Cellular and molecular effects of fipronil in lipid metabolism of HepG2 and its possible connection to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a global public health problem that affects more than a quarter of the population. The development of this disease is correlated with metabolic dysfunctions that lead to lipid accumulation in the liver. Pesticides are one of etiologies that support NAFLD establishment. Therefore, the effects of the insecticide fipronil on the lipid metabolism of the human hepatic cell line, HepG2, was investigated, considering its widespread use in field crops and even to control domestic pests. To address the goals of the study, biochemical, cellular, and molecular analyses of different concentrations of fipronil in cell cultures were investigated, after 24 h of incubation. Relevant metabolites such as triglycerides, glucose levels, ß-oxidation processes, and gene expression of relevant elements correlated with lipid and metabolism of xenobiotics were investigated. The results suggested that at 20 µM, the pesticide increased the accumulation of triglycerides and neutral lipids by reducing fatty acid oxidation and increasing de novo lipogenesis. In addition, changes were observed in genes that control oxidative stress and the xenobiotic metabolism. Together, the results suggest that the metabolic changes caused by the insecticide fipronil may be deleterious if persistent, favoring the establishment of hepatic steatosis.

Geometric deep learning as a potential tool for antimicrobial peptide prediction.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are components of natural immunity against invading pathogens. They are polymers that fold into a variety of three-dimensional structures, enabling their function, with an underlying sequence that is best represented in a non-flat space. The structural data of AMPs exhibits non-Euclidean characteristics, which means that certain properties, e.g., differential manifolds, common system of coordinates, vector space structure, or translation-equivariance, along with basic operations like convolution, in non-Euclidean space are not distinctly established. Geometric deep learning (GDL) refers to a category of machine learning methods that utilize deep neural models to process and analyze data in non-Euclidean settings, such as graphs and manifolds. This emerging field seeks to expand the use of structured models to these domains. This review provides a detailed summary of the latest developments in designing and predicting AMPs utilizing GDL techniques and also discusses both current research gaps and future directions in the field.

Amiloidose cardíaca por transtirretina: mais de uma variante patogênica confere maior gravidade? / Transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis: does more than one pathogenic variant confer greater severity?

INTRODUÇÃO: Mais de 130 variantes patogênicas no gene TTR foram associadas à amiloidose por transtirretina hereditária (ATTRh), conferindo uma ampla heterogeneidade fenotípica nos indivíduos afetados, com início da doença variável e formas de apresentação distintas. Sendo ATTRh de herança autossômica dominante, uma única variante patogênica é suficiente para o desenvolvimento da doença. Descrevemos uma série de casos nos quais foi observada rara associação de duas variantes patogênicas em heterozigose composta em um único indivíduo. MÉTODOS: estudo retrospectivo observacional. RESULTADOS: De uma série total de 128 pacientes (P) com ATTRh, trêspacientes (2,34%) eram portadores de duas variantes patogênicas no gene da TTR. Dois masculinos, idades de 41, 66 e 67 anos, todos com fenótipos mistos. Dados clínicos e de exames estão listados na tabela 1.

Mycobiome structure does not affect field litter decomposition in Eucalyptus and Acacia plantations.

Mixed tree plantations have been studied because of their potential to improve biomass production, ecosystem diversity, and soil quality. One example is a mixture of Eucalyptus and Acacia trees, which is a promising strategy to improve microbial diversity and nutrient cycling in soil. We examined how a mixture of these species may influence the biochemical attributes and fungal community associated with leaf litter, and the effects on litter decomposition. We studied the litter from pure and mixed plantations, evaluating the effects of plant material and incubation site on the mycobiome and decomposition rate using litterbags incubated in situ. Our central hypothesis was litter fungal community would change according to incubation site, and it would interfere in litter decomposition rate. Both the plant material and the incubation locale significantly affected the litter decomposition. The origin of the litter was the main modulator of the mycobiome, with distinct communities from one plant species to another. The community changed with the incubation time but the incubation site did not influence the mycobiome community. Our data showed that litter and soil did not share the main elements of the community. Contrary to our hypothesis, the microbial community structure and diversity lacked any association with the decomposition rate. The differences in the decomposition pattern are explained basically as a function of the exchange of nitrogen compounds between the litter.

Low-Level Laser and Antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy Reduce Peri-implantitis-related Microorganisms Grown In Vitro.

OBJECTIVE: Currently, dental implants are a predictable treatment option for oral rehabilitation; however, complications such as peri-implant diseases are increasing every day. Thus, the aim of this study was to verify the efficacy, in vitro, of two protocols against cultures of periodontal biofilm and Staphylococcus aureus. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Petri dishes for each of the following groups were used: control groups (C)-plates inoculated with periodontal biofilm (C.B; n = 4) or S. aureus (C.SA; n = 4) without any treatment; laser groups-plates inoculated with periodontal biofilm (low-level laser therapy [LLLT].B; n = 4) or S. aureus (LLLT.SA; n = 4) and treated with LLLT (660 nm, 30 mW, 50 J/cm2, and 47 seconds); antimicrobial photodynamic therapy groups (aPDT)-plates inoculated with periodontal biofilm (aPDT.B; n = 4) or S. aureus (aPDT.SA; n = 4) and treated with aPDT (red laser 660 nm, 30 mW, 50 J/cm2, 47 seconds + toluidine blue O (TBO) 100 µg/mL, and 1 minute). After treatments were performed, the contents of all plates were diluted and seeded for counting colony-forming units (CFUs). STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Results were analyzed with one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Tukey's test, comparison of percentages, and independent t-tests with a 5% significance level. RESULTS: Both treatments, LLLT and aPDT, significantly reduced the number of CFUs for the two types of culture, LLLT.B (3.69 × 106 ± 0.20), aPDT.B (2.79 × 106 ± 0.13), LLLT.SA (4.10 × 106 ± 0.12), and aPDT.SA (3.23 × 106 ± 0.10) when compared with control groups C.B (5.18 × 106 ± 0.43) and C.SA (5.81 × 106 ± 0.16; p = 0.000). When treatment groups were compared separately, there was also a statistically significant difference (p = 0.000). None of the protocols were able to eliminate cultured microorganisms. CONCLUSION: The LLLT and aPDT protocols effectively reduced cultures of periodontal biofilm and S. aureus in vitro, with the superiority of aPDT.

Association between INDELs in MicroRNAs and Susceptibility to Gastric Cancer in Amazonian Population.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a multifactorial, complex, and aggressive disease with a prevalence of one million new cases and high global mortality. Factors such as genetic, epigenetic, and environmental changes contribute to the onset and progression of the disease. Identification of INDELs in miRNA and its target sites in current studies showed an important role in the development of cancer. In GC, miRNAs act as oncogenes or tumor suppressors, favoring important cancer pathways, such as cell proliferation and migration. This work aims to investigate INDELs in the coding region of miRNAs (hsa-miR-302c, hsa-miR-548AJ-2, hsa-miR-4274, hsa-miR-630, hsa-miR-516B-2, hsa-miR-4463, hsa-miR-3945, hsa-miR-548H_4, hsa-miR-920, has-mir-3171, and hsa-miR-3652) that may be associated with susceptibility and clinical variants of gastric cancer. For this study, 301 patients with GC and 145 individuals from the control group were selected from an admixed population in the Brazilian Amazon. The results showed the hsa-miR-4463, hsa-miR-3945, hsa-miR-548H_4, hsa-miR-920 and hsa-miR-3652 variants were associated with gastric cancer susceptibility. The hsa-miR-4463 was significantly associated with clinical features of GC such as diffuse gastric tumor histological type, "non-cardia" localization region, and early onset. Our findings indicated that INDELs could be potentially functional genetic variants for gastric cancer risk.

