Although the association between chronic kidney disease and dyspepsia is widely known, it remains poorly investigated. Among the types of gastric inflammation that lead to symptoms, erosive antral ...gastritis is the most common form. A direct correlation between the urea serum levels and the time in hemodialysis with the onset of gastric metaplasia and dyspepsia can be observed. The aim of this study was to report the endoscopic alterations found in hemodialysis patients.
This is a cross-sectional study based on the medical records of 95 patients older than 18 years who were diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. The results of endoscopies performed up to 6 months before the beginning of the study were included.
Among the 95 studied patients, 56.84% were male, 60% were Caucasian, and 71.57% used proton pump inhibitors. The endoscopic alteration most frequently observed was erosive gastritis (77% of the cases); however, the frequency of the alteration that caused the symptoms was irrelevant. The antrum was the most common site of involvement (55.79%).
Patients with chronic kidney disease often show dyspeptic symptoms. Other abnormalities are common but are not correlated with such symptoms. In conclusion, this study identified the endoscopic alterations that are most often observed in hemodialysis patients; erosive and enanthematous gastritis were the most common forms observed.
Summary
C8‐desaturated and C9‐methylated glucosylceramide (GlcCer) is a fungal‐specific sphingolipid that plays an important role in the growth and virulence of many species. In this work, we ...investigated the contribution of Aspergillus nidulans sphingolipid Δ8‐desaturase (SdeA), sphingolipid C9‐methyltransferases (SmtA/SmtB) and glucosylceramide synthase (GcsA) to fungal phenotypes, sensitivity to Psd1 defensin and Galleria mellonella virulence. We showed that ΔsdeA accumulated C8‐saturated and unmethylated GlcCer, while gcsA deletion impaired GlcCer synthesis. Although increased levels of unmethylated GlcCer were observed in smtA and smtB mutants, ΔsmtA and wild‐type cells showed a similar 9,Me‐GlcCer content, reduced by 50% in the smtB disruptant. The compromised 9,Me‐GlcCer production in the ΔsmtB strain was not accompanied by reduced filamentation or defects in cell polarity. When combined with the smtA deletion, smtB repression significantly increased unmethylated GlcCer levels and compromised filamentous growth. Furthermore, sdeA and gcsA mutants displayed growth defects and raft mislocalization, which were accompanied by reduced neutral lipids levels and attenuated G. mellonella virulence in the ΔgcsA strain. Finally, ΔsdeA and ΔgcsA showed increased resistance to Psd1, suggesting that GlcCer synthesis and fungal sphingoid base structure specificities are relevant not only to differentiation but also to proper recognition by this antifungal defensin.
Δ4,Δ8‐9,Me‐glucosylceramide (GlcCer) is a fungal specific sphingolipid, contributing to growth and virulence. Aspergillus nidulans strains lacking genes involved in GlcCer synthesis (sdeA – sphingolipid Δ8‐desaturase, smtA and smtB – sphingolipid C9‐methyltransferase and gcsA – glucosylceramide synthase) were constructed and characterized. The accumulation of Δ4‐GlcCer, Δ8‐Cer and Δ4,Δ8‐9,Me‐Cer intermediates in ΔsdeA, ΔsmtA niiA::smtB and ΔgcsA mutants compromised growth, suggesting that fungal GlcCer structure specificities and synthesis are relevant for A. nidulans differentiation.
Remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) is a procedure that generates a brief period of ischemia followed by reperfusion. The role of RIPC in protecting myocardial ischemia during hemodialysis is not ...yet established. The aim of the study was to evaluate RIPC myocardial protection as evaluated by ultrasensitive I troponin in hemodialysis outpatients.
A double-blind randomized trial with two groups: intervention submitted to RIPC and control group without RIPC. Intervention group received RIPC in three consecutive hemodialysis sessions. Blood samples were taken before and after each session. Blood urea nitrogen for calculation of single-pool Kt/v and ultrasensitive I troponin were measured to evaluate dialysis adequacy and myocardial injury.
A total of 47 patients were randomized. About 60.8% were men and 54% were diabetic. The mean single-pool Kt/v was 1.51 in the intervention group and 1.49 in control. The ultrasensitive troponin I measured no significant change from the time of collection: before or after dialysis.
