Anthropometric evaluation and micronutrients intake in patients submitted to laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass with a postoperative period of ≥1 year

Backgroung - Bariatric surgery is indicated as the most effective treatment for morbid obesity; the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) is considered the procedure of choice. However, nutritional deficiency may occur in the postoperative period as a result of reduced gastric capacity and change in nutrients absorption in the gastrointestinal tract. The prescription of vitamin and mineral supplementation is a common practice after RYGB; however, it may not be sufficient to prevent micronutrient deficiencies. The aim of this study was to quantify the micronutrient intake in patients undergoing RYGB and verify if the intake of supplementation would be enough to prevent nutritional deficiencies. Methods - The study was conducted on 60 patients submitted to RYGB. Anthropometric, analytical, and nutritional intake data were assessed preoperatively and 1 and 2 years postoperatively. The dietary intake was assessed using 24-h food recall; the values of micronutrients evaluated (vitamin B12, folic acid, iron, and calcium) were compared to the dietary reference intakes (DRI). Results - There were significant differences (p < 0.05) between excess weight loss at the first and second year (69.9 ± 15.3 vs 9.6 ± 62.9 %). In the first and second year after surgery, 93.3 and 94.1 % of the patients, respectively, took the supplements as prescribed. Micronutrient deficiencies were detected in the three evaluation periods. At the first year, there was a significant reduction (p < 0.05) of B12, folic acid, and iron intake. Conclusions - Despite taking vitamin and mineral supplementation, micronutrient deficiencies are common after RYGB. In the second year after surgery, micronutrient intake remains below the DRI

Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterine cervix: a rare case report

Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the female genital tract is a rare tumour. It tends to occur during childhood in the vagina and, rarely, it can arise in the uterine cervix, with a peak incidence in the second decade. We report a case of a 18-year-old female with an embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma (sarcoma botryoides) presenting himself as a cervical polyp. This tumour consisted of rhabdomyoblasts with miscellaneous differentiation surrounded by a loose, myxoid stroma. The patient was successfully treated with cervical conization and adjuvant chemotherapy. She is now disease-free at the 28th month follow-up. Awareness of this uncommon lesion in the cervix and its clinical implications is important to prevent misdiagnosis. Therapy has recently inclined to conservative and fertility-sparing treatment

All-Printed piezoresistive sensor matrix with organic thin-film transistors as a switch for crosstalk reduction

A generation of piezoresistive sensors (force or deformation) fully processed by printing technologies is increasingly being implemented in applications due to advantages as a large-area application, simple device, integration, and high flexibility. This work reports the development of a fully printed piezoresistive (5 × 5 sensor) matrix in which an organic thin-film transistor (OTFT) is placed in each sensor to allow the readout of each sensor independently and thus reducing the crosstalk between individual sensors. The manufacturing was carried out using inkjet printing for the deposition of materials in a thin layer stacked on top of each other to obtain functional OTFTs. The piezoresistive nanocomposite sensors, based on multiwalled carbon nanotubes within an elastomeric styrene-ethylene-butadiene-styrene (SEBS) polymer matrix, were fabricated by screen printing. The fabrication and characterization of both OTFT and sensors are presented and discussed in detail. The inkjet-printed OTFTs (width/length channel ratio of ∼130) show a drain-source current (IDS) of 150 μA with a gate-source voltage of −40 V. Gauge factors of up to 5.9 were obtained for the sensors, resulting in a current variation of 1.5 μA. This corresponds to about 0.7% of the total IDS in a deformation cycleFCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/2019, UID/FIS/04650/2019 and projects PTDC/FIS-MAC/28157/2017 and PTDC/BTM-MAT/28237/2017, SFRH/BPD/110914/2015 (PC). V.C. thanks FCT for the junior researcher contract (DL57/2016). We acknowledge funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Programme for Research, ICT-02-2018 - Flexible and Wearable Electronics. Grant agreement no. 824339 – WEARPLEX. Financial support from the Basque Government Industry and Education Department under the ELKARTEK, HAZITEK and PIBA (PIBA-2018-06

Are Musculoskeletal Conditions Neglected in National Health Surveys?

