HERV-W/MRSV envelope transcripts detection\ud in blood of multiple sclerosis patients after\ud Natalizumab treatment

FAPESP 2010/10619-

HERV-W/MRSV envelope transcripts detection in blood of multiple sclerosis patients after Natalizumab treatment

FAPES

Genome of the Avirulent Human-Infective Trypanosome—Trypanosoma rangeli

Background: Trypanosoma rangeli is a hemoflagellate protozoan parasite infecting humans and other wild and domestic mammals across Central and South America. It does not cause human disease, but it can be mistaken for the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, Trypanosoma cruzi. We have sequenced the T. rangeli genome to provide new tools for elucidating the distinct and intriguing biology of this species and the key pathways related to interaction with its arthropod and mammalian hosts.  Methodology/Principal Findings: The T. rangeli haploid genome is ,24 Mb in length, and is the smallest and least repetitive trypanosomatid genome sequenced thus far. This parasite genome has shorter subtelomeric sequences compared to those of T. cruzi and T. brucei; displays intraspecific karyotype variability and lacks minichromosomes. Of the predicted 7,613 protein coding sequences, functional annotations could be determined for 2,415, while 5,043 are hypothetical proteins, some with evidence of protein expression. 7,101 genes (93%) are shared with other trypanosomatids that infect humans. An ortholog of the dcl2 gene involved in the T. brucei RNAi pathway was found in T. rangeli, but the RNAi machinery is non-functional since the other genes in this pathway are pseudogenized. T. rangeli is highly susceptible to oxidative stress, a phenotype that may be explained by a smaller number of anti-oxidant defense enzymes and heatshock proteins.  Conclusions/Significance: Phylogenetic comparison of nuclear and mitochondrial genes indicates that T. rangeli and T. cruzi are equidistant from T. brucei. In addition to revealing new aspects of trypanosome co-evolution within the vertebrate and invertebrate hosts, comparative genomic analysis with pathogenic trypanosomatids provides valuable new information that can be further explored with the aim of developing better diagnostic tools and/or therapeutic targets

Rarity of monodominance in hyperdiverse Amazonian forests.

Tropical forests are known for their high diversity. Yet, forest patches do occur in the tropics where a single tree species is dominant. Such "monodominant" forests are known from all of the main tropical regions. For Amazonia, we sampled the occurrence of monodominance in a massive, basin-wide database of forest-inventory plots from the Amazon Tree Diversity Network (ATDN). Utilizing a simple defining metric of at least half of the trees ≥ 10 cm diameter belonging to one species, we found only a few occurrences of monodominance in Amazonia, and the phenomenon was not significantly linked to previously hypothesized life history traits such wood density, seed mass, ectomycorrhizal associations, or Rhizobium nodulation. In our analysis, coppicing (the formation of sprouts at the base of the tree or on roots) was the only trait significantly linked to monodominance. While at specific locales coppicing or ectomycorrhizal associations may confer a considerable advantage to a tree species and lead to its monodominance, very few species have these traits. Mining of the ATDN dataset suggests that monodominance is quite rare in Amazonia, and may be linked primarily to edaphic factors

Initial clinical evidence on biperiden as antiepileptogenic after traumatic brain injury—a randomized clinical trial

There is currently no efficacious intervention for preventing post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE). Preclinical studies support the potential use of anticholinergics for this condition. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of biperiden as an intervention for preventing PTE. A randomized, double-blinded clinical trial was conducted at HC/FMUSP between 2018–2022. Adults with acute traumatic brain injury (TBI) were randomly assigned to receive biperiden or placebo, for 10 days. The primary outcome was the incidence of PTE while the secondary outcomes included the frequency of seizures, the frequency of any adverse events and mortality after 24 months. The study was powered at a planned enrolment of 132 patients. The trial began in January 2018 and was halted by researchers on March 2020 (and terminated in December 2022) in the face of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, 123 participants were randomized and 112 contributed with data for modified mITT analysis, being that 61 (49.5%) participants completed the 24-month follow-up consult. Data analysis indicated lack of evidence of biperiden for either, the incidence of post-traumatic epilepsy (2.6, 95%CI, 0.65–10.57; p = 0.170) or the mortality rate (1.57, 95%CI, 0.73–3.38; p = 0.248). The frequency of late post-traumatic seizures was higher for biperiden group (2.03, 95%CI = 0.912–3.1597; p <0.001). The present study suggests that there was insufficient evidence regarding the effect of biperiden in preventing PTE after TBI, which underpins the need for larger studies.Clinical trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT01048138