Free radical scavenging activity of Pterogyne nitens Tul. (Fabaceae)

As part of our ongoing research on antioxidant agents from Brazilian flora, twenty extracts and fractions obtained from Pterogyne nitens Tulasne (Fabaceae) were screened for free radical scavenging activity by using ABTS [2,2’-azinobis(3-ethylenebenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)] and DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl-hydrate) radicals colorimetric assay and -carotene bleaching test. The strongest activity was found in ethyl acetate fraction from the stem barks, exhibiting IC50 values (inìg/ml) of 2.10 ± 0.1 and 10.2 ± 0.3 on ABTS•+ and DPPH•, respectively. Additionally, chromatographic fractionation of stem barks yielding myricetin, quercitrin and mirycetrin, three flavonols with remarkable antioxidant activity

In vitro co-culture of Solanum tuberosum hairy roots with Meloidogyne chitwoodi: structure, growth and production of volatiles

Meloidogyne spp., commonly known as root- knot nematodes (RKNs), are economically important plant sedentary endoparasites that cause galls on susceptible hosts. The Columbia root-knot nematode (CRKN), M. chitwoodi, is a quarantine A2 type pest by the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization since 1998. This nematode has been found associated with economi- cally important crops such as potato and tomato, causing severe damage and making the agricultural products unac- ceptable for the fresh market and food processing. In vitro co-culture of host and parasite offers an advantageous experimental system for studying plant-RKN interactions. The structure, growth and production of volatiles of Sola- num tuberosum hairy roots (HR) and of S. tuberosum HR/ CRKN co-cultures were compared. HR were induced by inoculation of aseptic potato tuber segments with Rhizo- bium rhizogenes. Co-cultures were initiated by inoculating HR with sterilized CRKN eggs. Infection with CRKN induced the RKN symptomatology in the HR and several nematode life stages were observed by light and scanning electron microscopy. Potato HR and HR/CRKN co-culturesexhibited similar growth patterns, evaluated by measuring fresh and dry weight and by the dissimilation method. Volatiles, isolated by distillation–extraction and analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry, revealed that palmitic acid (37–52 %), n–pentadecanal (10–16 %) and linoleic acid (2–16 %) were the main constitutive components of S. tu- berosum HR, and of the HR/CRKN co-cultures (24–44, 8–22 and 4–18 %, respectively). S. tuberosum HR/CRKN co-cultures can be considered a suitable biotechnological tool to study RKN infection mechanism by mimicking what occurs under field conditions

The Effects of Dasatinib in Experimental Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Depend on Dose and Etiology

Background/Aims: Evidence suggests that tyrosine-kinase inhibitors may attenuate lung inflammation and fibrosis in experimental acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We hypothesized that dasatinib, a tyrosine-kinase inhibitor, might act differently depending on the ARDS etiology and the dose. Methods: C57/BL6 mice were divided to be pre-treated with dasatinib (1mg/kg or 10mg/kg) or vehicle (1% dimethyl-sulfoxide) by oral gavage. Thirty-minutes after pre-treatment, mice were subdivided into control (C) or ARDS groups. ARDS animals received Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide intratracheally (ARDSp) or intraperitoneally (ARDSexp). A new dose of dasatinib or vehicle was administered at 6 and 24h. Results: Forty-eight hours after ARDS induction, dasatinib 1mg/kg yielded: improved lung morphofunction and reduced cells expressing toll-like receptor (TLR)-4 in lung, independent of ARDS etiology; reduced neutrophil and levels of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β in ARDSp. The higher dose of dasatinib caused no changes in lung mechanics, diffuse alveolar damage, neutrophil, or cells expressing TLR4, but increased IL-6, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and cells expressing Fas receptor in lung in ARDSp. In ARDSexp, it improved lung morphofunction, increased VEGF, and reduced cells expressing TLR4. Conclusion: Dasatinib may have therapeutic potential in ARDS independent of etiology, but careful dose monitoring is required. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel

Environmental enrichment for collared peccaries Dicotyles tajacu, Tayassuidae in managed care: Different items provoke different behavioural responses

