Academic literature on the topic 'Longicollis'

Turtles face a variety of threats (e.g. habitat destruction, introduced predators) that are pushing many species towards extinction. Vehicle collisions are one of the main causes of mortality of adult freshwater turtles. To conceptualise the level of threat that roads pose to Australians turtles, we analysed data gathered through the citizen science project TurtleSAT along the Murray River. We recorded 124 occurrences of turtle road mortality, which included all three local species (Chelodina expansa, Chelodina longicollis, and Emydura macquarii). Chelodina longicollis was the most commonly reported species killed on roads. We found that rain and time of year affect the likelihood of C. longicollis being killed on roads: increased turtle mortality is associated with rain events and is highest during the month of November, which coincides with their nesting season. Chelodina longicollis was most likely to be killed on the Hume Highway and roads around major urban centres; therefore, we recommend that governing bodies focus management practices and increase awareness at these locations. The degree of road mortality that we detected in this study requires mitigation, as it may contribute to the decline of C. longicollis along the Murray River.

Activity cycles of Chelodina expansa, C. longicollis and Emydura macquarii were inferred from captures in baited traps set in the Murray River and Lake Boga. C. expansa and E, macquarii were caught only from October to April, while C. longicollis was taken in all months but June and July. Minimum water temperatures at capture were highest for C. expansa and lowest for C. longicollis. Diel cycles of catch rate were often weak, but tended to be bimodal for all species, with peaks near dawn and in the afternoon or evening. Unlike the Chelodina species, E. macquarii was ofen caught near midnight. In the laboratory (at c.24�C with light:dark 12:12 h), the average diel pattern of locomotor activity was weakly bimodal in C. expansa, strongly bimodal in C. longicollis and unimodal in E. macquarii.

Preferences of Chelodina expansa, Chelodina longicollis and Emydura macquarii (Testudines : Chelidae) for different types of aquatic habitat on the Murray River flood plain in south-eastern Australia were inferred from catch statistics. E. macquarii was the species most often caught in the river itself and river backwaters, whereas C. longicollis formed the majority of captures from oxbow lakes, anabranches, ponds, rain pools and a swamp. Relative abundance of E. macquarii was significantly positively correlated with water body depth, transparency, persistence during dry conditions and flow speed, and negatively correlated with remoteness from the river. C. longicollis demonstrated the opposite pattern, and the proportional catch of C. expansa was weakly correlated with environmental variables. The capacity of C. longicollis for colonising and surviving in small, remote and ephemeral ponds and pools relates to its ability to aestivate and resist desiccation and its propensity for overland migration.

AbstractThe banana stem weevil, Odoiporus longicollis Olivier (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an important economic insect pest of bananas throughout the world. In this study, several important volatile substances were analysed to develop a semiochemical-based trapping technique for the control of O. longicollis. Electroantennogram responses of both sexes were associated with electroantennogram-active compounds (1-hexanol, 1-heptanol, cis-3-Nonen-1-ol, methyl jasmonate, and terpenoids such as (–)-linalool, (+)-(1R)-α-pinene, (–)-(1S)-α-pinene, and 1,8-cineole) and then were analysed using a Y-tube olfactometer. The results revealed that only methyl jasmonate and 1-hexanol elicited strong behavioural responses in O. longicollis. These two semiochemicals and the host plant extract were evaluated individually and in a mixture for their efficiencies in attracting O. longicollis in order to develop a semiochemical-based trapping technique. The methyl jasmonate + host plant extract and 1-hexanol + host plant extract mixtures captured more weevils (> 3.5 times) than the host plant extract alone did in both high- and low-altitude regions. The captured weevils were female-dominated, with a mean sex ratio of 1:1.29 (males:females). This is the first report on the use of methyl jasmonate or 1-hexanol and the host plant extract as a potential attractant in mass trapping and managing O. longicollis.

