is the etiological agent of Chagas disease, which affects millions of people in Latin America. No transcriptional control of gene expression has been demonstrated in this organism, and 50% of its genome consists of repetitive elements and members of multigenic families. In this study, we applied a novel bioinformatics approach to predict new repetitive elements in the genome sequence of .
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlant-derived protein can present antinutrients (ANs) in its composition. The ANs can interact with the protein, affecting its solubility and functional properties, such as gelation. This work evaluated the effect of three ANs, namely phytic acid (PA), tannic acid (TA), and Quillaja bark saponin (QBS), on the gelation and solubility of soy (SPI), pea (PPI), and rice protein isolate (RPI).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Pre-infarction angina (PIA) is associated with improved prognosis in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Some studies suggest that diabetes may blunt the effect of ischaemic preconditioning. We sought to study the impact of PIA in diabetic patients with STEMI.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPreterm labor (PTL) and Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes (PPROM) impose substantial morbimortality on mothers and newborns. Exosomes act in intercellular communication carrying molecules involved in physiopathological processes. Little is known about exosomal proteins in prematurity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChagas disease, a zoonosis caused by the flagellate protozoan , is a chronic and systemic parasitic infection that affects ~5-7 million people worldwide, mainly in Latin America. Chagas disease is an emerging public health problem due to the lack of vaccines and effective treatments. According to recent studies, several secreted proteins interact with the human host during cell invasion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRetrotransposon Hot Spot (RHS) is the most abundant gene family in with unknown function in this parasite. The aim of this work was to shed light on the organization and expression of RHS in The diversity of the RHS protein family in was demonstrated by phylogenetic and recombination analyses. Transcribed sequences carrying the RHS domain were classified into ten distinct groups of monophyletic origin.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of early-life exposure to different extracts of Angiostrongylus cantonensis (A. cantonensis) on airway inflammation in an allergic asthma model. The total soluble extract (TE) and the soluble extracts of the digestive (AcD), reproductive (AcR), and cuticle (AcC) systems of A.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: This study aimed to investigate the clinical predictors of post-ictal headache (PIH) in patients with epilepsy in a tertiary center in Brazil.
Methods: 302 individuals with adult-onset epilepsy were followed for 9.8 years in our Hospital.
Wild animals have been recognized as potential reservoirs of vector-borne pathogens. Proximity between these animals and urban areas increases the need to know which pathogens these are and whether they can infect domestic animals and humans. In Mangabeiras Municipal Park in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, coatis live near the urban area, which is mainly occupied by human residents and their domestic animals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecological health and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carnivores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide management and conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropical region: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFC-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) and its natriuretic peptide receptors subtype 2 (NPR2) are essential for the maintenance of oocyte meiotic arrest in different species. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) in bovine follicular fluid (FF) are important for cell communication within the ovarian follicle. This study investigated the involvement of EVs from FF of bovine ovarian follicles in the CNP-NPR2 system, first by analyzing the presence of CNP in the EV contents, followed by addition of EVs to in-vitro maturation (IVM) medium, to evaluate the effect on maintenance of oocyte meiosis arrest and improvements in in-vitro embryo production.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe present study aimed to validate (cross-culturally adapt and test psychometric properties) the Brazilian version of the Halitosis Associated Life-Quality Test (HALT). A process of translation and cross-cultural adaptation was conducted by a group of dental researchers. The first draft of the Brazilian Portuguese version was pre-tested on a sample of 33 individuals leading up to the final version of the questionnaire.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Antimicrob Agents
September 2020
