Repositório RCAAP

Let L <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059c.gif"> <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059c2.gif"> be a real 3 dimensional analytic variety. For each regular point p <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059e.gif"> L there exists a unique complex line l p on the space tangent to L at p. When the field of complex line p <img ALIGN="MIDDLE" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img4.gif" ALT="$\displaystyle \mapsto$"> l p is completely integrable, we say that L is Levi variety. More generally; let L <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059c.gif"> M be a real subvariety in an holomorphic complex variety M. If there exists a real 2 dimensional integrable distribution on L which is invariant by the holomorphic structure J induced by M, we say that L is a Levi variety. We shall prove: Theorem. Let <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img5.gif" ALT="$ \cal {L}$"> be a Levi foliation and let <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img6.gif" ALT="$ \cal {F}$"> be the induced holomorphic foliation. Then, <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img6.gif" ALT="$ \cal {F}$"> admits a Liouvillian first integral. In other words, if <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img5.gif" ALT="$ \cal {L}$"> is a 3 dimensional analytic foliation such that the induced complex distribution defines an holomorphic foliation <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img6.gif" ALT="$ \cal {F}$">; that is, if <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img5.gif" ALT="$ \cal {L}$"> is a Levi foliation; then <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img6.gif" ALT="$ \cal {F}$"> admits a Liouvillian first integral--a function which can be constructed by the composition of rational functions, exponentiation, integration, and algebraic functions (Singer 1992). For example, if f is an holomorphic function and if theta is real a 1-form on <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img8.gif" ALT="$ \mathbb {R}$">; then the pull-back of theta by f defines a Levi foliation <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img5.gif" ALT="$ \cal {L}$"> : f*theta = 0 which is tangent to the holomorphic foliation <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n1/0059img6.gif" ALT="$ \cal {F}$"> : df = 0. This problem was proposed by D. Cerveau in a meeting (see Fernandez 1997).

The sexual version of the Penna model of biological aging, simulated since 1996, is compared here with alternative forms of reproduction as well as with models not involving aging. In particular we want to check how sexual forms of life could have evolved and won over earlier asexual forms hundreds of million years ago. This computer model is based on the mutation-accumulation theory of aging, using bits-strings to represent the genome. Its population dynamics is studied by Monte Carlo methods.

The essential oil from Piper solmsianum leaves and its major compound (sarisan) were tested to verify their influences upon mice behaviour. The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation in a modified Clevenger extractor and analysed by GC/ MS. This analysis revealed in the oil the presence of monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and of arylpropanoids. The compound sarisan, a myristicin analogue, was isolated from the oil to perform the pharmacological tests. Emulsions of the oil and of sarisan (5.0 and 10.0% v/v) were used in the tests. Pentobarbital (30 mg/ kg s.c.) or diazepam (2.5 mg/ kg s.c.) were tested as standard drugs to verify depressant or anxiolytic effects, respectively. Both essential oil and sarisan showed to have exciting and depressant effects in the tested animals.

The bacterioplanktonic abundance, biomass, and production within a tropical lagoon (Cabiúnas, Brazil) and two temperate lakes (Stechlin and Dagow, Germany) were compared. Bacterial abundance and production were significantly different among the three water bodies. The lowest bacterial production ( 0.8mug C l-1 d-1) was observed in the tropical Cabiúnas Lagoon despite its higher mean temperature and dissolved organic carbon concentration. Highest bacterioplankton abundance ( 2.6 x 10(9) cells l-1) and production ( 68.5mug C l-1 d-1) were measured in eutrophic Lake Dagow. In oligotrophic Lake Stechlin, the lowest bacterial biomass ( 48.05mug C l-1) was observed because of lower bacterial biovolume ( 0.248mum³) and lower bacterial abundance. Bacterial populations in the temperate lakes show higher activity (production/biomass ratio) than in the tropical lagoon. The meaning of isotopic dilution and leucine incorporation by non-bacterial micro-organisms were evaluated in the oligotrophic temperate system. Leucine uptake by non-bacterial micro-organisms did not have significant influence on bacterial production.

Atherosclerosis is manifested as coronary artery disease (CAD), ischemic stroke and peripheral vascular disease. Moderate alcohol consumption has been associated with reduction of CAD complications. Apparently, red wine offers more benefits than any other kind of drinks, probably due to flavonoids. Alcohol alters lipoproteins and the coagulation system. The flavonoids induce vascular relaxation by mechanisms that are both dependent and independent of nitric oxide, inhibits many of the cellular reactions associated with atherosclerosis and inflammation, such as endothelial expression of vascular adhesion molecules and release of cytokines from polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Hypertension is also influenced by the alcohol intake. Thus, heavy alcohol intake is almost always associated with systemic hypertension, and hence shall be avoided. In individuals that ingest excess alcohol, there is higher risk of coronary occlusion, arrhythmias, hepatic cirrhosis, upper gastrointestinal cancers, fetal alcohol syndrome, murders, sex crimes, traffic and industrial accidents, robberies, and psychosis. Alcohol is no treatment for atherosclerosis; but it doesn't need to be prohibited for everyone. Thus moderate amounts of alcohol (1-2 drinks/day), especially red wine, may be allowed for those at risk for atherosclerosis complications.