Being in human care often modifies the behaviour of animals, mainly because of the lack of environmental stimuli, and the ease of finding food and reproductive partners. Animals in human care may have a poorer behavioural repertoire and lower welfare than their wild conspecifics. Environmental enrichment is a technique that introduces stimuli into enclosures, thereby enhancing the welfare of the animals. In the present study, the effect of different environmental-enrichment items on the behaviour of collared peccary Dicotyles tajacu was investigated. Basins with food, cardboard boxes filled with paper and food items, scent trails and piles of straw mixed with food items were provided to the peccaries. Behavioural recordings were made during the three phases of the experiment: baseline, enrichment and post-enrichment. The environmental enrichment items—especially the straw pile and cardboard boxes—increased exploratory behaviours, decreased inactivity and increased behavioural diversity in the collared peccaries. Enrichment items associated with food rewards resulted in the most significant positive changes in behaviour and should be used for collared peccaries in human care. An increased behavioural repertoire, with less inactivity and greater exploration of the environment, are important for animals that are under human-managed care and indicate an increase in animal welfare

A comparative study of synthetic winged peptides for absolute protein quantification

A proper internal standard choice is critical for accurate, precise, and reproducible mass spectrometry-based proteomics assays. Synthetic isotopically labeled (SIL) proteins are currently considered the gold standard. However, they are costly and challenging to obtain. An alternative approach uses SIL peptides or SIL "winged" peptides extended at C- or/and N-terminus with an amino acid sequence or a tag cleaved during enzymatic proteolysis. However, a consensus on the design of a winged peptide for absolute quantification is missing. In this study, we used human serum albumin as a model system to compare the quantitative performance of reference SIL protein with four different designs of SIL winged peptides: (i) commercially available SIL peptides with a proprietary trypsin cleavable tag at C-terminus, (ii) SIL peptides extended with five amino acid residues at C-terminus, (iii) SIL peptides extended with three and (iv) with five amino acid residues at both C- and N-termini. Our results demonstrate properties of various SIL extended peptides designs, e.g., water solubility and efficiency of trypsin enzymatic cleavage with primary influence on quantitative performance. SIL winged peptides extended with three amino acids at both C- and N-termini demonstrated optimal quantitative performance, equivalent to the SIL protein

Single-port cholecystectomy in a patient with situs inversus totalis presenting with cholelithiasis: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p><it>Situs inversus totalis </it>(mirror image organs) is a rare condition and may affect the intra-abdominal viscera as well as the intrathoracic organs. Cholelithiasis is not more common in these conditions, but the diagnosis may be more difficult.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present the case of a 59-year-old African woman with gallstones and <it>situs inversus totalis</it>. A single-port cholecystectomy was performed using a single trocar access device (SITRACC).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The procedure was uneventful, showing that this approach may be an option for this kind of surgery even in patients with <it>situs inversus totalis</it>.</p

Convergence of asymptotic systems of non-autonomous neural network models with infinite distributed delays

In this paper we investigate the global convergence of solutions of non-autonomous Hopfield neural network models with discrete time-varying delays, infinite distributed delays, and possible unbounded coefficient functions. Instead of using Lyapunov functionals, we explore intrinsic features between the non-autonomous systems and their asymptotic systems to ensure the boundedness and global convergence of the solutions of the studied models. Our results are new and complement known results in the literature. The theoretical analysis is illustrated with some examples and numerical simulations.The paper was supported by the Research Centre of Mathematics of the University of Minho with the Portuguese Funds from the "Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia", through the Project PEstOE/MAT/UI0013/2014. The author thanks the referee for valuable comments.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Epidemiological and genomic investigation of chikungunya virus in Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, between 2015 and 2018

Since 2014, Brazil has experienced an unprecedented epidemic caused by chikungunya virus (CHIKV), with several waves of East-Central-South-African (ECSA) lineage transmission reported across the country. In 2018, Rio de Janeiro state, the third most populous state in Brazil, reported 41% of all chikungunya cases in the country. Here we use evolutionary and epidemiological analysis to estimate the timescale of CHIKV-ECSA-American lineage and its epidemiological patterns in Rio de Janeiro. We show that the CHIKV-ECSA outbreak in Rio de Janeiro derived from two distinct clades introduced from the Northeast region in mid-2015 (clade RJ1, n = 63/67 genomes from Rio de Janeiro) and mid-2017 (clade RJ2, n = 4/67). We detected evidence for positive selection in non-structural proteins linked with viral replication in the RJ1 clade (clade-defining: nsP4-A481D) and the RJ2 clade (nsP1-D531G). Finally, we estimate the CHIKV-ECSA's basic reproduction number (R0) to be between 1.2 to 1.6 and show that its instantaneous reproduction number (Rt) displays a strong seasonal pattern with peaks in transmission coinciding with periods of high Aedes aegypti transmission potential. Our results highlight the need for continued genomic and epidemiological surveillance of CHIKV in Brazil, particularly during periods of high ecological suitability, and show that selective pressures underline the emergence and evolution of the large urban CHIKV-ECSA outbreak in Rio de Janeiro