Risk of Zika virus-associated birth defects in congenital confirmed cases in the Brazilian Amazon.

Objective: To establish the risk of microcephaly in neonates born to women infected with ZIKV during pregnancy.

Methods: A cohort of laboratory-confirmed ZIKV cases of congenital infections (109 mothers infected during pregnancy and 101 newborns) among 308 suspect cases was followed in Belem, Pará, Brazil, from October 2015 to December 2017.

Results: A microcephaly risk of 1.

Functional interrogation of a SARS-CoV-2 host protein interactome identifies unique and shared coronavirus host factors.

Unlabelled: The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has devastated the global economy and claimed nearly one million lives, presenting an urgent global health crisis. To identify host factors required for infection by SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal coronaviruses, we designed a focused high-coverage CRISPR-Cas9 library targeting 332 members of a recently published SARS-CoV-2 protein interactome. We leveraged the compact nature of this library to systematically screen four related coronaviruses (HCoV-229E, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-OC43 and SARS-CoV-2) at two physiologically relevant temperatures (33 °C and 37 °C), allowing us to probe this interactome at a much higher resolution relative to genome scale studies.

Usability of smartphone apps as reading aids for low vision patients.

Purpose: Reading is one of the main complaints of low vision patients referred for visual rehabilitation, since it is fundamental for full participation in modern society. The purpose of this study was to analyse the usability of free smartphone apps with magnification tools as digital aids for reading visual rehabilitation in low vision patients.

Methods: Low vision adult patients were included regarding the following criteria: best-corrected visual acuity in the better-seeing eye from 0.

Differential Expression and PAH Degradation: What s G4 Can Tell Us?

Petroleum is the major energy matrix in the world whose refining generates chemical byproducts that may damage the environment. Among such waste, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are considered persistent pollutants. Sixteen of these are considered priority for remediation, and among them is benzo(a)pyrene.

GM2 Gangliosidoses: Clinical Features, Pathophysiological Aspects, and Current Therapies.

GM2 gangliosidoses are a group of pathologies characterized by GM2 ganglioside accumulation into the lysosome due to mutations on the genes encoding for the β-hexosaminidases subunits or the GM2 activator protein. Three GM2 gangliosidoses have been described: Tay-Sachs disease, Sandhoff disease, and the AB variant. Central nervous system dysfunction is the main characteristic of GM2 gangliosidoses patients that include neurodevelopment alterations, neuroinflammation, and neuronal apoptosis.

Modulation of octopaminergic and cholinergic pathways induced by Caatinga tree Manilkara rufula chemical compounds in Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches.

The entomotoxic potential of Manilkara rufula crude extract (CEMR) and its aqueous (AFMR) and methanolic (MFMR) fractions were evaluated against Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches. The results point out to a direct modulation of octopaminergic and cholinergic pathways in insect nervous system. CEMR induced an anti-acetylcholinesterase (AChE) effect in cockroach brain homogenates.

Antifungal Properties of Nerolidol-Containing Liposomes in Association with Fluconazole.

(1) Background: Infections by species represent a serious threat to the health of immunocompromised individuals. Evidence has indicated that nerolidol has significant antifungal properties. Nonetheless, its use is restricted due to a low water solubility and high photosensitivity.

Regional White Matter Atrophy Correlates with Spike Activity in Encephalopathy Related to Status Epilepticus During Slow Sleep (ESES) After Early Thalamic Lesions.

Encephalopathy related to Status Epilepticus during slow Sleep (ESES) is an age-related, epileptic syndrome, which associates cognitive/behavioral disturbances with a peculiar pattern of spike activity. One promising line of research is the study of ESES in cases of early thalamic lesions. We studied 7 ESES patients with unilateral thalamic lesions using magnetic resonance imaging to assess regional white matter (WM) and thalamic nuclei volume differences, and long-term electroencephalogram recordings to localize the epileptogenic cortex.

Applications of cell-free circulating tumor DNA detection in EGFR mutant lung cancer.

Analyses of cell-free tumor DNA (ctDNA) have provided a non-invasive strategy for cancer diagnosis, the identification of molecular aberrations for treatment identification, and evaluation of tumor response. Sensitive and specific ctDNA sequencing strategies have allowed for implementation into clinical practice for the initial genotyping of patients and resistance monitoring. The specific need for EGFR mutation detection for the management of lung cancer patients has been an early imperative and has set the stage for non-invasive molecular profiling across other oncogenic drivers.

Chalcones Isolated from Flowers as Inhibitors of NorA and MepA Multidrug Efflux Pumps of .

Bacterial resistance to antibiotics has become a public health issue around the world. The present study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of chalcones isolated from flowers of , and their potential as efflux pump inhibitors of efflux pumps. Microdilution assays were performed with natural products from Chalcones , , and did not show intrinsic antimicrobial activity against all strains tested, but they were able to potentiate the Norfloxacin action against the SA1199-B () strain, with a better modulating action for the trimethoxylated chalcone.

Chemical and Pharmacological Screening of (Spix 1824) Toad Parotoid Secretion in Avian Preparations.

The biological activity of parotoid secretion (RIPS) and some of its chromatographic fractions (RI18, RI19, RI23, and RI24) was evaluated in the current study. Mass spectrometry of these fractions indicated the presence of sarmentogenin, argentinogenin, (5,12)-12,14-dihydroxy-11-oxobufa-3,20,22-trienolide, marinobufagin, bufogenin B, 11α,19-dihydroxy-telocinobufagin, bufotalin, monohydroxylbufotalin, 19-oxo-cinobufagin, 3α,12,25,26-tetrahydroxy-7-oxo-5-cholestane-26--sulfate, and cinobufagin-3-hemisuberate that were identified as alkaloid and steroid compounds, in addition to marinoic acid and -methyl-5-hydroxy-tryptamine. In chick brain slices, all fractions caused a slight decrease in cell viability, as also seen with the highest concentration of RIPS tested.

Lysosomal storage diseases: current therapies and future alternatives.

Lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) are a group of monogenic diseases characterized by progressive accumulation of undegraded substrates into the lysosome, due to mutations in genes that encode for proteins involved in normal lysosomal function. In recent years, several approaches have been explored to find effective and successful therapies, including enzyme replacement therapy, substrate reduction therapy, pharmacological chaperones, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and gene therapy. In the case of gene therapy, genome editing technologies have opened new horizons to accelerate the development of novel treatment alternatives for LSD patients.

Reaching task performance is associated to neuromuscular junction adaptations in rats with induced diabetes mellitus.

Upper limb performance is affected by diabetes mellitus (DM). Neuromuscular junction (NMJ) is a key structure to understand the relationship between performance and morphology in DM. The aim of the study was to analyze NMJ plasticity due to DM in an animal model and its relationship with the function of forelimbs in rats.

[HIV/AIDS diagnosis in heterosexual men: still a surprise after more than 30 years of the epidemic].

Men are the main group affected by HIV infection in Brazil, with an upward trend in the last 10 years. According to official data, heterosexual men represent 49% of cases, followed by homosexuals with 38% and bisexuals with 9.1%.

Protective role of ACE2 and its downregulation in SARS-CoV-2 infection leading to Macrophage Activation Syndrome: Therapeutic implications.

In light of the outbreak of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the international scientific community has joined forces to develop effective treatment strategies. The Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) 2, is an essential receptor for cell fusion and engulfs the SARS coronavirus infections. ACE2 plays an important physiological role, practically in all the organs and systems.

Pathological mutations in PNKP trigger defects in DNA single-strand break repair but not DNA double-strand break repair.

Hereditary mutations in polynucleotide kinase-phosphatase (PNKP) result in a spectrum of neurological pathologies ranging from neurodevelopmental dysfunction in microcephaly with early onset seizures (MCSZ) to neurodegeneration in ataxia oculomotor apraxia-4 (AOA4) and Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT2B2). Consistent with this, PNKP is implicated in the repair of both DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) and DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs); lesions that can trigger neurodegeneration and neurodevelopmental dysfunction, respectively. Surprisingly, however, we did not detect a significant defect in DSB repair (DSBR) in primary fibroblasts from PNKP patients spanning the spectrum of PNKP-mutated pathologies.

Human Blood Feeding by Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) in the Florida Keys and a Review of the Literature.

Aedes aegypti L. is considered to have a proclivity for feeding on human blood even when other hosts are available. However, few studies have demonstrated host use by this mosquito in the continental United States, where local transmission of dengue, Zika, and chikungunya viruses has been recently documented.

A Patient-Based National Survey and Prospective Evaluation of Postoperative Pain Management in Spain: Prevalent but Possibly Preventable.

Objective: To evaluate the national general prevalence of postoperative pain and the associated organizational/structural factors related to the provision of health care services.

Design And Setting: Observational prospective cohort study performed in 46 tertiary hospitals that were randomly selected from the Spanish National Inventory of Hospitals through a two-stage balanced and stratified procedure.

Subjects And Methods: Nine-hundred surgical patients representing a wide spectrum of surgical procedures and anesthetic methods were recruited.

The use of a task through virtual reality in cerebral palsy using two different interaction devices (concrete and abstract) - a cross-sectional randomized study.

Background: Cerebral Palsy (CP) is characterised by variable difficulties in muscular action, resulting in inability of the individual to perform functional movement. An option to provide functionality to the individual with CP is the use of computer innovation. The aim of this paper was to verify if there was any performance improvement in a task performed in a virtual environment and if there was transfer to the task performed in the real environment and vice versa in this population.

Use of PET/CT to aid clinical decision-making in cases of solitary pulmonary nodule: a probabilistic approach.

Objective: To determine the frequency with which F-FDG-PET/CT findings change the probability of malignancy classification of solitary pulmonary nodules.

Materials And Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of all F-FDG-PET/CT examinations performed for the investigation of a solitary pulmonary nodule between May 2016 and May 2017. We reviewed medical records and PET/CT images to collect the data necessary to calculate the pre-test probability of malignancy using the Swensen model and the Herder model.

Effects of curcumin supplementation on sport and physical exercise: a systematic review.

Curcumin is the main phenolic compound in turmeric. It has been investigated recently due to its numerous medicinal properties and health benefits. However, few studies assessed the effects of curcumin supplementation on physical activity practice.

Biphasic Dose/Response of Photobiomodulation Therapy on Culture of Human Fibroblasts.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of application of different fluences and energies of laser in the 24-, 48-, and 72-h periods in fibroblasts originating from human skin (HFF-1). The cell used as a template for cell proliferation was HFF-1. For the photobiomodulation (PBM) application, a 660 nm laser with a power of 40 mW and energies of 0.