Multidrug resistance to chemotherapy is a major obstacle in the treatment of cancer patients. The best characterised mechanism responsible for multidrug resistance involves the expression of the MDR-1 gene product, P-glycoprotein. However, the resistance process is multifactorial. Studies of multidrug resistance mechanisms have relied on the analysis of cancer cell lines that have been selected and present cross-reactivity to a broad range of anticancer agents. This work characterises a multidrug resistant cell line, originally selected for resistance to the Vinca alkaloid vincristine and derived from the human erythroleukaemia cell K562. This cell line, named Lucena 1, overexpresses P-glycoprotein and have its resistance reversed by the chemosensitisers verapamil, trifluoperazine and cyclosporins A, D and G. Furthermore, we demonstrated that methylene blue was capable of partially reversing the resistance in this cell line. On the contrary, the use of 5-fluorouracil increased the resistance of Lucena 1. In addition to chemotherapics, Lucena 1 cells were resistant to ultraviolet A radiation and hydrogen peroxide and failed to mobilise intracellular calcium when thapsigargin was used. Changes in the cytoskeleton of this cell line were also observed.

The Araxá complex (16 km²) comprises carbonatites forming a central core and a complex network of concentric and radial dykes as well as small veins; additionally, it includes mica-rich rocks, phoscorites and lamprophyres. Fenites also occur and are represented by Proterozoic quartzites and schists of the Araxá Group. The petrographic study of 130 borehole samples indicates that the complex is basically made up by two rock-types, carbonatites and mica-rich rocks, and subordinately by a third unit of hybrid composition. Carbonatites range chemically in composition, the most abundant type being magnesiocarbonatites. Dolomite and calcite correspond to the chief constituents, but other carbonate phases, including the Ce-group RE minerals, are also recognized. Phosphates and oxides are widespread accessories whereas silicate minerals consist of olivine, clinopyroxene, mica and amphibole. Mica-rich rocks are represented by abundant glimmeritic rocks and scarce cumulitic phlogopite-, olivine- and diopside-bearing pyroxenites. Hybrid rocks mainly contain phlogopite and tetraferriphlogopite as cumulus and intercumulus phases, respectively; carbonate minerals may also be found. Chemical data indicate that the carbonatites are strongly enriched in REE and have lower contents of Nb, Zr, V, Cr, Ni and Rb compared to the mica-rich rocks. The higher K, Nb and Zr contents of the latter rocks are believed to be related to metasomatic processes (glimmeritization) of the pyroxenites. Similar REE patterns for carbonatites and mica-rich rocks seem to suggest that they are related to a single parental magma, possibly of ijolitic composition. Steep LREE/HREE fractionation and high sigmaREE content of some carbonatite samples would be explained by hydrothermal and supergenic processes.

At the end of the geotectonic cycle that shaped the northern segment of the Ribeira Mobile Belt (Upper Proterozoic to Paleozoic age), a late to post-collisional set of plutonic complexes, consisting of a wide range of lithotypes, intruded all metamorphic units. The Várzea Alegre Intrusive Complex is a post-collisional complex. The younger intrusion consists of an inversely zoned multistage structure envolved by a large early emplaced ring of megaporphyritic charnoenderbitic rocks. The combination of field, petrographic and geochemical data reveals the presence of at least two different series of igneous rocks. The first originated from the partial melting of the mantle. This was previously enriched in incompatible elements, low and intermediate REE and some HFS-elements. A second enrichment in LREE and incompatible elements in this series was due to the mingling with a crustal granitic magma. This mingling process changed the composition of the original tholeiitic magma towards a medium-K calc-alkalic magma to produce a suite of basic to intermediate rock types. The granitic magma from the second high-K, calc-alkalic suite originated from the partial melting of the continental crust, but with strong influence of mantle-derived melts.

