Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intrathecal Infusion of Pyrrolidine Dithiocarbamate for the Prevention and Reversal of Neuropathic Pain in Rats Using a Sciatic Chronic Constriction Injury Model

Background and Objectives: Recent studies have suggested that nuclear factor &kgr;B (NF-&kgr;B) may play a role in mediating nerve injury-induced neuropathic pain. Here, we examined the effects of intrathecal pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC), a NF-&kgr;B inhibitor, on the development of neuropathic pain, spinal microglial activation, and CX3CR1 expression induced by sciatic chronic constriction injury (CCI) model in rats. Methods: Under chloral hydrate anesthesia, male Sprague-Dawley rats (300-350 g) fitted with intrathecal catheters underwent either sciatic CCI or sham surgery. Intrathecal saline or PDTC (100 or 1000 pmol/d) was infused 1 day before or 3 days after CCI (n = 8). The rat hind-paw withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimuli and withdrawal latency to radiant heat were determined before surgery and from days 1 to 7 after CCI. Spinal microglial activation was evaluated with OX-42 immunoreactivity, and spinal CX3CR1 expression was assessed by Western blotting. Results: Chronic constriction injury induced mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia and microglial activation as demonstrated by OX-42 expression. Whereas it had no apparent effect on spinal cord histology, intrathecal administration of PDTC prevented the development of the mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia and inhibited nerve injury-induced microglial activation and spinal CX3CR1 expression. Conclusions: In this study, we have shown the protective effect of intrathecal PDTC on the development of nociceptive behaviors induced by CCI in rats. The activation of NF-&kgr;B pathway may contribute to spinal microglial activation and CX3CR1 up-regulation.
Satisfação dos usuários dos serviços ambulatoriais de fisioterapia da rede pública

INTRODUCTION: User satisfaction surveys are useful for the design and assessment of health services, because the more the public health policies are justified by respect for the perspectives and needs of users, most such policies tend to hit. OBJECTIVES: To characterize the users of clinical physical therapy service, in the public health care in the city of Foz do Iguacu, Parana; identify the conduct in relation to the search of physical therapy; describe and quantify user satisfaction after treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A transversal descriptive study was realized, with an applications of a validated questionnaire, socially and cultural suitable to the users of those services. One hundred and three were fitted in the inclusion criteria and not in exclusion, and 99 questionnaires of these were analyzed. For data analysis we applied the Friedman test for analysis of variance nonparametric dimensions of the questionnaire, supplemented by post-test multiple comparison (Dunn's post hoc), analyzing pairs of dimensions. RESULTS: The sample was characterized by female users' predominance, graduated in 2nd degree, with family rent between 4 and 6 minimal salaries. Orthopedic and traumatology were the main specialty attended. Also reported that they already had another experience with physical therapy and all of them knew their diagnoses. Relationed to satisfaction, the users characterized as great (p < 0,0001), and there was significant relationship between the dimension relationship therapist and patient and the appointment scheduling (p < 0,05) and between the appointment and the return/recommendation of the clinic (p < 0,05), and a highly significant relationship between the appointment scheduling and the access (p < 0,01). CONCLUSION: Handling characteristics of physical therapy was seen as great, with a population satisfied with the services that has been receiving.
Single and multigenerational responses of body mass to atmospheric oxygen concentrations in Drosophila melanogaster : evidence for roles of plasticity and evolution

Greater oxygen availability has been hypothesized to be important in allowing the evolution of larger invertebrates during the Earth’s history, and across aquatic environments. We tested for evolutionary and developmental responses of adult body size of Drosophila melanogaster to hypoxia and hyperoxia. Individually reared flies were smaller in hypoxia, but hyperoxia had no effect. In each of three oxygen treatments (hypoxia, normoxia or hyperoxia) we reared three replicate lines of flies for seven generations, followed by four generations in normoxia. In hypoxia, responses were due primarily to developmental plasticity, as average body size fell in one generation and returned to control values after one to two generations of normoxia. In hyperoxia, flies evolved larger body sizes. Maximal fly mass was reached during the first generation of return from hyperoxia to normoxia. Our results suggest that higher oxygen levels could cause invertebrate species to evolve larger average sizes, rather than simply permitting evolution of giant species.
Glutamate Release and Neurologic Impairment After Intrathecal Administration of Lidocaine and Bupivacaine in the Rat

