Neisseria gonorrhoeae challenge increases matrix metalloproteinase-8 expression in fallopian tube explants

Indexación: Scopus.Background: Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ngo) is the etiological agent of gonorrhea, a sexually transmitted infection that initially infects the female lower genital tract. In untreated women, the bacteria can ascend to the upper genital reproductive tract and infect the fallopian tube (FTs), which is associated with salpingitis and can lead to impaired FT function and infertility. The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays an important role in cell migration and differentiation in the female genital tract, and some pathogens modify the ECM to establish successful infections. The ECM is regulated by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), their endogenous inhibitors; MMP deregulation causes pathological conditions in a variety of tissues. Results: The aim of this work was to analyze the expression and localization of MMP-3, MMP-8, MMP-9, and TIMP-1 in FT explants during Ngo infection using real-time PCR, immunohistochemistry, zymography and ELISA. No significant variations in MMP-3, MMP-9, and TIMP-1 transcript levels were observed. In contrast, a significant increase (p < 0.05) was observed for MMP-8 expression and was accompanied by stromal immunoreactivity in infected explants. ELISA results supported these findings and showed that MMP-8 release increased upon gonococcal infection. Conclusions: Our results indicate that gonococcal infection induces increased MMP-8 expression, which might contribute to FT damage during infection. © 2017 Juica, Rodas, Solar, Borda, Vargas, Muñoz, Paredes, Christodoulides and Velasquez.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2017.00399/ful

VCAM1 modulation on endothelial cells – implications for vasculopathy in sickle cell anemia

Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is a highly heterogeneous and multifactorial-like monogenic disease that arises from homozygosity for the c.20A>T mutation in the HBB gene. Vascular disease is systemic in SCA, with profound effects in organs like the brain, where stroke is the most severe end of the cerebral vasculopathy (CVA) spectrum. Endothelial dysfunction plays a major role in vasculopathy with several adhesion molecules, such as VCAM1, being produced by the endothelium altered as a response to inflammatory cytokine (e.g., TNF-α) signalling. In previous association studies, we found positive associations between the presence of four specific VCAM1 gene promoter haplotypes and i) high blood flow velocities in the median cerebral artery, and ii) a chronic hemolysis biochemical marker. In this study, we aimed to assess the functional role of those VCAM1 promoter haplotypes in endothelial cell response following endothelial activation through TNF-α stimulation. After molecular cloning of 3 haplotype constructs, using a pGL4 promoterless vector, haplotype sequence was confirmed, by Sanger sequencing, prior to transfection. We used EAhy926, HUVEC and HBEC as different endothelial cell models, and performed transfection experiments for each construct, with and without TNF-α stimulation. Differences in promoter activity were assessed by luciferase reporter assay. All haplotypes showed differences in promoter activity, after TNF-α stimulation, in all cell models. Haplotype 1 showed decreased promoter activity, while haplotypes 7 and 8 showed increased activity after TNF-α stimulation, in all cell models. These results are consistent with lower VCAM1 expression due to haplotype 1, and therefore a protective effect. Conversely, a higher expression due to haplotypes 7 and 8, suggests an increased vasculopathy risk, in a pro-inflammatory milieu. The association between specific haplotypes and endothelial cell response further enhances the modifier effect of VCAM1 on endothelial dysfunction and its impact in SCA pathophysiology, as well as its potential role as a biomarker of SCA vasculopathy risk, severity and prognosis.This work was partially supported by INSA_202DGH720 project.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Antigen-specific cell therapy: Myelin Peptide - Loaded Tolerogenic Dendritic Cells for Multiple Sclerosis

Treballs Finals de Grau de Farmàcia, Facultat de Farmàcia i Ciències de l'Alimentació, Universitat de Barcelona, 2020. Tutor/a: Pablo Engel RocamoraMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a multifactorial disease characterized by immune dysregulation, neurodegeneration, and failure of the central nervous system (CNS) repair mechanisms. Identifying specific myelin-derived peptides as important targets of the autoreactive immune response has opened the possibility to develop antigen-specific therapeutic approaches. Dendritic cells (DCs) are the most potent professional antigenpresenting cells (APCs) of the immune system capable of inducing or suppressing the T cell response, their effect depends on different factors such as the degree of maturity, signals obtained from the local microenvironment, communication with other immune cells or the DCs subtype. Therefore, DCs have proved to be one of the most promising tools in immunotherapy in order to modify the immune response and restructure immune tolerance. There are some established protocols in vitro for generating monocyte-derived tolerogenic-DCs (tol-DCs) that exhibit numerous immunosuppressive mechanisms. However, the therapeutic potential of DCs has not yet been fully exploited clinically. In this report, I describe the immunopathogenesis of MS, different subsets of DCs, the central role of DCs in the initiation of antigen-specific tolerance, and protocols for generating tol-DCs. In addition, I will discuss the characterization of tol-DCs for clinical application, as well as recent clinical trials based on tol-DCs to treat MS

Impacto de la publicidad en Facebook, TikTok e Instagram en la comunidad de Arlington VA

This paper is a product of the research about “Advertisement impact in Facebook, Tik Tok and Instagram in Arlington Virginia community” developed in the Francisco Jose de Caldas University in 2022. Introduction: Over time, generations have been changing and developing new consumer trends. In the same way, companies have been evolving to be able to adapt to the different trends to reach the target audience using diverse ways of advertising. Method: This paper makes use of databases such as Scopus, Google Scholar, Index-K as sources of information to guide the research of social media use. Using statistics and articles we determine the main aspects that guide the behavior and the use of the different social media platforms in the different age groups. Results: This Paper shows that depending on the age group the use of social media is different; the youngest users prefer platforms where they can share videos or images. Conclusions: As people grow, people are more attracted by platforms like Facebook where they can find social interaction, information and they can share different type of content. Limitation: This paper is focused on people that live in Arlington a small city in the state of Virginia. The information found can be a basis for analyzing users\u27 behaviors on different platforms.Este artículo es producto de la investigación sobre “Impacto de la publicidad en Facebook, Tik Tok e Instagram en la comunidad de Arlington Virginia” desarrollada en la Universidad Francisco José de Caldas en el año 2022. Introducción: Con el paso del tiempo, las generaciones han ido cambiando y desarrollando nuevas tendencias de consumo. Del mismo modo, las empresas han ido evolucionando para poder adaptarse a las diferentes tendencias para llegar al público objetivo utilizando diversas formas de publicidad. Método: este artículo hace uso de bases de datos como Scopus, Google Scholar, Index-K como fuentes de información para guiar la investigación del uso de las redes sociales. Mediante estadísticas y artículos determinamos los principales aspectos que guían el comportamiento y el uso de las diferentes plataformas de redes sociales en los distintos grupos de edad. Resultados: Este trabajo muestra que dependiendo del grupo de edad el uso de las redes sociales es diferente; los usuarios más jóvenes prefieren las plataformas donde pueden compartir videos o imágenes. Conclusiones: A medida que las personas crecen, las personas se sienten más atraídas por plataformas como Facebook, donde pueden encontrar interacción social, información y pueden compartir diferentes tipos de contenido. Limitación: Este artículo está enfocado a personas que viven en Arlington, una pequeña ciudad en el estado de Virginia. La información encontrada puede ser una base para analizar el comportamiento de los usuarios en diferentes plataformas. &nbsp

Anatomy Applied to Block Anesthesia for Maxillofacial Surgery

Anatomy is a basic knowledge that every clinician must have; however, its full management is not always achieved and gaps remain in daily practice. The aim of this chapter is to emphasize the most relevant aspects of head and neck anatomy, specifically related to osteology and neurology for the application of regional anesthesia techniques. This chapter presents a clear and concise text, useful for both undergraduate and graduate students and for the dentist and maxillofacial surgeon. The most relevant aspects of the bone and sensory anatomy relevant for the realization of regional anesthetic techniques in the oral and maxillofacial area are reviewed, including complementary figures and tables. The anatomy related to the techniques directed to the three major branches of the trigeminal nerve (ophthalmic nerve, maxillary nerve, and to the branches of the mandibular nerve) will be approached separately

Writing programs o la planificación de la escritura académica en el ámbito universitario: una práctica para la mejora de la expresión escrita en los estudiantes de nuevo ingreso.

