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INTRODUCTION: Computed tomography angiography (CTA) and ventilation/perfusion (V/Q) single photon emission computed tomography/CT (SPECT/CT) images have been widely used to detect PE, but few studies have performed a direct comparison between them. We aimed to evaluate the performance of these tests in the same group of patients, selected from the routine practice of a general hospital. METHODS: Patients with suspected acute PE were prospectively submitted to CTA and V/Q SPECT/CT. General radiologists and nuclear physicians, respectively, interpreted the images. Data regarding age, sex, time between examinations, symptoms, and Wells score were also recorded. The final diagnosis was decided through a consensus among the clinicians, taking into account clinical, laboratory, follow-up, and all imaging procedures data. RESULTS: Twenty-eight patients (15 male, 13 female, and median age of 51.5 years) were studied. Median duration of the onset of symptoms was 4 (1-14) days, and the median Wells score was 3.5 (1.5-6). Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were 84.6%, 80.0%, 78.6%, 85.7%, and 82.1% for V/Q SPECT/CT, and 46.1%, 100%, 100%, 68.2%, and 75.0% for CTA. The overall agreement between the methods was 57.1%. Of the 22 patients with negative CTA, 10 (45.4%) had positives V/Q SPECT/CT and seven of them classified as true positives. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that V/Q SPECT/CT is more sensitive and accurate than CTA when interpreted by general radiologists and nuclear medicine physicians.

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We present a discrete element method study of the uprising of an intruder immersed in a granular media under vibration, also known as the Brazil Nut Effect. Besides confirming granular ratcheting and convection as leading mechanisms to this odd behavior, we evince the role of the resonance on the rising of the intruder by using periodic boundary conditions (pbc) in the horizontal direction to avoid wall-induced convection. As a result, we obtain a resonance-qualitylike curve of the intruder ascent rate as a function of the external frequency, which is verified for different values of the inverse normalized gravity Γ, as well as the system size. In addition, we introduce a large deviation function analysis which displays a remarkable difference for systems with walls or pbc.

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Heat shock proteins (Hsps) are involved in several important aspects of the cell proteostasis. Hsp90 interacts with at least a tenth of the cell proteome helping a large number of proteins to fold correctly. Hsp90 function is modulated by several co-chaperones having TPR (tetratricopeptide repeat) domains that allow for interaction with the C-terminal MEEVD motif of the chaperone. Another important chaperone, Hsp70, has a C-terminal EEVD motif that binds to TPR. Leishmania is a protozoan that causes leishmaniasis, a neglected disease in humans and other animals. There is still no effective treatment for leishmaniasis, however the study of structure and function of the proteins of the parasite may generate potential targets for future therapeutic intervention studies. In this work, the genome of Leishmania major was searched for a novel TPR-domain gene, which is conserved in Leishmania. The recombinant protein, LmTPR, was produced in pure and folded state and was characterized by biophysical tools as a monomer with an elongated conformation. Studies in Leishmania major were also preformed to complement these in vitro experiments. Splice Leader RNA-seq analysis and Western blot indicated that the protein was expressed in all developmental stages of the parasite. Binding assays confirmed that both Hsp90 and Hsp70 bind specifically to LmTPR. Finally, sequence and structural predictions indicated a C-terminal region as a RPAP3 domain. Altogether, this study identified a novel TPR-domain co-chaperone of Hsp90 that is conserved and expressed in all developmental stages of Leishmania major.

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Resumo As vivências acadêmicas, além de informar sobre a adaptação ao contexto da educação superior também mostra-se relacionada com variáveis de desenvolvimento de carreira. Nesse sentido o presente estudo teve como objetivos verificar a correlação entre adaptabilidade de carreira e vivências acadêmicas, além do efeito da satisfação com o curso nas correlações entre os construtos mencionados. Os participantes foram 89 estudantes universitários do quinto ao nono semestre de uma universidade particular do interior paulista. Foram aplicados a Escala de Adaptabilidade de Carreira (CAAS) e o Questionário de Vivências Acadêmicas reduzido (QVA-r), além de um único item que avaliava o grau de satisfação com o curso. Foi realizada uma correlação entre os fatores da CAAS e os fatores do QVA-r, na qual observou-se correlações positivas entre os dois instrumentos, podendo destacar-se a correlação positiva e com grau moderado Preocupação (CAAS) e Carreira (QVA-r). A respeito da correlação parcial, foi observado que a variável satisfação com o curso exerceu influência em algumas correlações, principalmente a observada entre Preocupação (CAAS) e Carreira (QVA-r). A partir dos resultados pode-se assumir o processo de adaptação acadêmica como uma variável de carreira, sugerindo-se novos estudos com amostras maiores e mais diversificadas para a confirmação deste resultado.

Abstract Academic experiences, besides informing about adaptation to higher education context, have been associated to variables related to career development. In this sense, the objective of this study was to verify the correlation between career adapt-abilities and academic experiences, and the effect of course satisfaction in this correlation. The participants were 89 college students from fifth to ninth semester of a private college. These participants answered the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale (CAAS) and Academic Adaptation Reduced Questionnaire (QVA-r), and also an item that valued the level of academic satisfaction. A correlation was made between the factors of the CAAS and QVA-r factors, in which there was found a positive correlation between the two instruments, from which can stand out the positive correlation and moderate Concern (CAAS) and Career (QVA-r). About the racial correlation, it was observed that the variable satisfaction with the course had an influence on some of the correlations, mainly on the Concern (CAAS) and Career (QVA-r) correlation. The results suggest that it could be assumed that the adaptation process is a variable of career. Indeed, further research would be necessary with biggers and more diverse samples.