Antiplasmodial Efficacy of Fruit Extracts and Cladodes of Opuntia ficus-indica

Abstract Development of antimalarial drugs from medicinal plants continues to be a very appealing process. Therapeutic effects of the ethyl acetate cladodes an extract of Opuntia ficus-indica has been evaluated in Plasmodium berghei infection in mice. The extract of the Opuntia ficus-indica has an in vitro activity against the parasite, the average parasitemia of 4.7% from two wells at 24 hour concerning a blood control containing only 7.5%. The reduced parasitemia extract batch has proved to process more efficiently than the control group with olive oil, with 3.2% parasitemia on day 5 and 30% on day 8. However, the average parasitemia of the treated animals with the extract has been lower than the control detected one which showes very low levels of parasitemia (5%, 3.7% and 6.7%). This study presents an in vitro and in vivo evaluation of the antiplasmodial effects of two-plant extracts of Opuntia ficus-indica commonly used in Tunisia as a folk medicine. It is concluded that the ethyl acetate cladodes extract of Opuntia ficus-indica prove to be potentially useful for the development of antimalarial drug. Keywords: Antimalaria, Percentage suppression, Opuntia ficus-indica, Plasmodium Berghei, Parasitaemi

Infectivity of Leishmania mexicana Is Associated with Differential Expression of Protein Kinase C-Like Triggered during a Cell-Cell Contact

Mammalian host cell invasion by Leishmania is a complex process in which various parasite and host cell components interact, triggering the activation of signaling cascades in both cells. Little is known regarding PKC biological functions in Leishmania sp. during parasite-macrophage interaction. PKC-like enzyme was first identified in homogenates and membrane fraction of L. mexicana stationary promastigotes by immunoblot. PKC-like enzyme activity was then detected in cell homogenates but also on intact promastigotes showing for the first time the presence of an ecto-PKC dependent on Ca2+/phosphatidylserine for activation. This ecto-PKC was activated with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and inhibited by RO-32-0432, a selective PKCαβIε bisindolylmaleimide inhibitor. Interestingly, the Leishmania PKC- activity was higher in the infective stationary than in non-infective logarithmic stage. Then, promastigotes at different stages of time proliferation curve were used in order to identify the role of PKC-like during macrophage invasion. After attachment to macrophages, PKC-like is over-expressed in promastigotes at the 6th culture day but also at the 4th day of culture corresponding to the maximal infection capacity. An antibody microarray for MAPK and PKC corroborate the Leishmania PKC-like over-expression during contact with macrophages. Pretreatment with RO-32-0432 inhibitor reduced the number of infected macrophages and the parasite burden. These data suggest for the first time a direct link between PKC expression level and infectivity, and provide evidence that PKC-like plays a critical role in attachment and in the internalization steps involved in the invasion process

A Decade of Antifungal Leads from Natural Products:2010-2019

In this review, we discuss novel natural products discovered within the last decade that are reported to have antifungal activity against pathogenic species. Nearly a hundred natural products were identified that originate from bacteria, algae, fungi, sponges, and plants. Fungi were the most prolific source of antifungal compounds discovered during the period of review. The structural diversity of these antifungal leads encompasses all the major classes of natural products including polyketides, shikimate metabolites, terpenoids, alkaloids, and peptides

Comparación de dos pruebas de aglutinación (Toxolatex ® y Toxoscreen ®) en el diagnóstico de la toxoplasmosis: propuesta de inclusión en un programa de control

This study evaluated a latex agglutination test (Toxolatex ®, Fumouze) and a direct agglutination test using a whole antigen (Toxoscreen ®, Biomerieux) for the screening of toxoplasmosis antibodies, by means of comparison with the dye test (Sabin Feldman) (DT) and a fluorescent antibody test (IFAT). On 500 sera, a good correlation was obtained for these methods with DT (TI 96.8% and TS 98.6%) and IFAT (TL 95.4% and TS 97.2%). In addition to detecting antitoxoplasma immunoglobulin M antibodies. TL is a rauid, easy and inexpensive technique. Based these findings, we recommend the agglutination testior initial screening of specific antibodies against toxoplasmosis in seroepidemiological surveys and pregnancy control program.Este estudio evaluó las pruebas de aglutinación en Iátex. Toxolatex ®. Furnouze (.T L). .v aglutinación directa. Toxoscreen ®, Biomerieux (TS), mediante la comparación con las pruebas de referencia: prueba de neutralización, dye test (DT) e inmunofluorescencia indirecta (IFI). En los 500 sueros estudiados, se encontró una buena concordancia entre las técnicas estudiadas y las de referencia asi: DT (TI, 963% y TS. 98.6%) e IFI (TI 95,4% y TS 97.2%) El TL, además de detectar anticuerpos de clase IgM antitoxoplasma, es una técnica poco costosa y de fácil y rápida realización. Los resultados de este estudio permiten recomendar las pruebas de aglutinación para el tamizaje de anticuerpos especificas antitoxoplasma en los programas de control prenatal y en los estudios seroepidemiológicos

Aprendizaje cooperativo: una nueva metodología motivadora para el alumno

International audienc

First Human Model of In Vitro Candida albicans Persistence within Granuloma for the Reliable Study of Host-Fungi Interactions

