Mycobacterium microti Infection in Wild Boar (Sus scrofa): Histopathology Analysis Suggests Containment of the Infection

The European wild boar (WB) (Sus scrofa) population has rapidly expanded over the years, raising public health concerns over the species reservoir of several pathogens, including Mycobacterium microti (Mm), a Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex member. In this study, we aimed to investigate the Mm natural infection in WB in Lombardy and Emilia Romagna Italian regions by statistically evaluating the granulomatous lesions' histological features and Mm microbiological isolation. We analyzed 103 WB retropharyngeal and submandibular lymph nodes (LNs) for Mm identified by gyrB PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism, and were retrospectively selected and histologically assessed. For each sample, Hematoxylin-eosin and Ziehl–Neelsen stained slides were evaluated. Considered histological variables were: the number of granulomas, size and maturational stage of granulomas, granulomas completeness within the section, number of multinucleated giant macrophages (MGMs), and acid-fast (AF) bacilli per granuloma. Furthermore, Mm microbiological results were also considered. Mm microbiological isolation was negatively influenced by granulomas maturation and positively affected by AF bacilli's presence within the section. Granuloma maturation was positively influenced by granuloma size and granuloma incompleteness and negatively affected by the number of granulomas in the section and the number of MGMs within the granuloma. The results indicate that granuloma maturation should ensures an efficient containment of Mm infection in the WB, suggesting that the intra-species transmission of the disease might be an unlikely event.

Length–weight relationships comparison between juveniles and adults of fish species from the mangroves of south Brazil

This study reports the length‐weight relationships (LWRs) for 8 fish species that inhabit mangroves. Many fisheries depend on mangroves, which serve as nursery and feeding areas for the juvenile stage of fishes, shrimp, and other fishery resources. In this sense, mangroves provide many ecosystem services, therefore increasing the basic biological knowledge of these ecosystems can help to understand their functioning and create conservation strategies. The majority of LWR studies do not consider juveniles, and it is important to consider these differences as juveniles can grow differently from adults. The fishes were collected from Perequê mangrove, Paraná, Brazil between 2008 and 2010. A variety of fishery gears were employed, including trammel nets, fyke nets, and traps made with plastic bottles combined with four baits. The specimens were measured (weight and length), sexed and evaluated for maturational stage. For the adults, the LWRs were calculated separately by the sex, while juvenile LWRs were estimated together. In general, there were differences in growth type between sexes and life stages. Some species showed differences compared to FishBase estimations, but this could be due to the lengths (and life stage) of the individuals used in the present study compared to FishBase. The discrepancies between adult, juvenile and FishBase estimations showed the importance of considering these aspects in studies using LWR.

Physical Fitness, Body Composition, and Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet in Young Football Players: Influence of the 20 mSRT Score and Maturational Stage

This study aimed to analyze the differences in physical fitness variables, body composition, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet according to the cardiorespiratory fitness and the maturational stage in young football players. A total of 194 male football players (aged 8–16) from three football sport schools participated in this study. Data on cardiorespiratory fitness (the 20-m shuttle run test), anthropometric measurements, handgrip strength, respiratory capacity (forced spirometry), and adherence to the Mediterranean diet (KIDMED questionnaire) were collected. Players were divided into two groups depending on their maturational stage (prepubertal n = 127 and pubertal n = 67). The results show a direct relationship between low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness and body mass index, as well as body fat and leg fat. Similarly, players with lower cardiorespiratory fitness presented higher values of handgrip strength in the prepubertal state. On the other hand, improvements in respiratory values were observed in the pubertal state with the rest of the parameters when the cardiorespiratory fitness was increased. Therefore, the promotion of recreational football that encourage and develop cardiorespiratory fitness is a key factor and can be used as an effective sport activity to promote physical fitness and healthy habits in children and adolescents as well as within the population that is already physically active.

The stretch-shortening cycle efficiency is dependent on the maturational stage

Maturation interferes with physiological and mechanical aspects of muscle contraction. The aim of the present study was to compare the efficiency of the stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) between different maturation stages. One hundred forty six young people, with 72 boys and 74 girls, were recruited to participate in the study. Sexual maturation was measured and the group was stratified into adolescents (> 3 auto-tanner) and children (<2 auto-tanner). Squat jump (SJ) and countermovement jump (CMJ) performance were measured to measure reactive force (RF) capacity, eccentric utilization ratio (EUR) and pre-stretch augmentation (PSAP). The children did not present statistical difference between SJ and CMJ (t(55)= -1.93; ∆ = -0.61; 95% CI = -1.24 to -0.02; p = 0.058), while the adolescents presented higher performance of CMJ (t(89)= -12.28; ∆ = -2.44; 95% CI = -2.84 to -2.05; p <0.001). In addition, adolescents had higher RF performance (t(144)= 5.18; p <0.0001; 95% CI = 2.53 to 1.13), PSAP (t(144)= 4.38; p <0.0001; 95% CI = 14.00 to 5.29) and EUR (t(144)= 4.38; p <0.0001; 95% CI = 0.14 to 0.05). We conclude that more mature young people have better SSC utilization.

