Evaluation of the presence of the 35delG mutation in patients with severe to profound hearing loss based on ethnicity

INTRODUCTION

The 35delG mutation in the connexin 26 gene is the most common mutation that generates deafness, but its frequency in different countries is strongly based on its ethnicity. Brazilians belong to different ethnic groups.

OBJECTIVES

To report the frequency of homo and heterozygosis 35delG mutation in a population with severe to profound bilateral sensorineural deafness, and separate them by ethnicity.

METHODS

100 individuals were studied with severe to profound hearing loss, with no other etiology found, and tested for 35delG mutation. The group presented the following ethnicity distribution: 25% Blacks; 30% Latin Europeans; 26.2% Blacks/Latin Europeans and 2.3% native.

RESULTS

The 35delG mutation was found in 20% of patients: 15% were heterozygous and 5% homozygous. All homozygous were of Latin European origin.

CONCLUSION

Ethnicity shows marked determination of the presence of the 35delG mutation, and it was only found in homozygosis in the group of Latin Europeans.

Traditional botanical knowledge of artisanal fishers in southern Brazil

BACKGROUND

This study characterized the botanical knowledge of artisanal fishers of the Lami community, Porto Alegre, southern Brazil based on answers to the following question: Is the local botanical knowledge of the artisanal fishers of the rural-urban district of Lami still active, even since the district's insertion into the metropolitan region of Porto Alegre?

METHODS

This region, which contains a mosaic of urban and rural areas, hosts the Lami Biological Reserve (LBR) and a community of 13 artisanal fisher families. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 fishers, complemented by participatory observation techniques and free-lists; in these interviews, the species of plants used by the community and their indicated uses were identified.

RESULTS

A total of 111 species belonging to 50 families were identified. No significant differences between the diversities of native and exotic species were found. Seven use categories were reported: medicinal (49%), human food (23.2%), fishing (12.3%), condiments (8%), firewood (5%), mystical purposes (1.45%), and animal food (0.72%). The medicinal species with the highest level of agreement regarding their main uses (AMUs) were Aloe arborescens Mill., Plectranthus barbatus Andrews, Dodonaea viscosa Jacq., Plectranthus ornatus Codd, Eugenia uniflora L., and Foeniculum vulgare Mill. For illness and diseases, most plants were used for problems with the digestive system (20 species), followed by the respiratory system (16 species). This community possesses a wide botanical knowledge, especially of medicinal plants, comparable to observations made in other studies with fishing communities in coastal areas of the Atlantic Forest of Brazil.

CONCLUSIONS

Ethnobotanical studies in rural-urban areas contribute to preserving local knowledge and provide information that aids in conserving the remaining ecosystems in the region.