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Little is known about health providers' attitudes toward visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and cryotherapy in the prevention of cervical cancer, as most research in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has examined attitudes of the general population. This study describes attitudes of Bolivian health professionals toward new technologies for cervical cancer prevention, focusing on VIA and cryotherapy.Between February 2011 and March 2012, we surveyed 7 nurses and 35 physicians who participated in 5-day workshops on VIA and cryotherapy conducted in Bolivia. Multiple choice and open-ended questions were used to assess participants' acceptability of these procedures and the feasibility of their implementation in the context of perceived barriers for the early detection of cervical cancer in this country.Most believed that cultural factors represent the main barrier for the early detection of cervical cancer (70%), although all stated that VIA and cryotherapy would be accepted by women, citing the advantages of VIA over cytology for this belief. Most also believed their colleagues would accept VIA and cryotherapy (71%) and that VIA should replace Pap testing (61%), reiterating the advantages of VIA for these beliefs. Those who believed the contrary expressed a general resistance to change associated with an already existing cytology program and national norms prioritizing Pap testing.Most participants had favorable attitudes toward VIA and cryotherapy; however, a sizable minority cited challenges to their adoption by colleagues and believed VIA should not replace cytology. This report can inform the development of strategies to expand the use of alternative cervical cancer screening methods in LAC and Bolivia.

Estudos da qualidade do ar de diferentes tipos de ambientes fechados vêm merecendo atenção, devido principalmente à grande quantidade de substratos favoráveis à ação de agentes biodegradadores, como os fungos anemófilos, sobre os acervos escritos e digitais. A presente pesquisa identificou e monitorou a micobiota aérea de 04 bibliotecas públicas de referência no município de Fortaleza-CE, durante 24 meses (janeiro/2009 a dezembro/2010). A coleta foi realizada pelo método da sedimentação passiva das partículas presentes no ar em placas de Petri contendo Ágar Batata Dextrose (Himedia®). Essas placas foram dispostas, bimestralmente, em diversos setores das bibliotecas: acervo de obras, área de pesquisa, sala de leitura, sala de documentos históricos e em áreas administrativas (secretaria), perfazendo 240 amostras. As placas foram incubadas por 7 dias (26 – 28 °C) com posterior contagem global e identificação das colônias fúngicas baseada nas análises macro e micromorfológicas. Nas bibliotecas A, B, C e D foram contabilizadas 3.347, 5.874, 6.328 e 5.333 colônias fúngicas, respectivamente e identificados 61 diferentes achados fúngicos (34 gêneros e 27 espécies fúngicas), com destaque para os hialomicetos Aspergillus e Penicillium. Os dados revelaram alguns agrupamentos com forte correlação, isto é, quando um dos achados fúngicos ocorre, os demais achados do agrupamento também podem estar presentes no ar analisado, a saber: Biblioteca A (Penicillium sp., Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus sp. e Aspergillus flavus), Biblioteca B (Aspergillus niger e A. flavus), Biblioteca C (Penicillium sp., Trichoderma sp. e A. niger) e Biblioteca D (Penicillium sp. e A. niger). A pesquisa também permitiu oferecer aos gestores das bibliotecas, elementos para aprofundar seus conhecimentos na área de preservação e conservação de obras literárias de inestimável valor.

Glutamine synthetase expression was studied in developing root-nodules of common bean with regard to the time-course of specific activity, antigen accumulation, polypeptide composition and in vitro translation products. This analysis shows that the nodule-specific GS polypeptide (GS-gamma) is detected prior to the nitrogenase acetylene-reducing activity, and that its accumulation together with that of the GS-alpha and GS-beta polypeptides vary with nodule age. GS-gamma is present in ineffective nodules, although in a lower ratio to GS-beta than in wild-type nodules. Comparisons of in vitro translated and in vivo synthesized GS polypeptides suggest no post-translational modifications. The possible factors and mechanisms involved in the regulation of expression of GS polypeptides are discussed.