Immune reconstitution in HIV-1 infected patients treated for two years with highly active antiretroviral therapy

The aim of this paper was to evaluate the immune reconstitution of HIV-1 patients subjected to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for two years or more according to CD 45RA and CD 45RO cell count; determination of IL-2, IFN-γ, IL-4, IL-10 and TNF-α serum levels; CD 4 + T and CD 8 + T lymphocyte count; and plasma viral load (VL) determination. For this purpose, a cross sectional study was carried out in the Tropical Diseases Area, Botucatu School of Medicine, São Paulo State University, UNESP, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil. Between June 2001 and April 2002, 37 HIV-1 infected patients were evaluated, 13 with treatment indication but untreated (G1), 9 subjected to HAART for 5-7 months (G2), and 15 treated for two years or more (G3); both treated groups used medication regularly and without failure. Forty-nine normal individuals were studied as controls (GC-1 and GC-2). There was a tendency (p<0.10) for the predominance of two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTI) associated with one non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) regimen in G2; and two NRTI associated with a protease inhibitor (PI) in G3. Statistical differences between groups were seen for CD 45RA (G1<[G3=GC-2]; p<0.05) and CD 45RO (G1[G2=G3]; p<0.001), TNF-α serum determination ([G1>G3; G2=intermediate]>GC-1; p<0.001), IL-2 (G1<[G2=G3=GC-1]; p<0.01), IFN-γ ([G1=GC-1]>[GC-2=G3]; p<0.001), IL-4 and IL-10 ([G1=G2=G3]>GC-1; p<0.001), serum cytokine profiles, with a higher proportion of subtype 2 in G1 and mature subtype 0 in G2 and G3 (p<0.005). There was no statistical difference for CD 8 + T lymphocyte counts (G1=G2=G3; p<0.50). Consistency was seen between positive correlations of profile 1 definer cytokines (IL-2 and IFN-γ), CD 45RA and CD 45RO cells, and CD 4 + T lymphocyte counts and between positive correlations of profile 2 definer cytokines (IL-4 and IL-10) with TNF-α, and VL. The negative correlations were also consistent as they expressed the inverse of the positives. The variables with the highest number of correlations were IL-2, IFN-γ, and VL, followed by CD 45RA and CD 45RO cells, and IL-10. The variables with the lowest number of correlations were CD 4 + T and CD 8 + T lymphocytes. The results express the partial but important immune reconstitution in HIV-1 infected individuals with the interference of HAART and the importance of cytokines especially IL-2 and IFN-γ, and CD 45RA and CD 45RO cells as surrogate markers of this reconstitution.

Rendimento de óleo essencial de Salvia officinalis L. sob ação de reguladores vegetais

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different plant growth regulators on essential oil yield in Salvia officinalis L. plants. The experiment was held in a greenhouse and the experimental design was completely randomized, with 5 treatments and three replications. The Treatments consisted in the application of gibberellic acid (GA3), benzylaminopurine (BAP), 2-chloroethyl phosphonic acid (ethephon), and Stimulate at 2%, compared with control plants (water). Applications of plant growth regulators were performed in three consecutive periods, in turn, 15, 25 and 35 days after transplanting of seeding germinating in the light at 25°C. The dry mass yield of the aerial part and the oil essential content were determined 131 days after the transplant. The aerial part of the plants was dried in an oven at 35°C; after dry mass determination, the oil was extracted by hydrodistillation and its volume was determined. Plants treated with GA 3 and Stimulate showed increase in essential oil content, while plants treated with BAP and ethephon showed decrease in essential oil volume when compared with the control plants.

Micropropagación de Pothomorphe umbellata (L.) Miq. vía organogénesis directa

The present research was aimed at standardizing the protocol of seed disinfection, seed germination and organogenesis via callus of Pothomorphe umbellata (L.) Miq.The germinated seeds were inoculated in different concentrations of BAP (benzylamine purine) and NAA (naphthalene acetic acid) in order to stimulate the callus induction. After 60 days of culture, the calluses with some shoots were taken to an organogenesis medium (GA3 0.1 mg.L -1, BAP 0.5 mg.L-1) during 40 days, to be transferred later to a development medium. Finally, the plantules were acclimatized, presenting a good index of survival.

Perfil eletroforético das proteínas de fase aguda em caprinos experimentalmente infectados com Trypanosoma evansi

Considered as one of the main agents of the tripanossomiases, Trypanosoma evansi causes a disease generically know as surra, with wide geographic occurence. This work has the aim to study the electrophoretic profile of the acute phase proteins of goats, experimentally infected with T. evansi. Ten crossbread female goats, around 4 months of age, clinically healthy and serum negative for the presence of antibodies anti-T. evansi (IFAT) were used. The animals were divided in two groups: six were inoculated (G1) intravenously with 2,38 × 10 6 tripomastigotes of T. evansi and four were kept as noninfected controls. The blood for serum was collected daily until the 14 days after inoculation (DAI), weekly up to the 98 th DAI and every two weeks up to the 364 th DAI. The serum proteins were separacted by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDSPAGE). Twenty-one proteins were found in the serum of the goats, eight were nominally identified; phosphorylase, transferrin, albumin, antitrypsin, acid glicoprotein, haptoglobin, hemoglobin, and light chain immunoglobulin.

The Rv1712 locus from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv codes for a functional CMP kinase that preferentially Phosphorylates dCMP

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis cmk gene, predicted to encode a CMP kinase (CMK), was cloned and expressed, and its product was purified to homogeneity. Steady-state kinetics confirmed that M. tuberculosis CMK is a monomer that preferentially phosphorylates CMP and dCMP by a sequential mechanism. A plausible role for CMK is discussed. Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

The electrochemical reduction of the purines guanine and adenine at platinum electrodes in several room temperature ionic liquids

The reduction of guanine was studied by microelectrode voltammetry in the room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) N-hexyltriethylammonium bis (trifluoromethanesulfonyl) imide [N6,2,2,2][N(Tf)2], 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorosphosphate [C4mim][PF6], N-butyl-N-methyl-pyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide [C4mpyrr][N(Tf)2], 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide [C4mim][N(Tf)2], N-butyl-N-methyl-pyrrolidinium dicyanamide [C4mpyrr][N(NC)2] and tris(P-hexyl)-tetradecylphosphonium trifluorotris(pentafluoroethyl)phosphate [P14,6,6,6][FAP] on a platinum microelectrode. In [N6,2,2,2][NTf2] and [P14,6,6,6][FAP], but not in the other ionic liquids studied, guanine reduction involves a one-electron, diffusion-controlled process at very negative potential to produce an unstable radical anion, which is thought to undergo a dimerization reaction, probably after proton abstraction from the cation of the ionic liquid. The rate of this subsequent reaction depends on the nature of the ionic liquid, and it is faster in the ionic liquid [P14,6,6,6][FAP], in which the formation of the resulting dimer can be voltammetrically monitored at less negative potentials than required for the reduction of the parent molecule. Adenine showed similar behaviour to guanine but the pyrimidines thymine and cytosine did not; thymine was not reduced at potentials less negative than required for solvent (RTIL) decomposition while only a poorly defined wave was seen for cytosine. The possibility for proton abstraction from the cation in [N6,2,2,2][NTf2] and [P14,6,6,6][FAP] is noted and this is thought to aid the electrochemical dimerization process. The resulting rapid reaction is thought to shift the reduction potentials for guanine and adenine to lower values than observed in RTILs where the scope for proton abstraction is not present. Such shifts are characteristic of so-called EC processes where reversible electron transfer is followed by a chemical reaction. © 2009 Elsevier B.V.

UMP kinase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis: Mode of action and allosteric interactions, and their likely role in pyrimidine metabolism regulation

The pyrH-encoded uridine 5′-monophosphate kinase (UMPK) is involved in both de novo and salvage synthesis of DNA and RNA precursors. Here we describe Mycobacterium tuberculosis UMPK (MtUMPK) cloning and expression in Escherichia coli. N-terminal amino acid sequencing and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry analyses confirmed the identity of homogeneous MtUMPK. MtUMPK catalyzed the phosphorylation of UMP to UDP, using ATP-Mg 2+ as phosphate donor. Size exclusion chromatography showed that the protein is a homotetramer. Kinetic studies revealed that MtUMPK exhibits cooperative kinetics towards ATP and undergoes allosteric regulation. GTP and UTP are, respectively, positive and negative effectors, maintaining the balance of purine versus pyrimidine synthesis. Initial velocity studies and substrate(s) binding measured by isothermal titration calorimetry suggested that catalysis proceeds by a sequential ordered mechanism, in which ATP binds first followed by UMP binding, and release of products is random. As MtUMPK does not resemble its eukaryotic counterparts, specific inhibitors could be designed to be tested as antitubercular agents. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evolução de pacientes com AIDS pós cART: Evolução clínica e laboratorial de pacientes com AIDS após 48 semanas de tratamento antirretroviral

