De Washington D.C. a Telavive a Riade: As relações entre os Estados Unidos da América, Arábia Saudita e Israel

“Nenhuma quantidade de sangue ou tesouro americanos podem produzir paz e segurança duradouras no Médio Oriente. É uma região problemática.”, disse o Presidente Donald Trump em 2018, relativamente à Guerra Civil Síria. Mas é assim que se carateriza o Médio Oriente. Apesar de ter apoiado a formação do Estado de Israel em 1948, devido ao apoio que recebia de Estados Árabes conservadores, os Estados Unidos procuraram sempre se afastar deste país recém-nascido de forma a não haver alterações das esferas de influência nesta região. No entanto, após 1979, a “Superpotência” compreendeu que ter o apoio de Estados conservadores não contrabalançava dar apoio a Israel. Devido a ter surgido uma outra ameaça para os Estados Árabes conservadores, a República Islâmica do Irão, estes começaram a desviar o olhar do apoio que os Estados Unidos concediam a Israel. Com o fim da Guerra Fria, mais uma alteração ocorreu nesta região. As esferas de influência entre comunistas e capitalistas haviam desaparecido e os Estados Unidos eram a única “Superpotência”. A atenção passou para o conflito israelo-palestiniano, bem como para o terrorismo. Com exceção do Egito e da Jordânia, nenhum país árabe normalizou relações com Israel, devido à questão palestiniana. Contudo, com a alteração da embaixada americana de Telavive para Jerusalém por Donald Trump, nenhum país árabe, em especial do Golfo Pérsico, levantou grandes problemáticas, ameaçou com cortes de relações, com a realização de um embargo de Petróleo, nem com suspender o processo de paz entre Israel e Palestina. Consequentemente, perguntamo-nos: Como se caraterizam as relações entre os Estados Unidos da América, a Arábia Saudita e Israel, desde o fim da Segunda Guerra Mundial até à administração Trump, tendo em conta o impacto das alterações tanto de política externa como sistémicas no Médio Oriente? Este projeto de investigação consiste num estudo de caso único, estudado através de uma abordagem metodológica histórica e por uma abordagem teórica fundamentada na Teoria das Alianças de Walt. Este estudo terá como foco o grande Estado Árabe conservador, a Arábia Saudita, e Israel. Como elo de ligação, teremos os Estados Unidos da América. Procurar-se-á compreender se um relacionamento tático seria possível entre a Arábia Saudita e Israel, tendo em conta estas alterações que ocorreram de política externa e de política regional.“No amount of American blood or treasure can produce lasting peace and security in the Middle East. It’s a troubled place.”, said President Donald Trump in 2018, about the Syrian Civil War. However, that’s how the Middle East is characterized. Even though they supported the formation of the State of Israel in 1948, due to the support they received from conservative Arab States, the United States always tried to stay away from the new-born country in order that there were no changes in the spheres of influence in this region. Nonetheless, after 1979, the superpower understood that having the support of the conservative Arab States didn’t mean they couldn’t support Israel. Because another threat to the Arab states had arisen, the Islamic Republic of Iran, these began to underlook the support the United States was giving to Israel. When the Cold War ended, the region once again changed. The spheres of influence between capitalists and communists were gone and the United States was the only superpower. The attention in the Middle East changed to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as well to terrorism. With exception of Egypt and Jordan, no Arab country has normalized the relations with Israel, due to the Palestinian issue. However, when Donald Trump changed the location of the American embassy from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem, no Arab country, specially from the Persian Gulf, raised major problems, threatened with cutting relations, making an oil embargo, or suspending the peace process between Israel and Palestine. Consequently, we ask: How to we characterize the relations between the United States of America, Saudi Arabia and Israel, since the end of the Second World War until the Trump administration, having in account the impact of the regional alterations as the changes in foreign politics in the Middle East? This investigation project is a Single Case study, through an historical methodology and supported by Stephen Walt’s Alliances Theory. This study will focus on the big conservative Arab State, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. The link between the two of them is the United States. It will seek to understand if a tactical relationship will be possible between Saudi Arabia and Israel, having in account not only the impact of the regional alterations but also the changes in foreign politics

High Laccase Expression by Trametes versicolor in a Simulated Textile Effluent with Different Carbon Sources and PHs

Textile effluents are highly polluting and have variable and complex compositions. They can be extremely complex, with high salt concentrations and alkaline pHs. A fixed-bed bioreactor was used in the present study to simulate a textile effluent treatment, where the white-rot fungus, Trametes versicolor, efficiently decolourised the azo dye Reactive Black 5 over 28 days. This occurred under high alkaline conditions, which is unusual, but advantageous, for successful decolourisation processes. Active dye decolourisation was maintained by operation in continuous culture. Colour was eliminated during the course of operation and maximum laccase (Lcc) activity (80.2 UL1) was detected after glycerol addition to the bioreactor. Lcc2 gene expression was evaluated with different carbon sources and pH values based on reverse transcriptase-PCR (polymerase chain reaction). Glycerol was shown to promote the highest lcc2 expression at pH 5.5, followed by sucrose and then glucose. The highest levels of expression occurred between three and four days, which corroborate the maximum Lcc activity observed for sucrose and glycerol on the bioreactor. These results give new insights into the use of T. versicolor in textile dye wastewater treatment with high pHs.Cledir R. Santos thanks to the Universidad de La Frontera (Temuco, Chile) for the partial funding from both the Project DIUFRO DI16-0135 and the Doctoral Programme in Science of Natural Resources. This study was also supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) and BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004) funded by European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020—Programa Operacional Regional do Norte

Enhanced solar driven photocatalytic removal of antibiotics from aquaculture effluents by TiO2/carbon quantum dot composites

Aquaculture exploitation is associated with the consumption of antibiotics, such as sulfadiazine (SDZ), sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and trimethoprim (TMP), the latter two being also vastly used to treat bacterial infections in humans. Consequently, and given that aquaculture wastewater treatments are not actually designed for the removal of antibiotics, they are ubiquitous in aquaculture effluents, which sets the risk of bacterial resistance. To face the need for an efficient and sustainable treatment to remove these antibiotics from the referred effluents, carbon quantum dots (CQDs) were produced, incorporated into titanium dioxide (TiO2), and evaluated for solar driven photodegradation of SDZ, SMX and TMP. Eleven different materials were synthesized and tested for their photocatalytic activity in phosphate buffer solution (PBS) and synthetic sea salts (SSS), used as synthetic matrices to simulate fresh and brackish water, respectively. Upon selection of the most efficient photocatalyst for each antibiotic and matrix, kinetic results demonstrated that its use allowed for remarkable reductions of SDZ, SMX and TMP half-life times (t1/2) in both matrices (between 19 and 68 times). Therefore, the application of the here synthesized photocatalysts for the advanced treatment of aquaculture effluents is promising, allowing for a green solar driven removal of antibiotics.publishe

Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis presenting a glove-finger shadow in radiographic images

Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis is a lung disease occurring in patients with asthma or cystic fibrosis, triggered by a hypersensitivity reaction to the presence of Aspergillus fumigatus in the airways. We report herein the case of a patient presenting a clinical profile suggestive of asthma and meeting the clinical, laboratory testing and radiological criteria for a diagnosis of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. The importance of such findings is that early diagnosis can reduce the risk of respiratory exacerbations and fibrosis.A aspergilose broncopulmonar alérgica é uma doença pulmonar que ocorre em pacientes com asma ou fibrose cística, desencadeada pela reação de hipersensibilidade à presença do fungo Aspergilus fumigatus nas vias aéreas. Relatamos aqui um caso em que uma paciente com quadro clínico sugestivo de asma apresentou critérios clínicos, laboratoriais e radiológicos compatíveis com o diagnóstico de aspergilose broncopulmonar alérgica. A importância de tais achados deve-se ao fato de que quanto mais precocemente for feito o diagnóstico, menores serão os riscos de agravamento do quadro respiratório e de aparecimento de fibrose.Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo Centro de Ciências Médicas e BiológicasUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de MedicinaPontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo Faculdade de MedicinaConjunto Hospitalar de SorocabaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL

New insights on the roles of bacteria and protozoa in activated-sludge processes

Wastewater treatment is one of the most important biotechnological processes in the world. Nevertheless, the highly complex microbial communities in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) are barely understood, remaining, most of the time, as a “black box”. Even though many microbiological methods are available to study the activated-sludge communities, many recent questions on the role of a significant number of microorganisms are kept unanswered. The current model and design concepts of activated-sludge consider bacteria as the sole active biomass. The activities of all other microbial community members (protozoa, metazoa, phages, etc.) are hidden in a simple decay process responsible for the reduction of active biomass and there is an assumed difficulty in establishing the way of how the interactions between the bacterial and the eukaryotic populations can affect the performance of the treatment system. PROTOFILWW project (PTDC/AMB/68393/2006) aimed at the study of 37 WWTP during 2 years, allowing for the identification of the little metazoa, protozoa and filamentous bacteria in 296 samples and enabling the correlation of these communities with physical-chemical and operational parameters. Furthermore, several studies on related subjects were and are being carried on to enlighten the roles of the different organisms in the depurating process, on how they interact with each other and on methods to identify certain filamentous and floc-forming bacteria with relevant functions in these artificial ecosystems. Simultaneously, a web-based platform was conceived to ensure the dissemination of knowledge and the communication of results between the project team and the WWTP technicians and managers

Análise comparativa dos efeitos do laser de baixa potência na cicatrização de lesões cutâneas: revisão sistemática / Comparative analysis of the effects of low power laser on the healing of skin lesions: a systematic review

Introdução: Ferida é definida como perda de continuidade da pele, podendo ser superficial ou profunda, aguda ou crônica. O processo de cicatrização é complexo, envolvendo processos biológicos, celulares e moleculares podendo ser descrito em três fases: inflamatória, proliferativa e remodelamento, Uma das terapêuticas possíveis para essa lesão é o Laser de Baixa Potência, devido a sua estimulação tecidual, induz o processo cicatricial, ajudando no alinhamento dessas fibras que estão depositadas no local podendo ser utilizado nas três fases da cicatrização, assim ocorrendo uma cicatrização bem sucedida e de forma mais rápida Objetivo: Este estudo teve como objetivo comparar, por meio de uma revisão sistemática de literatura, os efeitos dos diversos protocolos que utilizam o Laser de Baixa Potência na cicatrização de feridas cutâneas. Métodos: Foi realizada uma revisão sistemática com artigos publicados nos últimos dez anos nas bases de dados Lilacs, Medline, Scielo, e Pedro. Posteriormente aplicamos os critérios de inclusão: ensaios clínicos, artigos que abordem Lazer de Baixa Potência na cicatrização de lesões cutâneas, artigos em português e inglês. Foram excluídas as pesquisas que abordavam o uso do Laser de Baixa Potência em associação com outras terapias, artigos incompletos, publicados em duplicidade em mais de uma base de dado. Os artigos selecionados foram avaliados quanto a qualidade metodológica por meio da escala PEdro. Conclusão: Através dos resultados encontrados nos artigos selecionados foi possível verificar que existem diversos protocolos utilizando o laser de baixa potencia e embora sejam protocolos diferentes eles tem um bons resultados mostrando que existe diversas possibilidades de tratamento. No entanto precisa de uma padronização na utilização desses recursos para ajudar na pratica clinica dos profissionais da área a terem bons resultados no processo de cicatrização, diminuído o tempo de cicatrização e assim melhorar a qualidade de vida dos indivíduos que sofrem com lesões cutâneas das diversas naturezas.

Evaluation of diagnostic criteria for severe asthma described in a public health directive regulating the free distribution of medications for the maintenance treatment of asthma

