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This study was conducted in the Gurupi Biological Reserve (REBIO-Gurupi), the largest area of Amazon rainforest in Maranhão State, Brazil. The objectives were to survey the sand fly (Diptera: Psychodidae) fauna of REBIO-Gurupi, identify blood meal sources, and investigate the presence of Leishmania (Ross, 1903) (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) DNA. Individuals were collected using Centers for Disease Control (CDC) light traps and black and white Shannon traps in May and Jun 2022 and Jan 2023. DNA was extracted from female sand flies and subjected to amplification and sequencing of cytochrome b molecular marker (CYTB) for identification of blood meal sources and the first internal transcribed spacer (ITS-1) of ribosomal DNA for Leishmania detection. A total of 514 sand flies individuals were sampled, of which 93 were identified at the genus or series level (9 taxa) and 421 were identified at the species level (24 taxa). Psychodopygus davisi (Root, 1934) (41.1%), Nyssomyia antunesi (Coutinho, 1939) (10.3%), and Psychodopygus (Mangabeira, 1941) Chagasi Series Barretto, 1962 (9.7%) were the most frequently collected. Human (Homo sapiens, Primates, Hominidae) and tapir (Tapirus terrestris, Perissodactyla, Tapiridae) DNA was detected in 10 female sand flies. Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum Cunha and Chagas, 1937 DNA was detected in 2 specimens of Ps. davisi. Given the presence of vectors of Leishmania in REBIO-Gurupi, it is imperative to conduct more comprehensive studies on the interactions among sand flies, Leishmania, and pathogen reservoirs in the area., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Elephant grass, Cenchrus purpureus, exhibits high efficiency in sequesting atmospheric CO2 during photosynthesis, leading to significant biomass production. As a C4 plant, it holds immense potential for alternative biodiesel production and serves as fresh feed for cattle (Negawo et al. 2018). Field observations in commercial pastures planted with elephant grass, located in the Brazilian cerrado, revealed necrotic leaf spots with a brownish center and a yellowish halo, reaching a severity of 30 to 50% between 2022 and 2023 in Palmas (10°24'08"S 48°21'45" W) and Gurupi (11°46'21"S 49°02'08" W), municipalities located in the state of Tocantins, Brazil. In both years, the field incidence of the disease on young and mature leaves approached 100% during the rainy season. Affected leaves were collected, packed in a thermal box, and taken to the phytopathology laboratory. The 198 leaves were sanitised in 1% hypochlorite for 30 seconds and washed thrice in sterile water. Upon sanitisation, leaf tissues were cut and cultured on potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium and incubated in a controlled chamber (BOD) at 28°C with a 12-hour photoperiod. Colonies exhibited a greyish colour with whitish edges, and the top plate was brownish, growing to a diameter of 5 cm over seven days. The colonies obtained from monosporic cultures formed curved conidia, predominantly with three septa, of a brownish colour, with lengths ranging from (7 µm to 14 µm and widths from 5 µm to 7 µm. (N=-50, Fig 1) (Yasanthika et al. 2023). The UFTCC01 isolate's DNA was extracted using the extraction kit (PROMEGA ®), amplified for genes (ITS, Gapdh and Tefα1), sequenced (OR345316.1, OR344427.1 and OR344428.1) and compared in BLASTn at Gen Bank deposited sequences. Phylogenetic analysis using the parsimony method in MEGA X identified the isolate as Curvularia chiangmaiensis, showing 99.5% identity with reference sequences (MN215651.1, MN264085.1, and MN263942.1). Concatenated region comparison revealed 94% similarity to sequences (OP564987.1 and MF490814.1) in the phylogenetic tree, confirming the species. The pathogenicity test used 60 seedlings of 50-day-old elephant grass, 30 of which were inoculated with a spore suspension (3.0 × 106 spores/mL) and 30 with sterile water. The solutions were sprayed twice. Only plants inoculated with the spore suspension exhibited symptoms akin to those observed in the field. Then, the fungus was reisolated from the lesions and Koch's postulates were confirmed twice.Previous studies have documented the C. chiangmaiensis pathogenicity in other grasses, such as maise in Thailand (Marin et al. 2017). Our studies constitute the first report of C. chiangmaiensis causing leaf spots on elephant grass in the Brazil.

Purpose: There is a tendency to use data generated for adults in the management of pediatric Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma, neglecting the clinical peculiarities of this condition in childhood. This study aimed to assess and compare the clinical-epidemiological characteristics and their significance in the evolution of thyroid carcinoma diagnosed in childhood across different age groups., Methods: Seventy-seven patients diagnosed with Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma (DTC) up to 21 years old were selected and divided into different age groups: up to 10 years, 11 to 18 years, and 19 to 21 years old. Clinical-epidemiological data and their influence in the disease progression were analyzed and compared across age groups., Results: Patients diagnosed below 10 years of age were associated with tumors showing extrathyroidal extension, metastasis in regional lymph nodes, higher levels of stimulated thyroglobulin in the diagnostic iodine-131 whole-body scan (WBS), and under TSH suppression in the last assessment. Additionally, pulmonary metastasis were associated in both diagnostic and post-radioiodine dose WBSs in these younger patients. Analysis of findings in the post-radioiodine therapy WBS revealed significant differences between all age groups (p = 0.0029). The time of diagnosis was identified as a factor associated with an excellent response in subgroups up to 18 years and up to 21 years. No factors associated with dynamic responses over the 1st, 3rd and 5th years of follow-up and the persistence/recurrence of the disease were identified in the subgroup up to 18 years. In the subgroup up to 21 years, having an incomplete structural response in the 3rd year of follow-up increased the chances of recurrent or persistent response by 5.5 times, and by 32.6 times if found in the 5th year of follow-up., Conclusions: Younger patients exhibited more aggressive tumor characteristics and underwent more rigorous treatment. However, treatment response and disease status in the last assessment, whether free or recurrent/persistence, were similar when comparing the age groups of 11 to 18 and 19 to 21 years. Nonetheless, responses obtained in the 3rd and 5th years post-treatment emerged as factors associated with the persistence/recurrence of the disease in the last assessment in the age group up to 21 years but not in patients diagnosed up to 18 years, a relevant distinction considering the tumor behavior in defining the pediatric age range in thyroid cancer., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

This article aims to evaluate the adherence to antihypertensive treatment prevalence in the Brazilian population based on peer-reviewed studies which used instruments exclusively designed and/or adapted for this purpose. A systematic review with meta-analysis based on the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The search was carried out in the BDENF, SciELO, Cuiden, PsycINFOe, CINAHL, Embase, LILACS, and MEDLINE databases, as well as the AgeLine, Google Scholar and ScienceDirect academic search engines. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021292689). Random effects models were used for a meta-analysis of the prevalence obtained from individual studies. A total of 104 studies were included in the meta-analysis on antihypertensive treatment in the Brazilian population, totaling 38,299 patients. The most used instrument was the four-item Morisky-Green Test (49.5%). The adherence prevalence estimated by the meta-analysis was 44.4% (95%CI: 39.12%-49.94%, I2 = 91.17, p < 0.001), showing high heterogeneity. The adherence to antihypertensive treatment prevalence found in national studies was unsatisfactory, demonstrating that this problem continues to be a major challenge.

