DC-SIGN receptor is expressed by cells from cutaneous leishmaniasis lesions and differentially binds to Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis and L. (Leishmania) amazonensis promastigotes.

Background: Dendritic cells (DCs) specific intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-3-grabbing non integrin receptor (DC-SIGN) binds to subgenera Leishmania promastigotes mediating its interaction with DC and neutrophils, potentially influencing the infection outcome.

Objectives: In this work, we investigated whether DC-SIGN receptor is expressed in cells from cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) lesions as well as the in vitro binding pattern of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis (Lb) and L. (L.

Dual Role of Insulin-Like Growth Factor (IGF)-I in American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis.

Background: Cytokines and growth factors involved in the tissue inflammatory process influence the outcome of infection. Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) constitutively present in the skin may participate in the inflammatory process and parasite-host interaction. Previous work has shown that preincubation of () with recombinant IGF-I induces accelerated lesion development.

Leishmania (V.) braziliensis infection promotes macrophage autophagy by a LC3B-dependent and BECLIN1-independent mechanism.

Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis is one of the main etiological agents of tegumentary leishmaniasis in Latin America. The establishment of a successful infection in host cells requires several key events including phagocytosis, phagolysosomal maturation impairment, and parasite replication. Autophagy is accountable for the physiological turnover of cellular organelles, degradation of macromolecular structures, and pathogen elimination.

Chagas disease in Virgem da Lapa, Minas Gerais, Brazil: left ventricle aneurysm and the risk of death in the 24-year interval.

Background: Left ventricular aneurysm (LVA) is indicator of high morbidity in Chagas' disease. A cross-sectional study performed identified LVA in 18.8% of the chronic chagasic patients (CCP).

An open toolkit for tracking open science partnership implementation and impact.

Serious concerns about the way research is organized collectively are increasingly being raised. They include the escalating costs of research and lower research productivity, low public trust in researchers to report the truth, lack of diversity, poor community engagement, ethical concerns over research practices, and irreproducibility. Open science (OS) collaborations comprise of a set of practices including open access publication, open data sharing and the absence of restrictive intellectual property rights with which institutions, firms, governments and communities are experimenting in order to overcome these concerns.

Is Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis parasite load associated with disease pathogenesis?

Background: Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis is the main etiological agent of tegumentary leishmaniasis in the Americas. Parasite molecular diversity and host immune status contribute to extensive variations in its clinical presentation within endemic areas of Brazil. Pentavalent antimonials have been used for more than 60 years as the first-line drug for all cases, despite the potential for severe side effects and refractoriness.

Comparative evaluation of lesion development, tissue damage, and cytokine expression in golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) infected by inocula with different Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis concentrations.

The golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) is a susceptible model to Leishmania (Viannia) spp.; however, available studies employ different infection protocols, which account for clinical and pathological presentation differences. Herein, L.

Severity of tegumentary leishmaniasis is not exclusively associated with Leishmania RNA virus 1 infection in Brazil.

Leishmania RNA virus (LRV) has been shown to be a symbiotic component of Leishmania parasites in South America. Nested retro-transcription polymerase chain reaction was employed to investigate LRV1 presence in leishmaniasis lesions from Brazil. In endemic areas of Rio de Janeiro (RJ), no LRV1 infection was observed even with mucosal involvement.

[First South american network of biomedical research. Education and biotechnology for health].

It is in our interest, in this brief manuscript, to report the creation of the first program of regional integration of a network of research institutes in Biomedicine belonging to members of the MERCOSUR countries. We discuss some of the foundations that gave sustenance to its creation and its objectives in the medium and long term. In addition, we consider the potential of the results of this program in the fields of applied medical research, education and biotechnology.

Transcriptome patterns from primary cutaneous Leishmania braziliensis infections associate with eventual development of mucosal disease in humans.

Introduction: Localized Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (LCL) and Mucosal Leishmaniasis (ML) are two extreme clinical forms of American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis that usually begin as solitary primary cutaneous lesions. Host and parasite factors that influence the progression of LCL to ML are not completely understood. In this manuscript, we compare the gene expression profiles of primary cutaneous lesions from patients who eventually developed ML to those that did not.

MMP-9 activity is induced by Leishmania braziliensis infection and correlates with mucosal leishmaniasis.

Infection of humans with Leishmania braziliensis typically results in localized cutaneous leishmaniasis (LCL). Rarely, after months or years of apparent clinical cure, some patients develop the destructive mucosal leishmaniasis (ML). ML results from L.

Polymerase chain reaction of peripheral blood as a tool for the diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis in children.

The diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) generally requires the use of invasive tests for the collection of infected tissue (aspirates of bone marrow, spleen, liver or lymph nodes). This difficulty has led to the search for safer and less painful techniques to confirm the occurrence of the disease in children. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method that is advantageous in that it allows the use of peripheral blood samples for diagnosis.

Sensitivity and reproducibility of a PCR assay for Leishmania detection using skin biopsy imprints on filter paper.

The sensitivity and reproducibility of a PCR targeted to amplify the conserved 120 base-pair region of minicircles from Leishmania kDNA was defined using DNA extracted from skin biopsy imprints on filter paper. Seventy-seven patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis from an endemic region of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis in Brazil underwent skin biopsy of the ulcer border. Tissue samples were imprinted on filter paper and then, they were stored at -20 degrees C.

Clinical features of cutaneous and disseminated cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis in Paraty, Rio de Janeiro.

Background: American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) caused by Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis is endemic in Rio de Janeiro State (RJ), where the disease shows epidemiologic and clinical characteristics distinct from those of ATL in other Brazilian regions. Paraty is the second most important endemic area in RJ; however, reports on leishmaniasis in this region refer to the occurrence of the disease without describing its characteristics.

Methods: The clinical features of 71 cases of ATL reported between 1991 and 1997 in Paraty are presented.

Cell-cycle and suppressor proteins expression in uterine cervix in HIV/HPV co-infection: comparative study by tissue micro-array (TMA).

Background: The oncoproteins of human papillomavirus (HPVs) directly effect cell-cycle control. We hypothesize that regulatory and cell cycle protein expression might be additionally modified in the cervix of HIV/HPV co-infected women.

Methods: We analyzed the expression of Rb, p27, VEGF and Elf-1 transcriptor factor by immunohistochemistry in 163 paraffin-embeded cervical samples using Tissue Micro-Array (TMA) and correlated this to HIV-1 and HPV infection.

Suppression of allergic inflammatory response in the skin of alloxan-diabetic rats: relationship with reduced local mast cell numbers.

Background: Diabetic patients are refractory to allergic inflammatory diseases. In this study, the influence of alloxan-induced diabetes on allergic skin inflammation was investigated.

Methods: Diabetes was induced by intravenous injection of alloxan into male Wistar rats, and the analyses were performed 21 days later.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is endemic in the tropics and neotropics. It is often referred to as a group of diseases because of the varied spectrum of clinical manifestations, which range from small cutaneous nodules to gross mucosal tissue destruction. Cutaneous leishmaniasis can be caused by several Leishmania spp and is transmitted to human beings and animals by sandflies.

Sensitivity and specificity of polymerase chain reaction in Giemsa-stained slides for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis in children.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the detection of Leishmania DNA in archived Giemsa-stained bone marrow slides for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL), and to compare PCR with conventional diagnostic techniques, like direct microscopy and parasite culture. Specimens of archived Giemsa-stained bone marrow slides from 91 patients with VL and from 79 controls with other diseases or conditions were studied. PCR showed the highest sensitivity (92.

IFNG +874T/A polymorphism is not associated with American tegumentary leishmaniasis susceptibility but can influence Leishmania induced IFN-gamma production.

Background: Interferon-gamma is a key cytokine in the protective responses against intracellular pathogens. A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) located in the first intron of the human IFN-gamma gene can putatively influence the secretion of cytokine with an impact on infection outcome as demonstrated for tuberculosis and other complex diseases. Our aim was to investigate the putative association of IFNG+874T/A SNP with American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) and also the influence of this SNP in the secretion of IFN-gamma in vitro.

Comparative immunohistological analysis of the Montenegro skin test reaction in asymptomatic infection and in acute and chronic cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Introduction: The Montenegro skin test reaction and leishmaniasis lesions share fundamental characteristics of a delayed type hypersensitivity reaction.

Objectives: To determine whether the Montenegro skin test reaction (response to leishmanin) might approximate and thereby provide insight into the early inflammatory and immune response to Leishmania infection.

Materials And Methods: We compared the inflammatory response in biopsies of acute (evolution time < or = one month), and chronic lesions (evolution time > or = 6 months) with the Montenegro skin test reaction in the corresponding patients, and with the Montenegro skin test of asymptomatically infected volunteers.

Haematogenous dissemination of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis in human American tegumentary leishmaniasis.

One of the potential dangers of American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) caused by Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis is the development of mucosal lesions. Haematogenous dissemination of the parasite is the most likely mechanism to explain this occurrence, but most attempts to isolate the parasite from blood have so far been unsuccessful. The presence of Leishmania in peripheral blood was therefore evaluated by PCR using DNA samples isolated from patients presenting active cutaneous or mucosal disease, and from individuals cured by antimonial treatment as well as individuals without a past history of leishmaniasis but with a positive Montenegro skin test, all living in L.

PCR-based diagnosis for detection of Leishmania in skin and blood of rodents from an endemic area of cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil.

The technique of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) associated to hybridization was used to screen 123 samples collected from wild and synanthropic rodents captured in a cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis endemic area in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The detection of Leishmania spp in naturally infected rodents is of fundamental importance for incriminating them as possible reservoir hosts of the diseases in Minas Gerais. A total of 62 specimens belonging to wild (Thrichomys apereoides, Oryzomys subflavus, Galea spixii, Bolomys lasiurus and Wiedomys pyrrhorhinos) and synanthropic (R.