Nucleic acid delivery to retinal cells using lipopeptides as a potential tool towards ocular gene therapies.

We evaluated the use of lipopeptides capable to bind to nucleic acids towards plasmid DNA (pDNA) delivery. The investigations were particularly focused on arising retinal pigment epithelial cells (ARPE-19) as motivated by the considerable number of ocular disorders linked to gene aberrations. The lipopeptides comprised the artificial oligoamino acid succinyl-tetraethylene pentamine (Stp) as well as incorporated lysines, histidines, cysteines, fatty acids, and tyrosine trimers.

Balancing gene transfection and cytotoxicity of nucleic acid carriers with focus on ocular and hepatic disorders: evaluation of hydrophobic and hydrophilic polyethyleneimine derivatives.

Polyethyleneimine (PEI) derivatives substituted by lactose, succinic acid or alkyl domains were evaluated as nonviral gene delivery vectors towards balancing gene transfection and cytotoxicity. The investigations were focused on pDNA transfection into arising retinal pigment epithelia (ARPE-19) and human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cell lines. The first mentioned cell line was chosen as motivated by the non-negligible number of ocular disorders linked to gene aberrations, whereas the second one is a cell line overexpressing the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGP-R), which can bind to galactose residues.

Influence of Environmental Exposure to Steel Waste on Endocrine Dysregulation and Gene Polymorphisms.

Objective: To evaluate the association between environmental exposure to the following chemical substances: cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), manganese (Mn), benzene (BZN), and toluene (TLN), and Period Circadian Regulator 3 () gene variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) polymorphisms, according to chronotype in a population living in a steel residue-contaminated area.

Methods: This assessment comprises a study conducted from 2017 to 2019 with 159 participants who completed health, work, and Pittsburgh sleep scale questionnaires. Cd, Pb, Ni, Mn, BZN, and TLN concentrations in blood and urine were determined by Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (GFAAS) and Headspace Gas Chromatography (GC), and genotyping was carried out using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR).

Overweight and Obesity in Brazilian Immigrants in Massachusetts, USA: A Time Series Analysis (2009-2020).

Introduction: Obesity is considered a growing public health problem by the Brazilian Ministry of Health and a global epidemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). In 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated the prevalence of adult obesity at 31.9% in the USA.

Blockade of caspase cascade overcomes malaria-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome in mice.

Malaria is an enormous burden on global health that caused 409,000 deaths in 2019. Severe malaria can manifest in the lungs, an illness known as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Not much is known about the development of malaria-associated ARDS (MA-ARDS), especially regarding cell death in the lungs.