Renal prostacyclin influences renal function in non-azotemic cirrhotic patients treated with furosemide

The influence of prostaglandins on renal function changes induced by furosemide was analyzed in 21 non-azotemic cirrhotic patients with ascites. Patients were studied in two periods of 120 min immediately before and after furosemide infusion (20 mg, ev). Furosemide caused an increase in creatinine clearance in 15 patients (group A: 99 +/- 7 vs. 129 +/- 5 ml/min; mean +/- S.E.) and a reduction in the remaining six (group B: 102 +/- 13 vs. 71 +/- 9 ml/min). Parallel changes were observed in the urinary excretion of 6-Keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha (metabolite of renal prostacyclin) which augmented after furosemide in 14 of the 15 patients from group A (478 +/- 107 vs. 1034 +/- 159 pg/min, p less than 0.001) and decreased in all patients from group B (1032 +/- 240 vs. 548 +/- 136 pg/min, p less than 0.05). In contrast, the urinary excretion of prostaglandin E2 was stimulated by furosemide in all patients (group A, 92 +/- 19 vs. 448 +/- 60 pg/min, p less than 0.001; and group B, 209 +/- 63 vs. 361 +/- 25 pg/min, p less than 0.05). In all of the patients furosemide-induced changes (post- minus pre-furosemide values) in creatinine clearance were closely correlated in a direct and linear fashion with those in 6-Keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha (r = 0.74; p less than 0.001). These changes were associated with a higher furosemide-induced natriuresis in group A than in group B (641 +/- 68 vs. 302 +/-- 46 mumol/min, p less than 0.001

Misconceptions about HIV infection in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo): a Case-control Study on knowledge, attitudes and practices

Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of HIV-related misconceptions in an Outpatient Centre of Kinshasa (D.R.Congo) and analyze the association between these beliefs and HIV infection. Methods: A case-control study was carried out from December 2010 until June 2012. We assessed 1,630 participants aged 15-49 attending a primary outpatient centre in Kinshasa: 762 HIV Voluntary Counseling and Testing attendees and 868 blood donors. A 59-item questionnaire about knowledge, attitudes and practice was administered during a face-to-face interview, followed by an HIV test. Cases and controls were respondents with a newly diagnosed HIV positive or negative test, respectively. Unconditional logistic regression was used to analyse the association between misconceptions and HIV seropositivity. Results:Two hundred and seventy four cases and 1,340 controls were recruited. Cases were more likely than controls to have a low socioeconomic status, no education, to be divorced/separated or widowed. An association was found between the following variables and HIV-seropositivity: having a poor HIV knowledge (adjusted OR=2.79; 95%CI:1.43-5.45), not knowing a virus is the cause of AIDS (adjusted OR=2.03; 95%CI:1.38-2.98) and reporting more than three HIV-transmission-related misconceptions (adjusted OR=3.30; 95%CI:1.64-6.64), such as thinking an HIV+ person cannot look healthy and that HIV is transmitted by sorcery, God´s punishment, a kiss on the mouth, mosquitoes, coughs/sneezes or undercooked food. Conclusion:Despite having access to health care services, there are still many people in Kinshasa that have HIV-related misconceptions which increase their HIV risk. Our findings underscore the need for a culturally-adapted and gender-orientated basic HIV information into Congolese HIV prevention programs

Linum austriacum var. collinum Gussone ex Boissier, MPU 1869

Linum austriacum [β] var. collinum Gussone ex Boissier (1869: 864) ≡ Linum austriacum subsp. collinum (Gussone ex Boissier) Nyman (1878: 125) ≡ Linum collinum Haussknecht (1893: 60) ≡ Linum perenne var. collinum (Nyman) O. Bolòs & Vigo (1974: 81) ≡ Linum alpinum subsp. collinum (Guss. ex Boiss.) J.-M. Tison (2010: 124) Type (lectotype, designated here):— [GREECE], Athos, [in protologue: “ Hab. in Macedoniae monte Atho ”], 1 May [1]864, P.M.R. Aucher-Eloy 836, MPU (barcode MPU020918!) [the lectotype is the fragment plant mounted on the middle of the sheet] (image available at https://herbier.umontpellier.fr/zoomify/zoomify.php?fichier=MPU020918) (Fig. 2). = Linum immaculatae Sennen (1926: nº 5679) [in sched] Type (lectotype, designated here):— [SPAIN], “ Cerdagne: Llivia et Villeneuve, coteaux, 1250-1400 m.”, 18 Jun. 1926, F. Sennen nº 5679 [Exssicata “Plantes d’Espagne”], MA barcode (MA72763!) (Fig. 3); isolectotypes: BC barcodes (BC983360! and BC983361!), BCN (barcodes BCN 25145! (ex BCF]) and BCN 25146! (ex BCC)), MA (barcode MA471208!), MAF (barcode MAF59987!), PH (barcode PH 00015290!). – L. collinum Gussone (1844: 808), nom. inval., nom. prov. (ICN Art. 36.1) Note:— Gussone (1844: 808) included in “ Linum austriacum ” this comment: “Ic. Adenolinum austriacum. Reich. cent. 46 f. 5456. In descriptione lege: filamenta divergentia, stylis erectis albidis duplo breviora!, calycem aequantia, basi coerulescentia; antheris viridulis. In planta sicula folia omnia pellucido-punctata et tuberculata, multo angustiora ac tenuiora (nam fere filiformia), quam in planta austriaca; sepalcrum nervus medius non usque ad apicem productus ut in icone citata, sed usque ad medium ut in icone L. squamulosi Reich. l. c. f S5456 b; ita ut inter utrasque species media, ac forsan nova, et tunc L. collinum appellanda”. Therefore, according to Art. 36.1 of the ICN (Turland et al. 2018) the name “ Linum collinum ” indicated by Gussone (1844: 808) is not validly published because it is merely proposed as a provisional name. Type designation of Linum immaculatae::— The name Linum immaculatae Sennen (1926: exssicatum nº 5679) was mentioned by Sennen (1927: 636) and described in the Sennen’s exsiccata “Plantes d’Espagne” with the number 5679 in a printed label. There are several specimens belonging to this exssicatum nº 5679 (e.g., barcodes PH 00015290, MA471208, MA72763, MAF59987, BCN 25145 (ex BCF), BCN 25146 (ex BCC), BC983360, BC983361). In these herbarium sheets, the original printed label includes the name “ Linum Immaculatae Sennen / gr. alpinum ”, the provenance “Cerdagne: Llivia et Villeneuve, coteaux, 1250-1400 m.”, the date “18-VI [1926]”, a complete description of this species “NOTE.- Souche et racine épaisses-ligneuses; tiges longues-nombreuses-ascendantes-ramifiéeslaxifoliées; feuilles linéaires devenant obscures, un peu élargies sous l’inflorescence allongée-laxiflore; pédicelles longs arqués-divergents, atteignant 15 mill.; sepals largement elliptiques, obtus, à mucron oblique et à sommet énervulé; petals d’un très beau bleu, grands, 15 mill. et plus; capsule très exerte-mucronulée, 7 × 5 mill.; grains de silhouette étroite-oblongue, bien marginées”, and the comment “Dévote dédicace de ce bel endémisme à l’Immaculée”. All the sheets bears complete and well-developed material. We designate the specimen at MA (with barcode MA72763) as the lectotype of Linum immaculatae (Fig. 3).Published as part of Ferrer-Gallego, P. Pablo & Martínez Labarga, Juan M., 2022, Effective typification of the name Linum austricum var. collinum (Linaceae), and its synonym L. immaculatae, pp. 287-293 in Phytotaxa 536 (3) on pages 291-292, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.536.3.9, http://zenodo.org/record/633194

Induction of neutralizing antibodies against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 using synthetic peptide constructs containing an immunodominant T-helper cell determinant from vpr

Identification of immunodominant T-helper-cell determinants after natural infection is an important step in the design of immunogens for potential use in vaccination. Using cells from human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-infected individuals and a panel of peptides encompassing the sequence of the regulatory protein vpr from HIV-1, we identified the T-helper determinant QLLFIHFRIGCRHSR, which is active in 37.5% of these individuals. To gain insight on the efficacy of this peptide in helping induce neutralizing antibodies against a B-cell determinant (BD), we synthesized constructs containing B- and T-cell determinants and tested them in BALB/c mice, the highest responders to the T-cell determinant moiety among several strains tested. These immunogens induced antibodies against two chosen B-cell determinants from HIV-1IIIB gp160 (amino acids 310-322 from the V3 loop of gp120 and 736-751 from gp41) that were able to neutralize HIV-1 infection in vitro. The highest neutralization titer against HIV-1IIIB was obtained by immunization with the homopolymer of the construct containing the T-cell epitope from vpr and the B-cell epitope from the V3 loop. We believe that the immunodominant T-cell determinant from vpr is a promising epitope to consider in the design of future peptide vaccines

Abnormal priming of CD4(+) T cells by dendritic cells expressing hepatitis C virus core and E1 proteins

Patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) have an impaired response against HCV antigens while keeping immune competence for other antigens. We hypothesized that expression of HCV proteins in infected dendritic cells (DC) might impair their antigen-presenting function, leading to a defective anti-HCV T-cell immunity. To test this hypothesis, DC from normal donors were transduced with an adenovirus coding for HCV core and E1 proteins and these cells (DC-CE1) were used to stimulate T lymphocytes. DC-CE1 were poor stimulators of allogeneic reactions and of autologous primary and secondary proliferative responses. Autologous T cells stimulated with DC-CE1 exhibited a pattern of incomplete activation characterized by enhanced CD25 expression but reduced interleukin 2 production. The same pattern of incomplete lymphocyte activation was observed in CD4(+) T cells responding to HCV core in patients with chronic HCV infection. However, CD4(+) response to HCV core was normal in patients who cleared HCV after alpha interferon therapy. Moreover, a normal CD4(+) response to tetanus toxoid was found in both chronic HCV carriers and patients who had eliminated the infection. Our results suggest that expression of HCV structural antigens in infected DC disturbs their antigen-presenting function, leading to incomplete activation of anti-HCV-specific T cells and chronicity of infection. However, presentation of unrelated antigens by noninfected DC would allow normal T-cell immunity to other pathogens

Misconceptions about HIV infection in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo): a Case-control Study on knowledge, attitudes and practices

Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of HIV-related misconceptions in an Outpatient Centre of Kinshasa (D.R.Congo) and analyze the association between these beliefs and HIV infection. Methods: A case-control study was carried out from December 2010 until June 2012. We assessed 1,630 participants aged 15-49 attending a primary outpatient centre in Kinshasa: 762 HIV Voluntary Counseling and Testing attendees and 868 blood donors. A 59-item questionnaire about knowledge, attitudes and practice was administered during a face-to-face interview, followed by an HIV test. Cases and controls were respondents with a newly diagnosed HIV positive or negative test, respectively. Unconditional logistic regression was used to analyse the association between misconceptions and HIV seropositivity. Results:Two hundred and seventy four cases and 1,340 controls were recruited. Cases were more likely than controls to have a low socioeconomic status, no education, to be divorced/separated or widowed. An association was found between the following variables and HIV-seropositivity: having a poor HIV knowledge (adjusted OR=2.79; 95%CI:1.43-5.45), not knowing a virus is the cause of AIDS (adjusted OR=2.03; 95%CI:1.38-2.98) and reporting more than three HIV-transmission-related misconceptions (adjusted OR=3.30; 95%CI:1.64-6.64), such as thinking an HIV+ person cannot look healthy and that HIV is transmitted by sorcery, God´s punishment, a kiss on the mouth, mosquitoes, coughs/sneezes or undercooked food. Conclusion:Despite having access to health care services, there are still many people in Kinshasa that have HIV-related misconceptions which increase their HIV risk. Our findings underscore the need for a culturally-adapted and gender-orientated basic HIV information into Congolese HIV prevention programs

Genetic Variants of ABCC10, a Novel Tenofovir Transporter, Are Associated With Kidney Tubular Dysfunction

Background. Tenofovir (TFV) causes kidney tubular dysfunction (KTD) in some patients, but the mechanism is poorly understood. Genetic variants in TFV transporters are implicated; we explored whether ABCC10 transports TFV and whether ABCC10 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with KTD