Geochemical and clay mineralogical studies of bottom sediments collected along the Macacu and Caceribu rivers and Guanabara Bay were carried out in order to investigate the relationship between major source areas and recent sediments of the bay. Clay mineralogy includes different groups with selective distribution conditioned by geomorphic features and depositional settings. Micaceous clay minerals are abundant near parent rock in the upper course, whereas kaolinite derived from varied sources is gradually concentrated towards the estuary. In the Guanabara Bay, kaolinite accumulates near river mouths, while micaceous clay minerals are converted into mixed layers in the estuary. Analyses of heavy metal contents reveal higher levels of Zn and Cu in sediments of the bay than in river sediments. Profiles along rivers indicate a downstream decrease of heavy metals, whereas in the bay geochemical trends display greater variations. In general river mouth sediments present the lowest concentrations. At the north and east of Paquetá Island anomalous areas with the highest heavy metal contents occur. Cu tends to concentrate in < 2mum grain-size fraction and indicates an association with micaceous clay minerals in the upper river course. However, Cu retention seems to be further controlled by other components of bottom sediments due to changes in physical and chemical conditions of the estuarine environment. Zn shows unstable behavior along the rivers and concentrates in the bay. Pb displays small variations from river to bay sediments, and accumulates mainly in the < 63mum grain-size fraction without any association with clay mineral. Geoaccumulation indexes of Cu, Pb and Zn classify the study area as unpolluted in both studied rivers and in the NE sector of the bay, though the enrichment factors are higher in the bay. The study does not indicate those rivers as major sources of heavy metal pollution to the bay.

A partially preserved lower jaw constitutes the holotype of Bageherpeton longignathus n. g., n. sp., a probable archegosaurid amphibian, which is here assigned to the Platyoposaurinae. The material was collected in the beds of the Rio do Rasto Formation outcropping in Rio Grande do Sul State, southern Brazil. This is the second archegosaurid described for the Permian of Brazil. Prionosuchus plummeri Price 1948, from the Pedra do Fogo Formation in the Parnaiba Basin (northeastern Brazil), is the first. The new taxon differs from other platyoposaurs by the presence of an extremely elongated precoronoid that participates in the mandibular symphysis.

A theory of differential characters is developed for manifolds with boundary. This is done from both the Cheeger-Simons and the deRham-Federer viewpoints. The central result of the paper is the formulation and proof of a Lefschetz-Pontrjagin Duality Theorem, which asserts that the pairing <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/fo1.gif" alt="fo1.gif (867 bytes)"> given by (alpha, beta) <img SRC="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m1img7.gif"> (alpha * beta) [X] induces isomorphisms <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/fo2.gif" alt="fo2.gif (1110 bytes)"> <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/fo3.gif" alt="fo3.gif (1086 bytes)"> onto the smooth Pontrjagin duals. In particular, <img SRC="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m1img13.gif"> and <img SRC="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m1img13a.gif"> are injective with dense range in the group of all continuous homomorphisms into the circle. A coboundary map is introduced which yields a long sequence for the character groups associated to the pair (X, <img SRC="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m1img14.gif">X). The relation of the sequence to the duality mappings is analyzed.

In this note we show how classical Bernstein's theorem on minimal surfaces in the Euclidean space can be seen as a consequence of Calabi-Bernstein's theorem on maximal surfaces in the Lorentz-Minkowski space (and viceversa). This follows from a simple but nice duality between solutions to their corresponding differential equations.

In this note we revisit E. Cartan's address at the 1928 International Congress of Mathematicians at Bologna, Italy. The distributions considered here will be of the same class as those considered by Cartan, a special type which we call strongly or maximally non-holonomic. We set up the groundwork for using Cartan's method of equivalence (a powerful tool for obtaining invariants associated to geometrical objects), to more general non-holonomic distributions.

Let <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img1.gif"> be a foliation in the projective space of dimension two with a first integral of the type <img ALIGN="MIDDLE" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img2.gif">, where F and G are two polynomials on an affine coordinate, <img ALIGN="MIDDLE" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img3.gif"> = <img ALIGN="MIDDLE" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img4.gif"> and g.c.d.(p, q) = 1. Let z be a nondegenerate critical point of <img ALIGN="MIDDLE" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img2.gif">, which is a center singularity of <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img1.gif">, and <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/ft.gif" alt="ft.gif (149 bytes)" align="middle"> be a deformation of <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img1.gif"> in the space of foliations of degree deg(<img ALIGN="BOTTOM" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img1.gif">) such that its unique deformed singularity <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/zt.gif" alt="zt.gif (118 bytes)"> near z persists in being a center. We will prove that the foliation <img src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/ft.gif" alt="ft.gif (149 bytes)" align="middle"> has a first integral of the same type of <img ALIGN="BOTTOM" src="http:/img/fbpe/aabc/v73n2/m4img1.gif">. Using the arguments of the proof of this result we will give a lower bound for the maximum number of limit cycles of real polynomial differential equations of a fixed degree in the real plane.

The simultaneous propagation of two optical pulses through a doped nonlinear dispersive medium modelled by a resonant three-level system was investigated numerically, within the framework of a pair of coupled extended nonlinear Schrödinger equations. These included the contribution of the dopant resonances whose dynamics is governed by Bloch equations. In this work, we review the interesting possibilities on the manipulation of fields such as cloning, breakup and soliton interactions, that the combination of coherent population trapping with nonlinear dispersive media offers.

Before 1960, the brain was considered by scientists to be immutable, subject only to genetic control. In the early sixties, however, investigators were seriously speculating that environmental influences might be capable of altering brain structure. By 1964, two research laboratories proved that the morphology and chemistry or physiology of the brain could be experientially altered (Bennett et al. 1964, Hubel and Wiesel 1965). Since then, the capacity of the brain to respond to environmental input, specifically "enrichment,'' has become an accepted fact among neuroscientists, educators and others. In fact, the demonstration that environmental enrichment can modify structural components of the rat brain at any age altered prevailing presumptions about the brain's plasticity (Diamond et al. 1964, Diamond 1988). The cerebral cortex, the area associated with higher cognitive processing, is more receptive than other parts of the brain to environmental enrichment. The message is clear: Although the brain possesses a relatively constant macrostructural organization, the ever-changing cerebral cortex, with its complex microarchitecture of unknown potential, is powerfully shaped by experiences before birth, during youth and, in fact, throughout life. It is essential to note that enrichment effects on the brain have consequences on behavior. Parents, educators, policy makers, and individuals can all benefit from such knowledge.

Migration of neurons from their site of origin to their final destination is a critical and universal step in the formation of the complex structure of the nervous system. The migratory process is thought to be governed in part by genetically and epigenetically defined sequences of signals which are interpreted by migrating cells. The molecular mechanisms that underlie neuronal migration have been the subject of intense investigation. As in other developmental processes, many molecules must participate in neuronal migration. Some molecules, such as cell adhesion molecules and motor proteins, may contribute to discrete steps in the migration act; others, like extracellular signaling molecules, may regulate the activation and/or termination of the migration program. In this article we review findings from our group that demonstrate the functional role(s) of a specific glycolipid in neuronal migration and neurite outgrowth in the developing and adult nervous system.

In this paper we report a qualitative morphological analysis of Wallerian degeneration in a marsupial. Right optic nerves of opossums Didelphis marsupialis were crushed with a fine forceps and after 24, 48, 72, 96 and 168 hours the animals were anaesthetized and perfused with fixative. The optic nerves were immersed in fixative and processed for routine transmission electron microscopy. Among the early alterations typical of axonal degeneration, we observed nerve fibers with focal degeneration of the axoplasmic cytoskeleton, watery degeneration and dark degeneration, the latter being prevalent at 168 hours after crush. Our results point to a gradual disintegration of the axoplasmic cytoskeleton, opposed to the previous view of an "all-or-nothing'' process (Griffin et al 1995). We also report that, due to an unknown mechanism, fibers show either a dark or watery pattern of axonal degeneration, as observed in axon profiles. We also observed fibers undergoing early myelin breakdown in the absence of axonal alterations.

The Todos os Santos Bay, located on northeastern Brazil, is the second largest coastal bay in the country, after São Marcos Bay. The three main drainage basins convey an average of 120 m³/s of freshwater towards the bay, the majority of it, however, held by a dam in Paraguaçu River since 1985. The original average freshwater inflow was two orders of magnitude smaller than the estimated tidal discharge through the main bay entrance, and the oceanographic characteristics of the bay, as indicated by bay salinity measurements, are clearly marine. The tides are semi-diurnal, and are amplified up the bay by a factor of 1.5. Shallow water constituents become more important as the tide propagates along Paraguaçu Channel and Paraguaçu River, where they generate time asymmetries that change between spring and neap tides. Currents in the bay are mainly bi-directional, and are stronger during the ebbing tide in most of the bay. Offshore, relatively strong tidal currents appear to be felt in a radius of about 10 km, where they are superimposed on winds driven currents orientated to the southwest.

Supracrustal rocks of the Araí Group, together with coeval A-type granites represent a ca. 1.77-1.58 Ga old continental rift in Brazil. Two granite families are identified: the older (1.77 Ga) group forms small undeformed plutons, and the younger granites (ca. 1.58 Ga) constitute larger, deformed plutons. Sr-Nd isotopic data for these rocks indicate that the magmatism is mostly product of re-melting of Paleoproterozoic sialic crust. Initial Sr ratios for both granite families are ca 0.726 and 0.720. Most TDM model ages are between 2.58 and 1.80 Ga. epsilonND(T) values are between +3.6 and -11.9. Araí volcanics are bimodal, with basalts and dacites/rhyolites interlayered with continental sediments. The felsic volcanics show Nd isotopic characteristics which are very similar to the granites, and are also interpreted as reworking of Paleoproterozoic crust. Detrital sediments of the Araí Group revealed T DM model ages between 2.4 and 2.16 Ga, indicating that they are the product of erosion of Paleoproterozoic crust. The data indicate that the Araí rift system was established on crust that had just become stable after the Paleoproterozoic orogeny.