The purpose of this study was to calculate the seroprevalence of Trypanosoma cruzi infection in a sample of inhabitants from a region considered to be at high risk of natural transmission of Chagas disease in Colombia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in subjects from 5 municipalities, recruited in urban and rural locations, distributed by gender according to the demographic information available. Socio-demographic information, history of potential exposure to insect vectors, blood donating, as well as symptoms suggesting cardiac disease were collected using a questionnaire. After giving written informed consent, blood specimens were obtained from 486 people to determine the serologic evidence of past exposure to T. cruzi. Infection was diagnosed when two different tests (ELISA and IHA) were positive. The seroprevalence of antibodies against T. cruzi was 16.91% considering an estimated population of 44,355 aged between 15 and 89 years (95%IC: 13.72 to 20.01). The factors significantly associated with the infection were: 1- Housing materials like vegetable material, adobe or unfinished brick walls; 2- The fact of having previous tests for Chagas disease (regardless of the result). Of note, the mean ages among infected and not infected participants were significantly different (49.19 vs. 41.66, p≤0.0001). Among the studied municipalities, the one with the highest frequency of T. cruzi infection was Nunchia, with 31.15% of the surveyed subjects. Therefore it may be concluded that T. cruzi infection is highly prevalent in the north region of Casanare, in Colombia.
A good oral hygiene seems to avoid the effects of MS on the oral cavity.
Pregnancy is a physiological state with a great demand of energy and nutrients in mammals and is characterized by hyperphagia, increase in fat mass, hyperleptinemia, and central resistance to leptin. In order to evaluate whether pregnancy is also a state of leptin resistance at the periphery, we studied the response to leptin in the liver and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT). We demonstrated reduced levels of phosphoryalated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (p-STAT3) and phosphorylated protein kinase B (p-AKT) after intravenous leptin in both tissues in mid-term pregnant rats (G13) and a restored response in late pregnancy (G18). As underlying mechanisms of the peripheral leptin resistance of mid-gestation we found decreased leptin receptor b (LepRb) mRNA levels and increased content of suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS3). Furthermore, we demonstrated that in G13 rats the main lipogenic molecules and activity (sterol regulatory element binding transcription protein 1 (SREBP-1) and fatty acid synthase (FAS)) were elevated in the liver and SAT, and the molecules involved in β-oxidation (peroxisome proliferator activated receptor α (PPARα) and carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT-1)) were reduced, as it happens in early pregnancy. In G18, the opposite pattern is observed. This probably reflects that in G13 the peripheral resistance to the hyperleptinemia might help maintaining the lipogenic metabolism of early pregnancy. In contrast, the recovery of the response to leptin in late pregnancy would favor a catabolic metabolism. Finally, using a pseudogestation model we showed that progesterone and prolactin are not involved in the gestational peripheral leptin resistance. In conclusion, during mid-pregnancy a state of leptin resistance is also exerted at the periphery, and is probably involved in the characteristic lipid regulation of this physiological state.
La retinosis pigmentaria (RP) comprende un grupo de enfermedades degenerativas de la retina que afectan la función y el campo visual. Se caracteriza por ceguera nocturna y pérdida de campo visual periférico, y suele tener debut precoz y juvenil. Este artículo tiene como propósito describir los hallazgos clínicos visuales y oculares en 12 pacientes con retinosis pigmentaria. Para esto, se evaluaron 12 pacientes con RP, mediante examen visual, campimetría y retinografía. Se halló que el 50 % de los pacientes presentó astigmatismo hipermetrópico y 42 %, astigmatismo miópico. Un mayor acúmulo de pigmento en zona superior de retina se observó en el 41,7 %, con agudeza visual entre 20/400 y percepción luminosa. Un tercio de la muestra presentó baja visión profunda y umbral de sensibilidad ≤ a 18db. El escotoma relativo fue más frecuente, aunque en agudezas visuales entre 20/400 y PL el 25 % y 41,7 % de los pacientes presentaron escotoma absoluto en ojo derecho e izquierdo respectivamente. El uso de corrección en pacientes con escotoma relativo generó mejoría en el 41,7 % y 33,3 % (ojo derecho e izquierdo). Todos presentaron palidez cérea del disco óptico y el 92 % atenuación arteriolar. Se concluyó que los signos característicos del fondo ocular de los participantes con RP fueron palidez cérea de disco óptico, pigmentación en forma de espículas óseas, atenuación arteriolar, campo visual ≤10° centrales con visión en túnel. Los pacientes con baja visión profunda presentaron mayor acúmulo de pigmento en retina superior periférica, umbral de sensibilidad menor de 18dB y escotomas de tipo absoluto
Objective To detect the presence or absence of transgenic proteins derived from GM crops in maize flour marketed in Bogota D.C., Colombia. Methods 11 extraction protocols for total protein were evaluated in 17 precooked flour, two uncooked and three positive controls. Subsequently, the presence of 7 transgenic proteins (CP4-EPSPS, Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac, Cry1F, Cry2A, Cry34Ab1 and Cry3Bb1) using commercial ELISA kits was determined. Results It was determined that the best protocol for total protein extraction was buffer with Triton X-100, which allowed obtaining protein concentrations greater than 0.5 mg per gram of flour and does not generate interference with the ELISA technique. Four transgenic proteins were detected: CP4EPSPS, Cry1F, Cry1Ab and Cry34Ab1 in precooked and uncooked flour with percentages varying between 20 and 100 %. Conclusion Seven of the 19 maize flours contain traces of transgenic protein (B2,B8,A3,O3,O1,C1 and C2) that provide resistance to lepidopterans and coleopterans, and tolerance to glyphosate herbicide, (CP4EPSPS- Cry1Ab, Cry1F, Cry34Ab1 and Cry3Bb1). All detected events are approved for human consumption in Colombia, according to the Ministry of Health and Social Protection.
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