Influence of papain in biofilm formed by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus haemolyticus isolates

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRSE) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus haemolyticus (MRSHa) are important coagulase-negative staphylococci. They are often isolated from bacteremia in humans mainly due to their ability to form biofilm on the surfaces of medical devices. Papain is a complex mixture of proteolytic enzymes and peroxidases extracted from the latex of Carica papaya and it is recognized by accelerating the healing process of wounds. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of the MRSE and MRSHa isolates to produce biofilms. Besides this, the ability of papain to inhibit the formation of biofilms or to disrupt the ones already formed by those bacteria was analyzed. Thirty MRSHa and 30 MRSE were isolated from bacteremia and used in this study. It was observed that papain has ability to reduce biofilms formed by MRSE (p < 0.06) and by MRSHa (p = 0.0005). In addition, papain was able to disrupt mature biofilms made by MRSE (p = 0.014). No antibacterial activity of papain was observed for any isolates of MRSE and MRSHa tested. Papain has been demonstrated as a potential product for reducing biofilm.Staphylococcus epidermidis resistente à meticilina (MRSE) e Staphylococcus haemolyticus resistente à meticilina (MRSHa) são importantes estafilococos coagulase negativa. São frequentemente isolados em bacteremia humana, principalmente devido à capacidade de formar biofilmes nas superfícies de dispositivos médicos introduzidos no organismo. A papaína é mistura complexa de enzimas proteolíticas e peroxidases extraídas do látex de Carica papaya, reconhecida por acelerar os processos de cura de feridas. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a capacidade dos MRSE e MRSHa em produzir biofilmes e analisar a capacidade da papaína em inibir a formação de biofilme ou desintegrar biofilmes já formados por essas bactérias. Observou-se que a papaína tem capacidade de reduzir a formação de biofilme por MRSE (p < 0,06) e MRSHa (p = 0,0005). Além disso, a papaína foi capaz de desintegrar biofilme maduro formado por MRSE (p = 0,014). Nenhuma atividade antibacteriana da papaína foi observada para qualquer das duas espécies de bactérias testadas. A papaína mostrou-se produto potencial para reduzir biofilme

"It's really no more difficult than putting on fluoride varnish":a qualitative exploration of dental professionals' views of silver diamine fluoride for the management of carious lesions in children

Background Despite evidence that Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) can be effective in managing carious lesions in primary teeth, the use of SDF in the UK remains limited. This study explored dental professionals’ views and experiences of using SDF for managing carious lesions in children. In addition, it explored what they perceived to be the advantages, disadvantages, barriers and enablers to the use of SDF in practice. Methods Fifteen semi-structured face-to-face or over-the-phone interviews were conducted with 14 dental professionals from NHS Tayside and NHS Grampian in Scotland. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, coded and analysed using a thematic approach. Results Thirteen of 14 dental professionals interviewed were familiar with, or had some existing knowledge of, SDF. Four had used it to treat patients. The majority of participants thought that the main advantage of SDF was that it required minimal patient cooperation. SDF was also perceived as a simple, pain-free and non-invasive treatment approach that could help acclimatise children to the dental environment. However, SDF-induced black staining of arrested carious lesions was most commonly reported as the main disadvantage and greatest barrier to using it in practice. Participants believed that this discolouration would concern some parents who may fear that the black appearance may instigate bullying at school and that others may judge parents as neglecting their child’s oral health. Participants thought that education of clinicians about SDF use and information sheets for parents would enhance the uptake of SDF in dental practice. Participants believed that younger children might not be as bothered by the discolouration as older ones and they anticipated greater acceptance of SDF for posterior primary teeth by both parents and children. Conclusion Dental professionals were aware that SDF can be used for arresting carious lesions. They pointed out that the staining effect of carious lesions is a major disadvantage that could be a barrier for many parents. Participants considered the application process to be simple and non-invasive and requires a minimum level of child cooperation. Participants appreciated the potential of SDF in paediatric dentistry and suggested actions that could help overcome the barriers they highlighted

Engineering of cyclodextrin glucanotransferases and the impact for biotechnological applications

