Biochemical serum profile of quarter mile equines in team penning training

The objective of this work was to evaluate the proteins, minerals, metabolites, and serum enzymes profile in Quarter Mile equines subjected to training for Team Penning competitions by comparing the results before and after training. The animals were from the Agricultural Exhibition Park of Uberlândia (CAMARU), in Uberlândia in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. These animals perform constant periodic training with an average duration of two and a half hours per training. Blood samples from twenty male and female equines were collected at the beginning and end of a 45-day interval and then analyzed. A 5 mL blood sample from each animal was collected before and after training by a jugular external venipuncture, and the samples were placed in a tube—without anticoagulant and containing separator gel—to obtain the serum. The components analyzed were: total proteins, albumin, globulins, albumin to globulin ratio (A:G), total and ionized calcium, phosphorus, calcium to phosphorus ratio (Ca:P), cholesterol, triglycerides, creatinine, urea, alkaline phosphatase, ɤ-glutamyl transferase, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and creatine kinase (CK). Statistical differences were observed with higher values after exercise for total calcium, ionized calcium, Ca: P ratio, creatinine and ALT and decreased concentrations were found for globulins, phosphorus, cholesterol and triglycerides. Despite the changes observed in the serum concentrations of some elements after exercises, it was concluded that the animals were in adequate physical condition to perform the proposed physical exercises

Adenosine A2A receptor as a potential regulator of Mycobacterium leprae survival mechanisms: new insights into leprosy neural damage

BackgroundLeprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae, which can lead to a disabling neurodegenerative condition. M. leprae preferentially infects skin macrophages and Schwann cells–glial cells of the peripheral nervous system. The infection modifies the host cell lipid metabolism, subverting it in favor of the formation of cholesterol-rich lipid droplets (LD) that are essential for bacterial survival. Although researchers have made progress in understanding leprosy pathogenesis, many aspects of the molecular and cellular mechanisms of host–pathogen interaction still require clarification. The purinergic system utilizes extracellular ATP and adenosine as critical signaling molecules and plays several roles in pathophysiological processes. Furthermore, nucleoside surface receptors such as the adenosine receptor A2AR involved in neuroimmune response, lipid metabolism, and neuron–glia interaction are targets for the treatment of different diseases. Despite the importance of this system, nothing has been described about its role in leprosy, particularly adenosinergic signaling (AdoS) during M. leprae–Schwann cell interaction.MethodsM. leprae was purified from the hind footpad of athymic nu/nu mice. ST88-14 human cells were infected with M. leprae in the presence or absence of specific agonists or antagonists of AdoS. Enzymatic activity assays, fluorescence microscopy, Western blotting, and RT-qPCR analysis were performed. M. leprae viability was investigated by RT-qPCR, and cytokines were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.ResultsWe demonstrated that M. leprae-infected Schwann cells upregulated CD73 and ADA and downregulated A2AR expression and the phosphorylation of the transcription factor CREB (p-CREB). On the other hand, activation of A2AR with its selective agonist, CGS21680, resulted in: 1) reduced lipid droplets accumulation and pro-lipogenic gene expression; 2) reduced production of IL-6 and IL-8; 3) reduced intracellular M. leprae viability; 4) increased levels of p-CREB.ConclusionThese findings suggest the involvement of the AdoS in leprosy neuropathogenesis and support the idea that M. leprae, by downmodulating the expression and activity of A2AR in Schwann cells, decreases A2AR downstream signaling, contributing to the maintenance of LD accumulation and intracellular viability of the bacillus

ATLANTIC EPIPHYTES: a data set of vascular and non-vascular epiphyte plants and lichens from the Atlantic Forest

