The reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by neutrophils are involved in the pathogenesis of several diseases, for which the intake of antioxidants could benefit patients either as a prophylactic or therapeutic treatment. Propolis is among the known antioxidants, and its chemical composition may vary under the influence of seasonality, which may interfere in its biological properties. This work evaluates the role of seasonality on the production of some important compounds of propolis samples produced monthly from November 2001 through October 2002 as well as the effect of these samples on the oxidative metabolism of stimulated neutrophils, by using both luminol and lucigenin to produce chemiluminescence (CLlum and CLluc, respectively). The cytotoxicity of the most active extracts to neutrophils was also investigated. The inhibitory effect of the propolis samples varied significantly during the studied period for both assays (3.4 +/- 1.1 to 16.0 +/- 1.1 mu g/mL for CLlum and 6.2 +/- 2.0 to 30.0 +/- 5.0 mu g/mL for CLluc), which was also observed in the quantitative profile of the main analyzed compounds (aromadendrin-4`-methyl ether, artepillin C, and baccharin). This effect started to become more prominent during the fall and, among all the studied extracts...

The objective was to evaluate the effect of beta-lactoglobulin (beta-lg) polymorphism and seasonality on milk composition (fat, lactose, total solids, milk urea nitrogen, total protein, true protein, casein and somatic cell counts) of Holstein and Girolando cows. Milk and blood samples from 278 Holsteins cows and 156 Girolando cows were taken during two dry seasons and two rainy seasons, for milk composition analysis and to determine beta-lg genotypes, respectively. BB genotype was the most frequent for both breeds, followed by AA genotype for Holstein (BB>AA>AB) and by AB for Girolando cows (BB>AB>AA). No differences were found in milk compositional characteristics among genetic variants of beta-lg (AA, AB and BB) either between Holstein or Girolando cows. No association between milk composition and beta-lg genetic polymorphism was observed. During the dry season, independently of the breed considered, higher contents of lactose, true protein, casein and casein :true protein ratio were found.

O mercúrio (Hg), na forma química de metilmercúrio (MeHg) é considerado um dos contaminantes ambientais mais nocivos à saúde humana e ao ambiente, podendo provocar efeitos adversos diversos. A exposição ocorre principalmente pelo consumo de peixes contaminados e é freqüente em populações ribeirinhas da Amazônia Brasileira, incluindo o médio Tapajós. Um dos principais efeitos tóxicos associados à exposição ao MeHg é o estresse oxidativo. Também tem sido relatada a indução do processo inflamatório. Entretanto, a dieta pode modificar consideravelmente os efeitos tóxicos decorrentes da exposição ao MeHg. Além disso, na Região Amazônica a sazonalidade é importante na oferta de alimentos, podendo assim, influenciar nos efeitos da exposição ao Hg, pela diferente oferta de micronutrientes que minimizariam os efeitos após a exposição. Neste sentido, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo o de avaliar, em diferentes estações do ano e comunidades ribeirinhas amazônicas, características sociais e demográficas, a exposição ao MeHg, o status de metais essenciais (Cu, Mn, Se e Zn), carotenóides (?-caroteno e licopeno) e vitaminas (A e E) no organismo; bem como os biomarcadores do estresse oxidativo GSH...

Introdução e objetivos Apesar de ser um importante componente estrutural de florestas tropicais e causar impactos na dinâmica e funcionamento destas florestas, pouco se sabe sobre a sazonalidade do crescimento de lianas em seu ambiente natural. Lianas ainda possuem uma rica diversidade de arranjos de tecidos vasculares em seus caules devido à presença de variações cambiais. Neste contexto, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo analisar a sazonalidade da atividade cambial e da diferenciação do xilema de três espécies de lianas pertencentes a famílias com maior diversidade do hábito nos neotrópicos e com diferentes configurações em seus sistemas vasculares caulinares, Stizophyllum riparium (Bignoniaceae), Dalbergia frutescens (Leguminosae) e Serjania laruotteana (Sapindaceae), bem como verificar se há relação entre a sazonalidade da atividade cambial e a sazonalidade da pluviosidade; e se há a formação de camadas de crescimento anuais no xilema. Métodos A sazonalidade da atividade cambial e da diferenciação do xilema foi estudada através de coletas periódicas de porções caulinares ao longo de um ano, correlacionando-se esses dados com a pluviosidade. Resultados As três espécies apresentaram sazonalidade nas suas atividades cambiais...

Em colônias de insetos eussociais, é prevista uma demanda conflitante entre a produção de operárias e indivíduos reprodutivos, visto que operárias realizam tarefas essenciais para a sobrevivência da colônia, enquanto machos e rainhas estão relacionados com a reprodução. Nesse trabalho, foram testadas as hipóteses (1) que a produção de sexuados estaria diretamente relacionada com a disponibilidade de recursos alimentares e (2) que haveria uma regulação temporal da produção de sexuados, com épocas mais favoráveis à produção de reprodutivos (verão) e menos favoráveis (inverno). O sistema de estudo foi a abelha sem ferrão Scaptotrigona aff. depilis e foram realizados dois experimentos. No primeiro experimento, na estação de verão, foram montadas quinze colônias padronizadas e sorteadas em cinco grupos experimentais. Os grupos A2 e C2 receberam o dobro de alimentação artificial (xarope de açúcar e pólen apícola) do que os grupos A1 e C1. As colônias dos grupos C2 e C1 foram mantidas confinadas, enquanto as colônias dos grupos A2 e A1 podiam forragear livremente. O grupo A0 (controle) não recebeu alimentação artificial e as colônias permaneceram abertas. No inverno, o mesmo experimento foi realizado...

The objective was to evaluate the effect of beta-lactoglobulin (beta-lg) polymorphism and seasonality on milk composition (fat, lactose, total solids, milk urea nitrogen, total protein, true protein, casein and somatic cell counts) of Holstein and Girolando cows. Milk and blood samples from 278 Holsteins cows and 156 Girolando cows were taken during two dry seasons and two rainy seasons, for milk composition analysis and to determine beta-lg genotypes, respectively. BB genotype was the most frequent for both breeds, followed by AA genotype for Holstein (BB>AA>AB) and by AB for Girolando cows (BB>AB>AA). No differences were found in milk compositional characteristics among genetic variants of beta-lg (AA, AB and BB) either between Holstein or Girolando cows. No association between milk composition and beta-lg genetic polymorphism was observed. During the dry season, independently of the breed considered, higher contents of lactose, true protein, casein and casein :true protein ratio were found.

O sistema estuarino de Santos-Cubatão (SP) está localizado em uma das áreas mais industrializadas da América Latina. Os estuários são ambientes de grande complexidade, onde ocorrem interrelações entre componentes geológicos, físicos, biológicos e químicos. O histórico de contaminação desse ambiente estuarino, decorrente de diferentes atividades antrópicas, pode resultar em altos níveis de contaminação, e os sedimentos podem representar uma fonte latente de elementos-traço para o ambiente aquático. Com o objetivo de investigar a variabilidade geoquímica sazonal de elementos-traço, os sedimentos de superfície dos principais rios deste sistema estuarino (Casqueiro, Cubatão, Cascalho, Morrão e Capivari) foram amostrados no inverno e no verão. Concentrações químicas multi-elementares em diferentes granulometrias (<63 mm, <177 mm e total), obtidas por ICP-MS, e os níveis de matéria orgânica foram relacionados. As texturas dos sedimentos estudados apresentaram característica silto-argilosa (64 a 87%). Os maiores níveis de matéria orgânica foram encontrados nos sedimentos do rio Morrão (10,92 a 12,05%), porém não foi observada relação com a granulometria. Em geral, os metais e metalóides foram mais concentrados na textura silto-argilosa...

