Red cell distribution width-to-platelet ratio (RPR) as a predictor of prolonged stay at hospital for COVID-19 inpatients.

Aims/background: We looked at novel hematological composites like the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width-to-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width-to-platelet ratio, leukocyte-to-C reactive protein ratio, and lymphocyte-to-C reactive protein ratio as explanatory variables for COVID-19 patients´ hospital length of stay (LoS).

Methods: The association of hematological indices with LoS was analyzed on 2930 COVID-19 patients using the univariate and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models with enter method. The Kaplan-Meier survival estimates were applied to LoS.

Survival analysis of COVID-19 versus non-COVID-19 patients requiring intensive care for acute respiratory distress syndrome: An observational retrospective study.

Background/aim: This study analyzed clinical factors impacting the survival of COVID-19 patients with acute respiratory distress síndrome, or ARDS (CARDS) to ICU compared to non-COVID-19 ARDS patients.

Methods: Clinical variables from 1,008 CARDS cases and 332 ARDS cases were computed using learning algorithms. The multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models with the enter method evaluated risk factors and ICU mortality relationships.

Insights into the baseline blood pH homeostasis at admission and the risk of in-hospital mortality in COVID-19 patients.

A laboratory finding in critically ill COVID-19 patients is blood academia (pH <7.35). We investigated its cause in connection with the admission baseline blood pH homeostasis.

Molecular docking analysis of chlorpyrifos at the human α7-nAChR and its potential relationship with neurocytoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells.

The organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos (CPF), an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, has raised serious concerns about human safety. Apart from inducing synaptic acetylcholine accumulation, CPF could also act at nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, like the α7-isoform (α7-nAChR), which could potentially be harmful to developing brains. Our aims were to use molecular docking to assess the binding interactions between CPF and α7-nAChR through, to test the neurocytotoxic and oxidative effects of very low concentrations of CPF on SH-SY5Y cells, and to hypothesize about the potential mediation of α7-nAChR.

Genotoxic and neurotoxic potential of intracellular nanoplastics: A review.

Plastic waste comprises polymers of different chemicals that disintegrate into nanoplastic particles (NPLs) of 1-100-nm size, thereby littering the environment and posing a threat to wildlife and human health. Research on NPL contamination has up to now focused on the ecotoxicology effects of the pollution rather than the health risks. This review aimed to speculate about the possible properties of carcinogenic and neurotoxic NPL as pollutants.

Molecular Docking Analysis at the Human α7-nAChR and Proliferative and Evoked-Calcium Changes in SH-SY5Y Cells by Imidacloprid and Acetamiprid Insecticides.

Acetamiprid (ACE) and Imidacloprid (IMI) are widely-used neonicotinoid insecticides (NNIs) with functional activity at human acetylcholine nicotinic receptors and, therefore, with putative toxic effects. The objective of this study was the evaluation of the interactions between NNIs and α7-nAChR, as this receptor keeps intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) to an optimum for an adequate neuronal functioning. Possible interactions between NNIs and the cryo-EM structure of the human α-7 nAChR were identified by molecular docking.

Predictive Value of the Platelet Times Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio (SII Index) for COVID-19 In-Hospital Mortality.

Objective: The performance of the platelet times neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, namely systemic immune inflammation (SII) index, is an inflammatory index that shows controversial results as a predicting indicator of the poor outcomes of COVID-19. In this study, this indicator was analyzed in 3280 patients admitted at a COVID-19 reference hospital in Quito (Ecuador).

Methods: The Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted on SII values upon admission to identify the most appropriate cut-off values in discriminating COVID-19 severity and in-hospital mortality.

Neurocytotoxicity of imidacloprid- and acetamiprid-based comercial insecticides over the differentiation of SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells.

Neonicotinoids are effective insecticides with specificity for invertebrate nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Neonicotinoids are chemically stable and tend to remain in the environment for long so concerns about their neurotoxicity in humans do nothing but increase. Herein, we evaluated the chronic toxic effects of acetamiprid- and imidacloprid-based insecticides over the differentiation of human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells, which were exposed to these insecticides at a concentration range similar to that applied to crop fields (0.

Anti-Inflammatory Therapy as a Promising Target in Neuropsychiatric Disorders.

This chapter analyzes the therapeutic potential of current anti-inflammatory drugs in treating psychiatric diseases from a neuro-immunological perspective. Based on the bidirectional brain-immune system relationship, the rationale is that a dysregulated inflammation contributes to the pathogenesis of psychiatric and neurological disorders, while the immunology function is associated with psychological variables like stress, affective disorders, and psychosis. Under certain social, psychological, and environmental conditions and biological factors, a healthy inflammatory response and the associated "sickness behavior," which are aimed to resolve a physical injury and microbial threat, become harmful to the central nervous system.

Analysis of Socio-demographic, Economic and Individual Reasons for COVID-19 Vaccination Hesitancy in Ecuador: A Nationwide Longitudinal Study.

The current outbreak of SARS-Cov-2, a virus responsible for COVID-19, has infected millions and caused a soaring death toll worldwide. Vaccination represents a powerful tool in our fight against the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Ecuador is one of the Latin American countries most impacted by COVID-19.

Mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC): a new biomarker for high-altitude pulmonary edema in the Ecuadorian Andes.

Ascent to high altitude (> 3000 m height above sea level or m.a.s.

Sex-Dependent Performance of the Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte, Monocyte-to-Lymphocyte, Platelet-to-Lymphocyte and Mean Platelet Volume-to-Platelet Ratios in Discriminating COVID-19 Severity.

