Predictors of high-quality cord blood units

BACKGROUNDAnalysis of umbilical cord blood (UCB) transplants shows a correlation between engraftment and total number of infused cells. Thus, it is worth evaluating what maternal and neonatal characteristics and collection techniques may affect the quality of UCB units. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODSA cross-sectional study was performed with 7897 donors sequentially selected in three health care institutions in Brazil from October 2004 to March 2012, in which both quantitative and qualitative approaches were applied. All donors were considered suitable for cord blood collection. RESULTSThe maternal and neonatal characteristics and techniques of collection that influenced the total number of nucleated cells (TNCsp<0.001) were type of delivery, newborn weight and sex, and institution of UCB collection. The TNC count was associated with gestational age (p=0.008), type of delivery (p<0.001), newborn sex (p<0.001), newborn weight (p<0.001), and UCB collection technique (p=0.003). Center B presented the largest number of nucleated cells in its results (p<0.001), followed by Center A (p=0.001). Other characteristics, such as maternal age, were analyzed but were not relevant for the nucleated cell number. CONCLUSIONThis study provides elements for a model that allows an efficient selection of UCB donors, prioritizing candidates who have a better chance to lead to an optimized use of cord blood cells units.Univ Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Escola Paulista Enfermagem, Sao Paulo, BrazilInst Nacl Cardiol, Rio De Janeiro, BrazilInst Israelita Ensino & Pesquisa Albert Einstein, Sao Paulo, BrazilHosp Israelita Albert Einstein, Dept Hemoterapia, Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Escola Paulista Enfermagem, Sao Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc

Application of hyperthermia induced by superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in glioma treatment

Gliomas are a group of heterogeneous primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors arising from the glial cells. Malignant gliomas account for a majority of malignant primary CNS tumors and are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Glioblastoma is the most frequent and malignant glioma, and despite the recent advances in diagnosis and new treatment options, its prognosis remains dismal. New opportunities for the development of effective therapies for malignant gliomas are urgently needed. Magnetic hyperthermia (MHT), which consists of heat generation in the region of the tumor through the application of magnetic nanoparticles subjected to an alternating magnetic field (AMF), has shown positive results in both preclinical and clinical assays. The aim of this review is to assess the relevance of hyperthermia induced by magnetic nanoparticles in the treatment of gliomas and to note the possible variations of the technique and its implication on the effectiveness of the treatment. We performed an electronic search in the literature from January 1990 to October 2010, in various databases, and after application of the inclusion criteria we obtained a total of 15 articles. In vitro studies and studies using animal models showed that MHT was effective in the promotion of tumor cell death and reduction of tumor mass or increase in survival. Two clinical studies showed that MHT could be applied safely and with few side effects. Some studies suggested that mechanisms of cell death, such as apoptosis, necrosis, and antitumor immune response were triggered by MHT. Based on these data, we could conclude that MHT proved to be efficient in most of the experiments, and that the improvement of the nanocomposites as well as the AMF equipment might contribute toward establishing MHT as a promising tool in the treatment of malignant gliomas

A strategy for the rapid identification of fungal metabolites and the discovery of the antiviral activity of pyrenocine a and harzianopyridon

The isolation and identification of bioactive metabolites from complex extracts obtained from microbial growth media is a time consuming, costly, and labor-intensive task. A strategy to rapidly identify secondary metabolites isolated from extracts obtained from the culture media of marine-derived and endophytic fungal strains is described. Identification was achieved by HPLC-UV-MS and 1H NMR analyses in combination with data obtained from the Dictionary of Natural Products. Among the compounds identified, (-)-naphthoquinoneimine, citreorosein, emodin, pyrenocine A and harzianopyridone displayed moderate to potent antiviral activity. (-)-Naphthoquinoneimine was isolated as the enantiomer of its previously reported dextrorotatory congener, while 6,7-dihydroxy-2,2-dimethyl-4-chromanone is herein reported for the first time as a natural product396720731CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESPBEX 4498-14-32010/50190-2; 2013/50228-8; 2011/08064-2; 2008/00331-9; 2013/23153-