Aims: We developed three new analogs of the antimicrobial peptide (AMP) Citropin 1.1: DAN-1-13, AJP-1-1, and HHX-2-28, and tested their potential antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against Staphylococcus aureus and S. pseudintermedius. Potential cytotoxic or hemolytic effects were determined using cultured human keratinocytes and erythrocytes to determine their safety., Methods and Results: To assess the antimicrobial activity of each compound, minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBC) were determined against methicillin-resistant and methicillin-susceptible strains of S. aureus and S. pseudintermedius. Activity against newly formed and mature biofilms was determined in two clinical isolates using spectrophotometry and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). All three compounds exhibited antimicrobial and bactericidal activity against all studied S. aureus and S. pseudintermedius strains, with MICs ranging from 4-32 μg ml-1 and MBCs ranging from 8-128 μg ml-1. Subinhibitory concentrations of all compounds also showed ant-biofilm activity in the two tested isolates. All compounds exhibited limited cytotoxic and hemolytic activity., Conclusions: Novel analogs of Citropin 1.1 exhibit antimicrobial and bactericidal activities against S. aureus and S. pseudintermedius isolates and inhibit the biofilm formation of these bacteria., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Applied Microbiology International.)

Stomata are microscopic pores at the surface of plant leaves that facilitate gaseous diffusion to support photosynthesis. The guard cells around each stoma regulate the pore aperture. Plants that carry out C 4 photosynthesis are usually more resilient than C 3 plants to stress, and their stomata operate over a lower dynamic range of CO 2 within the leaf. What makes guard cells of C 4 plants more responsive than those of C 3 plants? We used gas exchange and electrophysiology, comparing stomatal kinetics of the C 4 plant Gynandropsis gynandra and the phylogenetically related C 3 plant Arabidopsis thaliana. We found, with varying CO 2 and light, that Gynandropsis showed faster changes in stomata conductance and greater water use efficiency when compared with Arabidopsis. Electrophysiological analysis of the dominant K + channels showed that the outward-rectifying channels, responsible for K + loss during stomatal closing, were characterised by a greater maximum conductance and substantial negative shift in the voltage dependence of gating, indicating a reduced inhibition by extracellular K + and enhanced capacity for K + flux. These differences correlated with the accelerated stomata kinetics of Gynandropsis, suggesting that subtle changes in the biophysical properties of a key transporter may prove a target for future efforts to engineer C 4 stomatal kinetics., (© 2023 The Authors. Plant, Cell & Environment published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Guanitoxin (GNT) is a potent cyanotoxin, with a relatively low number of publications (n = 51) compared to other cyanotoxins. Among the published studies, 35 % were on the effect of the toxin in animals, mainly in rodents and in vitro testing, followed by studies that identified species of cyanobacteria that produce GNT in aquatic systems and consequently accidental poisoning in wild and domestic animals (27 %). Studies that developed or tested methods for identifying the molecule, based on colorimetric and analytical techniques, represented 14 %, while 8 % were on GNT biosynthesis. Review articles and chemical isolation (6 %) and on the stability of the molecule (4 %) were the topics with the lowest number of publications. The results show the occurrence of GNT was identified mainly in eutrophic environments with a higher incidence in the American continent. Chemical characteristics of the molecule, such as short half-life in the environment, instability in solutions with alkaline pH values, temperature >23 °C, added to the lack of an analytical standard, are factors that make it difficult to identify and quantify it. However, GNT monitoring can be performed using LC-MS-MRM methods or genes specific to the newly discovered molecule., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study evaluated collagen solubility and gene expression of biomarkers for intramuscular collagen (IMCT) deposition and remodeling in the Longissimus muscle of bulls and steers through the finishing phase. Thirty-six Nellore calves were used (18 bulls and 18 steers), and six of each sexual condition were randomly assigned to be harvested at 0, 100, or 200 days on feed (DOF) to evaluate collagen characteristics in different time points throughout the finishing phase. Bulls showed a greater collagen solubility than steers (P = 0.03). The gene expression of fibrogenic markers (TGFβ1, COL1A1, and COL3A1) and IMCT remodeling mediators (MMPII, TIMPII, and LOX) were not affected by sexual condition or DOF (P > 0.05). Our data indicate that young Nellore bulls have a higher percentage of soluble intramuscular collagen, possibly due to higher collagen remodeling associated with a faster growth rate and muscle hypertrophy. Moreover, castration and DOF did not modify mRNA levels of fibrogenic and collagen remodeling markers., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This data descriptor presents two main datasets and a set of auxiliary files. The mobility dataset presents a long-term study of human mobility in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area (RJMA) performed in the entire year of 2014 based on mobile phone data. The socioeconomic dataset presents selected socioeconomic variables of the Brazilian 2010 census. A set of auxiliary files is included to present georeferenced information and geographic features (shapefiles) and data used to validate the mobility estimates. The human mobility estimation was carried out using a methodology that allows direct integration with census data, based on an approximation of the geographic boundaries of census units by an aggregation of Voronoi polygons of the mobile phone antennas. The study area is the Brazilian local area 21, which includes the entire RJMA and four other municipalities. The mobility dataset is divided into two files: one is an estimation of the origin-destination (OD) matrix per day, and the other is a visitors' dataset where the number of visitors of each location is estimated in four shifts each day. The socioeconomic dataset presents information of 55 variables for each location, which have been used in different studies and present the longest human mobility dataset available for public use., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Background: Nonadherence to antihypertensive treatment is one of the main causes of the lack of blood pressure (BP) control. The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic imposes substantial social restriction impairing the medical care routine, which may influence adherence to the antihypertensive treatment. To assess the rate of nonadherence to antihypertensive drug treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: This is a cross-sectional study evaluating hypertensive adult patients from a tertiary outpatient clinic. From March to August 2020, patients were interviewed by telephone during the social distancing period of the COVID-19 pandemic. We evaluated biosocial data, habits, attitudes, and treatment adherence using the 4-item Morisky Green Levine Scale during the social distancing. Uncontrolled BP was defined by BP ≥ 140/90 mmHg. Clinical and prescription variables for drug treatment were obtained from the electronic medical record. We performed a multivariate analysis to determine the predictors of nonadherence to BP treatment., Results: We studied 281 patients (age 66 ± 14 years, 60.5% white, 62.3% women, mean education of 9.0 ± 4 years of study). We found that 41.3% of the individuals reported poor adherence to antihypertensive drug treatment and 48.4% had uncontrolled BP. Subsample data identified that adherence was worse during the pandemic than in the previous period. The variables that were independently associated with the nonadherence during the pandemic period were black skin color (odds ratio [OR], 2.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.46-4.68), and intermittent lack of access to antihypertensive medication during the pandemic (OR, 2.56; 95% CI, 1.11-5.89)., Conclusions: Beyond traditional variables associated with poor adherence, the lack of availability of antihypertensive medications during the study underscore the potential role of pandemic on hypertension burden., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Stomata of plant leaves open to enable CO 2 entry for photosynthesis and close to reduce water loss via transpiration. Compared with photosynthesis, stomata respond slowly to fluctuating light, reducing assimilation and water use efficiency. Efficiency gains are possible without a cost to photosynthesis if stomatal kinetics can be accelerated. Here we show that clustering of the GORK channel, which mediates K + efflux for stomatal closure in the model plant Arabidopsis, arises from binding between the channel voltage sensors, creating an extended 'sensory antenna' for channel gating. Mutants altered in clustering affect channel gating to facilitate K + flux, accelerate stomatal movements and reduce water use without a loss in biomass. Our findings identify the mechanism coupling channel clustering with gating, and they demonstrate the potential for engineering of ion channels native to the guard cell to enhance stomatal kinetics and improve water use efficiency without a cost in carbon fixation., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

Background: The ROX index ( R espiratory rate- OX ygenation) has been described as a prediction tool to identify the need for invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) with acute hypoxaemic respiratory failure treated with high-flow nasal cannula in order to avoid delay of a necessary intubation. However, its use in predicting the need for ventilatory support in hospitalised patients with CAP has not been validated., Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study including subjects with CAP treated in the general ward, emergency service or intensive care unit of a third-level centre in Cundinamarca, Colombia, between January 2001 and February 2020. The ROX index was estimated as the ratio of oxygen saturation/fraction of inspired oxygen to respiratory rate., Results: A total of 895 patients were included, of whom 93 (10%) required IMV. The ROX index proved to be a good predictor, presenting an area under the curve of receiver operating characteristics (AUROC) of 0.733 (95% CI 0.671 to 0.795, p<0.001) when determined by pulse oximetry and an AUROC of 0.779 (95% CI 0.699 to 0.859, p<0.001) when estimated by arterial blood gas (ABG) parameters, with an intraclass correlation of 0.894. The estimated cut-off point was 14.8; a score less than 14.8 indicates high risk of requiring IMV., Conclusion: The ROX index is a good predictor of IMV in hospitalised patients with CAP. It presents good performance when calculated through pulse oximetry and can replace the one calculated by ABG., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Teleconsultation can be classified as an advanced practice nursing that requires nurses' clinical reasoning based on a consistent theoretical framework to use in the nursing process. Our study conducted a theoretical-reflective analysis, based on Callista Roy's Adaptation Model of Nursing and Chick-Meleis' Transition Theory, about the contribution of teleconsultation as an advanced practice nursing in the care of older adults with chronic diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic. We reflect on this in two moments: "nursing theories and dealing with COVID-19" and "ways of adapting to new care models and advanced practice nursing," based on communication and information technologies. The worsening of the pandemic in Brazil changed life cycles, health/disease and organizational processes, demanding the development of an adaptive-transactional state by users and health care providers. Thus, information and communication technologies combined with advanced practice nursing can relieve social distancing and its repercussions on health care.

Objective: To evaluate and identify variables associated with the control of hypertension and adherence to antihypertensive drug treatment in a group of patients with hypertension monitored in a specialized, highly complex outpatient service., Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out in the hypertension unit of a tertiary teaching hospital. Patients diagnosed with hypertensive aged 18 years and over and accompanied for at least six months were included in the study. Patients with secondary hypertension and pregnant women were excluded. The sample consisted of 253 patients. Adherence/concordance to antihypertensive treatment was assessed using the Morisky Green Levine Scale. Blood pressure control was set for values less than 140/90 mmHg. Variables with p≤0.20 in univariate analysis were included in multiple logistic regression. The level of significance adopted was p ≤0.05., Results: Most of patients were white, married and women, with a mean age of 65 (13.3) years old, low income, and education levels. Blood pressure control and adherence were observed in 69.2% and 90.1% of the patients, respectively. Variables that were independently associated with blood pressure control were (OR, odds ratio; CI, 95% confidence interval): married marital status (OR 2.3; CI 1.34-4.28), use of calcium channel blockers (OR 0.4; CI 0.19-0.92) and number of prescribed antihypertensive drugs (OR 0.78; CI 0.66-0.92). Adherence was not associated with any of the variables studied., Conclusion: There was a high frequency of patients with satisfactory adherence to antihypertensive drug treatment. Blood pressure control was less frequent and was associated with social and treatment-related factors., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest relevant to this manuscript., (© 2021 Guimarães et al.)

Occupational violence is a problem that health professionals are exposed to daily. This cross-sectional study aimed at identifying the prevalence of violence at work (verbal/physical) and the variables related to it in nursing professionals working in oncology. Physical or verbal aggression was assessed through self-report. The relationship between sociodemographic, psycho-emotional and work-related violence (verbal/physical) variables was analyzed using the Chi-Square, Fisher's Exact, Student T and Mann-Whitney tests. The study sample consisted of 231 nursing professionals. The prevalence of physical or verbal aggression reported in the last year was 61.5%. A higher prevalence of aggression was evidenced in professionals who stated that they were tired at the end of the shift and presented reduced concentration during the shift. It is noteworthy that workers who suffered violence presented high levels of burnout in all subscales, a higher Mean score on the work stress scale and a lower Mean with regards to sleep quality. The findings of this study point to the need for institutional measures to prevent and control occupational violence.

The use of ultraviolet (UV) and blue irradiation to sterilize surfaces is well established, but commercial applications would be enhanced if the light source is replaced with ambient light. In this paper, it is shown that nanofibers can be explored as an alternative methodology to UV and blue irradiation for bacterial inactivation. It is demonstrated that this is indeed possible using spun nanofibers of poly[lactic- co -(glycolic acid)] (PLGA). This work shows that PLGA spun scaffolds can promote photoinactivation of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria with ambient light or with laser irradiation at 630 nm. With the optimized scaffold composition of PLGA85:15 nanofibers, the minimum intensity required to kill the bacteria is much lower than in antimicrobial blue light applications. The enhanced effect introduced by PLGA scaffolds is due to their nanofiber structures since PLGA spun nanofibers were able to inactivate both S. aureus and E. coli bacteria, but cast films had no effect. These findings pave the way for an entirely different method to sterilize surfaces, which is less costly and environmentally friendly than current procedures. In addition, the scaffolds could also be used in cancer treatment with fewer side effects since photosensitizers are not required.

Manganese porphyrins are well-known protectors against the deleterious effects of pro-oxidant species such as superoxide ions and hydrogen peroxide. The present study investigated the antioxidant cytochrome c-like activities of Mn(III)TMPyP [meso-tetrakis (4-N-methyl pyridinium) porphyrin] against superoxide ion and hydrogen peroxide that remained unexplored for this porphyrin. The association of TMPyP with a model of the inner mitochondrial membrane, cardiolipin (CL)-containing liposomes, shifted +30 mV vs. NHE (normal hydrogen electrode) redox potential of the Mn (II) /Mn (III) redox couple. In CL-containing liposomes, Mn (III) TMPyP was reduced by superoxide ions and recycled by Fe (III) cytochrome c to the oxidized form. Similarly, isolated rat liver mitoplasts added to a sample of Mn (II) TMPyP promoted immediate porphyrin reoxidation by electron transfer to the respiratory chain. These results show that Mn (III) TMPyP can act as an additional pool of Fe (III) cytochrome c capable of transferring electrons that escape from the IV complex back into the respiratory chain. Unlike Fe (II) cytochrome c, Mn (II) TMPyP was not efficient for hydrogen peroxide clearance. Therefore, by reducing cytochrome c, Mn (II) TMPyP can indirectly contribute to hydrogen peroxide elimination., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest Authors declare no conflicts of interest and no competing interests., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. and Société Française de Biochimie et Biologie Moléculaire (SFBBM). All rights reserved.)

Membrane voltage arises from the transport of ions through ion-translocating ATPases, ion-coupled transport of solutes, and ion channels, and is an integral part of the bioenergetic "currency" of the membrane. The dynamics of membrane voltage-so-called action, systemic, and variation potentials-have also led to a recognition of their contributions to signal transduction, both within cells and across tissues. Here, we review the origins of our understanding of membrane voltage and its place as a central element in regulating transport and signal transmission. We stress the importance of understanding voltage as a common intermediate that acts both as a driving force for transport-an electrical "substrate"-and as a product of charge flux across the membrane, thereby interconnecting all charge-carrying transport across the membrane. The voltage interconnection is vital to signaling via second messengers that rely on ion flux, including cytosolic free Ca2+, H+, and the synthesis of reactive oxygen species generated by integral membrane, respiratory burst oxidases. These characteristics inform on the ways in which long-distance voltage signals and voltage oscillations give rise to unique gene expression patterns and influence physiological, developmental, and adaptive responses such as systemic acquired resistance to pathogens and to insect herbivory., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists.)

