Patterns of genetic diversity in three plant lineages endemic to the Cape Verde Islands

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Métodos diagnósticos da leishmaniose tegumentar americana: uma revisão de literatura

A leishmaniose tegumentar americana (LTA) é uma doença infecciosa causada pelo protozoário do gênero Leishmania. De acordo com a OMS é uma das doenças de maior importância mundial, e se encontra em expansão pelo país, devido ao avanço urbano nas áreas endêmicas do seu vetor. A sua variedade de espécies e manifestações atípicas comuns transformam o diagnóstico da leishmaniose tegumentar uma tarefa difícil para os médicos. Uma anamnese completa, conhecimentos sobre a epidemiologia e métodos de diagnóstico são essenciais para a confirmação da doença no período inicial. Ao partir do princípio de que não existe exame padrão ouro para a LTA, este trabalho reúne informações sobre diferentes métodos diagnósticos e empregabilidade desses testes, de forma a direcionar o pensamento clínico e facilitar a confirmação da doença.   Palavras-chave: Leishmaniose tegumentar americana; Diagnóstico da leishmaniose tegumentar; Ferramentas diagnósticas LTA. ABSTRACT American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) is an infectious disease caused by the protozoan of the genus Leishmania. According to WHO, it is one of the most important diseases worldwide, and is expanding in the country, due to the urban advance in the endemics areas of the vector. The variety of species and common atypical manifestations make the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis a difficult task for physicians. A thorough history, knowledge of the epidemiology and methods of diagnosis are essential for the confirmation of the disease in the initial period. Assuming that there is no gold standard trial for ATL, this work gathers information on different diagnostic methods and employability of these tests, in order to direct clinical thinking and facilitate the confirmation of the disease. Keywords: American tegumentary leishmaniasis; Diagnosis of tegumentary leishmaniasis; ATL diagnostic tools

Delivery of LLKKK18 loaded into self-assembling hyaluronic acid nanogel for tuberculosis treatment

uberculosis (TB), a disease caused by the human pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis, recently joined HIV/AIDS on the top rank of deadliest infectious diseases. Low patient compliance due to the expensive, long-lasting and multi-drug standard therapies often results in treatment failure and emergence of multi-drug resistant strains. In this scope, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) arise as promising candidates for TB treatment. Here we describe the ability of the exogenous AMP LLKKK18 to efficiently kill mycobacteria. The peptide's potential was boosted by loading into self-assembling Hyaluronic Acid (HA) nanogels. These provide increased stability, reduced cytotoxicity and degradability, while potentiating peptide targeting to main sites of infection. The nanogels were effectively internalized by macrophages and the peptide presence and co-localization with mycobacteria within host cells was confirmed. This resulted in a significant reduction of the mycobacterial load in macrophages infected in vitro with the opportunistic M. avium or the pathogenic M. tuberculosis, an effect accompanied by lowered pro-inflammatory cytokine levels (IL-6 and TNF-). Remarkably, intra-tracheal administration of peptide-loaded nanogels significantly reduced infection levels in mice infected with M. avium or M. tuberculosis, after just 5 or 10 every other day administrations. Considering the reported low probability of resistance acquisition, these findings suggest a great potential of LLKKK18-loaded nanogels for TB therapeutics.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/ BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 006684). The authors also acknowledge the Project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462). The authors thank Dr. Hugo Osório (Proteomics Lab at I3S – Institute for Health Research and Innovation, Porto, Portugal) for the MALDI-ToF analysis. JPS acknowledges FCT for the financial support provided by grant SFRH/BPD/64958/2010