Epiphytes are hyper-diverse and one of the frequently undervalued life forms in plant surveys and biodiversity inventories. Epiphytes of the Atlantic Forest, one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world, have high endemism and radiated recently in the Pliocene. We aimed to (1) compile an extensive Atlantic Forest data set on vascular, non-vascular plants (including hemiepiphytes), and lichen epiphyte species occurrence and abundance; (2) describe the epiphyte distribution in the Atlantic Forest, in order to indicate future sampling efforts. Our work presents the first epiphyte data set with information on abundance and occurrence of epiphyte phorophyte species. All data compiled here come from three main sources provided by the authors: published sources (comprising peer-reviewed articles, books, and theses), unpublished data, and herbarium data. We compiled a data set composed of 2,095 species, from 89,270 holo/hemiepiphyte records, in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay, recorded from 1824 to early 2018. Most of the records were from qualitative data (occurrence only, 88%), well distributed throughout the Atlantic Forest. For quantitative records, the most common sampling method was individual trees (71%), followed by plot sampling (19%), and transect sampling (10%). Angiosperms (81%) were the most frequently registered group, and Bromeliaceae and Orchidaceae were the families with the greatest number of records (27,272 and 21,945, respectively). Ferns and Lycophytes presented fewer records than Angiosperms, and Polypodiaceae were the most recorded family, and more concentrated in the Southern and Southeastern regions. Data on non-vascular plants and lichens were scarce, with a few disjunct records concentrated in the Northeastern region of the Atlantic Forest. For all non-vascular plant records, Lejeuneaceae, a family of liverworts, was the most recorded family. We hope that our effort to organize scattered epiphyte data help advance the knowledge of epiphyte ecology, as well as our understanding of macroecological and biogeographical patterns in the Atlantic Forest. No copyright restrictions are associated with the data set. Please cite this Ecology Data Paper if the data are used in publication and teaching events. © 2019 The Authors. Ecology © 2019 The Ecological Society of Americ

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt

HELICOBACTER PYLORI: INFECÇÃO, DIAGNÓSTICO LABORATORIAL E TRATAMENTO

A infecção pelo Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) é uma das mais prevalentes entre os seres humanos. Estima-se que afete cerca de metade da população mundial, e no Brasil, a prevalência é de aproximadamente 60%.  A H. pylori é uma bactéria que coloniza a mucosa estomacal causando distúrbios gástricos que podem evoluir para gastrites, úlceras, dispepsias e carcinomas. O presente estudo tem por objetivo abordar aspectos da infecção pelo H. pylori, seu diagnóstico laboratorial e tratamento. Para tal, trata-se de uma revisão da literatura com trabalhos selecionados em revistas indexadas nas bases de dados LILACS, MEDLINE/PubMed, PLoS e SciELO, sob os unitermos e suas combinações: H. pylori, epidemiologia, distúrbios gástricos, diagnóstico laboratorial, tratamento. A infecção pelo H. pylori apresenta importância epidemiológica e clínica e a transmissão se dá principalmente de pessoa a pessoa, sendo aceitas como formas de transmissão as vias oral-oral, fecal-oral e iatrogênica. Os métodos diagnósticos para detecção da bactéria podem ser baseados em testes realizados durante exame endoscópico (invasivos) e sem exame endoscópico (não invasivo). Essas metodologias, embora com certas limitações, têm permitido o diagnóstico da infecção com eficiência, rapidez e segurança. A erradicação não é simples e os esquemas terapêuticos necessitam associação de múltiplos agentes farmacológicos. Palavras-chave: Helicobacter pylori. Epidemiologia. Infecção. Diagnóstico laboratorial. Tratamento

Detection of Anti-Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi Immunoglobulin G by Flow Cytometry for Cure Assessment following Chemotherapeutic Treatment of American Visceral Leishmaniasis

The residual serological reactivity observed in patients cured of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) represents the major factor underlying the low efficiency of most anti-Leishmania serological approaches to assess posttherapeutic cure in VL. Herein, we have described a detuned flow cytometry-based methodology to detect anti-live (FC-ALPA-immunoglobulin G [IgG]) and anti-fixed (FC-AFPA-IgG) L. chagasi promastigote IgG, along the titration curve (1:2,000 to 1:128,000), as a tool to assess late (12 months after treatment [12 mAT]) and early (2 and 6 mAT) posttherapeutic cure of pediatric American visceral leishmaniasis. Reactivities were reported as the percentage of positive fluorescent parasite (PPFP), using a PPFP of 50% as a cutoff to segregate positive and negative results. Our data demonstrated that both FC-ALPA-IgG at 1:4,000 and FC-ALPA-IgG at 1:32,000 are useful for late cure assessment in VL, with 100% specificity and outstanding likelihood ratio indices. Cure assessment at 6 mAT also showed promising performance indices, identifying 81% and 71.4% of the treated patients with negative results. However, new interpretation parameters were necessary to monitor cure at 2 mAT. We then introduced the differential PPFP (ΔPPFP) of 25% as a new cutoff for early cure assessment at specific serum dilutions to analyze IgG reactivity by FC-ALPA-IgG and FC-AFPA-IgG. Our data demonstrated that at 2 mAT, ΔPPFP was >25% in 60% and 57.1% of treated patients, whereas at 6 mAT, a ΔPPFP of >25% was observed in 100% and 95.2% of samples assayed by FC-ALPA-IgG and FC-AFPA-IgG, respectively. Together, our findings showed the potential of both FC-ALPA-IgG and FC-AFPA-IgG regarding their applicability to detect differential serological reactivity and further contribution to posttherapeutic cure assessment in VL

Clinical value of anti-Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi IgG titers detected by flow cytometry to distinguish infected from vaccinated dogs.

Leishmune® vaccination covers a broader number of endemic areas of canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) and therefore the development of new serological devices able to discriminate CVL from Leishmune® vaccinees becomes an urgent need considering the post-vaccine seroconversion detected throughout conventional methodologies. Herein, we have described the establishment of a flow cytometry based methodology to detect anti-fixedL. ( L. ) chagasipromastigotes antibodies (FC-AFPA-IgG, FC-AFPA-IgG1 and FC-AFPA-IgG2) in sera samples from Leishmania ( Leishmania ) chagasiinfected dogs and Leishmune® vaccinees. The results of FC-AFPA were reported along the sera titration curve (1:128–1:524,288), as percentage-of-positive-fluorescent-parasite (PPFP). The use of PPFP = 20% as a cut-off edge to segregate negative and positive results at sera dilution 1:2048 revealed outstanding performance indexes that elect FC-AFPA-IgG and IgG2 (both detected by polyclonal FITC-labeled second step reagent) applicable to the serological diagnosis of CVL, with 100% of specificity for both IgG and IgG2 and 97 and 93% of sensitivity, respectively. Moreover, FC-AFPA-IgG, applied at sera dilution 1:2048, also appeared as a useful tool to discriminate L. chagasiinfected dogs from Leishmune® vaccinees, with 76% of specificity. Outstanding likelihood indexes further support the performance of FC-AFPA-IgG for exclusion diagnosis of CVL in Leishmune® vaccinees. Analysis of FC-AFPA-IgG at sera dilution 1:8192 revealed the most outstanding indexes, demonstrating that besides the ability of PPFP 20% to exclude the diagnosis of CVL, a PPFP values higher 80%, mostly observed for infected dogs (INF) have a minimal change to come from a non-infected animal (NI) or Leishmune®

Clinical value of anti-Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi IgG titers detected by flow cytometry to distinguish infected from vaccinated dogs.

Leishmune® vaccination covers a broader number of endemic areas of canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) and therefore the development of new serological devices able to discriminate CVL from Leishmune® vaccinees becomes an urgent need considering the post-vaccine seroconversion detected throughout conventional methodologies. Herein, we have described the establishment of a flow cytometry based methodology to detect anti-fixedL. ( L. ) chagasipromastigotes antibodies (FC-AFPA-IgG, FC-AFPA-IgG1 and FC-AFPA-IgG2) in sera samples from Leishmania ( Leishmania ) chagasiinfected dogs and Leishmune® vaccinees. The results of FC-AFPA were reported along the sera titration curve (1:128–1:524,288), as percentage-of-positive-fluorescent-parasite (PPFP). The use of PPFP = 20% as a cut-off edge to segregate negative and positive results at sera dilution 1:2048 revealed outstanding performance indexes that elect FC-AFPA-IgG and IgG2 (both detected by polyclonal FITC-labeled second step reagent) applicable to the serological diagnosis of CVL, with 100% of specificity for both IgG and IgG2 and 97 and 93% of sensitivity, respectively. Moreover, FC-AFPA-IgG, applied at sera dilution 1:2048, also appeared as a useful tool to discriminate L. chagasiinfected dogs from Leishmune® vaccinees, with 76% of specificity. Outstanding likelihood indexes further support the performance of FC-AFPA-IgG for exclusion diagnosis of CVL in Leishmune® vaccinees. Analysis of FC-AFPA-IgG at sera dilution 1:8192 revealed the most outstanding indexes, demonstrating that besides the ability of PPFP 20% to exclude the diagnosis of CVL, a PPFP values higher 80%, mostly observed for infected dogs (INF) have a minimal change to come from a non-infected animal (NI) or Leishmune®