The objective of the present experiment was to assess ethyl alcohol (ETOH) dependence brought about by a semivoluntary intermittent intake regimen in rats. Male Wistar rats weighing 150-250 g at the onset of the experiment were assigned to the following groups: 0% ETOH (N = 11), 5% ETOH (N = 20), 20% ETOH (N = 20) and 40% ETOH (N = 18). ETOH solutions were offered at the end of the day and overnight from Monday to Friday, and throughout weekends, for 90 days. The concentration of the ETOH solutions was increased in a stepwise fashion allowing the rats to get used to the taste of alcohol. Reposition of pure water was permitted during 1-h water drinking periods in the morning. Daily volume intake (± SEM) averaged 25.4 ± 0.4 ml (0% ETOH), 23.8 ± 0.6 ml (5% ETOH), 17.6 ± 0.7 ml (20% ETOH) and 17.5 ± 0.6 ml (40% ETOH). ETOH consumption differed significantly (P<0.05) among groups, averaging 4.4 ± 0.2 g kg -1 day -1 (5% ETOH), 10.3 ± 0.3 g kg -1 day -1 (20% ETOH) and 26 ± 1.2 g kg -1 day -1 (40% ETOH). Furthermore, ETOH detection in plasma 10-12 h after offering the solution indicated that its consumption in the 40% ETOH group was sufficient to override its metabolism. Overt signs of ETOH dependence, such as increased thirst, hyperactivity, puffing, hair ruffling and startle responsiveness as well as reduced drowsiness, were significantly increased in the 20% and 40% ETOH groups compared to the 0% and 5% groups. Accordingly, the model described here proved to be a useful tool for the evaluation of subtle or moderate behavioral and physical consequences of long-term ETOH intake. Key wordsExperimental dependence on ethyl alcohol (ETOH) is usually induced by 3 methods of drug administration: involuntary, semivoluntary or voluntary (1). While the involuntary method refers to the forced drug administration by gastric intubation or by the intravenous, intraperitoneal and pulmonary routes (2), in the semivoluntary method ETOH is offered as part of a liquid or food diet, which is ingested spontaneously (3), and in the voluntary method the animals have to learn to self-administer the drug (4). Both advantages and disadvantages have been observed for each procedure. Thus, whereas the involuntary method is quite suitable for the evaluation of the development of tolerance and early signs of physical dependence (1,5), the procedure is rather ag-

This report describes a novel strategy for isolating Drosophila mutants with conditional eye phenotypes that should be generally applicable for identifying genes required for cellular responses to specific drugs. To test the strategy, we screened 3 of the 5 major chromosome arms for hydroxyurea- and (or) caffeine-sensitive (huc) mutants, and isolated mutations affecting 5 different complementation groups. Most of these were represented by single alleles; however, we also isolated multiple alleles of huc29DE gene, an essential gene that is also associated with a nonconditional pupal lethal phenotype. We also identified huc95E mutants, which are extremely sensitive to caffeine. Although huc95E is a nonessential gene, mutant imaginal disc cells undergo caffeine-dependent apoptosis, and huc95E gene function is required for the viability of the organism when mutant larvae are exposed to levels of caffeine that controls can easily tolerate. We have mapped the cytological positions of huc29D and huc95E as a first step toward molecularly characterizing the relevant genes.

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30 Objective: To assess the association between indicators of psychosocial stress 31 and central adiposity in adult users of the Unified Health System (SUS) from 32 Southeast of Brazil. 33 Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted with 384 adults (20 to 59 34 years old) from the city of Alegre, Southeastern Brazil. The simple random 35 sample represented the population using the public health system of the 36 municipality. The prevalence of obesity was based on the Body Mass Index, 37 and central adiposity (dependent variable) was measured by waist 38 circumference in centimeters. The independent variables were the following 39 indicators of psychosocial stress: food and nutrition insecurity (yes/no), serum 40 cortisol (μg/dL), symptoms suggestive of depression using the Beck Depression 41Inventory-II ≥ 17 (yes/no), and altered blood pressure ≥ 130/85 mmHg (yes/no). 42Univariate linear regression was performed between central adiposity and each 43 stress indicator, and later the models were adjusted for socioeconomic, health, 44 and lifestyle variables. All analyses were stratified by rural and urban location. 45Results: The prevalence of weight excess was 68.3%, and 71.5% of individuals 46 presented an increased risk for metabolic complications related to central 47 adiposity. Mean waist circumference scores for the rural and urban population 48 were 89.3 ± 12.7 cm and 92.9 ± 14.7 cm, respectively (p = 0.012). Indicators of 49 stress that were associated with central adiposity were: cortisol in the rural 3 50 population and altered blood pressure in the urban population. This occurred 51 both in the raw analysis and in the models adjusted for confounding factors. 52 Conclusion: The associations between stress and adiposity were different 53 between rural (cortisol -inverse association) and urban (altered blood pressure) 54 lifestyles, confirming the influence of local and psychosocial subsistence on the 55 modulation of stress and on how individuals react or restrain stressors. Stress 56 reduction strategies can be useful in public health programs designed to 57 prevent or treat obesity. 58 59 60 61 62 Introduction 63 Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive 64 accumulation of fat that can be detrimental to health.(1) Weight excess affects 65 all regions of the world and is now appearing as a global epidemic. According to 66 the World Health Organization (WHO), 38.9% of the world population aged 18 67 or more present weight excess and of these, 13.1% are obese.(2) Compared to 68 other WHO regions, the prevalence of weight excess is higher in the Americas 69 (62% for overweight in both sexes, and 26% for obesity in adults over 20 years 70 of age).(3) The prevalence is higher in the United States of America, Mexico, 71 and Chile, where weight excess affects between six and seven out of 10 72 adults.(3, 4) In Brazil, the National Health Survey (NHS) presented a similar 73 scenario, with 56.9% of overweight adults.(5) 4 74 The term stress has already been mentioned in the literature over t...