Publications by authors named "Irene Vergara"

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death for women worldwide, and early detection can help reduce the death rate. Infrared thermography has gained popularity as a non-invasive and rapid method for detecting this pathology and can be further enhanced by applying neural networks to extract spatial and even temporal data derived from breast thermographic images if they are acquired sequentially. In this study, we evaluated hybrid convolutional-recurrent neural network (CNN-RNN) models based on five state-of-the-art pre-trained CNN architectures coupled with three RNNs to discern tumor abnormalities in dynamic breast thermographic images.

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Biotherapeutics are complex molecules with therapeutic activity produced through biotechnology and/or genetic engineering. These medicines have clinical applications in diagnostic procedures and therapies for many disorders, including cancer, autoimmunity, and chronic degenerative diseases. Most biotherapeutics are expensive and sometimes unaffordable for low-income patients suffering from cancer or chronic illness.

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Background: The GTPase KRas4B has been utilized as a principal target in the development of anticancer drugs. PDE6δ transports KRas4B to the plasma membrane, where it is released to activate various signaling pathways required for the initiation and maintenance of cancer. Therefore, identifying new small molecules that prevent activation of this GTPase by stabilizing the KRas4B-PDE6δ molecular complex is a practical strategy to fight against cancer.

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The venom of the Eastern coral snake Micrurus fulvius can cause respiratory paralysis in the bitten patient, which is attributable to β-neurotoxins (β-NTx). The aim of this work was to study the biodistribution and lymphatic tracking by molecular imaging of the main β-NTx of M. fulvius venom.

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We isolated a novel, atypical long-chain three-finger toxin (TFT), α-elapitoxin-Dpp2d (α-EPTX-Dpp2d), from black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis polylepis) venom. Proteolytic digestion with trypsin and V8 protease, together with MS/MS de novo sequencing, indicated that the mature toxin has an amidated C-terminal arginine, a posttranslational modification rarely observed for snake TFTs. α-EPTX-Dpp2d was found to potently inhibit α7 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR; IC₅₀, 58 ± 24 nM) and muscle-type nAChR (IC₅₀, 114 ± 37 nM) but did not affect α3β2 and α3β4 nAChR isoforms at 1 μM concentrations.

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Unlabelled: Here we show for the first time that the venom from an elapid (Micrurus fulvius) contains three finger toxin (3FTxs) peptides with low toxicity but high content of lethal phospholipases A2 (PLA2). The intravenous venom LD50 in mice was 0.3μg/g.

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