Predictors of response to TNF blockers in patients with polyarticular psoriatic arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease with a broad clinical spectrum. PsA can affect the axialskeleton, peripheral joints, entheses, synovial sheaths of tendons, skin, nails and extra-articular organs. Tumour necrosis factor alpha blockers (TNF blockers) were a breakthrough development in the treatment of PsA. Identifying predictors of response to biological therapiesin patients with PsA is of utmost importance, especially in view of the costs and potential side effects of these agents. The aims of the present study were to determine baseline predictive factors of response to biological therapies, at 3 and 6 months, in PsA patients with polyarticular involvement (with or without axial involvement). Data were collected from the RheumaticDiseases Portuguese Register(Reuma.pt). Eligible patients had to be anti-TNF-naive at baseline and to have at least 3 months of follow-up after the beginning of TNF blocker therapy. Only patients with information on at least one of the response measures (at 3 or 6 months of follow-up) were included in the analysis. Univariable logistic regression analysis of potential baseline predictors of European League Against Rheu-matism (EULAR) good clinical response, EULAR good/ /moderate response, 28-joint Disease Activity Score with three variables including the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-3V-ESR) remission and Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) response were performed. Multivariable logistic regression using a forward selection procedure was used until the best-fit model was obtained, taking confounding effects into account. A total of 180 patients were eligible for the study (mean age 52 years, 54% women). In multivariable analysis at 3 months, females were less likely to attain a good EULAR response [OR=0.082 (95% CI=0.024, 0.278)], a DAS28-3V-ESR remission [OR=0.083 (95% CI=0.017, 0.416)], a moderate or good EULAR response [OR=0.091 (95% CI=0.011, 0.091)] and a HAQ response [OR=0.074 (95% CI=0.009, 0.608)]. At 6 months, female gender was also less likely to achieve a good EULAR response [OR=0.060 (95% CI=0.011, 0.325)], DAS28-3V-ESR remission [OR=0.060 (95% CI=0.012, 0.297)], and a HAQ response [OR=0.138 (95% CI= 0.029, 0.654)]. In this study we found that gender was the most consistent predictor of response to TNF blocker therapy in patients with polyarticular PsA, with females having a lower probability ofresponse compared to males. These findings suggest that gender-related biochemical, hormonal and psychological factors could play an importantrole in the response to TNF blockertherapy in PsA

Light-emitting porphyrin derivative obtained from a subproduct of the cashew nut shell liquid: A promising material for OLED applications

In this work, the meso-tetra[4-(2-(3-n-pentadecylphenoxy)ethoxy]phenylporphyrin (H2P), obtained from the cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL), and its zinc (ZnP) and copper (CuP) metallic complexes, were applied as emitting layers in organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). These compounds were characterized via optical and electrochemical analysis and the electroluminescent properties of the device have been studied. We performed a cyclic voltammetry analysis to determine the Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital (HOMO) and Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital (LUMO) energy levels for the porphyrins, in order to select the proper materials to assemble the device. H2P and ZnP presented fluorescence emission band in the red region, from 601 nm to 718 nm. Moreover, we verified that the introduction of bulky substituents hinders the π-πstacking, favoring the emission in the film. In addition, the strongest emitter, ZnP, presented a threshold voltage of 4 V and the maximum irradiance of 10 μW cm-2 with a current density (J) of 15 mA cm-2 at 10 V. The CuP complex showed to be a favorable material for the design of OLEDs in the infrared. These results suggest that the porphyrins derived from a renewable source, such as CNSL, is a promising material to be used in organic optoelectronic devices such as OLEDs

Efeito da acidificação da água de bebida no período pré-abate na presença de Salmonella enteritidis do inglúvio de frangos de corte

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CD19 LYMPHOCYTE PROLIFERATION INDUCED BY Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis IN C57BL/6 MICE EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED WITH Toxoplasma gondii

Toxoplasmosis is frequently acquired through the oral route by the ingestion of cysts or oocysts of Toxoplasma gondii. Once ingested, the parasites penetrate the intestinal epithelial cells and rapidly disseminate to all organs in the host. During T. gondii infection, the intestinal microbiota plays an important role in stimulating a protective immune response against the parasite. In this sense the use of probiotics is worthy of note since they are live microorganisms that have beneficial effects on the host through stimulation of the immune response that can be important in the control of T. gondii proliferation and dissemination in the host. In the present study, the action of the probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis was investigated in C57BL/6 mice infected with oocysts of ME49 strain of T. gondii. The probiotic had an immunomodulatory action, inducing CD19 lymphocyte proliferation and consequently increasing anti-T. gondii antibody level.Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactisprovided protection in supplemented mice, compared to the control group. In addition, supplemented animals had milder inflammatory process in the small intestine, indicating that the probiotic protects the intestinal mucosa during infection with T. gondii. It was concluded that the probioticB. animalis subsp. lactis induces humoral immune response capable of providing protection against T. gondii infection

Wide but not impermeable: Testing the riverine barrier hypothesis for an Amazonian plant species

