samples (n = 24) were used. Pathological samples corresponded to seven cirrhosis and eight hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) developed on cirrhotic (four) or noncirrhotic (four) liver.

RESULTS

In normal liver, fibrillin-1 and elastin co-localized in vessel walls and portal tract connective tissue. Fibrillin-1 alone was detected along sinusoids and in portal spaces at the interface with the limiting hepatocytic plates and close to the basement membrane of bile ducts. By transmission electron microscopy, typical bundles of microfibrils were detected both in Disse space and in portal zones. Cirrhotic nodules were usually rich in fibrillin-1 along sinusoids; fibrillin-1 and elastin were co-localized in fibrotic septa surrounding nodules. In HCC, fibrillin-1 was present between tumoral hepatocytes; stromal reaction around the tumors contained both fibrillin-1 and elastin.

CONCLUSIONS

Fibrillin-1 was associated with elastin in portal mesenchyme and vessel walls of normal liver, in fibrotic septa around cirrhotic nodules and stromal reaction around HCC, but was expressed alone in the perisinusoidal space. The functional roles for fibrillin-1 in non-elastic tissues, such as the liver, remain to be elucidated.

Persistent milia, steatocystoma multiplex and eruptive vellus hair cysts: variable expression of multiple pilosebaceous cysts within an affected family

BACKGROUND

Steatocystoma multiplex (SM) and eruptive vellus hair cysts (EVHC) are conditions characterized by numerous cutaneous cysts with a clinical resemblance, such as age of onset, location, appearance of the lesions and mode of inheritance, but with distinctive histologic features. Recently, some authors have proposed that the two conditions are variants of one entity originating in the pilosebaceous duct, while others suggest that SM and EVHC are two distinct entities, on the basis of the different expression of keratins. Milia are small round cysts, commonly involving the face. In 1994, Menni and Piccinno reported the first association, in a family, between persistent infantile milia in a 9-month-old girl and SM in the father. The authors hypothesized a relationship between these two conditions.

OBJECTIVE

We describe a family in which the mother showed cystic lesions and milia and her 4-year-old son and her 18-month-old daughter presented persistent infantile milia.

METHODS

In addition to the clinical and genetic documentation, a biopsy was performed in the son and two biopsies in the mother.

RESULTS

The histologic examination of one of the son's milium-like papules showed in the superficial dermis a small cyst typical of a milium. In serial sections it was possible to see a connection with a vellus hair follicle by an epithelial pedicle. The histologic examination of one of the mother's papules on the forehead showed a large round cystic structure with histologic features of EVHC. Close to the cyst wall, serial sections showed flattened sebaceous gland lobules. The histologic findings of the second biopsy taken from the chest showed the typical features of a steatocystoma.

CONCLUSIONS

The relationship between milia, SM and EVHC is discussed; the three disease should be considered as subtypes of multiple pilosebaceous cysts that may all present overlapping histologic features. The different level of the pilosebaceous duct where the cyst originates should explain the different clinical manifestations.

New protecting groups for 1,2-diols (boc- and moc-ethylidene). Cleavage of acetals with bases

[reaction: see text] 1,2-Diols react at rt with alkyl propynoates, in the presence of 4-dimethylaminopyridine, to give cyclic acetals which are quite stable to acid-catalyzed hydrolysis or methanolysis. 1,3-Diols and 1, 4-diols do not form acetals with alkyl propynoates under the same conditions. Deprotection is accomplished with bases (via elimination and addition/elimination steps).

Role of myofibroblasts during normal tissue repair and excessive scarring: interest of their assessment in nephropathies

Following injury, tissue repair process takes place involving inflammation, granulation tissue formation and scar constitution. Granulation tissue develops from the connective tissue surrounding the damaged area and contains vessels, inflammatory cells, fibroblasts and myofibroblasts. Myofibroblasts play an important role in many tissue injuries and fibrocontractive diseases. The process of normal wound repair after tissue injury follows a closely regulated sequence including the activation and the proliferation of fibroblastic cells. In pathological situations, the normal resolution stages are abrogated and the proliferation of myofibroblasts continues, inducing excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix. The differentiation of fibroblastic cells into myofibroblasts is an early event in the development of tissue fibrosis. Myofibroblastic cells express smooth muscle cytoskeletal markers (alpha-smooth muscle actin in particular) and participate actively in the production of extracellular matrix. The evaluation of myofibroblast differentiation in renal biopsies would be useful for histopathologists to appreciate the intensity of tissue injury and particularly to predict the long term outcome of some nephropathies. Immunohistochemical studies for alpha-smooth muscle actin should be made systematically in renal tissue biopsies. Myofibroblastic differentiation appears to play a significant role in the progression of renal failure and seems to be a useful marker of progressive disease.

Pretibial dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa: a recessively inherited COL7A1 splice site mutation affecting procollagen VII processing

Pretibial epidermolysis bullosa (PEB) is a rare form of localized epidermolysis bullosa dystrophica (EBD), a heterogeneous group of inherited, blistering diseases characterized by scarring, loss of dermal-epidermal adhesion and altered anchoring fibrils (AF). Mutations in the type VII collagen gene (COL7A1) underlie EBD and in a dominant PEB family a glycine substitution mutation has been identified. We report a 33-year-old man affected by PEB showing abnormal AF and reduced immunostaining for type VII collagen. Mutation search in the COL7A1 gene revealed a 14 bp deletion in the 115 exon-intron boundary (33563del14), which resulted in the in-frame skipping of exon 115 with elimination of 29 amino acids from the pro-alpha1(VII) polypeptide chain. As a consequence, procollagen VII failed to be processed to mature collagen VII and accumulated at the dermal-epidermal junction, as revealed by immunofluorescence staining using a NC-2 domain-specific antibody. The proband's father was a clinically unaffected heterozygous carrier of mutation 33563del14, whereas the maternal pathogenetic mutation has still not been identified. This represents the first report of a recessive deletion mutation in PEB and extends the range of EBD phenotypes associated with mutation 33563del14.

Interstitial alpha-smooth muscle actin: a prognostic marker in membranous nephropathy

AIM

Membranous nephropathy in adults causes 20% of nephrotic syndromes. Spontaneous outcome of this glomerulopathy is difficult to evaluate from clinical and histological data. Some patients can achieve complete remission, while others develop progressive renal failure. In this study we assessed alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA) expression in renal interstitial myofibroblasts as a marker to predict the outcome of membranous nephropathy.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Renal function tests in tandem with alpha-SMA immunolabelling were performed on 25 patients with a mean follow-up of 7.2+/-5.6 years. The intensity of interstitial alpha-SMA (ialpha-SMA) immunostaining was compared to changes in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) evaluated by inulin clearance, between the time of diagnosis (GFR1) and the end of follow-up (GFR2).

RESULTS

A significant correlation (r = 0.62, p<0.001) was found, between the intensity of interstitial myofibroblasts, immunolabeling and GFR at the end of follow-up. Moreover, the annual GFR variation and the annual percentage of GFR variation were correlated to interstitial myofibroblast labeling (respectively r = 0.62, p<0.001; r = 0.67, p<0.001). In addition, the importance of proteinuria, initial GFR impairment and fibrosis were confirmed as prognostic criteria.

CONCLUSION

This study strongly shows that ialpha-SMA expression is a useful and early prognostic marker in the evolution of membranous nephropathy.