The contribution of abortive infection to preventing populations of Lactococcus lactis from succumbing to infections with bacteriophage.

In the dairy industry bacteriophage (phage) contamination significantly impairs the production and quality of products like yogurt and cheese. To combat this issue, the strains of bacteria used as starter cultures possess mechanisms that make them resistant to phage infection, such as envelope resistance, or processes that render them immune to phage infection, such as restriction-modification and CRISPR-Cas. Lactococcus lactis, used to manufacture cheese and other dairy products, can also block the reproduction of infecting phages by abortive infection (Abi), a process in which phage-infected cells die before the phage replicate. We employ mathematical-computer simulation models and experiments with two Lactococcus lactis strains and two lytic phages to investigate the conditions under which Abi can limit the proliferation of phages in L. lactis populations and prevent the extinction of their populations by these viruses. According to our model, if Abi is almost perfect and there are no other populations of bacteria capable of supporting the replication of the L. lactis phages, Abi can protect bacterial populations from succumbing to infections with these viruses. This prediction is supported by the results of our experiment, which indicate that Abi can help protect L. lactis populations from extinction by lytic phage infections. However, our results also predict abortive infection is only one element of L. lactis defenses against phage infection. Mutant phages that can circumvent the Abi systems of these bacteria emerge. The survival of L. lactis populations then depends on the evolution of envelope mutants that are resistant to the evolved host-range phage.

Hypersensitivity reaction to Abiraterone, successful desensitization protocol in prostate cancer patient.

INTRODUCTION: In prostate cancer, androgens are key in the growth of both normal prostate and cancer cells. Abiraterone acetate inhibits CYP17, an important target in prostate cancer given its central role in the production of adrenal and tumor-derived androgens. Although abiraterone is generally well tolerated, common adverse effects such as hypertension, hypokalemia, and hepatotoxicity have been reported. CLINICAL CASE: We present the case of an 83-year-old Mexican man with high-volume EC IV prostate cancer resistant to castration, orchiectomy, and bone, liver, and lung metastases. First-line treatment with the CHAARTED scheme was indicated, by patient decision refuse chemotherapy treatment. On the fourth day of starting treatment, he developed pruritic erythematous macular skin lesions and urticaria on the posterior chest that resolved spontaneously. A generalized erythematous and pruritic maculopapular rash appeared 12 days after starting abiraterone, for which she was referred to allergies. MANAGEMENT AND RESULTS: An oral provocation test was performed for two days, presenting localized macular lesions eight hours after the administration of abiraterone. An oral desensitization protocol was carried out for ten days in which no hypersensitivity reactions were observed, thus achieving the successful administration of abiraterone.

The perception of healthcare professionals, through their own personal experiences, of the use of music therapy in hospitalised children and adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Music therapy is an emerging and useful methodology for improving patient environments within healthcare fields. However, although it has been shown that music therapy interventions with hospitalised children and adolescents have been used for decades with positive effects, there are currently very few studies that specifically describe the perspectives of healthcare professionals regarding the value of music therapy when applied in these patients. OBJECTIVES: To describe the insights of healthcare professionals regarding music therapy, both on a personal level and in terms of its usefulness in the care of hospitalised children and adolescents. DESIGN: This was a qualitative descriptive-exploratory study with focus groups. PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen healthcare professionals. METHODS: In January 2023, two focus groups, containing nine healthcare professionals each, were created to collect data regarding their experiences concerning the effect of music therapy on hospitalised children and adolescents. Before recording their opinions, all these professionals participated in an interactive music therapy session. The thematic analysis in this work was performed using MAXQDA® software. RESULTS: Two main categories emerged: (a) the effects of music therapy on healthcare professionals, and (b) the benefits of music therapy to patients (children and adolescents). CONCLUSIONS: Music therapy was valued positively by healthcare professionals who described the benefits its use has for hospitalised children and adolescents. They also expressed positive viewpoints regarding the use of music therapy to improve their own self-knowledge and self-care. IMPLICATIONS TO PRACTICE: Healthcare professionals may utilise music therapists to improve patient outcomes and reduce the negative effects of hospitalisation.

Evaluación del control del Asma en República Dominicana: una perspectiva clínica / Evaluation of Asthma Control in the Dominican Republic: a Clinical Perspective

Introducción: El asma es una patología respiratoria caracterizada por inflamación cró-nica y reversible de las vías aéreas. Esta se asocia con factores de riesgo modificables y no modificables que influyen sobre su control y exacerbaciones. En países como Puer-to Rico y Cuba, la prevalencia del asma es significativamente mayor a la global (22,8%, 23% y 6,6%, respectivamente).

Introduction: Asthma is a respiratory pathology characterized by chronic and reversible airway inflammation. It is associated with modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors that influence its control and exacerbations. In countries such as Puerto Rico (22.8 %) and Cuba (23 %), the prevalence of asthma is significantly higher than the global prevalence (6.6 %).

