Resiliência e gênero

This research aims at verifying if there is a resilience profile that is more distinctive for male or female gender. Resilience, the ability to overcome obstacles, comprehends seven factors: emotion regulation, impulse control, optimism, environment analysis, auto-efficiency, and reaching out to people. We have assumed the hypothesis that individuals use facing strategies that are partially different, according to their gender. The research was carried out with 27 adolescents (male and female), from 14 to 17 years old, in São Bernardo do Campo – SP, who have answered the Resilience Rate Questionnaire: Reivich – Shatté/Barbosa. This questionnaire includes 56 items that evaluate the seven main resilience factors, and sociodemografic profile. The results show that both genders are similar for the optimism, and impulse control factors, but are significantly different when related to the auto-efficiency, and reaching out to people factors. We can conclude that some resilience aspects do not depend on the gender, but, in part, people choose strategies to face and overcome obstacles according to their gender characteristics. A presente pesquisa teve por objetivo verificar o perfil de resiliência mais característico entre o gênero masculino e feminino. A resiliência – capacidade de enfrentar obstáculos da vida – é composta de sete fatores, sendo eles: administração das emoções, controle dos impulsos, otimismo, análise do ambiente, autoeficácia e alcançar pessoas. Partiu-se da hipótese de que as pessoas utilizam estratégias de enfrentamento parcialmente diferentes, conforme o gênero. Participaram desta pesquisa 27 adolescentes de ambos os sexos, entre 14 e 17 anos, da cidade de São Bernardo do Campo (SP), que responderam ao questionário de índice de resiliência: Reivich – Shatté/Barbosa. Este possui 56 itens, que avaliam os sete fatores centrais que compõem a resiliência, e informações sociodemográficas. Os resultados obtidos foram que ambos os sexos se assemelham nos fatores otimismo para vida e controle dos impulsos e se diferenciam significativamente nos fatores autoeficácia e alcançar pessoas. Concluímos que alguns aspectos da resiliência são independentes do gênero, mas que, em parte, as pessoas selecionam estratégias para enfrentar e solucionar problemas, conforme suas características de gênero.

Association between light exposure and metabolic syndrome in a rural Brazilian town

Context: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a complex condition comprising a ‘clustering’ of components representing cardiometabolic risk factors for heart disease and diabetes; its prevalence rate is high and consequences serious. Evidence suggests that light exposure patterns and misalignment of circadian rhythms might contribute to MetS etiology by impacting energy metabolism and glucose regulation. Objective: We hypothesised that individuals with MetS would show disrupted circadian and sleep parameters alongside differences in light exposure profiles. We investigated this using data from a cohort study in Brazil. Methods: Data from 103 individuals from the Baependi Heart Cohort Study aged between 50 and 70 were analysed. Motor activity and light exposure were measured using wrist-worn actigraphy devices. Cardiometabolic data were used to calculate the number of MetS components present in each participant, and participants grouped as MetS/non-MetS according to standard guidelines. Between-group comparisons were made for the actigraphy measures; additionally, correlation analyses were conducted. Results: Motor activity and circadian profiles showed no differences between groups. However, the MetS group presented lower light exposure during the day and higher light exposure at night. Correlation analyses, including all participants, showed that greater daytime light exposure and greater light exposure difference between day and night were associated with reduced MetS risk (a lower number of MetS components). Also, the light exposure difference between day and night correlated with body mass index across all participants. Conclusions: The observed results suggest a direct association between light exposure and MetS which appears to not be attributable to disruptions in circadian activity rhythm nor to sleep parameters. This link between light exposure patterns and MetS risk could inform possible prevention strategies

Post-weaning Exposure to High-Fat Diet Induces Kidney Lipid Accumulation and Function Impairment in Adult Rats

Aim: We investigated the kidney morphofunctional consequences of high-fat diet intake since post-weaning in adult rats.Main Methods: Male Wistar rats were divided into two groups: ND (normal diet; n = 10) and HD (high-fat diet; n = 10). The high-fat diet was introduced post-weaned and animals were followed for 8 weeks.Key Findings: HD group did not change body weight gain even though food consumption has decreased with no changes in caloric consumption. The HD group showed glucose intolerance and insulin resistance. The glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was decreased in vivo (ND: 2.8 ± 1.01; HD: 1.1 ± 0.14 ml/min) and in the isolated perfusion method (34% of decrease). Renal histological analysis showed a retraction in glomeruli and an increase in kidney lipid deposition (ND: 1.5 ± 0.17 HD: 5.9 ± 0.06%). Furthermore, the high-fat diet consumption increased the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 (ND: 1,276 ± 203; HD: 1,982 ± 47 pg/mL/mg) and IL-1b (ND: 97 ± 12 HD: 133 ± 5 pg/mL/mg) without changing anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10.Significance: Our study provides evidence that high-fat diet consumption leads to renal lipid accumulation, increases inflammatory cytokines, induces glomeruli retraction, and renal dysfunction. These damages observed in the kidney could be associated with an increased risk to advanced CKD in adulthood suggesting that reduction of high-fat ingestion during an early period of life can prevent metabolic disturbances and renal lipotoxicity

