Optical coherence tomography findings in fungal uveitis.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study was to describe the vitreal, retinal, and choroidal features of eyes affected by endogenous endophthalmitis (EE) and evaluate the effects of systemic antifungal drug treatment and pars plana vitrectomy by using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). METHODS: Medical records and SD-OCT images of eyes diagnosed with EE at a single uveitis tertiary referral center in Brazil were acquired at the time of diagnosis, after 7 days of high-dose antifungal drug treatment, and at follow-up assessments performed 30 days after resolution. RESULTS: Thirteen eyes were enrolled in the study. All patients showed hyperreflective round-shaped lesions on SD-OCT and pre-retinal aggregates. Five eyes responded to antifungal systemic oral drugs despite showing vitreous opacity. The response to treatment was observable on optical coherence tomography (OCT) images. CONCLUSION: Fungal endophthalmitis showed typical features on SD-OCT, facilitating early diagnosis and treatment despite the absence of vitreous culture or biopsy. This study suggests that OCT images can be used to support diagnosis by physicians who do not have access to vitreoretinal surgery.

Bilateral Ampiginous Choroiditis following Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

INTRODUCTION: Ampiginous Choroiditis is a rare posterior uveitis that combines clinical features of Acute Multifocal Posterior Placoid Pigment Epitheliopathy and Serpiginous Chorioretinitis. Its pathophysiology is poorly understood and further studies are necessary to understand which mechanisms start the immunologic reaction. CASE REPORT: The purpose of this article is to report a well-documented case of Ampiginous Choroiditis following in seven days a RT-PCR confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, suggesting that the infection might have contributed as a trigger. CONCLUSION: Timely diagnosis and correct treatment are paramount to improve the visual outcomes, and the patient had successful response to systemic steroids.

Prosopis juliflora Pods Alkaloid-rich Fraction: In vitro Anthelmintic Activity on Goat Gastrointestinal Parasites and Its Cytotoxicity on Vero Cells.

BACKGROUND: This study was designed to assess the in vitro anthelmintic activity of the fraction containing alkaloid from Prosopis juliflora pods on goat gastrointestinal nematodes using the egg hatch assay (EHA), larval migration inhibition assay (LMIA), and larval motility assay (LMA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The alkaloid-rich fraction (AF) - content juliprosopine as major alkaloid - was obtained from ethyl acetate extract after fractionation in Sephadex LH-20 chromatography column and its characterization were made by nuclear magnetic resonance analysis together with literature data comparison. The concentrations tested were 4.0, 2.67, 1.78, 1.19, and 0.79 mg/mL (EHA) and 4 mg/mL (LMIA and LMA). The in vitro cytotoxicity on Vero cell cultures was determined with the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and trypan blue tests. RESULTS: High ovicidal activity was observed with IC50 and IC90 values at 1.1 and 1.43 mg/mL for AF. On the other hand, this fraction showed low larvicidal activity and high toxic effect. CONCLUSION: Thus, P. juliflora pod alkaloid rich-fraction has ovicidal activity in vitro against goat gastrointestinal nematodes and cytotoxic in Vero cell cultures. SUMMARY: Prosopis juliflora alkaloid-rich fraction (AF) showed in vitro anthelmintic effect against gastrointestinal nematodes of goatsThe AF was more effective against eggs than third larval stage (L3) of gastrointestinal nematodesThe AF showed cytotoxicity activity on Vero cell lineThe juliprosopine was the main alkaloid found in the AF from P. juliflora pods. Abbreviations used: AF: Alkaloid-rich fraction; DMSO: Dimethyl sulfoxide; EE: Ethyl acetate extract; EHA: Egg hatch assay; IC50: Inhibitory concentration 50%; IC90: Inhibitory concentration 90%; L3: Infective larvae; LMA: Larval motility assay; LMIA: Larval migration inhibition assay; MTT: Bromide 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; NMR: Nuclear magnetic resonance; PBS: Phosphate buffered saline; RPMI: Roswell Park Memorial Institute médium; TLC: Thin Layer Chromatography.

In vitro anthelmintic and cytotoxicity activities the Digitaria insularis (Poaceae).

This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro activity of D. insularis extracts and fractions against gastrointestinal nematodes of goats and its cytotoxicity on Vero cells. The egg hatch (EHT) and larval motility (LMT) tests were conducted to investigate the anthelmintic effects of the crude hydroethanolic (CH), ethyl acetate (EA), butanolic (BT) and residual hydroethanolic (RH) extracts. The elution of the active extract (EA) on column chromatography (SiO2) using organic solvents furnished six fractions (FR1 to FR6), which were also tested. Cytotoxicity was determined using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and Trypan Blue exclusion assays. All extracts, FR2 and FR3, inhibited egg hatching in a concentration-dependent manner. The EHT led to EC50 values (effective concentration 50%) of 0.64; 0.69; 0.77; 0.96; 0.27 and 0.65mg/mL for CH, EA, BT, RH, FR2 and FR3, respectively. However, the extracts exhibited low effect on the motility of L3. In the cytotoxicity evaluation (MTT assay), the IC50 (inhibitory concentration 50%) was 1.18 (EA), 1.65 (FR2) and 1.59mg/mL (FR3), which was relatively high (low toxicity) in comparison to the EC50 values in EHT, mainly for FR2. The chemical analyses of most active fractions (FR2) by Liquid Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) led the characterization of the flavones tricin and diosmetin. These results showed the high anthelmintic effect and low cytotoxicity of D. insularis and also that the flavones can be probably responsible for the nematocidal activity of this plant.

In vitro anthelmintic activity of the Zizyphus joazeiro bark against gastrointestinal nematodes of goats and its cytotoxicity on Vero cells.

This study examined the in vitro effect of the Zizyphus joazeiro bark against gastrointestinal nematodes of goats and its cytotoxicity on Vero cells. The ovicidal activity of the crude hydroethanolic extract (CE), its partitioned hexane (HE) and aqueous extract (AE) and saponins fraction (SF), including betulinic acid (BA), a biogenetic compound from this plant found in HE, were investigated using the inhibition of egg hatch assay (EHA). Thereafter, the extracts and the SF were evaluated through the larval motility assay (LMA) and larval migration inhibition assay (LMIA). The AE and SF promoted a complete inhibition of the egg hatch, and the effective concentration to inhibit 50% (EC50) values was 1.9 and 1.3mg/mL, respectively. The highest percentages of inhibition in EHA observed after treatments with CE, HE and BA corresponded to 79, 48 and 17%, respectively. The extracts and SF did not show larvicidal activity in LMA and LMIA. The AE and SF demonstrated cytotoxic effects in 3-4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl, 2,5diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and trypan blue tests; however, SF was more toxic (50% inhibitory concentration, IC50=0.20mg/mL). The chemical characterization of the SF was made through Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ((1)H NMR) and Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS) analyses, which led to the identification of two saponins known as Joazeiroside B and Lotoside A. The results obtained from the research of this saponin content provide important information about the biological activity, especially the anthelmintic effect present in the plant investigated. That also suggests the types of bioactive compounds that may be responsible for this antiparasitic activity exhibited by the plant extracts.