McArdle Disease: A Diagnostic Challenge Due to Nonspecific Clinical Manifestations.

McArdle disease is a rare myopathy caused by hereditary myophosphorylase deficiency. It presents nonspecific symptoms, such as intolerance to physical exercise, early fatigue, and myalgias, and represents a paradigmatic example of one of the main challenges in clinical practice: the recognition of nonspecific and common symptoms as clinically relevant manifestations of rare diseases. The nonspecificity of symptoms leads to a frequent delay from the onset of first clinical signs to diagnosis.

Human Fascioliasis in Portugal: A Case Report.

Fascioliasis is a zoonotic disease that may affect humans as incidental hosts after the ingestion of contaminated water or aquatic plants. Despite the non-specificity of its signs and symptoms, a triad of abdominal pain, fever, and peripheral eosinophilia should increase suspicion. The diagnosis of fascioliasis can be particularly difficult in non-endemic countries.

Unlocking Team Potential: Mastering Communication in Palliative Care.

Effective communication is crucial in multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) within palliative care, where patient needs can be complex and multifaceted. This article examines the significance of communication in promoting collaborative, patient-centered care while addressing challenges such as professional jargon, hierarchical barriers, and the emotional strain associated with end-of-life care. Leadership plays a vital role in creating an environment of open dialogue, reducing hierarchical dynamics, facilitating conflict resolution, and supporting the emotional well-being of team members.

Cutaneous Manifestation of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a hematological neoplasm characterized by the proliferation of immature lymphoblasts. Although it is more common in children, it can also occur in adults, presenting significant clinical challenges. This case describes a 46-year-old male patient with a history of hypertension and dyslipidemia, whose first clinical manifestation of ALL was cutaneous.

A Single-Port, Multiple-Access, Custom-Made Device Used in Laparoscopically Assisted Cryptorchidectomy in Standing Horses-A Preliminary Study.

This study evaluates a new multiport device with single access to the abdominal cavity produced with routine hospital supplies that could be applied to laparoscopically assisted cryptorchidectomy in standing horses. Initially, the new device was evaluated on five cadavers of bovine fetuses ( = 5), placed assisted in a minilaparotomy performed in the flank region. Subsequently, the device was evaluated in four cryptorchid horses treated during the hospital routine.

Cholesterol depletion induces mesenchymal properties in oral squamous cell carcinoma cell line.

Background: Cholesterol in cell membranes is crucial for cell signaling, adhesion, and migration. Membranes feature cholesterol-rich caveolae with caveolin proteins, playing roles in epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer progression. Despite elevated cholesterol levels in tumors, its precise function and the effects of its depletion in oral squamous cell carcinoma remain unclear.

The future of endemic and threatened birds of the Amazon in the face of global climate change.

The anthropogenic impacts on the environment, including deforestation and the escalating emissions of greenhouse gases, have significantly contributed to global climate change that can lead to alterations in ecosystems. In this context, protected areas (PAs) are pillars for biodiversity conservation by being able, for example, to maintain the viability of populations of endangered species. On the other hand, the species range shifts do not follow the limits of PAs, jeopardizing the conservation of these species.

Reversible Pulmonary Hypertension Related to Hyperthyroidism: A Case Report.

A systematic assessment is crucial to confirm the diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH) and classify it based on its etiological mechanism. This case report describes a young woman with a recent diagnosis of Graves' disease who presented with exertional dyspnea and fatigue. The initial ultrasound heart examination indicated moderate tricuspid regurgitation, an increased estimated systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP), and suggestive alterations of atrial septal communication.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae DNA polymerase IV overcomes Rad51 inhibition of DNA polymerase δ in Rad52-mediated direct-repeat recombination.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae DNA polymerase IV (Pol4) like its homolog, human DNA polymerase lambda (Polλ), is involved in Non-Homologous End-Joining and Microhomology-Mediated Repair. Using genetic analysis, we identified an additional role of Pol4 also in homology-directed DNA repair, specifically in Rad52-dependent/Rad51-independent direct-repeat recombination. Our results reveal that the requirement for Pol4 in repeat recombination was suppressed by the absence of Rad51, suggesting that Pol4 counteracts the Rad51 inhibition of Rad52-mediated repeat recombination events.

A Case of Acute Generalized Exanthematous Pustulosis Induced by Ceftriaxone.

Acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) is a rare and severe skin disorder induced in more than 90% of cases by an adverse drug reaction. This condition is defined by an acute growth of numerous, pin-head-sized, non-follicular pustules on a background of edematous erythema that starts on the face or in the armpits and groin. It is accompanied by fever and increased inflammatory markers.

Multi-temporal ecological niche modeling for bird conservation in the face of climate change scenarios in Caatinga, Brazil.

Background: Global shifts in climatic patterns have been recorded over the last decades. Such modifications mainly correspond to increased temperatures and rainfall regime changes, which are becoming more variable and extreme.

Methods: We aimed to evaluate the impact of future changes in climatic patterns on the distribution of 19 endemic or threatened bird taxa of the Caatinga.

Potential of propolis antifungal activity for clinical applications.

The high incidence of skin diseases of microbial origin along with the widespread increase of microbial resistance demand for therapeutic alternatives. Research on natural compounds has been opening new perspectives for the development of new therapies with health-positive impacts. Propolis, a resinous mixture produced by honeybees from plant exudates, is widely used as a natural medicine since ancient times, mainly due to its antimicrobial properties.

Sparse data-driven wavefront prediction for large-scale adaptive optics.