The abilities of freshwater turtles to control their body temperatures by behavioural means have implications for activity, food ingestion and digestion, growth, reproduction and potential responses to climate change. I compared various forms of basking in nature, and responses to aquatic and aerial photothermal gradients in the laboratory, among three species of Australian chelid turtles: Chelodina expansa, C. longicollis and Emydura macquarii. Proclivity for behavioural thermoregulation varied substantially among these species, being highest in C. longicollis and lowest in C. expansa. However, C. expansa had a thermophilic response to feeding. For C. longicollis and E. macquarii, behavioural thermoregulation may enhance colonisation of more southerly latitudes or higher elevations as climatic warming proceeds. However, increasing air temperatures may pose a hazard to turtles dispersing or sheltering terrestrially (for example, when water bodies dry during drought). C. longicollis appears the best placed of the three species to avoid this hazard through its abilities to thermoregulate behaviourally and to aestivate in terrestrial microenvironments that are buffered against temperature extremes.

The chitinozoans recovered from six graptolitic horizons in the Buttington Brick Pit, Wales, are described. A correlation between the upper Llandovery and lower Wenlock chitinozoan and graptolite biostratigraphical schemes is presented. These data are compared with the recently refined chitinozoan biostratigraphical scheme in the nearby Banwy River section, Wales. Chitinozoans from definite turriculatus graptolite Biozone strata are described for the first time from the UK. Chitinozoans indicative of the Eisenackitina dolioliformis Biozone occur in the turriculatus Biozone, although the base of the former biozone probably occurs at a lower stratigraphical level. The Angochitina longicollis chitinozoan Biozone has been identified in middle or probably upper spiralis graptolite Biozone strata. Questionably identified A. longicollis occurs lower, in strata assigned to the middle spiralis Biozone, where it occurs with the short-ranging Conochitina mathrafalensis and Belonechitina cavei. This may indicate that: (1) the base of the longicollis Biozone occurs slightly lower in the Telychian in Buttington Brick Pit than in the more basinal Banwy River section; (2) the specimen assigned to A. longicollis? represents an undescribed species; or (3) C. mathrafalensis and B. cavei occur higher in Buttington Brick Pit than in the Banwy River section. The absence of A. longicollis in the turriculatus and crispus graptolite biozones in Buttington highlights the need to re-examine the specimens assigned to A. longicollis from these levels in Estonia, Sweden and Norway. Chitinozoans indicative of the Margachitina margaritana chitinozoan Biozone occur in murchisoni Biozone strata (the base of the former biozone has not been observed at Buttington), and the occurrence of Conochitina flamma indicates that the highest graptolite bed examined correlates with a level high in the murchisoni graptolite Biozone.

Chelodina longicollis is an opportunistic carnivore that obtains its food from a wide variety of sourcesplankton, nekton, benthic macro-organisms, carrion, and terrestrial organisms that fall upon the water. Although there are some quantitative differences between the littoral components of the diet and the composition of the littoral fauna, these can be attributed to differences in accessibility or 'noticeability' among prey species. There is no evidence to suggest that C, longicollis is selective in what it eats, within the confines of carnivory. Comparison of the diet of C. longicollis with those of other sympatric chelids reveals considerable overlap; the relevance of this to geographic variation in abundance of the species is discussed.

Context Species vary broadly in their ability to adapt to urbanisation. Freshwater turtles are vulnerable to the loss and degradation of terrestrial and aquatic habitat in urban environments. There have been few publications investigating impacts of urbanisation on freshwater turtles in Australia. Aims We investigated the effects of urbanisation on the distribution and abundance of the eastern long-necked turtle (Chelodina longicollis) in greater Melbourne. Methods We examined occurrence and relative abundance of C. longicollis at 55 wetlands across an urban–rural gradient in relation to site- and landscape-level factors. Occupancy was modelled using the program PRESENCE, and incorporated landscape and habitat covariates. A negative binomial regression model was used to examine the influence of landscape and habitat factors on relative abundance by using WinBUGS. Key results C. longicollis occupied 85% of the 55 wetlands we surveyed, and we found no evidence that wetland occupancy was influenced by the variables we measured. However, relative abundance was highest at wetlands with low water conductivity and heavy metal pollution, and in wetlands furthest from rivers. Conclusions C. longicollis appears to be resilient to urbanisation and is likely to persist in urban landscapes, possibly because of the creation of new wetlands in Australian cities. However, long-term studies focussed on demographic parameters, or survivorship, may elucidate as yet undetected effects of urbanisation. Although no specific management recommendations may be necessary for C. longicollis in urban areas at this time, this species may be in decline in non-urban areas as a result of climatic changes and wetland drying. Implications Our findings suggest that caution is required before drawing generalised conclusions on the impacts of urbanisation on turtles, as the effects are likely to be species-specific, dependent on specific ecology and life-history requirements. Further studies are required to ascertain these relationships for a wider array of species and over longer time spans.

