Luzitano Brandão Ferreira

Genomic ancestry in urban Afro-Brazilians

Brazil is the result of interethnic crosses of European, African and Amerindian populations. Allelic frequencies for seven STR loci (TH01, TPOx, CSF1PO, vWA, FES/FPS, F13A1 and CD4), obtained from a sample of 70 individuals identified as Afro-Brazilian and 150 as mulatto, are presented here. Based on the frequencies of these genetic markers, estimates of interethnic admixture showed 62%, 26% and 12% of European, African and Amerindian contribution, respectively, for the mulatto sample and 37% and 63% of European and African contribution, respectively, for the Afro-Brazilian sample.

Anticonvulsant and anxiolytic activity of the peptide fraction isolated from the venom of the social wasp Polybia paulista

Background: Arthropod venoms have attracted interest because they represent a source of neuroactive compounds that can be useful tools in neuroscience and pharmacological investigations. Objective: The purpose of the present work was to evaluate the anticonvulsant, anxiolytic, and behavioral effects of the peptide fraction separated from venom of the social wasp. Materials and Methods: The low- molecular-weight compounds of the venom were separated by ultrafiltration and the bioassays were performed to test anticonvulsant and anxiolytic effects, as well as alterations in the spontaneous behavior of the animals. Results: Intracerebroventricular injections of the compounds induced dose-dependent anticonvulsant effects and a potent anxiolytic activity. Regarding behavioral effects, no significant differences were observed in relation to the saline control group. Conclusion: The low-molecular-weight compounds of the venom of Polybia paulista include neuroactive peptides that can be used as pharmacological resources for anticonvulsant and anxiolytic drug research.

Y-STR diversity and ethnic admixture in White and Mulatto Brazilian population samples

We investigated 50 Mulatto and 120 White Brazilians for the Y-chromosome short tandem repeat (Y-STR) markers (DYS19, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392 and DYS393) and found 79 different haplotypes in the White and 35 in the Mulatto sample. Admixture estimates based on allele frequencies showed that the admixture of the white sample was 89% European, 6% African and 5% Amerindian while the Mulatto sample was 93% European and 7% African. Results were consistent with historical records of the directional mating between European males and Amerindian or African females.

Qualidade de vida de idosos atendidos em uma unidade básica de saúde do Distrito Federal - doi: 10.5102/ucs.v9i1.1274

A propensao ao envelhecimento populacional esta ocasionando interfaces de discussao no que diz respeito a qualidade de vida de individuos idosos. Frente a essa realidade, a presente pesquisa visa descrever os aspectos que subsidiam a qualidade de vida de idosos atendidos em unidade basica de saude, contribuindo para o conhecimento dos fatores que podem influir no sentido de propiciar um envelhecer saudavel e uma vida longeva. Na presente pesquisa foram entrevistados 50 idosos, com preponderância do genero masculino, ate 69 anos, casados, com escolaridade no fundamental completo. Em consoante com a coleta de dados, as caracteristicas marcantes que interferem na qualidade de vida dos idosos, foram destacadas por relatos, sendo eles: o relacionamento familiar, a renda media dos idosos e a violencia.