Produção de vídeos educativos de curta duração para redes sociais, na área da virologia - um relato de experiência / Production of short educational videos for social networks, in the area of virology - an experience report

A pandemia aumentou a busca sobre virologia, mostrando que as pessoas buscam informações que lhes desperte interesse. Porém, o Aprendizado Significativo de Ausubel diz que, para a informação se transformar em conhecimento cognitivo, é necessária que a ideia âncora seja dada na escola. Sem as aulas, a virologia deve ser trabalhada pelo rofessor à distância com o uso das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TICs). Os docentes podem não apresentar domínio sobre as TICs e/ou a virologia imprescindível para a educomunicação. Assim, relatamos a experiência na criação do Viruses Animated Learning (VirAL) - animações educativas disponíveis no YouTube, Instagram e também no Blog, sobre vírus de interesse médico, entre eles o SARS-Cov-2. A ideia foi utilizar ferramentas para criar conteúdo audiovisual de qualidade para serem consumidos por usuários comuns e professores que queiram abordar a virologia de maneira dinâmica

Upregulation of hsa-miR-125b in HTLV-1 asymptomatic carriers and HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis patients

The retrovirus human T lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) promotes spastic paraparesis, adult T cell leukaemia and other diseases. Recently, some human microRNAs (miRNAs) have been described as important factors in host-virus interactions. This study compared miRNA expression in control individuals, asymptomatic HTLV-1 carriers and HTLV-1 associated myelopathy (HAM)/tropical spastic paraparesis patients. The proviral load and Tax protein expression were measured in order to characterize the patients. hsa-miR-125b expression was significantly higher in patients than in controls (p = 0.0285) or in the HAM group (p = 0.0312). Therefore, our findings suggest that miR-125b expression can be used to elucidate the mechanisms of viral replication and pathogenic processes.FAPESP [06/59388-4]FAPESPCNPqCNPqFUNDHERPFUNDHER

Distribution of QPY and RAH haplotypes of granzyme B gene in distinct Brazilian populations

Introduction: The cytolysis mediated by granules is one of the most important effector functions of cytotoxic T lymphocytes and natural killer cells. Recently, three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified at exons 2, 3, and 5 of the granzyme B gene, resulting in a haplotype in which three amino acids of mature protein Q48P88Y245 are changed to R48A88H245, which leads to loss of cytotoxic activity of the protein. In this study, we evaluated the frequency of these polymorphisms in Brazilian populations. Methods: We evaluated the frequency of these polymorphisms in Brazilian ethnic groups (white, Afro-Brazilian, and Asian) by sequencing these regions. Results: The allelic and genotypic frequencies of SNP 2364A/G at exon 2 in Afro-Brazilian individuals (42.3% and 17.3%) were significantly higher when compared with those in whites and Asians (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.0007, respectively). The polymorphisms 2933C/G and 4243C/T also were more frequent in Afro-Brazilians but without any significant difference regarding the other groups. The Afro-Brazilian group presented greater diversity of haplotypes, and the RAH haplotype seemed to be more frequent in this group (25%), followed by the whites (20.7%) and by the Asians (11.9%), similar to the frequency presented in the literature. Conclusions: There is a higher frequency of polymorphisms in Afro-Brazilians, and the RAH haplotype was more frequent in these individuals. We believe that further studies should aim to investigate the correlation of this haplotype with diseases related to immunity mediated by cytotoxic lymphocytes, and if this correlation is confirmed, novel treatment strategies might be elaborated.Center for CellTherapy (CTC)Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP)Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG)Fundacao Hemocentro de Ribeirao Preto (FUNDHERP

Leukotrienes Are Upregulated and Associated with Human T-Lymphotropic Virus Type 1 (HTLV-1)-Associated Neuroinflammatory Disease

Leukotrienes (LTs) are lipid mediators involved in several inflammatory disorders. We investigated the LT pathway in human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infection by evaluating LT levels in HTLV-1-infected patients classified according to the clinical status as asymptomatic carriers (HACs) and HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) patients. Bioactive LTB4 and CysLTs were both increased in the plasma and in the supernatant of peripheral blood mononuclear cell cultures of HTLV-1-infected when compared to non-infected. Interestingly, CysLT concentrations were increased in HAM/TSP patients. Also, the concentration of plasma LTB4 and LTC4 positively correlated with the HTLV-1 proviral load in HTLV-1-infected individuals. The gene expression levels of LT receptors were differentially modulated in CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells of HTLV-1-infected patients. Analysis of the overall plasma signature of immune mediators demonstrated that LT and chemokine amounts were elevated during HTLV-1 infection. Importantly, in addition to CysLTs, IP-10 was also identified as a biomarker for HAM/TSP activity. These data suggest that LTs are likely to be associated with HTLV-1 infection and HAM/TSP development, suggesting their putative use for clinical monitoring.Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao PauloFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao PauloFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas GeraisFundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas GeraisConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e TecnologicoConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e TecnologicoFundacao Hemocentro de Ribeirao PretoFundacao Hemocentro de Ribeirao PretoCNPqCNP

