Indigenous communities in Brazil have a complex epidemiological profile, which increases their chances of contracting sexually transmitted diseases. However, limited data is available on Treponema ...pallidum infections in this population. We investigated the seroprevalence and risk factors associated with T. pallidum infection in an indigenous population of Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul. Blood samples were collected from September 2017 to March 2020, and the participants were interviewed to obtain comprehensive data on demography and sexual behavior. Serological tests were performed to detect T. pallidum infection. Besides conducting descriptive analysis, we performed Chi-squared tests and determined the bivariate odds ratio. The data were also analyzed using logistic regression. Among the 2190 invited individuals, 1927 (88%) were included in this study. The seroprevalence of T. pallidum infection was 2.91%. The results of a multivariate analysis showed that individuals who were 30-39 years old, with up to 4 years of school education, living in households without piped water, with a history of genital lesions, multiple sexual partners, and having a history of STIs had the highest seroprevalence of T. pallidum. This study showed that behavioral, social, and economic factors play an important role in the transmission of T. pallidum within the indigenous population. Thus, targeted intervention, including imparting education in the native language, mass testing initiatives, and implementing public policies to improve socioeconomic indicators, is needed to reduce the cases of syphilis in this community.
We investigate simplified models involving an inert scalar triplet and vectorlike leptons that can account for the muon g − 2 anomaly. These simplified scenarios are embedded in a model that features ...W' and Z' bosons, which are subject to stringent collider bounds. The constraints coming from the muon g − 2 anomaly are put into perspective with collider bounds, as well as bounds coming from lepton flavor violation searches. The region of parameter space that explains the g − 2 anomaly is shown to be within reach of lepton flavor violation probes and future colliders such as HL-LHC and HE-LHC.
This project aimed to determine effects of applying an inoculant containing homofermentative and heterofermentative bacteria on the fermentation, nutritive value, aerobic stability, and nutrient ...losses from corn silage produced in farm-scale silos. Corn forage was harvested at 34% dry matter (DM) and treated without (control) or with 5×105 cfu/g of Lactobacillus buchneri and Pediococcus pentosaceus. The inoculant was sprayed on alternate 8-row-wide swaths of forage, and the untreated and inoculated forages were alternately packed into 3.6-m-wide bag silos. Forty-five tonnes of corn forage were packed into each of 4 replicate bags per treatment and ensiled for 166 d. Silage removed from the bags (500kg/d) was separated into good and spoiled (visibly moldy or darker) silage portions, and weighed for 35 d. Weekly composites were analyzed for chemical composition, aerobic stability, and fungal counts. Aerobic stability was measured using data loggers that recorded sample and ambient temperature every 30min for 7 d. Inoculation did not affect the chemical composition of the spoiled or good silage but decreased the quantity (5.7 vs. 12.9kg/d) and percentage (3.4 vs. 7.8) of spoiled silage in the bags by over 50%. Losses of crude protein (0.28 vs. 0.92kg/d), gross energy (6.0×104 vs. 1.8×105kJ/d), and neutral detergent fiber (1.34 vs. 4.12kg/d) in spoiled silage were less in inoculated versus control silages. Inoculated silages had lower pH (3.91 vs. 3.99), lactate concentration (7.63 vs. 7.86%), lactate:acetate ratio (1.58 vs. 2.53%), and a greater acetate (5.11 vs. 3.56%) concentration than the control silage. Inoculated silages tended to have fewer yeasts (2.59 vs. 4.62 log cfu/g) than control silages, but aerobic stability was not different across treatments (14.7 vs. 9.5h). Applying the inoculant made the fermentation more heterolactic, inhibited the growth of yeasts, and substantially reduced the amount of spoilage and the associated energy and nutrient losses.