Combination Antiretroviral Therapy (cART) aims to inhibit viral replication, delay immunodeficiency progression and improve survival in AIDS patients. The objective of this study was to compare two different schemes of cART, based on plasma viral load (VL) and CD4+ T lymphocyte count, during 48 weeks of treatment. For this purpose, 472 medical charts of a Specialized Outpatient Service were reviewed from 1998 to 2005. Out of these, 58 AIDS patients who had received a triple drug scheme as the initial treatment were included in the study and two groups were formed: Group 1 (G1): 47 individuals treated with two nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors (NRTI) and one non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor; Group 2 (G2): 11 patients treated with two NRTI and one protease inhibitor. In G1 and G2, 53.2% and 81.8% respectively were patients with an AIDS-defining disease. The T CD4+ lymphocyte count increased progressively up until the 24th week of treatment in all patients, while VL became undetectable in 68.1% of G1 and in 63.6% of G2. The study concluded that the evolutions of laboratory tests were similar in the two treatment groups and that both presented a favorable clinical evolution.

Synthesis, characterization, x-ray structure, DNA cleavage, and cytotoxic activities of palladium(ii) complexes of 4-phenyl-3-thiosemicarbazide and triphenylphosphane

Complexes of the type [PdX(PPh3)(1)]X [1 = 4-phenyl-3- thiosemicarbazide; X = Cl- (2), Br- (3), I- (4), and SCN- (5)] have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses and IR, UV/Vis, and 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The molecular structure of complex 4 was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The binding of the complexes with a purine base (guanosine) was investigated by 1H NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry, which showed the complexes to coordinate to guanosine through N7. A gel electrophoresis assay demonstrated the ability of 2-5 to cleave DNA plasmid. All the complexes were tested in vitro by means of the MTT assay for their cytotoxicity against two murine cell lines, LM3 (mammary adenocarcinoma) and LP07 (lung adenocarcinoma), and compared with cisplatin. Complexes 2-5 exhibited good cytotoxicity that surpasses that of cisplatin in the case of LM3. A series of thiosemicarbazide/phosphane palladium(II) complexes have been synthesized and fully characterized. These complexes are able to cleave DNA plasmid and show cytotoxicity against adenocarcinoma (mammary LM3 and lung LP07), surpassing the cytotoxicity of cisplatin in the case of LM3. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Synthesis, cytotoxic activity and DNA interaction of Pd(II) complexes bearing N′-methyl-3,5-dimethyl-1-thiocarbamoylpyrazole

A new series of complexes of general formulae [PdX2(tmdmPz)] {X = Cl (1), Br (2), I (3), SCN (4); tmdmPz = N′-methyl-3,5-dimethyl-1- thiocarbamoylpyrazole} have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductivities, IR, 1H and 13C{ 1H} NMR spectroscopy. In these complexes, the tmdmPz coordinates to Pd(II) center as a neutral N,S-chelating ligand. The geometries of the complexes have been optimized with the DFT method. Cytotoxicity evaluation against LM3 (mammary adenocarcinoma) and LP07 (lung adenocarcinoma) cell lines indicated that complexes 1-4 were more active than cisplatin. The binding of the complexes with a purine base (guanosine) was investigated by 1H NMR and mass spectrometry, showing that the coordination of guanosine occurs through N7. Electrophoretic DNA migration studies showed that all of them modify the DNA tertiary structure. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Caracterização funcional de duas proteínas de Neurospora crassa identificadas em complexos DNA-proteína

Pós-graduação em Biotecnologia - IQ

Metabolismo de glicogênio e relógio biológico em Neurospora crassa: fatores e cofatores de transcrição envolvidos nos processos

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Perfil de resistência genótica do HIV-1 em pacientes com falha na terapia antirretroviral atendidos pela Rede Nacional de Genotipagem (RENAGENO) na região de Botucatu, SP-Brasil

Pós-graduação em Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (Biotecnologia Médica) - FMB

Perfil metabólico de cálcio e ósseo de pacientes soropositivos para HIV em uso ou não da terapia antirretroviral

Pós-graduação em Alimentos e Nutrição - FCFAR

Tolerância à dissecação e armazenamento de sementes de Araticum-de-terra-fria (Annona emarginata) (SCHLTDL.) H. Rainer)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)