The role of microRNAs in HTLV-1 infection

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) são RNA de fita simples (22 nucleotídeos) que atuam como reguladores da expressão gênica celular. Estudos recentes têm demonstrado o papel dos miRNAs como moduladores da resposta celular frente às infecções virais. O vírus linfotrópico de células T humanas do tipo 1 (HTLV-1) é um retrovírus que apresenta genes estruturais comuns aos demais, além dos genes tax e rex, os quais dão origem às proteínas regulatórias. Entre elas, destaca-se a oncoproteína Tax, que é capaz de modular a expressão de genes celulares e virais, além de estar associada ao desencadeamento de patologias. Destacam-se duas manifestações clínicas associadas: a leucemia/linfoma de células T do adulto (ATLL) e a mielopatia associada ao HTLV/paraparesia espástica tropical (HAM/TSP). Fatores relacionados ao hospedeiro também estão correlacionados ao aparecimento das patologias. No intuito de estabelecer se miRNAs humanos podem influenciar em processos celulares que se encontram desregulados pela Tax (diferenciação, transdução de sinais, apoptose, proliferação celular e tumorigênese), o objetivo deste projeto foi analisar a expressão de miRNAs em células mononucleares de sangue periférico (PBMC) de indivíduos infectados HTLV-1. Para tanto, realizamos análises in silico para mapear alvos de miRNAs humanos no gene tax do HTLV-1. Foram utilizados dois algoritmos (miRanda e RNAhybrid), com os seguintes parâmetros: score de 120 na região da semente; energia livre de até -15 kcal/mol. Assim, selecionou-se os hsa-miRNAs:149a, 648, 221, 222, 142-5p, 26a, 29a, 374 e 125b. Adicionalmente, foi observado que as regiões do gene tax, onde se ligam os miRNAs selecionados, são extremamente conservadas entre os diferentes subtipos de HTLV-1. Após estas análises in silico, realizou-se a validação dos miRNAs eleitos. Para tanto, foram isolados PBMC de 21 amostras de indivíduos-controle (CT), 10 portadores assintomáticos do HTLV-1 (HAC) e 12 com HAM/TSP (HAM). Do total de células, 1x106 tiveram seu DNA genômico extraído para quantificação da carga proviral (CPV) pela metodologia de PCR quantitativo em tempo real (qRT-PCR); 1x106 foram criopreservadas para quantificação de Tax por citometria de fluxo; 1x 107células foram utilizadas na extração de RNA para validação dos miRNAs por qRT-PCR. A fase orgânica do Trizol® foi utilizada para extração de proteínas totais e posterior análise da expressão de Tax por Western blot. A CPV apresentou-se significativamente aumentada (p= 0,0046) no grupo HAM, quando utilizado teste de Mann-Whitney. A expressão de Tax apresentou correlação significativa (p=0,0128) com a CPV, pelo teste de Spearmann e auxiliou na caracterização dos pacientes. O nível de expressão dos miRNAs foi avaliado nos grupos: CT vs Pacientes e CT vs HAC vs HAM por testes não-paramétricos de Mann-Whitney e Kruskal-wallis, respectivamente. Os miRNAs se mostraram desregulados no grupo de pacientes quando comparado ao grupo CT. Dentre estes, o hsa-miR-125b encontra-se aumentado significativamente no grupo de pacientes em relação ao controle (p=0,0285). Utilizou-se o teste de correlação de Spearmann, para associar a expressão de Tax com os miRNAs, porém os resultados encontrados não foram significativos. Apesar de não estar correlacionado com expressão de Tax, o hsa-miR-125b é responsável pela regulação de diversas proteínas, como TNF-, uma proteína inflamatória hiper-expressa em portadores do HTLV-1. Deste modo, acreditamos que este miRNA estaria aumentado proporcionalmente na tentativa de inibir a tradução desta proteína. Os resultados deste projeto sugerem a importância de esclarecer como os miRNAs humanos podem