Publications by authors named "Karla Luna"
Electronic cigarettes alter cardiac rhythm and heart rate variability hyperacutely in mice.
Toxicol Appl Pharmacol
November 2024
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how brief electronic cigarette (EC) exposures affect heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) in mice, focusing on the impact of timing and frequency of these exposures.
- EC exposure led to noticeable changes in HR and HRV, including bradycardia and increased time domain parameters during exposure, with varying effects observed across the three weeks of the experiment.
- Additionally, the study found that ECs caused prooxidative effects in the lungs, indicating potential harm beyond just heart rate changes.
Air pollution is a prominent cause of cardiopulmonary illness, but uncertainties remain regarding the mechanisms mediating those effects as well as individual susceptibility. Macrophages are highly responsive to particles, and we hypothesized that their responses would be dependent on their genetic backgrounds. We conducted a genome-wide analysis of peritoneal macrophages harvested from 24 inbred strains of mice from the Hybrid Mouse Diversity Panel (HMDP).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Bothrops leucurus is a major cause of snakebites in Northeast Brazil, but its venom is not included in current antivenom production, prompting the exploration of alternative treatments.
- Chlorogenic acid and rosmarinic acid were studied for their ability to inhibit B. leucurus venom's enzymatic activity and harmful effects, showing significant effectiveness in reducing edema, hemorrhage, and myotoxicity in both in vitro and in vivo tests.
- The compounds demonstrated interactions with venom components and proved to be more effective than existing antivenoms, suggesting their potential as complementary treatments in snakebite management.
Introduction: Bacterial resistance is a worldwide public health problem, requiring new therapeutic options. An alternative approach to this problem is the use of animal toxins isolated from snake venom, such as phospholipases A (PLA), which have important antimicrobial activities. is one of the snake species in the northeast of Brazil that attracts great medical-scientific interest.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The review summarizes 36 years of research on the venom of the snake Bothrops erythromelas, highlighting advancements in understanding its effects.
- It is based on 29 articles published from 1979 to 2015, emphasizing a range of research areas related to snake venom.
- The study calls for a multidisciplinary approach and new experimental methods to deepen knowledge of the complexities of snakebite envenoming and the toxins produced by snakes.
The Caatinga lancehead, Bothrops erythromelas, is a medically relevant species, responsible for most of the snakebite accidents in most parts of its distribution range in northeastern Brazil. The spectrum and geographic variability of its venom toxins were investigated applying a venomics approach to venom pools from five geographic areas within the Caatinga ecoregion. Despite its wide habitat, populations of B.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Snake envenomings are a health problem in rural areas of tropical and subtropical countries, but little is known regarding the immune response presented by bitten individuals. The IgM production of patients bitten by Bothrops erythromelas snake was analyzed to identify the effectiveness of treatment in this type of envenomation.
Methods: Bothrops erythromelas venom was submitted to electrophoresis and transferred to a nitrocellulose sheet, following incubation with patients' sera.