Mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus in aten years period

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Objectives</p> <p>to evaluate mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) rates and related factors in HIV-infected pregnant women from a tertiary hospital between 2000 and 2009.</p> <p>Subjects and method</p> <p>cohort of 452 HIV-infected pregnant women and their newborns. Data was collected from recorded files and undiagnosed children were enrolled for investigation. Statistical analysis: qui-square test, Fisher exact test, Student <it>t </it>test, Mann-Whitney test, ANOVA, risk ratio and confidence intervals.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>MTCT occurred in 3.74%. The study population displayed a mean age of 27 years; 86.5% were found to have acquired HIV through sexual contact; 55% were aware of the diagnosis prior to the pregnancy; 62% were not using HAART. Mean CD4 cell-count was 474 cells/ml and 70.3% had undetectable viral loads in the third trimester. HAART included nevirapine in 35% of cases and protease inhibitors in 55%; Zidovudine monotherapy was used in 7.3%. Mean gestational age at delivery was 37.2 weeks and in 92% by caesarian section; 97.2% received intravenous zidovudine. Use of AZT to newborn occurred in 100% of them. Factors identified as associated to MTCT were: low CD4 cell counts, elevated viral loads, maternal AIDS, shorter periods receiving HAART, other conditions (anemia, IUGR (intra uterine growth restriction), oligohydramnium), coinfecctions (CMV and toxoplasmosis) and the occurrence of labor. Use of HAART for longer periods, caesarian and oral zidovudine for the newborns were associated with a decreased risk. Poor adhesion to treatment was present in 13 of the 15 cases of transmission; in 7, coinfecctions were diagnosed (CMV and toxoplasmosis).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Use of HAART and caesarian delivery are protective factors for mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Maternal coinfecctions and other conditions were risk factors for MTCT.</p

Testing time-place learning in the cichlid fish Nile tilapia

Time-place learning based on food association was investigated in the fish Nile tilapia. During a 30-day period, food was placed at one side of the aquarium (containing three compartments) in the morning and at the opposite side in the afternoon. Learning was inferred by the number of correct side choices of all fish in each day of test (15th, 30th). During the test day, fish were not fed. The Nile tilapia did not learn to switch sides at the correct day period in order to get food, suggesting thus that this species does not have time-place learning ability

The behavior of the coiled body in cells infected with adenovirus in vitro

The coiled body is a phylogenetically conserved nuclear organelle whose function is not known. Probes for detection of p80-coilin, an 80 kDa protein enriched in the coiled body, have made possible studies determining the behavior of the coiled body during the cell cycle, in proliferating cells, as well as reports suggesting some relationship of the coiled body to mRNA splicing and to the nucleolus. the objective of this study is to examine the distribution of p80-coilin and nucleolar proteins in cells infected with adenovirus in vitro. HeLa cells grown as monolayers were infected with successive dilutions of type 5 human adenovirus culture and fixed in methanol/acetone at different time points. Single and double indirect immunofluorescence was performed with human autoantibodies to p80-coilin, fibrillarin, NOR-90/hUBF, RNA polymerase I, PM-Sd, and To, as well as rabbit polyclonal serum to p80-coilin (R288) and mouse monoclonal antibody to adenovirus 72-kDa DNA-binding protein. Indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) with anti- p80-coilin antibodies showed that the usual bright dot-like coiled body staining pattern was replaced in infected cells by 1-5 clusters of tiny dots at the periphery of the nucleus. This phenomenon was first detected within 12 h of infection and affected more severely cells with increased length and load of infection. Cells subjected to heat shock presented no such alteration. Double IIF showed that cells with abnormal coiled body appearance expressed the viral 72-kDa DNA-binding protein. Nucleolar proteins RNA polymerase I and NOR-90/hUBF became associated with the p80-coilin-enriched clusters and were no longer detected in the nucleolus. Other nucleolar proteins, like PM-Sd and To, remained associated to the nucleolus and were not detected in the newly formed clusters. Fibrillarin had a heterogeneous behavior, being restricted to the nucleolus in some infected cells while in some others it was associated with the p80-coilin-enriched clusters. Thus our results showed that in vitro adenovirus infection induced radical redistribution of nucleolar and coiled body constituents into newly formed structures characterized by clusters of tiny dots in the periphery of the nucleus. the fact that three major proteins involved in rRNA synthesis and processing colocalized with p80-coilin in these clusters may bring additional support to the idea that the coiled body and p80-coilin may be implicated in functions related to the nucleolus.Universidade Federal de São Paulo,ESCOLA PAULISTA MED,DIV RHEUMATOL,RUA BOTUCATU 862,BR-04023062 São Paulo,BRAZILUniversidade Federal de São Paulo,ESCOLA PAULISTA MED,DIV RHEUMATOL,RUA BOTUCATU 862,BR-04023062 São Paulo,BRAZILWeb of Scienc