Micoplasma como contaminante de culturas celulares mantidas em laboratórios de instituições particulares e oficiais Mycoplasma contamination of cell cultures maintained in laboratories of private, government and college institutions

Foi realizado estudo sobre a incidência de contaminação por micoplasma em 29 tipos de linhagens celulares pertencentes a sete laboratórios de instituições particulares, oficiais e de ensino superior. Utilizando o método de cultivo direto e oito passagens seriadas em meios específicos, líquido e sólido, verificou-se que, do total de 106 amostras, 48 apresentaram-se contaminadas por micoplasma (45,28%), o que constitui elevado índice de contaminação. O fato indica que testes periódicos para a determinação da presença de micoplasma nas culturas em utilização é recomendável e que as culturas contaminadas devem ser eliminadas para evitar a disseminação do microrganismo. Outras medidas preventivas devem ser adotadas, como a eliminação da pipetagem bucal, execução de técnicas assépticas mais estritas no manuseio das células, controle dos soros de origem animal, da tripsina e de outros componentes dos meios de cultura utilizados em cultura celular. O estudo mostrou que, ao invés das oito passagens seriadas propostas inicialmente, cinco foram suficientes para a detecção dos micoplasmas, o que representa economia de tempo e de materiais de custo elevado, reduzindo de 848 para 530 o número de passagens e a duração do teste, de oito para cinco semanas.<br>Mycoplasma is one of the most serious contaminants of cell cultures. Its detection is very important in virology, as well as its eradication. The aim of this study was to verify the incidence of mycoplasma in cell lines maintained in seven laboratories of private, government and college institutions of the State of São Paulo, Brazil, for the purposes of research, production of reagents for diagnosis and production of biologicals for human and animal use. Of the 29 cell lines, eight were derived from human tissues and 21 from other animal species (dog, rabbit, mouse, hamster, monkey, pig, chicken and ox). Using the direct method with specific liquid and solid media for detection of mycoplasma, 48 out of the 106 cell samples tested were positive, corresponding to a contamination index of 45.28%. The incidence of contamination among the 35 cell samples of human origin was 51.43% (18 positive). Of the 71 samples originated from other species, 30 were positive (42.25%). The high incidence of contamination found calls for the adoption of measures for the prevention of this hazard: the elimination of mouth pipetting, the use of aseptic techniques and a rigid control of trypsin, serum and other components of cell culture media. The substitution of mycoplasma-free cultures for all contaminated ones and the performance of periodical tests for mycoplasma detection must also be carried out to prevent and avoid the dissemination of these organisms. Data obtained showed that contamination appeared in the 2nd (72.92%), in the 3rd (20.83%) and in the 4th passage (6.25%). By using this technique, five passages are sufficient to detect mycoplasma and allow a safety margin, thus shortening the length of the test, saving reagents and providing satisfactory and reliable results. If a similar study were carried out establishing five as the number of serial passages for each mycoplasma detection test, the original number of passages would be reduced from 848 to 530 and the time spent on the test would be reduced from eight weeks to five

International consensus on diverticulosis and diverticular disease. Statements from the 3rd international symposium on diverticular disease

The statements produced by the Chairmen and Speakers of the 3rd International Symposium on Diverticular Disease, held in Madrid on April 11th-13th 2019, are reported. Topics such as current and evolving concepts on the pathogenesis, the course of the disease, the news in diagnosing, hot topics in medical and surgical treatments, and finally, critical issues on the disease were reviewed by the Chairmen who proposed 39 statements graded according to level of evidence and strength of recommendation. Each topic was explored focusing on the more relevant clinical questions. The vote was conducted on a 6-point scale and consensus was defined a priori as 67% agreement of the participants. The voting group consisted of 124 physicians from 18 countries, and agreement with all statements was provided. Comments were added explaining some controversial areas

Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis

Background: Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery.Results: To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N=1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3-5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism.Conclusions: Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk

Heterogeneous contributions of change in population distribution of body mass index to change in obesity and underweight

From 1985 to 2016, the prevalence of underweight decreased, and that of obesity and severe obesity increased, in most regions, with significant variation in the magnitude of these changes across regions. We investigated how much change in mean body mass index (BMI) explains changes in the prevalence of underweight, obesity, and severe obesity in different regions using data from 2896 population-based studies with 187 million participants. Changes in the prevalence of underweight and total obesity, and to a lesser extent severe obesity, are largely driven by shifts in the distribution of BMI, with smaller contributions from changes in the shape of the distribution. In East and Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the underweight tail of the BMI distribution was left behind as the distribution shifted. There is a need for policies that address all forms of malnutrition by making healthy foods accessible and affordable, while restricting unhealthy foods through fiscal and regulatory restrictions. © Copyright