Fundação de Ampara Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP), Grant/AwardNumber: 2013/12633-8; 2015/07141-4,2012/50260-6; Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico(CNPq), Grant/Award Number: 307781/2013-5; National Science Foundation,Grant/Award Number: FESD 1338694, DEB1240869Wallace’s riverine barrier hypothesis postulates that large rivers, such as the Amazon and its tributaries, reduce or prevent gene flow between populations on opposite banks, leading to allopatry and areas of species endemism occupying interfluvial regions. Several studies have shown that two major tributaries, Rio Branco and RioNegro, are important barriers to gene flow for birds, amphibians and primates. No botanical studies have considered the potential role of the Rio Branco as a barrier,while a single botanical study has evaluated the Rio Negro as a barrier. We studied an Amazon shrub, Amphirrhox longifolia (A. St.-Hil.) Spreng (Violaceae), as a model totest the riverine barrier hypothesis. Twenty-six populations of A. longifolia were sampled on both banks of the Rio Branco and Rio Negro in the core Amazon Basin.Double-digest RADseq was used to identify 8,010 unlinked SNP markers from thenuclear genome of 156 individuals. Data relating to population structure support the hypothesis that the Rio Negro acted as a significant genetic barrier for A. longi-folia. On the other hand, no genetic differentiation was detected among populations spanning the narrower Rio Branco, which is a tributary of the Rio Negro. This study shows that the strength of riverine barriers for Amazon plants is dependent on the width of the river separating populations and species-specific dispersal traits. Future studies of plants with contrasting life history traits will further improve our under-standing of the landscape genetics and allopatric speciation history of Amazon plant diversity.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136763/1/Nazareno_et_al-2017-Molecular_Ecology.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136763/4/Nazareno2017b.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136763/5/Nazareno2017b.pdfDescription of Nazareno_et_al-2017-Molecular_Ecology.pdf : Main articleDescription of Nazareno2017b.pdf : Main articleDescription of Nazareno2017b.pdf : Main articl

Combined search for the quarks of a sequential fourth generation

Results are presented from a search for a fourth generation of quarks produced singly or in pairs in a data set corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2011. A novel strategy has been developed for a combined search for quarks of the up and down type in decay channels with at least one isolated muon or electron. Limits on the mass of the fourth-generation quarks and the relevant Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements are derived in the context of a simple extension of the standard model with a sequential fourth generation of fermions. The existence of mass-degenerate fourth-generation quarks with masses below 685 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level for minimal off-diagonal mixing between the third- and the fourth-generation quarks. With a mass difference of 25 GeV between the quark masses, the obtained limit on the masses of the fourth-generation quarks shifts by about +/- 20 GeV. These results significantly reduce the allowed parameter space for a fourth generation of fermions.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Search for anomalous t t-bar production in the highly-boosted all-hadronic final state

A search is presented for a massive particle, generically referred to as a Z', decaying into a t t-bar pair. The search focuses on Z' resonances that are sufficiently massive to produce highly Lorentz-boosted top quarks, which yield collimated decay products that are partially or fully merged into single jets. The analysis uses new methods to analyze jet substructure, providing suppression of the non-top multijet backgrounds. The analysis is based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns. Upper limits in the range of 1 pb are set on the product of the production cross section and branching fraction for a topcolor Z' modeled for several widths, as well as for a Randall--Sundrum Kaluza--Klein gluon. In addition, the results constrain any enhancement in t t-bar production beyond expectations of the standard model for t t-bar invariant masses larger than 1 TeV.Comment: Submitted to the Journal of High Energy Physics; this version includes a minor typo correction that will be submitted as an erratu

Measurement of the t t-bar production cross section in the dilepton channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The t t-bar production cross section (sigma[t t-bar]) is measured in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV in data collected by the CMS experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.3 inverse femtobarns. The measurement is performed in events with two leptons (electrons or muons) in the final state, at least two jets identified as jets originating from b quarks, and the presence of an imbalance in transverse momentum. The measured value of sigma[t t-bar] for a top-quark mass of 172.5 GeV is 161.9 +/- 2.5 (stat.) +5.1/-5.0 (syst.) +/- 3.6(lumi.) pb, consistent with the prediction of the standard model.Comment: Replaced with published version. Included journal reference and DO

Search for a W' boson decaying to a bottom quark and a top quark in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

Results are presented from a search for a W' boson using a dataset corresponding to 5.0 inverse femtobarns of integrated luminosity collected during 2011 by the CMS experiment at the LHC in pp collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV. The W' boson is modeled as a heavy W boson, but different scenarios for the couplings to fermions are considered, involving both left-handed and right-handed chiral projections of the fermions, as well as an arbitrary mixture of the two. The search is performed in the decay channel W' to t b, leading to a final state signature with a single lepton (e, mu), missing transverse energy, and jets, at least one of which is tagged as a b-jet. A W' boson that couples to fermions with the same coupling constant as the W, but to the right-handed rather than left-handed chiral projections, is excluded for masses below 1.85 TeV at the 95% confidence level. For the first time using LHC data, constraints on the W' gauge coupling for a set of left- and right-handed coupling combinations have been placed. These results represent a significant improvement over previously published limits.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters B. Replaced with version publishe

Search for new physics with same-sign isolated dilepton events with jets and missing transverse energy

A search for new physics is performed in events with two same-sign isolated leptons, hadronic jets, and missing transverse energy in the final state. The analysis is based on a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.98 inverse femtobarns produced in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. This constitutes a factor of 140 increase in integrated luminosity over previously published results. The observed yields agree with the standard model predictions and thus no evidence for new physics is found. The observations are used to set upper limits on possible new physics contributions and to constrain supersymmetric models. To facilitate the interpretation of the data in a broader range of new physics scenarios, information on the event selection, detector response, and efficiencies is provided.Comment: Published in Physical Review Letter