BACKGROUND: The balance between human innate immune system and Candida albicans virulence signaling mechanisms ultimately dictates the outcome of fungal invasiveness and its pathology. To better understand the pathophysiology and to identify fungal virulence-associated factors in the context of persistence in humans, complex models are indispensable. Although fungal virulence factors have been extensively studied in vitro and in vivo using different immune cell subsets and cell lines, it is unclear how C. albicans survives inside complex tissue granulomas. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDING: We developed an original model of in vitro human granuloma, reproducing the natural granulomatous response to C. albicans. Persistent granulomas were obtained when the ratio of phagocytes to fungi was high. This in vitro fungal granuloma mimics natural granulomas, with infected macrophages surrounded by helper and cytotoxic T lymphocytes. A small proportion of granulomas exhibited C. albicans hyphae. Histological and time-lapse analysis showed that C. albicans blastoconidia were located within the granulomas before hyphae formation. Using staining techniques, fungal load calculations, as well as confocal and scanning electron microscopy, we describe the kinetics of fungal granuloma formation. We provide the first direct evidence that C. albicans are not eliminated by immunocompetent cells inside in vitro human granulomas. In fact, after an initial candicidal period, the remaining yeast proliferate and persist under very complex immune responses. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Using an original in vitro model of human fungal granuloma, we herein present the evidence that C. albicans persist and grow into immunocompetent granulomatous structures. These results will guide us towards a better understanding of fungal invasiveness and, henceforth, will also help in the development of better strategies for its control in human physiological conditions

Autoantibodies against type I IFNs in patients with critical influenza pneumonia

In an international cohort of 279 patients with hypoxemic influenza pneumonia, we identified 13 patients (4.6%) with autoantibodies neutralizing IFN-alpha and/or -omega, which were previously reported to underlie 15% cases of life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia and one third of severe adverse reactions to live-attenuated yellow fever vaccine. Autoantibodies neutralizing type I interferons (IFNs) can underlie critical COVID-19 pneumonia and yellow fever vaccine disease. We report here on 13 patients harboring autoantibodies neutralizing IFN-alpha 2 alone (five patients) or with IFN-omega (eight patients) from a cohort of 279 patients (4.7%) aged 6-73 yr with critical influenza pneumonia. Nine and four patients had antibodies neutralizing high and low concentrations, respectively, of IFN-alpha 2, and six and two patients had antibodies neutralizing high and low concentrations, respectively, of IFN-omega. The patients' autoantibodies increased influenza A virus replication in both A549 cells and reconstituted human airway epithelia. The prevalence of these antibodies was significantly higher than that in the general population for patients 70 yr of age (3.1 vs. 4.4%, P = 0.68). The risk of critical influenza was highest in patients with antibodies neutralizing high concentrations of both IFN-alpha 2 and IFN-omega (OR = 11.7, P = 1.3 x 10(-5)), especially those <70 yr old (OR = 139.9, P = 3.1 x 10(-10)). We also identified 10 patients in additional influenza patient cohorts. Autoantibodies neutralizing type I IFNs account for similar to 5% of cases of life-threatening influenza pneumonia in patients <70 yr old

Differential cross section measurements for the production of a W boson in association with jets in proton–proton collisions at √s = 7 TeV

Measurements are reported of differential cross sections for the production of a W boson, which decays into a muon and a neutrino, in association with jets, as a function of several variables, including the transverse momenta (pT) and pseudorapidities of the four leading jets, the scalar sum of jet transverse momenta (HT), and the difference in azimuthal angle between the directions of each jet and the muon. The data sample of pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV was collected with the CMS detector at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb[superscript −1]. The measured cross sections are compared to predictions from Monte Carlo generators, MadGraph + pythia and sherpa, and to next-to-leading-order calculations from BlackHat + sherpa. The differential cross sections are found to be in agreement with the predictions, apart from the pT distributions of the leading jets at high pT values, the distributions of the HT at high-HT and low jet multiplicity, and the distribution of the difference in azimuthal angle between the leading jet and the muon at low values.United States. Dept. of EnergyNational Science Foundation (U.S.)Alfred P. Sloan Foundatio

Penilaian Kinerja Keuangan Koperasi di Kabupaten Pelalawan

This paper describe development and financial performance of cooperative in District Pelalawan among 2007 - 2008. Studies on primary and secondary cooperative in 12 sub-districts. Method in this stady use performance measuring of productivity, efficiency, growth, liquidity, and solvability of cooperative. Productivity of cooperative in Pelalawan was highly but efficiency still low. Profit and income were highly, even liquidity of cooperative very high, and solvability was good

Juxtaposing BTE and ATE – on the role of the European insurance industry in funding civil litigation

One of the ways in which legal services are financed, and indeed shaped, is through private insurance arrangement. Two contrasting types of legal expenses insurance contracts (LEI) seem to dominate in Europe: before the event (BTE) and after the event (ATE) legal expenses insurance. Notwithstanding institutional differences between different legal systems, BTE and ATE insurance arrangements may be instrumental if government policy is geared towards strengthening a market-oriented system of financing access to justice for individuals and business. At the same time, emphasizing the role of a private industry as a keeper of the gates to justice raises issues of accountability and transparency, not readily reconcilable with demands of competition. Moreover, multiple actors (clients, lawyers, courts, insurers) are involved, causing behavioural dynamics which are not easily predicted or influenced. Against this background, this paper looks into BTE and ATE arrangements by analysing the particularities of BTE and ATE arrangements currently available in some European jurisdictions and by painting a picture of their respective markets and legal contexts. This allows for some reflection on the performance of BTE and ATE providers as both financiers and keepers. Two issues emerge from the analysis that are worthy of some further reflection. Firstly, there is the problematic long-term sustainability of some ATE products. Secondly, the challenges faced by policymakers that would like to nudge consumers into voluntarily taking out BTE LEI