Concise report[Abstract] Objective: To describe the proportion of national health surveys that contain questions on the prevalence and consequences of musculoskeletal conditions. Methods: We used a comprehensive search strategy to obtain national health surveys from the 218 countries listed by the World Bank. Two authors independently extracted information from each national health survey. Outcomes were the proportion of surveys that contained questions on the prevalence of musculoskeletal conditions using the Global Burden of Disease categorization of RA, OA, low back pain, neck pain, gout and other and contained condition-specific questions about activity limitation, severity of pain and work absence. We also measured how frequently the prevalence of low back pain was measured using a consensus-based standard definition for low back pain prevalence studies. Results: We identified national health surveys from 170 countries. Sixty-two (36.4%), the majority from high-income countries (n = 43), measured the prevalence of at least one musculoskeletal condition. OA [53 (85.4%)], low back pain [39 (62.9%)] and neck pain [37 (59.7%)] were most commonly measured, while RA and gout prevalence were only measured in 10 (5.9%) and 3 (1.8%) surveys, respectively. A minority of surveys assessed condition-specific activity limitations [6 (3.6%)], pain severity [5 (2.9%)] and work absence [1 (0.6%)]. Only one survey used the consensus-based standard definition for low back pain. Conclusion: Musculoskeletal conditions are neglected in the majority of national health surveys. Monitoring musculoskeletal conditions through ongoing surveys is crucial for the development and evaluation of health policies to reduce their burden

The role of interleukin 17-mediated immune response in Chagas disease:High level is correlated with better left ventricular function

Interleukin 17A (IL-17A) has been associated with protective rather than pathogenic response in Chagas disease (ChD). However, it is not established whether or not IL-17A-mediated immune response is correlated with patient's left ventricular (LV) function in ChD. To address this question we have gathered cardiac functional parameters from ChD patients and analysed the possible relationship between their plasma IL-17A levels and LV function. Plasma IL-17A levels were measured by BD Cytometric Bead Array (CBA) in 240 patients with positive specific serology for Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi) grouped as indeterminate (IND) and Chagas cardiomyopathy (CARD) forms. The levels of IL-17A in ChD patients were compared with 32 healthy individuals, mean age of 39 years, 50% male, that were also included as a control group (non-infected [NI]). The overall mean age of ChD patients was 46 years and 52% were male. The IND group included 95 asymptomatic patients, with ages ranging from 27 to 69 years (mean of 43 years), and 42.1% of them were male. The CARD group included 145 patients, which 58.6% were male, with ages ranging from 23 to 67 years (mean of 49). The IND group presented substantially higher levels of IL-17A, median of 26.16 (3.66-48.33) as compared to both the CARD group, median of 13.89 (3.87-34.54) (P <0.0001), and the NI group, median of 10.78 (6.23-22.26) (P <0.0001). The data analysis demonstrated that the IND group comprises a significantly greater proportion (P <0.001) of high IL-17A producers (52.6%, 50 of 95 subjects) than do the other groups. A significant direct correlation was verified between IL-17A levels and cardiac function expressed by LV ejection fraction (LVEF), LV diastolic diameter (LVDd), and body surface area (BSA)-indexed LVDd as well as ratio of the early diastolic transmitral flow velocity to early diastolic mitral annular velocity (E/e') in both groups. We demonstrated that plasma IL-17A levels has an accurate sensitivity and specificity to predict heart failure in serology-positive patients and might be a useful parameter to distinguish patients with or without cardiac impairment. This study indicates a consistent relationship between high expression of IL-17A and better LV in human chronic ChD. Our data raise the possibility that IL-17A plays an important immunomodulatory role in the chronic phase of ChD and might be involved in protection against myocardial damage

Non-peptidic Cruzain Inhibitors with Trypanocidal Activity Discovered by Virtual Screening and in Vitro Assay

