Evaluation of Zonulin Expression and Its Potential Clinical Significance in Glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma, the deadliest adult brain tumor, poses a significant therapeutic challenge with a dismal prognosis despite current treatments. Zonulin, a protein influencing tight junctions and barrier functions, has gained attention for its diverse roles in various diseases. This study aimed to preliminarily analyze the circulating and tumor zonulin levels, evaluating their impact on disease prognosis and clinical-radiological factors.

Androgen deficiency is associated with a better prognosis in glioblastoma.

Background: The androgen receptor (AR) has been demonstrated to play a role in the pathogenesis of glioblastoma; however, the implications of circulating testosterone levels in the biology of glioblastoma remain unknown.

Aim: This study aimed to analyze the association between circulating testosterone levels and the prognosis of patients with glioblastoma.

Methods: Forty patients with primary glioblastoma were included in the study.

MicroRNAs regulating macrophages infected with () isolated from different clinical forms of American tegumentary leishmaniasis.

Background: Leishmaniasis is an infectious disease caused by protozoa of the genus . There are still no vaccines, and therapeutic options are limited, indicating the constant need to understand the fine mechanisms of its pathophysiology. An approach that has been explored in leishmaniasis is the participation of microRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNAs that act, in most cases, to repress gene expression.

Residual Strain and Nanostructural Effects during Drying of Nanocellulose/Clay Nanosheet Hybrids: Synchrotron X-ray Scattering Results.

Cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) with 2D silicate nanoplatelet reinforcement readily form multifunctional composites by vacuum-assisted self-assembly from hydrocolloidal mixtures. The final nanostructure is formed during drying. The crystalline nature of CNF and montmorillonite (MTM) made it possible to use synchrotron X-ray scattering (WAXS, SAXS) to monitor structural development during drying from water and from ethanol.

Leishmania braziliensis causing human disease in Northeast Brazil presents loci with genotypes in long-term equilibrium.

Background: Leishmaniases are neglected tropical diseases that inflict great burden to poor areas of the globe. Intense research has aimed to identify parasite genetic signatures predictive of infection outcomes. Consistency of diagnostic tools based on these markers would greatly benefit from accurate understanding of Leishmania spp.

Androgen Receptor Activity Is Associated with Worse Survival in Glioblastoma.

Background: Some evidence about the role of the androgen receptor (AR) in pathogenesis of glioblastoma have been reported, but no study has focused on measuring the activity of the AR in GB. Therefore, the aim of this work is to study the role of AR and its activity as prognostic biomarkers in glioblastoma (GB).

Methods: Molecular and clinical data from The Cancer Genome Atlas database were used.

-Induced Dendritic Cell Migration and Its Potential Contribution to Parasite Dissemination.

, an intracellular parasite species, causes lesions on the skin and in the mucosa and internal organs. The dissemination of infected host cells containing is crucial to parasite survival and the establishment of infection. Migratory phenomena and the mechanisms underlying the dissemination of -infected human dendritic cells (hDCs) remain poorly understood.

Mild and Versatile Functionalization of Nacre-Mimetic Cellulose Nanofibrils/Clay Nanocomposites by Organocatalytic Surface Engineering.

Development of surface-engineering strategies, which are facile, versatile, and mild, are highly desirable in tailor-made functionalization of high-performance bioinspired nanocomposites. We herein disclose for the first time a general organocatalytic strategy for the functionalization and hydrophobization of nacre-mimetic nanocomposites, which includes vide supra key aspects of surface engineering. The merging of metal-free catalysis and the design of nacre-mimetic nanocomposite materials were demonstrated by the organocatalytic surface engineering of cellulose nanofibrils/clay nanocomposites providing the corresponding bioinspired nanocomposites with good mechanical properties, hydrophobicity, and useful thia-, amino, and olefinic functionalities.

Lignin-Based Epoxy Resins: Unravelling the Relationship between Structure and Material Properties.

Here we investigate the relationship between thermomechanical properties and chemical structure of well-characterized lignin-based epoxy resins. For this purpose, technical lignins from eucalyptus and spruce, obtained from the Kraft process, were used. The choice of lignins was based on the expected differences in molecular structure.

Leishmania braziliensis isolated from disseminated leishmaniasis patients downmodulate neutrophil function.

Aims: The polymorphism observed in Leishmania braziliensis is associated with different clinical forms of leishmaniasis. Neutrophils (PMNs) participate in the pathogenesis of leishmania infection, and here, we evaluate neutrophil function after infection with isolates of L. braziliensis from cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) or disseminated leishmaniasis (DL) patients.

Molecular epidemiology and in vitro evidence suggest that Leishmania braziliensis strain helps determine antimony response among American tegumenary leishmaniasis patients.

Antimony is the first line drug for treating American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) in Brazil. In this country, Leishmania braziliensis causes at least three distinct forms of disease: localized cutaneous (CL), mucosal (ML) and disseminated leishmaniasis (DL). All forms can be found in Corte de Pedra, Northeast Brazil.

Nanostructured Wood Hybrids for Fire-Retardancy Prepared by Clay Impregnation into the Cell Wall.

Eco-friendly materials need "green" fire-retardancy treatments, which offer opportunity for new wood nanotechnologies. Balsa wood (Ochroma pyramidale) was delignified to form a hierarchically structured and nanoporous scaffold mainly composed of cellulose nanofibrils. This nanocellulosic wood scaffold was impregnated with colloidal montmorillonite clay to form a nanostructured wood hybrid with high flame-retardancy.

High-Strength Nanocomposite Aerogels of Ternary Composition: Poly(vinyl alcohol), Clay, and Cellulose Nanofibrils.

Clay aerogels are foam-like materials with potential to combine high mechanical performance with fire retardancy. However, the compression strength of these aerogels is much lower than theoretically predicted values. High-strength aerogels with more than 95% porosity were prepared from a ternary material system based on poly(vinyl alcohol), montmorillonite clay platelets, and cellulose nanofibrils.

Reduced postpartum hemorrhage after implementation of active management of the third stage of labor in rural Honduras.

Objective: To assess outcomes after auxiliary nurses were trained and given resources to use active management of the third stage of labor (AMTSL) for all women giving birth in a low-resource, low-risk, rural, public birth center setting in northern rural Honduras.

Methods: Auxiliary nurses received training on estimation of blood loss before the preintervention phase of the study (July 2004 through April 2005) and AMTSL, including use of intramuscular oxytocin, and estimation of blood loss prior to the intervention phase (July 2007 through June 2008). Preintervention and intervention data on use of oxytocin, blood loss postpartum, hemorrhage rates, and management interventions were collected and compared.

Postpartum hemorrhage prevention: a case study in northern rural Honduras.

Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is the leading cause of maternal mortality globally. Safe Motherhood policies have been directed towards the reduction of PPH by recommending active management of third-stage labor as the standard of care. One component of active management involves routine use of a uterotonic agent within 1 minute of the delivery of the baby.