Bisphenol A at the reference level counteracts doxorubicin transcriptional effects on cancer related genes in HT29 cells

Human exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) results mainly from ingestion of food and beverages. Information regarding BPA effects on colon cancer, one of the major causes of death in developed countries, is still scarce. Likewise, little is known about BPA drug interactions although its potential role in doxorubicin (DOX) chemoresistance has been suggested. This study aims to assess potential interactions between BPA and DOX on HT29 colon cancer cells. HT29 cell response was evaluated after exposure to BPA, DOX, or co-exposure to both chemicals. Transcriptional analysis of several cancer-associated genes (c-fos, AURKA, p21, bcl-xl and CLU) shows that BPA exposure induces slight up-regulation exclusively of bcl-xl without affecting cell viability. On the other hand, a sub-therapeutic DOX concentration (40nM) results in highly altered c-fos, bcl-xl, and CLU transcript levels, and this is not affected by co-exposure with BPA. Conversely, DOX at a therapeutic concentration (4μM) results in distinct and very severe transcriptional alterations of c-fos, AURKA, p21 and CLU that are counteracted by co-exposure with BPA resulting in transcript levels similar to those of control. Co-exposure with BPA slightly decreases apoptosis in relation to DOX 4μM alone without affecting DOX-induced loss of cell viability. These results suggest that BPA exposure can influence chemotherapy outcomes and therefore emphasize the necessity of a better understanding of BPA interactions with chemotherapeutic agents in the context of risk assessment.

Implementation of a new reference values database for semiquantification in123I-FP-CIT brain single emission tomography

Brain dopamine transporters imaging by Single Emission Tomography (SPECT) with 123I-FP-CIT (DaTScanTM) has become an important tool in the diagnosis and evaluation of Parkinson syndromes.This diagnostic method allows the visualization of a portion of the striatum – where healthy pattern resemble two symmetric commas - allowing the evaluation of dopamine presynaptic system, in which dopamine transporters are responsible for dopamine release into the synaptic cleft, and their reabsorption into the nigrostriatal nerve terminals, in order to be stored or degraded. In daily practice for assessment of DaTScan TM, it is common to rely only on visual assessment for diagnosis. However, this process is complex and subjective as it depends on the observer’s experience and it is associated with high variability intra and inter observer. Studies have shown that semiquantification can improve the diagnosis of Parkinson syndromes. For semiquantification, analysis methods of image segmentation using regions of interest (ROI) are necessary. ROIs are drawn, in specific - striatum - and in nonspecific – background – uptake areas. Subsequently, specific binding ratios are calculated. Low adherence of semiquantification for diagnosis of Parkinson syndromes is related, not only with the associated time spent, but also with the need of an adapted database of reference values for the population concerned, as well as, the examination of each service protocol. Studies have concluded, that this process increases the reproducibility of semiquantification. The aim of this investigation was to create and validate a database of healthy controls for Dopamine transporters with DaTScanTM named DBRV. The created database has been adapted to the Nuclear Medicine Department’s protocol, and the population of Infanta Cristina’s Hospital located in Badajoz, Spain.

Validation of a new reference values’s database for semiquantification of 123I‐FP‐CIT SPECT scans in one nuclear medicine department

The DatScanTM and its Semiquantification (SQ) can provide advantages in the diagnosis of Parkinsonian Syndromes (PS). To improve the SQ is recommended the creation of adapted database (DB) with reference values for the Nuclear Medicine Departments. Previously to this work was created a adapted database (DBRV) to Nuclear Medicine Department's protocol and population of Infanta Cristina's Hospital located in Badajoz, for patients between the ages of 60 and 75, and reference values of the SQ were calculated. Aim: To evaluate the discrimination capacity of a department's adapted DB reference's values of healthy controls for DatScanTM.

