Abstract N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a glutamate-modulating agent with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, has been considered as a potential anti-addictive drug. Beneficial effects were ...reported for cocaine, cannabis, and tobacco addicts, but the effect of NAC in alcoholics or in alcohol animal models is unknown. The aggravation of alcohol withdrawal symptoms, such as anxiety, has been associated with increased levels of serum corticosterone and leptin. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of NAC on anxiety, as well as corticosterone and leptin serum levels, after cessation of chronic alcohol treatment in rats. Male Wistar rats were treated with 2 g/kg ethanol, twice daily, by gavage for 30 days; control animals received an appropriate dose of glucose to balance caloric intake. Rats were treated for 4 days with NAC (60 and 90 mg/kg, intra-peritoneally i.p.) or saline after alcohol cessation. Twenty-four hours after the last treatment, rats were exposed to a 5-min session in the open-field test (OF). Corticosterone and leptin serum levels were determined by ELISA in samples collected within 30 min after the OF. Results showed that rats were hypoactive (decreased rearing, peripheral, and total crossings), and that corticosterone and leptin levels were increased 5 days after alcohol cessation. Four days of NAC prevented the behavioral and biochemical changes brought about by alcohol cessation. We suggest that, in addition to the anti-addictive properties reported for other drugs of abuse, NAC is potentially useful in the management of alcohol withdrawal.
Neste artigo é investigada a aplicação aos Tribunais de Contas da nova hipótese de suspensão do prazo prescricional da pretensão punitiva prevista na Lei da Covid-19 (art. 6º-C, parágrafo único, da ...Lei nº 13.979/20 c/c MP nº 928/20). O método indutivo e a pesquisa documental foram utilizados para identificar a ratio decidendi dos julgados do STF sobre o tema da prescrição no âmbito dos TCs e, a partir daí, fazendo uso também de revisão bibliográfica, apurar se as razões invocadas pela Suprema Corte autorizam a aplicação da nova regra. Os achados da pesquisa demonstram que a suspensão da prescrição, embora configure restrição ao princípio da prescritibilidade, é medida razoável e proporcional, aplicável, por analogia, a todos os Tribunais de Contas. É também solução que se amolda ao princípio da segurança jurídica, impedindo a aplicação analógica das Leis nº 9.873/99 e nº 13.979/20 de forma desuniforme, a partir de atos infralegais.
Alcohol use disorder is an alarming health problem, and the withdrawal symptoms increase the risk of relapse. We have hypothesized that taurine, a multitarget substance acting as a gamma-aminobutyric ...acid A receptor (GABAAR) positive modulator and a partial inhibitor of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptors, may reduce the withdrawal symptoms or modify behaviors when combined with alcohol. Therefore, we investigated the effects of taurine on behavior in the open field test (OFT), the GABAAR α2 subunit and BDNF mRNA expression in the frontal cortex of rats after chronic alcohol treatment or upon withdrawal. Rats received alcohol 2g/kg (alcohol and withdrawal groups) or water (control group) twice daily by oral gavage for 28days. On day 29, the withdrawal rats received water instead of alcohol, and all groups were reallocated to receive 100mg/kg taurine or vehicle intraperitoneally, once a day for 5days. On day 33, the rats were exposed to OFT; 18h later, they were euthanized, and the frontal cortex was dissected for GABAAR α2 subunit detection and BDNF mRNA expression determination by real-time quantitative PCR. Taurine administration restored rearing behavior to the control levels in the withdrawal rats. Taurine also showed anxiolytic-like effects in control rats and did not change the behaviors in the chronic alcohol group. Chronic alcohol treatment or withdrawal did not change the GABAAR α2 subunit or BDNF mRNA expression in the frontal cortex, but taurine decreased the α2 subunit level in control rats and to the BDNF levels in the alcohol rat group. We conclude that taurine restored exploratory behavior after alcohol withdrawal but that this effect was not related to the GABAAR α2 subunit or BDNF mRNA expression in the frontal cortex of the rats.
•Alcohol withdrawal decreases rearing in rats and taurine treatment reestablishes it.•Taurine presents an anxiolytic-like effect in control rats.•Taurine does not affect behaviors in chronically alcohol treated rats.•Chronic alcohol or withdrawal does not change GABAAR α2 mRNA in the frontal cortex of rats.•Alcohol withdrawal does not change BDNF mRNA in the frontal cortex of rats.
Modern consumption patterns have led to a surge in waste glass accumulating in municipal landfills, contributing to environmental pollution, especially in countries that do not have well-established ...recycling standards. While glass itself is 100% recyclable, the logistics and handling involved present significant challenges. Flint and amber-colored glass, often found in high quantities in municipal waste, can serve as valuable sources of raw materials. We propose an affordable route that requires just a thermal treatment of glass waste to obtain glass-based antimicrobial materials. The thermal treatment induces crystallized nanoregions, which are the primary factor responsible for the bactericidal effect of waste glass. As a result, coarse particles of flint waste glass that undergo thermal treatment at 720 °C show superior antimicrobial activity than amber waste glass. Glass-ceramic materials from flint waste glass, obtained by thermal treatment at 720 °C during 2 h, show antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli after just 30 min of contact time. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was employed to monitor the elemental composition of the glass waste. The obtained glass-ceramic material was structurally characterized by transmission electron microscopy, enabling the confirmation of the presence of nanocrystals embedded within the glass matrix.
Alcoholism has been characterized as a systemic pro-inflammatory condition and alcohol withdrawal has been linked to various changes in the brain homeostasis, including oxidative stress and glutamate ...hyperactivity.
N
-acetylcysteine (NAC) is an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant multi-target drug with promising results in psychiatry, including drug addiction. We assessed the effects of NAC on the serum and brain inflammatory cytokines after cessation of chronic alcohol treatment in rats. Male Wistar rats received 2 g/kg alcohol or vehicle twice a day by oral gavage for 30 days. Rats were treated, from day 31 to 34, with NAC (60 or 90 mg/kg) or saline, intraperitoneally, once daily. Rats were sacrificed at day 35, trunk blood was collected and the frontal cortex and hippocampus dissected for assessment of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-18, IL-10. NAC prevented the increase of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the decrease of anti-inflammatory cytokine in the frontal cortex and hippocampus. No changes were observed on serum cytokines. We conclude that NAC protects against inflammation induced by chronic (30 days) alcohol ingestion followed by 5 days cessation in two rat brain areas. Because inflammation has been documented and associated with craving and relapse in alcoholics, the data revealed by this study points to the validity of NAC clinical evaluation in the context of alcohol detoxification and withdrawal.
O presente estudo tem como objetivo avaliar se a declaração do estado de coisas inconstitucional pelo Supremo Tribunal Federal, por ocasião da ADPF 347/DF, contribuiu para a melhoria do sistema ...carcerário nacional, especialmente após o advento da pandemia. Pretende analisar a técnica do litígio estrutural aplicada pelos tribunais brasileiros como um meio capaz de alcançar uma intervenção legítima e eficaz para a solução de problemas públicos complexos. A partir da técnica de pesquisa da revisão bibliográfica e documental, foram extraídos os dados para a análise. Os resultados da pesquisa indicam que, apesar do acerto ao reconhecer o estado de coisas inconstitucional, as recomendações e medidas adotadas pela Suprema Corte não foram suficientes para resolver os problemas do sistema criminal, agravados durante a pandemia.
To evaluate how personality traits are associated with occasional use, abuse, and dependence of alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, benzodiazepines, and hallucinogens in a large availability sample of adults ...via online questionnaires.
The sample consisted of 8,646 individuals (24.7% men and 75.3% women) who completed an anonymous web survey. Involvement with drugs and temperament/character traits were assessed through the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) and the Temperament and Character Inventory - Revised (TCI-R), respectively. Interactions among variables were analyzed using MANOVA with Bonferroni adjustment.
Novelty seeking was the trait most associated with increased involvement with alcohol, cannabis, and cocaine. There was a significant association between harm avoidance and benzodiazepine use. Persistence was lower in cannabis-, benzodiazepine-, and cocaine-dependent subjects, as well as in hallucinogen abusers. Self-directedness was reduced in dependents of all drug classes. No strong relationships were found between other temperament or character dimensions and the severity of drug use.
Novelty seeking was associated with increased involvement with all drugs studied in this sample, although to a lesser extent with benzodiazepines and hallucinogens. The temperament and character profile for benzodiazepine use was different from that of other drugs due to the relationship with higher harm avoidance and self-transcendence and lower self-directedness.
Skin lesions are an important health concern, exposing the body to infection risks. Utilizing natural products containing chamomile (Chamomilla recutita L.) holds promise for curative purposes. ...Additionally, hyaluronic acid (HA), an active ingredient known for its tissue regeneration capacity, can expedite healing. In this study, we prepared and characterized an extract of C. recutita and integrated it into a nanoemulsion system stabilized with HA, aiming at harnessing its healing potential. We assessed the impact of alcoholic strength on flavonoid extraction and chemically characterized the extract using UHPLC/MS while quantifying its antioxidant and antimicrobial capacity. We developed a nanoemulsion loaded with C. recutita extract and evaluated the effect of HA stabilization on pH, droplet size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential, and viscosity. Results indicated that 70% hydroalcoholic extraction yielded a higher flavonoid content. The extract exhibited antioxidant capacity in vitro, a desirable trait for skin regeneration, and demonstrated efficacy against key microbial strains (Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) associated with skin colonization and infections. Flavonoids spireoside and apiin emerged as the most abundant bioactives. The addition of HA led to increased viscosity while maintaining a suitable pH for topical application. Zeta potential, droplet size, and PDI met acceptable criteria. Moreover, incorporating C. recutita extract into the nanoemulsion enhanced its antimicrobial effect. Hence, the nanoemulsion system loaded with C. recutita and HA stabilization exhibits favorable characteristics for topical application, showing promise in aiding the healing processes.
The oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to their respective aldehydes/ketones is one of the most important reactions in fine chemistry due to the industrial application of these products. ...Based on this, a large number of new catalysts and oxidants have been tested using this reaction as a catalytic model, mainly looking for a process that ensures high aldehyde selectivity. In this paper, we have used moisture stable borophosphate glass doped with 10 mol% Al2O3 as a heterogeneous catalyst in the oxidation of sodium hypochlorite, an effective, greener, and low-cost oxidant, using acetonitrile as solvent under mild conditions. The glass catalyst mass and the particle size were evaluated, as were the reaction temperature and oxidant amount, to determine the ideal reaction conditions where the conversions achieved 87.0 mol% for 1-phenylethanol to acetophenone and 79.4 mol% for benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde, with benzaldehyde selectivity above 95%. Although sodium hypochlorite is a strong oxidant, benzaldehyde was the main product of the oxidation of benzyl alcohol due to the formation of a biphasic organic-aqueous system that protects the aldehyde from oxidation and allows the reaction to occur without the use of a phase transfer catalyst (PTC). HPLC analysis of both phases showed that alcohols, aldehyde, and ketone were mostly present in the organic phase (concentrations above 98.7%). During the reaction, a small amount of alcohol is transferred to the aqueous phase, where the oxidation took place. Once formed, the products are transferred back to the organic phase. ICP-OES analysis indicates that borophosphate glass acts in the reaction by partially releasing phosphate-based groups, reducing the pH of hypochlorite to 9. In this sense, borophosphate glasses prove to be a simple and inexpensive alternative for the development of new catalysts.
A pesquisa se propõe a avaliar se o poder público vem conferindo os cuidados necessários à preservação do Direito Fundamental à Proteção de Dados dos contribuintes alagoanos participantes do Programa ...Nota Fiscal Cidadã. A partir dos métodos dedutivo e explicativo, através de um perfil qualitativo de revisão bibliográfica, foi examinado o âmbito de proteção do referido direito, especialmente após o advento da Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados. Foi possível constatar que o programa apresenta um déficit quanto à proteção de dados pessoais dos participantes. O fortalecimento da capacidade arrecadatória do Estado não é excludente da necessária proteção dos dados pessoais colhidos junto aos contribuintes. É importante compatibilizar a atividade estatal com o respeito a esse direito fundamental
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