Flora etnomedicinal utilizada para el tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas en la Meseta Purépecha, Michoacán, México

Background and Aims: Inhabitants of the Purépecha Plateau preserve an excellent ancestral knowledge on medicinal plants used for dermatological affections, which has not been documented. An ethnopharmacological survey was carried out in this region to gather information on the use of medicinal plants and herbal preparations for treating dermatological affections, to disseminate the Purépecha indigenous knowledge and identifying promising plants for developing new formulations for cutaneous conditions.Methods: The study was conducted in the 21 municipalities that compose the Purépecha Plateau. A total of 86 local inhabitants (62 women and 24 men) were interviewed. The data were quantitatively analyzed through the determination of the use value, fidelity level and informant consensus factor.Key results: A total of 97 plant species belonging to 47 families were documented for treating 19 dermatological conditions on the Purépecha Plateau. Asteraceae was the leading family among the collected medicinal plants (20.61%), followed by Lamiaceae (13.40%) and Solanaceae (5.15%). The largest number of plants was used for the treatment of cuts (40.20%), skin inflammation (37.11%) and rash (37.11%). The aerial parts were the most commonly used (34.75%). The medicinal plant species with larger use values were Heterotheca inuloides (0.53), Aloe vera (0.37) and Oenothera rosea (0.21). The comparison of results with ethnomedicinal literature worldwide revealed that 8.25% of plants used on the Purépecha Plateau were recorded for the first time for the treatment of dermatological affections.Conclusions: This study provides new information on medicinal plants used on the Purépecha Plateau to treat cutaneous diseases. Future pharmacological and toxicological investigations are required to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of these species for treating dermatological affections.Antecedentes y Objetivos: Los habitantes de la Meseta Purépecha conservan un excelente conocimiento ancestral sobre plantas medicinales utilizadas para tratar afecciones dermatológicas que no ha sido documentado. Un estudio etnofarmacológico fue realizado en esta región para recopilar información sobre el uso de plantas medicinales y preparaciones herbarias utilizadas en la zona para el tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas, con el objetivo de difundir la medicina tradicional Purépecha e identificar plantas prometedoras en el desarrollo de tratamientos para afecciones cutáneas.Métodos: El estudio se realizó en los 21 municipios que componen la Meseta Purépecha. Se entrevistó a un total de 86 habitantes locales (62 mujeres y 24 hombres). Los datos se analizaron cuantitativamente mediante la determinación del valor de uso, nivel de fidelidad y el factor de consenso informante.Resultados clave: En total 97 especies de plantas pertenecientes a 47 familias fueron documentadas para el tratamiento de 19 afecciones dermatológicas en la Meseta Purépecha. Asteraceae fue la familia principal entre las plantas colectadas (20.61%), seguida de Lamiaceae (13.40%) y Solanaceae (5.15%). La mayor cantidad de plantas se utilizó para tratamiento de heridas (40.20%), inflamación de la piel (37.11%) y erupciones cutáneas (37.11%). La principal parte utilizada de la planta fue la aérea (34.75%). Las plantas medicinales con mayores valores de uso fueron Heterotheca inuloides (0.53), Aloe vera (0.37) y Oenothera rosea (0.21). La comparación de los resultados con la literatura etnomedicinal reveló que 8.25% de las plantas utilizadas en la Meseta Purépecha se registraron por primera vez para tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas.Conclusiones: Este estudio proporciona nueva información sobre plantas medicinales utilizadas en la Meseta Purépecha para tratamiento de enfermedades cutáneas. Se requieren futuras investigaciones farmacológicas y toxicológicas para demostrar la eficacia y seguridad de estas especies para el tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas

Twist exome capture allows for lower average sequence coverage in clinical exome sequencing