El objetivo general con el cual se planteó esta investigación fue el de crear un taller que diese respuesta a las carencias de los estudiantes universitarios en materia de creación textual y mejora de la expresión escrita. Optamos por una metodología de acción investigación en el aula con alumnos pertenecientes al primer curso de los grados de Magisterio de Educación Infantil y Magisterio de Educación Primaria. A lo largo de 10 horas presenciales más 15 horas de trabajo autónomo los estudiantes, siguiendo los procesos de creación textual –planificación, redacción y revisión-, elaboraron textos de marcado perfil académico –elaboración de apuntes- junto con otros de marcado perfil investigador –ensayos-. Para la consecución de estos textos se siguieron los siguientes pasos: generación de ideas, organización, desarrollo –las ideas se convierten en párrafos y estos a su vez en textos- y revisión. Los resultados del taller demostraron la necesidad de proporcionarle al alumnado universitario de nuevo ingreso estrategias para mejorar su competencia escrita

Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutricional

El estudio de los alimentos llamados frescos como procesados cobra cada día más importancia, dada la alta incidencia de enfermedades crónicas y cáncer, y el reconocimiento de que la dieta, como parte de un estilo de vida saludable, tiene un papel preponderante en la prevención y cura de enfermedades. Son numerosas las cosas que se dicen acerca de algunas sustancias que se incorporan al procesamiento de los alimentos para evitar que se descompongan dentro del empaque en el tiempo que transcurre entre su fabricación y el consumo o para resaltar de alguna manera su sabor, su aspecto o su consistencia. Considerables son los criterios que se expresan acerca de su calidad nutricional. Y aunque se ha avanzado mucho en lo que se refiere a la información que ahora traen las etiquetas de los empaques, da la impresión de que la confusión de ideas se mantiene y parece incrementarse con el tiemp

Material Didático para as sessões de TANDEM: elaboração, aplicação e análise

VII Seminário de Extensão Universitária da UNILA (SEUNI); VIII Encontro de Iniciação Científica e IV Encontro de Iniciação em Desenvolvimento Tecnológico e Inovação (EICTI 2019) e Seminário de Atividades Formativas da UNILA (SAFOR)Com o propósito de possibilitar uma abordagem linguístico-cultural, o ​ Projeto TANDEM: aproximando línguas-culturas latino-americanas e caribenhas foi criado como parte integrante do ensino e aprendizagem de espanhol e português na Universidade Federal da Integração Latino-Americana (UNILA). A partir do ensino, pesquisa e extensão, o projeto desenvolve uma exaustiva exploração de materiais didáticos para promover o uso efetivo da língua estrangeira/adicional. A pesquisa teve como objetivo criar materiais didáticos com um enfoque na abordagem comunicativa e na gramática contrastiva, para encontros de tandem entre brasileiros aprendizes de espanhol e hispanofalantes aprendizes de português. A pesquisa foi orientada por três objetivos: a) Descrever o funcionamento do Tandem em relação à aprendizagem de Português e Espanhol; b) Averiguar a relevância de abordar aspectos gramaticais em materiais didáticos para a prática de Tandem; c) Analisar os materiais didáticos propostos, expondo os resultados da aplicação. Logo, tendo como norte os pressupostos da pesquisa-ação, é possível planejar, descrever, avaliar mudanças e promover melhorias. Assim, buscamos descrever os desafios de abordar a gramática de forma didática e da mesma forma monitorar e avaliar o processo de aprendizagem. Diante da falta de ferramentas ou métodos para aprimorar o ensino-aprendizagem da oralidade e da gramática, constatamos que as práticas de Tandem trazem resultados favoráveis para o desenvolvimento do conhecimento gramatical junto com o aperfeiçoamento de habilidades orais. Os resultados apontam que o uso da pesquisa-ação na elaboração, aplicação e análise das atividades mostrou-se adequado ao caso estudado. Os materiais desenvolvidos estimularam a participação dos estudantes melhorando seu nível de proficiência na língua-alvo, além de proporcionar reflexão crítica sobre questões gramaticais tanto na língua materna como na língua a ser aprendidaAgradecemos à UNILA e a Pró-Reitoria de Pesquisa e Pós-Graduação (PRPPG) pela concessão de bolsa que permitiu a realização da presente pesquis

Art Therapy and Speech Pathologist Language in The Empowerment of Communication Skills In Young People with Intellectual Disabilities

