Eating Moors and Christians

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Inorganic Chemistry in Latin America

The European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry takes pride in showcasing the high-quality research produced by some of the currently most active scientists in Latin America. With this initiative, we seek to highlight the breadth and depth of the science developed in the region, and to enhance its visibility in the wider chemistry community.Fil: Castillo, Ivan. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Fadini, Luca. No especifíca;Fil: Doctorovich, Fabio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; ArgentinaFil: Rossi, Liane M.. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: González Gallardo, Sandra. No especifíca

Nutritional status and clinical outcome of children on continuous renal replacement therapy: a prospective observational study

BACKGROUND: No studies on continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) have analyzed nutritional status in children. The objective of this study was to assess the association between mortality and nutritional status of children receiving CRRT. METHODS: Prospective observational study to analyze the nutritional status of children receiving CRRT and its association with mortality. The variables recorded were age, weight, sex, diagnosis, albumin, creatinine, urea, uric acid, severity of illness scores, CRRT-related complications, duration of admission to the pediatric intensive care unit, and mortality. RESULTS: The sample comprised 174 critically ill children on CRRT. The median weight of the patients was 10 kg, 35% were under percentile (P) 3, and 56% had a weight/P50 ratio of less than 0.85. Only two patients were above P95. The mean age for patients under P3 was significantly lower than that of the other patients (p = 0.03). The incidence of weight under P3 was greater in younger children (p = 0.007) and in cardiac patients and in those who had previous chronic renal insufficiency (p = 0.047). The mortality analysis did not include patients with pre-existing renal disease. Mortality was 38.9%. Mortality for patients with weight < P3 was greater than that of children with weight > P3 (51% vs 33%; p = 0.037). In the univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, the only factor associated with mortality was protein-energy wasting (malnutrition) (OR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.067-4.173; p = 0.032). CONCLUSIONS: The frequency of protein-energy wasting in children who require CRRT is high, and the frequency of obesity is low. Protein-energy wasting is more frequent in children with previous end-stage renal disease and heart disease. Underweight children present a higher mortality rate than patients with normal body weight

Carbohydrate-Binding Non-Peptidic Pradimicins for the Treatment of Acute Sleeping Sickness in Murine Models

Current treatments available for African sleeping sickness or human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) are limited, with poor efficacy and unacceptable safety profiles. Here, we report a new approach to address treatment of this disease based on the use of compounds that bind to parasite surface glycans leading to rapid killing of trypanosomes. Pradimicin and its derivatives are non-peptidic carbohydrate-binding agents that adhere to the carbohydrate moiety of the parasite surface glycoproteins inducing parasite lysis in vitro. Notably, pradimicin S has good pharmaceutical properties and enables cure of an acute form of the disease in mice. By inducing resistance in vitro we have established that the composition of the sugars attached to the variant surface glycoproteins are critical to the mode of action of pradimicins and play an important role in infectivity. The compounds identified represent a novel approach to develop drugs to treat HAT.Funding: This work was supported by grants from the VI Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica 2008-2011, Instituto de Salud Carlos III - Subdirección General de Redes y Centros de Investigación Cooperativa, Red de Investigación Cooperativa en Enfermedades Tropicales (RICET) (RD06/0021), the Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2013-2016 (SAF2013-48999-R) (http://www.idi.mineco.gob.es), and the Junta de Andalucía (BIO-199, P09-CVI-5367) to DGP. Research of JB and SL was supported by the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (PF 10/18). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Peer reviewe

Evaluación de la huella de carbono en el barrio de la viña Lorca por rehabilitación de daños en edificios tras el sismo de 2011.

Evaluación de la huella de carbono en el barrio de la viña Lorca por rehabilitación de daños en edificios tras el sismo de 2011

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), a review

Complex regional pain syndrome is a chronic and painful condition that affects the quality of life of patients. It is usually triggered by a traumatic event of the soft tissues involving the nervous tissue. Although the factors that cause the syndrome are varied and not well known, different etiopathologic concepts have been proposed to explain the presence of this syndrome, such as autonomic dysfunction and changes in CNS plasticity, among others. The patient characteristically presents pain, sensory abnormalities, vasomotor disturbances in the skin, edema, changes in sweating, and motor alterations. The pain is associated with changes in the autonomic nervous system and has a distal predominance. Since there is no definitive diagnostic test, diagnosis is mainly based on a complete medical history and physical examination. Treatment is multidisciplinary and based on pain relief. Although in most cases evolution is favorable, rapid diagnosis and treatment are recommended to avoid dystrophic stage as much as possibl

New genetic drivers in hemorrhagic hereditary telangiectasia.