Electroconvulsive therapy use for refractory status epilepticus in an implantable vagus nerve stimulation patient: A case report.

Introduction: Status epilepticus (SE) has a mortality rate of 20 to 50%, with acute symptomatic SE having a higher risk compared to chronic SE. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been utilized for the treatment of refractory SE with a success rate estimate of 57.9%. There are no known reported cases of concomitant use of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) and ECT for the treatment of super refractory SE (SRSE) available in the literature. Case description: We present a 44-year-old female with a history of developmental delay, epilepsy, an implantable VNS for 6 years, and traumatic brain injury with subsequent hygroma who presented with progressive aphasia, declining mental status, and daily generalized seizures lasting up to 20 min. Seizures had increased from her baseline of one seizure per day controlled with topiramate 200 mg three times daily and lamotrigine 400 mg twice daily. She was diagnosed with SRSE after being intubated and placed on eight anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) that failed to abort SE. ECT was attempted to terminate SE. Due to a prior right craniotomy with subsequent right hygroma, eight treatments of ECT were performed over three sessions using a right anterior, left temporal (RALT) and subsequently a bitemporal electrode placement. The VNS remained active throughout treatment. Various ECT dosing parameters were attempted, varying pulse width and frequency. Although ECT induced mild transient encephalographic (EEG) changes following ECT stimulations, it was unable to terminate SE. Discussion: This case describes various treatment strategies, constraints, and device limitations when using ECT for the treatment of SE. With wide variability in efficacy rates of ECT in the treatment of SE in the literature, successful and unsuccessful cases offer information on optimizing ECT total charge dose and parameters that yielded success. This case demonstrates an instance of ECT inefficacy in the treatment of SRSE. Here, we discuss the rationale behind the various ECT settings that were selected, and constraints arising from the antiepileptic burden, VNS, and intrinsic limitations of the ECT device itself.

The relevance of music therapy in paediatric and adolescent cancer patients: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Music therapy is an emerging and useful methodology to improve the quality of life of children and adolescents with cancer. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this scoping review was to examine the available literature and offer an analysis of the relevance of music therapy in paediatric oncology. We considered the effects of music therapy on children and adolescents with cancer as well as the perception of this population, their families, music therapists, and health professionals regarding the music therapy sessions conducted. Finally, we analysed the characteristics of the distinct types of music therapy interventions reported in the literature. METHODS: In this review, we applied the methodology proposed by Arksey and O'Malley. After performing a comprehensive academic literature database search, 522 articles were identified of which, 27 met the inclusion criteria. RESULTS: The results shed light on the use of music therapy as a means to facilitate self-esteem, to improve the physical, emotional, and cognitive aspects related to disease and, to a lesser extent, alleviate their physiological symptoms. Both children and adolescents with cancer were represented in the academic literature. The most prevalent findings described in these studies were the benefits of music therapy in terms of improved psychological well-being and social relationships in this population. CONCLUSIONS: Music therapy interventions are generally well received, not only by children and adolescents with cancer, but also by their families, music therapists, and health professionals. Nevertheless, several gaps were identified in some of the studies we considered, including a lack of specificity regarding the results obtained or music therapy intervention methods used.

Exploring the application of immunotherapy against HIV infection in the setting of malignancy: A detailed review article.

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), as of 2019, approximately 42.2 million people have died from acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related illnesses since the start of the epidemic. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has significantly reduced mortality, morbidity, and incidence of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS-defining cancers, taming once-dreaded disease into a benign chronic infection. Although the treatment has prolonged the patients' survival, general HIV prevalence has increased and this increase has dovetailed with an increasing incidence of Non-AIDS-defining cancers (NADCs) among people living with HIV (PLWH). This is happening when new promising approaches in both oncology and HIV infection are being developed. This review focuses on recent progress witnessed in immunotherapy approaches against HIV-related, Non-AIDS-defining cancers (NADCs), and HIV infection.

COVID-19 vaccinations: The unknowns, challenges, and hopes.

The entire world has been suffering from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic since March 11, 2020. More than a year later, the COVID-19 vaccination brought hope to control this viral pandemic. Here, we review the unknowns of the COVID-19 vaccination, such as its longevity, asymptomatic spread, long-term side effects, and its efficacy on immunocompromised patients. In addition, we discuss challenges associated with the COVID-19 vaccination, such as the global access and distribution of vaccine doses, adherence to hygiene guidelines after vaccination, the emergence of novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants, and vaccine resistance. Despite all these challenges and the fact that the end of the COVID-19 pandemic is still unclear, vaccines have brought great hope for the world, with several reports indicating a significant decline in the risk of COVID19-related infection and hospitalizations.