Em muitos ambientes tropicais, estações chuvosas se alternam com períodos de seca. A estação seca é um período de menor disponibilidade e qualidade nutricional de folhas, sendo, portanto, um período desfavorável para insetos herbívoros e gerando as oscilações sazonais em suas populações. O cerrado é um bioma neotropical sazonal, que inclui formações de savana (cerrado sensu stricto), e onde o clima se caracteriza por uma estação quente e chuvosa de outubro a abril e uma fria e seca de maio a setembro. A produção de folhas novas se concentra geralmente na estação chuvosa, tornando este um período favorável para muitos insetos herbívoros tais como as borboletas. Em seu estágio larval, as borboletas são herbívoros vorazes cujas populações comumente oscilam de acordo com a disponibilidade de folhas adequadas ao desenvolvimento dos imaturos. Borboletas podem ser divididas funcionalmente em duas guildas: as que se alimentam em sua forma adulta do néctar de flores, e aquelas que se alimentam dos líquidos oriundos de frutos em decomposição, seiva de árvores, carcaças de animais e excrementos. As espécies do segundo grupo são conhecidas como borboletas frugívoras. A guilda de borboletas frugívoras tem sido amplamente utilizada em estudos de ecologia de comunidades devido à facilidade de captura usando armadilhas com iscas de fruta fermentada...

Dengue is a vector-borne disease transmitted from an infected human to an Aedes mosquito, during a blood-meal. A model for dengue disease transmission is presented, composed by human and mosquitoes compartments. The aim of this work is to simulate the effects of seasonality, on the vectorial capacity. Using entomological information about the mosquito behavior under different temperatures, simulations were carried out and the repercussions on the disease transmission were analyzed.; This work was supported by Portuguese funds through The Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). Rodrigues and Torres were also supported by the Center for Research and Development in Mathematics and Applications (CIDMA) within project PEst-OE/MAT/UI4106/2014; Monteiro by the ALGORITMI Research Centre and project PEST-OE/EEI/UI0319/2014.

The current study presents a parasitological survey of larval nematodes from freshwater ornamental fish Iguanodectes spilurus caught in the watercourse of the Caete River, in the northeast region of the State of Para, Brazil. A total of 176 specimens, 1.36±0.75 g weight and 5.53±0.98 cm total length, were analyzed. Nematode larvae were identified as Capillaria sp., Procamallanus sp. and Anisakidae, with prevalence of 70.45% and infection intensity ranging from 1.81 to 4.70 larvae. The highest prevalence 57.38% occurred in the liver, but no seasonality was observed, indicating high infection throughout the year. Seasonality was observed in fish parasitized in the stomach, intestine and caecum, with prevalence and mean intensity of 17.61% and 2.32 parasites, 12.5% and 1.81 parasites, 10.79% and 2.21 parasites, respectively. The highest degree of infection was observed in the rainy season, probably due to increased availability of intermediate hosts or food.

OBJECTIVE: Studies conducted mainly in countries located in the Northern Hemisphere have shown that season of birth influences mood seasonality. Greater mood seasonality has been observed for individuals born during spring/summer months than those born during autumn/winter months. Expanding past research to the Southern Hemisphere, in this study we examine the influence of season of birth on mood seasonality in a sample of 1,247 healthy young Brazilians. METHOD: The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire was used to compute a global seasonality score as a measure of mood seasonality in a cross-sectional study. RESULTS: Analysis of covariance was conducted to examine the effects of month of birth and gender on mood seasonality, with age entered as a covariate. A main effect of gender was observed, F (1, 1197) = 17.86, p < .01; partial Eta-squared = .02, with mood seasonality being higher for females (M = 8) than for males (M = 7). Contradicting previous findings, no significant main effect for month of birth was observed, F (1, 1197) = 0.65, p > .05. CONCLUSION: The unexpected finding is tentatively explained by differences in geographic location and weather fluctuations between the sampling location in Brazil and other countries where season of birth has been found to influence mood seasonality. Additional studies with larger samples from the Southern Hemisphere are necessary to shed additional light on the possible significant influence of season of birth on mood.

