Abstract Objective The prevalence of type 2 diabetes has shown a significant increase in parallel with health care costs. The objective of the Brazilian Study on Diabetes Costs (ESCUDI study) was to ...estimate direct and indirect costs of type 2 diabetes outpatient care in the Brazilian Public Health Care System. Methods Data were collected from different levels of health care in eight Brazilian cities in 2007. A total of 1000 outpatients were interviewed and had their medical records data analyzed. Direct medical costs included expenses with medications, diagnostic tests, procedures, blood glucose test strips, and office visits. Nonmedical direct costs included expenses with diet products, transportation, and caregivers. Absenteeism, sick leave, and early retirement were classified as indirect costs. Results Total annual cost for outpatient care was US$2108 per patient, out of which US$1335 per patient of direct costs (63.3%) and US$773 per patient of indirect costs (36.7%). Costs escalated as duration of diabetes and level of health care increased. Patients with both microvascular and macrovascular complications had higher costs (US$3199 per patient) compared to those with either microvascular (US$2062 per patient) or macrovascular (US$2517 per patient) complications only. The greatest portion of direct costs was attributed to medication (48.2%). Conclusions Diabetes treatment leads to elevated costs both to Brazilian Public Health Care System and society. Costs increased along with duration of disease, level of care and presence of chronic complications, which suggested a need to reallocate health resources focusing on primary prevention of diabetes and its complications.
Peatlands are carbon‐rich ecosystems that cover 185–423 million hectares (Mha) of the earth's surface. The majority of the world's peatlands are in temperate and boreal zones, whereas tropical ones ...cover only a total area of 90–170 Mha. However, there are still considerable uncertainties in C stock estimates as well as a lack of information about depth, bulk density and carbon accumulation rates. The incomplete data are notable especially in tropical peatlands located in South America, which are estimated to have the largest area of peatlands in the tropical zone. This paper displays the current state of knowledge surrounding tropical peatlands and their biophysical characteristics, distribution and carbon stock, role in the global climate, the impacts of direct human disturbances on carbon accumulation rates and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Based on the new peat extension and depth data, we estimate that tropical peatlands store 152–288 Gt C, or about half of the global peatland emitted carbon. We discuss the knowledge gaps in research on distribution, depth, C stock and fluxes in these ecosystems which play an important role in the global carbon cycle and risk releasing large quantities of GHGs into the atmosphere (CO2 and CH4) when subjected to anthropogenic interferences (e.g., drainage and deforestation). Recent studies show that although climate change has an impact on the carbon fluxes of these ecosystems, the direct anthropogenic disturbance may play a greater role. The future of these systems as carbon sinks will depend on advancing current scientific knowledge and incorporating local understanding to support policies geared toward managing and conserving peatlands in vulnerable regions, such as the Amazon where recent records show increased forest fires and deforestation.
Tropical peatlands store 152–288 Gt of carbon, which is significantly higher than the previously reported values. The carbon accumulation rates in undisturbed tropical peatlands are generally much higher than in intact old‐growth tropical forests. Tropical disturbed peatlands have higher CO2 emissions than non‐disturbed peatlands due to the maintenance of natural soil moisture conditions and groundwater levels.
Glyphosate is a herbicide that acts as a broad-spectrum, non-selective, post-emergence systemic pest controller. Its continuing, increasing, and excessive use in many countries in recent years poses ...a significant threat to the environment and human health due to the prevalence of this herbicide in water bodies and its impact on non-target organisms. In this context, it is essential to develop processes aimed at the non-selective degradation of glyphosate and its by-products. In this study, various advanced oxidative processes were applied: Fenton, electro-Fenton, photoelectro-oxidation, and photoelectro-Fenton, with the objective of oxidizing glyphosate in the commercial product Roundup®. The resultant oxidation products and the phytotoxicological effect on maize seed germination were also analyzed. Following each treatment, chemical oxygen demand (COD), total organic carbon (TOC), glyphosate degradation, and oxidation by-product formation were analyzed. The treated solutions were used to germinate maize seeds for 7 days in a germination chamber applying a photoperiod of 12 h at 24 °C. The % of germination, protein and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content, lipid peroxidation extent (MDA), and superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) activities were determined. The photoelectro-Fenton treatment was the most effective in degrading glyphosate, operating synergistically to break glyphosate bonds, thereby generating non-toxic short-chain molecules. Maize seed germination was satisfactory (> 50 %), but the persistent formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) led to increased antioxidant activities of SOD, CAT, and POD enzymes acting in a compensatory manner against ROS, thus sustaining the photosynthetic apparatus. Hormesis, a stimulatory effect of glyphosate, was also observed in the presence of low concentrations of glyphosate.
Display omitted
•Oxidative treatments were evaluated for degradation of the commercial product Roundup.•The synergistic and the cost of photoelectro-Fenton process was the most efficient.•AMPA, sarcosine and short-chain molecules with lower toxicity were identified.•The phytotoxicity is related to the by-products and the hormesis effect of glyphosate.
Leaf‐cutting ants modify the properties of the soil adjacent to their nests. Here, we examined whether such an ant‐altered environment impacts the belowground fungal communities. Fungal diversity and ...community structure of soil from the fungus garden chambers of Atta sexdens rubropilosa and Atta bisphaerica, two widespread leaf‐cutting ants in Brazil, were determined and compared with non‐nest soils. Culture‐dependent methods revealed similar species richness but different community compositions between both types of soils. Penicillium janthinellum and Trichoderma spirale were the prevalent isolates in fungus chamber soils and non‐nest soils, respectively. In contrast to cultivation methods, analyses of clone libraries based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region indicated that richness of operational taxonomic units significantly differed between soils of the fungus chamber and non‐nest soils. FastUnifrac analyses based on ITS sequences further revealed a clear distinction in the community structure between both types of soils. Plectania milleri and an uncultured Clavariaceae fungus were prevalent in fungus chamber soils and non‐nest soils, respectively. FastUnifrac analyses also revealed that fungal community structures of soil from the garden chambers markedly differed among ant species. Our findings suggest that leaf‐cutting ants affect fungal communities in the soil from the fungus chamber in comparison to non‐nest soils.
Studies related to the demography of individual members from ant colonies have received little attention, although they are the basis to understanding the population dynamics of colonies. Thus, the ...objective of this work was to study the queen oviposition rate and the duration of the life cycle and longevity of
workers. To determine the oviposition rate, queens from three colonies were individually placed in plastic containers, and the eggs laid were quantified over a 96 h period. The development of the immature forms was observed every 24 h, with which the duration of each stage of development was determined. To verify the longevity of workers, the newly emerged adults were marked and daily observations were made. According to the results, there is variation in the development time of immature forms within the colony itself and between colonies. In addition, the number of eggs deposited was also inconstant in the three colonies, ranging from 5 to 119 eggs per day, while the longevity of workers varied from 3 to 7 months. Occasionally, it was found that the workers feed on the eggs produced by the queen; besides, there was a disappearance of larvae and pupae during the research, indicating a possibility of the practice of cannibalism in this species.
Highly stable compounds such as dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), which are present in the commercial herbicide Tordon®, are difficult to degrade. Therefore, the objective of this work was to ...degrade 2,4-D present in Tordon® using different oxidative processes, such as anodic oxidation, Fenton reactions, electro-Fenton, photoelectro-oxidation and photoelectro-Fenton processes. An oxide electrode with the nominal composition Ti/Ru0.3Ti0.7O2 was prepared and inserted into an electrochemical cell containing 100 mL of 0.05 mol L−1 Na2SO4 (pH 3) and 100 mg L−1 of Tordon®. Electrolysis was performed applying a constant current of 50 mA cm−2 for 2 h. The concentration of Fenton's reagent was varied from 5 to 10 mg L−1 (Fe2+), and from 50 to 100 mg L−1 (H2O2). Chemical analyses of the total organic carbon (TOC) and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) were performed whilst high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to monitor the degradation. A phytotoxicity assessment was performed using cucumber seeds as bioindicators. Germination tests were performed using cucumber seeds in the presence of the solutions collected after the application of the oxidative processes. Several analyses were carried out to determine the following: total protein content, the extent of lipid peroxidation, activity of superoxide dismutase, hydrogen peroxide content, catalase activity, and glutathione reductase activity. Oxidation of 2,4-D was observed in all of the oxidative processes, and significant results for the removal of TOC and COD were obtained. Anodic oxidation, and the Fenton and photoelectro-oxidation processes were the least efficient, affording 2,4-dichlorophenol, 2-chlorohydroquinone, and 2-chlorobenzoquinone as by-products. The electro-Fenton and photoelectro-Fenton processes were the most efficient, giving short-chain acids as the main by-products. The formation of these by-products directly affected the phytotoxicity results. The processes that formed short-chain by-products did not generate significant oxidative stress during seed growth, and therefore, seed germination tests were successful.
