Publications by authors named "Roberta C Martins"

Stress, unhealthy lifestyle, and sleep disturbance worsen cognitive function in mood disorders, prompting a rise in the development of integrative health approaches. The recent investigations in the gut-brain axis field highlight the strong interplay among microbiota, inflammation, and mental health. Thus, this study aimed to investigate a new nutraceutical formulation comprising prebiotics, minerals, and silymarin's impact on microbiota, inflammation, mood, and sleep quality.

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Nutraceutical interventions supporting microbiota and eliciting clinical improvements in metabolic diseases have grown significantly. Chronic stress, gut dysbiosis, and metainflammation have emerged as key factors intertwined with sleep disorders, consequently exacerbating the decline in quality of life. This study aimed to assess the effects of two nutraceutical formulations containing prebiotics (fructooligosaccharides (FOS), galactooligosaccharides (GOS), yeast β-glucans), minerals (Mg, Se, Zn), and the herbal medicine Silybum marianum L.

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Overweight and obesity are closely linked to gut dysbiosis/dysmetabolism and disrupted De-Ritis ratio [aspartate aminotransferase (AST)/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio], which may contribute to chronic noncommunicable diseases onset. Concurrently, extensive research explores nutraceuticals, and health-enhancing supplements, for disease prevention or treatment. Thus, sedentary overweight volunteers were double-blind randomized into two groups: Novel Nutraceutical_(S) (without silymarin) and Novel Nutraceutical (with silymarin).

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Background: Obesity is one of the main health problems in the world today, and dysbiosis seems to be one of the factors involved. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of synbiotic supplementation on obesity and the microbiota in ob/ob mice. Twenty animals were divided into four groups: obese treated (OT), obese control (OC), lean treated (LT) and lean control (LC).

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Article Synopsis
  • - Clostridioides difficile (CD) is the leading cause of diarrhea in healthcare settings, and its severity has grown due to more aggressive strains.
  • - The primary factor for CD's virulence is toxin production, but the study found other important genetic factors contributing to its virulence.
  • - Researchers sequenced 38 strains and found most were toxigenic, with some lacking genes related to adhesion, highlighting the need to explore other virulence factors for a better understanding of CD.
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Little is known about the role of lineage of strains of Clostridioides difficile (CD) on the clinical presentation of CD infection (CDI) in Latin America, especially regarding the treatment response. We conducted a multicenter, prospective study to investigate the predictive factors and treatment outcomes of CDI in hospitalized patients and to performed phenotypical and molecular characterization of CD strains. A total of 361 diarrheic patients at 5 hospitals from different regions of the country were enrolled.

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Epidemiological data on CD infection (CDI) in Latin American are scarce. CDI prevalence and strains characterization were prospectively evaluated in 5 Brazilian hospitals from different regions. Prevalence rates of CDI were 15%, ranging from 0 to 37%.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Resistance was linked to chromosome mutations, and treatment varied, with 8 patients on monotherapy and 19 on combination therapy; the overall mortality rate was 37%.
  • * In vitro tests showed a 74% synergy rate for combination therapies using colistin, amikacin, and tigecycline, but no significant survival difference was found based on drug combinations; major risk factors for mortality included dialysis and shock.
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  • Taxonomic characterization was conducted on N(2)-fixing bacteria associated with the corals Mussismilia hispida and its related species near São Sebastião, Brazil.
  • A total of 95 isolates were identified as belonging to the Gammaproteobacteria class, primarily within the Vibrio core group, based on 16S rDNA gene and pyrH gene sequencing.
  • Among the isolates, several Vibrio species, including V. harveyi and V. alginolyticus, demonstrated the ability to grow in nitrogen-free environments and exhibited significant nitrogenase activity, suggesting nitrogen fixation is common among these Vibrio species in coral mucus.
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