Publications by authors named "Rafael Bojalil"

Dermatologic disorders, affecting the integumentary system, involve diverse molecular mechanisms such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, inflammation and immune responses. Long noncoding RNAs, particularly Metastasis-Associated Lung Adenocarcinoma Transcript 1 (MALAT1), are crucial regulators of gene expression. MALAT1 influences inflammatory responses, immune cell function and signaling pathways, impacting various physiological and pathological processes, including dermatologic disorders.

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Endotoxic shock (ExSh) and cecal ligature and puncture (CLP) are models that induce sepsis. In this work, we investigated early immunologic and histopathologic changes induced by ExSh or CLP models in female and male mice. Remarkable results showed that females supported twice the LD100 of LPS for males, CLP survival and CFU counts were similar between genders, high circulating LPS levels in ExSh mice and low levels of IgM anti-LPS in males.

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Background: Recent studies have suggested that metabolic syndrome (MS) encompasses a group of risk factors for developing chronic kidney disease (CKD). This work aimed to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of allicin in the kidney from an experimental model of MS.

Methods: Male Wistar rats (220-250 g) were used, and three experimental groups ( = 6) were formed: control (C), metabolic syndrome (MS), and MS treated with allicin (16 mg/Kg/day, gastric gavage) (MS+A).

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Introduction: Challenges of diverse origin in childhood can alter the growth and development of the central nervous system, affecting structures and functions. As a consequence of the damage suffered during the perinatal period, long periods of dysfunctionality may occur, such as regulatory disorders, which may result in remaining in a process of low-grade inflammation. We previously found that perinatal risks and neurological signs are associated with long-term changes in circulating concentrations of molecules of the inflammatory process, findings that are consistent with the postulate that long periods of dysfunction may condition long-lasting low-grade inflammation or parainflammation.

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The aim of this work was to obtain insights of the participation of the autonomic nervous system in different stages of calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD) by heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. Studying subjects with no valve impairments and CAVD patients, we also sought to quantify the independent contribution or explanatory capacity of the aortic valve echocardiographic parameters involved in the HRV changes caused by active standing using hierarchical partitioning models to consider other variables or potential confounders. We detected smaller adjustments of the cardiac autonomic response at active standing caused specifically by the aortic valve deterioration.

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COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, is a primarily pulmonary disease that can affect several organs, directly or indirectly. To date, there are many questions about the different pathological mechanisms. Here, we generate an approach to identify the cellular-level tropism of SARS-CoV-2 using human proteomics, virus-host interactions, and enrichment analysis.

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Background: Chagas disease is considered important and presents intense inflammatory and fibrotic processes induced by the perpetuation of the parasite in the affected tissues and organs. Therefore, it is necessary to inquire about the host defense and attack mechanisms to have a more detailed knowledge about Chagas disease. MicroRNAs are found in blood, tissues and extracellular vesicles.

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Aortic stenosis is a progressive heart valve disorder characterized by calcification of the leaflets. Heart rate variability (HRV) analysis has been proposed for assessing the heart response to autonomic activity, which is documented to be altered in different cardiac diseases. The objective of the study was to evaluate changes of HRV in patients with aortic stenosis by an active standing challenge.

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Disorders in the child's neurological development caused by perinatal risks can lead to long-term altered neurological signs that begin at an early age and involve persistent functional disorders. Recent data suggest that tissue dysfunction, not just acute damage, may initiate or perpetuate an inflammatory response. The aim of this study was to find out if any neurological dysfunction in preschool children secondary to damage generated during the perinatal period is associated with the magnitude of perinatal risks and long-term modifications in the serum concentrations of inflammatory molecules.

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Extracorporeal shockwave myocardial revascularization (ESMR) is a therapy for refractory angina pectoris. Our aim was to assess the efficacy and safety of ESMR in the management of patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) and heart failure as well as its effects on inflammation and angiogenesis. In this single-arm prospective trial, we included 48 patients with CAD, myocardial ischemia assessed by radionuclide imaging, echocardiographic evidence of left ventricular systolic dysfunction and without revascularization options.

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Aims: Little is known regarding acute heart failure (AHF) clinical characteristics and its hospital outcome in Latin America. This study sought to assess the prevalence of, and identify differences among, in-hospital outcomes in patients hospitalized for AHF who were stratified by clinical phenotype at a hospital in Latin America.

Methods And Results: This is a retrospective cohort study of patients with AHF who were hospitalized in the coronary care unit of a Latin American teaching hospital from January 2006 to December 2018.

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Background: Accurate assessment of inflammatory status of patients during acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has become of great importance in their risk classification and in the research of new anti-inflammatory therapies.

Method: The study cohort included 7396 patients with ACS. We sought to derive and internally validate an inflammation-based score that included high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, white blood cell count, and serum albumin level at admission to evaluate the predictive role of systemic inflammation in the clinical outcome of these patients.

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Background: Inflammation can be grouped into three phases: proinflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and resolution. The latter, mainly attributed to lipid mediators, is the most recently described, and has been studied little in coronary ischemic diseases.