Eastern long-necked turtles, Chelodina longicollis, are known to lack heteromorphic sex chromosomes and to lack temperature-dependent sex determination when incubated under constant conditions. This study determined whether sex ratios of hatchlings emerging from natural nests of C. longicollis were different from that expected from constant temperature experiments. Temperatures in the eight nests monitored varied considerably each day (by 1.7-12.6�C), with eggs at the top of the nest experiencing the greatest variation (mean range 9.0�C) and eggs at the bottom experiencing least variation (mean range 5.3�C). Temperatures experienced by the top and bottom eggs differed by as much as 5.7�C at any one time. No monotonic seasonal trend was evident, but rainfall caused a sharp drop in nest temperatures. Sex ratios in hatchlings from 14 field nests of C. longicollis did not differ significantly from 1:1, a result in agreement with previous studies conducted at constant incubation temperatures in the laboratory.

Two lineages of Aureoboletus (Boletales, Boletaceae) from southern China were revealed by using molecular data based on combined dataset of the nuclear ribosomal large subunit RNA (nrLSU), the translation elongation factor apha-1 (tef1-a) and the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (rpb1). One of them corresponds with the previous morphology-based taxon, viz. Boletellus longicollis, another one is different from those taxa described based on morphological features. And, thus, Auroboletus clavatus sp. nov. and A. longicollis comb. nov. were proposed. A detailed description, colour photos of fresh basidiomata, and a line-drawing of microscopic features of the two taxa were provided.

Most studies of wetlands tend to focus on the biotic and abiotic interactions within the aquatic habitat. Though wetlands and associated biota may appear to be somewhat isolated from the influence of the wider landscape, wetland habitats are critically linked with adjacent terrestrial habitats and other wetlands through the two-way flows of energy and nutrients and provision of structure. While an understanding of these inter-habitat linkages is breaking down the perceived boundaries between "aquatic" and "terrestrial" ecosystems, there is more limited knowledge on the ecology of wetland animals that must meet critical needs in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats at some time during their life or seasonal cycles. Here, I examine the terrestrial ecology of a freshwater turtle, the eastern long-necked turtle (Chelodina longicollis) in the temporally dynamic and heterogeneous landscape of Booderee national park in south-east Australia by 1) providing a description of terrestrial behaviours, 2) identifying the factors driving terrestrial behaviour and its functional significance, 3) examining factors that may limit or constrain terrestrial behaviour and 4) demonstrating how various terrestrial behaviours can factor prominently in the overall biology of a nominally aquatic animal. Chelodina longicollis used terrestrial habitats for reasons other than nesting, including aestivation and movements between wetlands. Radio-telemetry of 60 turtles revealed that nearly 25 % of all locations were in terrestrial habitats up to 505 m from the wetland, where turtles remained for extended periods (up to 480 consecutive days) buried under sand and leaf litter in the forest. Individuals also maintained an association with a permanent lake and at least one temporary wetland within 1470 m, though some inter-wetland dispersal movements were much longer (5248 m). As a result of their associations with several wetlands and terrestrial aestivation sites, C. longicollis traversed large areas and long distances (13.8 +/- 2.8 ha home range, 2608 +/- 305 m moved), indicating that this species is highly vagile. In fact, a three-year capture-mark-recapture study conducted in 25 wetlands revealed that 33% of the population moved overland between wetlands. After scaling this rate to the number of generations elapsed during the study, C. longicollis moved between discrete water bodies at a rate of 88-132% per generation. This rate is not only high for freshwater turtles, but is among the highest rates of inter-patch movement for any vertebrate or invertebrate. Chelodina longicollis demonstrated an impressive capacity for individual variation in nearly every aspect of its behaviour examined. Most of the variation in space use, movements, terrestrial aestivation and activity could be attributed to extrinsic local and landscape factors, seasonal influences and rainfall, whereas intrinsic attributes of the individual such as sex, body size, body condition and maturity status were less important. Turtles increased movement distance and home range size in regions where inter-wetland distances were farther and with increasing wetland size. Individuals spent more time in terrestrial habitats with decreasing wetland hydroperiod and increasing distance to the nearest permanent lake. Overland movements between wetlands were correlated with rainfall, but the directionality of these movements and the frequency with which they occurred varied according to the prevalent rainfall patterns; movements were to permanent lakes during drought, but turtles returned to temporary wetlands en masse upon the return of heavy rainfall. However, deteriorating conditions in drying wetlands forced turtles to move even in the absence of rainfall. Captures at a terrestrial drift fence revealed that immature turtles as small as 72.3 mm plastron length may move overland between wetlands with similar frequency as larger adults. Taken together, these results suggest that C. longicollis behaviour is in part conditional or state-dependent (i.e., plastic) and shaped by the spatiotemporal variation and heterogeneity of the landscape. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of individual variation was the alternate responses to wetland drying. Turtles either aestivated in terrestrial habitats (for variable lengths of time), or moved to other wetlands. Movement to other wetlands was the near universal strategy when only a short distance from permanent lakes, but the proportion of individuals that aestivated terrestrially increased with distance to the nearest permanent lake. When long distances must be travelled, both behaviours were employed by turtles in the same wetland, suggesting that individuals differentially weigh the costs and benefits of residing terrestrially versus those of long-distance movement. I propose that diversity in response to wetland drying in the population is maintained by stochastic fluctuations in resource quality. The quality of temporary wetlands relative to permanent wetlands at our study site varies considerably and unpredictably with annual rainfall and with it the cost-benefit ratio of each strategy or tactic. Residency in or near temporary wetlands is more successful during wet periods due to production benefits (high growth, reproduction and increased body condition), but movement to permanent wetlands is more successful, or least costly, during dry periods due to the fitness benefits of increased survival and body condition. I used the doubly-labelled water (DLW) method to provide the first estimates of water and energy costs of aestivation and overland movement for any freshwater turtle behaving naturally in the field. Chelodina longicollis remained hydrated while terrestrial with water flux rates (14.3-19.3 ml kg-1 d-1) on par with those of strictly terrestrial turtles, but field metabolic rate during aestivation (20.0-24.6 kJ kg-1 d-1) did not indicate substantial physiological specializations in metabolism during aestivation. Energy reserves, but not water, are predicted to limit survival in aestivation to an estimated 49-261 days, which is in close agreement with the durations of natural aestivation. The energy costs of overland movement were 46-99 kJ (kg d)-1, or 1.6-1.7 times more expensive than aestivation. When a wetland dries, a turtle that foregoes movement to other wetlands can free sufficient energy to fuel up to 134 days in aestivation. The increasing value of this energy "trade-off" with travel distance fits our behavioural observations of variance in response to wetland drying. Taken together, this evidence indicates that terrestrial habitats provide more than just organic and structural inputs and filtering services and that nearby wetlands are important for reasons other than potential sources of occasional colonists to a population. Terrestrial habitats are used for aestivation in response to wetland drying and different wetlands are diverse in their functions of meeting the annual or life-cycle requirements of C. longicollis in temporally dynamic wetland systems. As overland movements between these various habitat types are in response to spatiotemporal variation in habitat quality and associated shifts in the fitness gradient between them, I suggest that terrestrial and different aquatic habitats in Booderee offer complementary resources contributing to regional carrying capacity and population persistence of the turtle population. Thus, important ecological processes regulating C. longicollis in a focal wetland should not be viewed as operating independently of other nearby wetlands and their adjacent terrestrial habitats. Collectively, these findings highlight the complex and dynamic associations between a population of freshwater turtles and the wider terrestrial and aquatic landscape, demonstrating that turtle populations and the factors that impact them can extend well beyond the boundaries of a focal wetland.

Duas provas de imunodiagnóstico foram padronizadas em Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil, 2000: imunofluorescência indireta (IFI) e reação imunoenzimática (ELISA), para pesquisa, em líquido cefalorraquiano, de anticorpos anti-Cysticercus cellulosae de 39 indivíduos com neurocisticercose portadores de cistos vivos ou em degeneração, confirmado por tomografia axial computadorizada. Dois antígenos foram estudados: um homólogo (Cysticercus cellulosae) e outro heterólogo (Cysticercus longicollis). O rendimento de líquido vesicular de Cysticercus longicollis na produção dos antígenos de IFI e ELISA foi significativamente superior ao de Cysticercus cellulosae. Para Cysticercus cellulosae foram utilizados apenas escólices, membranas parasitárias e extrato salino total em função do pequeno rendimento de líquido vesicular. Para a técnica de IFI o número de partículas, por campo, no aumento de 400x ficou estabelecido em 20 a 30. A diluição do conjugado foi 1 :250. O teste de ELISA ficou assim padronizado: Concentração de antígeno: 1 µg/orifício; Diluição do líquido cefalorraquiano: 1/1; Diluição do conjugado: 1: 3000; ponto de corte - C. cellulosae DO. 0,210; ponto de corte - C. longicol/is DO. 0,306.Quando comparado ao padrão ouro e ao teste sorológico com antígeno homólogo, caracterizando o diagnóstico de certeza definitivo, a sensibilidade no teste de imunofluorescência indireta, foi de 90,6%, considerando o número total de amostras analisadas (39), variando de 90,5% para amostras de pacientes com cistos em atividade a 90,9% para amostras de pacientes com calcificações no encéfalo. Quando se trabalhou com o teste imunoenzimático a sensibilidade para o mesmo grupo de amostras foi de 90,9%, variando de 95,2% a 83,3%, respectivamente para amostras de pacientes com cistos em atividade e para amostras de pacientes com calcificações no encéfalo, igualmente com diagnóstico de certeza definitivo para neurocisticercose. O antígeno heterólogo pode ser utilizado como alternativa ao antígeno homólogo. O rendimento e o controle das variáveis ambientais na manutenção da cepa e os indicadores dos testes permitem a utilização deste componente biológico para produção de extratos antigênicos destinados a pesquisa de anticorpos anti-Cysticercus cellulosae em líquido cefalorraquiano

With 226-343 individual/ha, population density of Chelodina longicollis in the dams of the University of Western Sydney-Hawkesbury Richmond campus were in the range of other studies around Australia. Their size extremes (24.3 -223.3 mm) were within the range of previous studies, and the overall sex ratio was skewed toward males. The annual growth rates varied and were weakly correlated with animal size. Scute shedding occurred between September and April and peaked in December. Turtles were generally in excellent condition, indicating that sufficient food resources were available in local habitats. Only 3.4% of the population were in poor condition and few animals (8.8 %) carried signs of past injury. No gross abnormalities were recorded, however, there has been low levels of recruitment to the population compared with other Australian studies. Despite a maximum distance dams sampled of 2.8 km and ample evidence of interchange between dams, there was a great variation in animal size, cohort structure, sex ratio among dams. There are a range of factors which have the potential to bias sampling results. Turtles were not influenced by a dominance hierarchy or by the presence of eels, however, they appeared to be capable of avoidance behaviour when nets are set at a specific location. Different cohorts were caught differentially and this varied with month, season and year. In addition, catchability varied among cohorts. Juveniles were least likely, and sub-adult males were most likely, to be recaptured. In some dams there was evidence that animals moved at random while in others movement did not conform to this pattern. These results could not be accounted for in terms of dam size, physical structure of the dam or the distribution and abundance of vegetation.
Master of Science (Hons)

A cisticercose suína é uma doença causada pela larva de Taenia solium, Linneaus, 1758, denominada Cysticercus cellulosae (cisticerco). A doença está amplamente distribuída pelo mundo, sendo mais freqüente nos países onde o consumo de carne suína é elevado e as condições sanitárias são deficientes, como em grande parte dos países em desenvolvimento. A cisticercose causa prejuízo em criações de suínos, pois, a carne infectada torna-se imprópria para o consumo humano. Para o diagnóstico da cisticercose suína são realizados o exame da língua in vivo e o exame post-mortem (necropsia). O exame da língua é pouco sensível apesar da elevada especificidade, uma vez que a localização do parasita pode não ser disseminada. A análise post-mortem é baseada em sítios de predileção dos cisticercos. Por isso, são analisados em rotina de inspeção sanitária, o coração, a língua, o diafragma e músculos mastigadores (masseteres e pterigóide). No entanto, infecções brandas, com reduzido número de cisticercos instalados nos tecidos, podem não ser diagnosticadas na necrópsia, evidenciando uma sensibilidade baixa. Recentemente, tem sido sugerida a implementação de testes imunológicos, dentre eles o ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunossorbent Assay), que tem por princípio a pesquisa de anticorpos no soro. Assim, o presente trabalho objetiva a avaliação de antígenos no método de ELISA para o imunodiagnóstico da cisticercose suína. Dessa forma, 7 suínos, desmamados, provenientes de criação tecnificada foram infectados com 200.000 ovos de T. solium. Foram coletadas amostras sangüíneas antes da infecção e a cada 7 dias até o 140º dia pós-infecção e os soros obtidos foram congelados a 20ºC negativos. Os soros foram avaliados através do ELISA utilizando antígeno total (T-Tso) e de escólex (Es-Tso) de C. cellulosae e de líquido vesicular de C. longicollis (LV-Tcra). O exame da língua in vivo apresentou sensibilidade baixa pois, não foi detectada a presença de cisticercos nos 7 animais durante o período da infecção. Mediante o exame post-mortem, constatou-se a cisticercose em todos os animais. Por outro lado, a quantidade de cisticercos por animal foi baixa tendo em vista a alta dose de ovos inoculados. Foram detectados ao todo 238 cisticercos, sendo todos viáveis. Quanto à distribuição, foi observado que a musculatura do membro anterior e do membro posterior apresentaram as maiores quantidades de parasitas com 24,38% (58) e 28,57% (68) respectivamente. Apenas 18,67% (43) dos cisticercos foram encontrados em tecidos indicados para inspeção da carne. Quanto ao ELISA, obteve-se a padronização do teste para os 3 antígenos, que detectou aumento significativo de anticorpos à partir do 21º dia p.i., para os 7 suínos. O maior índice de reatividade foi encontrado para o antígeno LV-Tcra. O teste com antígenos Es-Tso e LV-Tcra apresentaram os melhores resultados, detectando níveis de anticorpos acima do cut-off nos soros dos animais. Na análise dos soros dos animais suspeitos através do ELISA com Es-Tso, 64,3% (9) das amostras apresentaram absorbâncias acima do cut-off, sendo os animais considerados prováveis portadores de cisticercose. Ficou demonstrada a boa sensibilidade do ELISA com os 3 antígenos, sobretudo quando utilizados o Es-Tso, detectando a doença em animais com infecção leve. Ademais, o ELISA com o antígeno Es-Tso apresenta-se como uma importante ferramenta na pesquisa epidemiológica da cisticercose.