regular a infecção pelo HTLV-1 e gerar informações para o desenvolvimento de estratégias que possam interferir com a replicação e patogênese viral.MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are simple strand RNA (22 nucleotides), which are regulators of cellular gene expression. Recent studies have been showed miRNAs role as modulators of cellular responses, when viral infection occurs. The human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is a retrovirus that presents the same regular structural genes compared to the other retrovirus, besides tax and rex genes, which encode regulatory proteins. In regard to this, Tax oncoprotein is a major determinant of viral persistence and pathogenesis. Two major diseases are related to this virus adult T cell leukemia (ATLL) and HTLV-I-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). Host-related factors are also correlated with HAM/TSP development. To establish if human miRNAs could influence in the unregulated cellular process caused by Tax (differentiation, signal transduction, apoptosis, cellular proliferation and tumorigenesis), this study analyzed miRNA expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from HTLV-1 infected patients. For this purpose, we performed in silico analyses to find human miRNAs that could targeted HTLV-1 tax region. We performed two algorithms (miRanda e RNAhybrid) and we set up two distinct parameters: score more than 120 in the seed region and minimum free energy until -15 kcal/mol. So, we have selected these hsa-miRNAs:149a, 648, 221, 222, 142-5p, 26a, 29a, 374 e 125b. Besides this, we compared several HTLV-1 sub-types and we observed that regions, where miRNAs are regulating, are extremely conserved. After the in silico analysis, we validated miRNAs that we have been chosen. We isolated PBMC samples from 21 control-individuals (CT), 10 from asymptomatic carriers and 12 from HAM/TSP (HAM). After the procedure, genomic DNA were extracted from 1x106 cells, in order to quantify the proviral load (PL) performing quantitative Real-Time PCR (qRT-PCR). Tax was measured by flow cytometry and for this procedure, we used 1x106 criopreserved cells. Amount 1x 107cells were used to total RNA extraction that was used to miRNAs validation by qRT-PCR. The organic phase from Trizol® was employed to extract total proteins, which were used to analyze Tax expression by Western blot. The PL was significantly higher in HAM group than HAC (p= 0,0046), when Mann-Whitney statistical test was employed. The Tax expression was significantly correlated to PL (p=0,0128) by Spearmann test and this finding provided us a better characterization of the patients. The miRNAs expression was detected in the following groups: CT vs Patients and CT vs HAC vs HAM by non-parametrical tests Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-wallis, respectively. The miRNAs presented unregulated themselves in the patient group, when we compared to CT group. We observed that hsa-miR-125b expression are significantly higher in patients group than controls (p=0,0285). We have tried to associate miRNAs with Tax expression, employing Spearmann test, but this analysis did not show significant values. Despite this, hsa-miR-125b is responsible for regulating several proteins, such as TNF-, which is an inflammatory protein overexpressed in HTLV-1 carriers. In conclusion, we propose that this miRNA could be increased as a way to inhibit TNF- translation. These results suggest the importance in understanding how human miRNAs could regulated the HTLV-1 infection. In addition to this, they could generate data to be used as therapeutic strategies for the control of viral replication and pathogenic processes

