88 research outputs found
Ultrasound Detects Subclinical Joint Inflammation in the Hands and Wrists of Patients With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Without Musculoskeletal Symptoms
OBJECTIVES:
To assess the prevalence and severity of ultrasonographic abnormalities of the hand and wrist of asymptomatic patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and compare these findings with those from patients with SLE with musculoskeletal signs or symptoms and healthy controls.
METHODS:
We conducted a prospective cross-sectional study that evaluated bilaterally, with grey-scale and power Doppler (PD) ultrasound (US), the dorsal hand (2nd to 5th metacarpophalangeal and 2nd to 5th proximal interphalangeal joints) and wrist (radiocarpal, ulnocarpal and intercarpal joints) of 30 asymptomatic patients with SLE, 6 symptomatic patients with SLE and 10 controls. Synovial hypertrophy (SH) and intra-articular PD signal were scored using semiquantitative grading scales (0-3). Individual scores were graded as normal (SHâ€1 and PD=0) or abnormal (SHâ„2 or PDâ„1). Global indexes for SH and PD were also calculated. US findings were correlated with clinical and laboratory data and disease activity indexes.
RESULTS:
US detected SH (score â„1) in 77% asymptomatic patients with SLE, mostly graded as minimal (score 1: 63%). 23% of the asymptomatic patients with SLE showed abnormal US PD findings (SHâ„2 or PDâ„1). SH was present in all symptomatic patients with SLE, mostly graded as moderate (grade 2: 67%), and with associated PD signal (83%). SH (score 1) was identified in 50% of controls, however, none presented abnormal US PD findings. SH index in the asymptomatic SLE group was higher than in the control group (2.0 (0-5) vs 0.5 (0-2), median (range), p=0.01) and lower than in the symptomatic SLE group (7.0 (4-23), median (range), p<0.001). No significant correlation was demonstrated between US PD findings and clinical or laboratory variables and disease activity indexes.
CONCLUSION:
A small subgroup of asymptomatic patients with SLE may present subclinical joint inflammation. Global US scores and PD signal may be important in disease evaluation and therapeutic monitoring.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Pressure effects on the structural and superconducting transitions in LaâCoâSnââ
La3Co4Sn13 is a superconducting material with transition temperature at Tc = 2.70 K, which
presents a superlattice structural transition at T
â â 150 K, a common feature for this class of
compounds. However, for this material, it is not clear that at T
â
the lattice distortions arise from
a charge density wave (CDW) or from a distinct microscopic origin. Interestingly, it has been
suggested in isostructural non-magnetic intermetallic compounds that T
â
can be suppressed to zero
temperature, by combining chemical and external pressure, and a quantum critical point is argued
to be observed near these critical doping/pressure. Our study shows that application of pressure
on single-crystalline La3Co4Sn13 enhances Tc and decreases T
â
. We observe thermal hysteresis
loops for cooling/heating cycles around T
â
for P & 0.6 GPa, in electrical resistivity measurements,
which are not seen in x-ray diffraction data. The hysteresis in electrical measurements may be due
to the pinning of the CDW phase to impurities/defects, while the superlattice structural transition
maintains its ambient pressure second-order transition nature under pressure. From our experiments
we estimate that T
â
vanishes at around 5.5 GPa, though no quantum critical behavior is observed
up to 2.53 GPa
Augmented plasma microparticles during acute Plasmodium vivax infection
Background: In the last few years, the study of microparticles (MPs) - submicron vesicles released from cells upon activation or apoptosis - has gained growing interest in the field of inflammation and in infectious diseases. Their role in the human malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax remains unexplored. Because acute vivax malaria has been related to pro-inflammatory responses, the main hypothesis investigated in this study was that Plasmodium vivax
infection is associated with elevated levels of circulating MPs, which may play a role during acute disease in nonimmune patients.
Methods: Plasma MPs were analysed among thirty-seven uncomplicated P. vivax infections from an area of unstable malaria transmission in the Brazilian Amazon. The MP phenotype was analysed by flow cytometry using the classical MP marker, annexin, and fluorochrome-labeled monoclonal antibodies against specific cell surface markers. The frequencies of plasma MPs in P. vivax patients (n = 37) were further compared to malaria-unexposed
controls (n = 15) and ovarian carcinoma patients (n = 12), a known MPs-inducing disease non-related to malaria.
Results: The frequencies of plasma circulating MPs were markedly increased in P. vivax patients, as compared to healthy age-matched malaria-unexposed controls. Although platelets, erythrocytes and leukocytes were the main cellular sources of MPs during vivax malaria, platelet derived-MPs (PMPs) increased in a linear fashion with the presence of fever at the time of blood collection (b = 0.06, p < 0.0001) and length of acute symptoms (b = 0.36, p < 0.0001). Finally, the results suggest that plasma levels of PMPs diminish as patient experience more episodes of
clinical malaria (b = 0.07, p < 0.003).
Conclusions: Abundant circulating MPs are present during acute P. vivax infection, and platelet derived-MPs may play a role on the acute inflammatory symptoms of malaria vivax
Studies on the interaction of the carbohydrate binding module 3 from the Clostridium thermocellum CipA scaffolding protein with cellulose and paper fibres
The adsorption of a carbohydrate binding module (CBM3) from the Clostridium thermocellum scaffolding protein (CipA) to cellulose was analysed in this work. The effect of CBM-PEG on the drainability of E. globulus and P. sylvestris pulps and on the physical properties of the respective papersheets was also studied. The CBM binding to cellulose is often described as âirreversibleâ, but this classification does not fully characterize this interaction. Indeed, the results obtained demonstrate that, although the adsorption on cellulose is rather stable, CBM inter-fibre mobility may be observed. The results also showed that the CBM-PEG conjugate improves the drainability of E. globulus and P. sylvestris pulps without affecting the physical properties of the papersheets.This research was supported by Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia under grant POCTI/BIO/45356/2002
Effect of secondary infection on epithelialisation and total healing of cutaneous leishmaniasis lesions
EXD2 governs germ stem cell homeostasis and lifespan by promoting mitoribosome integrity and translation
Mitochondria are subcellular organelles critical for meeting the bioenergetic and biosynthetic needs of the cell. Mitochondrial function relies on genes and RNA species encoded both in the nucleus and mitochondria, as well as their coordinated translation, import and respiratory complex assembly. Here we describe the characterization of exonuclease domain like 2 (EXD2), a nuclear encoded gene that we show is targeted to the mitochondria and prevents the aberrant association of mRNAs with the mitochondrial ribosome. The loss of EXD2 resulted in defective mitochondrial translation, impaired respiration, reduced ATP production, increased reactive oxygen species and widespread metabolic abnormalities. Depletion of EXD2/CG6744 in D.melanogaster caused developmental delays and premature female germline stem cell attrition, reduced fecundity and a dramatic extension of lifespan that could be reversed with an anti-oxidant diet. Our results define a conserved role for EXD2 in mitochondrial translation that influences development and aging
Level of asthma control and its impact on activities of daily living in asthma patients in Brazil
Computer aided identification of a Hevein-like antimicrobial peptide of bell pepper leaves for biotechnological use
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