Cyclodextrin glucanotransferases (CGTases) are industrially important enzymes that produce cyclic α-(1,4)-linked oligosaccharides (cyclodextrins) from starch. Cyclodextrin glucanotransferases are also applied as catalysts in the synthesis of glycosylated molecules and can act as antistaling agents in the baking industry. To improve the performance of CGTases in these various applications, protein engineers are screening for CGTase variants with higher product yields, improved CD size specificity, etc. In this review, we focus on the strategies employed in obtaining CGTases with new or enhanced enzymatic capabilities by searching for new enzymes and improving existing enzymatic activities via protein engineering

Sistema de apoio à decisão para cuidados à saúde de pacientes em tratamento quimioterápico oral em domicílio

A quimioterapia é um tipo de tratamento de combate ao câncer que pode ser administrado de várias formas, porém, neste artigo, o tratamento abordado será o oral, sendo os medicamentos em comprimido, cápsulas ou líquidos, para serem medicados para crianças e adolescentes em casa. Por ser um tratamento delicado, muitos pais e responsáveis ficam com dúvidas sobre o tratamento, têm dificuldades em medicar o paciente, não sabem o que fazer caso haja alguma reação ao medicamento, por não terem conhecimento em como realizar esse tipo de tratamento em casa. Com este cenário, foi desenvolvido um sistema para ajudar os responsáveis dos pacientes (crianças e adolescentes) e médicos durante o tratamento de quimioterápicos orais administrados em casa. O sistema desenvolvido tem como objetivo orientar os responsáveis sobre o uso dos medicamentos quimioterápicos em casa, além do responsável conseguir informar quando o paciente tomou o medicamento ou sentiu um sintoma, para que o profissional de saúde consiga acessar essas informações e acompanhar o tratamento na próxima consulta. Este projeto foi desenvolvido junto à especialista do domínio, enfermeira assistencialista do setor de quimioterapia infantil, Mestrado Profissional em Enfermagem Assistencial (MPEA) da Universidade Federal Fluminense, através de reuniões, informações sobre tratamento quimioterápico, informações sobre as necessidades dos usuários e como seria o acesso ao sistema (através de e-mail para o profissional de saúde e através de número de celular para o responsável do paciente). O sistema visa informar ao paciente sobre o seu tratamento, assim como receber informações do paciente de como ele está reagindo às medicações. Além disso, o sistema também informará ao médico sobre como foi o tratamento do paciente para que ele possa acompanhar de forma mais precisa, podendo identificar o que ocorreu ao longo do tratamento e decidir o que será feito. Após o desenvolvimento, para validar o sistema foi criado um vídeo explicativo e formulário de usabilidade, onde profissionais de saúde e de tecnologia, pudessem avaliar o sistema, verificando se os requisitos foram atendidos e se o usuário tinha uma boa experiência. Os resultados atenderam o esperado, já que os avaliadores conseguiram executar as atividades e, através de comentários, puderam relatar que tiveram uma boa experiência de uso.Chemotherapy is a type of cancer-fighting treatment that can be administered in several ways, however, in this article, the treatment addressed will be oral, with medications in pill, capsule or liquid form, to be medicated for children and adolescents at home. . Because it is a delicate treatment, many parents and guardians have doubts about the treatment, they have difficulties in medicating the patient, they do not know what to do if there is any reaction to the medication, as they are not aware of how to perform this type of treatment at home. With this scenario in mind, a system was developed to help the caregivers of patients (children and adolescents) and doctors during the treatment of oral chemotherapy administered at home. The developed system aims to guide those responsible for the use of chemotherapy drugs at home, in addition to the person in charge being able to inform when the patient took the medicine or felt a symptom, so that the health professional can access this information and monitor the treatment in the next one. Query. This project was developed together with a specialist in the field, an assistant nurse in the child chemotherapy sector, Professional Master's Degree in Nursing Assistance (MPEA) from Universidade Federal Fluminense, through meetings, information about chemotherapy treatment, information about the needs of users and how it would be. access to the system (via e-mail to the health professional and through a cell phone number to the person responsible for the patient). The system aims to inform the patient about his treatment, as well as to receive information from the patient on how he is reacting to the medications. In addition, the system will also inform the doctor about how the patient was treated so that he can follow more precisely, being able to identify what happened during the treatment and decide what will be done. After development, an explanatory video and usability form was created to validate the system, where health and technology professionals could evaluate the system, checking if the requirements were met and if the user had a good experience. The results met what was expected, as the evaluators were able to perform the activities and, through comments, were able to report that they had a good experience of use

