IntroductionChronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is an increasing cause of morbidity and mortality in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals. HIV-positive patients are commonly co-infected with HBV due to shared routes of transmission.ObjectivesOur aim was to determine the risk factors, prevalence, genotypes, and mutations of the Surface S gene of HBV, and occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) among patients infected with HIV in a northeastern Colombian city.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted with 275 HIV-positive patients attending an outpatient clinic in Bucaramanga, Colombia during 2009–2010. Blood samples were collected and screened for serological markers of HBV (anti-HBs, anti-HBc and HBsAg) through ELISA assay. Regardless of their serological profile, all samples were tested for the HBV S gene by nested-PCR and HBV genotypes were determined by phylogenetic inference. Clinical records were used to examine demographic, clinical, virological, immunological and antiretroviral therapy (ART) variables of HIV infection.ResultsParticipants were on average 37±11 years old and 65.1% male. The prevalence of HIV-HBV coinfection was 12% (95%CI 8.4–16.4) of which 3.3% had active HBV infection and 8.7% OBI. The prevalence of HIV-HBV coinfection was associated with AIDS stage and ART treatment. Sequence analysis identified genotype F, subgenotype F3 in 93.8% of patients and genotype A in 6.2% of patients. A C149R mutation, which may have resulted from failure in HBsAg detection, was found in one patient with OBI.ConclusionsThe present study found a high prevalence of HIV-HBV coinfection with an incidence of OBI 2.6-fold higher compared to active HBV infection. These findings suggest including HBV DNA testing to detect OBI in addition to screening for HBV serological markers in HIV patients.

objective To investigate the link between fluctuations in the prevalence of dengue virus (DENV) serotypes and the number of dengue cases in the metropolitan area of Bucaramanga, Santander State, Colombia, in the 2007-2010-2017 method Viruses were isolated from febrile patient samples by direct application to C6/36-HT cells and typed using monoclonal antibodies. We performed autocorrelation and cross-correlation analyses to determine whether fluctuations in the prevalence of DENV serotypes and dengue cases were correlated. Full envelope (E) gene sequences were employed to examine the genetic diversity of serotypes circulating by using a phylogenetic approach.results All four dengue virus serotypes were detected. DENV-1 was the dominant serotype in both periods followed by DENV-3 or DENV-2 depending on the period; DENV-4 was the least prevalent virus in both periods. Cross-correlation analyses suggest a temporal relation between the fluctuations in the prevalence of DENV serotypes, which were almost simultaneous (lag = 0) or related to recent past fluctuations (lag > 1.0) in the number of dengue cases. Data suggest that a sustained predominance of DENV-1, an increase of the DENV-4 prevalence, and a switch from DENV-3 to DENV-2 could be linked to an outbreak. Circulating viruses were grouped into Genotype V, Asia/ American III and II for DENV-1, -2, -3 and -4, respectively; intragenotypic diversity was detected.conclusions The present work highlights the need of comprehensive studies on dynamics of DENV in Colombia to understand transmission of dengue and evaluate the effectiveness of a vaccination programme.

RESUMENColombia posee gran diversidad de plantas medicinales, pero pocas han sido objeto de investigación. En este trabajo se evaluó la actividad antiproliferativa de aceites esenciales obtenidos por hidrodestilación asistida por microondas. Se analizaron 15 muestras de 11 especies en ensayos del MTT en células cancerosas MCF-7, HeLa y HepG-2 y se incluyeron células normales humanas (HEK293) y de animales (Vero y BF16F10) para evaluar selectividad. La composición química de muestras activas se determinó por cromatografía de gases acoplada a espectrometría de masas (GC-MS). Aceites esenciales de cuatro especies mostraron actividad antiproliferativa (CI 50 : 50 μg/mL) en células HeLa y/o MCF-7, en el siguiente rango (índice de selectividad en paréntesis): Piper cumanense H.B.K. (4,7) > Piper subflavum var. espejuelanum C.DC (3,9) > Salvia officinalis L. (3,6) > Piper eriopodom (Miq.) C. DC. (3,1). Ninguna muestra fue activa en células HepG-2. El análisis por CG-MS identificó β-cariofileno, α-copaeno, β-pineno, α-pineno y linalol como componentes mayoritarios. Los aceites esenciales activos pueden ser puntos de partida para desarrollo de medicamentos herbales para cuidado paliativo del cáncer.Palabras clave: aceite esencial, apoptosis, cáncer, fitoterapia, MTT. ABSTRACTColombia has a great diversity of medicinal plants, but few have been investigated. In this work, the antiproliferative activity of essential oils obtained by microwave-assisted hydrodistillation was evaluated. Fifteen samples from 11 species were analyzed in MTT assays in cancer cells MCF-7, HeLa and HepG-2, and normal human cells (HEK293) and animal cells (Vero and B16F10) were included to evaluate selectivity. The chemical composition of the active oils was determined by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Essential oils from four species showed antiproliferative activity (IC 50 : <50 μg / mL) in HeLa and / or MCF-7 cells, in the following range (selectivity index in parenthesis): Piper cumanense H.B.K. (4.7) > Piper subflavum var. espejuelanum C. DC (3.9) > Salvia officinalis Linneo. (3.6) > Piper eriopodom (Miq.) C.DC. (31). The CG-MS analysis identified β-caryophyllene, α-copaene, β-pinene, α-pinene and linalool as major components. Active essential oils could serve as starting points to develop herbal medicines for cancer palliative care.

No abstract

The lack of effective conventional therapies against dengue has created an interest in herbal preparations as alternative therapies. In the present study, in vitroeffects of Cordia curassavicaessential oil (EO) on both dengue virus replication and cytokine production were examined. Predictions ofmolecular interactions between EO compounds and virus and cell proteins were performed with AutoDock Vina. The EO inhibited replication of dengue virus serotypes at IC50< 30 μg/mL, and it reduced 87% TNF-α, 67% IL-8 and 46% IFN-α in LPS-stimulated PBMCs.The main EO compounds were trans-β-caryophyllene (21.4%), germacrene D (17.8%), α-copaene (16.5%), trans-β-guaiene (8.2%), and α-pinene (6.0%). The first two compounds, δ-cadinene, α-muurolene, α-cubebene and β-burbonene were coupled to proteins involved in the TLR-4 cytokine effector pathway. 3,7-Guaiadiene was coupled to the viral E and C proteins. This study demonstrates the potential of C. curassavicaEO as a starting point for discovering novel therapeutic for dengue.