Health‐related quality of life and working conditions on public transport workers in the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte, Brazil, 2012

Drivers and conductors working in public transport are frequently exposed to inadequate working conditions and consequently to health problems relating to their work activities. This study investigates the relationship between the working conditions of drivers and conductors in the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte and their perception of health-related quality of life. Health-related quality of life was measured in a sample of 1,607 public transport workers in the city of Belo Horizonte using the SF-12 (Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form General Health Survey). The presence and magnitude of independent associations between the SF-12 domains and the exposure variables were determined by means of odds ratios obtained through logistic regression. After adjustments, the PCS (Physical Component Score) was found to be negatively associated with the existence of breaks during the working day and positively associated with unavailability of technical resources for meeting needs. The MCS (Mental Component Score) was positively associated with being female, having two or more medical diagnoses of illnesses, absenteeism and recent episodes of aggression or threats, and feeling vibration in the whole body. The MCS was negatively associated with the practice of physical exercise. Both components were negatively associated with older age and positively associated with having a poor self-assessment of health. Exposure to a variety of risk factors while performing work worsened health-related quality of life. The results obtained may provide support for rethinking and guiding public policies directed towards metropolitan populations

Proteomic analysis to identify candidate biomarkers associated with type 1 diabetes

Valzimeire do Nascimento de Oliveira,1,2 Abelardo Barbosa Moreira Lima-Neto,1 Maurício Fraga van Tilburg,2 Ana Cristina de Oliveira Monteiro-Moreira,3 Marina Duarte Pinto Lobo,3 Davide Rondina,4 Virgínia Oliveira Fernandes,5 Ana Paula Dias Rangel Montenegro,5 Renan Magalhães Montenegro Júnior,5 Maria Izabel Florindo Guedes1,2 1Collegiate Nutrition Science, Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology, Ceará State University, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil; 2Collegiate Biotechnology, Northeast Network of Biotechnology, Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology, Ceará State University, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil; 3Center of Experimental Biology, University of Fortaleza, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil; 4School of Veterinary Science, Ceará State of University, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil; 5Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará and University Hospitals, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil Purpose: Type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM1) is one of the most common chronic diseases observed during childhood. The incidence of DM1 is increasing worldwide, and there is currently no way to prevent or delay the onset or to cure the disease. Most diseases, including diabetes, stem from abnormalities in the functioning of proteins, and some studies have reported the expression of protein variation to be involved in the development of DM1. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the differential expression of serum proteins in patients with DM1. Materials and methods: Serum of patients with DM1 (n=30) and healthy controls (n=30) was collected. A proteomic approach was used with depletion of albumin and immunoglobulin G chromatography on serum samples followed by data-independent, label-free mass spectrometric analysis. Results: A total of eight serum proteins were identified as being differentially expressed and involved in the immune system, lipid metabolism, and pathways of coagulation. DM1 was associated with the upregulation of six proteins: alpha-2-macroglobulin, apolipoprotein A-II, β2 glycoprotein I, Ig alpha-2 chain C region, alpha-1-microglobulin, and prothrombin. A total of two proteins were downregulated, including pregnancy zone protein and complement C4. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, these findings show differential expression of proteins revealing new proteins that may be involved in the development and progression of diabetes. Keywords: proteome, mass spectrometry, precision medicine, diagnosi

O Comportamento das Aves Poultry Behavior

Os estudos sobre o comportamento das aves, principalmente as galinhas, datam de 1912, quando o gênero Gallus passou a ser estudado com mais intensidade na área da Genética. Tais estudos eram simplesmente filosóficos até o início da década de 80, quando uma nova era da produção industrial avícola surgiu, objetivando um maior volume de produção econômica em todas as áreas de exploração. Esse objetivo reativou de maneira científica os estudos de comportamento das aves face à tecnologia de produção empregada nos sistemas de exploração, tornando-os mais acentuados já na década de 90, culminando com um simpósio internacional realizado nos Estados Unidos onde foram traçados os objetivos ou linhas de pesquisas na exploração avícola. O intuito era evitar problemas com os movimentos ambientalistas, traçando novos rumos para uma produção eficiente sem interferir no comportamento das aves já no início do novo milênio. Esta revisão, tem como objetivo principal uma análise científica e filosófica sobre o comportamento das aves em diversos métodos de exploração.<br>Studies on poultry behavior initiated in 1972, at that time, fowls from Gallus domesticus species were the most important animal for the initial studies of Genetic. Since then, just the philosophical concepts where involved in those studies. However, at the beginning of 80 decade, these studies were intensified taking into account technological approaches for an economical industrial poultry production. Meanwhile, the reactions from activists involved in the behavior of the animal subjected to production became more strong at the beginning of 90's as well as those studies on chicken behavior. Finally, in 1998, an international symposium, promoted by chicken behavior scientists were held in the United States, in order to establish new methods of exploitation of poultry without interfering in its normal behavior, at the beginning of new millenium. The main objective of this article is concerned to philosophical and scientific aspects of poultry behavior under different systems of production

A panoramic view of the immune response to Trypanosoma cruzi infection

Chagas disease is a complex disorder in which the immunological response developed by the host plays a fundamental role, not only in the clearance of the parasite but also in the inflammatory status observed in specific affected tissues. Chagas disease has two phases, acute and chronic, the latter being established in those cases where treatment with currently available anti-parasitic drugs (Nifurtimox and Benznidazole) is either not applied or not effective. During the chronic phase, the disease may remain without any detectable symptoms for several decades, or progress toward cardiac, digestive, neurological forms, or even a combination of these alterations. The immune response developed in all of these conditions is flowery and comprises humoral and cellular components; however the clearance of the parasite is incomplete due to the multiple mechanisms that T. cruzi deploys in order to perpetuate itself within the host.Here, we make an extensive review of T. cruzi-host immune response interactions with special attention on human models, and also referring to the particular clinical scenario of etiological treatment in Chagas disease.Fil: Acevedo, Gonzalo Raúl. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Girard, Magalí Celeste. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Gomez, Karina Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentin