Culicoides-borne Orbivirus epidemiology in a changing climate.

Orbiviruses are of significant importance to the health of wildlife and domestic animals worldwide; the major orbiviruses transmitted by multiple biting midge (Culicoides) species include bluetongue virus, epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus, and African horse sickness virus. The viruses, insect vectors, and hosts are anticipated to be impacted by global climate change, altering established Orbivirus epidemiology. Changes in global climate have the potential to alter the vector competence and extrinsic incubation period of certain biting midge species, affect local and long-distance dispersal dynamics, lead to range expansion in the geographic distribution of vector species, and increase transmission period duration (earlier spring onset and later fall transmission).

Carboxymethylcellulose hydrogels crosslinked with keratin nanoparticles for efficient prednisolone delivery.

Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) and keratin nanoparticle (KNP) hydrogels were obtained, characterized, and applied as drug delivery systems (DDSs) for the first time. Lyophilized CMC/KNP mixtures containing 10, 25, and 50 wt% of KNPs were kept at 170 °C for 90 min to crosslink CMC chains through a solid-state reaction with the KNPs. The hydrogels were characterized by infrared spectroscopy, thermal analyses, X-ray diffraction, mechanical measurements, and scanning electron microscopy.

Mechanical Properties, Corrosion Behavior, and In Vitro Cell Studies of the New Ti-25Ta-25Nb-5Sn Alloy.

This study aims to characterize a new Ti-25Ta-25Nb-5Sn alloy for biomedical application. Microstructure, phase formation, mechanical and corrosion properties, along with the cell culture study of the Ti-25Ta-25Nb alloy with Sn content 5 mass% are presented in this article. The experimental alloy was processed in an arc melting furnace, cold worked, and heat treated.

Identification of Facilitators and Barriers of Healthy Living and Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Among Latinx Families.

Youth-onset type 2 diabetes (T2D) is on the rise and may be associated with more adverse health outcomes than adult onset. Latinx adolescents are disproportionately at risk for T2D yet are underrepresented in prevention efforts. Extant interventions to prevent T2D in Latinx adolescents show limited effectiveness.

Synthesis and Characterization of Poly (β-amino Ester) and Applied PEGylated and Non-PEGylated Poly (β-amino ester)/Plasmid DNA Nanoparticles for Efficient Gene Delivery.

Polymer-based nanocarriers require extensive knowledge of their chemistries to learn functionalization strategies and understand the nature of interactions that they establish with biological entities. In this research, the poly (β-amino ester) (PβAE-447) was synthesized and characterized, aimed to identify the influence of some key parameters in the formulation process. Initially; PβAE-447 was characterized for aqueous solubility, swelling capacity, proton buffering ability, and cytotoxicity study before nanoparticles formulation.

TLR-9 Plays a Role in -Induced Innate Immune Activation of A549 Alveolar Epithelial Cells.

The respiratory tract is considered the main port of entry of , the causative agent of leprosy. However, the great majority of individuals exposed to the leprosy bacillus will never manifest the disease due to their capacity to develop protective immunity. Besides acting as a physical barrier, airway epithelium cells are recognized as key players by initiating a local innate immune response that orchestrates subsequent adaptive immunity to control airborne infections.

Polysaccharide-Based Materials Created by Physical Processes: From Preparation to Biomedical Applications.

Polysaccharide-based materials created by physical processes have received considerable attention for biomedical applications. These structures are often made by associating charged polyelectrolytes in aqueous solutions, avoiding toxic chemistries (crosslinking agents). We review the principal polysaccharides (glycosaminoglycans, marine polysaccharides, and derivatives) containing ionizable groups in their structures and cellulose (neutral polysaccharide).

Antimicrobial and cytocompatible chitosan, N,N,N-trimethyl chitosan, and tanfloc-based polyelectrolyte multilayers on gellan gum films.

In this work free-standing gels formed from gellan gum (GG) by solvent evaporation are coated with polysaccharide-based polyelectrolyte multilayers, using the layer-by-layer approach. We show that PEMs composed of iota-carrageenan (CAR) and three different natural polycationic polymers have composition-dependent antimicrobial properties, and support mammalian cell growth. Cationic polymers (chitosan (CHT), N,N,N-trimethyl chitosan (TMC), and an amino-functionalized tannin derivative (TN)) are individually assembled with the anionic iota-carrageenan (CAR) at pH 5.

Bactericidal Pectin/Chitosan/Glycerol Films for Food Pack Coatings: A Critical Viewpoint.

Pectin and chitosan films containing glycerol (Gly) at 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, and 40 wt % were prepared in an aqueous HCl solution (0.10 M) by the solvent evaporation method. The unwashed film (UF) containing 40 wt % Gly (UF40) had elongation at break (, %) of 19%.

Composite materials based on chitosan/gold nanoparticles: From synthesis to biomedical applications.

Conventional strategies (Turkevich's, and modified Turkevich's methods) often synthesize gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). These pathways produce AuNPs using toxic chemistries to reduce Au(III) and stabilize Au(0) atoms upon the AuNP surfaces. To overcome the disadvantages of conventional approaches, chitosan and chitosan-based materials associate with Au(III) to produce composites.

Fine-root dynamics vary with soil depth and precipitation in a low-nutrient tropical forest in the Central Amazonia.

A common assumption in tropical ecology is that root systems respond rapidly to climatic cues but that most of that response is limited to the uppermost layer of the soil, with relatively limited changes in deeper layers. However, this assumption has not been tested directly, preventing models from accurately predicting the response of tropical forests to environmental change.We measured seasonal dynamics of fine roots in an upper-slope plateau in Central Amazonia mature forest using minirhizotrons to 90 cm depth, which were calibrated with fine roots extracted from soil cores.

Removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions imparted by a pectin-based film: Cytocompatibility, antimicrobial, kinetic, and equilibrium studies.

To obtain pectin-based films is challenging due to the aqueous instability of polyelectrolyte mixtures. We overcome this issue by blending chitosan to pectin of high O-methoxylation degree (56%), followed by solvent evaporation. A durable film containing 74 wt% pectin content was produced and used as an adsorbent material toward Cu(II) ions.

Pectin-capped gold nanoparticles synthesis in-situ for producing durable, cytocompatible, and superabsorbent hydrogel composites with chitosan.

Studies report the production of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and polysaccharides-based composites. However, there are few reports about AuNPs synthesis in-situ followed by the formation of hydrogel composites. Here, we show AuNPs synthesis in-situ into the pectin solutions to yield cytocompatible pectin-capped AuNPs/chitosan hydrogel composites.

Phosphorylation of chitosan to improve osteoinduction of chitosan/xanthan-based scaffolds for periosteal tissue engineering.

The periosteum is a membrane that surrounds bones, providing essential cellular and biological components for fracture healing and bone repair. Tissue engineered scaffolds able to function as periosteum substitutes can significantly improve bone regeneration in severely injured tissues. Efforts to develop more bioactive and tunable periosteal substitutes are required to improve the success of this tissue engineering approach.

Properties of a commercial κ-carrageenan food ingredient and its durable superabsorbent hydrogels.

Physical kappa-carrageenan-based hydrogels are often prepared from dilute aqueous kappa-carrageenan (κ-carrageenan) solutions at the presence of metallic ions or by mixing these solutions with proteins and other polysaccharides. The κ-carrageenan hydrogels have been used for technological purposes; however, there are no reports about the properties of a commercial GENUGEL® κ-carrageenan produced by the CP Kelco. The flame atomic absorption spectrometry shows that the commercial κ-carrageenan comprises a high content of metallic ions (K = 216.

Poly(vinyl alcohol)/cationic tannin blend films with antioxidant and antimicrobial activities.

This study reports the synthesis, characterization and biological properties of films based on poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and a cationic tannin polymer derivative (TN). Films are obtained from polymeric blends by tuning the PVA/TN weight ratios. The materials are characterized through infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, contact angle measurements, mechanical analyses, and scanning electron microscopy.

Chitosan/gellan gum ratio content into blends modulates the scaffolding capacity of hydrogels on bone mesenchymal stem cells.

Here, we have demonstrated the production and characterization of hydrogel scaffolds based on chitosan/gellan gum (CS/GG) assemblies, without any covalent and metallic crosslinking agents, conventionally used to yield non-soluble polysaccharide-based materials. The polyelectrolyte complexes (physical hydrogels called as PECs) are characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray scattering, and scanning electron microscopy. Hydrogels containing chitosan (CS) excesses (ranging from 60 to 80 wt%) were created.

miR-182-5p is an evolutionarily conserved Tbx5 effector that impacts cardiac development and electrical activity in zebrafish.

To dissect the TBX5 regulatory circuit, we focused on microRNAs (miRNAs) that collectively contribute to make TBX5 a pivotal cardiac regulator. We profiled miRNAs in hearts isolated from wild-type, CRE, Tbx5and Tbx5 mice using a Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) approach. TBX5 deficiency in cardiomyocytes increased the expression of the miR-183 cluster family that is controlled by Kruppel-like factor 4, a transcription factor repressed by TBX5.

Polysaccharide-based tissue-engineered vascular patches.

Coronary artery and peripheral vascular diseases are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and often require surgical intervention to replace damaged blood vessels, including the use of vascular patches in endarterectomy procedures. Tissue engineering approaches can be used to obtain biocompatible and biodegradable materials directed to this application. In this work, dense or porous scaffolds constituted of chitosan (Ch) complexed with alginate (A) or pectin (P) were fabricated and characterized considering their application as tissue-engineered vascular patches.

Learning protein binding affinity using privileged information.

Background: Determining protein-protein interactions and their binding affinity are important in understanding cellular biological processes, discovery and design of novel therapeutics, protein engineering, and mutagenesis studies. Due to the time and effort required in wet lab experiments, computational prediction of binding affinity from sequence or structure is an important area of research. Structure-based methods, though more accurate than sequence-based techniques, are limited in their applicability due to limited availability of protein structure data.

Mechanically-enhanced polysaccharide-based scaffolds for tissue engineering of soft tissues.

Collagen-based materials are probably among the most used class of biomaterials in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Although collagen is often privileged for providing a suitable substrate on which cells can be cultured or a matrix in which cells can be dispersed, its mechanical properties represent a major limitation for clinical translation and even for handling of the obtained regenerated tissue. In this work, the combination of polysaccharides chitosan (Ch) and xanthan gum (X) was investigated as an alternative for scaffolds for soft tissue engineering.

Zika virus displacement by a chikungunya outbreak in Recife, Brazil.

Background: Several arboviruses, including dengue virus (DENV), Zika virus (ZIKV) and chikungunya virus (CHIKV), transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, circulate in northeast Brazil. Diseases caused by these viruses are of great public health relevance, however, their epidemiological features in areas where the three viruses co-circulate are scarce. Here, we present analyses of molecular and serological diagnostics in a prospective study of acute febrile patients recruited from May 2015 to May 2016 in Recife, Brazil.

Rapid antemortem detection of CWD prions in deer saliva.

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an efficiently transmitted prion disease of cervids, now identified in 22 United States, 2 Canadian provinces and Korea. One hallmark of CWD is the shedding of infectious prions in saliva, as demonstrated by bioassay in deer. It is also clear that the concentration of prions in saliva, blood, urine and feces is much lower than in the nervous system or lymphoid tissues.

Zebrafish tbx5 paralogs demonstrate independent essential requirements in cardiac and pectoral fin development.

Background: T-box genes constitute a large family of transcriptional regulators involved in developmental patterning. Homozygous mutation of tbx5 leads to embryonic lethal cardiac phenotypes and forelimb malformations in vertebrate models. Haploinsufficiency of tbx5 results in Holt-Oram syndrome, a human congenital disease characterized by cardiac and forelimb defects.