Background Exome and genome sequencing are the predominant techniques in the diagnosis and research of genetic disorders. Sufficient, uniform and reproducible/consistent sequence coverage is a main determinant for the sensitivity to detect single-nucleotide (SNVs) and copy number variants (CNVs). Here we compared the ability to obtain comprehensive exome coverage for recent exome capture kits and genome sequencing techniques. Results We compared three different widely used enrichment kits (Agilent SureSelect Human All Exon V5, Agilent SureSelect Human All Exon V7 and Twist Bioscience) as well as short-read and long-read WGS. We show that the Twist exome capture significantly improves complete coverage and coverage uniformity across coding regions compared to other exome capture kits. Twist performance is comparable to that of both short- and long-read whole genome sequencing. Additionally, we show that even at a reduced average coverage of 70× there is only minimal loss in sensitivity for SNV and CNV detection. Conclusion We conclude that exome sequencing with Twist represents a significant improvement and could be performed at lower sequence coverage compared to other exome capture techniques

A Solve-RD ClinVar-based reanalysis of 1522 index cases from ERN-ITHACA reveals common pitfalls and misinterpretations in exome sequencing

Purpose Within the Solve-RD project (https://solve-rd.eu/), the European Reference Network for Intellectual disability, TeleHealth, Autism and Congenital Anomalies aimed to investigate whether a reanalysis of exomes from unsolved cases based on ClinVar annotations could establish additional diagnoses. We present the results of the “ClinVar low-hanging fruit” reanalysis, reasons for the failure of previous analyses, and lessons learned. Methods Data from the first 3576 exomes (1522 probands and 2054 relatives) collected from European Reference Network for Intellectual disability, TeleHealth, Autism and Congenital Anomalies was reanalyzed by the Solve-RD consortium by evaluating for the presence of single-nucleotide variant, and small insertions and deletions already reported as (likely) pathogenic in ClinVar. Variants were filtered according to frequency, genotype, and mode of inheritance and reinterpreted. Results We identified causal variants in 59 cases (3.9%), 50 of them also raised by other approaches and 9 leading to new diagnoses, highlighting interpretation challenges: variants in genes not known to be involved in human disease at the time of the first analysis, misleading genotypes, or variants undetected by local pipelines (variants in off-target regions, low quality filters, low allelic balance, or high frequency). Conclusion The “ClinVar low-hanging fruit” analysis represents an effective, fast, and easy approach to recover causal variants from exome sequencing data, herewith contributing to the reduction of the diagnostic deadlock

Analyse des effets pharmacologiques d'extraits polyphénoliques issus d'essences canadiennes pour le traitement du psoriasis

Le psoriasis est une maladie de la peau pour laquelle aucun traitement curatif n’est encore connu, caractérisée par une inflammation accrue. Compte tenu des effets secondaires des traitements conventionnels, on estime qu’un pourcentage non négligeable de patients utilise des produits naturels. Les polyphénols sont des molécules multifonctionnelles pouvant être utilisées pour le traitement de maladies pluricausales comme le psoriasis. L’objectif général de ce travail a été d’étudier l’effet pharmacologique d’extraits polyphénoliques issus d’écorces d’essences canadiennes en vue d’une utilisation possible pour le traitement du psoriasis. Dans un premier temps, les extraits d’écorces de plusieurs essences canadiennes ont été analysés quant à leurs propriétés antioxydantes, toxiques et antiprolifératives. Les résultats de cette étude ont permis d’identifier l’extrait aqueux issu de l’écorce de l’épinette noire (Picea mariana) comme étant l’extrait brut le plus prometteur obtenu à partir d’écorces d’essences canadiennes. Puis, on a effectué la purification de cet extrait dans le but de produire une fraction enrichie en polyphénols et on a déterminé la structure moléculaire des composés majoritaires présents dans l’extrait purifié à l’aide de méthodes d’analyse chimique. Au total 28 composés ont été identifiés dans l’extrait purifié, en incluant le trans-resvératrol, qui a été trouvé dans des quantités importantes dans l’écorce de Picea mariana (104,19 µg.g-1 par masse d’écorce séche). Finalement, on a vérifié l’effet pharmacologique de l’extrait purifié sur la voie de signalisation NF-κB associée au TNF-α en utilisant des kératinocytes psoriasiques. On a constaté que cet extrait a la capacité d’inhiber l’expression d’ICAM-1 ainsi que la production de l’IL-6, l’IL-8, la fractalkine, le VEGF, le monoxyde d’azote et l’élafine au sein des kératinocytes psoriasiques stimulés avec le TNF-α, ce qui a été relié à l’inhibition de l’activation de NF-κB. Ce travail a permis d’étudier pour la première fois le rôle immunopharmacologique d’un extrait polyphénolique en tant qu’agent anti-TNF-α sur les kératinocytes psoriasiques. De plus, il ouvre de nouvelles perspectives pour l’analyse du rôle individuel des composés contenus dans l’extrait purifié d’épinette noire pour le traitement du psoriasis.Psoriasis is an incurable skin disorder characterized by an important inflammation. Clinically approved antipsoriatic treatments present many undesirable effects, therefore it has been estimated that a non negligeable percent of patients use natural health products. Natural polyphenols are multifunctional molecules that could be used for the treatment of multi-causal diseases, such as psoriasis. The aim of this work was to study the pharmacological effect of polyphenolic extracts obtained from barks of Canadian species in order to evaluate their possible utilisation for psoriasis treatment. Extracts from barks of some Canadian species were firstly analyzed for their antioxidant, toxicological and antiproliferative properties. The black spruce (Picea mariana) extract obtained by hot water extraction was considered as the most valuable crude extract obtained from barks of Canadian species. Then, the purification of this extract was performed in order to produce a fraction enriched in polyphenols and the nature of major compounds present in the purified extract was determined using different chemical analysis methods. A total of 28 compounds were identified in the purified extract, including trans-resveratrol, which was determined to be present at significant level in the bark of Picea mariana (104.19 µg.g-1 dried bark). Finally, the influence of the purified extract on the TNF-α/NF-κB signaling pathway on psoriatic keratinocytes was evaluated. It was found that this extract has the capacity to inhibit the ICAM-1 expression as well as the production of IL-6, IL-8, fractalkine; VEGF, nitric oxide and elafin by psoriatic keratinocytes upon TNF-α stimulation, which was attributed to the inhibition of TNFα-induced NF-κB activation in these cells. This study provides new insight into the immunopharmacological role of a polyphenolic extract in impacting the TNF-induced responses by psoriatic keratinocytes. Additionally, it opens new perspectives for the analysis of the individual role of polyphenolic compounds present in this extract for psoriasis treatment

Ethnomedicinal plants used for the treatment of dermatological affections on the Purépecha Plateau, Michoacán, Mexico

Background and Aims: Inhabitants of the Purépecha Plateau preserve an excellent ancestral knowledge on medicinal plants used for dermatological affections, which has not been documented. An ethnopharmacological survey was carried out in this region to gather information on the use of medicinal plants and herbal preparations for treating dermatological affections, to disseminate the Purépecha indigenous knowledge and identifying promising plants for developing new formulations for cutaneous conditions. Methods: The study was conducted in the 21 municipalities that compose the Purépecha Plateau. A total of 86 local inhabitants (62 women and 24 men) were interviewed. The data were quantitatively analyzed through the determination of the use value, fidelity level and informant consensus factor. Key results: A total of 97 plant species belonging to 47 families were documented for treating 19 dermatological conditions on the Purépecha Plateau. Asteraceae was the leading family among the collected medicinal plants (20.61%), followed by Lamiaceae (13.40%) and Solanaceae (5.15%). The largest number of plants was used for the treatment of cuts (40.20%), skin inflammation (37.11%) and rash (37.11%). The aerial parts were the most commonly used (34.75%). The medicinal plant species with larger use values were Heterotheca inuloides (0.53), Aloe vera (0.37) and Oenothera rosea (0.21). The comparison of results with ethnomedicinal literature worldwide revealed that 8.25% of plants used on the Purépecha Plateau were recorded for the first time for the treatment of dermatological affections. Conclusions: This study provides new information on medicinal plants used on the Purépecha Plateau to treat cutaneous diseases. Future pharmacological and toxicological investigations are required to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of these species for treating dermatological affections.Antecedentes y Objetivos: Los habitantes de la Meseta Purépecha conservan un excelente conocimiento ancestral sobre plantas medicinales utilizadas para tratar afecciones dermatológicas que no ha sido documentado. Un estudio etnofarmacológico fue realizado en esta región para recopilar información sobre el uso de plantas medicinales y preparaciones herbarias utilizadas en la zona para el tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas, con el objetivo de difundir la medicina tradicional Purépecha e identificar plantas prometedoras en el desarrollo de tratamientos para afecciones cutáneas. Métodos: El estudio se realizó en los 21 municipios que componen la Meseta Purépecha. Se entrevistó a un total de 86 habitantes locales (62 mujeres y 24 hombres). Los datos se analizaron cuantitativamente mediante la determinación del valor de uso, nivel de fidelidad y el factor de consenso informante. Resultados clave: En total 97 especies de plantas pertenecientes a 47 familias fueron documentadas para el tratamiento de 19 afecciones dermatológicas en la Meseta Purépecha. Asteraceae fue la familia principal entre las plantas colectadas (20.61%), seguida de Lamiaceae (13.40%) y Solanaceae (5.15%). La mayor cantidad de plantas se utilizó para tratamiento de heridas (40.20%), inflamación de la piel (37.11%) y erupciones cutáneas (37.11%). La principal parte utilizada de la planta fue la aérea (34.75%). Las plantas medicinales con mayores valores de uso fueron Heterotheca inuloides (0.53), Aloe vera (0.37) y Oenothera rosea (0.21). La comparación de los resultados con la literatura etnomedicinal reveló que 8.25% de las plantas utilizadas en la Meseta Purépecha se registraron por primera vez para tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas. Conclusiones: Este estudio proporciona nueva información sobre plantas medicinales utilizadas en la Meseta Purépecha para tratamiento de enfermedades cutáneas. Se requieren futuras investigaciones farmacológicas y toxicológicas para demostrar la eficacia y seguridad de estas especies para el tratamiento de afecciones dermatológicas

Historical developments of pyrolysis reactors: a review

This paper provides a review of pyrolysis technologies, focusing on reactor designs and companies commercializing these technologies. The renewed interest in pyrolysis is driven by the potential to convert lignocellulosic materials into bio-oil and biochar and the use of these intermediates for the production of biofuels, biochemicals, and engineered biochars for environmental services. This review presents slow, intermediate, fast, and microwave pyrolysis as complementary technologies that share some commonalities in their designs. While slow pyrolysis technologies (traditional carbonization kilns) use wood trunks to produce char chunks for cooking, fast pyrolysis systems process small particles to maximize bio-oil yield. The realization of the environmental issues associated with the use of carbonization technologies and the technical difficulties of operating fast pyrolysis reactors using sand as the heating medium and large volumes of carrier gas, as well as the problems with refining the resulting highly oxygenated oils, are forcing the thermochemical conversion community to rethink the design and use of these reactors. Intermediate pyrolysis reactors (also known as converters) offer opportunities for the large-scale balanced production of char and bio-oil. The capacity of these reactors to process forest and agricultural wastes without much preprocessing is a clear advantage. Microwave pyrolysis is an option for modular small autonomous devices for solid waste management. Herein, the evolution of pyrolysis technology is presented from a historical perspective; thus, old and new innovative designs are discussed together.This paper provides a review of pyrolysis technologies, focusing on reactor designs and companies commercializing these technologies. The renewed interest in pyrolysis is driven by the potential to convert lignocellulosic materials into bio-oil and biochar and the use of these intermediates for the production of biofuels, biochemicals, and engineered biochars for environmental services. This review presents slow, intermediate, fast, and microwave pyrolysis as complementary technologies that share some commonalities in their designs. While slow pyrolysis technologies (traditional carbonization kilns) use wood trunks to produce char chunks for cooking, fast pyrolysis systems process small particles to maximize bio-oil yield. The realization of the environmental issues associated with the use of carbonization technologies and the technical difficulties of operating fast pyrolysis reactors using sand as the heating medium and large volumes of carrier gas, as well as the problems with refining the resulting highly oxygenated oils, are forcing the thermochemical conversion community to rethink the design and use of these reactors. Intermediate pyrolysis reactors (also known as converters) offer opportunities for the large-scale balanced production of char and bio-oil. The capacity of these reactors to process forest and agricultural wastes without much preprocessing is a clear advantage. Microwave pyrolysis is an option for modular small autonomous devices for solid waste management. Herein, the evolution of pyrolysis technology is presented from a historical perspective; thus, old and new innovative designs are discussed together

Antioxidant vitamins in asthma

Asthma is a condition of unknown etiology characterized by chronic airway inflammation. Cells that mediate the inflammatory response generate reactive oxygen species that, together with other respiratory tract naturally-occurring oxidant species, produce a rupture of the redox balance, generating oxidative stress. It has been proposed that oxidative stress can be reverted by supplemental or dietary intake of antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin A, C, D and E, and this way relieve, improve or protect people with asthma. In this research, observational and placebo-controlled trials with regard to the role of antioxidant vitamins in the course of asthma, published between 1979 and 2016, were reviewed. The search engines were Google and Google Scholar, whereas consulted databases were PubMed and The Cochrane Library. There were 75 articles relevant to the subject that were found and reviewed, and it was concluded that it is not clear if the intake of supplements of these vitamins has any beneficial clinical effect on asthma control. Further controlled, longer trials are needed to elucidate the role of these nutrients in the course of asthma

Polyphenols: antioxidant and toxicological properties

Los compuestos fenólicos son metabolitos secundarios de las plantas, con diversas funciones fisiológicas. Variadas estructuras químicas caracterizan a este grupo de moléculas. Su amplia distribución, así como su capacidad de captar especies reactivas de oxígeno y nitrógeno asociadas con el padecimiento de enfermedades, perfila a los extractos naturales ricos en compuestos fenólicos como ingredientes que pueden ser utilizados para el desarrollo de nuevos productos en la industria farmacéutica, de alimentos y cosméticos. Sin embargo, para lograr tales propósitos, es necesario asegurar su inocuidad, a través de la realización de pruebas rigurosas de toxicidad. En este artículo se describen los diferentes tipos de compuestos fenólicos desde el punto de vista químico, así como múltiples estudios que avalan sus propiedades antioxidantes. De igual modo, se discuten diferentes métodos toxicológicos y su impacto en la determinación del grado de toxicidad de extractos polifenólicos naturales provenientes de plantas.Phenolic compounds are secondary plant metabolites, with various physiological functions. Several chemical structures characterize to these molecules. They are widely distributed and have a high capacity to capture reactive oxygen and nitrogen species associated to the disease pathogenesis. Taking into account these charcacteristics, natural extracts rich in polyphenols can be used for the development of new pharmaceutical, alimentary and cosmetic products. However, it is necessary to ensure the safety of these products by performing toxicity tests. This article describes polyphenols from the chemical point of view, as well as multiple studies that support their antioxidant properties. Additionally, different toxicological methods are discussed, as well as their impact in the determination of the toxicity of natural polyphenolic extracts from plants.Cuencanúmero 1

Antioxidant Properties of Polyphenolic Extracts from Quercus Laurina, Quercus Crassifolia, and Quercus Scytophylla Bark

The objective of this work was to determine the concentration of total phenols, total flavonoids, hydroxycinnamic acids, and proanthocyanidins present in crude extracts of Quercus laurina, Q. crassifolia, and Q. scytophylla bark. They were extracted by ethanol (90%) maceration and hot water. The antioxidant capacity was determined by the ability to capture OH•, O2•−, ROO•, H2O2, NO•, and HClO. The hot water crude extract of Q. crassifolia was chosen to be concentrated and purified due to its higher extraction yield (20.04%), concentration of phenol compounds (747 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g, 25.4 mg quercetin equivalent (QE)/g, 235 mg ChAE/g, 25.7 mg chlorogenic acid equivalents (ChAE)/g), and antioxidant capacity (expressed as half maximal effective concentration (EC50, µg/mL): OH• = 918, O2•− = 80.5, ROO• = 577, H2O2 = 597, NO• ≥ 4000, HClO = 740). In a second stage, Q. crassifolia extracted with hot water was treated with ethyl acetate, concentrating the phenol compounds (860 mg GAE/g, 43.6 mg QE/g, 362 ChAE/g, 9.4 cyanidin chloride equivalents (CChE)/g) and improving the scavenging capacity (OH• = 467, O2•− = 58.1, ROO• = 716, H2O2 = 22.0, NO• ≥ 4000, HClO = 108). Q. crassifolia had the highest polyphenolic concentration and the better capacity for scavenging reactive species, being a favorable candidate to be considered in the development of new products