Spontaneous healing of Mycobacterium ulcerans lesions in the guinea pig model

Buruli Ulcer (BU) is a necrotizing skin disease caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans infection. BU is characterized by a wide range of clinical forms, including non-ulcerative cutaneous lesions that can evolve into severe ulcers if left untreated. Nevertheless, spontaneous healing has been reported to occur, although knowledge on this process is scarce both in naturally infected humans and experimental models of infection. Animal models are useful since they mimic different spectrums of human BU disease and have the potential to elucidate the pathogenic/protective pathway(s) involved in disease/healing. In this time-lapsed study, we characterized the guinea pig, an animal model of resistance to M. ulcerans, focusing on the macroscopic, microbiological and histological evolution throughout the entire experimental infectious process. Subcutaneous infection of guinea pigs with a virulent strain of M. ulcerans led to early localized swelling, which evolved into small well defined ulcers. These macroscopic observations correlated with the presence of necrosis, acute inflammatory infiltrate and an abundant bacterial load. By the end of the infectious process when ulcerative lesions healed, M. ulcerans viability decreased and the subcutaneous tissue organization returned to its normal state after a process of continuous healing characterized by tissue granulation and reepethelialization. In conclusion, we show that the experimental M. ulcerans infection of the guinea pig mimics the process of spontaneous healing described in BU patients, displaying the potential to uncover correlates of protection against BU, which can ultimately contribute to the development of new prophylactic and therapeutic strategies.The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Community's Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement No 241500 (BuruliVac). This work was additionally financed from the Health Services of the Fundacao Calouste Gulbenkian under the grant Proc.No94776 LJ; from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (FCT), cofunded by Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2-O Novo Norte); from the Quadro de Referencia Estrategico Nacional (QREN) through the Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER) and from the Projeto Estrategico - LA 26 - 2013-2014 (PEst-C/SAU/LA0026/2013). A.G. Fraga and G. Trigo received an individual FCT fellowship (SFRH/BPD/68547/2010 and SFRH/BPD/64032/2009), C.M. Goncalves received an individual QREN fellowship (UMINHO/BPD/40/2013), and E. Marcq received funding from the Life Long Learning Erasmus program. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

POLUIÇÃO DO AMBIENTE ESPACIAL: O PROBLEMA DO LIXO NO ESPAÇO

Uns dos impactos da exploração espacial é o fato que em órbita da Terra estão localizados objetos não funcionais de diversos tamanhos. Esses objetos são conhecidos como lixo espacial ou detritos espaciais. O lixo espacial são todos objetos artificiais, incluindo fragmentos e seus elementos, na órbita terrestre ou reentrando na atmosfera, que não são funcionais. O lixo espacial causa uma poluição do ambiente espacial e traz riscos para a exploração do espaço, além disso, pode causar grandes prejuízos a vidas humanas. Esses detritos podem causar danos em satélites ativos na órbita terrestre, e quando retornam para o planeta, os que sobrevivem a reentrada, podem causar prejuízos por consequência da queda de fragmentos em regiões habitacionais ou industriais. Assim, diante dessa problemática fomos motivados a analisar como a comunidade científica está trabalhando na busca de soluções para amenizar essa situação. O objetivo básico deste trabalho é discorrer sobre a temática do lixo espacial, contextualizando os impactos que esses objetos causam na sociedade e os perigos que a exploração espacial está sujeita por causa dos detritos espaciais, além de apresentar algumas tecnologias que estão sendo propostas para contribuir com a solução desse problema. É apresentada uma comparação da evolução dos detritos durante os anos de 2016, 2017, 2018 e 2019 com base nos relatórios da Agência Espacial Europeia (ESA).One of the impacts of space exploration is the fact that in orbit of the Earth are located non-functional objects of different sizes. These objects are known as space junk or space debris. Space junk is all artificial objects, including fragments and their elements, in orbit of the Earth or re-entering the atmosphere, which are not functional. The space junk causes pollution of the space environment and brings risks to space exploration, in addition, can cause major damage to human lives. This debris can cause damage to active satellites in Earth orbit, and when they return to the planet, those who survive re-entry, can cause damage as a result of the fall of fragments in residential or industrial areas. Thus, in view of this problem, we were motivated to analyze how the scientific community is working in the search for solutions to alleviate this situation. The basic objective of this work is to discuss the theme of the space junk, contextualizing the impacts that these objects cause in society and the dangers that space exploration is subject because of the space debris, in addition to presenting some technologies that are being proposed to contribute with the solution to this problem. A comparison of the evolution of the debris during the years 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 is presented based on the reports of the European Space Agency (ESA). &nbsp

Tolerância de cultivares de soja ao estresse por alagamento em estádios de crescimento vegetativo

The objective of this work was to evaluate the tolerance of soybean (Glycine max) cultivars to flooding stress at different growth stages. The experiment was arranged in a 2x2x5 factorial arrangement, with two sowing dates (October and November), two soybean cultivars (TECIRGA 6070RR and NA 5909 RG), and five growth stages (SE–EM, EM–VC, VC–V2, V2–V4, and V6–V8) in the 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 crop years. The experimental design was completely randomized with four replicates. For both evaluated soybean cultivars, the growth stage most sensitive to soil flooding was SE–EM. After seedling emergence, the highest reductions in leaf area and shoot dry matter were observed in the V2–V4 stage, regardless of cultivar, sowing date, and crop year. From the V4 stage onwards, soybean shows a higher tolerance to flooding conditions. However, after seedling emergence, the TECIRGA 6070RR cultivar has a higher tolerance to flooding stress than NA 5909 RG. Sowing in October tends to reduce the impact of flooding stress on the plants.O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a tolerância de cultivares de soja (Glycine max) ao estresse por alagamento, em diferentes estádios de crescimento. O experimento foi realizado em arranjo fatorial 2x2x5, com duas épocas de semeadura (outubro e novembro), duas cultivares de soja (TECIRGA 6070RR e NA 5909 RG) e cinco fases de desenvolvimento (SE–EM, EM–VC, VC–V2, V2–V4 e V6–V8), nos anos agrícolas 2018/2019 e 2019/2020. O delineamento experimental foi inteiramente casualizado com quatro repetições. Para ambas as cultivares avaliadas, o estádio de crescimento mais sensível ao alagamento do solo foi o SE–EM. Após a emergência das plântulas, as maiores reduções de área foliar e matéria seca de brotos foram observadas no estádio V2–V4, independentemente de cultivar, época de semeadura e ano agrícola. A partir do estádio V4, a soja apresenta maior tolerância às condições de alagamento. No entanto, após a emergência das plântulas, a cultivar TECIRGA 6070RR apresenta maior tolerância ao estresse por inundação do que a NA 5909 RG. A semeadura em outubro tende a reduzir o impacto do estresse por inundação nas plantas

CD6, a Rheostat-Type Signalosome That Tunes T Cell Activation

Following T cell receptor triggering, T cell activation is initiated and amplified by the assembly at the TCR/CD3 macrocomplex of a multitude of stimulatory enzymes that activate several signaling cascades. The potency of signaling is, however, modulated by various inhibitory components already at the onset of activation, long before co-inhibitory immune checkpoints are expressed to help terminating the response. CD5 and CD6 are surface glycoproteins of T cells that have determinant roles in thymocyte development, T cell activation and immune responses. They belong to the superfamily of scavenger receptor cysteine-rich (SRCR) glycoproteins but whereas the inhibitory role of CD5 has been established for long, there is still controversy on whether CD6 may have similar or antagonistic functions on T cell signaling. Analysis of the structure and molecular associations of CD5 and CD6 indicates that these molecules assemble at the cytoplasmic tail a considerable number of signaling effectors that can putatively transduce diverse types of intracellular signals. Biochemical studies have concluded that both receptors can antagonize the flow of TCR-mediated signaling; however, the impact that CD5 and CD6 have on T cell development and T cell-mediated immune responses may be different. Here we analyze the signaling function of CD6, the common and also the different properties it exhibits comparing with CD5, and interpret the functional effects displayed by CD6 in recent animal models

A influência da dor no diagnóstico de delirium em população pediátrica: The influence of pain on delirium diagnosis in a pediatric population

O objetivo do artigo é o elucidar a relação da dor no diagnóstico de delirium em crianças. Para isso, foi realizada uma revisão bibliográfica nas plataformas Scielo, Pubmed, Google Acadêmico e LILACS, com os descritores Delirium AND Pediatria AND Dor; Delirium AND Pediatrics AND Pain. 17 obras foram selecionadas, as quais contemplavam os critérios de inclusão: artigos completos publicados em português, inglês ou espanhol, datados entre 2014 e 2020, que abordavam sobre a influência da dor no diagnóstico de delirium na população pediátrica. Foram excluídas as obras que não estavam nos idiomas português, inglês ou espanhol e as que tratavam de emergence delirium ou delirium relacionado ao pós-operatório, além das que não se mostravam pertinentes ao tema proposto. Os estudos apontaram que a dor pode ser tanto um fator de risco para do delirium, quanto um fator que prejudica o diagnóstico do mesmo, por mascarar seus sinais e sintomas. Para o diagnóstico correto do quadro, pode-se utilizar os critérios do DSM-V ou a ferramenta Cornell Assestment of Pediatriac Delirium (CAPD). Por fim, observou-se que poucos estudos sobre delirium em população pediátrica foram realizados no Brasil, evidenciando a importância de mais pesquisas sobre o tema