A multi-step cascade strategy using integrated ligand-and target-based virtual screening methods was developed to select a small number of compounds from the ZINC database to be evaluated for trypanocidal activity. Winnowing the database to 23 selected compounds, 12 non-covalent binding cruzain inhibitors with affinity values (K-i) in the low micromolar range (3-60 mu M) acting through a competitive inhibition mechanism were identified. This mechanism has been confirmed by determining the binding mode of the cruzain inhibitor Nequimed176 through X-ray crystallographic studies. Cruzain, a validated therapeutic target for new chemotherapy for Chagas disease, also shares high similarity with the mammalian homolog cathepsin L. Because increased activity of cathepsin L is related to invasive properties and has been linked to metastatic cancer cells, cruzain inhibitors from the same library were assayed against it. Affinity values were in a similar range (4-80 mu M), yielding poor selectivity towards cruzain but raising the possibility of investigating such inhibitors for their effect on cell proliferation. in order to select the most promising enzyme inhibitors retaining trypanocidal activity for structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies, the most potent cruzain inhibitors were assayed against T. cruzi-infected cells. Two compounds were found to have trypanocidal activity. Using compound Nequimed42 as precursor, an SAR was established in which the 2-acetamidothiophene-3-carboxamide group was identified as essential for enzyme and parasite inhibition activities. the IC50 value for compound Nequimed42 acting against the trypomastigote form of the Tulahuen lacZ strain was found to be 10.6 +/- 0.1 mu M, tenfold lower than that obtained for benznidazole, which was taken as positive control. in addition, by employing the strategy of molecular simplification, a smaller compound derived from Nequimed42 with a ligand efficiency (LE) of 0.33 kcal mol(-1) atom(-1) (compound Nequimed176) is highlighted as a novel non-peptidic, non-covalent cruzain inhibitor as a trypanocidal agent candidate for optimization.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Univ Fed Sao Carlos, Dept Quim, BR-13560 Sao Carlos, SP, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Inst Quim Sao Carlos, Grp Quim Med IQSC USP, Sao Carlos, SP, BrazilUniv Calif San Francisco, Dept Pathol, Ctr Discovery & Innovat Parasit Dis, San Francisco, CA 94140 USAUniv São Paulo, Fac Med Ribeirao Preto, Dept Bioquim & Imunol, BR-14049 Ribeirao Preto, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista Med, Dept Biofis, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista Med, Dept Biofis, São Paulo, BrazilFAPESP: 2011/01893-3,CNPq: 301614/2010-5CAPES: 5985/11-0Web of Scienc

