Terminal quadrifurcation of the aorta: A case report.

Unlabelled: Congenital anatomical variations of the terminal aorta are rare. Given the increasing number of endovascular and laparoscopic procedures, such variations are likely to assume greater clinical significance. A 15-year-old male sustained a pelvic vascular injury following a stab to the left gluteus.

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor as a Therapeutical Target of Environmentally Induced Skin Conditions.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor, expressed in several tissues and involved in the response to environmental stressors. Studies have already associated exposure to environmental factors, such as organic air pollutants, products of the skin microbiota, and solar radiation, with the development/worsening of skin conditions, mediated by AhR. On the other hand, recent studies have shown that synthetic and natural compounds are able to modulate the activation of some AhR signaling pathways, minimizing the harmful response of these environmental stressors in the skin.

Temporal trends in ultrasound utilisation in the radiology department of a tertiary hospital.

Background: Little is known about the combined impact of increasing ultrasound usage by clinical disciplines outside radiology and technical advances in other specialised radiological modalities on the role of ultrasound in tertiary-level radiology departments.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate temporal trends in ultrasound utilisation in a tertiary-level radiology department.

Method: An institutional review board-approved retrospective descriptive study in the radiology department of Tygerberg Hospital (TBH).

Diagnostic reference levels for fluoroscopically guided procedures in a South African tertiary hospital.

Background: The burgeoning usage and complexity of fluoroscopically guided procedures (FGPs) contribute to extended examination times and increased risk of adverse radiation effects. Diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) play a pivotal role in dose optimization. There are limited DRL data for FGPs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Modulation of skin androgenesis and sebum production by a dermocosmetic formulation.

Background: Excessive androgenesis in the skin promotes sebaceous hyperproduction which is the onset of acne vulgaris pathogenesis. Free fatty acids and lipid accumulation in the glandular infundibulum culminates in microbiota imbalance, triggering inflammatory response and follicular hyperkeratinization.

Aims: The purpose of this work was to present an alternative cosmetic treatment for acne skin care, focusing on the prevention of sebaceous gland dysregulation.

Impact of the Petrochemical Complex on the Air Quality of an Urban Area in the City of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

In the city of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), the districts located in the northern area are considered the most critical regarding ozone levels year-round. In this study, the potential factors that contribute to high levels of ozone in the district of Irajá were investigated. The obtained results clearly showed that, in spite of the high correlation of ozone concentrations with wind speed and temperature, ozone episodes depend on the ratios of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to nitrogen oxides (NO) rather than on the individual VOC and NO levels, as expected for the VOC-controlled condition typical of the urban area of Rio de Janeiro.

Challenges on Production of a Certified Reference Material of Ochratoxin A in Roasted Coffee: A Brazilian Experience.

Coffee is an important agricultural commodity with technical barriers for exportation because of possible contamination with ochratoxin A (OTA), a mycotoxin nephrotoxic and carcinogenic. The maximum limit for OTA in roasted coffee is 5.0 μg/kg in the European Union and 10 μg/kg in Brazil, and the use of certified reference materials (CRM) is required for reliable measurements.

Whitening effects of cosmetic formulation in the vascular component of skin pigmentation.

Background: Melanin plays an important role in protecting the skin against the harmful effects of solar radiation, but its abnormal accumulation may become an aesthetic problem, such as melasma and age spots.

Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiangiogenic and whitening effects of a depigmentation formulation (BLTX) using an in vitro model of human cell and skin culture.

Methods: Human fibroblasts, keratinocytes or melanocytes were treated with BLTX and subjected to oxidative stress by UV radiation or inflammatory stress with IL-1α for quantification of melanin, tyrosinase, endothelin-1, PAR-2, VEGF and iNOS.

Coumestrol/hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin association incorporated in hydroxypropyl methylcellulose hydrogel exhibits wound healing effect: in vitro and in vivo study.

Several beneficial effects on the skin have been reported for coumestrol (COU), such as protection against photoaging and improvement of skin elasticity and thickness in postmenopausal women. However no reports on the effect of COU on wound healing were found. Nevertheless, COU has low aqueous solubility, which is a crucial limitation for biological tests.

Comparative Therapeutic Effects of Minocycline Treatment and Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cell Transplantation following Striatal Stroke.

We explored the comparative effects of minocycline treatment and intrastriatal BMMC transplantation after experimental striatal stroke in adult rats. Male Wistar adult rats were divided as follows: saline-treated ( = 5), minocycline-treated ( = 5), and BMMC-transplanted ( = 5) animals. Animals received intrastriatal microinjections of 80 pmol of endothelin-1 (ET-1).

Honokiol protects skin cells against inflammation, collagenolysis, apoptosis, and senescence caused by cigarette smoke damage.

Background: Pollution, especially cigarette smoke, is a major cause of skin damage.

Objectives: To assess the effects of the small molecule polyphenol, honokiol, on reversing cigarette smoke-induced damage in vitro to relevant skin cells.

Methods: Keratinocytes (HaCat) cultures were exposed to cigarette smoke and, after 48 hours, IL-1α and IL-8 were measured in cell supernatants.

Indomethacin treatment reduces microglia activation and increases numbers of neuroblasts in the subventricular zone and ischaemic striatum after focal ischaemia.

