Background Tropical estuaries are exposed to multiple sources of impact within a background of strong natural environmental gradients. Monitoring and managing these ecosystems is challenging because gradients in salinity and hydrodynamics overlap with intense, spatially localized anthropogenic pressures. Benthic biotic indices provide standardized tools for assessing the ecological health of estuaries and are sensitive to multiple impact sources, but as these indices are based on regional taxa assignments, they need testing to verify their capacity to indicate soft-bottom assemblages under stress. Although these indices have been applied across a broad latitudinal range, their performance remain less established in the tropics. Methods We quantified macroinfaunal abundance, richness, diversity and assemblage composition across 64 stations in two tropical estuaries of southeastern Brazil, calculated the AZTI Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) and Multivariate AZTI Marine Biotic Index (M-AMBI), and evaluated their associations with salinity, sediment grain size, organic-matter quality, fecal sterols and trace and major elements. We then quantified multivariate associations between macrofaunal assemblages, benthic ecological indices and environmental gradients. Results Benthic ecological status was spatially heterogeneous, with localized Poor/Bad and High/Good indices within estuarine sectors. Community composition was associated with salinity, sediment grain size, organic-matter quality and fecal sterols. Multivariate tests identified significant associations between community variation and salinity, biopolymeric carbon, sterols, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, fine sediments and selected metals. Overall, the indices captured pronounced station-level variation in both urban and less-developed estuaries, and reveal their value to identify stress within tropical estuaries of Brazil.
Background This study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial action of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), calcium hydroxide Ca(OH) 2 , chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX), and their combinations against five obligate anaerobic bacteria including Fusobacterium nucleatum, Porphyromonas endodontalis, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia , and Parvimonas micra in planktonic and biofilm forms. Methods Eight experimental groups were evaluated in this study including saline solution (SS) (control group), Ca(OH) 2 , CHX, NAC, NAC + Ca(OH) 2 , NAC + CHX, Ca(OH) 2 + CHX, and NAC + Ca(OH) 2 + CHX. The anti-planktonic evaluation was performed by determination of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines (CLSI M11). The antibiofilm was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and crystal violet (CV) assays. Data were analyzed statistically considering a significant level of ( α ≤ 0.05). Results It was found that the MIC and MBC values of the tested intracanal medications ranged from 1.95–500 mg/mL. MTT and CV assays showed significant, species-dependent antibiofilm activity. CHX was most effective against F. nucleatum ; NAC-based medications, especially combined with Ca(OH) 2 and/or CHX, were superior against P. endodontalis, P. intermedia , and P. micra . Ca(OH) 2 -containing groups were particularly effective against P. gingivalis . Therefore, NAC + Ca(OH) 2 and NAC + Ca(OH) 2 + CHX can be considered as effective combinations of intracanal medication against different obligate anaerobic bacteria.
Background Seed priming is a cost-effective strategy to enhance crop stress tolerance, yet the persistence of its effects throughout the life cycle and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unexplored, particularly in sweet sorghum, a valuable bioenergy crop vulnerable to drought. This study aims to investigate whether polyethylene glycol (PEG) priming enhances drought tolerance in sweet sorghum and its associated molecular responses, and whether these effects persist to improve yield under field conditions. Materials and Methods Sweet sorghum seeds were primed with PEG6000 (150 g L −1 ) or left unprimed. Priming effects were evaluated through physiological and transcriptomic analyses under controlled drought conditions, followed by field validation across multiple cultivars over two consecutive growing seasons. Results PEG priming significantly improved seedling growth and photosynthetic capacity under drought stress, with biomass increased by 67.3% compared to unprimed controls. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that priming upregulated key genes in the target of rapamycin (TOR) pathway (TOR1 and LST8) and genes involved in photosystem II repair and carbon metabolism. Notably, the beneficial effects persisted to maturity, increasing biomass by 31.4–46.6% and panicle weight by 45.4–72.5% across three cultivars under field conditions. Conclusion PEG priming enhances drought tolerance in sweet sorghum through TOR-mediated regulation of photosynthesis and carbon metabolism, with sustained benefits that translate to improved yield in the field. This study provides a mechanistic basis for seed priming as an effective and practical strategy to enhance crop productivity in water-limited environments.
Background Dance and music are two of the oldest and most universal forms of artistic expression, each requiring extensive training. Prolonged training is known to induce neuroplastic changes and enhance socio-emotional abilities such as empathy. The mirror neuron system (MNS) is associated with empathy; however, few studies systematically explored how dance and music training modulate the core empathy network, including subcortical regions within the limbic MNS. Method Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data were obtained from 25 dancers, 24 musicians and 39 demographically matched control group (both groups are healthy). Core regions within relevant brain networks, along with key subcortical components of limbic MNS, specifically the amygdala and basal ganglia, were defined as regions of interest (ROIs) to build a core empathy network. Graph-theoretical metrics, including within-network degree (WND) and between-network degree (BND), were calculated to evaluate connectivity patterns. These metrics were further correlated with empathy scores. Results Both dancers and musicians exhibited altered connectivity within the core empathy network. Dancers showed increased WND and BND between basal ganglia regions and the ventral attention network, whereas musicians demonstrated enhanced WND between the amygdala and the subcortical network. Notably, both groups exhibited reduced WND between the superior frontal gyrus and the sensorimotor network. The neural changes were correlated with Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) empathy subscale scores, indicating training-related modulations in affective and cognitive empathy. Conclusion Dance and music training induce both distinct and overlapping patterns of neuroplasticity within the core empathy network that are associated with enhanced empathic ability. The findings support the potential of dance and music as systematic intervention programs.
Optimal training intensity relative to individual metabolic thresholds remains ambiguous despite its fundamental importance in endurance sports. The present pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis (PROSPERO: CRD420251020702) evaluated the relative influence of potential moderators on adaptations in the aerobic (AeT) and anaerobic (AnT) thresholds. The primary outcome variable was the magnitude of change in physiological threshold values from pre- to post-intervention, quantified through power output (W), speed (km/h), or oxygen uptake metrics (VO 2max ). Three-level meta-analytic models with cluster-robust variance estimation quantified Log Response Ratio effect sizes across 13 studies (24 intervention groups, 338 participants). Among the substantive moderators examined ( i.e. , training intensity, participant status, and intervention length), training intensity relative to the metabolic threshold showed the most consistent association with changes in threshold-related outcomes. For AeT ( k = 9), a significant effect of training intensity was observed ( p = 0.017), with supra-threshold training showing the largest improvement (+38.7%) compared with at-threshold (+14.7%) and sub-threshold (+18.4%) training. For AnT ( k = 15), a significant categorical effect of training intensity was observed ( p = 0.008), with post-hoc comparisons revealing greater adaptations for supra-threshold versus sub-threshold training ( p = 0.010), alongside a graded descriptive pattern across categories (below: +2.6%, at: ∼+7%, above: +12.2%). However, substantial heterogeneity persisted (AeT: I 2 ≈ 89%; AnT: I 2 ≈ 53%), likely reflecting threshold identification bias ( e.g. , lactate vs. gas analysis) and varying background training distributions. These findings identify training intensity as a primary moderator associated with threshold adaptations within the current literature, with supra-threshold metabolic range consistently outperforming at- or below-threshold prescriptions within the limited supra-threshold ranges represented in the included studies. Therefore, individualized, supra-threshold training with regular reassessment seems to be recommended to optimize individual training responses. However, substantial heterogeneity and methodological variability warrant caution, and further well-controlled studies are needed before definitive training recommendations can be made.