Curcuma longa hydrolate improves Nile tilapia survival in a recirculation rearing system, maintaining the animal homeostasis and modulating the gut microbial community.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the dietary supplementation Curcuma longa hydrolate on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) reared in a recirculation system. Hemato-immunological parameters, growth performance, nitrogen and phosphorus retention, as well as body composition and its interaction with the intestinal microbiota, were studied. Nile tilapia fingerlings (120) were distributed randomly in 8 polyethylene tanks (40 L). The experimental units were divided into two treatments, in quadruplicate: commercial diet supplemented with 2.5% of C. longa hydrolate and commercial diet without supplementation (control). After 45 days, the treatment supplemented hydrolate showed higher survival than the control group, 95.25% and 82.22%, receptively. In the blood profile, fish supplemented with hydrolate had a higher count of total leukocytes and neutrophils, as well as mean corpuscular hemoglobin and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, than control group. The hydrolate group showed a substantial increase in the relative abundance of Cetobacterium and Romboutsia, as well as lower diversity in gut microbiota. The dietary addition of C. longa hydrolate for Nile tilapia seems to have a beneficial effect on gut microbiota, in addition to a likely positive effect on the physiological performance of Nile tilapia by maintaining intestinal homeostasis and promoting survival in reared conditions.

The limits of near field immersion microwave microscopy evaluated by imaging bilayer graphene moiré patterns.

Near field scanning Microwave Impedance Microscopy can resolve structures as small as 1 nm using radiation with wavelengths of 0.1 m. Combining liquid immersion microscopy concepts with exquisite force control exerted on nanoscale water menisci, concentration of electromagnetic fields in nanometer-size regions was achieved. As a test material we use twisted bilayer graphene, because it provides a sample where the modulation of the moiré superstructure pattern can be systematically tuned from Ångstroms up to tens of nanometers. Here we demonstrate that a probe-to-pattern resolution of 108 can be obtained by analyzing and adjusting the tip-sample distance influence on the dynamics of water meniscus formation and stability.

Localization of lattice dynamics in low-angle twisted bilayer graphene.

Twisted bilayer graphene is created by slightly rotating the two crystal networks in bilayer graphene with respect to each other. For small twist angles, the material undergoes a self-organized lattice reconstruction, leading to the formation of a periodically repeated domain1-3. The resulting superlattice modulates the vibrational3,4 and electronic5,6 structures within the material, leading to changes in the behaviour of electron-phonon coupling7,8 and to the observation of strong correlations and superconductivity9. However, accessing these modulations and understanding the related effects are challenging, because the modulations are too small for experimental techniques to accurately resolve the relevant energy levels and too large for theoretical models to properly describe the localized effects. Here we report hyperspectral optical images, generated by a nano-Raman spectroscope10, of the crystal superlattice in reconstructed (low-angle) twisted bilayer graphene. Observations of the crystallographic structure with visible light are made possible by the nano-Raman technique, which reveals the localization of lattice dynamics, with the presence of strain solitons and topological points1 causing detectable spectral variations. The results are rationalized by an atomistic model that enables evaluation of the local density of the electronic and vibrational states of the superlattice. This evaluation highlights the relevance of solitons and topological points for the vibrational and electronic properties of the structures, particularly for small twist angles. Our results are an important step towards understanding phonon-related effects at atomic and nanometric scales, such as Jahn-Teller effects11 and electronic Cooper pairing12-14, and may help to improve device characterization15 in the context of the rapidly developing field of twistronics16.

Craniometric geographical variation in Hylaeamys megacephalus populations / Variação geográfica craniométrica em populações de Hylaeamys megacephalus

Hylaeamys megacephalus (G. Fisher, 1814) presents great genetic diversity and wide geographical distribution, and occurs in both the Amazon and Cerrado biomes. Because of its generalist aspect, this species tolerates different eating habits and habitats. It occurs in flooded and dry areas and is predominantly terrestrial, which allows greater gene flow between populations even over long distances. Studies that seek a better understanding of morphological variations resulting from differences imposed by the environment throughout this species' distribution are still lacking. This study aimed to analyze the differences between H. megacephalus populations based on craniometry, investigating whether the environment has an influence on morphology. We analyzed a total of 142 specimens from three scientific mammal collections: National Museum, "Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro" (MN-UFRJ); "Laboratório de Biologia e Parasitologia de Mamíferos Reservatórios Silvestres", "Instituto Oswaldo Cruz", "Fundação Oswaldo Cruz"(LBCE-Fiocruz); and "Laboratório de Biodiversidade", "Universidade Federal de Goiás", "Regional Jataí" (LZE-UFG), and took 20 craniometric measurements. Craniometry was explored using unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA), canonical variate analysis, and principal component analysis (PCA). The results led us to conclude that there are three craniometric groups of H. megacephalus with a tendency to differentiate as a result of geographical influences.(AU)

