Cranial Masses in Sickle Cell Disease

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Controle do Psilídeo-da-goiabeira (Triozoida limbata) com silício, nim e imidacloprido.

Triozoida limbata é importante praga da goiabeira, sendo seu controle realizado com inseticidas químicos.Resumo 840-2

Design and Synthesis of CNS-targeted Flavones and Analogues with Neuroprotective Potential Against H2O2- and Aβ1-42-Induced Toxicity in SH-SY5Y Human Neuroblastoma Cells

With the lack of available drugs able to prevent the progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the discovery of new neuroprotective treatments able to rescue neurons from cell injury is presently a matter of extreme importance and urgency. Here, we were inspired by the widely reported potential of natural flavonoids to build a library of novel flavones, chromen-4-ones and their C-glucosyl derivatives, and to explore their ability as neuroprotective agents with suitable pharmacokinetic profiles. All compounds were firstly evaluated in a parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA) to assess their effective permeability across biological membranes, namely the blood-brain barrier (BBB). With this test, we aimed not only at assessing if our candidates would be well-distributed, but also at rationalizing the influence of the sugar moiety on the physicochemical properties. To complement our analysis, logD7.4 was determined. From all screened compounds, the p-morpholinyl flavones stood out for their ability to fully rescue SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells against both H2O2- and Aβ1-42-induced cell death. Cholinesterase inhibition was also evaluated, and modest inhibitory activities were found. This work highlights the potential of C-glucosylflavones as neuroprotective agents, and presents the p-morpholinyl C-glucosylflavone 37, which did not show any cytotoxicity towards HepG2 and Caco-2 cells at 100 μM, as a new lead structure for further development against AD.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia-UID/Multi/0612/2019Unión Europea-D3i4AD), FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IAPP, GA 61234

Impact of a purified blueberry extract on in vitro probiotic mucin-adhesion and its effect on probiotic/intestinal pathogen systems

Several arguments have been made to substantiate the need for natural antimicrobials for the food industry. With blueberry extracts, the most compelling are both their healthy connotation and the possibility of obtaining a multipurpose solution that can be an antioxidant, colorant, and antimicrobial. From an antimicrobial perspective, as blueberry/anthocyanin-rich extracts have been associated with a capacity to inhibit harmful bacteria while causing little to no inhibition on potential probiotic microorganisms, the study of potential benefits that come from synergies between the extract and probiotics may be of particular interest. Therefore, the present work aimed to evaluate the effect of an anthocyanin-rich extract on the adhesion of five different probiotics as well as their effect on the probiotics’ capacity to compete with or block pathogen adhesion to a mucin/BSA-treated surface. The results showed that, despite some loss of probiotic adhesion, the combined presence of extract and probiotic is more effective in reducing the overall amount of adhered viable pathogen cells than the PROBIOTIC alone, regardless of the probiotic/pathogen system considered. Furthermore, in some instances, the combination of the extract with Bifidobacterium animalis Bo allowed for almost complete inhibition of pathogen adhesioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Eficiência de produtos alternativos no controle da Cochonilha-do-Carmim (Dactylopius opuntiae) em palma forrageira.

A cochonilha-do-carmimc a principal praga da palma forrageira (Opuntia ficus-indica) no semi-árido nordestino.Resumo 1034-1

Antioxidant mechanisms to counteract TiO2-nanoparticles toxicity in wheat leaves and roots are organ dependent

Nanoparticles (NP) bioactivity is under deep scrutiny. In this work, the antioxidant response to TiO2-NP in wheat (Triticum aestivum) was determined. For that, enzymatic and the non-enzymatic antioxidants were evaluated in plants exposed to the P25 anatase:rutile material composed of TiO2-NP and under environmentally realistic doses (0; 5; 50; 150 mg/L for 20 days). Shoot but not root growth was reduced. In leaves, thiol metabolism and ascorbate accumulation were the preferred route whereas in roots the pre-existing antioxidant capacity was preferentially utilized. Both leaves and roots showed increased glutathione reductase and dehydroascorbate reductase activities and decreased ascorbate peroxidase activity. Roots, nevertheless, presented higher enzymatic basal levels than leaves. On the other hand, when examining non-enzymatic antioxidants, the ratio of reduced-to-oxidized glutathione (GSH/GSSG) increased in leaves and decreased in roots. Exposed leaves also presented higher total ascorbate accumulation compared to roots. TiO2-NP exposure down regulated, with more prominence in roots, antioxidant enzyme genes encoding catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, monodehydroascorbate reductase and dehydroascorbate reductase. In leaves, superoxide dismutase gene expression was increased. All data pinpoint to TiO2-NP toxicity above 5 mg/L, with aerial parts being more susceptible, which draws concerns on the safety doses for the use of these NPs in agricultural practices.publishe

Evaluation of a novel Escherichia coli fusion system for overproduction of recombinant immunogenic proteins

Recombinant protein production has been widely applied for therapeutic and diagnostic applications, namely for polyclonal antibody production. Antibodies are usually raised against a specific protein by immunization of animals with the purified protein. The bacterium Escherichia coli is one of the most used host cells for the bio-production of proteins, but it still presents some drawbacks: many proteins of biomedical interest are difficult to express properly in this host system, resulting in insoluble protein aggregates. Gene fusion technology has been employed to optimize recombinant protein production in E. coli. Fusion partners have also been used to potentially increase protein immunogenicity. In this work, the overproduction and immunopotentiating properties of a novel fusion system were studied. Novel fusion tags, Fh8 and H, were fused to five target proteins with diagnostic interests: CP12, a 12 kDa surface protein from Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts; CWP, a cyst wall protein from Giardia lamblia; ENT, a surface protein from Entamoeba histolytica cysts; TgOWP, a Toxoplasma gondii oocyst wall protein; and Frutalin, a recombinant lectin from Artocarpus incisa seeds. Production yields of all Fh8-fused proteins, H-fused proteins and non-fused recombinant proteins were compared and polyclonal antibodies were raised against CP12, CWP and ENT nonfused and H-fused antigens. Overall, the results showed that the fusion of both Fh8 and H tags to all target proteins improved their production in comparison with the respective non-fused target proteins. Moreover, the H tag efficiently increased CP12, CWP and ENT specific immunogenicity without being removed from the fusion antigens and without coadministration of adjuvants, resulting in a more effective and earlier immune response. The overproduction and immunopotentiating effects observed for this novel fusion system make it a unique alternative for recombinant protein production in E. coli and for immunodiagnostic and immunoprophylactic purposes

Do students with immigrant and native parents perceive themselves as equally engaged in school during adolescence?

Student engagement in school needs to be considered when comparing immigrant and native students, particularly at a timeof increasing migratory movements throughout the world. Diferences in cognitive, afective, behavioral, and agentic studentengagement dimensions were examined for students with immigrant and native parents, and for early and middle adolescence.A four-dimensional measure of student engagement was completed by 643 students (52.7% women). Results indicated that:students with native parents present higher cognitive and agentic engagement than students with immigrant parents; earlyadolescents are more cognitively engaged than middle adolescents; early adolescents with native parents present highercognitive engagement than early adolescents with immigrant parents and middle adolescents. These results contribute toknowledge advancement, enhancing the understanding of student engagement with immigrant and native parents duringearly and middle adolescence, which might stimulate additional research moving towards a more inclusive school. Basedon the fndings and conclusions from this study, possibilities for future research and political-educational recommendationsare presented.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio