Resumo em Inglês:
Sheep and cattle parapoxviruses cause in human beings diseases of very similar aspect, named orf and milker's nodules, respectively. These infections are generically called farmyard pox. In the present article, we show the epidemiological, clinical, and histopathological aspects, as well as the treatment of these two viral diseases that are very similar, being differentiated only by their epidemiological aspects.Resumo em Inglês:
Propolis antibiotic action has been widely investigated. This assay was carried out in order to observe the in vitro antibacterial activity of propolis against Salmonella enteritidis isolated from food and Salmonella typhimurium isolated from human infections. Propolis was collected by Apis mellifera in two regions of Brazil (Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte State; and Urubici, Santa Catarina State). Both strains survival percentage decreased with time of incubation in Ethanolic Extracts of Propolis (EEP), demonstrating bactericidal effect after 24 hours. It was also observed that EEP from Mossoró was more effective than that from Urubici. The control of the propolis solvent - 70% ethanol - was less effective than EEP, showing only a bacteriostatic effect. We can conclude that propolis shows an activity against Gram-negative bacteria that varies according to the geographical region where it was collected by bees.Resumo em Inglês:
Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS), components of the normal flora of neonates, have emerged as important opportunistic pathogens of nosocomial infections that occur in neonatal intensive care units. Some authors have reported the ability of some CNS strains, particularly Staphylococcus epidermidis, to produce a toxin similar to S. aureus delta toxin. This toxin is an exoprotein that has a detergent action on the membranes of various cell types resulting in rapid cell lysis. The objectives of the present study were to standardize the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique for the detection of the gene responsible for the production of delta toxin (hld gene) in staphylococcal species isolated from catheters and blood cultures obtained from neonates, and to compare the results to those obtained with the phenotypic synergistic hemolysis method. Detection of delta toxin by the phenotypic and genotypic method yielded similar results for the S. aureus isolates. However, in S. epidermidis, a higher positivity was observed for PCR (97.4%) compared to the synergistic hemolysis method (86.8%). Among CNS, S. epidermidis was the most frequent isolate and was a delta toxin producer. Staphylococcus simulans and S. warneri tested positive by the phenotypic method, but their positivity was not confirmed by PCR for the hld gene detection. These results indicate that different genes might be responsible for the production of this toxin in different CNS species, requiring highly specific primers for their detection. PCR was found to be a rapid and reliable method for the detection of the hld gene in S. aureus and S. epidermidis.Resumo em Inglês:
Healing is a complex process with many interfering factors. The objective of this work was to evaluate regeneration strength of non-pregnant adult dog uterus when snake venom derived fibrin adhesive is used to reinforce hysterorrhaphy. Maximum limit and rigidity were analyzed. Twenty uterine horns from 10 dogs were hysterotomized and distributed into 2 equal groups. Hysterorrhaphy was performed using the Shimieden-Cushing double layer suture. In one group, animals received snake venom derived fibrin adhesive as reinforcement. Although neither variable was significantly different, our results showed higher rigidity values in the adhesive group. This can be attributed to the adhesive’s effect on organ elasticity or to more granulation tissue formed in the uterine scar.Resumo em Inglês:
Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has been associated with the development of a clinical group and metabolic disorders such as peripheral lipodystrophy syndrome in AIDS. The aim of this study was to analyze the lipid profile, the clinical aspects, and the body composition of HIV-1 infected individuals treated with or without protease inhibitor (PI) during the highly active antiretroviral therapy. In total, 62 individuals were evaluated in this study; 15 healthy individuals (Control Group: CG), 11 HIV-1 infected individuals treated without antiretroviral therapy (Group 1: G1), 14 HIV-1 infected individuals treated with antiretroviral therapy plus protease inhibitor (Group 2: G2), and 22 HIV-1 infected individuals treated with antiretroviral therapy without protease inhibitor (Group 3: G3), mean age 35 years old. The time interval for G2 and G3 was greater than or equal to nine months. Patients receiving HAART with PI had significantly lower viral loads, hypertriglyceridemia, and low HDL levels (p<0.05). There were no differences between groups in relation to the lean body mass percentage obtained by mid-arm muscle circumference adequacy or by bioelectrical impedance. The lower percentage of body fat observed in all the HIV-1 infected patients by antropometric assessment and the decreased tricipital skinfold adequacy in the group treated with PI in relation to CG may suggest lipodystrophy in the upper limbs, especially on those treated with PI.Resumo em Inglês:
The venom glands are part of the most important defense weapon in Aculeata: the venom apparatus. The arrangement of these glands can vary among species, but in general they are composed of long secretory tubules connected to a muscular sac-like reservoir. Although the occurrence of these variations has been documented, many studies neglected the existence of a well-developed secretory portion in the lumen of the reservoir named convoluted gland. This study is an ultramorphological analysis of the venom glands and their histochemical relationship with the convoluted glands in the primitive social wasp Polistes versicolor. In this wasp, the venom glands are constituted by two tubular portions that penetrate individually in the venom reservoir, inside of which we can find the convoluted glands. Besides morphological differences in their cells, histochemical analysis of the venom and convoluted glands clearly show differences between them. While the venom glands indicate positive reaction only for proteins, the convoluted glands present positive reaction for proteins, neutral glycoconjugates, and lipids. The secretion of the convoluted gland cells may modify the compounds passing through the embedded tubular region.Resumo em Inglês:
Scorpion venom toxins generally produce similar effects by mainly acting on sodium channels, and to a lesser extent, on potassium, calcium, and chloride channels. This leads to increased release of neurotransmitters and mediators, resulting in a cascade of pathological events, involving the central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system, the cardiovascular and the respiratory system, eventually leading to death. The objective of this paper was to discover whether a sodium channel blocker, lidocaine, or a calcium channel blocker, verapamil, would prolong the survival of mice injected with the venom from the common yellow scorpion Leiurus quinquestriatus quinquestriatus (LQQ). For this purpose, mice were divided into 2 groups, each injected with a different venom dose (250 or 300 µg.kg-1, s.c.). Subgroups (n=10) from each group were given venom alone; different doses of lidocaine (4, 10, 15, or 20 mg.kg-1); or several doses of verapamil (0.01, 0.03, 0.1, 0.3, or 1 mg.kg-1). All doses of lidocaine and verapamil were intravenously administered 3 minutes before, 1, 5, and 15 minutes after venom injection. Percent surviving after 24 hours was recorded in addition to the time of death. In general, lidocaine significantly prolonged survival at the dose of 10 mg.kg-1 (P<0.05 and P<0.01, versus low and high dose of venom, respectively) or 15 mg.kg-1 (P<0.01 and P<0.001, versus low and high dose of venom, respectively; Covariance Wilcoxon survival statistics), especially when injected before the venom or in the early stages of envenomation. On the other hand, in all doses administered, verapamil was either toxic or showed non-significant results. Lidocaine, the sodium channel blocker, appears to play an important role in the protection from lethality of mice injected with LQQ venom, and significantly prolonged the survival time of mice whether injected before or in the early stages of envenomation.Resumo em Inglês:
Immune response to leptospirosis is mainly humorally mediated, and involves opsonization of leptospires for phagocytosis by macrophages and neutrophils. However, some aspects are still unknown. For a more detailed analysis of the cellular immune response to leptospirosis infection, trials were carried out in order to determine the hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide (H2O2 and NO) production stimulated or not by Interferon-gamma. The participation of some specific cytokines, such as Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-alpha); Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma); Interleukin-6 (IL-6); and Interleukin-4 (IL-4), in the immunopathology of this infection was also investigated. For this purpose, we analyzed the supernatant from peritoneal macrophage cell culture and the splenic cells of mice genetically selected as High (H) and Low (L) antibody producers, and inbred Balb/c mice infected with Leptospira interrogans serovar icterohaemorrhagiae. The IL-6 production varied from release peaks to inhibition in H, L, and Balb/c mice. Similar behavior was observed for IL-4, produced only by H and Balb/c mice. The three strains presented constant and elevated production of TNF-alpha until day 14, suggesting its effective participation in the initial phase of the infection. Meanwhile, all the three strains presented a constant and irregular IFN-gamma production, with release peaks between the 7th and 14th days in L mice. The H and Balb/c mice strains presented a higher tendency to Th2 response pattern, whereas L mice tended towards Th1 response.