Drugs, alcohol, and criminal behaviour : a profile of inmates in canadian federal institutions

The scientific literature often mentions that there is a statistical connection between alcohol and drug consumption and criminal behaviour. However, there is little information available which would make it possible to quantify this connection, and specify the impact that drugs and alcohol have on criminal behaviour. Consumption of psychoactive substances has two major effects: intoxication and addiction. These effects are related, respectively, to the psycho-pharmacological and economic-compulsive models of the connection between drugs and crime. The first model associates drug use and intoxication with a decrease in cognitive functions and a lack of self-control, leading to aggressive impulses, violence and lack of inhibitions. The second model refers to the huge costs that are associated with being addicted to certain drugs. A person addicted to these drugs would need to engage in lucrative criminal activities in order to pay for them. This article explores and attempts to further define the links between alcohol, illicit drugs and criminal behaviour, taking into account the types of drugs consumed and the types of criminal behaviour displayed.

Biofilm Forming Multi Drug Resistant Staphylococcus spp. Among Patients with Conjunctivitis

Biofilm forming multidrug resistant Staphylococcus spp. are major reservoirs for transmission of ophthalmic infections. They were isolated from ocular patients suffering from conjunctivitis. In this study we analyzed biofilm forming ability, antibiotic resistance profile of the Staphylococcus spp. isolated from clinical ocular patients, and their phylogenetic relationship with other community MRSA. Sixty Staphylococcus spp. strains isolated from clinical subjects were evaluated for their ability to form biofilm and express biofilm encoding ica gene. Among them 93% were slime producers and 87% were slime positive. Staphylococcus aureus and S. epidermidis were dominant strains among the isolates obtained from ocular patients. The strains also exhibited a differential biofilm formation quantitatively. Antibiotic susceptibility of the strains tested with Penicillin G, Ciprofloxacin, Ofloxacin, Methicillin, Amikacin, and Gentamicin indicated that they were resistant to more than one antibiotic. The amplicon of ica gene of strong biofilm producing S. aureus strains, obtained by polymerase chain reaction, was sequenced and their close genetic relationship with community acquired MRSA was analyzed based on phylogenetic tree. Our results indicate that they are genetically close to other community acquired MRSA

Identification of plasmodium vivax proteins with potential role in invasion using sequence redundancy reduction and profile hidden markov models

Background: This study describes a bioinformatics approach designed to identify Plasmodium vivax proteins potentially involved in reticulocyte invasion. Specifically, different protein training sets were built and tuned based on different biological parameters, such as experimental evidence of secretion and/or involvement in invasion-related processes. A profile-based sequence method supported by hidden Markov models (HMMs) was then used to build classifiers to search for biologically-related proteins. The transcriptional profile of the P. vivax intra-erythrocyte developmental cycle was then screened using these classifiers. Results: A bioinformatics methodology for identifying potentially secreted P. vivax proteins was designed using sequence redundancy reduction and probabilistic profiles. This methodology led to identifying a set of 45 proteins that are potentially secreted during the P. vivax intra-erythrocyte development cycle and could be involved in cell invasion. Thirteen of the 45 proteins have already been described as vaccine candidates; there is experimental evidence of protein expression for 7 of the 32 remaining ones, while no previous studies of expression, function or immunology have been carried out for the additional 25. Conclusions: The results support the idea that probabilistic techniques like profile HMMs improve similarity searches. Also, different adjustments such as sequence redundancy reduction using Pisces or Cd-Hit allowed data clustering based on rational reproducible measurements. This kind of approach for selecting proteins with specific functions is highly important for supporting large-scale analyses that could aid in the identification of genes encoding potential new target antigens for vaccine development and drug design. The present study has led to targeting 32 proteins for further testing regarding their ability to induce protective immune responses against P. vivax malaria.