Introduction: Arterial hypertension is a disease that has a high impact on cardiovascular mortality and morbidity; however, it is still insufficiently controlled., Objectives: To assess hypertension control in patients seen at a specialized clinic and to identify associated variables., Method: Cross-sectional study involving the analysis of medical records from 782 patients treated in a highly complex outpatient clinic. Inclusion criteria: age ≥18 years, diagnosed with hypertension, in treatment ≥6 months. Patients with secondary hypertension (104) and incomplete data (64) were excluded. The main outcome was blood pressure control (systolic <140 and diastolic <90 mmHg). The independent variables studied were: sociodemographic and clinical characteristics (use of drugs, comorbidities and laboratory tests). Pearson's χ2 tests, Fisher's test, Student's t and Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney tests were performed in the bivariate analysis and logistic regression in the multiple analyses, adopting p≤0.05., Results: The prevalence of hypertensive control was 51.1%. It was associated with a lack of control: body mass index (OR = 1.038; 95% CI = 1.008 - 1.071), history of stroke (OR = 0.453; 95% CI = 0.245 - 0.821), left ventricular hypertrophy (OR = 1.765; 95% CI = 1.052 - 3.011), and number of medications (OR = 1.082; 95% CI = 1.033 - 1.136)., Conclusion: About half of the hypertensive patients had their blood pressure controlled; clinical variables and target organ damage were associated with the control.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of surface sealant and erosive challenge on the color change of composite resin after artificial staining with coffee. Forty-eight composite specimens (8 × 1 mm) were prepared and divided into 4 groups (n = 12) based on the timing of sealant application (immediate vs delayed) and exposure to acid (erosive challenge vs no challenge). The groups were subjected to the procedures in the following order: 1, sealant application, erosive challenge, color measurement, coffee immersion, and color measurement; 2, sealant application, color measurement, coffee immersion, and color measurement; 3, erosive challenge, color measurement, sealant application, coffee immersion, and color measurement; and 4, color measurement, sealant application, coffee immersion, and color measurement. In groups 1 and 2, surface sealant was applied immediately after preparation of the specimens. In groups 3 and 4, sealant was applied after the first color measurement. Color was measured with a spectrophotometer using the CIE L*a*b* system. The erosive challenge (groups 1 and 3) was carried out in 0.01M hydrochloric acid, 150 mL/cycle, at room temperature (2-minute immersions 4 times a day for 5 days). After all specimens were immersed in coffee for 14 days, new color measurements were performed. For total color change (∆E*), groups 1 (21.01) and 2 (23.10) presented lower values than groups 3 (27.76) and 4 (26.57). For luminosity (∆L*), the opposite occurred (groups: 1, -16.84; 2, -17.72; 3, -22.62; and 4, -21.22). For ∆a* and ∆b*, the only statistically significant difference was the group 1 ∆b* value, which was the lowest among all groups. The opacity remained stable in all groups. The results suggest that resin luminosity decreases and color variation increases when surface sealant is applied after erosive cycling and storage., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest pertaining to any of the products or companies discussed in this article.

Defining and measuring spatial inequalities across the urban environment remains a complex and elusive task which has been facilitated by the increasing availability of large geolocated databases. In this study, we rely on a mobile phone dataset and an entropy-based metric to measure the attractiveness of a location in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area (Brazil) as the diversity of visitors' location of residence. The results show that the attractiveness of a given location measured by entropy is an important descriptor of the socioeconomic status of the location, and can thus be used as a proxy for complex socioeconomic indicators.

Ca 2+ -overload contributes to the oxidation of mitochondrial membrane lipids and associated events such as the permeability transition pore (MPTP) opening. Numerous experimental studies about the Ca 2+ /cardiolipin (CL) interaction are reported in the literature, but there are few studies in conjunction with theoretical approaches based on ab initio calculations. In the present study, the lipid fraction of the inner mitochondrial membrane was modeled as POPC/CL large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs). POPC/CL and, comparatively, POPC, and CL LUVs were challenged by singlet molecular oxygen using the anionic porphyrin TPPS4 as a photosensitizer and by free radicals produced by Fe 2+ -citrate. Calcium ion favored both types of lipid oxidation in a lipid composition-dependent manner. In membranes containing predominantly or exclusively POPC, Ca 2+ increased the oxidation at later reaction times while the oxidation of CL membranes was exacerbated at the early times of reaction. Considering that Ca 2+ interaction affects the lipid structure and packing, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were applied to the Ca 2+ association with totally and partially protonated and deprotonated CL, in the presence of water. The interaction of totally and partially protonated CL head groups with Ca 2+ decreased the intramolecular P-P distance and increased the hydrophobic volume of the acyl chains. Consistently with the theoretically predicted effect of Ca 2+ on CL, in the absence of pro-oxidants, giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) challenged by Ca 2+ formed buds and many internal vesicles. Therefore, Ca 2+ induces changes in CL packing and increases the susceptibility of CL to the oxidation promoted by free radicals and excited species., (Copyright © 2020 Miranda, Araujo-Chaves, Kawai, Brito, Dias, Arantes and Nantes-Cardoso.)

Objective: To analyze hypertension and its relationship with the causes of death identified by the autopsy., Method: Cross-sectional study analyzed 356 participants belonging to the Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, over 50 years of age, autopsied at the Sao Paulo Autopsy Service between 2004 to 2014. A clinical interview was conducted with the informant of the deceased. Hypertension was defined by reporting the disease and/or use of antihypertensive medication, by the informant of the deceased. Descriptive analyzes and bivariate and multivariable associations were performed., Results: The prevalence of hypertension was 66.2% and it was the second leading cause of death (25.6%) identified by autopsy, preceded by atherosclerosis (37.8%). The variables associated with hypertension were: female gender (OR=2.30 (1.34-3.90)); living with partner [OR=0.55 (0.32-0.92)]; Body Mass Index [OR=1.14 (1.08-1.22)] and history of diabetes [OR=2.39 (1.34-4.27)]., Conclusion: The prevalence of hypertension was high, and it was the second most common underlying cause of death. The gold standard for the definition of cause of death, the autopsy, shows important results, which confirmed the relevance of hypertension as a public health problem.

The effects of demographic and environmental noise on the vital dynamics and spatial pattern formation are studied for a predator-prey system with strong Allee effect in the prey species. Time and space are taken discrete. It is shown that noise can promote extinction depending on the growth and interaction parameters as well as the noise type and amplitude. The extinction risk increases with the noise amplitude; however, the environmental and demographic noise can have different effects on the risk of extinction. In space, the spatial structures obtained are blurred versions of the deterministic ones in most scenarios. In particular, the complex spatial structures that appear in the parameter domains where the deterministic local dynamics leads to extinction are robust to the density-dependent stochastic fluctuations but are disrupted with environmental noise.

