No abstract

Available data have led to a controversy on the relationship between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) and cutaneous malignant melanoma susceptibility or prognosis. Moreover, the influence of HLA-C on melanoma has not yet been well established. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to analyze the possible influence of the HLA system on melanoma susceptibility and prognosis in the Spanish population. For this purpose, HLA-A and HLA-B serotyping and HLA-C, HLA-DRB1, and HLA-DQB1 genotyping by polymerase chain reactions using sequence-specific oligonucleotide (PCR-SSO) and sequence-specific primer (PCR-SSP) were performed in 174 melanoma patients and 227 ethnically matched controls. The number of controls was increased up to 356 for HLA-C typing. Patients were stratified according to the histological subtypes of melanoma, sentinel lymph node status, tumor thickness, and ulceration of primary lesion. No HLA-A, HLA-B, HLA-DRB1, or HLA-DQB1 relationship with melanoma was observed for susceptibility or disease prognosis. However, the analysis of HLA-C locus showed that individuals homozygous for HLA-C(Lys80) were significantly more frequent within the patient than the control group. Remarkably, individuals homozygous for group 2 HLA-C alleles (HLA-C(Lys80)) seem to be associated with metastatic progression of melanoma. In contrast, we found a negative association between group 1 HLA-C alleles (HLA-C(Asn80)) and disease susceptibility or metastasis development. In conclusion, although an association with HLA-A, HLA-B, HLA-DRB1, or HLA-DQB1 was not demonstrated, the study of the HLA-C locus revealed that the analysis of the dimorphism at position 80 in the alpha1 helix may help to evaluate the risk and prognosis of melanoma in our population.

Purpose: Because immune mechanisms involved in cutaneous melanoma have not been fully elucidated, efforts have been made to achieve prognosis markers and potential targets for immune therapies, but they have not been entirely fruitful thus far. Therefore, the goal of this study was to investigate the involvement of early changes in CD8 T cells and CD56 natural killer (NK) cells expressing NK receptors in different HLA-C dimorphism groups of melanoma patients. Experimental Design: CD8 T cells and CD56 NK cells were analyzed in 41 patients and 39 sex-and age-matched controls with different HLA-C genotypes by flow cytometry. HLA-C dimorphism at position 80 was tested by PCR sequence-specific primers and PCR sequencespecific oligonucleotide to examine whether it could mediate in the emergence of cells expressing killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors. Results: Thirty-five of 41 patients had benign sentinel node, and showed an imbalance in the absolute number of CD8 +

a b s t r a c tGene expression regulation in Leishmania has been related to post-transcriptional events involving mainly sequences present in the 5 0 and 3 0 untranslated regions. PABPs are high-affinity poly(A)-binding proteins that are implicated in the regulation of translation initiation, RNA stability and other important biological processes. We describe a PABP from Leishmania infantum (LiPABP) that shows a very high homology with PABPs from other eukaryotic organisms, including mammals and other parasites. LiPABP conserves the main domains present in other PABPs, maintains poly(A)-binding properties and is phosphorylated by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase. Using the sera from dogs infected with L. infantum, we demonstrate that LiPABP is expressed in L. infantum promastigotes.

A quantidade de equipamentos digitais de mamografia aumenta gradativamente, principalmente pela necessidade de diagnósticos mais precisos. Contudo, os equipamentos trazem uma tecnologia de automação que nos levam a pensar sobre o trabalho do profissional técnico em definir os parâmetros para aquisição de imagem. Este estudo analisou a utilização dos parâmetros técnicos automatizados frente aos resultados encontrados para as doses de entrada na pele (DEP) em exames de mamografia. O mamógrafo utilizado na clínica possibilita alguns ajustes como variações de alvofiltro e escolha de parâmetros pré-definidos que determinam a técnica radiográfica final. Assim, foram analisadas imagens de 1279 pacientes, realizadas em 2014 e consideradas assintomáticas. Como critério, foram analisadas apenas imagens na incidência craniocaudal, pela facilidade na identificação da densidade mamária e que não foram submetidas a procedimento cirúrgico nas mamas. Foram analisados aspectos como densidade, altura de compressão, parâmetros radiográficos e DEP registradas no equipamento. Ao analisar os dados observou-se que, em regiões limítrofes para a definição automática do sistema alvo-filtro as DEP eram consideravelmente discrepantes, apresentando variações de 13% para DEP média nas espessuras de 40 mm e 45 mm. Desta forma, observa-se que o uso de técnicas automáticas em regiões limítrofes de alvo-filtro deve ser melhor trabalhado por parte dos profissionais de forma a priorizar a dose sem prejudicar a resposta na imagem radiográfica.Palavras-chave: Mamografia, Proteção Radiológica, dose de radiação, educação em saúde.