The germline mutational landscape of BRCA1 and BRCA2 in Brazil

The detection of germline mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 is essential to the formulation of clinical management strategies, and in Brazil, there is limited access to these services, mainly due to the costs/availability of genetic testing. Aiming at the identification of recurrent mutations that could be included in a low-cost mutation panel, used as a first screening approach, we compiled the testing reports of 649 probands with pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants referred to 28 public and private health care centers distributed across 11 Brazilian States. Overall, 126 and 103 distinct mutations were identified in BRCA1 and BRCA2, respectively. Twenty-six novel variants were reported from both genes, and BRCA2 showed higher mutational heterogeneity. Some recurrent mutations were reported exclusively in certain geographic regions, suggesting a founder effect. Our findings confirm that there is significant molecular heterogeneity in these genes among Brazilian carriers, while also suggesting that this heterogeneity precludes the use of screening protocols that include recurrent mutation testing only. This is the first study to show that profiles of recurrent mutations may be unique to different Brazilian regions. These data should be explored in larger regional cohorts to determine if screening with a panel of recurrent mutations would be effective.This work was supported in part by grants from Barretos Cancer Hospital (FINEP - CT-INFRA, 02/2010), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP, 2013/24633-2 and 2103/23277-8), Fundação de Apoio à Pesquisa do Rio Grande do Norte (FAPERN), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS), Ministério da Saúde, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (Avon grant #02-2013-044) and National Institute of Health/National Cancer Institute (grant #RC4 CA153828-01) for the Clinical Cancer Genomics Community Research Network. Support in part was provided by grants from Fundo de Incentivo a Pesquisa e Eventos (FIPE) from Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES, BioComputacional 3381/2013, Rede de Pesquisa em Genômica Populacional Humana), Secretaria da Saúde do Estado da Bahia (SESAB), Laboratório de Imunologia e Biologia Molecular (UFBA), INCT pra Controle do Câncer and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq). RMR and PAP are recipients of CNPq Productivity Grants, and Bárbara Alemar received a grant from the same agencyinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

DMTs and Covid-19 severity in MS: a pooled analysis from Italy and France

We evaluated the effect of DMTs on Covid-19 severity in patients with MS, with a pooled-analysis of two large cohorts from Italy and France. The association of baseline characteristics and DMTs with Covid-19 severity was assessed by multivariate ordinal-logistic models and pooled by a fixed-effect meta-analysis. 1066 patients with MS from Italy and 721 from France were included. In the multivariate model, anti-CD20 therapies were significantly associated (OR = 2.05, 95%CI = 1.39–3.02, p < 0.001) with Covid-19 severity, whereas interferon indicated a decreased risk (OR = 0.42, 95%CI = 0.18–0.99, p = 0.047). This pooled-analysis confirms an increased risk of severe Covid-19 in patients on anti-CD20 therapies and supports the protective role of interferon

The Impact of Excessive Fructose Intake on Adipose Tissue and the Development of Childhood Obesity

Worldwide, childhood obesity cases continue to rise, and its prevalence is known to increase the risk of non-communicable diseases typically found in adults, such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Thus, comprehending its multiple causes to build healthier approaches and revert this scenario is urgent. Obesity development is strongly associated with high fructose intake since the excessive consumption of this highly lipogenic sugar leads to white fat accumulation and causes white adipose tissue (WAT) inflammation, oxidative stress, and dysregulated adipokine release. Unfortunately, the global consumption of fructose has increased dramatically in recent years, which is associated with the fact that fructose is not always evident to consumers, as it is commonly added as a sweetener in food and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB). Therefore, here, we discuss the impact of excessive fructose intake on adipose tissue biology, its contribution to childhood obesity, and current strategies for reducing high fructose and/or free sugar intake. To achieve such reductions, we conclude that it is important that the population has access to reliable information about food ingredients via food labels. Consumers also need scientific education to understand potential health risks to themselves and their children

Aerobic exercise training prevents obesity and insulin resistance independent of the renin angiotensin system modulation in the subcutaneous white adipose tissue.

We investigate the effects of aerobic exercise training (AET) on the thermogenic response, substrate metabolism and renin angiotensin system (RAS) in the subcutaneous white adipose tissue (SC-WAT) of mice fed cafeteria diet (CAF). Male C57BL/6J mice were assigned into groups CHOW-SED (chow diet, sedentary; n = 10), CHOW-TR (chow diet, trained; n = 10), CAF-SED (CAF, sedentary; n = 10) and CAF-TR (CAF, trained; n = 10). AET consisted in running sessions of 60 min at 60% of maximal speed, five days per week for eight weeks. The CAF-SED group showed higher body weight and adiposity, glucose intolerance and insulin resistance (IR), while AET prevented such damages in CAF-TR group. AET reduced the p-AKT/t-AKT ratio and increased ATGL expression in CHOW-TR and CAF-TR groups and increased t-HSL and p-HSL/t-HSL ratio in CAF-TR. AET prevented adipocyte hypertrophy in CAF-TR group and increased UCP-1 protein expression only in CHOW-TR. Serum ACE2 increased in CHOW-TR and CAF-TR groups, and Ang (1-7) increased in the CHOW-TR group. In the SC-WAT, CAF-TR group increased the expression of AT1, AT2 and Mas receptors, whereas CHOW-TR increased Ang (1-7) and Ang (1-7)/Ang II ratio in SC-WAT. No changes were observed in ACE and Ang II. Positive correlations were observed between UCP-1 and kITT (r = 0.6), between UCP-1 and Ang (1-7) concentration (r = 0.6), and between UCP-1 and Ang (1-7)/Ang II ratio (r = 0.7). In conclusion, the AET prevented obesity and IR, reduced insulin signaling proteins and increased lipolysis signaling proteins in the SC-WAT. In addition, the CAF diet precludes the AET-induced thermogenic response and the partial modulation of the RAS suggests that the protective effect of AET against obesity and IR could not be associated with SC-WAT RAS