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly transmissible viral infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Clinical trials have reported improved outcomes resulting from an effective reduction or absence of viral load when patients were treated with chloroquine (CQ) or hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). In addition, the effects of these drugs were improved by simultaneous administration of azithromycin (AZM).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Mennonite population suffered several bottlenecks due to religious/political persecution, increasing the frequency of diseases with a strong genetic component. We evaluated health self-perception in 430 Mennonites from South Brazilian settlements (two rural, one urban), along with life habits, xenobiotic exposure, and chronic ilnesses, using a modified version of the 2013 Brazilian National Health Survey and eight psychometric tests (applied in 2016-2018). Mennonites from rural settlements considered their health worse (P < 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe scope of this article is to analyze the time-series trend and factors associated with the consumption of soft drinks or packaged fruit juices among adults in Brazil. It is a study based on secondary data from the System of Surveillance of Risk Factors and Protection for Chronic Diseases by Telephone Survey conducted among Brazilian adults between 2007 and 2014. The consumption frequency and intensity (number of cups or cans per week) of soda or packaged juice was checked.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this study was to investigate and to compare the physical-mechanical properties of a resin-modified calcium silicate material (TheraCal LC), used for pulp-capping, to MTA (Angelus) and a calcium hydroxide cement (Dycal). Specimens of each material (n=12) were prepared in Teflon molds (3.58 mm x 3 mm) and measured before and after immersion in distilled water for 24 h and 30 days to evaluate the dimensional change.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOrchestrated events, including extensive changes in epigenetic marks, allow a somatic nucleus to become totipotent after transfer into an oocyte, a process termed nuclear reprogramming. Recently, several strategies have been applied in order to improve reprogramming efficiency, mainly focused on removing repressive epigenetic marks such as histone methylation from the somatic nucleus. Herein we used the specific and non-toxic chemical probe UNC0638 to inhibit the catalytic activity of the histone methyltransferases EHMT1 and EHMT2.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study characterised the expression of interferon (IFN)-τ-stimulated genes (ISGs) and Type I IFN receptors in circulating polymorphonuclear cells (PMNs) of beef heifers and compared it with expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) up to Day 20 of gestation. Nelore heifers (n=26) were subjected to fixed-time AI (FTAI) on Day 0. PMNs and PBMCs were isolated on Days 0, 10, 14, 16, 18 and 20 after FTAI.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDistinct antigens have been evaluated with diagnostic purpose for canine and human visceral leishmaniasis (VL), and variable sensitivity and specificity values have been obtained in the assays. In the present study, a Leishmania infantum hypothetical protein called LiHyG, which was identified in an immunoproteomics study in Leishmania infantum amastigote extracts by antibodies in VL dogs sera; was cloned, expressed, purified and evaluated as a recombinant protein (rLiHyG) for the diagnosis of canine and human disease. The recombinant amastigote-specific A2 protein (rA2) and a soluble L.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To verify the association between screen time and cardiorespiratory fitness with the presence of metabolic risk in schoolchildren in an isolated and clustered manner.
Methods: Cross-sectional study with 1.200 schoolchildren from Santa Cruz do Sul-RS.
J Craniofac Surg
September 2020
It is believed that the use of the nasopharyngeal cannula can maintain the patent upper airway in the immediate post-operative period of orthognathic surgery. The present study is a randomized clinical trial with the objective of evaluating the difference in the use of the nasopharyngeal cannula in the post-operative period of orthognathic surgery with respect to permeability and discomfort. The sample was composed of 26 individuals with repaired cleft lip and palate randomly distributed in 2 groups with and without nasopharyngeal cannula.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRespiratory symptoms, especially the development of severe acute respiratory distress syndrome, dominate the discussion and initial concerns of the population and health professionals. However, the cardiovascular system is greatly affected by these conditions and is often responsible for complications and mortality of these patients. In order to show the cardiovascular implications in patients infected with COVID-19 and the importance of social isolation as an alternative to curb the spread of the disease, a literature review was carried out based on 37 articles, in English, Portuguese and Spanish, available on Scielo and PubMed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRev Bras Epidemiol
June 2020
Objective: To analyze weight gain (WG) and change in nutritional status (NS) after the age of 20 years in the Brazilian adult population between 2006 and 2012.
Methods: Time series using seven surveys from the Surveillance of Risk and Protective Factors for Chronic Diseases by Telephone Survey (VIGITEL). The analyses were stratified by region, age, sex and education, considering the sampling weights and complex design.