Potential contribution of selected metallic restorative dentistry materials to X-ray fluorescence

Recent advances have led to the use of new materials in dental restoration which is an area of rapid growth. Applications include improving oral aesthetics and essential rehabilitation, whilst procedures range from the recovery of partial elements (inlays) to fitting dental implants. Ceramics, polymers and metallic materials have all been successfully employed in dental applications and benefit from new cost efficient manufacturing techniques. The application of radiographic techniques in dentistry and other medicine is also increasing, and the combination of new materials and radiation can lead to an elevated health risk. X-rays can interact with metallic materials producing X-ray fluorescence, which can increase the radiation dose in proximity to restorative material and increase the risk of live biological tissue becoming cancerous. The issue demands consideration so that the biological risks associated with such procedures are kept as low as possible. Comparisons of doses calculated for several materials have provided evidence that the Ti cp and NiCrTi alloys present less contribution to the increase of dose in surrounding soft tissue and the potential deleterious biological effects. On the other hand, Amalgam appears to be the most deleterious alloy

Carbidopa Alters Tryptophan Metabolism in Breast Cancer and Melanoma Cells Leading to the Formation of Indole-3-Acetonitrile, a Pro-Proliferative Metabolite

Carbidopa is used for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) as an inhibitor of DOPA decarboxylase, and PD patients taking carbidopa have a lower incidence of various tumors, except for breast cancer and melanoma. Recently, it was shown that carbidopa inhibits tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase (TDO) and kynureninase enzymes. In the present study, the effect of carbidopa on the viability and metabolic profile of breast cancer MCF-7 and melanoma A375 cells was investigated. Carbidopa was not effective in inhibiting MCF-7 and A375 proliferation. Liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry revealed a new compound, identified as indole-3-acetonitrile (IAN), which promoted a concentration-dependent increase in the viability of both cell lines. The results suggest that treatment with carbidopa may alter tryptophan (Trp) metabolism in breast cancer and melanoma leading to the formation of a pro-proliferative Trp metabolite, which may contribute to its failure in reducing breast cancers and melanoma incidence in PD patients taking carbidopa.This work was financed by FEDER—Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional funds through the COMPETE 2020—Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation (POCI), Portugal 2020, and by Portuguese funds through FCT, in the framework of the project “Institute for Research and Innovation in Health Sciences” (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007274).” NV thanks FCT for IF position, Fundação Manuel António da Mota (FMAM, Portugal) for support. The contents of this report are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the FCT and FMAMinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Tissue optical clearing as a diagnostic tool for tissue pathology differentiation

With the objective of developing a diagnostic tool

Edema Induced by sPLA2 from <em>Crotalus durissus terrificus</em> Involves PLC and PKC Signaling, Activation of cPLA2, and Oxidative Stress

sPLA2 from Crotalus durissus terrificus venom, free of crotapotin (Cdt sPLA2), purified and isolated sPLA2, was able to significantly increase lipid peroxidation, which occurred simultaneously with increased arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism. In addition, MDA and AA levels were elevated at 15 min after Cdt sPLA2 injection and after peak edema (negative control). Thus, oxidative stress and ROS play important roles in the inflammation induced by Cdt sPLA2. On the other hand, edema induced by sPLA2 involves the direct and indirect mobilization of arachidonic acid by the involvement of phosphokinase C (PKC) and phospholipase C (PLC), which indirectly stimulates cytosolic PLA2 (cPLA2). We also observed that the specific antivenin against Cdt venom had no significant effect on the neutralization of induced edema compared to the natural products 5-caffeine-linoleic acid (5CQA) and dexamethasone (AACOCF3). Our results also indicate that there was improvement in the inhibition of edema of natural polyphenolic compounds compared to antivenin or inhibition of the enzymatic activity of sPLA2 due to the fact that 5CQA is a potent antioxidant compound. Thus, our results show a clear correlation between increased arachidonic acid metabolism and oxidative stress

Transcriptomic landscape of skin lesions in cutaneous leishmaniasis reveals a strong CD8(+) T cell immunosenescence signature linked to immunopathology

The severity of lesions that develop in patients infected by Leishmania braziliensis is mainly associated with a highly cytotoxic and inflammatory cutaneous environment. Recently, we demonstrated that senescent T and NK cells play a role in the establishment and maintenance of this tissue inflammation. Here, we extended those findings using transcriptomic analyses that demonstrate a strong co-induction of senescence and pro-inflammatory gene signatures in cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) lesions. The senescence-associated signature was characterized by marked expression of key genes such as ATM, Sestrin 2, p16, p21 and p38. The cell type identification from deconvolution of bulk sequencing data showed that the senescence signature was linked with CD8+ effector memory and TEMRA subsets and also senescent NK cells. A key observation was that the senescence markers in the skin lesions are age-independent of patients and were correlated with lesion size. Moreover, a striking expression of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), pro-inflammatory cytokine and chemokines genes was found within lesions that were most strongly associated with the senescent CD8 TEMRA subset. Collectively, our results confirm that there is a senescence transcriptomic signature in CL lesions and supports the hypothesis that lesional senescent cells have a major role in mediating immunopathology of the disease

Short communication: Genetic analysis of lactation curves in buffaloes, using Wood’s model

Aim of study: To estimate the heritability and genetic correlations for lactation curve traits in buffaloes.Area of study: The buffalo cows were raised on properties located in the states of São Paulo, Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.Material and methods: The individual parameters of Wood’s model ( , , and ) were obtained using a non-linear mixed model. Peak yield (PY), peak time (PT) and lactation persistency (LP) were also calculated. These individual parameters were employed in multi-trait analysis with the milk yield (MY) using Bayesian inference.Main results: The heritability estimates were of low to moderate magnitudes, with values ranging from 0.156 ( ) to 0.299 (PY). The estimates for genetic correlation between the Wood’s parameters and MY were of low to high magnitude and ranged from -0.533 (  and MY) to 0.983 (PY and MY).Research highlights: The heritability estimates obtained indicate that the traits studied can be used in animal breeding programs

Growth hormone 1 gene (GH1) polymorphisms as possible markers of the production potential of beef cattle using the Brazilian Canchim breed as a model

The growth hormone 1 gene (GH1) is a candidate gene for body weight and weight gain in cattle since it plays a fundamental role in growth regulation. We investigated the GH1 gene AluI and DdeI restriction enzyme polymorphisms, located 149 bp apart in the cattle genome, as possible markers of the production potential of Canchim crossbreed cattle, a 5/8 Charolais (Bos taurus) and 3/8 Nelore (Bos indicus) breed developed in Brazil, by evaluating the birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight and plasma insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) concentration of 7 month to 10 months old Canchim calves (n = 204) of known genealogy and which had been genotyped for the AluI and DdeI markers. Our results showed significant effect (p < 0.05) between the homozygous DdeI+/DdeI+ polymorphism and the estimated breeding value for weaning weight (ESB-WW), while the AluI leucine homozygous (L/L) and leucine/valine (L/V) heterozygous polymorphisms showed no significant effect on the traits studied. The restriction sites of the two enzymes led to the formation of haplotypes which also exerted a significant effect (p < 0.05) on the ESB-WW, with the largest difference being 8.5 kg in favor of the homozygous L plus DdeI+/L plus DdeI+ genotype over the heterozygous L plus DdeI-/V plus DdeI+ genotype

ROTAS TECNOLÓGICAS EMPREGADAS NO APROVEITAMENTO DE RESÍDUOS DA INDÚSTRIA DA SOJA

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo realizar uma revisão bibliográfica acerca do potencial de aproveitamento de resíduos proveniente da agroindústria da soja por meio de diversosprocessos tecnológicos. O estudo apresenta as características fitofisionômicas, agrícolas e químicas da soja bem como uma análise minuciosa de suas atividades de produção, industrialização e consumo, de acordo com regiões e unidades federativas brasileiras. São apresentadas durante a revisão as operações unitárias do processo produtivo da agroindústria da soja. Esse trabalho também apresenta o potencial de aproveitamento da casca da soja por meio de rotas tecnológicas, buscando assim a redução da disposição dos resíduos sólidos industriais e agregando valor a essa importante cadeia produtiva

The Fate of Carbon in Sediments of the Xingu and Tapajós Clearwater Rivers, Eastern Amazon

The Xingu and Tapajós rivers in the eastern Amazon are the largest clearwater systems of the Amazon basin. Both rivers have “fluvial rias” (i.e., lake-like channels) in their downstream reaches as they are naturally impounded by the Amazon mainstem. Fluvial rias are widespread in the Amazon landscape and most of the sedimentary load from the major clearwater and blackwater rivers is deposited in these channels. So far, little is known about the role of Amazon rias as a trap and reactor for organic sediments. In this study, we used organic and inorganic geochemistry, magnetic susceptibility, diatom, and pollen analyses in sediments (suspended, riverbed, and downcore) of the Xingu and Tapajós rias to investigate the effects of hydrologic variations on the carbon budget in these clearwater rivers over the Holocene. Ages of sediment deposition (~100 to 5,500 years) were constrained by optically stimulated luminescence and radiocarbon. Major elements geochemistry and concentration of total organic carbon (TOC) indicate that seasonal hydrologic variations exert a strong influence on riverine productivity and on the input and preservation of organic matter in sediments. Stable carbon isotope data (δ13C from −31.04 to −27.49‰) and pollen analysis indicate that most of the carbon buried in rias is derived from forests. In the Xingu River, diatom analysis in bottom sediments revealed 65 infrageneric taxa that are mostly well-adapted to slack oligotrophic and acidic waters. TOC values in sediment cores are similar to values measured in riverbed sediments and indicate suitable conditions for organic matter preservation in sediments of the Xingu and Tapajós rias at least since the mid-Holocene, with carbon burial rates varying from about 84 g m−2 yr−1 to 169 g m−2 yr−1. However, redox-sensitive elements in sediment core indicate alternation between anoxic/dysoxic and oxic conditions in the water-sediment interface that may be linked to abrupt changes in precipitation. The variation between anoxic/dysoxic and oxic conditions in the water-sediment interface controls organic matter mineralization and methanogenesis. Thus, such changes promoted by hydrological variations significantly affect the capacity of Amazon rias to act either as sources or sinks of carbon