Amanda Maihara dos Santos

Preferência pela via de parto: uma comparação entre gestantes nulíparas e primíparas

PURPOSE It was to describe and compare the preference of nulliparous and primiparous women for a particular mode of delivery and to determine whether the previous experience of childbirth influences the delivery process. METHODS We conducted a prospective cross-sectional study. One-hundred interviews were held with 56 nulliparous and 44 primiparous women using previously prepared questionnaires. The quantitative and categorical data were evaluated by the chi-square or Fishers Exact Test. RESULTS 60.7% of nulliparous women and 70.5% of primiparous women reported to prefer vaginal delivery. When analyzing the answers about receiving sufficient information about the type of delivery, the presence or absence of influence on the choice of route of delivery and the preferred route of delivery by the partner, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups. The level of significance used for the tests was 0.05. CONCLUSIONS This study permitted us to conclude that the previous experience of delivery does not influence the expectation of the delivery process or the choice for a specific mode of delivery. When choosing the route of delivery, women seek to ensure the health of mother and neonate, as well as to avoid the process of pain and suffering.

Development of an acute toxicity test with the tropical marine amphipod Parhyale hawaiensis

There is a lack of suitable tropical marine species for ecotoxicity tests. An attractive model organism for ecotoxicology is the marine amphipod Parhyale hawaiensis, which is already a model for genetic and developmental studies. This species is widespread, can tolerate changes in salinity, is easy to handle and is representative of circumtropical regions. The aim of this work was to describe standardized procedures for laboratory husbandry, define conditions for acute toxicity tests, and to provide acute toxicity test results for some reference toxicants. Culturing conditions for the organism in the laboratory were established in reconstituted seawater (30 ± 2 salinity), 24 ± 2 °C, photoperiod 12/12 h light/dark. Acute toxicity test procedures were developed for 96 h-exposure time, and organisms at ages <7 days. The miniaturized version of the test, based on 96-well microplates and 200 µL of exposure media provided consistent results compared to larger exposure volumes (80-mL vials protocol). Acute toxicity of Ag, Cd, Cu, Zn and ammonia determined for P. hawaiensis were consistent to previous results for other marine amphipods. We conclude that P. hawaiensis can be successfully cultured in standardized conditions and be effectively used in acute toxicity testing. Further development and use of this model will enable standardized and reproducible ecotoxicology investigations in understudied and vulnerable tropical marine ecosystems.