Swine cysticercosis is a disease caused by the Taenia solium’s metacestodes, called Cysticercys cellulosae (Cisticerci). This disease is largely spread around the world and is more frequent in countries where swine meat consumption is high and sanitary conditions are poor, as in developing countries. Cysticercosis is harmful to the raising of the swine because infected meat is not proper for human consumption. To diagnose swine cysticercosis one clinically examines the tonge in vivo and also examines post-mortem (necropsy). The tonge exam has little sensitivity in spite of its high specificity as the parasite location cannot be determined. Post-mortem analysis is based on metacestodes’s favorite sites. Therefore, the heart, the tonge, the diaphragm, and the chewing muscles (masseteres and pterigoidis) in the tissue are analyzed in the regular sanitary inspection. However, mild infections, with a minor number of metacestodes in the tissues may not be diagnosed in the necropsy, showing that evidently there is an low sensitivity. Recently there has been suggestions of immunological tests, including the ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunossorbent Assay) which has as a principle the antibodies research in swine’s serum. Thus, this study’s aim is to evaluate the antigens in the ELISA method for immunodiagnosis of the swine cysticercosis. The experiment used 7 weaned swine for technological rising were orally infected with 200.000 T. solium eggs. At every 7 days, up to the 140º day of infection, 10 mL of blood was collected and the serum was frozen at minus 20ºC. The serum were analyzed through the ELISA and the analyses used 3 antigens: total (T-Tso) and scolex (Es-Tso) of C. cellulosae and C. longicollis’s vesicular fluid (LV-Tcra). The in vivo tongue exam showed low sensitivity because at no time during in the infection the presence of metacestodes could be detected. Through the post-mortem exam one could notice the cysticercosis in all animals. However, the amount of metacestodes per animal was very low, considering the high number of inoculated eggs. As a total 238 metacestodes were detected and all were viable. As for distribution, one observed that the muscles of front and hindquarters showed more parasites with 24,38 % (58) and 28,57% (68), respectively. Only 18,67% (43) of metacestodes were found in tissue appointed for meat inspection. As for the ELISA, the standardization was obtained for 3 antigens, that detected a significant rise of antibodies from the 21th day of infection. It was also observed that the test using the 3 antigens could detected antibodies anti-Cysticercus from the 21th day post-infection. The highest rate of reactivity was found for the antigen LV-Tcra. The immunoenzimatic tests with the Es-Tso and LV-Tcra showed best results, detecting antibodies level over the cut-off in the animals. In the analysis of the suspected animals with ELISA using Es-Tso, 64,3% (9) samples showed high absorbance to the cut-off and the animals considered probably cysticercosis carriers. In conclusion, it was proved that there is good sensitivity in the ELISA, particularly when the antigen Es-Tso is used, detecting cysticercosis in animals with mild infection. Moreover, the ELISA with the Es-Tso show as an important tool for the cysticercosis epidemiological research.