Este es un trabajo investigativo cuyo objetivo fue explorar la modalidad del arteterapia como nueva estrategia de intervención que puede utilizar el fonoaudiólogo en la potenciación y estimulación de aquellas habilidades del lenguaje que se encuentran disminuidas o ausentes. Dicha investigación se realizó en personas con discapacidad intelectual, teniendo en cuenta que generalmente poseen dificultades en la adquisición, desarrollo, consolidación y uso del lenguaje verbal y no verbal, presentando así problemas en el desempeño de actividades escolares, laborales, sociales e incluso en actividades de la vida cotidiana y por supuesto en simbolizar el mundo.Researchwork whose aim was to explore the mode of artistic endeavors as a new intervention strategy that can be used in enhancing the speech pathologist language and stimulation of those language skills that are diminished or absent in people with intellectual disabilities. Given that people with this diagnosis have difficulty in the acquisition, development, consolidation and use of verbal and non-verbal language, thus presenting problems in the performance of school, work, social activities and even activities of daily life and symbolize course in the world

Prevalência de depressão em trabalhadores de enfermagem de Unidade de Terapia Intensiva: estudo em hospitais de uma cidade do noroeste do Estado São Paulo

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of depression in nursing staff working in Intensive Care Units of hospitals from a city in Northwestern São Paulo State - Brazil, examining its association with participants&#39; socio-demographic characteristics. The Beck Depression Inventory was applied to a sample of 67 nursing workers from three general hospitals, showing an 28.4% prevalence of depression. The analysis based on the multiple model showed a significant association between depression and marital status (OR=1.52), night work (OR=1.46) and double shifts (OR=2.11). Also, there were significant percentages of workers who reported discouragement, sadness and hopelessness. In conclusion, the prevalence of depression is significant and more attention should be paid to this problem workers at these units face. Further studies are needed in the attempt to broaden knowledge on the subject, which can support strategies to guarantee attention to ICU nursing workers&#39; physical and mental health needs.Este estudio fue realizado con el objetivo de estimar la prevalencia de depresión, en trabajadores de enfermería de Unidades de Terapia Intensiva (UTI) de hospitales de una ciudad del Noroeste del estado de Sao Paulo, analizando su asociación con las características sociodemográficas de los participantes. Se aplicó el Inventario de Depresión de Beck a una muestra de 67 trabajadores de enfermería de tres hospitales generales; se observó una prevalencia de 28,4% de depresión. El análisis por el modelo múltiple demostró asociación significativa entre depresión y estado civil (OR=1,52), trabajo nocturno (OR=1,46) y doble jornada (OR=2,11), fueron significativos también los porcentajes de trabajadores que relataron desanimo, tristeza y desesperanza. Se concluye que es significativa la prevalencia de depresión y que se debe dar mayor atención a ese problema enfrentado por los trabajadores de esas unidades. Se sugiere la realización de otros estudios buscando ampliar el conocimiento sobre la temática, los cuales pueden respaldar estrategias que objetiven asegurar, al trabajador de enfermería de las UTIs, atención a sus necesidades de salud física y psíquica.Estudo realizado com o objetivo de estimar a prevalência de depressão em trabalhadores de enfermagem de Unidades de Terapia Intensiva (UTI) de hospitais, de uma cidade do noroeste do Estado São Paulo, analisando sua associação às características sociodemográficas dos participantes. Aplicou-se o inventário de depressão de Beck a uma amostra 67 trabalhadores de enfermagem de três hospitais gerais. Observou-se prevalência de 28,4% de depressão. A análise pelo modelo múltiplo demonstrou associação significativa entre depressão e estado civil (OR=1,52), trabalho noturno (OR=1,46) e dupla jornada (OR=2,11). Foram significativos, ainda, os percentuais de trabalhadores que relataram desânimo, tristeza e desesperança. Conclui-se que é significativa a prevalência de depressão e que maior atenção deve ser dada a esse problema enfrentado pelos trabalhadores dessas unidades. Sugere-se a realização de outros estudos na busca por ampliar o conhecimento sobre a temática os quais podem respaldar estratégias que visem assegurar ao trabalhador de enfermagem, das UTIs, atenção a suas necessidades de saúde física e psíquica