Children Environmentally Exposed to Agrochemicals in Rural Areas Present Changes in Oxidative Status and DNA Damage.

Rural children are exposed to several chemicals. This study evaluated the environmental co-exposure of rural children to cholinesterase inhibitor insecticides and metals/metalloids, and the resulting oxidative stress and DNA damage. Seventy-two children (5 to 16 years old) were studied at two different moments: period 1, when agrochemicals were less used, and period 2, when agrochemicals were extensively used in agriculture. Biomonitoring was performed by evaluating butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) activity in serum; arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), and nickel (Ni) levels in blood; malondialdehyde (MDA) in plasma; glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activities in whole blood; non-protein thiol levels in erythrocytes; and micronuclei (MN) assay in exfoliated buccal cells. Cr and As levels were higher than the reference values in both periods, and Ni levels were higher than the reference values in period 2 alone. BuChE activity was inhibited in period 2 compared with period 1. In period 2, there was an increase in endogenous antioxidants and a decrease in MDA, probably demonstrating a compensatory mechanism as a response to increasing xenobiotics. Also in period 2, the MN frequency increased and BuChE and As were positively associated, suggesting co-exposure. On the other hand, in period 1, it was observed that Cr, Ni, and Pb blood levels were negatively associated with GSH-Px and GST, while MDA was positively associated with As levels. Our findings demonstrated an imbalance in endogenous antioxidants, contributing to genotoxicity and lipoperoxidation, probably in response to exposure to xenobiotics, especially carcinogenic elements (Cr, As, and Ni).

Zika Virus Infection Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Case Report.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this case was to investigate the association of the Zika virus infection in utero with the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as clinical outcome that presented no congenital anomalies. METHODS: ASD was diagnosed in the second year of life by different child neurologists and confirmed by DSM-5 and ASQ. After that, an extensive clinical, epidemiological, and genetic evaluations were performed, with main known ASD causes ruled out. RESULTS: An extensive laboratorial search was done, with normal findings. SNP array identified no pathogenic variants. Normal neuroimaging and EEG findings were also obtained. ZIKV (Zika virus) IgG was positive, while IgM was negative. Other congenital infections were negative. The exome sequencing did not reveal any pathogenic variant in genes related to ASD. CONCLUSION: Accordingly, this report firstly associates ZIKV exposure to ASD.

SARSCOVIDB-A New Platform for the Analysis of the Molecular Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Viral Infection.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has become a global emergency issue for public health. This threat has led to an acceleration in related research and, consequently, an unprecedented volume of clinical and experimental data that include changes in gene expression resulting from infection. The SARS-CoV-2 infection database (SARSCOVIDB: https://sarscovidb.org/) was created to mitigate the difficulties related to this scenario. The SARSCOVIDB is an online platform that aims to integrate all differential gene expression data, at messenger RNA and protein levels, helping to speed up analysis and research on the molecular impact of COVID-19. The database can be searched from different experimental perspectives and presents all related information from published data, such as viral strains, hosts, methodological approaches (proteomics or transcriptomics), genes/proteins, and samples (clinical or experimental). All information was taken from 24 articles related to analyses of differential gene expression out of 5,554 COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2-related articles published so far. The database features 12,535 genes whose expression has been identified as altered due to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Thus, the SARSCOVIDB is a new resource to support the health workers and the scientific community in understanding the pathogenesis and molecular impact caused by SARS-CoV-2.

COVID-19 impacts the expression of molecular markers associated with neuropsychiatric disorders.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was initially characterized due to its impacts on the respiratory system; however, many recent studies have indicated that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) significantly affects the brain. COVID-19 can cause neurological complications, probably caused by the induction of a cytokine storm, since there is no evidence of neurotropism by SARS-CoV-2. In line with this, the COVID-19 outbreak could accelerate the progression or affect the clinical outcomes of neuropsychiatric conditions. Thus, we analyzed differential gene expression datasets for clinical samples of COVID-19 patients and identified 171 genes that are associated with the pathophysiology of the following neuropsychiatric disorders: alcohol dependence, autism, bipolar disorder, depression, panic disorder, schizophrenia, and sleep disorder. Several of the genes identified are associated with causing some of these conditions (classified as elite genes). Among these elite genes, 9 were found for schizophrenia, 6 for autism, 3 for depression/major depressive disorder, and 2 for alcohol dependence. The patients with the neuropsychiatric conditions associated with the genes identified may require special attention as COVID-19 can deteriorate or accelerate neurochemical dysfunctions, thereby aggravating clinical outcomes.

ZIKAVID-Zika virus infection database: a new platform to analyze the molecular impact of Zika virus infection.

The recent outbreak of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil and other countries globally demonstrated the relevance of ZIKV studies. During and after this outbreak, there was an intense increase in scientific production on ZIKV infections, especially toward alterations promoted by the infection and related to clinical outcomes. Considering this massive amount of new data, mainly thousands of genes and proteins whose expression is impacted by ZIKV infection, the ZIKA Virus Infection Database (ZIKAVID) was created. ZIKAVID is an online database that comprises all genes or proteins, and associated information, for which expression was experimentally measured and found to be altered after ZIKV infection. The database, available at https://zikavid.org, contains 16,984 entries of gene expression measurements from a total of 7348 genes. It allows users to easily perform searches for different experimental hosts (cell lines, tissues, and animal models), ZIKV strains (African, Asian, and Brazilian), and target molecules (messenger RNA [mRNA] and protein), among others, used in differential expression studies regarding ZIKV infection. In this way, the ZIKAVID will serve as an additional and important resource to improve the characterization of the molecular impact and pathogenesis associated with ZIKV infection.