Determination of HFE C282Y Mutation and its Association With the Iron Status and Viral Load in HIV Patients From Reynosa, Tamaulipas

Background: The HFE protein has a fundamental role in iron homeostasis, the HFE C282Y mutation prevents the specific function of the protein, causing greater intestinal absorption of iron and intracellular accumulation. The HIV virus causes a disease that attacks the cells of the immune system, mainly CD 4 T lymphocytes inducing their destruction and immunosuppression of the patient. Some viruses have the ability to disrupt cellular metabolic processes during their own replication, such is the case of HIV-1, which is involved in alteration of iron metabolism resulting in an overload of iron. Methods: An exploratory, descriptive, cross-sectional and prolective study was conducted, including 68 patients, ≥ 18 years old, HIV positive, attended at CAPASITS, through informed consent and application of an interview on lifestyle and health, were determined: blood pressure, anthropometric measures, CD 4 T cell count, viral load, and iron status (ferritin, iron and transferrin). Results: 41 participants were male sex (60%) and 27 (40%) of the female sex, average of 38.22 (±11.05 SD) years, with a BMI 25.30 (± 4.70 SD). The presence of the C282Y mutation was not detected, only the wild variant (100%) was identified. Patients with viral loads ≥ 40 copies/ml, were ruled out when relating viral load vs. serum ferritin (r= 0.594, r2= 0.353 and p= 0.004) with statistical significance, with a ferritin mean of 231.5 (± 216.04 SD). Conclusions: The C282Y mutation of the HFE gene is not present in the study population, due to its low frequency, so it is not related to iron overload. Because there is a high viral load, serum ferritin levels will also increase, and this may be due to the fact that HIV in addition to interfering with the Iron metabolism induces alterations in the synthesis and regulation of the secretion of this protein

Active Biopolymeric Films Inoculated with Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus, a Predatory Bacterium

The objective of the present work was to evaluate novel active films made with biopolymeric matrices as carriers of a living Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus HD100 strain, a predatory bacterium with antimicrobial potentials against pathogens. Biopolymer films were prepared by a casting method using the following mixtures: collagen/sodium alginate/sorbitol (CA-S), collagen/sodium alginate/glycerol (CA-G), and tapioca starch/sodium alginate/glycerol (StA-G). The effects of the film formulations on the viability of the B. bacteriovorus was investigated by using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). SEM showed that Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus morphology was not altered in the polymeric films. FTIR spectroscopy provided information about the structural composition of the films. CA-S showed less reduction in the viability of B. bacteriovorus after its entrapment; thus, CA-S proved to be a better agent for the immobilization and preservation of B. bacteriovorus to enhance its predatory activities during application against Escherichia coli