Enhancing the antimicrobial and antifungal activities of a coloring extract agent rich in betacyanins obtained from Gomphrena globosa L. flowers.

Although less explored than beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.), the flowers of Gomphrena globosa L. are a very suitable source of betacyanins with strong pigmentation features, together with many other desirable bioactive properties.

The Proteome of Fruit Peroxisomes: Sweet Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) as a Model.

Despite of their economical and nutritional interest, the biology of fruits is still little studied in comparison with reports of other plant organs such as leaves and roots. Accordingly, research at subcellular and molecular levels is necessary not only to understand the physiology of fruits, but also to improve crop qualities. Efforts addressed to gain knowledge of the peroxisome proteome and how it interacts with the overall metabolism of fruits will provide tools to be used in breeding strategies of agricultural species with added value.

Stability of total folates/vitamin B in irradiated watercress and buckler sorrel during refrigerated storage.

The suitability of post-packaging gamma radiation treatment for preserving total folates or vitamin B in watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. Br.) and buckler sorrel (Rumex induratus Boiss.

The Hydropathy Scale as a Gauge of Hygroscopicity in Sub-Micron Sodium Chloride-Amino Acid Aerosols.

Sodium chloride, NaCl, is commonly used as a proxy for sea spray aerosols. However, field work has demonstrated that sea spray aerosols also often contain a significant organic component. In this work, we examine the effect of amino acids on the hygroscopic properties of NaCl aerosols using a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer coupled to a flow-cell apparatus.

Teleophthalmology Support for Primary Care Diagnosis and Management.

This study was performed to evaluate a healthcare strategy based on teleophthalmology for diagnosis and management of primary healthcare users. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to review the medical records of patients from January 2013 to December 2014 from primary care units in the city of São Paulo. The units referred patients, who had diabetes or high blood pressure, and were users of chloroquine compounds, for a fundus examination.

Intranasal delivery of mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes reduces oxidative stress and markedly inhibits ethanol consumption and post-deprivation relapse drinking.

Chronic ethanol consumption leads to brain oxidative stress and neuroinflammation, conditions known to potentiate and perpetuate each other. Several studies have shown that neuroinflammation results in increases in chronic ethanol consumption. Recent reports showed that the intra-cerebroventricular administration of mesenchymal stem cells to rats consuming alcohol chronically markedly inhibited oxidative-stress, abolished neuroinflammation and greatly reduced chronic alcohol intake and post deprivation relapse-like alcohol intake.

( R)- N-(1-Methyl-2-hydroxyethyl)-13-( S)-methyl-arachidonamide (AMG315): A Novel Chiral Potent Endocannabinoid Ligand with Stability to Metabolizing Enzymes.

The synthesis of potent metabolically stable endocannabinoids is challenging. Here we report a chiral arachidonoyl ethanolamide (AEA) analogue, namely, (13 S,1' R)-dimethylanandamide (AMG315, 3a), a high affinity ligand for the CB1 receptor ( K of 7.8 ± 1.

Cannabidiol skews biased agonism at cannabinoid CB and CB receptors with smaller effect in CB-CB heteroreceptor complexes.

Currently, biased agonism is at the center stage of drug development approaches. We analyzed effects of a battery of cannabinoids plus/minus cannabidiol (CBD) in four functional parameters (cAMP levels, phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK1/2), β-arrestin recruitment and label-free/DMR) in HEK-293T cells expressing cannabinoid receptors, CB or CB, or CB-CB heteroreceptor complexes. In all cases two natural agonists plus two selective synthetic agonists were used.

Analysis of the effectiveness of training school personnel in the management of food allergy and anaphylaxis.

Background: Food allergy is a very frequent and increasingly common disease in children and adolescents. It affects quality of life and can even be life-threatening. Given that 10-18% of allergic/anaphylactic food reactions take place in schools, it is essential to provide school personnel with training on the management of reactions.

Sanguinello and Tarocco (Citrus sinensis [L.] Osbeck): Bioactive compounds and colour appearance of blood oranges.

Sanguinello and Tarocco (Citrus sinensis [L.] Osbeck) are the most common and widespread blood oranges varieties in the Mediterranean climate area. Its interest is increasing mainly due to nutritional and organoleptic properties.

Evolution of a Yeast With Industrial Background Under Winemaking Conditions Leads to Diploidization and Chromosomal Copy Number Variation.

Industrial wine yeast strains show genome particularities, with strains showing polyploid genomes or chromosome copy number variations, being easier to identify. Although these genomic structures have classically been considered transitory steps in the genomic adaptation to new environmental conditions, they may be more stable than thought. These yeasts are highly specialized strains able to cope with the different stresses associated with the fermentation process, from the high osmolarity to the final ethanol content.

Presbyopia and Ocular Conditions Causing Near Vision Impairment in Older Adults From the Brazilian Amazon Region.

Purpose: To investigate the prevalence and causes of near vision impairment (NVI) in a population of older adults from the Brazilian Amazon Region.

Design: Population-based cross-sectional study.

Methods: Cluster sampling was used in randomly selecting subjects 45 years of age and older from urban and rural areas of Parintins city, Brazil.

Current epidemiology of diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 1 diabetes: a national multicenter study in Brazil.

Background: Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in economically active populations. The aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence and to identify risk factors for diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 1 diabetes in Brazil.

Methods: This was a nationwide, cross-sectional study conducted between August 2010 and August 2014.

Emerging strategies targeting CB cannabinoid receptor: Biased agonism and allosterism.

During these last years, the CB cannabinoid receptor has emerged as a potential anti-inflammatory target in diseases such as multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington's disease, ischemic stroke, autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis, and cancer. However, the development of clinically useful CB agonists reveals to be very challenging. Allosterism and biased-signaling mechanisms at CB receptor may offer new avenues for the development of improved CB receptor-targeted therapies.

Commonality of Ethanol and Nicotine Reinforcement and Relapse in Wistar-Derived UChB Rats: Inhibition by N-Acetylcysteine.

Background: Life expectancy is greatly reduced in individuals presenting alcohol use disorders and chronic smoking. Literature studies suggest that common mechanisms may apply to the chronic use and relapse of both alcohol and nicotine. It is hypothesized that an increased brain oxidative stress and neuroinflammation are involved in perpetuating these conditions and that a common treatment may be considered for both.

In vitro and in vivo genotoxicity assessment of gold nanoparticles of different sizes by comet and SMART assays.

Due to the increasing use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in different areas such as medicine, biotechnology or food sector, human exposure to them has grown significantly and its toxicity evaluation has become essential. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the potential genotoxic effects of 30, 50 and 90 nm AuNPs, using in vitro comet assay with the in vivo mutagenic and recombinogenic activity (SMART Test) in Drosophila. The results indicated that in both cell lines, 30, 50 and 90 nm (1-10 μg ml) AuNPs increased DNA strand breaks following 24 h treatment.

Regionally Impaired Redox Homeostasis in the Brain of Rats Subjected to Global Perinatal Asphyxia: Sustained Effect up to 14 Postnatal Days.

The present report evaluates the effect of global perinatal asphyxia on several parameters of oxidative stress and cell viability in rat brain tissue sampled at an extended neonatal period up to 14 days, a period characterised by intensive neuritogenesis, synaptogenesis, synaptic consolidation, pruning and delayed cell death. Perinatal asphyxia was induced by immersing foetus-containing uterine horns removed by a caesarean section from on term rat dams into a water bath at 37 °C for 21 min. Asphyxia-exposed and sibling caesarean-delivered foetuses were manually resucitated and nurtured by surrogate dams for 1 to 14 postnatal (P) days.

Effect of the Sodium Polyacrylate on the Magnetite Nanoparticles Produced by Green Chemistry Routes: Applicability in Forward Osmosis.

Aqueous dispersions of magnetic nanocomposites have been proposed as draw electrolytes in forward osmosis. One possible approach for the production of nanocomposites based on magnetite nanoparticles and sodium polyacrylate is the synthesis of the magnetic iron oxide by coprecipitation or oxidative precipitation in the presence of an excess of the polymer. In this work, we explored the effect of the polymer proportion on the nanomaterials produced by these procedures.

DNA Origami Structures Interfaced to Inorganic Nanodevices.

We describe here one way to achieve hybrid DNA-inorganic nanostructures on rigid flat insulating substrates. We report methods to prepare rectangular DNA origami and incubate them onto arrays of anchoring gold nanodots either in a static solution or in a microfluidic system. We give details on the design and lithographic methods employed to pattern usable arrays of gold nanoanchors on naturally oxidized silicon wafer chips.

The Human Left Atrial Venous Circulation as a Vascular Route for Atrial Pharmacological Therapies: Effects of Ethanol Infusion.

Objectives: This study catalogued the human venous left atrium (LA) circulation system and the ablative effects of ethanol in different branches.

Background: Vascular routes to target the LA could have significant therapeutic potential. Beyond the vein of Marshall (VOM), the fluoroscopic LA venous anatomy has not been described.

Autophagy mediates tumor necrosis factor-α-induced phenotype switching in vascular smooth muscle A7r5 cell line.

Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) dedifferentiation from a contractile to a synthetic phenotype contributes to atherosclerosis. Atherosclerotic tissue has a chronic inflammatory component with high levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). VSMC of atheromatous plaques have increased autophagy, a mechanism responsible for protein and intracellular organelle degradation.

Regional differences in the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy: a multi center study in Brazil.

Background: Diabetic retinopathy has a significant impact in every healthcare system. Despite that fact, there are few accurate estimates in the prevalence of DR in Brazil's different geographic regions, particularly proliferative DR and diabetic macular edema. This study aims to determine the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Brazil's five continental regions and its determinant factors.

Synthesis, Pharmacological Evaluation, and Docking Studies of Novel Pyridazinone-Based Cannabinoid Receptor Type 2 Ligands.

In recent years, cannabinoid type 2 receptors (CB R) have emerged as promising therapeutic targets in a wide variety of diseases. Selective ligands of CB R are devoid of the psychoactive effects typically observed for CB R ligands. Based on our recent studies on a class of pyridazinone 4-carboxamides, further structural modifications of the pyridazinone core were made to better investigate the structure-activity relationships for this promising scaffold with the aim to develop potent CB R ligands.