Com grande diversidade genética e distribuição geográfica, Hylaeamys megacephalus (G. Fisher, 1814) ocorre tanto na Amazônia quanto no Cerrado. Visto seu aspecto generalista, esta espécie tolera diversos hábitos alimentares e habitats, ocorrendo em áreas inundadas ou não, sendo predominantemente terrestre, permitindo maior fluxo de genes entre as populações, mesmo em longas distâncias. Apresenta ampla distribuição, e carece de estudos que busquem um melhor entendimento sobre as variações morfológicas resultantes das diferenças impostas pelo meio ao longo de sua distribuição. O estudo teve como objetivo, analisar as diferenças entre as populações de H. megacephalus, com base na craniometria investigando se o ambiente interfere na morfologia. Analisamos um total de 142 espécimes oriundos de coleções científicas de mamíferos, do Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (MN-UFRJ), Laboratório de Biologia e Parasitologia de Mamíferos Reservatórios Silvestres, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (LBCE-Fiocruz) e Laboratório de Biodiversidade, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Regional Jataí, nos quais foram tomadas 20 medidas craniométricas. A craniometria foi explorada nas análises estatísticas de agrupamento de pares não ponderados com médias aritméticas (UPGMA), variação canônica e análise dos Componentes Principais (PCA). Os resultados encontrados nos levaram a concluir a existência de três grupos craniométricos da espécie de H. megacephalus com tendência a se diferenciarem, por influências geográficas.(AU)

Effects of alkaline water intake on gastritis and miRNA expression (miR-7, miR-155, miR-135b and miR-29c).

It is known that abnormal expression of miRNAs in the gastric cancer (GC) contributes to its carcinogenesis. Therefore, ingestion of commercial (usual) water on a daily basis may be a contributing factor for the occurrence of alterations in the gastric mucosal. In this study, it was evaluated the expression of the miRNAs miR-29c, miR-7, miR-155, and miR-135b in the gastric tissue of patients with gastritis before and after the consumption of alkaline water (pH range from 8.0 to 10.0), as well as the clinic pathological characteristics. METHODS: 50 subjects from the Amazon region, diagnosed with gastritis that routinely used commercial (usual) water with a pH lower than 5.0, were enrolled to change the consume water to a pH of 8.5 to 10.0 for 5 months. RESULTS: Endoscopic findings of gastritis were such different (less severe disease), P = 0.024; in 43% diagnosed with moderate gastritis upfront esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) presented mild gastritis after the consumption of alkaline water, according to study methods; there were no worsening gastritis and there were a significant increase in the expression of miR-135b (P = 0.039) and miR-29c (P = 0.039). CONCLUSION: Modified pH range water (from 8.0 to 10.0) ingested for 5 months was able lead to a less severe gastritis according to the Sidney classification system, suggesting that this lifestyle change represented a clinical benefit in patients with gastritis on the Amazon region. In addition, higher expression of miR-135b and miR-29c was observed after the consumption of alkaline water for 5 months.

The nuclear and mitochondrial genomes of Frieseomelitta varia - a highly eusocial stingless bee (Meliponini) with a permanently sterile worker caste.