Background: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), and mean platelet volume-to-platelet ratio (MPR) are combined hematology tests that predict COVID-19 severity, although with different cut-off values. Because sex significantly impacts immune responses and the course of COVID-19, the ratios could be biased by sex.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate sex-dependent differences in the contribution of NLR, PLR, MLR, and MPR to COVID-19 severity and mortality upon hospital admission using a sample of pneumonia patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Biomarkers of severe COVID-19 pneumonia on admission using data-mining powered by common laboratory blood tests-datasets.

In the epidemiological COVID-19 research, artificial intelligence is a unique approach to make predictions about disease severity to manage COVID-19 patients. A limitation of artificial intelligence is, however, the high risk of bias. We investigated the skill of data mining and machine learning, two advanced forms of artificial intelligence, to predict severe COVID-19 pneumonia based on routine laboratory tests.

Comparison between RT-qPCR for SARS-CoV-2 and expanded triage in sputum of symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 subjects in Ecuador.

Background: The quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) effectively detects the SARS-COV-2 virus. SARS-CoV-2 Nevertheless, some critical gaps remain in the identification and monitoring of asymptomatic people.

Methods: This retrospective study included 733 asymptomatic and symptomatic COVID-19 subjects, who were submitted to the RT-qPCR test.

Does endogenous cholecystokinin modulate alcohol intake?

Alcohol use disorder or alcoholism is characterized by uncontrollable alcohol use and intoxication, as well as a heightened state of anxiety after alcohol withdrawal. Ethanol-associated stimuli also drive the urge to drink by means of classical conditioning. Alcoholism has been considered a dopamine (DA) dysregulation syndrome that involves the activity of the central amygdala circuitry of anxiety.

Might a high hemoglobin mass be involved in non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema? The case of the chronic maladaptation to high-altitude in the Andes.

Exposure to hypoxic environments when ascending at high altitudes may cause life-threatening pulmonary edema (HAPE) due to a rapid accumulation of extracellular fluid flooding in the pulmonary alveoli. In Andeans, high-altitude adaptation occurs at the expense of being more prone to chronic mountain sickness: relative hypoventilation, excess pulmonary hypertension, and secondary polycythemia. Because HAPE prevalence is high in the Andes, we posit the hypothesis that a high hemoglobine mass may increase HAPE risk.

Cholecystokinin-Mediated Neuromodulation of Anxiety and Schizophrenia: A "Dimmer-Switch" Hypothesis.

Cholecystokinin (CCK), the most abundant brain neuropeptide, is involved in relevant behavioral functions like memory, cognition, and reward through its interactions with the opioid and dopaminergic systems in the limbic system. CCK excites neurons by binding two receptors, CCK and CCK, expressed at low and high levels in the brain, respectively. Historically, CCK receptors have been related to the induction of panic attacks in humans.

The Role of Brain Cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) Beyond Neuroinflammation: Neuronal Homeostasis in Memory and Anxiety.

Cyclooxygenases are a group of heme-containing isozymes (namely Cox-1 and Cox-2) that catalyze the conversion of arachidonic acid to largely bioactive prostaglandins (PGs). Cox-1 is the ubiquitous housekeeping enzyme, and the mitogen-inducible Cox-2 is activated to cause inflammation. Interestingly, Cox-2 is constitutively expressed in the brain at the postsynaptic dendrites and excitatory terminals of the cortical and spinal cord neurons.

Overexpression of alpha-synuclein promotes both cell proliferation and cell toxicity in human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells.

Alpha-Synuclein (aSyn) is a chameleon-like protein. Its overexpression and intracellular deposition defines neurodegenerative α-synucleinopathies including Parkinson's disease. Whether aSyn up-regulation is the cause or the protective reaction to α-synucleinopathies remains unresolved.

Blockade of the cholecystokinin CCK-2 receptor prevents the normalization of anxiety levels in the rat.

Cholecystokinin (CCK), through the CCK-2 receptor, exerts complex effects on anxiety. While CCK agonists are panicogenic, CCK-2 antagonists fail to alleviate human anxiety. Preclinical studies with CCK-2 antagonists are also inconsistent because their anxiolytic effects largely depend on the behavioral paradigm and antecedent stress.

Neurobiology of vitamin C: Expanding the focus from antioxidant to endogenous neuromodulator.

Ascorbic acid (AA) is a water-soluble vitamin (C) found in all bodily organs. Most mammals synthesize it, humans are required to eat it, but all mammals need it for healthy functioning. AA reaches its highest concentration in the brain where both neurons and glia rely on tightly regulated uptake from blood via the glucose transport system and sodium-coupled active transport to accumulate and maintain AA at millimolar levels.

The unappreciated roles of the cholecystokinin receptor CCK(1) in brain functioning.

The CCK(1) receptor is a G-protein-coupled receptor activated by the sulfated forms of cholecystokinin (CCK), a gastrin-like peptide released in the gastrointestinal tract and mammal brain. A substantial body of research supports the hypothesis that CCK(1)r stimulates gallbladder contraction and pancreatic secretion in the gut, as well as satiety in brain. However, this receptor may also fulfill relevant roles in behavior, thanks to its widespread distribution in the brain.

Ascorbate prevents cell death from prolonged exposure to glutamate in an in vitro model of human dopaminergic neurons.

Ascorbate (vitamin C) is a nonenzymatic antioxidant highly concentrated in the brain. In addition to mediating redox balance, ascorbate is linked to glutamate neurotransmission in the striatum, where it renders neuroprotection against excessive glutamate stimulation. Oxidative stress and glutamatergic overactivity are key biochemical features accompanying the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra that characterizes Parkinson's disease (PD).