Maturational stages: comparison of growth and physical capacity indicators in adolescents

Introduction: The identification of physical capacity is an important marker related to healthy behavior during childhood and adolescence, in which some factors appear to contribute to motor performance such as maturation and hormonal levels. Objective: To compare growth indicators, physical capacity and hormonal markers according to gender and maturational stage in adolescents. Methods: Eighty-nine adolescents of both genders aged 10-13 years participated in the study. Sexual maturation was evaluated using the Tanner’s self-evaluation method. Physical capacity (explosive strength of upper and lower limbs, upper limb velocity and agility) and hormonal markers (testosterone and estradiol) were evaluated through the chemiluminescence method. Results: In the comparison by gender, girls had higher weight (p = 0.023), height (p = 0.018) and fat percentage values (p = 0.001), while boys presented better motor performance for the explosive strength of upper limbs (p = 0.005) and lower limbs (p = 0.011), agility (0.018) and upper limb velocity (p = 0.014). Regarding maturational stage, boys did not present differences in any variable analyzed; (Stage V versus I), height (stage III, IV and V versus I) and upper limb explosive strength (stage III and IV versus I). Conclusion: Growth, weight and height, as well as explosive strength of upper limbs were higher in girls at more advanced maturational stages and appear to be gender dependent.

The cervical vertebral maturation method: A user's guide

ABSTRACT The cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) method is used to determine the craniofacial skeletal maturational stage of an individual at a specific time point during the growth process. This diagnostic approach uses data derived from the second (C2), third (C3), and fourth (C4) cervical vertebrae, as visualized in a two-dimensional lateral cephalogram. Six maturational stages of those three cervical vertebrae can be determined, based on the morphology of their bodies. The first step is to evaluate the inferior border of these vertebral bodies, determining whether they are flat or concave (ie, presence of a visible notch). The second step in the analysis is to evaluate the shape of C3 and C4. These vertebral bodies change in shape in a typical sequence, progressing from trapezoidal to rectangular horizontal, to square, and to rectangular vertical. Typically, cervical stages (CSs) 1 and CS 2 are considered prepubertal, CS 3 and CS 4 circumpubertal, and CS 5 and CS 6 postpubertal. Criticism has been rendered as to the reproducibility of the CVM method. Diminished reliability may be observed at least in part due to the lack of a definitive description of the staging procedure in the literature. Based on the now nearly 20 years of experience in staging cervical vertebrae, this article was prepared as a “user's guide” that describes the CVM stages in detail in attempt to help the reader use this approach in everyday clinical practice.

Satisfaction of Body Image in Adolescents With Different Maturity Stages

Introduction: Adolescence is a period marked by intense body modifications that occur differently according to the maturational stage and sex, which can generate different body image perceptions.Objective: This study aims to compare and associate body image satisfaction in different maturational stages. Methods: Overall, 207 adolescents of both sexes aged 10-12 years were evaluated. Maturation was estimated through an equation predictive of skeletal age and for the body image evaluation, the scale of silhouettes was used. The statistical tests used were chi-square and logistic regression (odds ratio) with respective confidence intervals (95% CI).Results: There was a prevalence of body image dissatisfaction of 63.8% (p <0.001). In both sexes, subjects with accelerated maturation had greater body image dissatisfaction (girls p = 0.0, boys p = 0.04), and desire to reduce their silhouette scale (p <0.001). Subjects with accelerated maturation were 2.88 more likely (CI 95% 1.03 - 8.05) of having body image dissatisfaction when compared to normal maturation; however, when adjusting for body mass index, the association lost its significance. Conclusion: It could be concluded that body dissatisfaction perceived by young individuals is independent of sex, and there is an association between accelerated maturational stage 2.88 times higher than in the normal maturational stage in relation to body dissatisfaction, in which the body mass index appears to be the main predictor for body dissatisfaction.

Positive Regulation of Macromolecule Metabolic Process Belongs to the Main Mechanisms Crucial for Porcine Oocytes Maturation

SummaryThe mammalian oocytes maturation is the compound process that involves morphological and molecular changes. These modifications include storage of macromolecules, which are crucial for proteins biosynthesis during periimplantation stages of embryo development. This study was aimed to investigate the genes expression profile encoding macromolecules important for regulation of proper porcine oocytes maturation.The porcine oocytes were collected from large ovarian follicles and analyzed both before and after in vitro maturation (IVM). Additionally, to check the developmental competence status, brilliant crezyl blue test (BCB) was performed. The obtained cDNA was used for biotin labeling and fragmentation by AffymetrixGeneChip® WT Terminal Labeling and Hybridization (Affymetrix). The preliminary analysis of the scanned chips was performed using AffymetrixGeneAtlasTM Operating Software. The created CEL files were imported into downstream data analysis software.In results, we found expression of 419 different genes, 379 genes were down-regulated and 40 genes were up-regulated in relation to the oocyte transcriptome before in vitro procedure. We observed up-regulation of all genes involved in “positive regulation of macromolecule metabolic process” before IVM as compared to transcriptional profile analyzed after IVM.In conclusion, we suggested that genes encoding proteins involved in macromolecule metabolism are important for achieving of porcine oocytes maturational stage. Moreover, the “activity of macromolecules metabolism” is much more increased in immature oocytes.

Glucocorticoid receptor translational isoforms underlie maturational stage-specific glucocorticoid sensitivities of dendritic cells in mice and humans

Key Points Mature, but not immature, dendritic cells are sensitive to glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis. Mature, but not immature, dendritic cells express proapoptotic glucocorticoid receptor translational isoforms.