Técnica da imunoperoxidase utilizando um soro hiperimune anti-Leishmania (L.) chagasi no diagnóstico da leishmaniose tegumentar americana confirmada por cultura

The present study reports the production of the rabbit anti-Leishmania (L.) chagasi hyperimmune serum, the standardization of the immunohistochemistry (IHC) technique and the evaluation of its employment in cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) lesions diagnosed by Leishmania sp. culture isolation. Thirty fragments of active CL lesions were examined as well as 10 fragments of cutaneous mycosis lesions as control group. IHC proved more sensitive in detecting amastigotes than conventional hematoxylin-eosin (HE) stained slides: the former was positive in 24 (80%) biopsies whereas the latter, in 16 (53%) (p = 0.028). The reaction stained different fungus species causing cutaneous mycosis. Besides, positive reaction was noticed in mononuclear and endothelial cells. Nevertheless, this finding was present in the control group biopsies. It is concluded that IHC showed good sensitivity in detecting amastigotes.O presente estudo relata a produção do soro policlonal de coelho anti-Leishmania (L.) chagasi, a padronização da técnica de imunohistoquímica (IHQ) e sua aplicação em lesões de leishmaniose cutânea (LC) diagnosticadas por isolamento de Leishmania sp. em cultura. Foram examinados 30 fragmentos de lesões ativas de LC e 10 fragmentos de lesões de etiologia fúngica, utilizados como grupo controle. A IHQ mostrou-se mais sensível na detecção de amastigotas que a coloração em hematoxilina-eosina (HE), sendo positiva em 24 fragmentos de LC (80%) e ao passo que a HE foi positiva em 16 (53%) (p = 0,028). A IHQ também marcou diferentes espécies de fungos causadoras de micoses cutâneas. Adicionalmente, verificou-se positividade no citoplasma de células mononucleares e células endoteliais. Entretanto, esse achado esteve presente no grupo controle. Conclui-se que o método de IHQ apresentou boa sensibilidade na detecção de formas amastigotas

Setting performance indicators for coastal marine protected areas: An expert-based methodology

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) require effective indicators to assess their performance, in compliance with the goals of relevant national and international commitments. Achieving and prioritizing shortlists of multidisciplinary indicators demands a significant effort from specialists to depict the multiple conservation and socioeconomic interests, and the large complexity of natural systems. The present paper describes a structured expert-based methodology (process and outputs) to co-define a list of multidisciplinary MPA performance indicators. This work was promoted by the management authority of coastal MPAs in mainland Portugal to gather a consensual and feasible list of indicators that would guide the design of a future national monitoring program. Hence, Portuguese coastal MPAs served as a case study to develop such a process between 2019 and 2020. In the end, participants (1) agreed on a shortlist of prioritized indicators (i.e., environmental, governance, and socioeconomic indicators) and (2) defined minimum monitoring frequencies for the indicators in this list, compatible with the potential replicability of the associated survey methods. The present approach recommends that management plans incorporate monitoring procedures and survey methods, with a validated list of indicators and associated monitoring periodicity, agreed among researchers, MPA managers and governance experts. The proposed methodology, and the lessons learned from it, can support future processes aiming to define and prioritize MPA performance indicatorsFundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia - FCT, European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Use of butyrate or glutamine in enema solution reduces inflammation and fibrosis in experimental diversion colitis

Leonardo Pereira Quintella. Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas. Documento produzido em parceria ou por autor vinculado à Fiocruz, mas não consta a informação no documento.Submitted by Repositório Arca ([email protected]) on 2019-04-24T16:52:06Z No. of bitstreams: 1 license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by Janaína Nascimento ([email protected]) on 2019-11-01T14:29:43Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 ve_Pacheco_Rodrigo_etal_INI_2012.pdf: 1293329 bytes, checksum: ce1721ea030772e327c899bdf406eb7b (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2019-11-01T14:29:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 ve_Pacheco_Rodrigo_etal_INI_2012.pdf: 1293329 bytes, checksum: ce1721ea030772e327c899bdf406eb7b (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Surgery. Experimental Surgery Center Surgical. Sciences Postgraduate Program. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Surgery. Experimental Surgery Center Surgical. Sciences Postgraduate Program. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Surgery. Experimental Surgery Center Surgical. Sciences Postgraduate Program. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Institute of Biomedical Sciences. Department of Histology and Embryology. Laboratory of Cellular Immunology. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Pathology. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Pathology. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Hospital Universitario Clementino Fraga Filho. Department of Internal Medicine. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Medical School. Department of Surgery. Experimental Surgery Center Surgical. Sciences Postgraduate Program. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.AIM: To investigate whether butyrate or glutamine enemas could diminish inflammation in experimental diversion colitis. METHODS: Wistar specific pathogen-free rats were submitted to a Hartmann’s end colostomy and treated with enemas containing glutamine, butyrate, or saline. Enemas were administered twice a week in the excluded segment of the colon from 4 to 12 wk after the surgical procedure. Follow-up colonoscopy was performed every 4 wk for 12 wk. The effect of treatment was evaluated using video-endoscopic and histologic scores and measuring interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and transforming growth factor beta production in organ cultures by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Colonoscopies of the diverted segment showed mucosa with hyperemia, increased number of vessels, bleeding and mucus discharge. Treatment with either glutamine or butyrate induced significant reductions in both colonoscopic (P < 0.02) and histological scores (P < 0.01) and restored the densities of collagen fibers in tissue (P = 0.015; P = 0.001), the number of goblet cells (P = 0.021; P = 0.029), and the rate of apoptosis within the epithelium (P = 0.043; P = 0.011) to normal values. The high levels of cytokines in colon explants from rats with diversion colitis significantly decreased to normal values after treatment with butyrate or glutamine. CONCLUSION: The improvement of experimental diversion colitis following glutamine or butyrate enemas highlights the importance of specific luminal nutrients in the homeostasis of the colonic mucosa and supports their utilization for the treatment of human diversion colitis

Differences in Cell Morphometry, Cell Wall Topography and Gp70 Expression Correlate with the Virulence of <i>Sporothrix brasiliensis</i> Clinical Isolates

<div><p>Sporotrichosis is a chronic infectious disease affecting both humans and animals. For many years, this subcutaneous mycosis had been attributed to a single etiological agent; however, it is now known that this taxon consists of a complex of at least four pathogenic species, including <i>Sporothrix schenckii</i> and <i>Sporothrix brasiliensis</i>. Gp70 was previously shown to be an important antigen and adhesin expressed on the fungal cell surface and may have a key role in immunomodulation and host response. The aim of this work was to study the virulence, morphometry, cell surface topology and gp70 expression of clinical isolates of <i>S. brasiliensis</i> compared with two reference strains of <i>S. schenckii</i>. Several clinical isolates related to severe human cases or associated with the Brazilian zoonotic outbreak of sporotrichosis were genotyped and clustered as <i>S. brasiliensis</i>. Interestingly, in a murine subcutaneous model of sporotrichosis, these isolates showed a higher virulence profile compared with <i>S. schenckii</i>. A single <i>S. brasiliensis</i> isolate from an HIV-positive patient not only showed lower virulence but also presented differences in cell morphometry, cell wall topography and abundant gp70 expression compared with the virulent isolates. In contrast, the highly virulent <i>S. brasiliensis</i> isolates showed reduced levels of cell wall gp70. These observations were confirmed by the topographical location of the gp70 antigen using immunoelectromicroscopy in both species. In addition, the gp70 molecule was sequenced and identified using mass spectrometry, and the sequenced peptides were aligned into predicted proteins using Blastp with the <i>S. schenckii</i> and <i>S. brasiliensis</i> genomes<i>.</i></p> </div