Estudo da Rigidez Arterial pelo Método da Velocidade de Onda de Pulso no Envelhecimento e na Espondiloartrite Axial

As doenças cardiovasculares (CV’s) são a principal causa de mortalidade, com a rigidez arterial como marcador determinante de risco CV, que pode ser avaliada pela técnica gold-standard da velocidade da onda de pulso do segmento carótido-femoral (VOPcf). Em estudos anteriores, foi confirmado o aumento da rigidez arterial com o envelhecimento, assim como com a perda de massa muscular (uma característica da sarcopénia) e em indivíduos com Espondiloartrite Axial (Esp. Ax.). Como o perfil da VOPcf varia com a etnia, é necessário o estabelecimento de valores de referência para este marcador em populações específicas. O presente trabalho pretende caracterizar o perfil da VOPcf em 4 amostras portuguesas de Almada e Grande Lisboa: 55 jovens adultos (20-28 anos de idade), 11 adultos sem diagnóstico associado (SDA) (31-51 anos), 10 adultos com Esp.Ax. (31-50 anos) e 38 idosos (67-95 anos), bem como estimar se a sarcopénia em idosos e a Esp.Ax. comprometem a saúde CV. A VOPcf foi obtida com um equipamento não invasivo e o tempo de trânsito do pulso foi obtido pelo método foot-to-foot. Duas técnicas diferentes foram utilizadas para a distância: 80% da distância carótida-femoral direta e uma recente fórmula publicada, que resultou em duas VOPcf’s distintas. Ambos os métodos de medição da VOPcf mostraram alta concordância (β1=0,997), o que corrobora a fiabilidade da nova fórmula. A amostra de jovens adultos apresentou a menor média para a VOPcf (4,78 m/s), seguida pelos adultos SDA (5,79 m/s) e os idosos (6,403 m/s), o que confirmou o aumento da rigidez arterial com o envelhecimento. Não foi possível concluir que os idosos com sarcopénia (média de 6,80 m/s) apresentavam maior risco CV (maior VOPcf) que o grupo sem sarcopénia (5,86 m/s): p-value=0,153. Também não foi possível inferir que os adultos com Esp.Ax. (6,57 m/s) apresentavam maior risco CV em comparação com o grupo de controlo (5,92 m/s): p-value=0,101. Seriam desejáveis futuras investigações de modo a obter amostras maiores

Arterial Stiffness vs Sarcopenia in Portuguese Elderly Population

Aging often results in the appearance of sarcopenia, which is characterized by loss of muscle mass and strength. The incidence of sarcopenia in the elderly is a quite common and leads to weakness and disability, as well as a lower quality of life, also assuming a high social and economic impact. One previous study has shown an independent negative association between arterial stiffness and skeletal muscle mass decline [1], which suggest its relationship with sarcopenia. This work aims to evaluate the relation between sarcopenia and the arterial stiffness, in Portuguese elderly population A cohort of 38 elderly volunteers between 67 and 95 years, with and without Sarcopenia, were selected from nursing homes and day centers of Portuguese charity institution - Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Almada. All volunteers have the same living condition, meals and lifestyle routine, excepting the medications. The diagnosis and degree (severe or moderate) of sarcopenia were performed according to the European consensus on definition and diagnosis of sarcopenia [2] at the same day with arterial stiffnesses measurements assessed by carotid-femoral Pulse Wave Velocity (cfPWV). Our data show a positive correlation for cfPWV with the sarcopenia severity degree, which represents an increasing in arterial stiffness and might be explained by the fact that the loss of muscle mass is often associated with chronic inflammation [3]. Despite of the small cohort size, the male gender held a bigger mean value of cfPWV, with significant p-value (0.014), in comparison to the female gender, which estimates a higher CV risk for the male elders of the region of Almada and Greater Lisbon compared to the female gender. Further investigations would be desirable in order to obtain larger samples and ascertain the estimates for the respective groups.publishersversionpublishe

The complete genome sequence of Chromobacterium violaceum reveals remarkable and exploitable bacterial adaptability

Chromobacterium violaceum is one of millions of species of free-living microorganisms that populate the soil and water in the extant areas of tropical biodiversity around the world. Its complete genome sequence reveals (i) extensive alternative pathways for energy generation, (ii) ≈500 ORFs for transport-related proteins, (iii) complex and extensive systems for stress adaptation and motility, and (iv) wide-spread utilization of quorum sensing for control of inducible systems, all of which underpin the versatility and adaptability of the organism. The genome also contains extensive but incomplete arrays of ORFs coding for proteins associated with mammalian pathogenicity, possibly involved in the occasional but often fatal cases of human C. violaceum infection. There is, in addition, a series of previously unknown but important enzymes and secondary metabolites including paraquat-inducible proteins, drug and heavy-metal-resistance proteins, multiple chitinases, and proteins for the detoxification of xenobiotics that may have biotechnological applications

Núcleos de Ensino da Unesp: artigos 2008

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved

Thrombotic and hemorrhagic complications of COVID-19 in adults hospitalized in high-income countries compared with those in adults hospitalized in low- and middle-income countries in an international registry

Background: COVID-19 has been associated with a broad range of thromboembolic, ischemic, and hemorrhagic complications (coagulopathy complications). Most studies have focused on patients with severe disease from high-income countries (HICs). Objectives: The main aims were to compare the frequency of coagulopathy complications in developing countries (low- and middle-income countries [LMICs]) with those in HICs, delineate the frequency across a range of treatment levels, and determine associations with in-hospital mortality. Methods: Adult patients enrolled in an observational, multinational registry, the International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infections COVID-19 study, between January 1, 2020, and September 15, 2021, met inclusion criteria, including admission to a hospital for laboratory-confirmed, acute COVID-19 and data on complications and survival. The advanced-treatment cohort received care, such as admission to the intensive care unit, mechanical ventilation, or inotropes or vasopressors; the basic-treatment cohort did not receive any of these interventions. Results: The study population included 495,682 patients from 52 countries, with 63% from LMICs and 85% in the basic treatment cohort. The frequency of coagulopathy complications was higher in HICs (0.76%-3.4%) than in LMICs (0.09%-1.22%). Complications were more frequent in the advanced-treatment cohort than in the basic-treatment cohort. Coagulopathy complications were associated with increased in-hospital mortality (odds ratio, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.52-1.64). The increased mortality associated with these complications was higher in LMICs (58.5%) than in HICs (35.4%). After controlling for coagulopathy complications, treatment intensity, and multiple other factors, the mortality was higher among patients in LMICs than among patients in HICs (odds ratio, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.39-1.51). Conclusion: In a large, international registry of patients hospitalized for COVID-19, coagulopathy complications were more frequent in HICs than in LMICs (developing countries). Increased mortality associated with coagulopathy complications was of a greater magnitude among patients in LMICs. Additional research is needed regarding timely diagnosis of and intervention for coagulation derangements associated with COVID-19, particularly for limited-resource settings