Liposomes containing magnetic nanoparticles (magnetoliposomes) have been extensively explored for targeted drug delivery. However, the magnetic effect of nanoparticles movement is also an attractive choice for the conduction of signals in communication systems at the nanoscale level because of the simple manipulation and efficient control. Here, we propose a model for the transmission of electrical and luminous signals taking advantage of magnetophoresis. The study involved three steps. Firstly, magnetite was synthesized and incorporated into fusogenic large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs) previously associated with a fluorescent label. Secondly, the fluorescent magnetite-containing LUVs delivered their contents to the giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs), which were corroborated by magnetophoresis and fluorescence microscopy. In the third step, magnetophoresis of magnetic vesicles was used for the conduction of the luminous signal from a capillary to an optical fibre connected to a fluorescence detector. Also, the magnetophoresis effects on subsequent transmission of the electrochemical signal were demonstrated using magnetite associated with CTAB micelles modified with ferrocene. We glimpse that these magnetic supramolecular systems can be applied in micro- and nanoscale communication systems., Competing Interests: We have no competing interests.

This work aims to analyze the thermal decomposition kinetics of guarana seed residue applying inert and oxidizing atmospheres. Thermal decomposition experiments were carried out in a thermogravimetric analyser using heating rates of 5, 10 and 15 °C/min. Three thermal decomposition stages were identified: dehydration; pyrolysis/oxidative pyrolysis, and carbonization/combustion, respectively. In order to obtain the estimation of the activation energies, the isoconversional method proposed by Vyazovkin (1997) was applied. Besides that, three and six independent parallel reactions schemes were applied for respective atmospheres. The ranges of activation energy were of 52-140 kJ/mol and 71-171 kJ/mol for inert and oxidizing atmosphere, respectively. The modeling of conversion rates presented a good agreement in relation to the experimental data (AD < 4%)., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To analyze differences in survival between black and non-black women diagnosed with cervical cancer and treated at the National Cancer Institute in Brazil. Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted using medical records of patients who were treated for cervical cancer between 2006 and 2009 at the Brazilian National Cancer Institute - Rio de Janeiro - Brazil. The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of black and non-black patients were compared using the chi-square test. Survival functions over five years were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier estimator and compared using the log-rank test. Associations between race and mortality risk were analyzed using the Cox proportional hazards model. P-values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: The study included 1,482 women, of whom 188 (12.7%) were black, 1,209 (81.6%) were non-black and 85 (5.7%) were of unspecified race. The age at diagnosis of the patients ranged from 19 to 84 years (mean 50.1 years; SD±13.2). Hemoglobin <12 g/dL at the time of diagnosis (p=0.008) and absence of surgery as primary treatment (p = 0.005) were more frequent among black women. Cox analysis adjusted for these two factors showed no statistically significant difference in the mortality risk associated with cervical cancer among black and non-black women (HR=1.1 95% CI 0.9-1.5; p=0.27). Conclusion: After adjusting for hemoglobin levels and surgery, race alone was not shown to be a prognostic factor for patients with cervical cancer., (Creative Commons Attribution License)

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of hyperbaric oxygenation (HBO) on the expression of the genes antioxidant glutathione peroxidase 4 (Gpx4) and lactoperoxidase (Lpo) in the lung of mice subjected to intestinal ischemia and reperfusion (IIR)., Methods: Control group (CG) in which were subjected to anesthesia, laparotomy and observation for 120 minutes; an ischemia and reperfusion group (IRG) subjected to anesthesia, laparotomy, small bowel ischemia for 60 minutes and reperfusion for 60 minutes; and three groups treated with HBO during ischemia (HBOG + I), during reperfusion (HBOG + R) and during ischemia and reperfusion (HBOG + IR). Studied 84 genes of oxidative stress by the method (RT-qPCR). Genes with expression levels three times below or above the threshold cycle were considered significantly hypoexpressed or hyperexpressed, respectively (Student's t-test p<0.05)., Results: Gpx4 and Lpo were hiperexpressed on IRG, showing a correlation with these genes with lung oxidative stress. Treated with HBO, there was a significant reduction on genic expression on HBOG+I., Conclusion: Hyperbaric oxygenation showed to be associated with decreased expression of these antioxidant genes, suggesting a beneficial effect on the mechanism of pulmonary oxidative stress whenever applied during the ischemia.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the outcomes of patients with visceral aortic patch (VAP) aneurysms after open repair of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) treated with three different approaches: open, hybrid, and endovascular repair., Methods: Between 1993 and 2016, there were 29 cases treated for VAP aneurysm after initial TAAA open repair (median time interval, 6.2 years; interquartile range, 4-8 years). Three different treatment modalities were employed: redo open repair (O group) in 14 cases (48.3%), hybrid repair (H group) in 10 cases (34.5%), and endovascular custom-made fenestrated endograft repair (E group) in 5 cases (17.2%). Early (30-day) and midterm results were recorded. The primary end point was a composite major adverse event score: any 30-day death plus any grade ≥2 postoperative complications plus any surgical revision classified according to the Society for Vascular Surgery/American Association for Vascular Surgery reporting standards. Patients were evaluated with computed tomography scans in the outpatient clinic at 3, 6, and 12 months and annually thereafter., Results: The composite major adverse event score significantly differed among groups (O group, 79%; H group, 60%; E group, 0%; P = .009). Two cases (6.9%) of temporary delayed spinal cord ischemia (grade 1) were observed in both the E and H groups. The treatment modality employed was differently associated with blood loss ≥1000 mL (O group, 79%; H group, 40%; E group, 0%; P = .007), number of packed red blood cells transfused ≥3 units (O group, 100%; H group, 90%; E group, 40%; P = .003), intensive care unit stay >1 day (O group, 71%; H group, 70%; E group, 0%; P = .014), and length of hospital stay ≥7 days (O group, 79%; H group, 80%, E group, 20%; P = .034). At short term (6 months), we observed one endovascular reintervention in the E group and one fatal visceral graft thrombosis in the H group. At a median follow-up of 30 months (interquartile range, 15-75 months), we observed another aneurysm-related death in the H group due to graft infection and four unrelated deaths (one case in the H group and two cases in the O group)., Conclusions: This retrospective study confirms that repair of VAP aneurysms that develop after open repair of TAAAs can be performed with open, hybrid, and endovascular techniques. Current practice favors endovascular repair if possible, but a conclusion that it is superior to any other technique requires validation in a larger sample or a randomized trial., (Copyright © 2017 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To investigate the effects of hyperbaric oxygenation (HBO) on intestinal ischemia and reperfusion (IR) injury, we evaluated the expression of 84 genes related to oxidative stress and the antioxidant response in mouse hearts., Methods: Four groups were subjected to 60 minutes of intestinal ischemia followed by 60 minutes of reperfusion: IRG, ischemia and reperfusion group without HBO; HBO-IG, which received HBO during ischemia; HBO-RG, which received HBO during reperfusion; and HBO-IRG, which received HBO during ischemia and reperfusion. The control group (CG) underwent anesthesia and laparotomy and was observed for 120 minutes. The (RT-qPCR) method was applied. Genes with expression levels three times below or above the threshold cycle were considered significantly hypoexpressed or hyperexpressed, respectively (Student's t-test p<0.05)., Results: Eight genes (9.52%) were hyperexpressed in the IRG. When the HBO groups were compared to the IRG, we found a decrease in the expression of eight genes in the HBO-IG, five genes in the HBO-RG, and seven genes in the HBO-IRG., Conclusion: The reduction in the expression of genes related to oxidative stress and antioxidant defense following HBO in mouse hearts resulting from intestinal IR injury was more favorable during the ischemic period than during the reperfusion period.

Numerous applications have been described for microperoxidases (MPs) such as in photoreceptors, sensing, drugs, and hydrogen evolution. The last application was obtained by replacing Fe(III), the native central metal, by cobalt ion and inspired part of the present study. Here, the Fe(III) of MP-11 was replaced by Cu(II) that is also a stable redox state in aerated medium, and the structure and activity of both MPs were modulated by the interaction with the positively charged interfaces of lipids. Comparative spectroscopic characterization of Fe(III) and Cu(II)MP-11 in the studied media demonstrated the presence of high and low spin species with axial distortion. The association of the Fe(III)MP-11 with CTAB and Cu(II)MP-11 with DODAB affected the colloidal stability of the surfactants that was recovered by heating. This result is consistent with hydrophobic interactions of MPs with DODAB vesicles and CTAB micelles. The hydrophobic interactions decreased the heme accessibility to substrates and the Fe(III) MP-11catalytic efficiency. Cu(II)MP-11 challenged by peroxides exhibited a cyclic Cu(II)/Cu(I) interconversion mechanism that is suggestive of a mimetic Cu/ZnSOD (superoxide dismutase) activity against peroxides. Hydrogen peroxide-activated Cu(II)MP-11 converted Amplex Red ® to dihydroresofurin. This study opens more possibilities for technological applications of MPs., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. The founding sponsors had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, and in the decision to publish the results.

Background: Teriparatide is a synthetic drug similar than PTH (parathyroid hormone), which is currently used as long-term treatment option for patients with bone chronic diseases, as osteoporosis; and this drug can interfere in a positive way in orthodontic movement. Objectives: The medical literature was assessed in the present systematic review in order to determine the level of scientific evidence supporting the influence of teriparatide in induced tooth movement., Material and Methods: The PRISMA Checklist was followed in this systematic review. Four electronic databases (PubMed; Scopus; ScienceDirect; OpenGrey) were searched without implementing restrictions of year, status, and language of publications. The inclusion criteria consisted of selecting only experimental studies comparing the influence of teriparatide in tooth movement of male Wistar rats. The exclusion criteria consisted of experiments with female rats or other experimental animals, and animals with pathologic conditions. The eligible studies were evaluated based on methodological quality. Two trained examiners performed all the research steps., Results: The initial sample comprised 700 studies, which was reduced to 664 after the exclusion of duplicates (n=36). Three articles were selected for the final qualitative analysis. The local administration of parathyroid hormone (PTH) 1-34 or PTH 1-84 revealed major effectiveness when compared with control groups and systematic administration. Additionally, the dilution of PTH 1-34 within methyl cellulose (MC) gel increased the time range for drug release, enabling to reduce the drug concentration without decreasing the effectiveness of tooth movement., Conclusions: Teriparatide demonstrated potential acceleration of tooth movement in Wistar rats depending on the drug concentration; drug administration; and time for drug release. Key words: Teriparatide, tooth movement, parathyroid hormone, orthodontics., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest in this study.

Scarce data exist about the impact of age in cervical cancer (CC) patients in the developing world. The objective of the current study was to examine the patterns of care and outcome of elderly patients treated in a developing country. Medical records of patients treated from 2006-2009 at the Brazilian National Cancer Institute were reviewed. Patients were divided between women 70 years or older and women younger than 70 years. The χ tests were used and odds ratios were calculated. Survival was examined using the Kaplan-Meier method. Single and multivariate Cox proportional hazards modeling were used. A total of 1482 patients were analyzed: 1339 patients younger than 70 years and 143 patients 70 years or older. A marked difference in treatment was noted, even after stratifying by disease stage. Only 21% of the older patients underwent surgical treatment compared with 27.6% of the younger. After adjusting for confounding variables, the hazard ratio for death from CC in the elderly was 1.05 (95% confidence interval, 0.81-1.36; P = 0.11). These results corroborate previous data from developed countries: elderly patients have more advanced disease at diagnosis, and age is an important factor in the allocation of treatment for patients with CC. Worse outcome seemed to be mainly the result of more advanced stage and treatment allocation rather than age itself.

A software framework can reduce costs related to the development of an application because it allows developers to reuse both design and code. Recently, companies and research groups have announced that they have been employing health software frameworks. This paper presents the design, proof-of-concept implementations and experimentation of the Health Surveillance Software Framework (HSSF). The HSSF is a framework that tackles the demand for the recommendation of surveillance information aiming at supporting preventive healthcare strategies. Examples of such strategies are the automatic recommendation of surveillance levels to patients in need of healthcare and the automatic recommendation of scientific literature that elucidates epigenetic problems related to patients. HSSF was created from two systems we developed in our previous work on health surveillance systems: the Automatic-SL and CISS systems. The Automatic-SL system aims to assist healthcare professionals in making decisions and in identifying children with developmental problems. The CISS service associates genetic and epigenetic risk factors related to chronic diseases with patient's clinical records. Towards evaluating the HSSF framework, two new systems, CISS+ and CISS-SW, were created by means of abstractions and instantiations of the framework (design and code). We show that HSSF supported the development of the two new systems given that they both recommend scientific papers using medical records as queries even though they exploit different computational technologies. In an experiment using simulated patients' medical records, we show that CISS, CISS+, and CISS-SW systems recommended more closely related and somewhat related documents than Google, Google Scholar and PubMed. Considering recall and precision measures, CISS+ surpasses CISS-SW in terms of precision., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The present study aimed to investigate the influence of albumin structure and gold speciation on the synthesis of gold nanoparticles (GNPs). The strategy of synthesis was the addition of HAuCl4 solutions at different pH values (3-12) to solutions of human and bovine serum albumins (HSA and BSA) at the same corresponding pH values. Different pH values influence the GNP synthesis due to gold speciation. Besides the inherent effect of pH on the native structure of albumins, the use N-ethylmaleimide (NEM)-treated and heat-denaturated forms of HSA and BSA provided additional insights about the influence of protein structure, net charge, and thiol group approachability on the GNP synthesis. NEM treatment, heating, and the extreme values of pH promoted loss of the native albumin structure. The formation of GNPs indicated by the appearance of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) bands became detectable from 15 days of the synthesis processes that were carried out with native, NEM-treated and heat-denaturated forms of HSA and BSA, exclusively at pH 6 and 7. After 2 months of incubation, SPR band was also detected for all synthesis carried out at pH 8.0. The mean values of the hydrodynamic radius (RH) were 24 and 34 nm for GNPs synthesized with native HSA and BSA, respectively. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed crystallites of 13 nm. RH, XRD, and zeta potential values were consistent with GNP capping by the albumins. However, the GNPs produced with NEM-treated and heat-denaturated albumins exhibited loss of protein capping by lowering the ionic strength. This result suggests a significant contribution of non-electrostatic interactions of albumins with the GNP surface, in these conditions. The denaturation of proteins exposes hydrophobic groups to the solvent, and these groups could interact with the gold surface. In these conditions, the thiol blockage or oxidation, the latter probably favored upon heating, impaired the formation of a stable capping by thiol coordination with the gold surface. Therefore, the cysteine side chain of albumins is important for the colloidal stabilization of GNPs rather than as the reducing agent for the synthesis. Despite the presence of more reactive gold species at more acidic pH values, i.e., below 6.0, in these conditions the loss of native albumin structure impaired GNP synthesis. Alkaline pH values (9-12) combined the unfavorable conditions of denaturated protein structure with less reactive gold species. Therefore, an optimal condition for the synthesis of GNPs using serum albumins involves more reactive gold salt species combined with a reducing and negatively charged form of the protein, all favored at pH 6-7.

