Beneficial effects of the activation of the Angiotensin-(1-7) MAS receptor in a murine model of adriamycin-induced nephropathy

Angiotensin-(1-7) [Ang-(1-7)] is a biologically active heptapeptide that may counterbalance the physiological actions of angiotensin II (Ang II) within the renin-angiotensin system (RAS). Here, we evaluated whether activation of the Mas receptor with the oral agonist, AVE 0991, would have renoprotective effects in a model of adriamycin (ADR)-induced nephropathy. We also evaluated whether the Mas receptor contributed for the protective effects of treatment with AT1 receptor blockers. ADR (10 mg/kg) induced significant renal injury and dysfunction that was maximal at day 14 after injection. Treatment with the Mas receptor agonist AVE 0991 improved renal function parameters, reduced urinary protein loss and attenuated histological changes. Renoprotection was associated with reduction in urinary levels of TGF-{beta}. Similar renoprotection was observed after treatment with the AT1 receptor antagonist, Losartan. AT1 and Mas receptor mRNA levels dropped after ADR administration and treatment with losartan reestablished the expression of Mas receptor and increased the expression of ACE2. ADR-induced nephropathy was similar in wild type (Mas(+/+)) and Mas knockout (Mas (-/-)) mice, suggesting there was no endogenous role for Mas receptor activation. However, treatment with Losartan was able to reduce renal injury only in Mas(+/+) , but not in Mas (-/-) mice. Therefore, these findings suggest that exogenous activation of the Mas receptor protects from ADR-induced nephropathy and contributes to the beneficial effects of AT1 receptor blockade. Medications which target specifically the ACE2/Ang-(1-7)/Mas axis may offer new therapeutic opportunities to treat human nephropathies

An Extended Geographical Distribution Of Donax Gemmula Morrison, 1971 (bivalvia: Donacidae): New Record From The Brazilian Northeastern Coast