BACKGROUND: Most of our understanding on the social behavior and genomics of bees and other social insects is centered on the Western honey bee, Apis mellifera. The genus Apis, however, is a highly derived branch comprising less than a dozen species, four of which genomically characterized. In contrast, for the equally highly eusocial, yet taxonomically and biologically more diverse Meliponini, a full genome sequence was so far available for a single Melipona species only. We present here the genome sequence of Frieseomelitta varia, a stingless bee that has, as a peculiarity, a completely sterile worker caste. RESULTS: The assembly of 243,974,526 high quality Illumina reads resulted in a predicted assembled genome size of 275 Mb composed of 2173 scaffolds. A BUSCO analysis for the 10,526 predicted genes showed that these represent 96.6% of the expected hymenopteran orthologs. We also predicted 169,371 repetitive genomic components, 2083 putative transposable elements, and 1946 genes for non-coding RNAs, largely long non-coding RNAs. The mitochondrial genome comprises 15,144 bp, encoding 13 proteins, 22 tRNAs and 2 rRNAs. We observed considerable rearrangement in the mitochondrial gene order compared to other bees. For an in-depth analysis of genes related to social biology, we manually checked the annotations for 533 automatically predicted gene models, including 127 genes related to reproductive processes, 104 to development, and 174 immunity-related genes. We also performed specific searches for genes containing transcription factor domains and genes related to neurogenesis and chemosensory communication. CONCLUSIONS: The total genome size for F. varia is similar to the sequenced genomes of other bees. Using specific prediction methods, we identified a large number of repetitive genome components and long non-coding RNAs, which could provide the molecular basis for gene regulatory plasticity, including worker reproduction. The remarkable reshuffling in gene order in the mitochondrial genome suggests that stingless bees may be a hotspot for mtDNA evolution. Hence, while being just the second stingless bee genome sequenced, we expect that subsequent targeting of a selected set of species from this diverse clade of highly eusocial bees will reveal relevant evolutionary signals and trends related to eusociality in these important pollinators.

Vascularization of the Alouatta belzebul brain base / Vascularização da base do encéfalo de Alouatta belzebul

We studied the arterial circle in the brain of five specimens of the Alouatta belzebul primate. The material had the arterial system perfused (water at 40°C), injected with stained latex (Neoprene 650), fixed in aqueous formaldehyde solution (10%) and dissected for vessel verification. The arterial circle of this primate is composed of two vascular systems: the vertebra-basilar and the carotid ones, which anastomose to close the arterial circuit. In the caudal portion of the arterial circle, there are the vertebral arteries and their branches: the rostral spinal artery and the caudal inferior cerebellar artery. The anastomosis of the vertebral arteries gives rise to the basilar artery. It presented an anatomical variation at the beginning of its path, forming a double basilar artery, called arterial island. In its course, it emitted branches giving rise to the rostral inferior cerebellar artery, the pontine arteries, the rostral cerebellar arteries, the satellite rostral cerebellar arteries and its terminal branch, the caudal cerebral artery, which presented itself in two segments: the pre-communicating one and post-communicating, joining the internal carotid artery and originating the caudal communicating artery. This group of arteries and anastomoses enclose the caudal portion of the arterial circle. From the right and left internal carotid arteries begins the rostral portion of the arterial circle, which consists of the right and left rostral cerebral arteries and the right and left middle cerebral arteries. The rostral cerebral arteries anastomose into a single trunk, giving rise to the interhemispheric artery, and in A. belzebul and Sapajus libidinosus, the rostral communicating artery is absent. The interhemispheric artery goes to the midbrain region and the corpus callosum knee divides into pericalous artery and callosarginal artery, which will supply the pre and post-central regions of the cerebral hemispheres of this species, as well as other non-human and human primates. It is noted that in the first part of the left rostral cerebral artery, there is a direct inosculation between the recurrent branch of the rostral cerebral artery and left middle cerebral artery to supply the entorhinal region. This fact also occurs in Pongo spp. The middle cerebral artery travels along the lateral sulcus where it emits several superficial branches to irrigate the superior and inferior lateral cortical regions of the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. It is not part of the arterial circle but is the terminal branch of the internal carotid artery. A. belzebul can be considered to depend on two sources of supply to the brain: the vertebra-basilar and carotid systems, contributing to the intervention of veterinarians during clinical and surgical procedures in other primates, as well as the preservation of wild animals.(AU)