Objective: To evaluate 1) if acute coronary syndromes (ACS) manifest different circulating levels of resolution mediators compared with stable angina (SA); 2) if their concentrations are related to those of pro and anti-inflammatory mediators; and 3) if such concentrations are associated with the severity of the disease and the damage produced.

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In the present study, we investigated the temporal relationship between angiogenic and antiangiogenic vascular endothelial growth factor isoforms (VEGFxxxa and VEGFxxxb, respectively), the receptors VEGFR1 and VEGFR2, their soluble forms, and the kinases and the splicing factors regulating the synthesis of VEGF isoforms in healthy and atretic antral follicles. The results show a higher (p < 0.05) messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of VEGF120a, VEGF164a, and VEGF120b in healthy than in atretic follicles, but the mRNA expression of VEGF164b was not detected.

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Background: Sleep has a fundamental role in the regulation of homeostasis. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of different periods of paradoxical sleep deprivation (PSD) and recovery on serum levels of cytokines and miRNAs related to inflammatory responses.

Methods: Male Wistar rats were submitted to a PSD of 24, 96, or 192 h, or of 192 h followed by 20 days of recovery (192 h PSD+R).

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Psoriasis is triggered by several stimuli that share a systemic production of interferon (IFN)-γ and other inflammatory mediators, which are key to regulate the production of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 and its inhibitor (TIMP)-1 by cells of monocytic lineage. This study evaluates the effect of the sera of 55 patients with psoriasis and 41 non-psoriatic individuals on the production of MMP-9 and TIMP-1 in cultured monocytes from a single healthy blood donor and in U937 cells. The effect of IFN-γ stimulation was also evaluated.

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Cytidine-5'-diphosphocholine (CDP-choline) participates as an intermediary in the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine, an essential component of cellular membranes. Citicoline treatment has shown beneficial effects in cerebral ischemia, but its potential to diminish reperfusion damage in liver has not been explored. In this work, we evaluated the hepatoprotective effect of citicoline and its possible association with inflammatory/oxidative stress and mitochondrial function because they are the main cellular features of reperfusion damage.

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Background: Fresh frozen plasma (FFP) administration may increase the risk of nosocomial infections in parallel with the development of immune modulation. This could be driven by soluble mediators, possibly influencing the in vitro activation of human U937 monocyte cells, in a manner dependent on the age of the donors.

Methods: FFP donors were stratified into groups of 19-30 years, 31-40 years or 41-50 years, and U937 cells were cultured with FFP (alone or plus lipopolysaccharide-LPS) for 24 h.

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Background: National health surveys have revealed an outstandingly high prevalence of obesity, hypertension, and diabetes in Mexico.

Objective: To assess whether serum uric acid levels on admission may predict short-term mortality in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction in a population with an unusually high prevalence of classic cardiovascular risks.

Methods: A total of 795 ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction patients undergoing primary reperfusion therapy were classified as having normouricemia or hyperuricemia according to serum uric acid levels at admission, and the occurrence of mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events during coronary care unit stay was assessed.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to assess associations between serum type III (λ) interferons (IFN-λ) and disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: Serum levels of IFN-λ1, IFN-λ2, and IFN-λ3 were measured in 93 SLE patients and 67 healthy individuals. The associations with overall disease activity, organ-specific damage, and SLE-related antibodies were assessed.

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Background: Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), a common complication of acute coronary syndromes (ACS), is associated with higher mortality and longer hospital stays. The role of cytokines and other mediators is unknown in AKI induced by an ACS (ACS-AKI), leading to several unanswered questions. The worsening of renal function is usually seen as a dichotomous phenomenon instead of a dynamic change, so evaluating changes of the renal function in time may provide valuable information in the ACS-AKI setting.

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Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) contained in fish oil (FO) are ligands for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) that may induce changes in cardiometabolic markers. Variation in PPAR genes may influence the beneficial responses linked to FO supplementation in young adults. The study aimed to analyze the effect of FO supplementation on glucose metabolism, circulating lipids and inflammation according to PPARα L162V and PPARγ2 P12A genotypes in young Mexican adults.

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Hypoalbuminemia is a long-term risk factor for incident of both myocardial infarction and heart failure. We assessed whether serum albumin levels at admission are associated with new-onset heart failure and in-hospital mortality in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The study included 7,192 patients with ACS with no previous history of heart failure.

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Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) and the functional implications of miRNAs contained in extracellular vesicles (EVs) have gained attention in the last decade. Little is known about the regulation of the abundance of plasma miRNAs in response to chronic ingestion of carbohydrates. Therefore, we explored the circulating levels of miR-21, miR-146a, miR-155, and miR-223 in rats consuming sucrose in drinking water.

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Obesity is a major public health concern in Mexico and worldwide. Although the estimated heritability is high, common variants identified by genome-wide association studies explain only a small proportion of this heritability. A combination of linkage and association strategies could be a more robust and powerful approach to identify other obesity-susceptibility variants.

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