Background: Local anesthetic-induced neurotoxicity is one of the potential causes of postspinal anesthesia neurologic injury. Many experimental and clinical studies have demonstrated that lidocaine is more neurotoxic than bupivacaine. The mechanisms of local anesthetic-induced neurotoxicity remain unclear. Glutamate is an excitatory amino acid and widely exists in the central nervous system. Overstimulation of the glutamate receptors may produce neuronal toxic effect. In this study, we used in vivo microdialysis to examine the glutamate release in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) after intrathecal lidocaine and bupivacaine injection. Methods: Male Wistar rats were used. Administration of lidocaine (5 groups: normal saline, 2.5%, 5%, 10%, and 10% + MK-801 intrathecally injected) and bupivacaine (4 groups: normal saline, 0.25%, 0.5%, and 1% intrathecally injected) was performed in both microdialysis and postinjection neurologic sequelae studies. After intrathecal injection of the studied agents, the CSF dialysates were collected in 10-minute intervals for 2 hours. Cerebrospinal fluid glutamate concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. In addition, tail-flick latencies were examined daily before and after microdialysis for 4 days. Results: Intrathecal lidocaine concentration-dependently elevated glutamate release in CSF. Pretreatment with MK-801 significantly inhibited the glutamate release induced by 10% lidocaine. Intrathecal bupivacaine has no influence on glutamate release in CSF. The tail-flick latencies were significantly prolonged for 4 days after intrathecal lidocaine injection, and these effects were in a concentration-dependent manner. Pretreatment with MK-801 significantly reversed the 10% lidocaine-induced prolonged tail-flick latencies. There was no difference of the tail-flick latencies among the bupivacaine-treated groups. Conclusions: Intrathecal lidocaine caused a concentration-dependent increase of the CSF glutamate release and postinjection neurologic impairment; these effects can be reversed by MK-801. However, intrathecal bupivacaine shows no influence. We suggest that glutamate may be involved in the pathogenesis of lidocaine-induced spinal neurotoxicity.
Bcl‐2 as a Therapeutic Target in Human Tubulointerstitial Inflammation

In lupus nephritis, tubulointerstitial inflammation (TII) is associated with in situ adaptive immune cell networks that amplify local tissue damage. Since conventional therapy appears ineffective for severe TII, and these patients often progress to renal failure, understanding in situ mechanisms might reveal new therapeutic targets. This study was undertaken to assess whether dysregulated apoptotic regulators maintain local adaptive immunity and drive inflammation in TII.
Real-Time Evaluation of Diffusion of the Local Anesthetic Solution During Peribulbar Block Using Ultrasound Imaging and Clinical Correlates of Diffusion

Background and Objectives The aims of this prospective observational study were to assess the incidence of intraconal spread during peribulbar (extraconal) anesthesia by real-time ultrasound imaging of the retro-orbital compartment and to determine whether a complete sensory and motor block (with akinesia) of the eye is directly related to the intraconal spread. Methods Ultrasound imaging was performed in 100 patients who underwent a surgical procedure on the posterior segment of the eye. All patients received a peribulbar block using the inferolateral approach. Once the needle was in place, a linear ultrasound transducer was placed over the eyelid and the spread of local anesthetics was assessed during the injection (real time). Akinesia was assessed by a blinded observer 10 minutes after block placement. The incidence of intraconal spread and its correlation with a complete akinesia was measured. Results The overall block failure rate was 28% in terms of akinesia, and the rate of rescue blocks was 20%. Clear intraconal spread during injection of the local anesthetic mixture could be detected with ultrasound imaging in 61 of 100 patients. The positive predictive value for successful block when intraconal spread was detected was 98% (95% confidence interval, 91%-100%). The association between clear and no evidence of intraconal spread and effective block was statistically significant (&khgr;2 test, P < 0.001). Conclusions Ultrasound imaging provides information of local anesthetic spread within the retro-orbital space, which might assist in the prediction of block success.
A simulation study on autonomous decentralized mechanism in fish behaviour model

The behaviour of a fish school is considered an interesting phenomenon because a fish school behaves differently in various situations. The paper considers a fish school as an autonomous decentralized system and constructs a mathematical model for the autonomous decentralized mechanism. Simulation results show that, by varying the quantity of information exchange among members in school, the present model describes fish behaviour not only for a school with fixed configuration but also for that with variable form. Furthermore, a remarkable difference in fish trajectory is found between the two schools.
Does a trade‐off between current reproductive success and survival affect the honesty of male signalling in species with male parental care?

Recent theory predicted that male advertisement will reliably signal investment in paternal care in species where offspring survival requires paternal care and males allocate resources between advertisement and care. However, the predicted relationship between care and advertisement depended on the marginal gains from investment in current reproductive traits. Life history theory suggests that these fitness gains are also subject to a trade‐off between current and future reproduction. Here, we investigate whether male signalling remains a reliable indicator of parental care when males allocate resources between current advertisement, paternal care and survival to future reproduction. We find that advertisement is predicted to remain a reliable signal of male care but that advertisement may cease to reliably indicate male quality because low‐quality males are predicted to invest in current reproduction, whereas higher‐quality males are able to invest in both current reproduction and survival to future reproduction.
Inbreeding and courtship calling in the cricket Teleogryllus commodus

Male field crickets produce two acoustic signals for mating: advertisement calls and courtship calls. While the importance of advertisement calling in mate attraction is well understood, the function of courtship calling is less clear. Here, we tested if the courtship call of male crickets Teleogryllus commodus signals aspects of male quality by comparing the calls of inbred and outbred males. We examined the effect of one generation of full sibling mating on fine‐scale call structure, along with several life history traits. Inbreeding reduced nymph survival but had no significant effect on weight or development time. Inbreeding resulted in a small but significant change in two of the six call parameters measured. We then tested if inbreeding affects call trait combinations that are important to females by using the results of a previous selection analysis to compare the multivariate attractiveness of the calls of inbred and outbred males. There was no difference. We conclude that the courtship call of T. commodus is not a reliable signal of aspects of male quality that are affected by inbreeding (which generally reduces fitness‐enhancing traits). It might, however, signal components of male fitness that are not affected by changes in heterozygosity.
Recombination and selection in the maintenance of the adaptive value of inversions

A huge amount of data seem to confirm the adaptive value of inversions in Drosophila. The inhibition of recombination in heterokaryotypes mediated by inversions seems fundamental in maintaining their adaptive role. This study shows that recombination is highly suppressed in Drosophila subobscura because of chromosomal inversions, not only inside the inversions but also outside them. It seems that the region outside the inversion where recombination is inhibited is asymmetrical and independent of the inversion length. Despite the difficulty of crossovers taking place near inversion breakpoints, the only two recombination events detected inside inversions were located close to the breakpoint. Thus, selection could be largely responsible for the recombination reduction maintaining sets of adaptive alleles inside the inverted region. Heterokaryotype descendants were always in higher frequency than inbred or outbred homokaryotypes, regardless of the geographical origin of the chromosome, suggesting that chromosomes carrying the same arrangement, although with a different set of alleles for neutral markers, could be submitted to the same selection processes.
Nuptial coloration varies with ambient light environment in a freshwater fish