Estudamos o círculo arterial no encéfalo de cinco espécimes do primata Alouatta belzebul. O material teve o sistema arterial perfundido (água a 40°C), injetado com látex corado (Neoprene 650), fixado em solução aquosa de formaldeído (10%) e dissecado para verificação dos vasos. O círculo arterial deste primata é composto por dois sistemas vasculares: vértebro-basilar e o sistema carotídeo, que se anastomosam para fechar o circuito arterial. Na porção caudal do círculo arterial encontra-se as artérias vertebrais e seus ramos: artéria espinal rostral e a cerebelar inferior caudal. A anastomose das artérias vertebrais dá origem a artéria basilar. Esta apresentou uma variação anatômica no início do seu trajeto, formando uma dupla artéria basilar, denominada ilha arterial. Em seu trajeto emitiu ramos dando origem a artéria cerebelar inferior rostral, as artérias pontinas, as artérias cerebelares rostrais, as artérias cerebelares rostrais satélites e o seu ramo terminal, a artéria cerebral caudal, que apresentou-se em dois segmentos: o pré-comunicante e pós-comunicante, unindo-se a artéria carótida interna e originando a artéria comunicante caudal. Este grupo de artérias e anastomoses encerram a porção caudal do círculo arterial. Das artérias carótidas internas direita e esquerda, inicia-se a porção rostral do círculo arterial, ao qual é constituído pelas artérias cerebrais rostrais direita e esquerda e as artérias cerebrais médias direita e esquerda. As artérias cerebrais rostrais se anastomosam em um tronco único dando origem a artéria inter-hemisférica e em A. belzebul e Sapajus libidinosus, a artéria comunicante rostral se encontra ausente. A artéria inter-hemisférica segue para região média do encéfalo e no joelho do corpo caloso se divide em artéria pericalosa e artéria calosomarginal, que vão suprir as regiões pré e pós-central dos hemisférios cerebrais desta espécie, assim como outros primatas não humanos e humano. Nota-se que na primeira parte da artéria cerebral rostral esquerda, ocorre uma inosculação direta entre o ramo recorrente da artéria cerebral rostral e artéria cerebral média esquerda para suprir a região entorrinal, esse fato também ocorre em Pongo spp. A artéria cerebral média segue seu trajeto pelo sulco lateral onde emite vários ramos superficiais para irrigar as regiões corticais supero e ínfero lateral do lobo frontal, parietal e temporal, esta não faz parte do círculo arterial mas é o ramo terminal da artéria carótida interna. Pode-se considerar que A. belzebul depende de duas fontes de suprimento para o encéfalo: os sistemas vértebro-basilar e carotídeo, contribuindo na intervenção de médicos veterinários durante os procedimentos clínicos e cirúrgicos em outros primatas, assim como na preservação de animais silvestres.(AU)

Cardiomiopatia hipertrófica x amiloidose cardíaca: diagnóstico diferencial. Relato de caso / Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy x cardiac amyloidosis: differential diagnosis. Case report

INTRODUÇÃO: Apesar do avanço dos métodos de imagem, o diagnóstico diferencial entre Amiloidose Cardíaca (AC) e Cardiomiopatia Hipertrófica (CMH) em alguns casos, é complexo, por ambas as doenças caracterizarem-se, principalmente, por hipertrofia ventricular esquerda (HVE). O diagnóstico diferencial entre estas duas condições é de fundamental importância, já que o manejo clínico é diferente e hoje dispomos de tratamento específico para AC. Descrevemos caso de AC encaminhado a serviço terciário com diagnóstico de CMH. RELATO DE CASO: Homem, 66 anos, negro, apresentando dispneia aos moderados esforços, ortopneia, episódios de síncope e história familiar de morte súbita. Ecocardiograma trazido pelo paciente mostrava espessura do septo de 17mm e da parede posterior de 13mm, cavidades cardíacas de dimensões normais e função ventricular preservada. Submetido à ressonância magnética que mostrou aumento da espessura do septo e realce tardio mesocárdico equivalente a 15,5% de massa do ventrículo esquerdo. Holter evidenciou taquicardia ventricular não sustentada. Foi considerado implante de cardiodesfibrilador implantável. Eletrocardiograma (ECG) apresentava baixa voltagem no plano frontal, achado pouco usual na CMH. Por este achado do ECG, foi solicitada cintilografia com pirofosfato marcado com Tecnécio, sugestiva de AC. Ecocardiograma realizado na sequência era estruturalmente compatível com CMH, mas o strain evidenciou "apical sparing" achado típico de AC. A análise molecular do gene TTR mostrou mutação p.Val142Ile e a biópsia endomiocárdica evidenciou depósito que corou positivamente por Vermelho Congo. DISCUSSÃO: Hipertensão Arterial e CMH são as causas mais frequentes de HVE, mas antes devem ser afastadas patologias que têm tratamento específico, como AC e Doença de Fabry. Os métodos de imagem podem sugerir estes diagnósticos, mas a análise conjunta de todos os exames pode ser fundamental, como no presente caso, quando as alterações do ECG foram determinantes. O diagnóstico de Amioloidose Transtirretina Familiar abre a possibilidade de tratamento dirigido à doença de base e possível redução de mortalidade e hospitalizações. CONCLUSÃO: A AC deve ser pensada como diagnóstico diferencial frente ao achado de HVE. Casos com diagnóstico prévio de CMH devem ser reanalisados, pela possibilidade de erro diagnóstico e permitir tratamento específico a alguns pacientes. A disponibilidade de métodos diagnósticos sofisticados não deve levar à desvalorização de exames poucos dispendiosos, como o ECG, que foi elemento-chave para o diagnóstico neste caso. (AU)