Background: This study evaluated the morphology of the rat liver when hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) was used at various stages of ischemia and reperfusion., Methods: Thirty-two male Wistar rats, subjected to 30 minutes of hepatic ischemia and 30 minutes of reperfusion, were randomly assigned as follows: GIR (n = 8), control without HBO; GHBO/I (n = 8), in which HBO was applied only during ischemia; GHBO/R (n = 8), HBO only during reperfusion; and GHBO/IR (n = 8), HBO during both ischemia and reperfusion. Feasibility scores of hepatocytes were determined by assessing 8 items related to liver injury., Results: The histologic injury score of the hepatic specimens was significantly lower in the GHBO/I group (79.0 ± 0.1) compared with the GIR group (135.0 ± 0.1). HBO was not effective when applied during reperfusion (GHBO/R, 151.3 ± 0.1) or during the ischemia plus reperfusion period (GHBO/IR, 131.0 ± 0.1). The sum was significantly higher (P < .05) in HBO-treated animals during the reperfusion period (ie, in the GHBO/R group compared with any of the other groups)., Conclusions: A favorable effect was obtained when HBO was administered early during ischemia. HBO given in later periods of reperfusion was associated with a more severe sum index percentage of liver damage., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Schistosomiasis affects more than 240 million people worldwide, an infection which may cause urogenital manifestations including, among others, squamous bladder cancer and prostate involvement. We describe the first case of a prostate adenocarcinoma associated with prostatic Schistosoma haematobium infection occurring in Angola. Prostate carcinoma was suspected because of high levels of prostate-specific antigen. This observation prompted us to review the literature on schistosomiaisis with respect to genital pathology and prostate cancer. Described genital manifestations in men include funiculitis, epididymitis, granulomata of the seminal vesicles, testicular masses, and prostate lesions which may cause haematospermia and infertility. In contrast to bladder cancer, only 12 reports including the present case on 17 cases on prostate carcinoma associated with schistosomiasis have been published worldwide. The rarity of reports on prostate carcinoma associated with schistosomiasis is partly due to diagnostic constraints, and its incidence is underestimated. However, in emerging countries, the incidence of prostate cancer appears to increase mainly as a result of urbanization and improved access to health care where schistosomiasis prevalence is decreasing.

The photodynamic effects of the cationic TMPyP (meso-tetrakis [N-methyl-4-pyridyl]porphyrin) and the anionic TPPS4 (meso-tetrakis[4-sulfonatophenyl]porphyrin) against PC/CL phosphatidylcholine/cardiolipin (85/15%) membranes were probed to address the influence of phorphyrin binding on lipid damage. Electronic absorption spectroscopy and zeta potential measurements demonstrated that only TMPyP binds to PC/CL large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs). The photodamage after irradiation with visible light was analyzed by dosages of lipid peroxides (LOOH) and thiobarbituric reactive substance and by a contrast phase image of the giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs). Damage to LUVs and GUVs promoted by TMPyP and TPPS4 were qualitatively and quantitatively different. The cationic porphyrin promoted damage more extensive and faster. The increase in LOOH was higher in the presence of D2O, and was impaired by sodium azide and sorbic acid. The effect of D2O was higher for TPPS4 as the photosensitizer. The use of DCFH demonstrated that liposomes prevent the photobleaching of TMPyP. The results are consistent with a more stable TMPyP that generates long-lived singlet oxygen preferentially partitioned in the bilayer. Conversely, TPPS4 generates singlet oxygen in the bulk whose lifetime is increased in D2O. Therefore, the affinity of the porphyrin to the membrane modulates the rate, type and degree of lipid damage., (© 2013 The American Society of Photobiology.)

Purpose: To determine the gene expression profile associated with oxidative stress and antioxidant defense in the lung tissue of mice subjected to intestinal ischemia and reperfusion., Methods: Twelve male, inbred mice (C57BL/6) were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The control group (CG) underwent anesthesia and laparotomy and was observed for 120 minutes; the ischemia/reperfusion group (IRG) was subjected to anesthesia, laparotomy, and ischemia of the small intestine for 60 minutes and to 60 minutes of reperfusion. A pool of six mice from each group was subjected to a reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) to analyze the oxidative stress and antioxidant defense genes. All genes that were up-regulated or down-regulated greater than three-fold, based on the algorithm [2^(ΔΔCt)], were considered to be biologically meaningful., Results: Out of a total of 84 genes in the lung that are related to oxidative stress, 67 (79.7%) were up-regulated and 17 (20.2%) were down-regulated. Only two genes (2.3%), Lpo (lactoperoxidase) (+3.51) and Gpx4 (glutathione peroxidase) (+4.10), were expressed above the three-fold threshold, while none of the down-regulated genes were expressed outside of this threshold., Conclusion: The intestinal ischemia/reperfusion injury promoted a gene expression profile consisting of the positive expression of oxidative genes in a remote organ. This suggests that activate signaling pathways are implicated in both cell survival and the maintenance of genome integrity in the lung.

Background: Intestinal ischemia-reperfusion is a frequent clinical event associated to injury in distant organs, especially the heart., Objective: To investigate the gene expression of oxidative stress and antioxidant defense in the heart of inbred mice subjected to intestinal ischemia and reperfusion (IR)., Methods: Twelve mice (C57BL/6) were assigned to: IR Group (GIR) with 60 minutes of superior mesenteric artery occlusion followed by 60 minutes of reperfusion; Control Group (CG) which underwent anesthesia and laparotomy without IR procedure and was observed for 120 minutes. Intestine and heart samples were processed using the RT-qPCR/Reverse transcriptase-quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction method for the gene expression of 84 genes related to oxidative stress and oxidative defense (Student's "t" test, p<0.05)., Results: The intestinal tissue (GIR) was noted to have an up-regulation of 65 genes (74.71%) in comparison to normal tissue (CG), and 37 genes (44.04%) were hyper-expressed (greater than three times the threshold allowed by the algorithm). Regarding the remote effects of intestinal I/R in cardiac tissue an up-regulation of 28 genes (33.33%) was seen, but only eight genes (9.52%) were hyper-expressed three times above threshold. Four (7.14%) of these eight genes were expressed in both intestinal and cardiac tissues. Cardiomyocytes with smaller and pyknotic nuclei, rich in heterochromatin with rare nucleoli, indicating cardiac distress, were observed in the GIR., Conclusion: Intestinal I/R caused a statistically significant over expression of 8 genes associated with oxidative stress in remote myocardial tissue.

Purpose: To determine the gene expressions profile related to the oxidative stress and the antioxidant response in the kidneys of mice subjected to intestinal ischemia and reperfusion., Methods: Twelve inbred mice (C57BL/6) were randomly assigned to one of two groups: the control group (CG) underwent anesthesia and was observed for 120 min and the ischemia/reperfusion group (IRG), animals were anesthetized and subjected to laparotomy and ischemia for 60 minutes followed by 60 minutes of reperfusion. The expressions of 84 genes from the kidney were determined by the Reverse Transcription qualitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR). All genes that were up regulated by more than threefold using the algorithm [2(ΔΔCt)] were considered statically significant (p<0.05)., Results: In the IRG group 29 (34.52%) of 84 genes, were up regulated by more than threefold. The genes that were differentially up regulated in the glutathione peroxidase cluster (10 genes): were Gpx2 and Gpx7. The genes that were up regulated in the peroxidase cluster (16 genes) were following: Duox1, Epx, Lpo, Mpo, Ptgs2, Rag2, Serpinb1b, Tmod1 and Tpo. The genes that up regulated in the reactive oxygen species cluster (16 genes): Il19, Il22, Nos2, Nox1, Noxa1, Noxo1, Recql4 and Sod2. The genes that were up regulated in the oxidative stress cluster (22 genes) were: Mpp4, Nudt15, Upc3 and Xpa. The genes that were up regulated in the oxygen carriers cluster (12 genes) were: Hbq1, Mb, Ngb, Slc38a1 and Xirp1. The peroxiredoxins genes (10) showed no consistent differential regulation., Conclusion: The genes related to oxidative stress and antioxidant defense showed increased expression in renal tissue trigged intestinal ischemia and reperfusion.