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the capacity of the criteria described in Complementary Directive SAS/MS 12, issued on November 12, 2002, to identify patients with severe asthma, describing and comparing clinical, functional and treatment data of such patients. METHODS: This was a nested case-control study using a structured database for adult asthma outpatients. We defined cases as asthma patients who met the inclusion criteria described in the directive, defining controls as those who did not. We collected and compared data related to the following: demographic characteristics; history of asthma; medications in use; comorbidities; history of tobacco use; number of exacerbations within the last 12 months, asthma-related hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions within the last 12 months; spirometry; and sputum cytology. RESULTS: The case and control groups consisted of 29 and 31 patients, respectively. The number of asthma exacerbations and emergence room visits within the last 12 months, as well as the number of patients that received at least one pulse of oral corticosteroids, was significantly higher in the case group than in the control group. In addition, prebronchodilator FVC was lower among the cases than among the controls. Furthermore, cytology revealed that eosinophil counts were significantly higher in the induced sputum of cases than in that of controls. CONCLUSIONS: The criteria described in the directive are suited to stratifying patients with severe asthma.OBJETIVO: Avaliar a capacidade dos critérios descritos na Portaria Complementar SAS/MS nº12, de 12 de novembro de 2002, em identificar pacientes asmáticos graves, bem como descrever e comparar dados clínicos, funcionais e de tratamento destes pacientes. MÉTODOS: Estudo caso-controle aninhado em um banco de dados estruturado de atendimento ambulatorial de asmáticos. Foram considerados casos os pacientes asmáticos que preencheram os critérios de inclusão determinados na portaria e considerados controles os que não preencheram os mesmos critérios. Foram coletados e comparados dados demográficos; história pregressa da asma; medicamentos em uso; presença de comorbidades; história de tabagismo; presença, no último ano, de exacerbações, de hospitalizações e de admissões em unidades de terapia intensiva devido à asma; e resultados de espirometria e de citologia de escarro. RESULTADOS: Foram incluídos 29 e 31 pacientes, respectivamente, nos grupos caso e controle. O grupo caso apresentou maior número de exacerbações e maior número de visitas ao pronto-socorro no último ano, maior porcentagem de pacientes que receberam pelo menos um pulso de corticosteroide oral, assim como menores valores de CVF pré-broncodilatador em relação ao grupo controle. O grupo caso também apresentou um aumento significante de eosinófilos na citologia do escarro induzido. CONCLUSÕES: Os critérios de inclusão descritos na portaria são adequados para estratificar pacientes com asma grave.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departamento de Medicina Programa de Pós-Graduação de PneumologiaUNIFESP, Depto. de Medicina Programa de Pós-Graduação de PneumologiaSciEL

Sulfated small molecules targeting EBV in Burkitt lymphoma: from in silico screening to the evidence of in vitro effect on viral episomal DNA

Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infects more than 90% of the world population. Following primary infection, Epstein– Barr virus persists in an asymptomatic latent state. Occasionally, it may switch to lytic infection. Latent EBV infection has been associated with several diseases, such as Burkitt lymphoma (BL). To date, there are no available drugs to target latent EBV, and the existing broad-spec trum antiviral drugs are mainly active against lytic viral infection. Thus, using computational molecular docking, a virtual screen of a library of small molecules, including xanthones and flavonoids (described with potential for antiviral activity against EBV), was carried out targeting EBV proteins. The more interesting molecules were selected for further computational analysis, and sub sequently, the compounds were tested in the Raji (BL) cell line, to evaluate their activity against latent EBV. This work identified three novel sulfated small molecules capable of decreasing EBV levels in a BL. Therefore, the in silico screening presents a good approach for the development of new anti-EBV agents.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

IL-31 and IL-8 in Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma: Looking for Their Role in Itch

The itch associated with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), including Mycosis Fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS), is often severe and poorly responsive to treatment with antihistamines. Recent studies have highlighted the possible role of interleukins in nonhistaminergic itch. We investigated the role of IL-31 and IL-8 in CTCL, concerning disease severity and associated itch. Serum samples of 27 patients with CTCL (17 MF and 10 SS) and 29 controls (blood donors) were analyzed for interleukin- (IL-) 31 and IL-8; correlations with disease and itch severity were evaluated. IL-31 serum levels were higher in CTCL patients than in controls and higher in SS than in MF. Also, serum IL-31 levels were higher in patients with advanced disease compared to those with early disease, and they correlated positively with lactate dehydrogenase and beta 2-microglobulin levels, as well as with the Sézary cell count. Itch affected 67% of CTCL patients (MF: 47%; SS: 100%). Serum IL-31 levels were higher in itching patients than in controls and in patients without itching. There was no association between serum IL-8 and disease severity, nor with itching. Serum IL-8 levels correlated positively with peripheral blood leukocyte and neutrophil counts in CTCL patients. Our study suggests a role for IL-31 in CTCL-associated itch, especially in advanced disease and SS, offering a rational target for new therapeutic approaches. Increased serum IL-8 observed in some patients may be related to concomitant infections, and its role in exacerbating itch by recruiting neutrophils and promoting the release of neutrophil proteases deserves further investigationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio