Publications by authors named "D C C Alvarez"
Leaf senescence in plants is the last stage of leaf development and is characterized by a decline in photosynthetic activity, an active degeneration of cellular structures, and the recycling of accumulated nutrients to areas of active growth, such as buds, young leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds. This process holds economic significance as it can impact yield, influencing the plant's ability to maintain an active photosynthetic system during prolonged periods, especially during the grain filling stage, which affects plant weight and oil content. It can be associated with different stresses or environmental conditions, manifesting itself widely in the context of climate change and limiting yield, especially in crops of agronomic relevance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReleased from trophoblast and other fetal cells, placental extracellular vesicles (EVs) reach the maternal peripheral blood and modulate immune responses. Increased EVs in plasma of preeclampsia (PE) patients indicate their involvement in the etiology of this condition. This study addresses the uptake of plasma EVs by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and explores the underlying internalization mechanisms.
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- The study explores how liming, a method to increase soil pH, affects methane uptake in Amazonian soils, revealing significant results in both forest and pasture environments.
- Liming treatments led to an increase in methane uptake by about 10% in forest soils and 25% in pasture soils, with specific methanotrophic communities actively incorporating carbon from methane in limed areas.
- The findings suggest that liming not only enhances soil fertility in degraded Amazonian lands but also helps to improve methane oxidation, making it a beneficial practice for managing greenhouse gas emissions.
Objectives: Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disease driven by antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). Currently, APS diagnosis requires a combination of clinical manifestations (thrombosis and/or obstetric morbidity) and the persistent presence of at least one criteria aPL: anti-cardiolipin antibodies (aCL), anti-β2-glycoprotein I antibodies (aβ2GPI) or lupus anticoagulant (LA). Patients with suggestive obstetric symptoms but lacking criteria aPL face diagnostic challenges.
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- Envelope proteins, specifically the E1 and E2 proteins of the Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), drive the fusion of the virus with host cell membranes, allowing the virus to enter cells.
- Research on CHIKV has shown that mutations in these proteins can confer resistance to antiviral treatments by enhancing fusion capabilities, particularly a double-mutant strain that tolerates a higher pH for effective fusion.
- Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that interactions between specific residues in these envelope proteins are crucial for their rearrangement during the fusion process, revealing important insights into viral infection mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets.