Dermatite Atópica: Perfil Epidemiológico e Condições Alérgicas Associadas – Dados de um Serviço de Referência no Sudeste do Brasil

Introduction: Atopic dermatitis is a chronic, inflammatory and pruritic dermatosis of high prevalence, especially in childhood, constituting a relevant problem for public health. Several factors are associated with an increased risk for atopic dermatitis: genetic, psychological, infectious, food, environmental, among others, and atopic dermatitis may be associated with other manifestations of atopy, such as asthma and rhinitis. This study aimed to determine the epidemiological profile and the prevalence of personal and family history of allergy in children with atopic dermatitis attended at a reference service, comparing it to the existing literature. Methods: Hospital-based, cross-sectional and descriptive study, involving children of both genders under 18 years old with a clinical diagnosis of atopic dermatitis (Hanifin and Rajka criteria) attended at the Pediatric Dermatology Outpatient Clinic of the Hospital Municipal Universitário de Taubaté (H.MUT), SP – Brazil, from October 2018 to April 2019. Epidemiological data and data related to personal and family history of allergies were collected from medical records. Microsoft Excel 2019 was used for data analysis and compilation. Results: Of the 440 consultations carried out in the period, 35 (7.9%) were for atopic dermatitis, 23 females (65.7%), 15 phototype IV (42.9%) with mean age 7.7 years (standard deviation=4.3), with disease duration from 2 months to 14 years (mean 5.3 years – standard devia- tion=4.3). Thirty-one patients (88.6%) manifested the condition up to the fifth year of life. Personal history of allergies was present in 77.1% (27 individuals), with a predominance of allergic rhinitis and in older age groups. Positive family history in 62.9% (22 individuals). Conclusion: Pioneer study in the region; it allowed the determination of the epidemiological profile of patients with atopic dermatitis at the Pediatric Dermatology Clinic of the H.MUT, revealing an early onset and higher prevalence in females and in individuals with high phototypes. In addition, it identified the prevalence of personal and family history of allergy in these patients, data consistent with the literature.Introdução: A dermatite atópica é uma dermatose crónica, inflamatória e pruriginosa de alta prevalência, principalmente na infância, constituindo um problema relevante para a saúde pública. Diversos fatores se associam a um maior risco para dermatite atópica: genéticos, psicológicos, infecciosos, alimentares, ambientais, entre outros e a dermatite atópica pode estar associada a outras manifestações de atopia, como asma e rinite. Este estudo objetivou determinar o perfil epidemiológico e a prevalência de antecedentes pessoais e familiares de alergia em crianças com dermatite atópica atendidas num serviço de referência, comparando à literatura existente. Métodos: Estudo transversal e descritivo, de base hospitalar, envolvendo crianças de ambos os gêneros com menos de 18 anos com diagnóstico clínico de dermatite atópica (critérios de Hanifin e Rajka) atendidas no Ambulatório de Dermatologia Pediátrica do Hospital Municipal Universitá- rio de Taubaté (H.MUT), SP – Brasil, de outubro de 2018 a abril de 2019. Foram colhidos dados epidemiológicos e relacionados com o histórico pessoal e familiar de alergias obtidos por levantamento de prontuários. Microsoft Excel 2019 utilizado para análise e compilação dos dados. Resultados: Dos 440 atendimentos realizados no período, 35 (7,9%) foram de dermatite atópica, 23 no sexo feminino (65,7%), 15 de fototipo IV (42,9%) com idade média 7,7 anos (desvio padrão=4,3), com duração de doença de 2 meses a 14 anos (média 5,3 anos – desvio padrão=4,3). Trinta e um pacientes (88,6%) manifestaram o quadro até o quinto ano de vida. Histórico pessoal de alergias estava presente em 77,1% (27 in- divíduos), com predomínio da rinite alérgica e em faixas etárias mais elevadas. Histórico familiar positivo em 62,9% (22 indivíduos). Conclusão: Estudo pioneiro na região, permitiu determinar o perfil epidemiológico dos pacientes portadores de dermatite atópica do Ambulatório de Dermatologia Pediátrica do H.MUT, revelando início precoce e maior prevalência no sexo feminino e em fototipo alto. Além disso, identificou a prevalência de antecedentes pessoais e de histórico familiar de alergia nesses pacientes, dados concordes com a literatura

Late recognition and illness severity are determinants of early death in severe septic patients

OBJECTIVE: To identify the independent variables associated with death within 4 days after the first sepsis-induced organ dysfunction. METHODS: In this prospective observational study, severe sepsis and septic shock patients were classified into 3 groups: Group 1, survivors; Group 2, late non-survivors; and Group 3, early non-survivors. Early death was defined as death occurring within 4 days after the first sepsis-induced organ dysfunction. Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were collected and submitted to univariate and multinomial analyses. RESULTS: The study included 414 patients: 218 (52.7%) in Group 1, 165 (39.8%) in Group 2, and 31 (7.5%) in Group 3. A multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that age, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment score after the first 24 hours, nosocomial infection, hepatic dysfunction, and the time elapsed between the onset of organ dysfunction and the sepsis diagnosis were associated with early mortality. In contrast, Black race and a source of infection other than the urinary tract were associated with late death. Among the non-survivors, early death was associated with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, chronic renal failure, hepatic dysfunction Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment score after 24 hours, and the duration of organ dysfunction. CONCLUSION: Factors related to patients' intrinsic characteristics and disease severity as well as the promptness of sepsis recognition are associated with early death among severe septic patients

Pre-Columbian soil fertilization and current management maintain food resource availability in old-growth Amazonian forests

Aims: The extent and persistence of pre-Columbian human legacies in old-growth Amazonian forests are still controversial, partly because modern societies re-occupied old settlements, challenging the distinction between pre- and post-Columbian legacies. Here, we compared the effects of pre-Columbian vs. recent landscape domestication processes on soils and vegetation in two Amazonian regions. Methods: We studied forest landscapes at varying distances from pre-Columbian and current settlements inside protected areas occupied by traditional and indigenous peoples in the lower Tapajós and the upper-middle Madeira river basins. By conducting 69 free-listing interviews, participatory mappings, guided-tours, 27 forest inventories, and soil analysis, we assessed the influences of pre-Columbian and current activities in soils and plant resources surrounding the settlements. Results: In both regions, we found that pre-Columbian villages were more densely distributed across the landscape than current villages. Soil nutrients (mainly Ca and P) were higher closer to pre-Columbian villages but were generally not related to current villages, suggesting past soil fertilization. Soil charcoal was frequent in all forests, suggesting frequent fire events. The density of domesticated plants used for food increased in phosphorus enriched soils. In contrast, the density of plants used for construction decreased near current villages. Conclusions: We detected a significant effect of past soil fertilization on food resources over extensive areas, supporting the hypothesis that pre-Columbian landscape domestication left persistent marks on Amazonian landscapes. Our results suggest that a combination of pre-Columbian phosphorus fertilization with past and current management drives plant resource availability in old-growth forests.</p

PlantRNA_sniffer : a SVM-based workflow to predict long intergenic non-coding RNAs in plants

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) constitute an important set of transcripts produced in the cells of organisms. Among them, there is a large amount of a particular class of long ncRNAs that are difficult to predict, the so-called long intergenic ncRNAs (lincRNAs), which might play essential roles in gene regulation and other cellular processes. Despite the importance of these lincRNAs, there is still a lack of biological knowledge and, currently, the few computational methods considered are so specific that they cannot be successfully applied to other species different from those that they have been originally designed to. Prediction of lncRNAs have been performed with machine learning techniques. Particularly, for lincRNA prediction, supervised learning methods have been explored in recent literature. As far as we know, there are no methods nor workflows specially designed to predict lincRNAs in plants. In this context, this work proposes a workflow to predict lincRNAs on plants, considering a workflow that includes known bioinformatics tools together with machine learning techniques, here a support vector machine (SVM). We discuss two case studies that allowed to identify novel lincRNAs, in sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) and in maize (Zea mays). From the results, we also could identify differentially-expressed lincRNAs in sugarcane and maize plants submitted to pathogenic and beneficial microorganisms

The Ninth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data from the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey III (SDSS-III) presents the first spectroscopic data from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). This ninth data release (DR9) of the SDSS project includes 535,995 new galaxy spectra (median z=0.52), 102,100 new quasar spectra (median z=2.32), and 90,897 new stellar spectra, along with the data presented in previous data releases. These spectra were obtained with the new BOSS spectrograph and were taken between 2009 December and 2011 July. In addition, the stellar parameters pipeline, which determines radial velocities, surface temperatures, surface gravities, and metallicities of stars, has been updated and refined with improvements in temperature estimates for stars with T_eff<5000 K and in metallicity estimates for stars with [Fe/H]>-0.5. DR9 includes new stellar parameters for all stars presented in DR8, including stars from SDSS-I and II, as well as those observed as part of the SDSS-III Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration-2 (SEGUE-2). The astrometry error introduced in the DR8 imaging catalogs has been corrected in the DR9 data products. The next data release for SDSS-III will be in Summer 2013, which will present the first data from the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) along with another year of data from BOSS, followed by the final SDSS-III data release in December 2014.Comment: 9 figures; 2 tables. Submitted to ApJS. DR9 is available at http://www.sdss3.org/dr

Genotype and phenotype landscape of MEN2 in 554 medullary thyroid cancer patients: the BrasMEN study

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN2) is an autosomal dominant genetic disease caused by RET gene germline mutations that is characterized by medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) associated with other endocrine tumors. Several reports have demonstrated that the RET mutation profile may vary according to the geographical area. In this study, we collected clinical and molecular data from 554 patients with surgically confirmed MTC from 176 families with MEN2 in 18 different Brazili an centers to compare the type and prevalence of RET mutations with those from other countries. The most frequent mutations, classified by the number of families affected, occur in codon 634, exon 11 (76 families), followed by codon 918, exon 16 (34 families: 26 with M918T and 8 with M918V) and codon 804, exon 14 (22 families: 15 with V804M and 7 with V804L). When compared with other major published series from Europe, there are several similarities and some differences. While the mutations in codons C618, C620, C630, E768 and S891 present a similar prevalence, some mutations have a lower prevalence in Brazil, and others are found mainly in Brazil (G533C and M918V). These results reflect the singular proportion of European, Amerindian and African ancestries in the Brazilian mosaic genome83289298CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESPFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DO RIO GRANDE DO SUL - FAPERGSSem informaçãoSem informação2006/60402-1; 2010/51547-1; 2013/01476-9; 2014/06570-6; 2009/50575-4; 2010/51546-5; 2012/21942-116/2551-0000482-

Sequence-independent characterization of viruses based on the pattern of viral small RNAs produced by the host. [Corrigendum]

published erratum2016 Apr 202016 01 21importedErratum for : Sequence-independent characterization of viruses based on the pattern of viral small RNAs produced by the host. [Nucleic Acids Res. 2015

Genomics and epidemiology of the P.1 SARS-CoV-2 lineage in Manaus, Brazil

Cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in Manaus, Brazil, resurged in late 2020 despite previously high levels of infection. Genome sequencing of viruses sampled in Manaus between November 2020 and January 2021 revealed the emergence and circulation of a novel SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern. Lineage P.1 acquired 17 mutations, including a trio in the spike protein (K417T, E484K, and N501Y) associated with increased binding to the human ACE2 (angiotensin-converting enzyme 2) receptor. Molecular clock analysis shows that P.1 emergence occurred around mid-November 2020 and was preceded by a period of faster molecular evolution. Using a two-category dynamical model that integrates genomic and mortality data, we estimate that P.1 may be 1.7- to 2.4-fold more transmissible and that previous (non-P.1) infection provides 54 to 79% of the protection against infection with P.1 that it provides against non-P.1 lineages. Enhanced global genomic surveillance of variants of concern, which may exhibit increased transmissibility and/or immune evasion, is critical to accelerate pandemic responsiveness

Factors influencing terrestriality in primates of the Americas and Madagascar

Among mammals, the order Primates is exceptional in having a high taxonomic richness in which the taxa are arboreal, semiterrestrial, or terrestrial. Although habitual terrestriality is pervasive among the apes and African and Asian monkeys (catarrhines), it is largely absent among monkeys of the Americas (platyrrhines), as well as galagos, lemurs, and lorises (strepsirrhines), which are mostly arboreal. Numerous ecological drivers and species-specific factors are suggested to set the conditions for an evolutionary shift from arboreality to terrestriality, and current environmental conditions may provide analogous scenarios to those transitional periods. Therefore, we investigated predominantly arboreal, diurnal primate genera from the Americas and Madagascar that lack fully terrestrial taxa, to determine whether ecological drivers (habitat canopy cover, predation risk, maximum temperature, precipitation, primate species richness, human population density, and distance to roads) or species-specific traits (bodymass, group size, and degree of frugivory) associate with increased terrestriality. We collated 150,961 observation hours across 2,227 months from 47 species at 20 sites in Madagascar and 48 sites in the Americas. Multiple factors were associated with ground use in these otherwise arboreal species, including increased temperature, a decrease in canopy cover, a dietary shift away from frugivory, and larger group size. These factors mostly explain intraspecific differences in terrestriality. As humanity modifies habitats and causes climate change, our results suggest that species already inhabiting hot, sparsely canopied sites, and exhibiting more generalized diets, are more likely to shift toward greater ground use