Antigenicity and Immunogenicity of Plasmodium vivax Merozoite Surface Protein-3

A recent clinical trial in African children demonstrated the potential utility of merozoite surface protein (MSP)-3 as a vaccine against Plasmodium falciparum malaria. the present study evaluated the use of Plasmodium vivax MSP-3 (PvMSP-3) as a target antigen in vaccine formulations against malaria caused by P. vivax. Recombinant proteins representing MSP-3 alpha and MSP-3 beta of P. vivax were expressed as soluble histidine-tagged bacterial fusions. Antigenicity during natural infection was evaluated by detecting specific antibodies using sera from individuals living in endemic areas of Brazil. A large proportion of infected individuals presented IgG antibodies to PvMSP-3 alpha (68.2%) and at least 1 recombinant protein representing PvMSP-3 beta (79.1%). in spite of the large responder frequency, reactivity to both antigens was significantly lower than was observed for the immunodominant epitope present on the 19-kDa C-terminal region of PvMSP-1. Immunogenicity of the recombinant proteins was studied in mice in the absence or presence of different adjuvant formulations. PvMSP-3 beta, but not PvMSP-3 alpha, induced a TLR4-independent humoral immune response in the absence of any adjuvant formulation. the immunogenicity of the recombinant antigens were also tested in formulations containing different adjuvants (Alum, Salmonella enterica flagellin, CpG, Quil A, TiterMax (R) and incomplete Freunds adjuvant) and combinations of two adjuvants (Alum plus flagellin, and CpG plus flagellin). Recombinant PvMSP-3 alpha and PvMSP-3 beta elicited higher antibody titers capable of recognizing P. vivax-infected erythrocytes harvested from malaria patients. Our results confirm that P. vivax MSP-3 antigens are immunogenic during natural infection, and the corresponding recombinant proteins may be useful in elucidating their vaccine potential.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)US National Institutes of Health, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious DiseasesSIgNHorizontal Programme on Infectious Diseases under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR, Singapore)Wellcome Trust of Great Britain, as part of the Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Programme of Wellcome Trust-Mahidol UniversityUniv São Paulo, Fac Ciencias Farmaceut, Dept Anal Clin & Toxicol, São Paulo, BrazilUniv Estadual Campinas, Dept Genet Evolucao & Bioagentes, Inst Biol, Campinas, SP, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Inst Ciencias Biomed, Dept Microbiol, BR-05508 São Paulo, BrazilNatl Univ Singapore, Yong Loo Lin Sch Med, Dept Microbiol, Singapore 117595, SingaporeAgcy Sci Technol & Res, Singapore Immunol Network, Biopolis, Singapore, SingaporeChurchill Hosp, Ctr Vaccinol & Trop Med, Oxford OX3 7LJ, EnglandMahidol Oxford Univ Trop Med Res Programme, Shoklo Malaria Res Unit, Mae Sot, ThailandEmory Univ, Emory Vaccine Ctr, Atlanta, GA 30322 USAEmory Univ, Yerkes Natl Primate Res Ctr, Atlanta, GA 30322 USAEmory Univ, Dept Med, Div Infect Dis, Atlanta, GA 30322 USACtr Dis Control & Prevent, Malaria Branch, Div Parasit Dis, Chamblee, GA USAUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, CTCMOL, Dept Microbiol Imunol & Parasitol, Escola Paulista Med, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, CTCMOL, Dept Microbiol Imunol & Parasitol, Escola Paulista Med, São Paulo, BrazilFAPESP: 2010/09893-0US National Institutes of Health, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases: 1R01AI24710Web of Scienc

Cashew gum (Anacardium occidentale) as a potential source for the production of tocopherol-loaded nanoparticles: formulation, release profile and cytotoxicity

Every year, more than thirty thousand tons of Cashew gum (Anacardium occidentale, family: Anacardiaceae) are produced in Brazil; however, only a small amount is used for different applications in foodstuff and in pharmaceutical industries. As a raw material for the production of drug delivery systems, cashew gum is still regarded as an innovative compound worth to be exploited. In this work, cashew gum was extracted from the crude exudate of cashew tree employing four methodologies resulting in a light brown powder in different yields (40.61% to 58.40%). The total ashes (0.34% to 1.05%) and moisture (12.90% to 14.81%) were also dependent on the purification approach. FTIR spectra showed the typical bands of purified cashew gum samples, confirming their suitability for the development of a pharmaceutical product. Cashew gum nanoparticles were produced by nanoprecipitation resulting in particles of low polydispersity (<0.2) and an average size depending on the percentage of the oil. The zeta potential of nanoparticles was found to be below 20 mV, which promotes electrostatic stability. Encapsulation efficiencies were above 99.9%, while loading capacity increased with the increase of the percentage of the oil content of particles. The release of the oil from the nanoparticles followed the KorsmeyerPeppas kinetics model, while particles did not show any signs of toxicity when tested in three distinct cell lines (LLC-MK2, HepG2, and THP-1). Our study highlights the potential added value of using a protein-, lignans-, and nucleic acids-enriched resin obtained from crude extract as a new raw material for the production of drug delivery systems.This research received funding from the Coordenação Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES), Fundação de Ámparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Sergipe (FAPITEC) (PROCESSO: 88887.159533/2017-00 extração, encapsulação e caracterização de bioativos para o interesse biotecnologico) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq 301964/2019-0 Chamada 06/2019, and Chamada CNPq nº 01/2019), from Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT/MEC) through national funds, and co-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020 for the project UIDB/04469/2020.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio