The high morbidity and mortality of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has encouraged the search for new biomarkers to be used alongside alpha-foetoprotein (AFP) and imaging tests. The aim of this study ...was to evaluate the clinical contribution of protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II (PIVKA-II) for HCC monitoring after liver transplantation (LT) and compare it with AFP, a routinely used tumour marker. A total of 46 HCC patients (Milan criteria) were enrolled in this study. Serum levels of PIVKA-II and AFP were measured before and after transplantation. Clinical features were determined for all the patients that were included. Significant correlations were found between PIVKA-II expression levels and some clinicopathological features, such as tumour size and number of pre-transplant transarterial chemoembolizations (TACEs). Serum levels of PIVKA-II and AFP decreased significantly after LT and increased in patients with tumour recurrence. Serum PIVKA-II levels may play an important role in predicting disease severity. Furthermore, monitoring PIVKA-II levels in HCC transplant recipients reflects the tumor early recurrence after transplantation and could be used, complementing AFP and imaging tests, as a novel biomarker of this pathology.
The detection of IgG aquaporin-4 antibodies in the serum of patients with Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) has dramatically improved the diagnosis of this disease and its distinction from multiple ...sclerosis. Recently, a group of patients have been described who have an NMO spectrum disorder (NMOsd) and who are seronegative for AQP4 antibodies but positive for IgG aquaporin-1 (AQP1) or myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibodies. The purpose of this study was to determine whether AQP1 and MOG could be considered new biomarkers of this disease; and if point mutations in the gDNA of
,
and
genes could be associated with the etiology of NMOsd. We evaluated the diagnostic capability of ELISA and cell-based assays (CBA), and analyzed their reliability, specificity, and sensitivity in detecting antibodies against these three proteins. The results showed that both assays can recognize these antigen proteins under appropriate conditions, but only anti-AQP4 antibodies, and not AQP1 or MOG, appears to be a clear biomarker for NMOsd. CBA is the best method for detecting these antibodies; and serum levels of AQP4 antibodies do not correlate with the progression of this disease. So far, the sequencing analysis has not revealed a genetic basis for the etiology of NMOsd, but a more extensive analysis is required before definitive conclusions can be drawn.
•Lagascea decipiens flowers show distinctive lipid and total protein contents.•Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids predominate in leaves and flowers.•The leaves and flowers are sources of ...essential amino acids.•Alpha-linolenic acid and lysine stand out as components in leaves and flowers.•The flowers contain α-tocopherol and show antioxidant potential against DPPH radical.
The Asteraceae family includes species used for food or medicinal remedies, one of which is Lagascea decipiens, which is native to the Sierra Madre Occident in Mexico. Because this plant has not been previously characterized, its biochemical components and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities were quantified in its flowers, leaves and stems. The leaves are sources of ash (20.37 g/100 g dry weight) and the flowers of total lipids (7.32 g/100 g dry weight). According to their fatty acid profile, the leaves provide polyunsaturated fatty acids (63.25 %), the most abundant of which is alpha-linolenic acid. Leaves are the main source of essential amino acids (55.58 ± 0.05 mg/g dry weight) and α-tocopherol (201.96 ± 19.68 µg/g dry weight). The antioxidant activity against the radical DPPH was higher in the flowers (20.04 ± 0.04 µmol eq. of Trolox/g of extract dry weight) than in other parts. The aqueous or alcoholic extracts of the plant did not show activity against selected microorganisms. Due to their biochemical components and antioxidant activity, the leaves and flowers of the native plant L. decipiens have potential for use in the food and medicinal industries.
Carbapenemase-Producing
(CP-Eco) isolates, though less prevalent than other CP-Enterobacterales, have the capacity to rapidly disseminate antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and cause serious ...difficult-to-treat infections. The aim of this study is phenotypically and genotypically characterizing CP-Eco isolates collected from Spain to better understand their resistance mechanisms and population structure.
Ninety representative isolates received from 2015 to 2020 from 25 provinces and 59 hospitals Spanish hospitals were included. Antibiotic susceptibility was determined according to EUCAST guidelines and whole-genome sequencing was performed. Antibiotic resistance and virulence-associated genes, phylogeny and population structure, and carbapenemase genes-carrying plasmids were analyzed.
The 90 CP-Eco isolates were highly polyclonal, where the most prevalent was ST131, detected in 14 (15.6%) of the isolates. The carbapenemase genes detected were
(45.6%),
(23.3%),
(7.8%),
(6.7%), and
(6.7%). Forty (44.4%) were resistant to 6 or more antibiotic groups and the most active antibiotics were colistin (98.9%), plazomicin (92.2%) and cefiderocol (92.2%). Four of the seven cefiderocol-resistant isolates belonged to ST167 and six harbored
. Five of the plazomicin-resistant isolates harbored
. IncL plasmids were the most frequent (45.7%) and eight of these harbored
.
was found in IncF plasmids in eight isolates. Metallo-β-lactamases were more frequent in isolates with resistance to six or more antibiotic groups, with their genes often present on the same plasmid/integron. ST131 isolates were associated with
and
virulence genes. This study highlights the genetic versatility of CP-Eco and its potential to disseminate ARGs and cause community and nosocomial infections.
Dengue infection has been associated with multiple renal complications, including glomerulonephritis, acute tubular necrosis, tubulointerstitial nephritis, and thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), this ...last one being a rare complication of dengue, with only a few reported cases. TMA associated with dengue can be explained by an alteration in the activity of the enzyme ADAMTS13, leading to thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura; or it can be secondary to direct or indirect endothelial injury by the virus, which leads to hemolytic uremic syndrome. Here, we present a case of severe TMA, not related to ADAMTS13, which was clearly associated with dengue infection.
Objective
The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk factors associated with xerostomia and hyposalivation in a group of hypertensive patients.
Subjects and Methods
A cross‐sectional study was ...conducted. Hypertensive patients belonged to two healthcare centers were included. Xerostomia was assessed by asking a question and using the Xerostomia Inventory. Unstimulated salivary flow was collected. Different epidemiological variables were analyzed such as age, sex, habits, diseases, drugs, and blood pressure.
Results
221 individuals were included. Xerostomia was reported in 51.13% of patients. Patients with xerostomia suffered more from osteoarthritis and diaphragmatic hernia. These patients took more anticoagulants (acenocoumarol), antiarrhythmics (amiodarone), analgesics (paracetamol) and epilepsy drugs (pregabalin) and less platelet aggregation inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers (losartan). Unstimulated flow was reduced in 37.56% of patients. Patients suffering hyposalivation presented more diseases such as anxiety, infectious or parasitic diseases, hepatitis C, diaphragmatic hernia, and osteoarthritis. These patients took more repaglinide, thiazides, anti‐inflammatories, anti‐rheumatics, glucosamine, diazepam, and selective beta‐2‐adrenoreceptor agonists and less combinations of candesartan and diuretics.
Conclusions
Xerostomia and hyposalivation are frequent in hypertensive patients. It is advisable to take into consideration the comorbidities and the drugs they receive, since they can increase the risk of these salivary disorders.
Pneumonia caused by Pneumocystis jirovecii is an uncommon infection in kidney transplant patients that can have an acute and rapid progression to respiratory failure and death. The period of greatest ...risk occurs in the first six months after the transplant, and it relates to the high doses of immunosuppression drugs required by patients. However, it may occur late, associated with the suspension of prophylaxis with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole.We present two cases of renal transplant patients who had severe hypoxemic respiratory failure due to P. jirovecii six years after transplantation. In addition to steroids, they received treatment with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. One patient died, while the other had clinical recovery, with preservation of the renal graft function.
Cerebral feohifomycosis are severe infections caused by dematiaceous fungi. Cladophialophora bantiana is one of the most commonly isolated species; it has central nervous system tropism and it often ...manifests as a brain abscess in immunocompetent patients. In immunocompromised patients, it can lead to brain abscesses and disseminated infections.
Despite the availability of broad-spectrum antifungal drugs, it is a must to perform surgical management, in addition to drug therapy. However, mortality is high. The diagnostic approach must be invasive to establish a timely diagnosis and direct treatment based on culture and susceptibility tests.
We report a case of brain abscess caused by C. bantiana in an immunosuppressed patient who was treated with surgical resection and voriconazole with an adequate response to therapy and without neurological sequels.
Lignin biodegradation has been extensively studied in white-rot fungi, which largely belong to order Polyporales. Among the enzymes that wood-rotting polypores secrete, lignin peroxidases (LiPs) have ...been labeled as the most efficient. Here, we characterize a similar enzyme (ApeLiP) from a fungus of the order Agaricales (with ~13,000 described species), the soil-inhabiting mushroom Agrocybe pediades. X-ray crystallography revealed that ApeLiP is structurally related to Polyporales LiPs, with a conserved heme-pocket and a solvent-exposed tryptophan. Its biochemical characterization shows that ApeLiP can oxidize both phenolic and non-phenolic lignin model-compounds, as well as different dyes. Moreover, using stopped-flow rapid spectrophotometry and 2D-NMR, we demonstrate that ApeLiP can also act on real lignin. Characterization of a variant lacking the above tryptophan residue shows that this is the oxidation site for lignin and other high redox-potential substrates, and also plays a role in phenolic substrate oxidation. The reduction potentials of the catalytic-cycle intermediates were estimated by stopped-flow in equilibrium reactions, showing similar activation by H2O2, but a lower potential for the rate-limiting step (compound-II reduction) compared to other LiPs. Unexpectedly, ApeLiP was stable from acidic to basic pH, a relevant feature for application considering its different optima for oxidation of phenolic and nonphenolic compounds.
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