Lutzomyia intermedia and Lutzomyia whitmani occur sympatrically in the district of Posse, municipality of Petrópolis, in the State of Rio de Janeiro (114 km from the city of Rio de Janeiro), where sand flies were captured weekly for three consecutive years in both the peridomicile and forest, in two first years from 18:00 to 22:00 h, using a Shannon trap and CDC light traps. The anthropophilic habit was assessed by recording the specimens that bit the human captors. Considering the different capture types and sites, the following species were identified: Brumptomyia brumpti, B. cardosoi, B. guimaraesi, Lutzomyia amarali, L. longipalpis, L. microps, L. costalimai, L. edwardsi, L. firmatoi, L. migonei, L. termitophila, L. tupynambai, L. fischeri, L. pessoai, L. lutziana, L. shannoni, L. barrettoi, L. intermedia, L. whitmani, L. lloydi, and L. minasensis. L. intermedia (38.3%) and L. whitmani (38.6%) predominated. L. intermedia predominated in the peridomicile, where it displayed more intense anthropophily, while L. whitmani displayed greater density in the banana plantations and forest, preferential sites for biting humans. Studies on seasonality showed that while L. intermedia displayed greater density in the hottest months of the year (December...

Seasonality was studied for Alticini trapped with malaise over a period of two years in the Vila Velha State Park, Parana, Brazil. Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae and Alticini showed seasonal distribution, with the highest abundance during spring and summer months. The abundance peaks of these groups were not synchronized. Of all environmental variables tested, photoperiod had the larger effect on the distributional patterns of Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae and Alticini. Also, Chrysomelidae and Alticini probably are related to the quality and availability of host-plants. When richness was high there was a greater similarity among seasons of different years. However, when richness was not pronounced, seasons showed more similarity within the same year than between years. The Alticini community was seasonally structured and a possible mechanism underlying this pattern is asymmetric competition. Nevertheless, it is necessary to account for indirect interactions (plant-enemy mediated) to better understand how Alticini community is structured.

A survey of Monomachidae species was carried out in anarea of Atlantic rain forest of the Biological Reserve of Duas Bocas, Espírito Santo State, Brazil between September, 1996 and August, 1997. Two species of Mollomachus Klug, 1841, M. fuscator Perty, 1833 and M. eurycephalus Schletterer, 1890 were collected from May to September. Both species are typical of winter time and showed the same parttern of seasonality.

SOUSA,M.B.C. et al. Reproductive Patterns and Birth Seasonality in a South-American Breeding Colony of Common Marmosets, Callithrix jacchus. Primates, v.40, n.2, p. 327-336, Apr. 1999.; We analyzed data on captive-born and wild-caught females housed under natural conditions in a colony located in northeastern Brazil. No differences in reproductive performance were found between captive-born and wild-caught females. Twins were the most frequent litter size, followed by triplets and singletons. No parity effect was observed, with similar infant survival for nulliparous and multiparous females. No significant departures in sex ratio were detected for births and mortality of the male and female infants. The age of the females at the time of pairing showed a negative correlation with pairing-parturition length, but did not affect infant survival. The prolongation in pairing-parturition interval (PPI) and interbirth interval (IBI) was related to birth seasonality. The births were clustered in the second half of the dry season and the beginning of the wet season (November-March), and the time of pairing and the time of infant birth influenced the PPI and IBI, respectively. The use of outdoor cages, which allowed the animals to be aware of the seasonal variations in photo-period and rainfall seems to be sufficient to time the reproductive activity...

This study evaluated the effects of the trimester of birth and of ambient temperature in the first six months of life on hospitalizations due to asthma and pneumonia in preschool children and on the diagnosis of asthma in adult life in individuals from the 1982 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort. This population-based cohort included 5,914 live births, of whom 75% were followed up until adulthood. The risk of hospitalization due to pneumonia and asthma among children born between April and June (months before the winter) was 1.31 (CI95% 0.99-1.73) to 2.4 (CI95% 1.11-4.99) times higher than that of children born between January and March (summer). The average temperature of the six first months of life was divided in tertiles; the risk of hospitalization was 1.64 (CI95% 1.26-2.13) to 3.16 (Ci95% 1.63-6.12) times higher in the coldest tertile compared to the hottest tertile. The effects of seasonality diminished with age and the association with asthma at 23-24 years was weak. Children from poor families showed a higher prevalence of hospitalization independent of birth season, but the effects of seasonality on pneumonia were more evident among children from wealthy families.; Avaliou-se os efeitos do trimestre do nascimento e da temperatura m??dia ambiental durante os seis primeiros meses de vida sobre as hospitaliza????es por asma e pneumonia em pr??-escolares e sobre o diagn??stico de asma em adultos pertencentes ?? coorte de nascimento de 1982 da cidade de Pelotas (RS)...