•Tordon® is herbicide commercial widely used in Brazil.•The commercial product was degraded by the applied oxidative processes.•Electro-Fenton and photoelectro-Fenton process were the most efficient.•The results of the phytotoxicity assessment were directly related to the by-products.•Short-chain by-products did not generate oxidative stress during seed growth.
The illegal activity of gold mining in the Brazilian Pantanal is contaminating the aquatic ecosystem with mercury. This contamination has been potentiated by mercury methylation due to a typical ...natural phenomenon of the Pantanal ecosystem known as “dequada”. The present study estimated in the laboratory the temporal production of methylmercury at two timepoints: the beginning of a flood, when the “dequada” phenomenon occurs, and the dry season without such phenomenon. After collecting water and sediment, experiments were performed with microcosms to reproduce conditions close to nature. To monitor the concentration of methylmercury, 1.0 mg L−1 of Hg2+ was added to water and sediment experiments in the Castelo and Saracura bays, both during the “dequada” and without it; monitoring lasted for 25 days. The methylmercury concentration was analyzed using atomic fluorescence spectrometry, total organic carbon using TOC 5000A, and physical and chemical parameters such as pH, redox potential, and dissolved oxygen with a multi-parameter probe. The results led to the conclusion that the “dequada” phenomenon significantly affected mercury methylation, because the environmental changes caused by this phenomenon such as the increased concentration of organic matter, decreased dissolved oxygen, and decreased pH, potentiated mercury methylation. During the “dequada” in the Castelo bay, the methylation rate was 3.5 times higher (6297.56 ng L−1) than in the experiment without the “dequada” (1827.44 ng L−1). Therefore, the gold mining activity in Pantanal can cause great damage to the ecosystem because this environment favors mercury methylation, making its most toxic form active in the aquatic ecosystem of Pantanal.
This study describes and quantifies the behavioural acts of two laboratory colonies of Acromyrmex subterraneus brunneus by investigating worker age polyethism. Twenty-nine behavioural acts were ...recorded during the 19-week observation period. Young individuals performed tasks inside the nest related to brood care and care for the fungus garden, whereas older individuals performed activities outside the nest such as foraging and activities in the waste chamber. The average longevity (±SD) was 108.21 ± 3.30, 109.15 ± 1.92 and 122.71 ± 1.55 days for large, medium and small workers, respectively. The small-sized workers presented a higher probability of reaching older age than large- and medium-sized workers. This study describes task switching according to age polyethism and the relationship of physical and temporal subcastes.
In recent years the usage of machine learning techniques within data-intensive sciences in general and high-energy physics in particular has rapidly increased, in part due to the availability of ...large datasets on which such algorithms can be trained, as well as suitable hardware, such as graphic or tensor processing units, which greatly accelerate the training and execution of such algorithms. Within the HEP domain, the development of these techniques has so far relied on resources external to the primary computing infrastructure of the WLCG (Worldwide LHC Computing Grid). In this paper we present an integration of hardware-accelerated workloads into the Grid through the declaration of dedicated queues with access to hardware accelerators and the use of Linux container images holding a modern data science software stack. A frequent use-case in the development of machine learning algorithms is the optimization of neural networks through the tuning of their Hyper Parameters (HP). For this often a large range of network variations must be trained and compared, which for some optimization schemes can be performed in parallel - a workload well suited for Grid computing. An example of such a hyper-parameter scan on Grid resources for the case of flavor tagging within ATLAS is presented.
PDF