Visual signals play a vital role in many animal communication systems. Signal design, however, often varies within species, raising evolutionarily important questions concerning the maintenance of phenotypic diversity. We analysed nuptial colour variation within and among nine populations of southern pygmy perch (Nannoperca australis Günther) along an environmental light gradient. Within populations, larger males were redder and blacker, and better‐condition males were blacker. Among populations, red colour was positively correlated with the amount of orange‐red light present, suggesting that males are likely optimizing signal conspicuousness by producing proportionally larger and redder patches in broad spectrum environments with more orange‐red light. Signal contrast, in this regard, is maximized when red colour, appearing bright because of the prevalence of red wavelengths, is viewed against the water‐column background. Together, our results are concordant with the sensory drive hypothesis; selection favours signal adaptations or signal plasticity to ensure communication efficacy is maximized in different light environments.
Percutaneous fixation for displaced proximal humeral fractures in adolescents and young adults

Background Closed reduction and percutaneous pinning of proximal humerus fractures is a reliable method for stable fixation in certain patients. Although it is less rigid biomechanically than plate and screw constructs, percutaneous pinning may be used in patients younger than 45 years of age with good bone quality and noncomminuted fracture fragments. Patients and methods Twenty-three patients with displaced proximal humeral fractures (after high-energy trauma), mean age 26.4 years (range 14-45 years), were treated by closed (nine patients) or open (14 patients) reduction and percutaneous pinning with smooth pins. Pins were removed after 6-8 weeks and followed up for a mean of 6.7 months (range 6-14 months). Objectives Evaluation of the results of treatment of displaced surgical neck fractures in adolescents and young adults. Results According to the Constant scoring system, the mean score was 89.65 points. Seventeen patients (73.9%) had an excellent score, three patients (13%) had a good score, and three patients (13%) had a fair and poor score. Twenty patients (87%) were satisfied with the result of the treatment and three patients (13%) were not satisfied. Conclusion Displaced proximal humeral fractures could be treated by closed or open reduction and percutaneous pinning, yielding good fracture positioning and adequate temporary stabilization. No major complications such as avascular necrosis, nonunion, deep infection, or neurovascular deficit were associated with this method of treatment.
Only helpful when required: a longevity cost of harbouring defensive symbionts

Maternally transmitted symbionts can spread in host populations if they provide a fitness benefit to their hosts. Hamiltonella defensa, a bacterial endosymbiont of aphids, protects hosts against parasitoids but only occurs at moderate frequencies in most aphid populations. This suggests that harbouring this symbiont is also associated with costs, yet the nature of these costs has remained elusive. Here, we demonstrate an important and clearly defined cost: reduced longevity. Experimental infections with six different isolates of H. defensa caused strongly reduced lifespans in two different clones of the black bean aphid, Aphis fabae, resulting in a significantly lower lifetime reproduction. However, the two aphid clones were unequally affected by the presence of H. defensa, and the magnitude of the longevity cost was further determined by genotype × genotype interactions between host and symbiont, which has important consequences for their coevolution.
Patterns of cranial shape diversification during the phylogenetic branching process of New World monkeys (Primates: Platyrrhini)

One of the central topics in evolutionary biology is understanding the processes responsible for phenotypic diversification related to ecological factors. New World monkeys are an excellent reference system to investigate processes of diversification at macroevolutionary scales. Here, we investigate the cranial shape diversification related to body size and ecology during the phylogenetic branching process of platyrrhines. To investigate this diversification, we used geometric morphometric techniques, a molecular phylogenetic tree, ecological data and phylogenetic comparative methods. Our statistical analyses demonstrated that the phylogenetic branching process is the most important dimension to understand cranial shape variation among extant platyrrhines and suggested that the main shape divergence among the four principal platyrrhine clades probably occurred during the initial branching process. The phylogenetic conservatism, which is the retention of ancestral traits over time within the four principal platyrrhine clades, could be the most important characteristic of platyrrhine cranial shape diversification. Different factors might have driven early shape divergence and posterior relative conservatism, including genetic drift, stabilizing selection, genetic constraints owing to pleiotropy, developmental or functional constraint, lack of genetic variation, among others. Understanding the processes driving the diversification among platyrrhines will probably require further palaeontological, phylogenetic and comparative studies.
Environmental factors associated with genetic and phenotypic divergence among sympatric populations of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus)