OBJECTIVE: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is most common during the rainy season in a number of low- to middle-income tropical settings, a pattern driven by seasonal changes in climate and nutrition. We investigated the seasonality of RSV in the high-income tropical setting of North Queensland, Australia. METHODS: We used RSV hospital admissions data from Cairns and Townsville to assess the seasonality of RSV. We examined the seasonal scale associations between selected meteorological exposures and RSV admissions using cross-correlation of weekly data. RESULTS: In both Cairns and Townsville, RSV admissions were highest in the latter half of the rainy season. In Cairns, RSV admissions were most strongly correlated with rainfall four weeks previously. In Townsville, RSV admissions were most strongly correlated with rainfall six weeks previously. CONCLUSIONS: The seasonality of RSV in the tropical setting of North Queensland appears to be driven by seasonal variations in rainfall. Further research is needed to assess the impact of climate on RSV incidence in the tropics.; Stuart Paynter, Robert S. Ware, Peter D. Sly, Philip Weinstein and Gail Williams

The aim of this work is to analyse the tourism events and the performance of this segment from market as strategy in the combat of Natal's hotel seasonality, in the executives/managers's vision from this sector. Two searches were realized to turn available this study: Inicialy a bibliographic search involving the concepts associated with the tematic in question so that it arranges the embasament theoric-scientific and a survey from facts through the country search, where it was applicable in the establishments of work's population with the auxiliary from a formulary answered by a personal interview. The analyses techniques through facts were: estatistic descritive and Kolmogorov-smirnov test.Among the results found, it was verified that the main reasons alleged by the hotels to ingress in the segment from the events were the alinement from the competitive company, the diversification in the options in the sense of occupy the establishments during the period of low season and answer to the demand of market. Investigated the profile from the events occured in the Natal hotels referring to the port, public origin , kinds of events and frequency from their realizations, as well as , the capacity from these establishments to attend this segment.It was noticed that in spite of the hotels agree that the events are important estrategies to combat the seasonality...

Master of Science in Business Administration; The present study investigates the effect seasonality has on touristic destinations and whether introducing golf tourism in the touristic offer is the right solution for dealing with this effect. This study is an in- depth single case study, supported by qualitative research. The investigation was composed of literature review which encompassed the following theoretical concepts: seasonality effect, destination life cycle, image and branding, residential and niche tourism and MICE. The qualitative research was conducted by the researcher, through the use of in- depth electronic interviews in order to show why Istria is chosen to be the best golf destination in Croatia and what benefits golf would bring to Istrian tourism. The research showed that golf, accompanied by MICE, is one of the best solutions for minimizing the seasonality effect in tourism in Istria. By introducing new segments into touristic offer, off season stay would increase, and therefore, the difference between high and off season would be decreased. Furthermore, the brand of Istria as a golf destination would become recognizable and the image of Istrian tourism would be strengthened. In addition to above mentioned conclusions...

Canopy emissions of volatile hydrocarbons such as isoprene and monoterpenes play an important role in air chemistry. They depend on various environmental conditions, are highly species-specific and are expected to be affected by global change. In order to estimate future emissions of these isoprenoids, differently complex models are available. However, seasonal dynamics driven by phenology, enzymatic activity, or drought stress strongly modify annual ecosystem emissions. Although these impacts depend themselves on environmental conditions, they have yet received little attention in mechanistic modelling. In this paper we propose the application of a mechanistic method for considering the seasonal dynamics of emission potential using the "Seasonal Isoprenoid synthase Model" (Lehning et al., 2001). We test this approach with three different models (GUENTHER, Guenther et al., 1993; NIINEMETS, Niinemets et al., 2002a; BIM2, Grote et al., 2006) that are developed for simulating light-dependent monoterpene emission. We also suggest specific drought stress representations for each model. Additionally, the proposed model developments are compared with the approach realized in the MEGAN (Guenther et al., 2006) emission model. Models are applied to a Mediterranean Holm oak (Quercus ilex) site with measured weather data. The simulation results demonstrate that the consideration of a dynamic emission potential has a strong effect on annual monoterpene emission estimates. The investigated models...