Paracoccidioidomycosis in people living with HIV/AIDS: A historical retrospective cohort study in a national reference center for infectious diseases,Rio de Janeiro,Brazil

Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is one of the main endemic systemic mycoses in Latin America, usually occurring in rural areas. When PCM occurs simultaneously with underlying immunosuppressive conditions, it can present as an opportunistic disease. Between 2000 and 2017, literature reported around 200 PCM cases in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). To address research gaps on this co-infection and to study its possible temporal changes in the last decade, we performed an active co-infection case search on the HIV/AIDS and PCM cohorts from a Brazilian reference center database from 1989 to 2019. We found 20 PLWHA among 684 PCM patients (2.92%), predominantly male (70.0%) and urban workers (80.0%). The median age of patients was higher in the 2010–2019 decade (p = 0.006). The occurrence of PCM in PLWHA was lower when compared with other fungal diseases. Although 50.0% of the patients had already been diagnosed with HIV infection and presented CD4+ T cell counts greater than 200/mm³ at the time of PCM diagnosis, the suspicion of immunosuppression in the context of atypical and more severe clinical forms of PCM revealed the diagnosis of HIV infection in 35.0% of the patients. Two (10.0%) patients had an evolution compatible with immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) after starting antiretroviral therapy (ART).We highlight the importance of considering a PCM diagnosis in PLWHA to prevent a late-onset treatment and progression to severe manifestations and unfavorable outcomes. In addition, HIV investigation is recommended in PCM patients, especially those with atypical and more severe clinical presentations.     

Neuroprotective and anticonvulsant effects of organic and conventional purple grape juices on seizures in Wistar rats induced by pentylenetetrazole

Epilepsy is the most common neurological disorder worldwide. Studies have shown that recurrent seizures may increase the concentration of reactive oxygen species, which can lead to oxidative stress and neuronal damage. These seizures result in substantial deleterious effects on an individual's health. Organic and conventional grape juices are rich in polyphenols, compounds with important antioxidant activity. However, these juices could have differences in their polyphenol content. The aim of this study was to investigate the neuroprotective and anticonvulsant effects of organic and conventional grape juice treatments in Wistar rats against pentylenetetrazole (a convulsant drug)-induced damage. In addition, we evaluated potential behavioral changes in rats treated with the juices and the polyphenolic profile of those samples. Animals (n=16 in each group) received treatment with saline, organic or conventional grape juice for 17 days. On the eighteenth day, behavioral changes were evaluated by an open field test. Afterwards, half of the rats from each group received pentylenetetrazole and were observed for 30 min to evaluate possible seizure characteristics. The animals were subsequently killed by decapitation and their hippocampus, cerebellum and cerebral cortex tissues were isolated. The results of this study showed that neither organic nor conventional grape juice altered the behavior parameters, and no statistical differences were observed in the seizure characteristics of the groups. Nevertheless, both juice types were able to protect from lipid and protein oxidative damage, decrease nitric oxide content and increase enzymatic (superoxide dismutase and catalase) and non-enzymatic (sulfhydryl protein) antioxidant defenses in brain tissues following pentylenetetrazole-induced seizures. In general, organic juice showed superior results in each test, probably due to its higher polyphenol content relative to conventional juice. These results indicate that grape juices can provide further insight into natural neuroprotective compounds and may lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies for epileptic patients.     

Diversification of the Genus Anopheles and a Neotropical Clade from the Late Cretaceous

The Anopheles genus is a member of the Culicidae family and consists of approximately 460 recognized species. The genus is composed of 7 subgenera with diverse geographical distributions. Despite its huge medical importance, a consensus has not been reached on the phylogenetic relationships among Anopheles subgenera. We assembled a comprehensive dataset comprising the COI, COII and 5.8S rRNA genes and used maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference to estimate the phylogeny and divergence times of six out of the seven Anopheles subgenera. Our analysis reveals a monophyletic group composed of the three exclusively Neotropical subgenera, Stethomyia, Kerteszia and Nyssorhynchus, which began to diversify in the Late Cretaceous, at approximately 90 Ma. The inferred age of the last common ancestor of the Anopheles genus was ca. 110 Ma. The monophyly of all Anopheles subgenera was supported, although we failed to recover a significant level of statistical support for the monophyly of the Anopheles genus. The ages of the last common ancestors of the Neotropical clade and the Anopheles and Cellia subgenera were inferred to be at the Late Cretaceous (ca. 90 Ma). Our analysis failed to statistically support the monophyly of the Anopheles genus because of an unresolved polytomy between Bironella and A. squamifemur.     