Objective: GINERISK was designed to assess the clinical profile of Spanish postmenopausal women with a diagnosis of osteoporosis and to establish the presence of other risk factors., Methods: In this Spanish cross-sectional, epidemiological, observational study, gynecologists sequentially invited postmenopausal women with osteoporosis under their care to complete a predefined questionnaire during a routine visit. Risk factors for bone fractures, endometrial pathology, breast cancer, and cardiovascular disease were assessed., Results: In addition to being postmenopausal and having diagnosed osteoporosis, 49.8% (2,070/4,157) of eligible participants had one or more risk factors for bone fractures, 96.8% (4,023/4,157) had one or more risk factors for breast cancer, and 83.4% (3,469/4,157) had one or more risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, 20.1% (n = 835) of the women presented with high cardiovascular risk, 16.6% (n = 692) were at high risk for bone fractures, and 14.5% (n = 423) were at high risk for developing breast cancer in the next 5 years, whereas only 9.2% (n = 301) of participants were identified as having high endometrial risk., Conclusions: In addition to the increased risk of bone fractures, women with osteoporosis are also at risk for endometrial pathology, breast cancer, and cardiovascular disease. These risks should be evaluated and taken into consideration when choosing an osteoporosis treatment for postmenopausal women.

Purpose: To determine the profile of gene expressions associated with oxidative stress and thereby contribute to establish parameters about the role of enzyme clusters related to the ischemia/reperfusion intestinal injury., Methods: Twelve male inbred mice (C57BL/6) were randomly assigned: Control Group (CG) submitted to anesthesia, laparotomy and observed by 120 min; Ischemia/reperfusion Group (IRG) submitted to anesthesia, laparotomy, 60 min of small bowel ischemia and 60 min of reperfusion. A pool of six samples was submitted to the qPCR-RT protocol (six clusters) for mouse oxidative stress and antioxidant defense pathways., Results: On the 84 genes investigated, 64 (76.2%) had statistic significant expression and 20 (23.8%) showed no statistical difference to the control group. From these 64 significantly expressed genes, 60 (93.7%) were up-regulated and 04 (6.3%) were down-regulated. From the group with no statistical significantly expression, 12 genes were up-regulated and 8 genes were down-regulated. Surprisingly, 37 (44.04%) showed a higher than threefold up-regulation and then arbitrarily the values was considered as a very significant. Thus, 37 genes (44.04%) were expressed very significantly up-regulated. The remained 47 (55.9%) genes were up-regulated less than three folds (35 genes - 41.6%) or down-regulated less than three folds (12 genes - 14.3%)., Conclusion: The intestinal ischemia and reperfusion promote a global hyper-expression profile of six different clusters genes related to antioxidant defense and oxidative stress.

Glycosuria as an accidental finding implies a diagnostic workout. We present the cases of two asymptomatic female teenagers referred to a hospital outpatient clinic due to isolated glycosuria detected in a routine analysis. The diagnostic workout revealed isolated glycosuria in the absence of other abnormalities. The genetic study confirmed the diagnosis of renal glycosuria, by revealing SCL5A2 gene mutations. Renal glycosuria is characterized by persistent glycosuria in the absence of hyperglycaemia or generalized renal tubular dysfunction. It's usually asymptomatic and has good prognosis. The authors call the attention to this rare entity, since it can be the reason for reference to a hospital outpatient clinic, underlining the importance of a differential diagnosis with more serious diseases that require proper treatment.

Darunavir is a synthetic nonpeptidic protease inhibitor which has been shown to be extremely potent against wild-type HIV as well as a large panel of PI-resistant clinical isolates and shows a high genetic barrier to the development of antiretroviral resistance. The treatment of HIV/AIDS requires combinations of multiple antiretroviral drugs. In addition, patients frequently need to coadminister other medications for reasons including the prevention or treatment of opportunistic infections, treatment of concomitant illnesses and management of antiretroviral side effects. Drug interactions have been observed between darunavir and other drugs. New and more comprehensive drug interaction studies will be required since the increase in life expectancy of patients often brings new comorbidities and the concomitant use of different drugs. This paper discusses the impact of the use of darunavir in the treatment of HIV-infected patients, its pharmacological and physical-chemical properties, its drug interactions, and challenges that remain in order to ensure safety and compliance of treatment., (Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Lead is an important heavy metal pollutant in the environment, and it induces neurodevelopmental toxicity, which is characterized by histological, ultrastructural, and neurochemical changes in the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of prenatal acute lead exposure on apoptosis, GFAP expression, and lead deposition in the developing spinal cord. Chick embryos were exposed to 150μg or 450μg doses of lead acetate via yolk sac at E3 or E5 embryonic ages and incubated for six days. Lead deposition was observed in the ependymal cells, developing dorsal, and ventral horns, and in the white matter of all the exposed embryos. TUNEL-positive cells were found in all layers of the spinal cord of the control and treated embryos, and lead exposure resulted in a significant increase in the numerical density of the apoptotic cells. Control embryos showed intense GFAP expression in the ependymal cells of the roof and floor plates, and in the gray and white matters; whereas exposure to lead reduced GFAP reactivity. In ovo lead exposure induces apoptosis, and reduces GFAP expression in the nervous system of the chick embryos, which may cause impairments during neuronal development and consequences in childhood and adulthood., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Aerobic organisms are afforded with an antioxidant enzymatic apparatus that more recently has been recognized to include cytochrome c, as it is able to prevent hydrogen peroxide generation by returning electrons from the superoxide ion back to the respiratory chain. The present study investigated the glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and cytochrome c-like antioxidant activities of para Mn(III)TMPyP in isolated rat liver mitochondria (RLM) and mitoplasts. In RLM, Mn(III)TMPyP decreased the lipid-peroxide content associated with glutathione (GSH) depletion consistent with the use of GSH as a reducing agent for high valence states of Mn(III)TMPyP. SOD and cytochrome c antioxidant activities were also investigated. Mn(II)TMPyP was able to reduce ferric cytochrome c, indicating the potential to remove a superoxide ion by returning electrons back to the respiratory chain. In antimicyn A-poisoned mitoplasts, Mn(III)TMPyP efficiently decreased the EPR signal of DMPO-OH adduct concomitant with GSH depletion. The present results are consistent with SOD and GPx activities for Mn(III)TMPyP and do not exclude cytochrome c-like activity. However, considering that para Mn(III)TMPyP more efficiently reduces, rather than oxidizes, superoxide ion; electron transfer from the Mn(II)TMPyP to the respiratory chain might not significantly contribute to the superoxide ion removal, since most of Mn(II)TMPyP is expected to be produced at the expense of NADPH/GSH oxidation. The present results suggest GPx-like activity to be the principal antioxidant mechanism of Mn(III)TMPyP, whose efficiency is dependent on the NADPH/GSH content in cells.