Trop Med Infect Dis
September 2023
Visceral leishmaniasis is a high-burden disease caused by parasites of the genus. The K39 kinesin is a highly antigenic protein of , but little is known about the immune response elicited by this antigen. We evaluated the humoral immune response of female BALB/c mice ( = 6) immunized with the rK39-HFBI construct, formed by the fusion of the K39 antigen to a hydrophobin partner.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
May 2022
Inflammation and oxidative stress are processes associated with different human diseases. They are treated using drugs that have several side effects. Seaweed are sources of potentially relevant natural compounds for use as treatment of these disorders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
December 2021
Monoclonal antibodies have contributed to improving the treatment of several diseases. However, limitations related to pharmacokinetic parameters and production costs have instigated the search for alternative products. Camelids produce functional immunoglobulins G devoid of light chains and CH1 domains, in which the antigenic recognition site is formed by a single domain called VHH or nanobody.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiomed Pharmacother
October 2021
Dyslipidemia is a chronic non-transmissible condition that has increased due to an unhealthy lifestyle. Statins have been used as the standard treatment to control hyperlipidemia. However, side effects and high costs may be associated with its prolonged treatment, so plants derivatives have been an attractive therapy to overcome these problems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFZika virus (ZIKV) infections were associated with neurological disorders only after the Brazilian outbreak in 2015. The lack of vaccines and precise diagnosis requires a precise method to detect ZIKV infection. This study aimed to evaluate three ZIKV recombinant proteins for the development of ZIKV infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
September 2020
The genus Cnidoscolus (Euphorbiaceae) is widely distributed in tropical areas. In the Northeast of Brazil, the species C. quercifolius is endemic and has been used in traditional medicine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDengue is a viral disease that represents a significant threat to global public health since billions of people are now at risk of infection by this mosquito-borne virus. The implementation of extensive screening tests is indispensable to control this disease, and the Dengue virus non-structural protein 1 (NS1) is a promising antigen for the serological diagnosis of dengue fever. Plant-based systems can be a safe and cost-effective alternative for the production of dengue virus antigens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNutrients
January 2020
The pursuit of cholesterol lowering natural products with less side effects is needed for controlling dyslipidemia and reducing the increasing toll of cardiovascular diseases that are associated with morbidity and mortality worldwide. The present study aimed at the examining effects of -methoxycinnamic acid diesters (PCO-C) from carnauba ()-derived wax on cytotoxic, genotoxic responses in vitro and on dyslipidemia and liver oxidative stress in vivo, utilizing high-fat diet (HFD) chronically fed Swiss mice. In addition, we evaluated the effect of PCO-C on the expression of key cholesterol metabolism-related genes, as well as the structural interactions between PCO-C and lecithin-cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT) in silico.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiomed Pharmacother
January 2019
The application of medicinal plants are the most important biotechnological alternative in the treatment of numerous diseases, especially in developing countries, such as Brazil. Among them, we specified some specimens of the genus Cnidoscolus used as phytotherapies, with healing properties, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antibiotic and diuretic, anticancer, among others. Such effects are possibly associated with the presence of terpenoids, alkaloids, coumarins, flavonoids phenolic compounds, among others.
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