Publications by authors named "Laura L Valdez-Velazquez"

Article Synopsis
  • Envenomation by Heloderma horridum, a lizard species, can cause notable physiological changes, particularly in heart function, as demonstrated in tests on Wistar rats.
  • The study utilized a specialized computational linear regression algorithm to enhance the analysis of ECG data, achieving a 97.5% efficiency in detecting key heartwave components.
  • Despite significant electrocardiographic changes and arrhythmias observed, there were no major signs of physical or inflammatory damage to the heart tissue, indicating that the venom primarily affects heart conduction rather than causing direct myocardial damage.
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  • - Trachoma is the leading cause of infectious blindness worldwide, particularly affecting indigenous Mayan populations in Chiapas, Mexico, and is linked to genetic factors that may increase the risk of developing severe cases.
  • - A study involving 51 individuals with late-stage trachoma and 102 controls identified specific genetic polymorphisms (SNPs) related to inflammation, particularly in genes like BIRC3 and ABCG2, that correlate with heightened risk of the disease.
  • - Key findings indicate that certain alleles, specifically the T allele of rs11807619, the C allele of rs932335, and the D allele of rs4340 in the ACE gene, are significantly associated with increased risk of late-stage tr
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, a venomous reptile native to America, has a venom with potential applications in treating type II diabetes. In this work, venom was extracted, lyophilized, and characterized using enzymatic assays for hyaluronidase, phospholipase, and protease. Proteomic analysis of the venom was conducted employing bottom-up/shotgun approaches, SDS-PAGE, high-pH reversed-phase chromatography, and fractionation of tryptic peptides using nano-LC-MS/MS.

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Heart diseases rank among the most fatal health concerns globally, with the majority being preventable through early diagnosis and effective treatment. Electrocardiogram (ECG) analysis is critical in detecting heart diseases, as it captures the heart's electrical activities. For continuous monitoring, wearable electrocardiographic devices must ensure user comfort over extended periods, typically 24 to 48 h.

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  • A newly discovered "striped scorpion" species from Mexico is toxic to mammals and has potential therapeutic and biotechnological uses.
  • The study involved determining the lethal dose for mice and analyzing its secretory gland transcriptome and venom proteome using high-throughput sequencing and mass spectrometry.
  • The research identified 244 complete transcripts related to toxins and 70 venom components, making it the most comprehensive analysis of scorpion venom to date and providing new insights into venom biology.
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Scorpions are a group of arthropods that strike fear in many people due to their severe medical symptoms, even death, caused by their venomous stings. Even so, not all scorpion species contain harmful venoms against humans but still have valuable bioactive molecules, which could be used in developing new pharmaceutical leads for treating important diseases. This work conducted a comprehensive analysis of the venom from the scorpion Thorellius intrepidus.

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Skin secretions of toads are a complex mixture of molecules. The substances secreted comprise more than 80 different compounds that show diverse pharmacological activities. The compounds secreted through skin pores and parotid glands are of particular interest because they help toads to endure in habitats full of pathogenic microbes, i.

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  • The peptide Ct1a, a β-toxin made up of 66 amino acids, is derived from the venom of the scorpion species Centruroides tecomanus and is the most abundant toxin found in its venom.
  • Ct1a influences the spontaneous firing rate (SFR) of neurons in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in a concentration-dependent manner, significantly increasing it at 100 nM but decreasing it at higher concentrations (500 nM and 1000 nM).
  • The study indicates that Ct1a affects the SFR of SCN neurons by altering the properties of hNav1.6 sodium channels, shifting their activation to more negative potentials and reducing peak current amplitudes.
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  • The Helodermatidae family of lizards includes two main species known for their venomous secretions: Heloderma horridum horridum and Heloderma suspectum suspectum.
  • Researchers used RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to analyze the venom glands of H. horridum horridum, discovering over 114,000 transcripts with 199 annotated based on previous studies.
  • The study identified various highly expressed proteins in the venom, including exendins, defensins, and serine protease inhibitors, which could enhance our understanding of their venom and its biological effects.
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Centruroides hirsutipalpus (Scorpiones: Buthidae) is related to the "striped scorpion" group inhabiting the western Pacific region of Mexico. Human accidents caused by this species are medically important due to the great number of people stung and the severity of the resulting intoxication. This communication reports an extensive venom characterization using high-throughput proteomic and Illumina transcriptomic sequencing performed with RNA purified from its venom glands.

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As part of an ongoing survey of scorpion diversity in Colima, Mexico, the isolated mountain Cerro Grande, part of the Biosphere Reserve Sierra de Manantlán, was investigated. Centruroides possanii sp. nov.

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Background: , of the family Buthidae, is a scorpion endemic to the Western Pacific region of Mexico. Although medically important, its venom has not yet been studied. Therefore, this communication aims to identify their venom components and possible functions.

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Dengue virus (DENV) is currently considered as one of the most important mosquito-borne viral pathogens affecting humans. Genetic variations in viruses are likely to be a condition for more effective evasion of the immune system and resulting in severe clinical consequences. The DENV‑1 NS5 gene was sequenced to establish whether during an epidemic burst there were genetic variations of the virus and whether any variant was associated (through a case‑control design) with severe clinical behavior.

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Introduction: Preterm birth is the most important cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity. It is a multifactorial disease with different etiologies, including genetic factors. Genetic variability is represented by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes of proteins involved in the contractile activity.

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Background And Objective: Obesity is a factor that contributes to the morbidity of certain diseases and to worldwide mortality. MGAT1 is a glycosyltransferase involved in the synthesis of protein-bound and lipid-bound oligosaccharides and its polymorphisms are possibly involved in the etiology of obesity. We investigated the association of the rs4285184 polymorphism of the MGAT1 gene with obesity in adults in the State of Colima, Mexico.

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Meclofenamic acid is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug that has shown therapeutic potential for different types of cancers, including androgen-independent prostate neoplasms. The antitumor effect of diverse nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs has been shown to be accompanied by histological and molecular changes that are responsible for this beneficial effect. The objective of the present work was to analyze the histological changes caused by meclofenamic acid in androgen-independent prostate cancer.

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Uterine cervical cancer (UCC) is one of the main causes of cancer-associated mortality in women. Inflammation has been identified as an important component of this neoplasia; in this context, anti-inflammatory drugs represent possible prophylactic and/or therapeutic alternatives that require further investigation. Anti-inflammatory drugs are common and each one may exhibit a different antineoplastic effect.

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Scorpions belonging to the Buthidae family have traditionally drawn much of the biochemist's attention due to the strong toxicity of their venoms. Scorpions not toxic to mammals, however, also have complex venoms. They have been shown to be an important source of bioactive peptides, some of them identified as potential drug candidates for the treatment of several emerging diseases and conditions.

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Introduction: A high-fat diet and male obesity are aspects associated with germinal epithelial alterations and male infertility. Some reports have shown that certain tetracyclines can protect the germinal epithelium from toxic drugs. The aim of the present study design was to evaluate the possible effect of doxycycline on testicular germ cells in individuals fed a Western diet (atherogenic), using a murine model.

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Introduction: The expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) participates in the angiogenesis of several cancer types. The goal of this study was to investigate polymorphisms in genes related to angiogenesis (PAI-1-675 4G/5G, VEGF C936T, and TGF-β1 G-800A) to evaluate the risk for developing uterine cervical cancer (UCC).

Methods: In a case-control study, 100 healthy subjects and 100 patients with UCC from Mexico were included.

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Centruroides tecomanus is a Mexican scorpion endemic of the State of Colima, that causes human fatalities. This communication describes a proteome analysis obtained from milked venom and a transcriptome analysis from a cDNA library constructed from two pairs of venom glands of this scorpion. High perfomance liquid chromatography separation of soluble venom produced 80 fractions, from which at least 104 individual components were identified by mass spectrometry analysis, showing to contain molecular masses from 259 to 44,392 Da.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Prostate cancer is a major global health issue, especially challenging to treat in cases of metastatic androgen-independent cancer, leading researchers to explore the role of inflammation and the potential therapeutic effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like meclofenamic acid and mefenamic acid.
  • - In laboratory experiments, meclofenamic acid demonstrated strong cytotoxic effects on human prostate cancer cells, particularly in androgen-independent PC3 cell lines, while in vivo studies showed it was not toxic to mice at certain doses.
  • - The in vivo trials indicated that meclofenamic acid could significantly inhibit tumor growth and even lead to complete tumor regression in some cases, suggesting it may serve as an effective treatment for both androgen-dependent and
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Introduction: Renin is the main rate-limiting enzyme in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. Its gene, REN, is a candidate crucial factor in essential hypertension and cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate allele and haplotype distributions of REN polymorphisms, and to estimate normalised linkage disequilibrium (D') in Mexican and German populations.

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Introduction: Short tandem repeats (STRs) are the DNA polymorphisms most widely used in forensic genetics and parentage testing. Most common series of STRs are those from FBI (CODIS) and from INTERPOL. While there are data related to the first group, no studies are still known in Mexican populations in regard of the INTERPOL set.

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Introduction: Premature rupture of membranes (PRM) is a late pregnancy complication commonly associated with preterm delivery (PD). Although several markers related to the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) have been evaluated in certain pregnancy complications, only the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) I/D variant has been studied in PD-PRM. The aim of this survey was to investigate the association of the polymorphisms (angiotensin II type 1 [AT1] receptor T174M and M235T, renin G2805A, ACE I/D and AT1-receptor A1166C) of the genes of RAS in women with PD-PRM.

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