A modified SEIR model to predict the behavior of the early stage in coronavirus and coronavirus-like outbreaks.

COVID-19 is a highly infectious disease that emerged in China at the end of 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic is the first known pandemic caused by a coronavirus, namely, the new and emerging SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. In the present work, we present simulations of the initial outbreak of this new coronavirus using a modified transmission rate SEIR model that takes into account the impact of government actions and the perception of risk by individuals in reaction to the proportion of fatal cases. The parameters related to these effects were fitted to the number of infected cases in the 33 provinces of China. The data for Hubei Province, the probable site of origin of the current pandemic, were considered as a particular case for the simulation and showed that the theoretical model reproduces the behavior of the data, thus indicating the importance of combining government actions and individual risk perceptions when the proportion of fatal cases is greater than [Formula: see text]. The results show that the adjusted model reproduces the behavior of the data quite well for some provinces, suggesting that the spread of the disease differs when different actions are evaluated. The proposed model could help to predict outbreaks of viruses with a biological and molecular structure similar to that of SARS-CoV-2.

Ecology and Evolution of Betacoronaviruses.

The crown-like outline of the virions of coronaviruses will long endure as the iconic image of 2020 - the year of the COVID-19 pandemic. This major human health emergency has been caused by a betacoronavirus, as have others in the past. In this chapter, we outline the taxonomy of betacoronaviruses and their properties, both genetic and biological. We discuss their recombinational and mutational histories separately to show that the sequence of the RaTG13 bat virus isolate is the closest currently known full-length genetic homolog of that of the severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, the RaTG13 bat virus and SARS-CoV-2 have probably diverged over 20 years. We discuss the ecology of their pangolin and bat hosts and conclude that, like other recent viral pandemics, the underlying cause of the SARS-CoV-2 emergence is probably the relentless growth of the world's human population and the overexploitation and disturbance of the environment.

A Borderless Solution Is Needed for A Borderless Complexity, Like COVID-19, the Universal Invader.

This chapter briefly describes the universal intricacies caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, from the ineffectiveness of distance measures, the massive economic impacts, and the severe mental health challenges to the failure of finding a vaccine, a therapeutic agent or even accurately diagnosing the infection. The entire world is suffering, but every country is trying to combat this pandemic individually, and this deed is the main barrier that prevents reaching a peaceful end.

International Efforts to Save Healthcare Personnel during COVID-19.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a global challenge. Several governments of the world have decided to take drastic actions in order to combat the spread of the disease, including the closing of air, maritime and land borders, as an extreme measure of isolation of each country/region. However, such measures had not prevented the disease from spreading globally; as COVID-19 has already spread in almost all countries. This virus's main victims are the healthcare personnel (HCP), who are physically and psychologically affected. The HCP serves as the first line of defense against this pandemic, what if we faced a significant loss in their number? And what if our HCP was going through a deep dark depression? The condition would be terrifying not only for now but also in the future. This raises the need for an intensified International collaboration, that mainly supports the HCP. We are throwing by challenging moments, and it is clear that social distancing, cooperation, hygiene awareness and abide by the recommendation and help of all governments, as well as obtaining the support of international organizations could be an excellent tool for preventing an increase in the number of cases, principally in countries and regions were COVID-19 is in the early stage of the epidemic. However, this is not the final solution for the current pandemic. An intensified global program, which mainly supports the HCP, then considers the other aspects of the COVID19 pandemic might bring this pandemic to a peaceful end.

Evaluation of Oral Administration of Lactobacillus plantarum CAM6 Strain as an Alternative to Antibiotics in Weaned Pigs.

The objective was to evaluate the effect of oral administration of Lactobacillus plantarum CAM6 strain as an alternative to antibiotics in weaned pigs on productive parameters, blood biochemical profile, and IgA serum levels. Thirty-six 21-day-old weaned piglets were randomly assigned to three groups with three replicates of four piglets each. Treatments consisted of a basal diet (BD; T0) without probiotics or antibiotics; BD + antibiotics and the same basal diet used in T0 plus oral administration of 5 mL × 109 CFU/mL of L. plantarum CAM-6 (T2). During the study (21 to 49 days of age) T2 obtained a similar live weight, weight gain, and feed conversion ratio when compared to the T1. Both treatments were better in these variables compared to T0 (p ≤ 0.05). Furthermore, T2 increased serum IgA levels (p ≤ 0.05). Additionally, hematological parameters and acid-base balance remained similar in all groups. However, significant reductions in the mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, platelets, and metabolic hydrogen ions were observed in T1 (p ≤ 0.05). The results of this study suggest that supplementation with L. plantarum CAM6 can be an alternative to antibiotics. Studies to evaluate its efficacy under commercial conditions and water administration require further evaluation.