β-cyclodextrin/isopentyl caffeate inclusion complex: synthesis, characterization and antileishmanial activity

Isopentyl caffeate (ICaf) is a bioactive ester widely distributed in nature. Our patented work has shown promising results of this molecule against Leishmania. However, ICaf shows poor solubility, which limits its usage in clinical settings. In this work, we have proposed the development of an inclusion complex of ICaf in -cyclodextrin (-CD), with the aim to improve the drug solubility, and thus, its bioavailability. The inclusion complex (ICaf:-CD) was developed applying three distinct methods, i.e., physical mixture (PM), kneading (KN) or co-evaporation (CO) in different molar proportions (0.25:1, 1:1 and 2:1). Characterization of the complexes was carried out by thermal analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and molecular docking. The ICaf:-CD complex in a molar ratio of 1:1 obtained by CO showed the best complexation and, therefore, was selected for further analysis. Solubility assay showed a marked improvement in the ICaf:-CD (CO, 1:1) solubility profile when compared to the pure ICaf compound. Cell proliferation assay using ICaf:-CD complex showed an IC50 of 3.8 and 2.7 µg/mL against L. amazonesis and L. chagasi promastigotes, respectively. These results demonstrate the great potential of the inclusion complex to improve the treatment options for visceral and cutaneous leishmaniases.This research was funded by Banco do Nordeste (grant FUNDECI/2016.0015), Coordenação Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) and Fundação de Ámparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Sergipe (FAPITEC) (PROCESSO: 88887.159533/2017-00 extração, encapsulação e caracterização de bioativos para o interesse biotecnologico). Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq 301964/2019-0 Chamada 06/2019, and Chamada CNPq nº 01/2019) and from the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) project UIDB/04469/2020 (strategic fund).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Seroepidemiological analysis of toxoplasmosis in college students

Background Toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis caused by an obligate intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, which affects warm-blooded animals including humans. Its prevalence rates usually vary in different regions of the planet.\ud \ud \ud Methods\ud In this study, an analysis of the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis among Brazilian students was proposed by means of IgG specific antibodies detection. The presence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies by indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) was also evaluated in order to compare it with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and to assess the use of 2,2′-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and o-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride chromogens.\ud \ud \ud Results\ud The IFAT method showed a seroprevalence of 22.3%. These results were similar to those obtained by ELISA (24.1%). The seroprevalence was directly estimated from the IgG avidity, which showed that in a sample of 112 students, three of them had acute infection, an incidence of 1.6% in the studied population.\ud \ud \ud Conclusion\ud In this study, the use of different chromogenic substrates in immunoenzymatic ELISA assays did not display different sensitivity in the detection of T. gondii-reagent serum. The extrapolation of results to this population must be carefully considered, since the investigation was conducted on a reduced sample. However, it allows us to emphasize the importance of careful and well prepared studies to identify risk factors for toxoplasmosis, to adopt preventive measures and to offer guidance to at-risk populations about the disease.Fundação para o Desenvolvimento da Unesp (Fundunesp)Municipal Government of Assis (SP, Brazil)CIVAP/SaúdeCoordenação para Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior(CAPES)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Feeding strategies and energy to protein ratio on tambaqui performance and physiology

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of feed deprivation and refeeding with diets containing different energy to protein ratios (E/P) on the performance and physiology of juvenile tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum). A 4x2 factorial arrangement with three replicates was used, with four E/P ratios (11.5, 10.5, 9.5, and 8.5 kcal g-1 digestible energy per protein) and two feeding regimens (with and without deprivation), during 60 days. Fish from the food-deprived group were fasted for 14 days and refed from the fifteenth to the sixtieth day, whereas the remaining fish were fed for 60 days. At the end of the experimental period, weight of fish subjected to food deprivation was lower than that of those continuously fed; however, this condition did not influence the physiological parameters analyzed. Tambaqui fed 11.5 kcal g-1 achieved lower final weight than those fed with the other diets, in both regimens. Among the physiological parameters, only plasma protein presented significant increase in fish fed 8.5 kcal g-1, in both feeding regimens, probably due to the higher dietary protein concentration. These results indicate that fish show a partial compensatory growth, and that 10.5 kcal g-1 can be recommended for the diet of juvenile tambaqui