Exploring integument transcriptomes, cuticle ultrastructure, and cuticular hydrocarbons profiles in eusocial and solitary bee species displaying heterochronic adult cuticle maturation.

Differences in the timing of exoskeleton melanization and sclerotization are evident when comparing eusocial and solitary bees. This cuticular maturation heterochrony may be associated with life style, considering that eusocial bees remain protected inside the nest for many days after emergence, while the solitary bees immediately start outside activities. To address this issue, we characterized gene expression using large-scale RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), and quantified cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry in comparative studies of the integument (cuticle plus its underlying epidermis) of two eusocial and a solitary bee species. In addition, we used transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for studying the developing cuticle of these and other three bee species also differing in life style. We found 13,200, 55,209 and 30,161 transcript types in the integument of the eusocial Apis mellifera and Frieseomelitta varia, and the solitary Centris analis, respectively. In general, structural cuticle proteins and chitin-related genes were upregulated in pharate-adults and newly-emerged bees whereas transcripts for odorant binding proteins, cytochrome P450 and antioxidant proteins were overrepresented in foragers. Consistent with our hypothesis, a distance correlation analysis based on the differentially expressed genes suggested delayed cuticle maturation in A. mellifera in comparison to the solitary bee. However, this was not confirmed in the comparison with F. varia. The expression profiles of 27 of 119 genes displaying functional attributes related to cuticle formation/differentiation were positively correlated between A. mellifera and F. varia, and negatively or non-correlated with C. analis, suggesting roles in cuticular maturation heterochrony. However, we also found transcript profiles positively correlated between each one of the eusocial species and C. analis. Gene co-expression networks greatly differed between the bee species, but we identified common gene interactions exclusively between the eusocial species. Except for F. varia, the TEM analysis is consistent with cuticle development timing adapted to the social or solitary life style. In support to our hypothesis, the absolute quantities of n-alkanes and unsaturated CHCs were significantly higher in foragers than in the earlier developmental phases of the eusocial bees, but did not discriminate newly-emerged from foragers in C. analis. By highlighting differences in integument gene expression, cuticle ultrastructure, and CHC profiles between eusocial and solitary bees, our data provided insights into the process of heterochronic cuticle maturation associated to the way of life.

Short-term effect of Eucalyptus plantations on soil microbial communities and soil-atmosphere methane and nitrous oxide exchange.

Soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are a significant environmental problem resulting from microbially-mediated nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) cycling. This study aimed to investigate the impact of Eucalyptus plantations on the structure and function of a soil microbial community, and how resulting alterations may be linked to GHG fluxes. We sampled and monitored two adjacent Eucalyptus plantations-a recently logged site that harbored new seedlings and an adult plantation-and compared them to a site hosting native vegetation. We used 16S rRNA gene sequencing and qPCR amplifications of key nitrogen and methane cycle genes to characterize microbial structure and functional gene abundance and compared our data with soil parameters and GHG fluxes. Both microbial community attributes were significantly affected by land use and logging of Eucalyptus plantations. The genes nosZ and archaeal amoA were significantly more abundant in native forest than in either young or old Eucalyptus plantations. Statistical analyses suggest that land use type has a greater impact on microbial community structure and functional gene abundance than Eucalyptus rotation. There was no correlation between GHG fluxes and shifts in microbial community, suggesting that microbial community structure and functional gene abundance are not the main drivers of GHG fluxes in this system.