Synthesis and analgesic profile of conformationally constrained N-acylhydrazone analogues: Discovery of novel N-arylideneamino quinazolin-4(3H)-one compounds derived from natural safrole

In this work we reported the synthesis and evaluation of the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and platelet anti-aggregating properties of new 3-(arylideneamino)-2-methyl-6,7-methylenedioxy-quinazolin-4 (3H)-one derivatives (3a-j), designed as conformationally constrained analogues of analgesic 1,3- benzodioxolyl-N- acylhydrazones (1) previously developed at LASSBio. Target compounds were synthesized in very good yields exploiting abundant Brazilian natural product safrole (2) as starting material. The pharmacological assays lead us to identify compounds LASSBio-1240 (3b) and LASSBio-1272 (3d) as new analgesic prototypes, presenting an antinociceptive pro. le more potent and effective than dipyrone and indomethacin used, respectively, as standards in AcOH-induced abdominal constrictions assay and in the formalin test. These results confirmed the success in the exploitation of conformation restriction strategy for identification of novel cyclic N-acylhydrazone analogues with optimized analgesic profile (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pharmacokinetic Profile of Liposome-Encapsulated Ropivacaine after Maxillary Infiltration Anaesthesia

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Effects of probiotic bacteria, isoflavones and simvastatin on lipid profile and atherosclerosis in cholesterol-fed rabbits: a randomized double-blind study

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates from Brazil: Phenotypic and genotypic methods

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Rheological, Mechanical and Adhesive Properties of Surfactant-Containing Systems Designed as a Potential Platform for Topical Drug Delivery

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Structure and viscoelastic behavior of pharmaceutical biocompatible anionic microemulsions containing the antitumoral drug compound doxorubicin

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Prevalence and antifungal resistance profile of Candida spp. oral isolates from patients with type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Antinociceptive profile of 2,3,6-trisubstituted piperidine alkaloids: 3-O-acetyl-spectaline and semi-synthetic derivatives of (-)-spectaline

In early studies, we have reported the antinociceptive profile of (-)-spectaline, a piperidine alkaloid from Cassia spectabilis. The present study describes the synthesis, the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory activities of a series of 2,3,6-trialkyl-piperidine alkaloids: the natural (-)-3-O-acetyl-spectaline (LASSBio-755) and ten semi-synthetic spectaline derivatives. Structure-activity relationship (SARs) studies were performed. The structures of all synthesized derivatives were confirmed by means of nuclear magnetic resonance. Compounds were evaluated for their analgesic (acetic acid-induced mouse abdominal constrictions, hot-plate test, formalin-induced pain test) and some of them for the anti-inflammatory activities (carrageenan-induced rat paw edema test). The pharmacological results showed that several of the new compounds given orally at a dose of 100 mu mol/kg significantly inhibited the acetic acid-induced abdominal constrictions, but they were less active than (-)-spectaline. LASSBio-755 and LASSBio-776 were the most actives with 37% and 31.7% of inhibition. In the formalin-induced pain only LASSBio-776 was able to inhibit by 34.4% the paw licking response of the inflammatory phase, (-)-spectaline and LASSBio-755 did show any activity. In the carrageenan-induced rat paw edema, only (-)-spectaline exhibited an anti-inflammatory profile, showing an ED(50) value of 56.6 mu mol/kg. Our results suggest different mechanisms of action for the analgesic activity observed for LASSBio-776 (3-O-Bocspectaline), LASSBio-755 (3-O-acetyl-spectaline) and (-)-spectaline (LASSBio-754). The antinociceptive profile of some of the semi-synthetic spectaline derivatives extends our research concerning the chemical and pharmacological optimization of isolated natural products in the search of new drug candidates from brazilian biodiversity.

Characterization of PLGA microparticles as a drug carrier for 3-ethoxycarbonyl-2H-benzofuro[3,2-f]-1-benzopyran-2-one. Ultrastructural study of cellular uptake and intracellular distribution

Here we describe the application of microparticles (MPs) for the delivery and release of the drug a benzopsoralen. We also evaluated the intracellular distribution and cellular uptake of the drug by using an encapsulation technique for therapeutic optimization. MPs containing the compound 3-ethoxycarbonyl-2H-benzofuro[3,2-f]-1-benzopyran-2-one (psoralen A) were prepared by the solvent evaporation technique, and parameters such as particle size, drug encapsulation efficiency, effect of the encapsulation process on the drug's photochemistry, zeta potential, external morphology, and < i > in vitro release behavior were evaluated. The intracellular distribution of MPs as well as their uptake by tissues were monitored. Size distribution studies using dynamic ligh scattering and scanning electron microscopy revealed that the MPs are spherical in shape with a diameter of 1.4 mu m. They present low tendency toward aggregation, as confirmed by their zeta potential (+10.6 mV). The loading efficiency obtained was 75%. As a consequence of the extremely low diffusivity of the drug in aqueous medium, the drug release profile of the MPs in saline phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) was much slower than that obtained in the biological environment. Among the population of peritoneal phagocytic cells, only macrophages were able to phagocytose poly-d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) MP. The use of psoralen A in association with ultraviolet light (360 nm) revealed morphological characteristics of cell damage such as cytoplasmic vesiculation, mitochondria condensation, and swelling of both the granular endoplasmatic reticulum and the nuclear membrane. These results indicate that PLGA MP could be a promising delivery system for psoralen in connection with ultraviolet irradiation therapy (PUVA).

Multiparticulate systems of pectin-chitosan: Study of swelling and drug release

The aim of this study was to prepare multiparticulate systems of pectin:chitosan (PC:CS) and to evaluate their swelling ratio and the drug release in different environments. PC:CS particles containing triamcinolone were prepared by a complex coacervation/ionotropic gelation method in aqueous environment. The polymer ratio, the calcium concentration and the contact time of the capsules with chitosan dispersion for particles formation and the structures obtained were analyzed. The systems were characterized in relation to morphology, size, swelling, and drug release behavior. The methodology used allowed the production of spherical particles with narrow range of size distribution. The entrapment efficiency for triamcinolone was 84.31 ± 439. It was observed that the particles present a relatively low swelling ratio in acidic medium and a larger swelling ratio in enteric medium. The release profile was dependent on pH and can be related with the swelling ratio.

Molecular hybridization: A useful tool in the design of new drug prototypes

Molecular hybridization is a new concept in drug design and development based on the combination of pharmacophoric moieties of different bioactive substances to produce a new hyrid compound with improved affinity and efficacy, when compared to the parent drugs. Additionally, this strategy can results in compounds presenting modified selectivity profile, different and/or dual modes of action and reduced undesired side effects. So, in this described several example of different strategies for drug design, discovery and pharmacomodulation focused on new innovative hybrid compounds presenting analgesic, anti-inflammatory, platelet anti-aggregating, anti-infections, anticancer, cardio- and neuroactive properties.

Profile of cardiovascular risk factors and mortality in patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial disease

Introduction: The present study examines cardiovascular risk factor profiles and 24-month mortality in patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial disease. Design Study: Prospective observational study including 75 consecutive patients with PAD (67 ± 9.7 years of age; 52 men and 23 women) hospitalized for planned peripheral vascular reconstruction. Doppler echocardiograms were performed before surgery in 54 cases. Univariate analyses were performed using Student's t-test or Fisher's exact test. Survival analysis at 24-month follow-up was performed using the Cox regression model and Kaplan-Meier method including age and chronic use of aspirin as covariates. Survival curves were compared using the log-rank test. Results: Hypertension and smoking were the most frequent risk factors (52 cases and 51 cases, respectively), followed by diabetes (32 cases). Undertreated dyslipidemia was found in 26 cases. Fasting glycine levels (131 ± 69.1 mg/dl) were elevated in 29 cases. Myocardial hypertrophy was found in 18 out of 54 patients. Thirty-four patients had been treated with aspirin. Overall mortality over 24 months was 24% and was associated with age (HR: 0.064; CI95: 0.014-0.115; p=0.013) and lack of use of aspirin, as no deaths occurred among those using this drug (p<0.001). No association was found between cardiovascular death (11 cases) and the other risk factors. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of uncontrolled (treated or untreated) cardiovascular risk factors in patients undergoing planned peripheral vascular reconstruction, and chronic use of aspirin is associated with reduced all-cause mortality in these patients.