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Background: Leptospirosis is caused by pathogenic spirochetes of the genus Leptospira spp. This zoonotic disease is distributed globally and affects domestic animals, including cattle. Leptospira interrogans serogroup Sejroe serovar Hardjo and Leptospira borgpetersenii serogroup Sejroe serovar Hardjo remain important species associated with this reproductive disease in livestock production. Previous studies on Brazilian livestock have reported that L. interrogans serovar Hardjo is the most prevalent leptospiral agent in this country and is related to clinical signs of leptospirosis, which lead to economic losses in production. Here, we described the isolation of three clinical strains (Norma, Lagoa and Bolivia) obtained from leptospirosis outbreaks that occurred in Minas Gerais state in 1994 and 2008. Results: Serological and molecular typing using housekeeping (secY and 16SrRNA) and rfb locus (ORF22 and ORF36) genes were applied for the identification and comparative analysis of Leptospira spp. Our results identified the three isolates as L. interrogans serogroup Sejroe serovar Hardjo and confirmed the occurrence of this bacterial strain in Brazilian livestock. Genetic analysis using ORF22 and ORF36 grouped the Leptospira into serogroup Sejroe and subtype Hardjoprajitno. Genetic approaches were also applied to compare distinct serovars of L. interrogans strains by verifying the copy numbers of the IS1500 and IS1533 insertion sequences (ISs). The IS1500 copy number varied among the analyzed L. interrogans strains. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that L. interrogans serogroup Sejroe serovar Hardjo subtype Hardjoprajitno causes bovine leptospirosis in Brazilian production. The molecular results suggested that rfb locus (ORF22 and ORF36) could improve epidemiological studies by allowing the identification of Leptospira spp. at the serogroup level. Additionally, the IS1500 and IS1533 IS copy number analysis suggested distinct genomic features among closely related leptospiral strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The violence against women occurs in several forms (physical or psychological) and has been studied because it concerns the health public policies. It is know that many women are victims of violence every day, and the main space that it happens is in the domestic place, as it can be found in the literature. The present study aims to investigate how violence in its many forms cause autobiographical alteration in women who are victims of violence and sought the public care network, and also how the host institution help these victims in the reframing process. To this end, three women (ages between 20 and 50) who sought care at a Centro de Referência da Mulher in Minas Gerais/Brazil were interviewed. These women were asked after the reception given by the Centre to take part in a semi-structured interview conducted in a federal local university. The interview aimed to investigate the changes in the women autobiography after violence. The results were analyzed from the theoretical Lacanian psychoanalysis and authors like Foucault and Goffman from the thematic content analysis of Bardin. It was found various changes in the interviewees' history and self recognition of victimized women, as well as the influence of the host institution. Besides, the enrichment of research in the area is needed to drive improvements in health care to these victims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Reforestation with Pinus spp. can affect soil organic carbon (SOC) and Fe oxides. [•] In four clayey soils of Brazil, SOC was depleted in only one, a midslope Ultisol. [•] Such SOC loss was associated with decreased amorphous Fe oxides in subsurface. [•] Pine plantation changed bulk density, color and structure compared to native forest. [•] Micromorphology showed Fe oxide migration within the same soil aggregates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The spatial distribution of soil C in the Cerrado of MG, Brazil, was determined. • The upper 30 cm of soil holds 45% of the stock found in the first meter. • Average soil C stock in MG Cerrado is greater than one reported for Brazilian Cerrado. • MG Cerrado woodland remnants store 1.03 Pg of C in the first meter of soil. • Regional-scale studies are needed to refine national estimates. In Brazil, studies addressing soil carbon (C) stocks under native vegetation are scarce and often limited to land use change comparisons at the plot level, while studies across larger areas are based on legacy data that address multiple land uses, use wet-oxidations methods to determine C concentrations (C c) and lack proper soil bulk density (ρ b) determinations. Together, these factors may result in either underestimations or biased soil C stocks, thereby hampering the development of adequate land use policy. In this study, we aimed to (i) determine the soil C stocks at different depths (0–10, 10–20, 20–40, 40–60 and 60–100 cm) in Cerrado woodland remnants in Minas Gerais (MG), southeastern Brazil, (ii) study the spatial distribution of soil C stocks using regression-kriging (RK), and (iii) provide a description of the soil C stock distribution and its relationship with variables that drive the soil C stock in the MG Cerrado. We designed a large soil inventory, in which soil samples were collected for soil C c and ρ b determination, to compute soil C stocks in the Cerrado biome of MG. Afterwards, we used RK to model the soil C stocks across the MG Cerrado to a depth of 1 m. Our results show that using RK to map C stocks across different soil layers in the MG Cerrado resulted in accurate estimates. The soil C stocks in the MG Cerrado tend to increase in the west-east direction, are positively correlated with altitude and silt + clay content, and are negatively correlated with the mean annual temperature and total annual precipitation. On average, the C stored at the 0–40 cm layer accounted for 56% of the total C stocked in the top 1 m of soil. Approximately 1.03 Pg of C is stored in the MG Cerrado soils at a depth of 1 m. The average soil C stock in the MG Cerrado is approximately 53% larger than the average indicated for the Brazilian Cerrado. Our results highlight the need for more detailed regional scale soil C inventories in the country to refine national C accounting. We believe our study can aid the development of adequate land use policy and could be used as a baseline for land use change studies in the MG Cerrado. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]