A diversidade de organismos oriundos do ambiente marinho constitui uma fonte significativa de substâncias estruturalmente inéditas e biologicamente ativas, dentre as quais, diversas inspiraram o desenvolvimento de novas classes de agentes terapêuticos. Neste contexto, macroalgas vermelhas do gênero Bostrychia (Rhodomelaceae) foram coletadas em praias do litoral norte do estado de São Paulo e têm sido objeto de estudos químicos e biológicos, no Laboratório de Química Orgânica do Ambiente Marinho (LQOAM - NPPNS) da FCFRPUSP, sob a supervisão da Profa. Dra. Hosana M. Debonsi. As algas da espécie Bostrychia radicans demonstraram potencial quando avaliadas as atividade citotóxica, tripanocida, leishmanicida e antimicrobiana; além de um perfil químico interessante, evidenciado pelo isolamento de substâncias inéditas na literatura. Neste contexto, o presente trabalho descreve a continuidade do estudo químico da espécie B. radicans, coletada no Manguezal do Rio Escuro, em Ubatuba-SP; bem como o potencial biológico desta espécie, além da avaliação da atividade de enzimas fenolsulfatases na espécie. Ainda, no sentido de explorar novas fontes promissoras para o isolamento de substâncias bioativas, este trabalho descreve o isolamento de micro-organismos endofíticos associados à espécie B. radicans. Foram isoladas 45 linhagens de micro-organismos; dentre as quais foram selecionadas nove linhagens para obtenção de extratos e realização de triagens química e biológica. A partir desta triagem inicial, foi realizado o estudo químico dos fungos Xylaria sp., Penicillium brevicompactum e Phomopsis longicolla. A partir da Xylaria sp. foram isoladas as seguintes substâncias: ácido 2,5-diidroxibenzóico, 8-diidroxinaftol 1-O-a-glucopiranosídeo, 8-metóxi-3-metil-1- isocromanona e ácido pilifórmico. O estudo químico de Penicillium brevicompactum resultou no isolamento das substâncias: ácido micofenólico, asperfenamato, brevianamida A, brevianamida C e brevianamida oxindol, substância inédita como produto natural. A partir de Phomopsis longicolla foi isolado o dicerandrol C. Este trabalho descreve ainda o potencial biológico de algumas destas substâncias isoladas. O estudo químico e biológico de microorganismos realizado no LQOAM estimulou a consolidação de uma colaboração com o Prof. Dr. Isidro C. Gonzalez, através da realização de um estágio de 12 meses no Laboratório Botrytis (Departamento de Química Orgânica, Universidade de Cádiz). Durante este período foi realizado o estudo químico do fitopatógeno Botrytis cinerea, visando o isolamento de novos metabólitos ou toxinas; além do estudo da biogênese destas substâncias, através de ensaios utilizando precursores isotopicamente marcados.
The diversity of organisms from the marine environment is a significant source of structurally novel and biologically active substances, several of which have inspired the development of new classes of therapeutic agents. In this context, red macroalgae belonging to Bostrychia genus (Rhodomelaceae) were collected on beaches of the north coast of São Paulo State and have been studied chemically and biologically in the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry of the Marine Environment - (LQOAM - NPPNS) at FCFRP-USP, under Prof. Hosana M. Debonsi supervision. Algae Bostrychia radicans species showed cytotoxic, trypanocidal, antileishmanial and antimicrobial potential, besides a interesting chemical profile, evidenced by the isolation of new compounds in the literature. In this context, this work describes the sequential chemical study of B. radicans species, collected at the Rio Escuro Mangrove, Ubatuba-SP, as well as the biological potential of this species. Also, the phenolsulphatases enzyme activity was evaluated in this species. Still, in order to explore new promising sources for the isolation of bioactive substances, this study describes the isolation of endophytic microorganisms associated to B. radicans. In this way, 45 strains of microorganisms were isolated and nine strains were selected for extracts preparation; and subsequently chemical and biological screenings. Based on the biological screening and chemical profile analyses, the large-scale fermentation of the endophytic fungi Xylaria sp., Penicillium brevicompactum and Phomopsis longicolla was carried out. The chromatographic purification of the bioactive acethyl acetate extract from Xylaria sp. allowed the isolation of 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid, 8- dihydroxynaphtol 1-O-a-glucopyranoside, 8-methoxy-3-methyl-1-isochromanone and piliformic acid. Chemical studies of Penicillium brevicompactum resulted in the isolation of: mycophenolic acid, asperphenamate, brevianamide A, brevianamide C and brevianamide oxindole, isolated for the first time as a natural product. From Phomopsis longicolla was isolated dicerandrol C. This thesis also describes the potential biological of some of these isolated compounds. The chemical and biological studies of microorganisms achieved in LQOAM encouraged the consolidation of a collaboration work with Prof. Dr. Isidro C. Gonzalez, through the completion of a 12-month internship at the Laboratory Botrytis (Department of Organic Chemistry, University of Cádiz). During this period, was conducted the chemical study of plant pathogen Botrytis cinerea, aiming the isolation of new metabolites or toxins, in addition to studying the biogenesis of these substances, through experiments using isotopically labeled precursors.