Comparisons of the genome of SARS-CoV-2 and those of other betacoronaviruses

The genome of SARS-CoV-2 virus causing the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 is most closely related to viral metagenomes isolated from bats and, more distantly, pangolins. All are of sarbecoviruses of the genus Betacoronavirus. We have unravelled their recombinational and mutational histories. All showed clear evidence of recombination, most events involving the 3 half of the genomes. The 5 region of their genomes was mostly recombinant free, and a phylogeny calculated from this region confirmed that SARS-CoV-2 is closer to RmYN02 than RaTG13, and showed that SARS-CoV-2 diverged from RmYN02 at least 26 years ago, and both diverged from RaTG13 at least 37 years ago; recombinant regions specific to these three viruses provided no additional information as they matched no other Genbank sequences closely. Simple pairwise comparisons of genomes show that there are three regions where most non-synonymous changes probably occurred; the DUF3655 region of the nsp3, the S gene and ORF 8 gene. Differences in the last two of those regions have probably resulted from recombinational changes, however differences in the DUF3655 region may have resulted from selection. A hexamer of the proteins encoded by the nsp3 region may form the molecular pore spanning the double membrane of the coronavirus replication organelle (Wolff et al., 2020), and perhaps the acidic polypeptide encoded by DUF3655 lines it, and presents a novel target for pharmaceutical intervention.

The emerging field of venom-microbiomics for exploring venom as a microenvironment, and the corresponding Initiative for Venom Associated Microbes and Parasites (iVAMP).

Venom is a known source of novel antimicrobial natural products. The substantial, increasing number of these discoveries have unintentionally culminated in the misconception that venom and venom-producing glands are largely sterile environments. Culture-dependent and -independent studies on the microbial communities in venom microenvironments reveal the presence of archaea, algae, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses. Venom-centric microbiome studies are relatively sparse to date with the adaptive advantages that venom-associated microbes might offer to their hosts, or that hosts might provide to venom-associated microbes, remaining largely unknown. We highlight the potential for the discovery of venom microbiomes within the adaptive landscape of venom systems. The considerable number of convergently evolved venomous animals, juxtaposed with the comparatively few known studies to identify microbial communities in venom, provides new possibilities for both biodiversity and therapeutic discoveries. We present an evidence-based argument for integrating microbiology as part of venomics (i.e., venom-microbiomics) and introduce iVAMP, the Initiative for Venom Associated Microbes and Parasites (https://ivamp-consortium.github.io/), as a growing collaborative consortium. We express commitment to the diversity, inclusion and scientific collaboration among researchers interested in this emerging subdiscipline through expansion of the iVAMP consortium.

Spores of Beauveria bassiana and Trichoderma lignorum as a bioinsecticide for the control of Atta cephalotes

Background: The leafcutter ant (Atta cephalotes) is associated with losses in the agricultural sector, due to its defoliating activity; for its control, biological, mechanical and chemical methods have been developed, the latter associated with adverse effects on human and environmental health. This research validated in the field for the control of the leafcutter ant (A. cephalotes) using a mixture of Beauveria bassiana and Trichoderma lignorum spores. Methods: The effectiveness from the combination of spores of B. bassiana and T lignorum with an initial concentration of 2 × 109 spores/ml, in the following proportions of B. bassiana and T. lignorum, A (1:1), of each fungus. It was evaluated within the university campus, comparing it with two commercial formulations, Mycotrol (B. bassiana) and Mycobac (T. lignorum). Additionally, this formulation was evaluated in 49 nests distributed 16 in 14 locations in Colombia. The formulation application was carried out by direct application, using a pump at a speed of 10 ml/m2. The effectiveness was estimated from the reduction of the flow of ants, evaluating the statistically significant differences using the ANOVA and Tukey-test. Results: Effective control of 90% of the nests was observed in the field phase in 60 days, except in nests with areas > 50 m2 that were located in regions with high rainfall (annual average precipitation above 7000 mm), such as Buenaventura. Conclusions: In this work, it was demonstrated that the combination of B. bassiana and T. lignorum spores represent a viable alternative for the control of the leafcutter ant, in which the effectiveness is related to several factors, including the size of the nest and the rainfall in the area.

Horizon feedback inflation.

We consider the effect of the Gibbons-Hawking radiation on the inflaton in the situation where it is coupled to a large number of spectator fields. We argue that this will lead to two important effects - a thermal contribution to the potential and a gradual change in parameters in the Lagrangian which results from thermodynamic and energy conservation arguments. We present a scenario of hilltop inflation where the field starts trapped at the origin before slowly experiencing a phase transition during which the field extremely slowly moves towards its zero temperature expectation value. We show that it is possible to obtain enough e-folds of expansion as well as the correct spectrum of perturbations without hugely fine-tuned parameters in the potential (albeit with many spectator fields). We also comment on how initial conditions for inflation can arise naturally in this situation.