Clinical classification versus semiquantification with adapted reference values for 123I-FP-CIT SPECT in a nuclear medicine department

Semi quantification (SQ) in DaTScan® studies is broadly used in clinic daily basis, however there is a suspicious about its discriminative capability, and concordance with the diagnostic classification performed by the physician. Aim: Evaluate the discriminate capability of an adapted database and reference's values of healthy controls for the Dopamine Transporters (DAT) with 123I–FP-IT named DBRV adapted to Nuclear Medicine Department's protocol and population of Infanta Cristina's Hospital, and its concordance with the physician classification.

Calcareous nannofossil assemblages around the Pliensbachian/Toarcian boundary in the reference section of Peniche (Portugal)

The Pliensbachian/Toarcian boundary (Lower Jurassic) is well represented in the Lusitanian Basin (Portugal), mainly in the Peniche area, recorded by a marl/limestone series. Calcareous nannofossil assemblages are described herein, with the aim to contribute to the Toarcian GSSP definition. Marly samples were collected 3 m below and 7 m above this boundary and analysed for calcareous nannofossils. The main nannofossils observed were Biscutum finchii, B. grande, Calcivascularis jansae, Crepidolithus crassus, C. granulatus, C. impontus, Lotharingius hauffii, L. sigillatus, L. aff. L. velatus, Schizosphaerella spp. and Tubirhabdus patulus. This assemblage indicates that the Pliensbachian/Toarcian boundary in Peniche lies in the upper part of the NJ5b Subzone. Schizosphaerella and Lotharingius dominate the assemblage. The abundant occurrence of C. jansae and the common occurrence of B. grande indicate a strong Tethyan influence.

Drug resistance of M. Tuberculosis isolated from patients with HIV infection seen at an AIDS Reference Center in São Paulo, Brazil

M. tuberculosis-positive cultures were obtained from 228 patients seen in our service and drug sensitivity assays were carried out from January 1992 to December 1994. A survey of the medical records of these patients showed resistance to one or more drugs in 47 (20.6%), 25 of whom (10.9%), who reported previous treatment, were considered to have acquired resistance. Among the antecedents investigated, only previous treatment and alcoholism were the factors independently associated with the occurrence of resistance. The survival of patients with resistant strains was lower than that of patients attacked by non-resistant M. tuberculosis. We conclude that in the present series M. tuberculosis resistance to tuberculostatic agents was predominantly of the acquired type.

Using perspective schema and a reference model to design the ETL process

Dissertação apresentada para a obtenção do Grau de Doutor em Informática

Methodology for collaborative enterprise reference ontology building

Dissertation presented at Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia of Universidade Nova de Lisboa to obtain the Master degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Bacillary angiomatosis: description of 13 cases reported in five reference centers for AIDS treatment in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The aim of this case series was to describe the clinical, laboratory and epidemiological characteristics and the presentation of bacillary angiomatosis cases (and/or parenchymal bacillary peliosis) that were identified in five public hospitals of Rio de Janeiro state between 1990 and 1997; these cases were compared with those previously described in the medical literature. Thirteen case-patients were enrolled in the study; the median age was 39 years and all patients were male. All patients were human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infected and they had previous or concomitant HIV-associated opportunistic infections or malignancies diagnosed at the time bacillary angiomatosis was diagnosed. Median T4 helper lymphocyte counts of patients was 96 cells per mm³. Cutaneous involvement was the most common clinical manifestation of bacillary angiomatosis in this study. Clinical remission following appropriate treatment was more common in our case series than that reported in the medical literature, while the incidence of relapse was similar. The frequency of bacillary angiomatosis in HIV patients calculated from two of the hospitals included in our study was 1.42 cases per 1000 patients, similar to the frequencies reported in the medical literature. Bacillary angiomatosis is an unusual opportunistic pathogen in our setting.

PCR - based diagnosis to evaluate the performance of malaria reference centers

Although the Giemsa-stained thick blood smear (GTS) remains the gold standard for the diagnosis of malaria, molecular methods are more sensitive and specific to detect parasites and can be used at reference centers to evaluate the performance of microscopy. The description of the Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. malariae and P. ovale ssrRNA gene sequences allowed the development of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that had been used to differentiate the four species. The objective of this study was to determine Plasmodium species through PCR in 190 positive smears from patients in order to verify the quality of diagnosis at SUCEN's Malaria Laboratory. Considering only the 131 positive results in both techniques, GTS detected 4.6% of mixed and 3.1% of P. malariae infections whereas PCR identified 19.1% and 13.8%, respectively.

Clinical and epidemiological analysis of patients with HIV/AIDS admitted to a reference hospital in the northeast region of Brazil

The AIDS epidemic has become a worldwide phenomenon of enormous magnitude and extension, deeply transforming medical practices and public health initiatives. This retrospective survey aimed to analyze clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients with HIV/AIDS admitted to the Institute of Tropical Diseases Natan Portella, Teresina, Piauí, Brazil, from January, 2001 through December, 2004. Of the 828 patients, 43% were from other states and 71.3% were men. Average patient age was 35.4 ± 11.5 years-old and 85.5% were illiterate or had primary education. The main form of exposure to HIV was heterosexual behavior (54.1%), while injectable drug use was confirmed by only 2.7% of registered cases. The most frequent infectious complications were candidiasis (42.4%) and pneumocystosis (22.2%). Sixty-eight cases (8.2%) of visceral leishmaniasis were registered. Using multivariate analysis, individuals aged over 40 years-old, patients with active tuberculosis, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and central nervous system cryptococcosis showed increased risk of death. In this study, young male adults with low educational levels predominated and the most frequent opportunistic infections were candidiasis and pneumocystosis.

ESTABLISHING THE REFERENCE RANGE FOR T LYMPHOCYTES SUBPOPULATIONS IN ADULTS AND CHILDREN FROM BRAZIL

SUMMARY In Brazil, the existing reference values for T-lymphocytes subsets are based on data originated in other countries. There is no local information on normal variation for these parameters in Brazilian adults and children. We evaluated the normal variation found in blood donors from five large Brazilian cities, in different regions, and in children living in Salvador, and Rio de Janeiro. All samples were processed by flow cytometry. The results were analyzed according to region, gender, and lifestyle of blood donors. A total of 641 adults (63% males), and 280 children (58% males) were involved in the study. The absolute CD3+, and CD4+ cells count were significantly higher for females (adults and children). Higher CD4+ cell count in adults was associated with smoking, while higher CD8+ count was found among female children. Higher counts, for all T-cells subsets, were detected in blood donors from southeast / south regions while those living in the northern region had the lowest values. Individuals from midwestern and northeastern regions had an intermediate count for all these cells subsets. However, these differences did not reach statistical significance. In Brazil, gender and smoking, were the main determinants of differences in T-lymphocytes reference values.

APPLICABILITY OF kDNA-PCR FOR ROUTINE DIAGNOSIS OF AMERICAN TEGUMENTARY LEISHMANIASIS IN A TERTIARY REFERENCE HOSPITAL

SUMMARYThis study evaluated the applicability of kDNA-PCR as a prospective routine diagnosis method for American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) in patients from the Instituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas (IIER), a reference center for infectious diseases in São Paulo - SP, Brazil. The kDNA-PCR method detected Leishmania DNA in 87.5% (112/128) of the clinically suspected ATL patients, while the traditional methods demonstrated the following percentages of positivity: 62.8% (49/78) for the Montenegro skin test, 61.8% (47/76) for direct investigation, and 19.3% (22/114) for in vitro culture. The molecular method was able to confirm the disease in samples considered negative or inconclusive by traditional laboratory methods, contributing to the final clinical diagnosis and therapy of ATL in this hospital. Thus, we strongly recommend the inclusion of kDNA-PCR amplification as an alternative diagnostic method for ATL, suggesting a new algorithm routine to be followed to help the diagnosis and treatment of ATL in IIER.

Pipelined analog-to-digital conversion using current-mode reference shifting

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de Computadores