This paper presents a computationally efficient wavefront aberration prediction framework for data-driven control in large-scale adaptive optics systems. Our novel prediction algorithm splits prediction into two stages: a high-resolution and a low-resolution stage. For the former, we exploit sparsity structures in the system matrices in a data-driven Kalman filtering algorithm and constrain the identified gain to be likewise sparse; for the latter, we identify a dense Kalman gain and perform corrections to the suboptimal predictions of the former on a smaller grid.

Renewable energy consumption and economic growth: a note reassessing panel data results.

We contribute to the renewable energy consumption-income (and growth) nexus literature by performing an empirical study on a worldwide panel database that, depending on data availability, covers between 146 and 161 countries for the period of 1960 to 2019 (59 years), enabling much more observations than most of the literature on the subject. The empirical methodology used accounts for cross-country dependency, heterogeneity and common effects amongst countries using a parsimonious specification that controls for traditional sources of income differences as well as institutional features of the countries. We also run an error correction model to check the impact of the share of the renewables on the income on the long run.

The role of ecological niche evolution on diversification patterns of birds distinctly distributed between the Amazonia and Atlantic rainforests.

The Amazonian and Atlantic Forest share several organisms that are currently isolated but were continuously distributed during the Quaternary period. As both biomes are under different climatic regimes, paleoclimatic events may have modulated species' niches due to a lack of gene flow and imposing divergent selection pressure. Here, we assessed patterns of ecological niche overlap in 37 species of birds with disjunct ranges between the Amazonian and Brazilian Atlantic Forests.

Simultaneous presentation of juvenile ossifying fibroma in the maxilla and mandible: a case report.

Introduction: Juvenile ossifying fibroma (JOF) is a controversial and uncommon lesion that has been distinguished from the larger group of ossifying fibromas because of distinct clinical features and some morphological peculiarities. Furthermore, JOF shows an aggressive biological behavior that has led researchers to consider it a benign neoplasm, resulting in its differential diagnosis with important benign and malignant bone neoplasms.

Presentation Of Case: This study describes a case of synchronous presentation of JOF in the mandible and maxilla of a young patient.

Poloxamer 407 based-nanoparticles for controlled release of methotrexate.

Poloxamer 407 (P407)-based nanoparticles were produced by the high pressure homogenization method for the encapsulation and delivery of methotrexate (MTX), aiming intravenous therapeutic applications. The surface of these nanoparticles was functionalized by conjugation of P407 with folic acid (FA) or with MTX, which served as targeting ligand agents. MTX-P407 conjugate was also developed to increase the final drug cargo.

PTS micelles for the delivery of hydrophobic methotrexate.

Polyoxyethanyl-α-tocopheryl sebacate (PTS) is an amphiphilic compound with self-emulsifying properties known to form micelles. In this work, we report the production of PTS micelles for the encapsulation and delivery of a hydrophobic derivative of methotrexate, MTX di-ethylated (MTX-OEt). We optimized the micelles production by testing two different techniques: auxiliary solvent and sonication.

Cooperation between non-essential DNA polymerases contributes to genome stability in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

DNA polymerases influence genome stability through their involvement in DNA replication, response to DNA damage, and DNA repair processes. Saccharomyces cerevisiae possess four non-essential DNA polymerases, Pol λ, Pol η, Pol ζ, and Rev1, which have varying roles in genome stability. In order to assess the contribution of the non-essential DNA polymerases in genome stability, we analyzed the pol4Δ rev1Δ rev3Δ rad30Δ quadruple mutant in microhomology mediated repair, due to recent studies linking some of these DNA polymerases to this repair pathway.

Immunohistochemical Characterization of Cancer-associated Fibroblasts in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Myofibroblasts are differentiated contractile cells that can secrete extracellular matrix components, cytokines, proteases, and proangiogenic factors. In neoplastic processes such as oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), myofibroblasts are recognized as cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and actively participate in tumor progression. As the presence of myofibroblasts in the stroma may be an important parameter of invasion and proliferation, the aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of CAFs in OSCC by immunophenotyping and their association with histologic classification and clinicopathologic parameters.

Adulteration identification in raw milk using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

Adulteration of milk is a common practice that concerns regulatory agencies, industry, and the population. Despite the growing need for checking adulteration, the current methods employed generally have low performance and are highly dependent on manual labor. This study aims to calibrate and validate a compact equipment (MilkoScan FT1) that adopts a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy methodology to monitor adulteration in raw milk.

Human behavioral influences and milk quality control programs.

Mastitis is a major disease affecting the herds of dairy farmers worldwide. One of the indicators directly related to the widespread infection of this disease in herds is the bulk tank somatic cell count (BTSCC). Recent studies have shown that one of the risk factors associated with mastitis is the human factor.

Outcomes of phacoemulsification in patients with uveitis at a tertiary center in São Paulo, Brazil: a review of cases from 2007 to 2012.

Purpose:: To evaluate the outcomes of phacoemulsification with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation in eyes with uveitis.

Methods:: Consecutive patients with uveitis and cataracts who had phacoemulsification and acrylic IOL implantation during 2007-2012 were evaluated for visual outcomes, etiology, and complications. Inflammation was controlled for at least 3 months before surgery, and oral prednisone (0.

The role of climate and environmental variables in structuring bird assemblages in the Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests (SDTFs).

Understanding the processes that influence species diversity is still a challenge in ecological studies. However, there are two main theories to discuss this topic, the niche theory and the neutral theory. Our objective was to understand the importance of environmental and spatial processes in structuring bird communities within the hydrological seasons in dry forest areas in northeastern Brazil.