Correlation between TH1 response standard cytokines as biomarkers in patients with the delta virus in the western Brazilian Amazon

Hepatitis D virus (HDV) is endemic in the Amazon Region and its pathophysiology is the most severe among viral hepatitis. Treatment is performed with pegylated interferon and the immune response appears to be important for infection control. HDV patients were studied: untreated and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) positive (n = 9), anti-HDV positive and PCR negative (n = 8), and responders to treatment (n = 12). The cytokines, interleukin (IL)-2 (p = 0.0008) and IL-12 (p = 0.02) were differentially expressed among the groups and were also correlated (p = 0.0143). Future studies will be conducted with patients at different stages of treatment, associating the viral load with serum cytokines produced, thereby attempting to establish a prognostic indicator of the infection

Treatment of hepatitis delta virus genotype 3 infection with peg-interferon and entecavir

Submitted by EMERSON LEAL ([email protected]) on 2018-08-15T12:55:49Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Treatment of hepatitis delta virus genotype 3 infection with peg-interferon and entecavir.pdf: 640164 bytes, checksum: eb2dc45fe4928bedd19a2bf93c05444d (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by EMERSON LEAL ([email protected]) on 2018-08-16T21:18:01Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Treatment of hepatitis delta virus genotype 3 infection with peg-interferon and entecavir.pdf: 640164 bytes, checksum: eb2dc45fe4928bedd19a2bf93c05444d (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-16T21:18:01Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Treatment of hepatitis delta virus genotype 3 infection with peg-interferon and entecavir.pdf: 640164 bytes, checksum: eb2dc45fe4928bedd19a2bf93c05444d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Federal University of Rondônia. Research Center for Tropical Medicine of Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brasil.Objectives: Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) is recognized as the most pathogenic and infectious among the hepatotropic viruses. Studies on the treatment of HDV have predominantly included European patients and carriers of genotype 1 (HDV-1) in their clinical protocols. For the Amazon region, data show that infected individuals have mainly Native American ancestry and that >90% of HDV carriers have the genotype 3 (HDV-3). Thus combined therapy clinical protocols do not adequately address the treatment of these patients. Methods: A prospective, non-randomized study was conducted in which 22 patients received 180 mg of pegylated interferon alpha 2a (PEG-IFN) plus entecavir at a dose of 0.5 mg for 48 weeks, with a subsequent 24-week follow-up. Throughout treatment, the patients were monitored for biochemical responses and the kinetics of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HDV viral loads. Results: Of the 22 patients treated, 15 presented normal alanine aminotransferase values at the end of treatment (p = 0.002). At week 24 of treatment, 86.4% of the patients did not present detectable HDV- RNA; at week 48, the rate of negative patients increased to >95% and remained the same after 6 months. With regard to HBV, only two patients (9%) still presented detectable HBV genetic material at the end of treatment, suggesting the effectiveness of combined therapy in combating the two viruses. Conclusions: These findings support the use of this effective therapeutic protocol for HDV-3 in patients of non-European ethnicity and suggest a possible ‘easy to treat’ variant when compared to HDV-1

Distribution of QPY and RAH haplotypes of granzyme B gene in distinct Brazilian populations Distribuição dos haplótipos QPY e RAH do gene da granzima B em grupos populacionais brasileiros

INTRODUCTION: The cytolysis mediated by granules is one of the most important effector functions of cytotoxic T lymphocytes and natural killer cells. Recently, three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified at exons 2, 3, and 5 of the granzyme B gene, resulting in a haplotype in which three amino acids of mature protein Q48P88Y245 are changed to R48A88H245, which leads to loss of cytotoxic activity of the protein. In this study, we evaluated the frequency of these polymorphisms in Brazilian populations. METHODS: We evaluated the frequency of these polymorphisms in Brazilian ethnic groups (white, Afro-Brazilian, and Asian) by sequencing these regions. RESULTS: The allelic and genotypic frequencies of SNP 2364A/G at exon 2 in Afro-Brazilian individuals (42.3% and 17.3%) were significantly higher when compared with those in whites and Asians (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.0007, respectively). The polymorphisms 2933C/G and 4243C/T also were more frequent in Afro-Brazilians but without any significant difference regarding the other groups. The Afro-Brazilian group presented greater diversity of haplotypes, and the RAH haplotype seemed to be more frequent in this group (25%), followed by the whites (20.7%) and by the Asians (11.9%), similar to the frequency presented in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: There is a higher frequency of polymorphisms in Afro-Brazilians, and the RAH haplotype was more frequent in these individuals. We believe that further studies should aim to investigate the correlation of this haplotype with diseases related to immunity mediated by cytotoxic lymphocytes, and if this correlation is confirmed, novel treatment strategies might be elaborated.<br>INTRODUÇÃO: A citólise mediada por grânulos é uma das mais importantes funções efetoras de linfócitos T citotóxicos e células natural killer. Recentemente, três polimorfismos de nucleotídeo único foram identificados nos éxons 2, 3 e 5 do gene da granzima B, resultando em um haplótipo em que três aminoácidos da proteína madura Q48P88Y245 são alterados para R48A88H245, o que leva à perda da atividade citotóxica da proteína. No presente estudo, avaliamos a frequência desses polimorfismos em populações brasileiras. MÉTODOS:Avaliamos a frequência desses polimorfismos em grupos étnicos brasileiros (brancos, afro-brasileiros e asiáticos) por sequenciamento. RESULTADOS: As frequências alélica e genotípica do polimorfismo 2364A/G no éxon 2 em indivíduos afro-brasileiros (42,3% e 17,3%) foram significativamente maiores (p < 0,0001 e p = 0,0007) quando comparadas a brancos e asiáticos. Os polimorfismos 2933C/G e 4243C/T também foram mais frequentes em afro-brasileiros, mas sem diferença significativa. O grupo afro-brasileiro apresentou maior diversidade de haplótipos e o haplótipo RAH foi mais frequente nesse grupo (25%), seguidos pelos brancos (20,7%) e asiáticos (11,9%), semelhante à frequência apresentada na literatura. CONCLUSÕES: Há uma maior frequência de polimorfismos em afro-brasileiros e o haplótipo RAH foi mais frequente nesses indivíduos. Acreditamos que novos estudos devem ter como objetivo a investigação da correlação deste haplótipo com doenças relacionadas com a imunidade mediada por linfócitos citotóxicos, e se essa correlação for confirmada, novas estratégias de tratamento poderão ser elaboradas