The mechanisms by which phenotypic and genetic divergence may occur among sympatric, conspecific populations have been widely discussed but are still not well understood. Possible mechanisms include assortative mating based on morphology or variation in the reproductive behaviour of phenotypes, and both have been suggested to be relevant to the differentiation of salmonid populations in post‐glacial lakes. Here, we studied Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in Windermere, where putative populations are defined by spatial and temporal variation in spawning. Genetic differentiation was assessed based on nine microsatellite loci, and phenotypic variation was assessed from morphometric characters. We test hypotheses about the relative role of morphology, spawning season and spawning habitat in the evolution of genetic divergence among these populations. Distinct from other lake systems, we find that both morphological and genetic differentiation are restricted primarily to one of two interconnecting basins, that genetic and morphological differentiation are decoupled in this lake and that both phenotype and environment have changed over the last 20 years. The implication is that breeding habitat plays a primary role in isolating populations that differentiate by drift and that phenotypically plastic changes, potentially related to foraging specializations, have either become secondarily decoupled from the genetically defined populations or were never fundamental in driving the evolution of genetic diversity in the Windermere system.
Recovery of motor function following stroke: Profile and predictors

Two hundred and twenty-nine stroke patients admitted consecutively to a rehabilitation centre were studied in order to develop predictors of performance outcomes for stroke patients undergoing rehabilitation. The profile of the physical recovery of each patient together with the factors affecting this recovery were examined. Four aspects of physical recovery (the stages of recovery of the arm and leg, the gait, and the level of gross motor performance) were measured and six patient characteristics (time post-stroke, severity of paresis, degree of perceptual involvement, age, degree of sensory involvement, and side of hemiplegia) were investigated to determine if they were of predictive value. It was found that 70% of the patients were able to walk again, 24% regained independence in gross motor performance, adn 22% benefited from improved voluntary movement of the leg sufficient for ambulation, while only 5% retained arm function. Predictions regarding the outcome of the hemigplegic leg, gait and gross mo.
Speciation within genomic networks: a case study based on Steatocranus cichlids of the lower Congo rapids

Hybridization in animals is a much more common phenomenon as previously thought and may have profound implications for speciation research. The cichlid genus Steatocranus (Teleostei: Cichlidae), a close relative to members of the East African cichlid radiations, radiated under riverine conditions in the lower Congo rapids and produced a small species flock. Previous phylogenetic analyses suggested that hybridization occurred and contributed to speciation in this genus. A re‐analysis of an already published 2000 loci‐AFLP data set explicitly testing for patterns of ancient gene flow provided strong evidence for a highly reticulate phylogenetic history of the genus. We provide, to our knowledge, the first example of a complex reticulate network in vertebrates, including multiple closely related species connected through ancient as well as recent gene flow. In this context, the limited validity of strictly bifurcating tree hypotheses as a phylogenetic basis for hypothesis testing in evolutionary biology is discussed.
A toggle mechanism servo system with variable-structure model-following control

A toggle mechanism, which is driven by a permanent-magnet synchronous servo motor, with variable-structure model-following control (VSMFC) is proposed in this study. The rod and crank of the toggle mechanism are assumed to be rigid. The Hamilton principle and L agrange multiplier methods are applied to formulate the equation of motion. Based on the principles of the adaptive model-following control and the variable-structure control, a VSMFC system is developed to control the position of a slider of the toggle mechanism servo system. Numerical and experimental results show that the dynamic behaviour of the proposed controller-motor-mechanism system is robust to parametric variations and external disturbances.