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The psychoactive decoction Ayahuasca (AYA) used for therapeutic and religious purposes by indigenous groups and peoples from Amazonian regions produces anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects. Thus, it may be useful to attenuate the neuroinflammation and related anxiety- and depressive-like symptoms elicited by inflammatory insults such as sepsis. Rats were pretreated for 3 days with different doses of AYA. Twenty-four hours after, cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) was performed. On days 1-4, post-CLP behavioral tests to assess anxiety-like behavior were performed. After 24-h, neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, myeloperoxidase activity, and mitochondrial metabolism were assessed in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), hippocampus (HP), and cortex. AYA pretreatment increased the time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze and prevented the sepsis-induced hyper-grooming and -rearing behavior, suggesting an anxiolytic effect. AYA pretreatment increased the levels of the anti-inflammatory interleukin 4, in the PFC and the cortex, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the cortex. Moreover, AYA pretreatment increased myeloperoxidase activity in the PFC and the HP and decreased nitrite/nitrate concentration in the PFC, HP, and cortex of septic rats, suggesting enhanced neutrophil activation and decreased nitric oxide signaling. Furthermore, AYA pretreatment prevented lipid peroxidation in the PFC, HP, and cortex of septic rats as measured by decreased levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances. Levels of protein carbonyls and activity of superoxide dismutase, citrate synthase, succinate dehydrogenase, and mitochondrial respiratory chain were not affected. Together, AYA represents a promising approach to prevent sepsis-induced neuroinflammatory and oxidative stress and associated anxiety-like symptoms., Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethical Approval: This study was conducted following the guidelines of the Brazilian Directive for Care and Use of Animals for Scientific and Educational Purposes (CONCEA, 2013) and approved by the Ethics Committee on Animal Use (CEUA) of the University of Southern Santa Catarina – UNISUL (Date: July 11, 2023/No: 23.004.4.01.IV). Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Recently, different studies have revealed the existence of complexes of marine fish species of several genera from the Western Atlantic (e.g., Bagre, Peprilus, Bairdiella, Pogonias and Menticirrhus), with a correspondence between recognized species and well-established geographic areas such as the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and Brazil, showing the need to improve the taxonomic knowledge of coastal fishes in the region. In this work, we revalidate and redescribe Pareques lineatus (Cuvier, 1830) described from Brazil, and redescribe and designate a neotype to P. acuminatus (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) to differentiate it properly from its congeners. The recognition of P. acuminatus for the east coast of the USA plus the Gulf of Mexico and of P. lineatus for Brazil, with the West Indies and southern Caribbean as an area of overlap, brings new information about biodiversity in Western Atlantic coastal areas and confirms a previously proposed major biogeographical boundary.

Cancer cachexia, of which the most notable symptom is severe and rapid weight loss, is present in the majority of patients with advanced cancer. Inflammatory mediators play an important role in the development of cachexia, envisaged as a chronic inflammatory syndrome. The white adipose tissue (WAT) is one of the first compartments affected in cancer cachexia and suffers a high rate of lipolysis. It secretes several cytokines capable of directly regulating intermediate metabolism. A common pathway in the regulation of the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in WAT is the activation of the nuclear transcription factor kappa-B (NF-κB). We have examined the gene expression of the subunits NF-κBp65 and NF-κBp50, as well as NF-κBp65 and NF-κBp50 binding, the gene expression of pro-inflammatory mediators under NF-κB control (IL-1β, IL-6, INF-γ, TNF-α, MCP-1), and its inhibitory protein, nuclear factor of kappa light polypeptide gene enhancer in B-cells inhibitor, alpha (IκB-α). The observational study involved 35 patients (control group, n = 12 and cancer group, n = 23, further divided into cachectic and non-cachectic). NF-κBp65 and its target genes expression (TNF-α, IL-1β, MCP-1 and IκB-α) were significantly higher in cachectic cancer patients. Moreover, NF-κBp65 gene expression correlated positively with the expression of its target genes. The results strongly suggest that the NF-κB pathway plays a role in the promotion of WAT inflammation during cachexia.

Lumbar hernias are very uncommon conditions. Less than 300 cases have been reported in the literature. They result from defects in the posterolateral abdominal wall. The authors report their experience with four lumbar hernias managed at the "Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo" from 1973 to 1993. Age ranged from 54 to 63 years. Three were female, two had right hernias and two had left ones. All patients were treated surgically. Three were repaired by simple suture. The main complications were early recurrence (one case) and infections (one case). In one, a prosthetic mesh (polypropylene) was used to repair the defect, and the recovery was uneventful. Surgical treatment is always indicated in Grynfelt hernia. Approximation of the muscles by primary nonabsorbable suture, grafts or prosthesis are very adequate therapeutic options for lumbar hernias.

Lumbar hernias are rare lesions. They involve the extrusion of visceral contents through a defect in the posterolateral abdominal wall. Only 250 a 300 cases had been reported in the literature. They occur most often in the superior lumbar triangle (Grynfelt's hernia). All lumbar hernias must be treated with surgery and the preferable surgical approach is done retroperitoneally. Primary repair, autologous tissue or prosthetic material may be used to obliterate the defect. The authors report a case of Grynfelt's hernia in which polypropylene mesch was placed pre-peritonially.

Mesenteric cysts are rare abdominal tumors. Their incidence varies in different papers from one in 27,000 to one in 250,000 hospital admissions. Five patients with mesenteric cysts were treated at Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo between November 1982 and October 1992. The most common location was in the small bowel (60%). All of them were treated by surgery. One case was found incidentally. Treatment of choice is enucleation. It was realized in two cases (40%). The others had segmental bowel resection.