A phylogenetic study of the Thygater‐Trichocerapis group and new scopes for the subgenera of Thygater Holmberg, (Hymenoptera,Apidae)

The bee tribe Eucerini is a large monophyletic taxon occurring in all continents, except Oceania and Antarctica, but far more diverse in the Americas and, especially, in the Neotropics. The phylogenetic relationships within its subtribe Eucerina, which contains the bulk of Eucerini diversity, is poorly understood, this being especially true for the relationships among its Neotropical representatives, which have been poorly represented in all phylogenetic studies, including Eucerini, to date. This leads to a generalized lack of confidence on the monophyly of the groups currently accepted as genera and subgenera. Here, a phylogenetic study based on three molecular markers (COI, 18S, and 28S, totalling about 1700 bp) and 58 morphological characters is presented as a contribution to the understanding of the relationships of the so‐called Thygater‐Trichocerapis group, and especially of the genus Thygater Holmberg, which has not previously been extensively sampled. Representatives of Trichocerapis, including its monotypic subgenus T. (Dithygater), are included for the first time in a phylogenetic study. The main results were: (i) support for the monophyly of the Thygater‐Trichocerapis group; (ii) support for the monophyly of Thygater; (iii) recognition of two main clades in Thygater, each one containing the type species of one of the previously recognized subgenera; and (iv) additional support for the position of Alloscirtetica as sister to all remaining Eucerina. Based on these results a redefinition of the scope of the two subgenera of Thygater is proposed, with changes in the subordination of three of its species, T. (Nectarodiaeta) chaetaspis comb.n. , T. (Nectarodiaeta) paranaensis comb.n. and T. (Thygater) mexicana comb.n.     

Evolutionary history of the Pectoral Sparrow Arremon taciturnus: evidence for diversification during the Late Pleistocene

We focus on reconstructing a spatiotemporal scenario of diversification of a widespread South American species, the Pectoral Sparrow Arremon taciturnus (Aves: Passerellidae). This species is widely distributed in both the humid and the dry forests of South America and therefore provides an interesting model for understanding the connection between different biomes of South America. We examined nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial genes Cytochrome b (cyt-b) and NADH subunit 2 (ND2) from 107 specimens, and one nuclear marker (intron 7 of the β-fibrinogen gene) from a subset of samples collected across the distribution ranges of A. t. taciturnus and A. t. nigrirostris. Six major lineages were recovered in the phylogenies that displayed high levels of variance of allele frequencies and corresponded to distinct geographical locations. The estimation of divergence times provided evidence that diversification of the six lineages of the Pectoral Sparrow occurred throughout the Late Pleistocene across major cis-Andean biomes and Amazonian interfluves. Our dataset for A. taciturnus provides further evidence that rivers in Amazonia constitute barriers promoting allopatric speciation, with occasional sharing of alleles among lineages, particularly those with adjacent distributions.     

A comparison of methods for identifying the Jacobian for uncontrolled manifold variance analysis

Uncontrolled Manifold (UCM) analysis has been used to identify a component of joint variance leading to pointer-tip position variability and a component representing motor abundant joint combinations corresponding to an equivalent pointer-tip position. A Jacobian is required for UCM analysis, typically derived from an analytic model relating joint postures to pointer-tip position. Derivation of the Jacobian is often non-trivial, however, because of the complexity of the system being studied. In this article, we compared the effect of different methods of deriving the Jacobian on results of UCM analyses during reaching. Jacobian matrices were determined at each percentage of the reach across trials using one of three methods: (M1) partial derivatives of the geometric model relating ten joint postures, segment lengths and pointer length to the position of a hand-mounted pointer tip; or (M2–M3) as the coefficients of linear regression between the ten joint postures and either (M2) the pointer tip position measured directly from motion capture or (M3) the pointer-tip position estimated from the geometric model. For all methods, motor abundant joint variance (V_UCM) was larger than joint variance leading to a variable pointer-tip position (V_ORT). Results did not differ among methods prior to the time of peak velocity. Thereafter, M2 yielded lower V_ORT and slightly higher V_UCM compared to M1. Method M3 was used to disambiguate the possible effect of estimating model parameters for the geometric model on the M1–M2 comparison. The advantages of the use of linear regression method in the UCM approach are discussed.     

Biological characteristics and thermal requirements of a Brazilian strain of the parasitoid Trichogramma pretiosum reared on eggs of Pseudoplusia includens and Anticarsia gemmatalis

A new strain of the parasitoid Trichogramma pretiosum, was collected in Rio Verde County, State of Goiás, Central Brazil, and designated as T. pretiosum RV. This strain was then found to be the most effective one among several different strains of T. pretiosum tested in a parasitoid selection assay. Therefore, its biological characteristics and thermal requirements were studied, aiming at allowing its multiplication under controlled environmental conditions in the laboratory. The parasitoid was reared on eggs of Pseudoplusia includens and Anticarsia gemmatalis at different constant temperatures within an 18–32 °C temperature range. The number of annual generations of the parasitoid was also estimated at those temperatures. Results have shown that T. pretiosum RV developmental time, from egg to adult, was influenced by all temperatures tested within the range, varying from 6.8 to 20.3 days and 6.0 to 17.0 days on eggs of P. includens and A. gemmatalis, respectively. The emergence of T. pretiosum RV from eggs of A. gemmatalis was higher than 94% at all temperatures tested. When this variable was evaluated on eggs of P. includens, however, the figures were higher than that within the 18–30 °C range (more than 98%), and were also statistically higher than the emergence observed at 32 °C (90.2%). The sex ratio of the parasitoids emerged from eggs of A. gemmatalis decreased from 0.55 to 0.29 at 18–32 °C, respectively. However, for those emerged from eggs of P. includens, the sex ratio was similar (0.73, 0.72 and 0.71) at 20, 28 and 32 °C, respectively. The lower temperature threshold (Tb) and thermal constant (K) were 10.65 °C and 151.25 degree-days when the parasitoid was reared on eggs of P. includens; and 11.64 °C and 127.60 degree-days when reared on eggs of A. gemmatalis. The number of generations per month increased from 1.45 to 4.23 and from 1.49 to 4.79 when the parasitoid was reared on eggs of P. includens and A. gemmatalis, respectively, following the increases in the temperature.     

The flavonoid rutin induces astrocyte and microglia activation and regulates TNF-alpha and NO release in primary glial cell cultures

Astrocyte and microglia cells play an important role in the central nervous system (CNS). They react to various external aggressions by becoming reactive and releasing neurotrophic and/or neurotoxic factors. Rutin is a flavonoid found in many plants and has been shown to have some biological activities, but its direct effects on cells of the CNS have not been well studied. To investigate its potential effects on CNS glial cells, we used both astrocyte primary cultures and astrocyte/microglia mixed primary cell cultures derived from newborn rat cortical brain. The cultures were treated for 24 h with rutin (50 or 100 μmol/L) or vehicle (0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide). Mitochondrial function on glial cells was not evidenced by the MTT test. However, an increased lactate dehydrogenase activity was detected in the culture medium of both culture systems when treated with 100 μmol/L rutin, suggesting loss of cell membrane integrity. Astrocytes exposed to 50 μmol/L rutin became reactive as revealed by glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) overexpression and showed a star-like phenotype revealed by Rosenfeld’s staining. The number of activated microglia expressing OX-42 increased in the presence of rutin. A significant increase of nitric oxide (NO) was observed only in mixed cultures exposed to 100 μmol/L rutin. Enhanced TNFα release was observed in astrocyte primary cultures treated with 100 μmol/L rutin and in mixed primary cultures treated with 50 and 100 μmol/L, suggesting different sensitivity of both activated cell types. These results demonstrated that rutin affects astrocytes and microglial cells in culture and has the capacity to induce NO and TNFα production in these cells. Hence, the impact of these effects on neurons in vitro and in vivo needs to be studied.     

Lipoic Acid Increases Hippocampal Choline Acetyltransferase and Acetylcholinesterase Activities and Improvement Memory in Epileptic Rats

In the present study we investigated the effect of seizures on rat performance in the Morris water maze task, as well as on choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activities in rat hippocampus. Wistar rats were treated with 0.9% saline (i.p., control group), lipoic acid (20 mg/kg, i.p., LA group), pilocarpine (400 mg/kg, i.p., pilocarpine group), and the association of LA (20 mg/kg, i.p.) plus pilocarpine (400 mg/kg, i.p.), 30 min before of administration of LA (LA plus pilocarpine group). After the treatments all groups were observed for 1 h. The effect of lipoic acid administration was observed on reference and working spatial memory of seized rats. The ChAT and AChE activities were measured using spectrophotometric methods and the results compared to values obtained from saline and pilocarpine-treated animals. Its activity was also determined after behavioral task. Results showed that pretreatment with lipoic acid did not alter reference memory when compared to saline-treated animals. In the working memory task, we observed a significant day’s effect with significant differences between control and pilocarpine-induced seizures and pretreated animals with lipoic acid. In LA plus pilocarpine group was observed a significantly increased in ChAT and AChE activities, when compared to pilocarpine group. Results showed that acute administration of lipoic acid alone did not alter hippocampal ChAT and AChE activities. Our findings suggest that seizures caused cognitive dysfunction and a decrease of ChAT and AChE activities that might be related, at least in part, to the neurological problems presented by epileptic patients. Lipoic acid can reverse cognitive dysfunction observed in seized rats as well as increase the ChAT and AChE activities in hippocampus of rats prior to pilocarpine-induced seizures, suggesting that this antioxidant could be used in clinic treatment of epilepsy.