The use of radiotherapy in the treatment of oral cancer / O uso da radioterapia no tratamento do câncer oral

Most of the development of neoplasms has epithelial origin, and the most frequent for oral cancer is squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), of which one should be aware of the extrinsic and intrinsic factors that may be relevant in the development of precancerous lesions. The diagnosis of this type of cancer is made with clinical, histopathological and imaging exams. Thus, this ressearch was carried out with the objetive to address the treatment of oral cancer through radiotherapy, identifying different techniques for the use of radiation and establishing measures that help in the control of radiation beams in the face of the exposed pathology. This study had as source articles published in the electronic databases LILACS and PubMed, between 1996 and 2020 through the descriptors: “radiotherapy", "oral cancer”. Radiotherapy for oral cancer can be performed in an adjuvant or neoadjuvant way, providing radiation by teletherapy through techniques known as Conventional Radiotherapy, Conformational Radiotherapy, and Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy. Although radiotherapy is capable to eliminate tumor cells, abnormalities induced by radiation may appear inside the oral cavity, and these abnormalities can be minimized by controlling radiation doses distribution in addition to significant protection of adjacent healthy tissues through the use of intraoral devices, contributing to the improvement of the patient's quality of life. 

Letramento em saúde e prevenção do câncer do colo de útero / Health literacy and cervical cancer prevention

Estudos sobre letramento em saúde são essenciais para o planejamento de ações eficazes de educação em saúde voltadas para mulheres na perspectiva do câncer de colo uterino, visto que é evitável quando precoce. Objetivou-se, levantar na literatura estudos sobre letramento em saúde e a relação com a prevenção de câncer de colo do útero. Revisão integrativa sobre letramento em saúde e prevenção de câncer de colo uterino. A busca ocorreu durante o mês de junho de 2019, nas bases de dados PubMed, Medline, BVS e LILACS. Utilizou-se os descritores: Alfabetização em Saúde/Health Literacy, Prevenção de Doenças/Disease Prevention, Neoplasias do Colo do Útero/Uterine Cervical Neoplasms, conforme o DeCS. Incluiram-se publicações que relacionam letramento em saúde e câncer de colo uterino; artigos disponíveis e completos, em português, inglês e espanhol, dos últimos dez anos, excluindo-se artigos duplicados. Totalizou-se 50 artigos, mas, apenas 07 puderam compor a amostra. Identificou-se que diferentes níveis socioeconômicos e de escolaridade estão diretamente relacionados com o nível baixo de letramento em saúde acerca da prevenção do câncer de colo uterino. Observou-se também que esse nível variou de acordo com as faixas etárias das populações em situações e países diferentes. O letramento das mulheres acerca do assunto foi, em geral, insuficiente. Portanto, ações educativas em saúde carecem de um reforço, adaptando-as as diferentes realidades, visto que a compreensão é relativa a situação socioeconômica, escolar, etária, dentre outros aspectos individuais de cada público. Há necessidade de mais pesquisas sobre o assunto, vista escassez das mesmas, essencialmente no Brasil

In vitro additive interaction between ketoconazole and antimony against intramacrophage Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis amastigotes.

Leishmaniasis is a group of diseases caused by protozoa of Leishmania genus. The currently available treatments for this disease are expensive, present high toxicity and are associated to difficulties of healing and parasite resistance. Therefore, the development of strategies for leishmaniasis treatment is indispensable and includes reposition of existing drugs, as well as drug combination therapy. The aim of this study was to assess the nature of ketoconazole and antimony association on the cytotoxic effect against Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis amastigotes. The calculated mean sum of fractional 50% inhibitory concentration ([Formula: see text]ΣFIC50) was 2.54 and 1.43 for free and intracellular amastigotes, respectively, values that suggest an additive interaction between ketoconazole and antimony concerning to Leishmania toxicity only in the intramacrophage parasite form. Despite the clinical efficacy of ketoconazole-antimony combination has been shown in the literature, our study is the first to describe the nature of ketoconazole-antimony interaction against L. (L.) amazonensis amastigotes. Moreover, our results point out the need for future in vivo studies to confirm the nature of ketoconazole-antimony interaction and also to determine possible effective dosage regimens related to ketoconazole administration in association with the optimal lower dose of antimony

IC₅₀, FIC₅₀ and ΣFIC₅₀ of antimony-ketoconazole combination against <i>L</i>. <i>(L</i>.<i>) amazonensis</i> free and intracellular amastigotes.

<p>IC₅₀, FIC₅₀ and ΣFIC₅₀ of antimony-ketoconazole combination against <i>L</i>. <i>(L</i>.<i>) amazonensis</i> free and intracellular amastigotes.</p

Cytotoxic effects of isolated drugs (ketoconazole and antimony) on free amastigotes, murine macrophages cell line RAW264.7 and intracellular amastigotes.

<p>Concentration-effect curves to ketoconazole (white points) and antimony (black points) against <i>L</i>. <i>(L</i>.<i>) amazonensis</i> free amastigotes <b>(A),</b> murine macrophages <b>(B)</b> or intracellular amastigotes <b>(C)</b>. Data represent mean ± SEM of two to three independent experiments performed in triplicate.</p

Quinonoid and phenazine compounds: synthesis and evaluation against H37Rv, rifampicin and isoniazid-resistance strains of mycobacterium tuberculosis

Several quinonoid and phenazine compounds were synthesized in moderate to high yields and showed activity against H37Rv, rifampicin and isoniazid-resistance strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The cytotoxity of the compounds were evaluated against human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and these substances emerge as promising antitubercular prototypes

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora