Formation of dense partonic matter in relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC: Experimental evaluation by the PHENIX collaboration

Extensive experimental data from high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions were recorded using the PHENIX detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The comprehensive set of measurements from the first three years of RHIC operation includes charged particle multiplicities, transverse energy, yield ratios and spectra of identified hadrons in a wide range of transverse momenta (p_T), elliptic flow, two-particle correlations, non-statistical fluctuations, and suppression of particle production at high p_T. The results are examined with an emphasis on implications for the formation of a new state of dense matter. We find that the state of matter created at RHIC cannot be described in terms of ordinary color neutral hadrons.Comment: 510 authors, 127 pages text, 56 figures, 1 tables, LaTeX. Submitted to Nuclear Physics A as a regular article; v3 has minor changes in response to referee comments. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm

Human toxocariasis: contribution by Brazilian researchers

In the present paper the main aspects of the natural history of human infection by Toxocara larvae that occasionally result in the occurrence of visceral and/or ocular larva migrans syndrome were reviewed. The contribution by Brazilian researchers was emphasized, especially the staff of the Tropical Medicine Institute of São Paulo (IMT)

Immune Cells And Mediators Involved In The Inflammatory Responses Induced By A P-i Metalloprotease And A Phospholipase A2 From Bothrops Atrox Venom

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Bothrops envenomations can promote severe inflammatory responses by inducing edema, pain, leukocyte recruitment and release of chemical mediators by local cells. In the present study, two toxins from Bothrops atrox venom (the P-I metalloprotease Batroxase and the acidic phospholipase A2 BatroxPLA2) were evaluated in relation to their inflammatory effects induced in vivo and in vitro, mainly focusing on the participation of different immune cells and inflammatory mediators. Both toxins mainly promoted acute inflammatory responses with significant recruitment of neutrophils in the early hours (1–4 h) after administration into the peritoneal cavity of C57BL/6 mice, and increased infiltration of mononuclear cells especially after 24 h. Among the mediators induced by both toxins are IL-6, IL-10 and PGE2, with Batroxase also inducing the release of L-1β, and BatroxPLA2 of LTB4 and CysLTs. These responses pointed to possible involvement of immune cells such as macrophages and mast cells, which were then evaluated in vitro. Mice peritoneal macrophages stimulated with Batroxase produced significant levels of IL-6, IL-1β, PGE2 and LTB4, whereas stimulus with BatroxPLA2 induced increases of IL-6, PGE2 and LTB4. Furthermore, both toxins were able to stimulate degranulation of RBL-2H3 mast cells, but with distinct concentration-dependent effects. Altogether, these results indicated that Batroxase and BatroxPLA2 promoted local and acute inflammatory responses related to macrophages and mast cells and to the production of several mediators. Our findings should contribute for better understanding the different mechanisms of toxicity induced by P-I metalloproteases and phospholipases A2 after snakebite envenomations. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd85238247#2012/11963-1, FAPESP, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo2011/23236-4, FAPESP, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo476932/2012-2, CNPq, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e TecnológicoFundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Acute endocrine profile of sulpiride in the human

Normal men and normally menstruating women received i.m. injections of 0.1 to 4.0 mg/kg sulphide. This psychotropic drug induced a very rapid (already significant after 5 minutes) and sustained (still significant after 7 hours) elevation of prolactin (PRL) concentrations in all subjects with no consistent modification of LH and FSH. After injection of 4.0 mg/kg, there was similarly no modification of mean TSH concentrations in the women tested in the luteal phase, as well as of mean GH levels in men. Sulpiride prevented the inhibitory effect on PRL levels of 500 mg levodopa, administered orally simultaneously; levodopa administered 2 hours prior to sulpiride failed to counteract the PRL-stimulatory effect of sulpiride. Under chronic sulpiride-induced hyperprolactinaemia, levodopa exhibited however a very slight inhibitory effect on PRL concentrations. These data are in agreement with the hypothesis that sulpiride acts mainly at the pituitary level by blocking dopamine receptors of the lactotropes and support the concept that the menstrual cycle perturbations observed under chronic sulpiride administration result from hyperprolactinaemia itself or from a mechanism quite similar to that by which sulpiride induces hyperprolactinaemia.SCOPUS: ar.jFLWNAinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Immunocompromised patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome : Secondary analysis of the LUNG SAFE database

The aim of this study was to describe data on epidemiology, ventilatory management, and outcome of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in immunocompromised patients. Methods: We performed a post hoc analysis on the cohort of immunocompromised patients enrolled in the Large Observational Study to Understand the Global Impact of Severe Acute Respiratory Failure (LUNG SAFE) study. The LUNG SAFE study was an international, prospective study including hypoxemic patients in 459 ICUs from 50 countries across 5 continents. Results: Of 2813 patients with ARDS, 584 (20.8%) were immunocompromised, 38.9% of whom had an unspecified cause. Pneumonia, nonpulmonary sepsis, and noncardiogenic shock were their most common risk factors for ARDS. Hospital mortality was higher in immunocompromised than in immunocompetent patients (52.4% vs 36.2%; p < 0.0001), despite similar severity of ARDS. Decisions regarding limiting life-sustaining measures were significantly more frequent in immunocompromised patients (27.1% vs 18.6%; p < 0.0001). Use of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) as first-line treatment was higher in immunocompromised patients (20.9% vs 15.9%; p = 0.0048), and immunodeficiency remained independently associated with the use of NIV after adjustment for confounders. Forty-eight percent of the patients treated with NIV were intubated, and their mortality was not different from that of the patients invasively ventilated ab initio. Conclusions: Immunosuppression is frequent in patients with ARDS, and infections are the main risk factors for ARDS in these immunocompromised patients. Their management differs from that of immunocompetent patients, particularly the greater use of NIV as first-line ventilation strategy. Compared with immunocompetent subjects, they have higher mortality regardless of ARDS severity as well as a higher frequency of limitation of life-sustaining measures. Nonetheless, nearly half of these patients survive to hospital discharge. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02010073. Registered on 12 December 2013