Estimating Asian Contribution to the Brazilian Population: A New Application of a Validated Set of 61 Ancestry Informative Markers.

Estimates of different ancestral proportions in admixed populations are very important in population genetics studies, especially for the detection of population substructure effects in studies of case-control associations. Brazil is one of the most heterogeneous countries in the world, both from a socio-cultural and a genetic point of view. In this work, we investigated a previously developed set of 61 ancestry informative markers (AIM), aiming to estimate the proportions of four different ancestral groups (African, European, Native American and Asian) in Brazilian populations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to use a set of AIM to investigate the genetic contribution of all four main parental populations to the Brazilian population, including Asian contribution. All selected markers were genotyped through multiplex PCR and capillary electrophoresis. The set was able to successfully differentiate the four ancestral populations (represented by 939 individuals) and identify their genetic contributions to the Brazilian population. In addition, it was used to estimate individual interethnic admixture of 1050 individuals from the Southeast region of Brazil and it showed that these individuals present a higher European ancestry contribution, followed by African, Asian and Native American ancestry contributions. Therefore, the 61 AIM set has proved to be a valuable tool to estimate individual and global ancestry proportions in populations mainly formed by these four groups. Our findings highlight the importance of using sets of AIM to evaluate population substructure in studies carried in admixed populations, in order to avoid misinterpretation of results.

Circuit resistance training in women with normal weight obesity syndrome: body composition, cardiometabolic and echocardiographic parameters, and cardiovascular and skeletal muscle fitness.

BACKGROUND: Normal weight obesity (NWO) syndrome has been characterized in subjects with normal Body Mass Index (BMI) and high body fat mass percentage (BF%>30 for women) being a risk factor for cardiometabolic dysregulation and cardiovascular mortality. This study evaluated whether circuit resistance training (CRT) improves body composition, heart size and function, cardiometabolic parameters, and cardiorespiratory, cardiovascular and skeletal muscle fitness in women with NWO. METHODS: Data are means (95% Confidence Interval). Twenty-three women participated: 10 NWO-CRT (baseline: BMI=22.4 [21.4-23.3] kg/m2; BF%=44.5 [41.0-48.0]%) performed CRT; and 13 untrained NWO-control (baseline: BMI=21.7 [20.8-22.7] kg/m2; BF%=37.8 [34.6-41.1]%). At baseline and after 10 weeks were performed/measured dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, echocardiography, blood tests, arterial pressure, exercise testing, and total-overload-by-training-session (TOL). RESULTS: At baseline, the NWO-CRT exhibited larger BF (27.28 [23.9-30.6] kg) than NWO-control (22.41 [19.5-25.3] kg) (P=0.0227). After training, NWO-CRT: reduced 8 kg of BF (P=0.000002); became BF% lower than NWO-control (33.1 [30.1-36.0] <37.0 [34.3-39.6]%, P=0.0423), with 30% of NWO-CRT subjects becoming without-obesity; reduced 3 kg in trunk fat mass (P=0.000005); showed fasting glucose (72.8 [69.4-76.2] mg/dL) smaller than NWO-control (81.7 [78.6-84.8] mg/dL) (P=0.004); increased TOL (5087.5 [4142.5-6032.5] to 6963.3 [6226.4-7700.2] rep.kg, P=0.0004); increased load at VO2peak (122.5 [106.8-138.2] to 137.5 [118.18-156.82] W, P=0.0051); reduced double product/load at VO2peak ratio (277.4 [222.1-332.8] to 237.7 [194.2-281.2] mmHg.bpm/W, P=0.0015); and increased left ventricular mass/body surface area ratio (84.29 [78.98-89.6] to 90.29 [81.45-99.12] g/m2, P=0.0215). CONCLUSIONS: CRT reduced BF% and generated cardiometabolic, cardiac, skeletal muscle and cardiovascular benefits, being a useful strategy to combat the normal weight obesity syndrome in women.