Background: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a rare vascular disease inherited in an autosomal dominant manner. Disease-causing variants in endoglin (ENG) and activin A receptor type II-like 1 (ACVRL1) genes are detected in around 90% of the patients; also 2% of patients harbor pathogenic variants at SMAD4 and GDF2. Importantly, the genetic cause of 8% of patients with clinical HHT remains unknown. Here, we present new putative genetic drivers of HHT. Methods: To identify new HHT genetic drivers, we performed exome sequencing of 19 HHT patients and relatives with unknown HHT genetic etiology. We applied a multistep filtration strategy to catalog deleterious variants and prioritize gene candidates based on their known relevance in endothelial cell biology. Additionally, we performed in vitro validation of one of the identified variants. Results: We identified variants in the INHA, HIF1A, JAK2, DNM2, POSTN, ANGPTL4, FOXO1 and SMAD6 genes as putative drivers in HHT. We have identified the SMAD6 p.(Glu407Lys) variant in one of the families; this is a loss-of-function variant leading to the activation of the BMP/TGFβ signaling in endothelial cells. Conclusions: Variants in these genes should be considered for genetic testing in patients with HHT phenotype and negative for ACVRL1/ENG mutations

Feasibility, drug safety, and effectiveness of etiological treatment programs for Chagas disease in Honduras, Guatemala, and Bolivia: 10-year experience of Médecins Sans Frontières

BACKGROUND: Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis) is a zoonotic or anthropozoonotic disease caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. Predominantly affecting populations in poor areas of Latin America, medical care for this neglected disease is often lacking. Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has provided diagnostic and treatment services for Chagas disease since 1999. This report describes 10 years of field experience in four MSF programs in Honduras, Guatemala, and Bolivia, focusing on feasibility protocols, safety of drug therapy, and treatment effectiveness. METHODOLOGY: From 1999 to 2008, MSF provided free diagnosis, etiological treatment, and follow-up care for patients <18 years of age seropositive for T. cruzi in Yoro, Honduras (1999-2002); Olopa, Guatemala (2003-2006); Entre Ríos, Bolivia (2002-2006); and Sucre, Bolivia (2005-2008). Essential program components guaranteeing feasibility of implementation were information, education, and communication (IEC) at the community and family level; vector control; health staff training; screening and diagnosis; treatment and compliance, including family-based strategies for early detection of adverse events; and logistics. Chagas disease diagnosis was confirmed by testing blood samples using two different diagnostic tests. T. cruzi-positive patients were treated with benznidazole as first-line treatment, with appropriate counseling, consent, and active participation from parents or guardians for daily administration of the drug, early detection of adverse events, and treatment withdrawal, when necessary. Weekly follow-up was conducted, with adverse events recorded to assess drug safety. Evaluations of serological conversion were carried out to measure treatment effectiveness. Vector control, entomological surveillance, and health education activities were carried out in all projects with close interaction with national and regional programs. RESULTS: Total numbers of children and adolescents tested for T. cruzi in Yoro, Olopa, Entre Ríos, and Sucre were 24,471, 8,927, 7,613, and 19,400, respectively. Of these, 232 (0.9%), 124 (1.4%), 1,475 (19.4%), and 1,145 (5.9%) patients, respectively, were diagnosed as seropositive. Patients were treated with benznidazole, and early findings of seroconversion varied widely between the Central and South American programs: 87.1% and 58.1% at 18 months post-treatment in Yoro and Olopa, respectively; 5.4% by up to 60 months in Entre Ríos; and 0% at an average of 18 months in Sucre. Benznidazole-related adverse events were observed in 50.2% and 50.8% of all patients treated in Yoro and Olopa, respectively, and 25.6% and 37.9% of patients in Entre Ríos and Sucre, respectively. Most adverse events were mild and manageable. No deaths occurred in the treatment population. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate the feasibility of implementing Chagas disease diagnosis and treatment programs in resource-limited settings, including remote rural areas, while addressing the limitations associated with drug-related adverse events. The variability in apparent treatment effectiveness may reflect differences in patient and parasite populations, and illustrates the limitations of current treatments and measures of efficacy. New treatments with improved safety profiles, pediatric formulations of existing and new drugs, and a faster, reliable test of cure are all urgently needed