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Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infection was discovered over 50 years ago; however, the serious clinical changes associated with FeLV infection still have great importance in the diagnosis, prevention, and clinical management of symptomatic patients. Progressive infection with FeLV leads to a reduction in the patient’s life expectancy and quality of life. This report describes the use of an antiretroviral integrase inhibitor, raltegravir, in two cats with natural FeLV infection. Raltegravir was administered orally at a dose of 40 mg/ cat every 12 h in both cases. In case one, 13 weeks after starting raltegravir, RNA loads were undetectable, while proviral DNA loads were still detectable. In case two, proviral DNA loads were undetectable after 32 weeks of medication, while RNA loads were undetectable throughout the treatment. No adverse effects or laboratory test abnormalities were detected with the use of raltegravir in either patient. The patients are currently clinically healthy, still receiving the drug, and are under close observation. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing the use of raltegravir in naturally infected FeLV-positive cats and its effects on circulating viral load. Moreover, the patients described here were followed-up for a longer period than those in previously reported cases.

O combate a disseminação de notícias falsas e a desinformação em saúde tem sido apontado como um dos maiores desafios atuais dentro da saúde coletiva mundial. A psiquiatria e as áreas relacionadas à saúde mental são especialmente impactadas pela falta de educação em saúde, uma vez que estas ainda são fortemente relacionadas a estigmas e a marginalização social. Neste artigo, abordaremos as vantagens e as limitações do uso de tecnologias de informação e comunicação como ferramentas de psicoeducação, apontando futuros direcionamentos para o desenvolvimento dessas tecnologias.

INTRODUÇÃO: O mecanismo de ação dos inibidores do co-transportador de sódio-glicose 2 (iSGLT2) consiste no aumento da glicosúria. Existe evidência da associação entre a sua toma e a ocorrência de infeções genitais. Porém, a associação com infeções do trato urinário (ITU) não está bem estabelecida. Pretende-se analisar a evidência atual sobre a associação entre iSGLT2 em doentes com diabetes mellitus tipo 2 e a ocorrência de ITU. MÉTODOS: Pesquisadas normas de orientação clínica, meta-análises (MA), revisões sistemáticas e ensaios clínicos controlados e aleatorizados (ECCA) entre outubro de 2011 e outubro de 2021 na The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, The Cochrane Library e PubMed. Utilizados os termos MeSH “urinary tract infection”, “sodium-glucose transporter 2 inhibitors” e “diabetes mellitus, type 2”. Para atribuição dos níveis de evidência (NE) foi utilizada a escala Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy, da American Academy of Family Physicians. RESULTADOS: Dos 331 resultados identificados, 6 cumpriram os critérios de inclusão: 5 ECCA e 1 MA. Todos classificados com NE 2. A evidência da associação entre a toma de iSGLT2 e ITU foi apenas demonstrada, de forma estatisticamente significativa, na MA e relativamente à dapagliflozina na dosagem de 10 mg. CONCLUSÃO: Os estudos apresentam resultados heterogéneos, inconsistentes e de qualidade moderada. Os iSGLT2 têm afirmado o seu lugar no tratamento de múltiplas patologias pelo que impera a realização de estudos dirigidos à ocorrência de efeitos adversos como a frequência de ITU. Devem ainda compreender amostras de maior dimensão, diferentes moléculas e posologias, para a obtenção de evidência robusta.

Feline sporotrichosis is a major clinical problem among cats in Brazil and is also a neglected, but important, public health issue, due to its zoonotic potential. The nasal clinical form of the disease is particularly challenging, having treatment refractoriness and clinical signs relapse as common features. This case series study aimed to preliminarily describe the effects of the azolic antifungal drug, clotrimazole, as a topical 1% solution spray, together with per os itraconazole on inducing disease remission, as well as treatment tolerability and safety. Medical records of the Feline Medicine Service from the Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro were reviewed, and 7 feline patients met the inclusion criteria (confirmatory diagnostic reached, available follow-up records, and use of intranasal clotrimazole 1% solution –1 spray per nostril every 24 hours– as adjunctive therapy to itraconazole – 100 mg/cat per os every 24 hours). Among these, 4 had a history of treatment refractoriness done until then. Follow-up records included clinical evaluation, along with complementary tests and owner reports on tolerability and occurrence of adverse reactions. All patients have undergone clinical remission within 60 days. Tolerability were satisfactory, and adverse reactions were only found on complementary tests (hepatic enzyme elevation), without clinical repercussion. The intranasal use of 1% clotrimazole solution has shown as a promising adjunctive therapy to itraconazole for feline nasal sporotrichosis, even in previous refractory cases.

Immunolabeling on Romanowsky-stained cytology (RSC) slides can be used, although there is limited evidence of its suitability for phenotyping canine and feline lymphomas. A comparison with matched cell blocks (CB) is missing. Immunolabeling on RSC and CB was compared for lymphoid markers (CD3 and PAX5) in 53 lymphomas and 4 chylous effusions from dogs and cats. The influence of pre-analytical variables (species, time of archive, type of specimens and coverslipping) and the interobserver agreement among the 2 observers was assessed. Fewer CD3+ lymphocytes were identified in RSC, while the PAX5 positivity by RSC and CB had a substantial agreement. Immunodetection of CD3 and the diagnosis of a T-cell population on RSC was more difficult. Lower intensity and higher background were noted in RSC. Immunophenotyping was inconclusive in 54% RSC and 19% CB. The interobserver reproducibility of immunophenotyping on CB was substantial, being higher than in RSC. The immunolabeling performance on the RSC of effusion and feline samples was unsatisfactory. The detection of lymphoid markers, especially membranous antigens in retrospective RSC, is affected by the pre-analytical variables: species, time of the archive, and type of specimens. CB are a more consistent type of sample for immunophenotyping purposes.

BackgroundTraumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the most important causes of acquired structural epilepsy, post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE), however, efficient preventative measures and treatment are still not available to patients. Preclinical studies indicated biperiden, an anticholinergic drug, as a potential drug to modify the epileptogenic process. The main objective of this clinical trial is to evaluate the efficacy of biperiden as an antiepileptogenic agent in patients that suffered TBI.MethodsThis prospective multicenter (n = 10) interventional study will include 312 adult patients admitted to emergency care units with a diagnosis of moderate or severe TBI. Following inclusion and exclusion criteria, patients will be randomized, using block randomization, to receive double-blind treatment with placebo or biperiden for 10 days. Follow-up will occur at specific time windows up to 2 years. Main outcomes are incidence of PTE after TBI and occurrence of severe adverse events. Other outcomes include exploratory investigation of factors that might have benefits for the treatment or might influence its results, such as genetic background, clinical progression, electroencephalographic abnormalities, health-related quality of life and neuropsychological status. Analyses will be conducted following the safety, intention-to-treat and efficacy concepts.DiscussionWe hypothesize that biperiden treatment will be effective to prevent or mitigate the development of post-traumatic epilepsy in TBI patients. Other health measures from this population also may benefit from treatment with biperiden.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04945213. Registered on June 30, 2021.

Apresentação - Revista Videre v. 11, n. 22.

Seagrass meadows provide valuable ecosystem benefits but are at risk from disease. Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is a temperate species threatened by seagrass wasting disease (SWD), caused by the protist Labyrinthula zosterae. The pathogen is sensitive to warming ocean temperatures, prompting a need for greater understanding of the impacts on host health under climate change. Previous work demonstrates pathogen cultures grow faster under warmer laboratory conditions and documents positive correlations between warmer ocean temperatures and disease levels in nature. However, the consequences of disease outbreaks on eelgrass growth remain poorly understood. Here, we examined the effect of disease on eelgrass productivity in the field. We coupled in situ shoot marking with high-resolution imagery of eelgrass blades and used an artificial intelligence application to determine disease prevalence and severity from digital images. Comparisons of eelgrass growth and disease metrics showed that SWD impaired eelgrass growth and accumulation of non-structural carbon in the field. Blades with more severe disease had reduced growth rates, indicating that disease severity can limit plant growth. Disease severity and rhizome sugar content were also inversely related, suggesting that disease reduced belowground carbon accumulation. Finally, repeated measurements of diseased blades indicated that lesions can grow faster than healthy tissue in situ. This is the first study to demonstrate the negative impact of wasting disease on eelgrass health in a natural meadow. These results emphasize the importance of considering disease alongside other stressors to better predict the health and functioning of seagrass meadows in the Anthropocene.

Este artigo pretende traçar um panorama da jurisprudência da Corte Europeia dos Direitos Humanos no que tange à protecção do ambiente, destacando os casos de tutela por meio da protecção do domicílio. Como o termo “ambiente” não consta da Convenção, a Corte tem promovido, desde a década de 1990, uma protecção indirecta do macrobem ambiental, pela via da tutela da vida e da liberdade de expressão. Paralelamente, a Corte tem trabalhado a ponderação de bens como a propriedade, a liberdade e o acesso à justiça no confronto com a protecção do ambiente.

Some dams produce large amounts of GHGs and it is important to see whether future dams will satisfy sustainable energy goals. Here the authors estimate the range of GHG emission intensities expected for 351 proposed and 158 existing Amazon dams and find that existing Amazon hydropower reservoirs collectively emit 14 Tg CO2eq per year, and that if all proposed Amazon dams are built, annual emissions would increase 5-fold.

Abstract Background Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) represent a substantial portion of the human transcriptome. LncRNAs present a very stringent cell-type/tissue specificity being potential candidates for therapeutical applications during aging and disease. As example, targeting of MALAT1, a highly conserved lncRNA originally identified in metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, has shown promising results in cancer regression. Nevertheless, the regulation and specificity of MALAT1 have not been directly addressed. Interestingly, MALAT1 locus is spanned by an antisense transcript named TALAM1. Methods Here using a collection of breast cancer cells and in vitro and in vivo migration assays we characterized the dynamics of expression and demonstrated that TALAM1 regulates and synergizes with MALAT1 during tumorigenesis. Results Down-regulation of TALAM1 was shown to greatly impact on the capacity of breast cancer cells to migrate in vitro or to populate the lungs of immunocompromised mice. Additionally, we demonstrated that TALAM1 cooperates with MALAT1 in the regulation of the properties guiding breast cancer aggressiveness and malignancy. Conclusions By characterizing this sense/anti-sense pair we uncovered the complexity of MALAT1 locus regulation, describing new potential candidates for cancer targeting.