The RIPC applied in three consecutive sessions did not demonstrate superiority to control, therefore another study tested RIPC in 12 consecutive sessions with a positive result in myocardial protection. In our study, more than half of the patients were diabetic. Diabetic patients have a trend to show a lower response to RIPC because of the greater presence of collateral coronary circulation. In summary, in this model there was no interference of RIPC in ultrasensitive troponin I values, but troponin had a high negative predictive value for myocardial infarction in all tested models.
Hepatitis B is responsible for the development of half of hepatocellular carcinoma cases and is a major cause of hepatic insufficiency. The vaccine against hepatitis B virus does not exhibit the same ...high efficacy in patients on hemodialysis as it does in immunocompetent individuals. The medical literature recommends vaccination with four doses (40 mg each) of the hepatitis B virus vaccine before beginning hemodialysis; however, approximately one-third of hemodialysis patients do not respond to this vaccination schedule. A new serologic test should be performed each year for individuals who respond adequately, whereas a booster dose should be offered to those with antibody titers below 10 mIU/mL. In this study, we followed 83 hemodialysis patients and collected quantitative serologic measurements every 2 months over a 1-year period. We made the measurements 1 month after the vaccination period. We found that 41% of the patients had antibody titers below 10 mIU/mL (nonresponders), 21.7% had antibody titers between 10 mIU/mL and 100 mIU/mL (poor responders), and 37.3% had antibody titers higher than 100 mIU/mL (good responders). Patients with diabetes and/or hypertension exhibited worse response to vaccination. All subjects displayed decreasing antibody titers during the observation period. The group of poorly responsive patients had antibody titers below 10 mIU/mL at the 6-month follow-up period.
Ectopic cilia are rare in humans. We report a 6-year-old girl with typical characteristics of ectopic cilia as described in the rare cases reported in the literature, in association with cutaneous ...lesions that appeared to be hypochromic nevi. This framework could be a different clinical presentation of ectopic cilia.
Infection by
Cryptococcus neoformans begins with inhalation of infectious propagules. Fungi reach the lung tissue and interact with epithelial cells in a crucial but poorly understood process. In ...this study, the interaction of
C. neoformans with the human alveolar epithelial cell lineage A549 was investigated, focusing on the relevance of the capsular polysaccharide in this process. The association of encapsulated strains with A549 cells was significantly inhibited by a monoclonal antibody to glucuronoxylomannan (GXM), a major component of the cryptococcal capsule. A purified preparation of GXM produced similar results, suggesting the occurrence of surface receptors for this polysaccharide on the surface of alveolar cells. A549 cells were in fact able to bind soluble GXM, as confirmed by indirect immunofluorescence analysis using the anti-polysaccharide antibody.
C. neoformans is internalized after GXM-mediated interaction with A549 cells in a process that culminates with death of host cells. Our results suggest that
C. neoformans can use GXM for attachment to alveolar epithelia, allowing the fungus to reach the intracellular environment and damage host cells through still uncharacterized mechanisms.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the development of Trichogramma pretiosum Riley on eggs of Bonagota cranaodes (Meyrick) under different temperatures. B. cranaodes eggs were maintained under ...seven constant temperatures (14, 18, 20, 22, 25, 28 and 30 degree C), 70 plus or minus 10% R.H. and, 14 h L. Forty replicates with 20 parasitized eggs each were kept in glass tubes (8.5 x 2.5 cm) covered with a plastic film. The method of hyperbole was used to calculate the temperature threshold (Tb) and the thermal constant (K). The Tb obtained was 11.9 degree C and to thermal constant was 153, 4 DD. The most favorable temperature range was from 25 degree C to 30 degree C, at which the shortest egg-adult development period and the highest survivorship were observed.
Provider: - Institution: - Data provided by Europeana Collections- Monografia- Tít. constituído por ass. fac.- Monographic bibliographic item- All metadata published by Europeana are available free ...of restriction under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. However, Europeana requests that you actively acknowledge and give attribution to all metadata sources including Europeana
Provider: - Institution: - Data provided by Europeana Collections- Monografia- Monographic bibliographic item- All metadata published by Europeana are available free of restriction under the Creative ...Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. However, Europeana requests that you actively acknowledge and give attribution to all metadata sources including Europeana
PDF