The Standard Cosmological Model has experienced tremendous success at reproducing observational data by assuming a universe dominated by a cosmological constant and dark matter in a flat geometry. ...However, several studies, based on local measurements, indicate that the universe is expanding too fast, in disagreement with the Cosmic Microwave Background. Taking into account combined data from CMB, Baryon Acoustic Oscillation, and type Ia Supernovae, we show that if the mechanism behind the production of dark matter particles has at least a small non-thermal origin, one can induce larger values of the Hubble rate Formula: see text, within the Formula: see textCDM, to alleviate the trouble with Formula: see text. In the presence of non-standard cosmology, however, we can fully reconcile CMB and local measurements and reach Formula: see text-74 Formula: see text.
The increase in the use of additive manufacturing (AM) has led to the need for filaments with specific and functional properties in face of requirements of structural parts production. The use of ...eco-friendly reinforcements (i.e., natural fibers) as an alternative to those more traditional synthetic counterparts is still scarce and requires further investigation. The main objective of this work was to develop short curauá fiber-reinforced polylactic acid (PLA) composites made via fused deposition modeling. Three different fiber lengths (3, 6, and 8 mm), and three concentrations in terms of weight percentage (2, 3.5, and 5 wt.%) were used to fabricate reinforced PLA filaments. Tensile and flexural tests in accordance with their respective American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards were performed. A thermal analysis was also carried out in order to investigate the thermal stability of the new materials. It was found that the main driving factor for the variation in mechanical properties was the fiber weight fraction. The increase in fiber length did not provide any significant benefit on the mechanical properties of the curauá fiber-reinforced PLA composite printed parts. The composites produced with PLA filaments reinforced by 3 mm 2% curauá fiber presented the overall best mechanical and thermal properties of all studied groups. The curauá fiber-reinforced PLA composites made via fused deposition modeling may be a promising innovation to improve the performance of these materials, which might enable them to serve for new applications.
Aquatic ecosystems provide habitats for many organisms. Historically, riverbanks have always been inhabited and exploited for subsistence and navigation. The present study evaluates the contamination ...and ecological risks caused by potentially toxic elements in surface sediments of the Paraguaçu River, Bahia, Brazil. Seven sediments samples were collected, and eight heavy metals were determined employing inductively coupled plasma spectrometry mass (ICP-MS). The concentrations range as (mg kg−1) found were 6.78–18.68 for lead, 14.21–42.16 for zinc, 27.61–48.63 for nickel, 2.03–6.50 for chromium, 6.06–12.90 for vanadium, 5.99–13.33 for cupper, 1.25–3.19 for cobalt, and 79.52–286.08 for manganese. Nickel showed significant enrichment (EF: 5.75; 7.62, and 14.11), followed by zinc, which showed moderate enrichment (EF: 2.16; 2.19, and 4.52). These enrichment levels are possible of anthropogenic origin. When the pollution index (PI) was evaluated, the elements V, Ni, Zn, Mn, Co, and Cu were strongly polluted (PI ≥3). In general, the pollution index (PI), geoaccumulation index (Igeo), enrichment factor (EF), and potential ecological risk indices (Er and PERI) show that contaminated sediments have adverse effects on aquatic environments, especially for o Mn, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn.
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•The Paraguaçu River is a watercourse where fishing and navigation are practiced.•The singular accumulation and pollution indices show high Ni, Zn, V, and Pb levels.•Ni is the chemical element with the most significant contaminating potential.•The ecological risk indices showed no adverse effects on aquatic biota.•PCA shows existing correlations between the chemical elements determined.
The aim of this paper was to study the influence of different surface treatments procedures on tribological behavior of Yttria-tetragonal zirconia polycristals (Y-TZP) against human enamel. The Y-TZP ...plates were divided into four areas and each area was subjected to a surface treatment according to the groups: GC - no surface treatment, GM – unidirectional milling with high speed tapered bur, GPK – polishing kit Kenda and GPD – polishing kit Diacera. The results demonstrated that the surface treatments play a relevant role on wear behavior of zirconia. In all cases the tooth suffered a greater wear than the Y-TZP plates. In the case of the polished groups it was obtained an improvement on the wear resistance of the tribopair.
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•Surface treatments plays a relevant role on wear behavior.•The best wear response was obtained in the case of GPK group.•Surfaces are crucial to the system effectiveness.
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