This study provides the first record of Donax gemmula Morrison, 1971 (Bivalvia: Donacidae) from the Ceará State, Northeast Brazil; up to now it was only known from the Southeastern and Southern Brazilian coast. Shells larger than ~2 mm in length of this species can be distinguished from those of D. striatus Linnaeus, 1767. Both species were collected in the same beaches: Banco dos Cajuais and Pecém. The occurrence of D. gemmula remains unnoticed for others States of the Northeast Brazil, and so we suggest two possible explanations for this finding from Ceará State: i) a recent introduction (e.g., by ballast water); or ii) this species has a continuous distribution along the Brazilian coast (Ceará to Rio Grande do Sul), being not recorded until now because this is not easily collected (the animals are small and bottom samples need to be sieved to obtain them) and may be confused with young specimens of other species of Donax, such as D. striatus. © 2013 Check List and Authors.9510871090Alves, E.S., Pezzuto, P.R., Effect of cold fronts on the benthic macrofauna of exposed sandy beaches with contrasting morphodynamics (2009) Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 57 (2), pp. 73-96Alves, E.S., Pezzuto, P.R., Effect of morphodynamics on annual average zonation pattern of benthic macrofauna of exposed sandy beaches in Santa Catarina, Brazil (2009) Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 57 (3), pp. 189-203Amaral, A.C.Z., Jablonski, S., Conservation of marine and coastal biodiversity in Brazil (2005) Conservation Biology, 19 (3), pp. 625-631Ansell, A.D., The biology of the genus Donax (1983) Sandy beaches as Ecosystems., pp. 607-635. , In A. McLachlan and T. Erasmus (ed.). BostonJunk, W., Arruda, E.P., Amaral, A.C.Z., Spatial distribution of mollusks in the intertidal zone of sheltered beaches in southeastern of Brazil (2003) Revista Brasileira de Zoologia, 20 (2), pp. 291-300. , PublishersBarros, F., Borzone, C.A., Rosso, S., Macroinfauna of six beaches near Guaratuba Bay, Southern Brazil (2001) Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology, 44 (4), pp. 351-364Borzone, C.A., Souza, J.R.B., Soares, A.G., Morphodynamic influence on the structure of inter and subtidal macrofaunal communities of subtropical sandy beaches (1996) Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 69, pp. 565-577Campos, A.A., Polette, M., A gestão integrada da Zona Costeira (2003) A Zona Costeira do Ceará: Diagnóstico para a Gestão Integrada., pp. 11-26. , In AQUASIS-Associação de Pesquisa e Preservação de Ecossistemas Aquáticos (org). Fortaleza: AquasisCarlos, C.J., Fedrizzi, C.E., Campos, A.A., Matthews-Cascon, H., Barroso, C.X., Rabay, S.G., Bezerra, L.E.A., Thiers, P.R.L., (2010) Migratory Shorebird Conservation and Shrimp Farming in NE Brazil-Final Report., p. 162Cochôa, A.R., Lorenzi, L., Borzone, C.A., A influência da passagem de uma frente meteorológica na distribuição da macrofauna bentônica mesolitoral de uma praia arenosa exposta (2006) Tropical Oceanography, 34 (2), pp. 59-71Corbisier, T.N., Benthic macrofauna of sandy intertidal zone at Santos estuarine system, São Paulo, Brazil (1991) Boletim do Instituto Oceanográfico de São Paulo, 39 (1), pp. 1-13Denadai, M.R., Amaral, A.C.Z., Turra, A., Structure of molluscan assemblages in sheltered intertidal unconsolidated environments (2005) Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology, 48 (5), pp. 825-839Domaneschi, O., Lopes, S.G.B.C., Família Donacidae Fleming, 1828 (1988) Informativo da Sociedade Brasileira de Malacologia, 87, pp. 9-12. , 1889 88: 9-1292: 9-1293: 9-12Morrison, J.P.E., Western Atlantic Donax (1971) Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 83 (48), pp. 545-568Neves, F.M., Bemvenuti, C.E., Variabilidade diária da zonação da macrofauna bentônica em praias arenosas do litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul (2009) Iheringia Série Zoologia, 99 (1), pp. 71-81Neves, F.M., Colling, L.A., de Pereira, P.S., Bemvenuti, C.E., Daily variation of macrobenthic fauna on an exposed sandy beach of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (2006) Journal of Coastal Research, 39, pp. 1225-1228Neves, L.P., da Silva, P.S.R., Bemvenuti, C.E., Temporal variability of benthic macrofauna on Cassino beach, southernmost Brazil (2008) Iheringia Série Zoológica, 98 (1), pp. 36-44Neves, L.P., da Silva, P.S.R., Bemvenuti, C.E., Distribuição horizontal da macrofauna bentônica na praia do Cassino, extremo sul do Brasil (2012) Iheringia Série Zoologia, 102 (3), pp. 245-253Ourives, T.M., Rizzo, A.E., Boehs, G., Composition and spatial distribution of the benthic macrofauna in the Cachoeira River estuary, Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil (2011) Revista de Biología Marina y Oceanografía, 46 (1), pp. 17-25Pagliosa, P.R., Distribuição da macrofauna bêntica do entremarés ao sublitoral em uma praia estuarina da Baía da Babitonga, Sul do Brasil (2006) Biotemas, 19 (1), pp. 25-33Passos, F.D., Domaneschi, O., Biologia e anatomia funcional de Donax gemmula Morrison (Bivalvia, Donacidae) do litoral de São Paulo, Brasil (2004) Revista Brasileira de Zoologia, 21 (4), pp. 1017-1032Silva, J.S.V., Fernandes, F.C., Souza, R.C.C.L., Larsen, K.T.S., Danelon, O.M., (2004) Água de lastro e bioinvasão, pp. 1-10. , In J. S. V. Silva and R. C. C. L. Souza (org.). Água de Lastro e Bioinvasão. Rio de Janeiro: Interciênciasde Silva, P.S.R., Neves, L.P., Bemvenuti, C.E., Temporal variation of sandy beach macrofauna at two sites with distinct environmental conditions on Cassino Beach, extreme southern Brazil (2008) Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 56 (4), pp. 257-270Smith, A.J., Morais, J.O., Estudos preliminares sobre a geologia ambiental costeira do estado do Ceará, nordeste do Brasil (1984) Arquivos de Ciências do Mar, 23 (1), pp. 85-96Souza, J.R.B., Gianuca, N.M., Zonation and seasonal variation of the intertidal macrofauna on a sand beach of Paraná State, Brazil (1995) Scientia Marina, 59 (2), pp. 103-11