Anopheles darlingi is the principal neotropical malaria vector, responsible for more than a million cases of malaria per year on the American continent. Anopheles darlingi diverged from the African and Asian malaria vectors ∼100 million years ago (mya) and successfully adapted to the New World environment. Here we present an annotated reference A. darlingi genome, sequenced from a wild population of males and females collected in the Brazilian Amazon. A total of 10 481 predicted protein-coding genes were annotated, 72% of which have their closest counterpart in Anopheles gambiae and 21% have highest similarity with other mosquito species. In spite of a long period of divergent evolution, conserved gene synteny was observed between A. darlingi and A. gambiae. More than 10 million single nucleotide polymorphisms and short indels with potential use as genetic markers were identified. Transposable elements correspond to 2.3% of the A. darlingi genome. Genes associated with hematophagy, immunity and insecticide resistance, directly involved in vector–human and vector–parasite interactions, were identified and discussed. This study represents the first effort to sequence the genome of a neotropical malaria vector, and opens a new window through which we can contemplate the evolutionary history of anopheline mosquitoes. It also provides valuable information that may lead to novel strategies to reduce malaria transmission on the South American continent. The A. darlingi genome is accessible at www.labinfo.lncc.br/index.php/anopheles-darlingi.
-The production and characterization of cellulase from thermophilic strain Bacillus sp. C1AC5507 was studied. For enzyme production, sugarcane bagasse was used as carbon source. The produced carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase) had a molecular weight around 55 kDa and its activity varied between 0.14 and 0.37 IU mL -1 in conditions predicted by Response Surface Methodology. The optimum temperature and pH for the CMCase production were 70 °C and 7.0, respectively. The enzyme activity was inhibited mostly by Cu +2 and activated mostly by Co +2 , Mn 2+ , Ca +2 and Fe +3 . Our findings provide a contribution to the use of natural wastes such as sugarcane bagasse as substrate for growth and production of thermophilic CMCase. Further optimization to increase the production of cellulase enables the use in industrial applications.
Ricin is a ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP type 2) consisting of two subunits, ricin toxin A (RTA) and ricin toxin B (RTB). Because of its cytotoxicity, ricin has worried world authorities for its potential use as a chemical weapon; therefore, its inhibition is of great biotechnological interest. RTA is the target for inhibitor synthesis, and pterin derivatives are promising candidates to inhibit it. In this study, we used a combination of the molecular docking approach and fast steered molecular dynamics (SMD) to assess the correlation between nonequilibrium work, ⟨ W⟩, and the IC for six RTA inhibitors. The results showed that molecular docking is a powerful tool to predict good bioactive poses of RTA inhibitors, and ⟨ W⟩ presented a strong correlation with IC ( R = 0.961). Such a profile ranked the RTA inhibitors better than the molecular docking approach. Therefore, the combination of docking and fast SMD simulation was shown to be a promising tool to distinguish RTA-active inhibitors from inactive ones and could be used as postdocking filtering approach.
RESUMO: "Atividade antimicrobiana de Mimosa tenuiflora (Willd.) Poir. do Nordeste do Brasil, contra isolados clínicos de Staphylococcus aureus". A Mimosa tenuiflora é uma planta nativa da região Nordeste do Brasil onde é conhecida como jurema-preta sendo amplamente utilizada na medicina popular. No presente trabalho a atividade anti-Staphylococcus aureus do extrato etanólico da M. tenuiflora foi avaliada pela determinação da concentração inibitória mínima (CIM), pelo método da diluição em agar, em 30 isolados clínicos e pela cinética de inativação com a linhagem referência. Os valores da CIM foram 0,18 mg/mL em 16 isolados e 0,36 mg/mL nos demais, bem como na linhagem referência. A cinética de inativação mostrou apenas efeito bacteriostático nas concentrações do extrato até aquela correspondente a 4x CIM e um rápido efeito bactericida na concentração correspondente a 8x CIM. Unitermos: Mimosa tenuiflora, extrato etanólico, atividade antimicrobiana, Staphylococcus aureus.ABSTRACT: Mimosa tenuiflora is a native plant of Northeast Brazil where it is popularly known as "jurema-preta" and it is widely used in folk medicine. In this work the anti-Staphylococcus aureus activity of ethanol extract of M tenuiflora was evaluated by determination of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of clinical isolates by the agar dilution method, and by time-kill assay using a reference strain. MIC values against 30 isolates were 0,18 mg/mL (16/30) or 0,36 mg/ mL (14/30, and also the reference strain). In the reference strains, at concentrations up to 4x MIC, only bacteriostatic effect was observed, but at 8x MIC a fast bactericidal effect was observed.
The objective of this work was the identification and differentiation of Trichogramma exiguum Pinto and Platner species, T. pretiosum Riley, and T. galloi Zucchi using sequences of the ITS2 region of ribosomal DNA. After extracting DNA from the studied species, a PCR reaction was performed, where the amplified samples were subjected to sequencing. The sequences obtained were submitted to a similarity search in GenBank (NCBI -National Center for Biotechnology Information) using the BLAST program, aiming to determine the similarity of these sequences with the species already deposited in the referenced database, and then multiple sequences were aligned using version 2.0 of the ClustalX program. According to the results of the multiple alignments of all sequences obtained, it was possible to observe the differences between the T. pretiosum, T. galloi and T. exiguum species. It was concluded that using the sequences of the ITS2 region of the ribosomal DNA was efficient in the differentiation of the studied Trichogramma species, which suggests a strong inter-specific variation among species.Keywords: molecular systematic, microhymenoptera, parasitoid. Palavras-chave: sistemática molecular, micro-himenópteros, parasitoide. Identificação molecular de espécies de
Neste trabalho, a partir da leitura da obra “DNA: o segredo da vida” de James Watson, estudantes do curso de graduação da UFPB e UEPB construíram o “Cortinão do Watson” com ilustrações e textos que retratavam cada um dos capítulos dessa obra para expô-los tanto para estudantes da rede pública quanto para o público leigo. Ao ler o livro e elaborar painéis ilustrativos, os estudantes aprendem um conteúdo específico; entretanto, esse aprendizado é potencializado quando eles comunicam determinado conhecimento para o público. Tanto nos cursos de graduação que pretendem formar professores, quanto nas escolas da rede pública, os estudantes não devem apenas aprender o conhecimento científico, mas também devem ser preparados para comunicá-lo de modo a contribuírem para a formação de uma cultura científica que ultrapasse os muros da escola e os da universidade. O “Cortinão do Watson” [http://www.bioinfo. ufpb.br/cortinao] é uma estratégia que favorece a popularização da Ciência e a democratização do acesso do público ao conhecimento científico.
Os fenômenos mutacionais em regiões gênicas responsáveis pelo ciclo celular e reparo aos danos de DNA estão intimamente relacionados com a formação do câncer. Além disso, as alterações epigenéticas contribuem, significativamente, para o surgimento de neoplasias, e envolvem metilação do DNA, as modificações de histonas e o imprinting genômico. Este trabalho tem como objetivo verificar na literatura como os mecanismos epigenéticos estão relacionados com o surgimento de diferentes tipos de câncer. Foi realizada uma revisão integrativa, a partir de pesquisas de artigos científicos publicados no período de 2017 a 2021, nas plataformas Scielo e PubMed com os descritores: “epigenética”, “câncer”, “susceptibilidade” e “hipermetilação”, disponíveis nos idiomas português, inglês e espanhol, no intervalo de tempo dos últimos cinco anos, e que abordasse a temática do estudo. Os resultados obtidos a partir da revisão bibliográfica demonstram claramente que grandes mudanças na metilação do DNA em regiões gênicas chave e ilhas CpG estão relacionados com o surgimento do câncer. Nos últimos anos, as pesquisas biomédicas têm demonstrado o potencial da metilação anormal do DNA para uso como biomarcadores do câncer. De fato, a compreensão do papel dos mecanismos epigenéticos no desenvolvimento do câncer permite que sejam criados métodos de diagnóstico e tratamentos mais eficazes. Palavras-chave: Epigenética. Câncer. Metilação. Prognóstico. Abstract Mutational phenomena in gene regions responsible for cell cycle and DNA damage repair are closely related to cancer formation. Furthermore, epigenetic alterations significantly contribute to the emergence of neoplastic cells due to DNA methylation, histone modifications, and genomic imprinting. This work aims to verify in the literature how epigenetic mechanisms are related to the emergence of different types of cancer. An integrative review was carried out based on research of scientific articles published from 2017 to 2021, on the Scielo and PubMed platforms with the descriptors: "epigenetics", "cancer", "susceptibility" and "hypermethylation", available in Portuguese, English, and Spanish, within the period of the last five years. The results obtained from the literature review demonstrate that large changes in DNA methylation in key gene regions and CpG islands are related to the cancer emergence. In recent years, biomedical research has demonstrated the potential for abnormal DNA methylation for use as cancer biomarkers. Understanding the role of epigenetic mechanisms in the development of cancer allows for the creation of more effective diagnostic methods and treatments. Keywords: Epigenetics. Cancer. Methylation. Prognosis.
A utilização de atividades dinâmicas é uma alternativa metodológica que se pode e deve ser realizada em sala de aula, em especial, no ensino de Genética, que possibilita a interação do estudante com o objeto, em um processo ativo de transformação na busca do conhecimento. O presente trabalho propõe uma atividade dinâmica para estudantes do ensino médio, no sentido de integrar os conhecimentos do currículo de biologia acerca da estrutura da molécula do DNA. A atividade dinâmica “Montando a Molécula de DNA” estimulou o aprendizado das características da estrutura do DNA. Esta atividade mostrou-se dinâmica, integradora e economicamente viável, o que torna o “Montando a Molécula de DNA” uma opção para professores e alunos reforçarem os conteúdos curriculares de Biologia.
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