Impacto das apresentações das mesas clínicas na melhoria da saúde bucal de crianças atendidas nas Clínicas de Odontopediatria da UFRJ

Avaliou-se, através de questionários, o impacto das mesas clínicas apresentadas por alunos das disciplinas de Odontopediatia, da Faculdade de Odontologia da UFRJ, na saúde bucal de crianças/adolescentes (C/A) e suas famílias. Através da ação de extensão intitulada “Orientação e educação em saúde aos responsáveis de crianças e adolescentes atendidos nas Clínicas de graduação I e II de Odontopediatria, de Atenção Primária em Odontologia (APO) e da Clínica de Bebês da Faculdade de Odontologia da UFRJ”, os alunos de graduação apresentaram mesas clínicas com o objetivo de instruir e esclarecer os pais/responsáveis das C/A a respeito de temas sobre saúde bucal. As apresentações foram associadas a explicações de fácil compreensão, com duração aproximada de 10 min. e aconteceram na sala de espera das clínicas. Ao final da ação, um questionário foi aplicado por um aluno de extensão aos responsáveis, com o intuito de avaliar o entendimento a respeito dos temas. A evolução clínica das C/A, cujos pais responderam o questionário, passará a ser avaliada. Através da análise dos prontuários, investigar-se-á a necessidade ou não de tratamento no retorno para revisão. O questionário foi aplicado a 344 responsáveis entre 14 e 78 anos (41,00±11,27 anos), cujas C/A apresentavam idade entre 1 e 17 anos (9,00±3,75 anos); sendo 54,4% meninos e 66% mães. Dentre os temas (n=17) apresentados, os que geraram mais respostas aos questionários foram aqueles sobre prevenção da cárie, dentifrícios com flúor, importância dos dentes de leite, métodos de higiene oral e trauma, representando 53% do total. Todos os responsáveis consideraram importante as apresentações das mesas clínicas, com apenas 20 (5,8%) reportando terem tido dificuldade na compreensão do tema exposto e 30 (8,7%) sugeriram mudanças no programa, recomendando apresentação nas escolas ou em sala reservada, além do uso de mais cartazes. Cento e oitenta e cinco respondentes (53,2%) já haviam participado de exposições anteriores e 99,7 apontaram melhoria na qualidade de vida de suas C/A e da família, em virtude dos conhecimentos adquiridos por meio da atividade em questão. Com a análise dos prontuários poderemos fazer uma avaliação objetiva do impacto das informações recebidas pelos responsáveis na saúde bucal de suas C/A. Entretanto, já foi observado que o conteúdo simples dos temas abordados nas mesas clínicas é mais fácil de ser compreendido pelo público, além de demonstrar a relevância de programas em salas de espera para a melhoria da saúde bucal e o autocuidado de C/A e suas famílias.

The bacterial community associated with rose-scented geranium (<i>Pelargonium graveolens</i>) leaves responds to anthracnose symptoms

Background The fungus Colletotrichum is a plant pathogen that causes the anthracnose disease, resulting in huge losses in various crops including the rose-scented geranium (Pelargonium graveolens). Although the bacterial community associated with plants has an important role in the establishment of plant diseases, little is known about what happens in P. graveolens. Aims To increase the knowledge about the bacterial community associated with P. graveolens and its relationship with anthracnose disease symptoms. Methods Results Quantitative PCR and high-throughput sequencing were combined to determine the presence of the fungus Colletotrichum and to reveal the bacterial communities associated with different plant parts - root, stem and leaf - and in the rhizosphere and bulk soil, and also to determine the respective bacterial communities associated with P. graveolens leaves symptomatic and asymptomatic for anthracnose disease. Results The fungus Colletotrichum was detected in all plant parts and in the surrounding soil. Bacterial communities varied spatially in plants, and the disease symptoms also influenced the composition of the bacterial community. Abundances of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) assigned to the phylum Actinobacteria and to the genus Streptococcus were greatly increased in asymptomatic leaves. Conclusions The bacterial community associated to geranium leaves responds to anthracnose symptoms