Autoimmune hepatitis in 828 Brazilian children and adolescents: clinical and laboratory findings, histological profile, treatments, and outcomes

In this large clinical series of Brazilian children and adolescents, autoimmunehepatitis-1 was more frequent, and patients with autoimmune hepatitis-2 exhibited higherdisease remission rates with earlier response to treatment. Patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1 had a higher risk of death.sentation, laboratory findings, histological profile, treatments, and outcomes of children andadolescents with autoimmune hepatitis.Methods: The medical records of 828 children and adolescents with autoimmune hepatitiswere reviewed. A questionnaire was used to collect anonymous data on clinical presentation,biochemical and histological findings, and treatments.Results: Of all patients, 89.6% had autoimmune hepatitis-1 and 10.4% had autoimmunehepatitis-2. The female sex was predominant in both groups. The median age at symptomonset was 111.5 (6; 210) and 53.5 (8; 165) months in the patients with autoimmune hepatitis1 and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively. Acute clinical onset was observed in 56.1% and58.8% and insidious symptoms in 43.9% and 41.2% of the patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively. The risk of hepatic failure was 1.6-fold higher forautoimmune hepatitis-2. Fulminant hepatic failure occurred in 3.6% and 10.6% of the patientswith autoimmune hepatitis-1 and autoimmune hepatitis-2, respectively; the risk was 3.1-foldhigher for autoimmune hepatitis-2. The gamma globulin and immunoglobulin G levels were sig-nificantly higher in autoimmune hepatitis-1, while the immunoglobulin A and C3 levels werelower in autoimmune hepatitis-2. Cirrhosis was observed in 22.4% of the patients; biochem-ical remission was achieved in 76.2%. The actuarial survival rate was 93.0%. A total of 4.6%underwent liver transplantation, and 6.9% died (autoimmune hepatitis-1: 7.5%; autoimmunehepatitis-2: 2.4%).Conclusions: In this large clinical series of Brazilian children and adolescents, autoimmunehepatitis-1 was more frequent, and patients with autoimmune hepatitis-2 exhibited higherdisease remission rates with earlier response to treatment. Patients with autoimmune hepatitis-1 had a higher risk of death.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Antifungal activity of amphotericin B conjugated to nanosized magnetite in the treatment of paracoccidioidomycosis

This study reports on in vitro and in vivo tests that sought to assess the antifungal activity of a newly developed magnetic carrier system comprising amphotericin B loaded onto the surface of pre-coated (with a double-layer of lauric acid) magnetite nanoparticles. The in vitro tests compared two drugs; i.e., this newly developed form and free amphotericin B. We found that this nanocomplex exhibited antifungal activity without cytotoxicity to human urinary cells and with low cytotoxicity to peritoneal macrophages. We also evaluated the efficacy of the nanocomplex in experimental paracoccidioidomycosis. BALB/c mice were intratracheally infected with Paracoccidioides brasiliensis and treated with the compound for 30 or 60 days beginning the day after infection. The newly developed amphotericin B coupled with magnetic nanoparticles was effective against experimental paracoccidioidomycosis, and it did not induce clinical, biochemical or histopathological alterations. The nanocomplex also did not induce genotoxic effects in bone marrow cells. Therefore, it is reasonable to believe that amphotericin B coupled to magnetic nanoparticles and stabilized with bilayer lauric acid is a promising nanotool for the treatment of the experimental paracoccidioidomycosis because it exhibited antifungal activity that was similar to that of free amphotericin B, did not induce adverse effects in therapeutic doses and allowed for a reduction in the number of applications