A imunoglobulina policlonal humana anti-antígeno de superfície da hepatite B reduz a freqüência da rejeição aguda após transplante de fígado

BACKGROUND: Use of polyclonal anti-hepatitis B surface antigen immunoglobulin (HBIg) has been shown to reduce hepatitis B virus (HBV) recurrence after liver transplantation (LT) and to decrease the frequency of acute cellular rejection (ACR). However, the protective role of HBIg against ACR remains controversial, since HBV infection has been also associated with a lower incidence of ACR. AIM: To assess the relationship between HBIg immunoprophylaxis and the incidence of rejection after LT. METHODS: 260 patients (158 males, 43 ± 14 years old) submitted to LT were retrospectively evaluated and divided into three groups, according to the presence of HBsAg and the use of HBIg. Group I was comprised of HBsAg-positive patients (n = 12) that received HBIg for more than 6 months. Group II was comprised of HBsAg-positive patients that historically have not received HBIg or have been treated irregularly for less than 3 months (n = 10). Group III was composed of 238 HBsAg-negative subjects that have not received HBIg. RESULTS: HBIg-treated patients (group I) had significantly less ACR episodes, when compared to group II and III. No differences between groups II and III were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term HBIg administration contributes independently to reduce the number of ACR episodes after LT.INTRODUÇÃO: O emprego da imunoglobulina policlonal anti-antígeno de superfície da hepatite B (HBIg) tem reduzido a recorrência da hepatite B após transplante hepático (TH), assim como também a freqüência de rejeição celular aguda (RCA). No entanto, o papel protetor da HBIg contra a RCA permanece controverso, pois a própria infecção por vírus B foi também associada a menor incidência de RCA. OBJETIVOS: Verificar a relação entre HBIg e a freqüência de RCA após TH. MÉTODOS: 260 pacientes (158 do sexo masculino, com 43 ± 14 anos) submetidos a TH foram avaliados, retrospectivamente, e divididos em três grupos de acordo com a presença de AgHBs e uso de HBIg. O grupo I foi constituído por 12 pacientes com AgHBs que receberam HBIg por mais de 6 meses; o grupo II foi formado por 10 pacientes com AgHBs que não receberam HBIg regularmente; o grupo III foi composto por 238 indivíduos sem AgHBs que não receberam HBIg. RESULTADOS: Nos pacientes do grupo I houve freqüência significantemente menor de episódios de RCA, em comparação ao que se observou nos grupos II e III. Nenhuma diferença ocorreu entre os grupos II e III. CONCLUSÕES: A administração profilática de HBIg contribui independentemente para reduzir a freqüência dos episódios de RCA após a realização de TH

Análise de limite de galactosamina em hexosaminas totais em amostras injetáveis de heparina sódica suína

Introduction: Research, one of the core areas of health surveillance, has its importance justified by its search for answers to various health problems. Heparin, a biological product with anticoagulant and antithrombotic properties, has been related to adverse events between the years 2007–2008. Because of that, the official compendiums updated the monograph for raw material. However, there is a lack of monographs that evaluate the final product. Objective: The goal of this study is to propose a physicochemical method of analysis of the limits of galactosamine in total hexosamine from the finished product of porcine sodium heparin. Method: We developed an analytical method from the ionexchange high performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection, with the appropriate evaluations of the system suitability for posterior analysis of three samples of porcine sodium heparin previously submitted to the sample preparation protocol through the Micro Bio-Spin column. Results: The samples were compared to the solution of the system suitability and raw material of porcine sodium heparin. We could detect the presence of galactosamine in one of the three analyzed samples in lower amounts than the limit stipulated by the American pharmacopeia. Conclusions: We concluded that the aforementioned method is efficient for the analysis of the finished product and that is the reason why it will be suggested to the Brazilian pharmacopeia.Introdução: A pesquisa, uma das vertentes da vigilância sanitária, tem sua importância justificada pela busca de respostas aos diversos prejuízos relativos à saúde. A heparina, produto biológico com propriedades anticoagulantes e antitrombóticas, esteve relacionada com eventos adversos entre 2007 e 2008. Diante do ocorrido, os compêndios oficiais atualizaram a monografia para matéria-prima. No entanto, há uma deficiência de monografias para avaliação do produto final. Objetivo: Propor método físico-químico de análise de limite de galactosamina em hexosaminas totais a partir do produto acabado de heparina sódica suína. Método: Foi desenvolvido método analítico a partir da cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência por troca iônica e detecção amperométrica, com as devidas avaliações de adequação do sistema para posterior análise de três amostras de heparina sódica suína, as quais foram previamente submetidas ao protocolo de preparo de amostra através da coluna Micro Bio-Spin™. Resultados: As amostras foram comparadas com a solução de adequação do sistema e matéria-prima de heparina sódica suína, sendo possível detectar presença de galactosamina em uma das três amostras analisadas em quantidade inferior ao limite estipulado pela Farmacopeia Americana. Conclusões: Conclui-se que o método é eficiente para análise do produto acabado e, por isso, será sugerido à Farmacopeia Brasileira

História(s) de exposições : perspectivas e trajetórias

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A list of land plants of Parque Nacional do Caparaó, Brazil, highlights the presence of sampling gaps within this protected area

Brazilian protected areas are essential for plant conservation in the Atlantic Forest domain, one of the 36 global biodiversity hotspots. A major challenge for improving conservation actions is to know the plant richness, protected by these areas. Online databases offer an accessible way to build plant species lists and to provide relevant information about biodiversity. A list of land plants of “Parque Nacional do Caparaó” (PNC) was previously built using online databases and published on the website "Catálogo de Plantas das Unidades de Conservação do Brasil." Here, we provide and discuss additional information about plant species richness, endemism and conservation in the PNC that could not be included in the List. We documented 1,791 species of land plants as occurring in PNC, of which 63 are cited as threatened (CR, EN or VU) by the Brazilian National Red List, seven as data deficient (DD) and five as priorities for conservation. Fifity-one species were possible new ocurrences for ES and MG states

Genome-wide Association Analysis in Humans Links Nucleotide Metabolism to Leukocyte Telomere Length

Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a heritable biomarker of genomic aging. In this study, we perform a genome-wide meta-analysis of LTL by pooling densely genotyped and imputed association results across large-scale European-descent studies including up to 78,592 individuals. We identify 49 genomic regions at a false dicovery rate (FDR) 350,000 UK Biobank participants suggest that genetically shorter telomere length increases the risk of hypothyroidism and decreases the risk of thyroid cancer, lymphoma, and a range of proliferative conditions. Our results replicate previously reported associations with increased risk of coronary artery disease and lower risk for multiple cancer types. Our findings substantially expand current knowledge on genes that regulate LTL and their impact on human health and disease.Peer reviewe

SARS-CoV-2 introductions and early dynamics of the epidemic in Portugal

Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal was rapidly implemented by the National Institute of Health in the early stages of the COVID-19 epidemic, in collaboration with more than 50 laboratories distributed nationwide. Methods By applying recent phylodynamic models that allow integration of individual-based travel history, we reconstructed and characterized the spatio-temporal dynamics of SARSCoV-2 introductions and early dissemination in Portugal. Results We detected at least 277 independent SARS-CoV-2 introductions, mostly from European countries (namely the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, and Switzerland), which were consistent with the countries with the highest connectivity with Portugal. Although most introductions were estimated to have occurred during early March 2020, it is likely that SARS-CoV-2 was silently circulating in Portugal throughout February, before the first cases were confirmed. Conclusions Here we conclude that the earlier implementation of measures could have minimized the number of introductions and subsequent virus expansion in Portugal. This study lays the foundation for genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal, and highlights the need for systematic and geographically-representative genomic surveillance.We gratefully acknowledge to Sara Hill and Nuno Faria (University of Oxford) and Joshua Quick and Nick Loman (University of Birmingham) for kindly providing us with the initial sets of Artic Network primers for NGS; Rafael Mamede (MRamirez team, IMM, Lisbon) for developing and sharing a bioinformatics script for sequence curation (https://github.com/rfm-targa/BioinfUtils); Philippe Lemey (KU Leuven) for providing guidance on the implementation of the phylodynamic models; Joshua L. Cherry (National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health) for providing guidance with the subsampling strategies; and all authors, originating and submitting laboratories who have contributed genome data on GISAID (https://www.gisaid.org/) on which part of this research is based. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the view of the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the United States government. This study is co-funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and Agência de Investigação Clínica e Inovação Biomédica (234_596874175) on behalf of the Research 4 COVID-19 call. Some infrastructural resources used in this study come from the GenomePT project (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022184), supported by COMPETE 2020 - Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation (POCI), Lisboa Portugal Regional Operational Programme (Lisboa2020), Algarve Portugal Regional Operational Programme (CRESC Algarve2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL : A data set of terrestrial, volant, and marine mammal occurrences in P ortugal

Mammals are threatened worldwide, with 26% of all species being includedin the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associatedwith habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mam-mals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change, and prey depletion formarine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems func-tionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is cru-cial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS INPORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublishedgeoreferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mam-mals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira thatincludes 105,026 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occur-ring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live obser-vations/captures (43%), sign surveys (35%), camera trapping (16%),bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radiotracking, and inquiries that represent lessthan 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: (1) burrowsjsoil moundsjtunnel, (2) capture, (3) colony, (4) dead animaljhairjskullsjjaws, (5) genetic confirmation, (6) inquiries, (7) observation of live animal (8),observation in shelters, (9) photo trappingjvideo, (10) predators dietjpelletsjpine cones/nuts, (11) scatjtrackjditch, (12) telemetry and (13) vocalizationjecholocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and100 m (76%). Rodentia (n=31,573) has the highest number of records followedby Chiroptera (n=18,857), Carnivora (n=18,594), Lagomorpha (n=17,496),Cetartiodactyla (n=11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n=7008). The data setincludes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened(e.g.,Oryctolagus cuniculus[n=12,159],Monachus monachus[n=1,512],andLynx pardinus[n=197]). We believe that this data set may stimulate thepublication of other European countries data sets that would certainly contrib-ute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting onthe development of more accurate and tailored conservation managementstrategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite thisdata paper when the data are used in publications.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Association of Forced Vital Capacity with the Developmental Gene <i>NCOR2</i>

Background Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) is an important predictor of all-cause mortality in the absence of chronic respiratory conditions. Epidemiological evidence highlights the role of early life factors on adult FVC, pointing to environmental exposures and genes affecting lung development as risk factors for low FVC later in life. Although highly heritable, a small number of genes have been found associated with FVC, and we aimed at identifying further genetic variants by focusing on lung development genes. Methods Per-allele effects of 24,728 SNPs in 403 genes involved in lung development were tested in 7,749 adults from three studies (NFBC1966, ECRHS, EGEA). The most significant SNP for the top 25 genes was followed-up in 46,103 adults (CHARGE and SpiroMeta consortia) and 5,062 chi

Genome-wide association analysis identifies six new loci associated with forced vital capacity

Forced vital capacity (FVC), a spirometric measure of pulmonary function, reflects lung volume and is used to diagnose and monitor lung diseases. We performed genome-wide association study meta-analysis of FVC in 52,253 individuals from 26 studies and followed up the top associations in 32,917 additional individuals of European ancestry. We found six new regions associated at genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10−8) with FVC in or near EFEMP1, BMP6, MIR129-2–HSD17B12, PRDM11, WWOX and KCNJ2. Two loci previously associated with spirometric measures (GSTCD and PTCH1) were related to FVC. Newly implicated regions were followed up in samples from African-American, Korean, Chinese and Hispanic individuals. We detected transcripts for all six newly implicated genes in human lung tissue. The new loci may inform mechanisms involved in lung development and the pathogenesis of restrictive lung disease