Publications by authors named "Varela E"

Objective: Evaluate the usability and acceptability of a digital infant feeding module for use in a home visiting program.

Methods: Home visitors (n = 11) and mothers (n = 10) completed a qualitative interview while viewing a digital nutrition education module on infant feeding. Quantitative data were collected using the mHealth App Usability Questionnaire.

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studies with have demonstrated the antiparasitic activity of , attributed to its naphthoquinones. This study reports on pro-inflammatory changes in mice infected with and correlates these changes with parasitemia and survival. The ethanol extract of (EEEp) was fractionated under reflux to obtain the dichloromethane fraction (FDMEp) and isolated compounds from , relating these to survival time and parasitemia.

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Oxidative stress is a pivotal factor in the pathogenesis of malaria, contributing to the development of conditions such as anemia, respiratory complications, and cerebral malaria. To counteract oxidative damage, we evaluated the effects of vitamin E (α-TOH) and d-α-tocopherol polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (TPGS) supplementation on parasitemia progression, mortality rate, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability in Plasmodium berghei ANKA-infected mice. The mice were divided into four groups: a control group (untreated and uninfected), an infected group (Pb), a TPGS + Pb group, and an α-TOH + Pb group.

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Background: Pastoralists' sedentarisation and agriculturalisation might increase their vulnerability to climate change impacts, but few studies have investigated if this is the case in mountain areas. In Uganda, little is known about how Sebei pastoralists have perceived and adapted to such changes. This study sought to establish perspectives of Sebei pastoralists on climate change in terms of its occurrence and impacts as well as access to livelihood assets and or opportunities to withstand such challenges.

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The human gut includes plasma cells (PCs) expressing immunoglobulin A1 (IgA1) or IgA2, two structurally distinct IgA subclasses with elusive regulation, function, and reactivity. We show here that intestinal IgA1+ and IgA2+ PCs co-emerged early in life, comparably accumulated somatic mutations, and were enriched within short-lived CD19+ and long-lived CD19- PC subsets, respectively. IgA2+ PCs were extensively clonally related to IgA1+ PCs and a subset of them presumably emerged from IgA1+ precursors.

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The lack of vaccines shows the need for alternative leishmaniasis treatments. study previously demonstrated the leishmanicidal activity of extracts. This study describes for the first time, the antileishmanial activity of extracts in infected Balb/c mice and its immunomodulatory effect.

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Microquasars are laboratories for the study of jets of relativistic particles produced by accretion onto a spinning black hole. Microquasars are near enough to allow detailed imaging of spatial features across the multiwavelength spectrum. The recent extension measurement of the spatial morphology of a microquasar, SS 433, to TeV gamma rays localizes the acceleration of electrons at shocks in the jet far from the black hole.

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A discrete mathematical model based on ordinary differential equations and the associated continuous model formed by a partial differential equation, which simulate the generational and temporal evolution of a stem cell population, are proposed. The model parameters are the maximum proliferation potential and the rates of mitosis, death events and telomerase activity. The mean proliferation potential at each point in time is suggested as an indicator of population aging.

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  • The study investigates the role of long non-coding telomeric repeat-containing RNAs as potential biomarkers for idiopathic male infertility, focusing on two groups of men: those with normal sperm (normozoospermic) and those with reduced sperm quality (oligoasthenozoospermic).
  • Findings reveal that oligoasthenozoospermic men not only had worse sperm quality but also produced embryos with lower inner-cell-mass quality, and they exhibited shorter telomeres and more sperm with abnormal telomeric structures compared to normozoospermic men.
  • A positive correlation was noted between telomeric RNA levels and sperm motility in normozoospermic men, suggesting
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Oxidative stress is involved in the pathogenesis of malaria, causing anemia, respiratory complications, and cerebral malaria. To mitigate oxidative stress, we investigated the effect of nutritional supplementation whit lycopene (LYC) on the evolution of parasitemia and survival rate in mice infected with Plasmodium berghei ANKA (Pb), comparing to the effects promoted by N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Therefore, 175 mice were randomly distributed into 4 groups; Sham: untreated and uninfected animals; Pb: animals infected with Pb; LYC+Pb: animals treated with LYC and infected with Pb; NAC+Pb: animals treated with NAC and infected with Pb.

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  • PSE change strategies support healthy eating by improving community access to nutritious foods, complementing individual-level nutrition education.
  • The review found 48 studies on these strategies for children under 5, with most focusing on access in educational settings.
  • However, only a fraction of studies assessed children's attitudes and behaviors, and only 60% of evaluation tools were validated for reliability.
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We show, for the first time, radio measurements of the depth of shower maximum (X_{max}) of air showers induced by cosmic rays that are compared to measurements of the established fluorescence method at the same location. Using measurements at the Pierre Auger Observatory we show full compatibility between our radio and the previously published fluorescence dataset, and between a subset of air showers observed simultaneously with both radio and fluorescence techniques, a measurement setup unique to the Pierre Auger Observatory. Furthermore, we show radio X_{max} resolution as a function of energy and demonstrate the ability to make competitive high-resolution X_{max} measurements with even a sparse radio array.

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The transgenic 116C-NOD mouse strain exhibits a prevalent Th17 phenotype, and reduced type 1 diabetes (T1D) compared to non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice. A cohousing experiment between both models revealed lower T1D incidence in NOD mice cohoused with 116C-NOD, associated with gut microbiota changes, reduced intestinal permeability, shifts in T and B cell subsets, and a transition from Th1 to Th17 responses. Distinct gut bacterial signatures were linked to T1D in each group.

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  • Telomeres are protective structures at the ends of chromosomes, initially described in the 1930s, which were linked to the limits of cell division and aging by Alexey M. Olovnikov in the 1970s.
  • Telomere shortening affects life expectancy and is countered by telomerase, an enzyme found in cancer and stem cells, while their dynamics differ between male and female gametes.
  • Short telomere lengths in ovarian cells can lead to reduced fertility and higher rates of embryo abnormalities, prompting interest in telomere lengthening strategies and the impact of lifestyle factors on fertility.
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Background: Clinical audits are an important tool to objectively assess clinical protocols, procedures, and processes and to detect deviations from good clinical practice. The main aim of this project is to determine adherence to a core set of consensus- based quality indicators and then to compare the institutions in order to identify best practices.

Materials And Methods: We conduct a multicentre, international clinical audit of six comprehensive cancer centres in Poland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, France, and Romania as a part of the project, known as IROCATES (Improving Quality in Radiation Oncology through Clinical Audits - Training and Education for Standardization).

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Meat from silvopastoral systems, due to its provision of numerous ecosystem services such as wildfire risk reduction in Mediterranean forests, can address societal growing demands for meat produced with lower environmental impacts. Differentiation of meat from these systems may contribute to their economic sustainability and hence to reverse their decline in the Mediterranean. This study investigated consumer preferences and willingness-to-pay (WTP) for beef and lamb meat from silvopastoral systems associated to the provision of wildfire prevention service and explored two alternative ways of labelling this service.

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  • Some patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) have a less diverse gut microbiome, which means they have fewer types of gut bacteria.
  • Researchers studied poop samples from UC patients and healthy people to see if UC patients who felt better had gut bacteria similar to healthy individuals.
  • They found that patients in long-term remission had a healthier and more diverse gut microbiome, and specific bacteria like Akkermansia muciniphila were linked to better health and fewer flare-ups of the disease.
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We report the first detection of a TeV γ-ray flux from the solar disk (6.3σ), based on 6.1 years of data from the High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory.

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From , naphthoquinones, isoeleutherine, and eleutherol were isolated, and previous studies have reported the antioxidant activity of these metabolites. The present work evaluated the role of oxidative changes in mice infected with Plasmodium berghei and treated with extract, fraction, and isolated compounds, as well as to verify possible oxidative changes induced by these treatments. extracts were prepared from powder from the bulbs, which were submitted to maceration with ethanol, yielding the extract (EEEp), which was fractionated under reflux, and the dichloromethane fraction (FDMEp) was submitted for further fractionation, leading to the isolation of isoeleutherine, eleutherine, and eleutherol.

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  • Women experiencing ovarian failure (OF) often show short telomeres and low telomerase activity, suggesting a link between telomere health and fertility issues; using sexual steroids to reactivate telomerase might improve IVF outcomes.
  • A double-blind study with patients having diminished ovarian reserve showed that those treated with Danazol for 3 months had changes in telomere dynamics, although overall telomere length remained similar.
  • Treatment with Danazol improved the maturity rate of oocytes in later ovarian stimulation cycles, indicating potential benefits for IVF success, but further studies are necessary to validate these findings.
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  • Ovarian aging leads to infertility, with telomere attrition being a common factor in both aging and fertility issues; the study uses the SAMP8 mouse model to explore these effects at the point of reproductive senescence.
  • Key findings indicate that SAMP8 females have a shorter lifespan and decreased telomere length in both blood and ovaries compared to control mice, which correlates with lower telomerase activity and expression.
  • The research highlights significant differences in telomere lengths among ovarian follicles, with SAMP8 females showing reduced proportions of long telomeres in granules and follicles, impacting their overall reproductive capability.
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  • Home visitation programs can effectively address early childhood obesity through technology, as shown by the positive attitudes of staff towards its use.
  • Staff from the Florida program indicated they find videoconferencing a flexible and efficient method for home visits, suggesting improvements like shorter content and multilingual resources.
  • However, concerns about internet access and potential social disconnect were highlighted, pointing to areas for careful consideration in program implementation.
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Plants continue to constitute key elements of medical practice in West African countries. The Cabo Verde archipelago hosts a great diversity of medicinal plants and local markets are considered important sites for trading plants harvested by rural communities. This study has two main goals: (i) to assess the medicinal uses of native species in Santiago, the biggest island of the archipelago, and (ii) to evaluate the antioxidant, antimicrobial and antidiabetic/antihyperglycemic activities of two native trees ( and ) used in traditional medicine and traded in local markets.

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  • The study explored barriers to food security for low-income families with young children in Florida, focusing on various community stakeholders' perspectives.
  • Stakeholders, including healthcare professionals and educators, highlighted issues like stigma, time constraints, food access limitations, and transportation problems as major obstacles.
  • The impacts of COVID-19 introduced additional challenges such as fear of virus exposure and decreased engagement in virtual programs, indicating a need for coordinated policy and system changes to improve food security.
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