Neuroblasts from the subventricular zone (SVZ) migrate to striatum following stroke, but most of them die in the ischaemic milieu and this can be related to exacerbated microglial activation. Here, we explored the effects of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory indomethacin on microglial activation, neuronal preservation and neuroblast migration following experimental striatal stroke in adult rats. Animals were submitted to endothelin-1 (ET-1)-induced focal striatal ischaemia and were treated with indomethacin or sterile saline (i.

Determination of detergent and dispensant additives in gasoline by ring-oven and near infrared hypespectral imaging.

A method using the ring-oven technique for pre-concentration in filter paper discs and near infrared hyperspectral imaging is proposed to identify four detergent and dispersant additives, and to determine their concentration in gasoline. Different approaches were used to select the best image data processing in order to gather the relevant spectral information. This was attained by selecting the pixels of the region of interest (ROI), using a pre-calculated threshold value of the PCA scores arranged as histograms, to select the spectra set; summing up the selected spectra to achieve representativeness; and compensating for the superimposed filter paper spectral information, also supported by scores histograms for each individual sample.

Upregulation of transglutaminase and ε (γ-glutamyl)-lysine in the Fisher-Lewis rat model of chronic allograft nephropathy.

Background: Tissue transglutaminase (TG2), a cross-linking enzyme, modulates deposition of extracellular matrix protein in renal fibrosis. This study aimed to examine TG2 and its cross-link product ε(γ-glutamyl)-lysine in the Fisher-Lewis rat renal transplantation (RTx) model of chronic allograft nephropathy (CAN).

Materials And Methods: Left renal grafts from male Fisher and Lewis were transplanted into Lewis rats, generating allografts and isografts, respectively.

Isolation and characterization of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa from a virgin Brazilian Amazon region with potential to degrade atrazine.

The use of pesticides to increase agricultural production can result in the contamination of the environment, causing changes in the genetic structure of organisms and in the loss of biodiversity. This practice is also inducing changes in the rainforest ecosystem. In this work, a Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from a preservation soil area of the Brazilian Amazon Forest, without usage of any pesticide, was evaluated for its potential to degrade atrazine.

[Alcohol consumption patterns among patients in primary health care and detection by health professionals].

This cross-sectional study investigated patterns of alcohol consumption among patients enrolled in the Family Health Program (FHP) in a city in Southeast Brazil, as well as the detection of such consumption by FHP professionals. A total of 932 adult patients were evaluated from November 2010 to November 2011. Of this total, 17.

Minocycline treatment and bone marrow mononuclear cell transplantation after endothelin-1 induced striatal ischemia.

We explored whether the modulation of microglia activation with minocycline is beneficial to the therapeutic actions of bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) transplanted after experimental stroke. Male Wistar adult rats were divided in four experimental groups: ischemic control saline treated (G1, N = 6), ischemic minocycline treated (G2, N = 5), ischemic BMMC treated (G3, N = 5), and ischemic minocycline/BMMC treated (G4, N = 6). There was a significant reduction in the number of ED1+ cells in G3 animals (51.

Towards a mathematical model of within-session operant responding.

Operant response rate changes within the course of a typical free-operant experimental session. These changes are orderly, and reliably demonstrated with subjects from different species, responding under different experimental conditions. Killeen (1995) postulated that the response rate changes are a function of the interplay between arousal and satiation and offered a mathematical model for this hypothesis.

The Use of HRP in Decolorization of Reactive Dyes and Toxicological Evaluation of Their Products.

This work studied the potential use of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) in the decolorization of the following textile dyes: Drimarene Blue X-3LR (DMBLR), Drimarene Blue X-BLN (DMBBLN), Drimarene Rubinol X-3LR (DMR), and Drimarene Blue CL-R (RBBR). Dyes were individually tested in the reaction media containing 120 mg·L(-1), considering the following parameters: temperature (20-45°C), H(2)O(2) concentration (0-4.44 mmol·L(-1)), and reaction time (5 minutes, 1 and 24 h).

In vivo anti-inflammatory effect of a sulfated polysaccharide isolated from the marine brown algae Lobophora variegata.

Context: Lobophora variegata J.V. Lamouroux (Dictyotaceae) is a brown marine alga widely encountered in the Brazilian sea coast that presents high content of fucans.

Evisceration following abdominal stab wounds: analysis of 66 cases.

Background: Abdominal stab wounds with evisceration remain an indication for emergency laparotomy. The purpose of this study was validate a policy of mandatory laparotomy for organ evisceration and a policy of selective nonoperative management with serial physical abdominal examination for omentum evisceration.

Methods: The charts of 379 patients with abdominal stab wounds who presented to our Level I trauma center over a 3-year (January 2005 to December 2007) period were retrospectively reviewed.

Biological effects of a sulfated-polysaccharide isolated from the marine red algae Champia feldmannii.

Sulfated-polysaccharides are exploited as antithrombotic and anticoagulant agents and suggested to be immunostimulants. The sulfated-polysaccharide isolated from the red-marine-algae Champia feldmannii (Cf-PLS) was purified by ion exchange chromatography and tested in experimental protocols of coagulation, inflammation (in Wistar rats) and nociception (in Swiss mice). Cf-PLS was tested i.