Epidemiological, temporal and spatial dynamics of leprosy in a municipality in northeastern Brazil (2008-2017): an ecological study

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae.This study aimed to analyze the epidemiological, temporal, and spatial dynamics ofleprosy in a municipality in northeastern Brazil. METHODS: This is an ecological study on new leprosy cases in the population of Arapiraca (Alagoas, Northeast Region, Brazil), from 2008 to 2017. Data extracted from a national database were analyzed forepidemiological indicators, factors associated with physical disabilities, and spatialanalysis in the neighborhoods of Arapiraca. RESULTS: A total of 292 new cases of leprosy were recorded, particularly occurring among the following groups: women, the age group of 46-59 years, brown-skinned individuals, people with less than eight years of schooling, and urban residents; the new cases were also predominantly the tuberculoid form and were of the paucibacillary classification of the disease. Almost 1/3 of the people had some degree of physical disability, which was mainly associated with the group 60 years of age and older, black ethnicity, and the multibacillary clinical form of leprosy. The joinpoint regression showed a stationary temporal behavior of indicators. There was a heterogeneous spatial distribution with active transmission areas, especially in the neighborhoods Primavera, Baixão, Ouro Preto, and downtown. CONCLUSIONS: The epidemiological indicators revealed complexity in the process of leprosy development. These spatial and temporal studies are relevant to help in the planning, monitoring, and guidance of interventions in the municipality. The spatial analysis showed heterogeneous distribution in the analyzed neighborhoods.

Anxiolytic-like effect of the extract from Bowdichia virgilioides in mice

Current therapeutic for the treatment of anxiety is associated with a wild variety of side effects. The traditional use of plant extract to health care can indicate an important source of new pharmaceuticals. Bowdichia virgilioides Kunth, Fabaceae, is a plant commonly employed in the Brazilian folk medicine to treat inflammatory conditions. Nevertheless, despite its popular use there are no studies related to its possible neuropharmacological effect. Here, we investigated the possible anxiolytic effect of the extract of B. virgilioides after acute and sub-chronic treatment in mice. The aqueous extract from the stem barks of B. virgilioides (20, 200 or 400 mg/kg) was orally administered, and its anxiolytic effect was evaluated in the elevated plus maze, open-field and rota-rod tests. Diazepam was employed as standard drug. The aqueous extract treatment was effective in inducing anxiolytic effects with single acute treatment, a phenomenon that remained after chronic treatment. However, no changes in spontaneous locomotor activity or myorelaxant effect after aqueous extract treatment. The extract was either safe with no deaths in mice treated orally with 1000 mg/kg. These findings suggest that the aqueous extract from the stem barks of Bowdichia virgilioides has an acute and sub-chronic anxiolytic-like effect without compromising motor activity, demonstrating an advantage regarding to antidepressant drugs.

Sistema de información para consulta y selección de colorantes de uso en medicamentos y cosméticos: SINCO / Information system tolook for and choose of colorants to be used in drugs and cosmetics

El diseño y desarrollo de formulaciones farmacéuticas está soportado en la selección adecuada y crítica tanto de excipientes, como de procesos que le permitan al Químico Farmacéutico obtener un producto estable, seguro y eficaz. Los auxiliares optativos como los colorantes pueden jugar un papel importante tanto en la estabilidad como en la presentación de un producto farmacéutico pero en ocasiones la información disponible se encuentra dispersa y en general no está actualizada, lo que aumenta el tiempo de búsqueda para poder llevar a cabo una selección adecuada. En el presente trabajo se desarrolló un Sistema de Información que no sólo recopila información de las propiedades fisicoquímicas de los colorantes aprobados en Colombia, sino que permite al usuario hacer una selección crítica de los colorantes más apropiados para una formulación farmacéutica, teniendo en cuenta los criterios químicos y físicos que son considerados para obtener un medicamento o cosmético con las propiedades esperadas.

Mast cell changes in experimental diabetes: focus on attenuation of allergic events

The prevalence of atopic diseases and diabetes is increasing worldwide though the concurrence of these pathologies in individual patients is found less frequent than it would be predicted. Moreover, co-existence of diabetes and allergy is generally marked by attenuation of their respective symptoms, and effective treatment of one disease exacerbates the other. This review gives an update of the state-of-the-art concerning the intercurrence of allergy and diabetes, particularly focusing on the consequences to the allergen-evoked vascular and cellular changes. It is proposed that the reduction in mast cell numbers and reactivity may be a pivotal mechanism behind the mutual exclusion phenomenon.

Estudo dos mecanismos determinantes da hiporreatividade de mastócitos na diabetes experimental induzida por aloxana em ratos / Study of the determinant mechanisms of the hyporeactivity of mast cells in experimental diabetes induced by aloxan in rats

Neste trabalho objetivamos determinar o(s) mecanismo(s) envolvido(s) na refratariedade mastocitária associada ao estado diabético induzido por aloxana em ratos. Inicialmente constatamos que mastócitos peritoneais isolados de animais diabéticos mostraram-se hiporreativos à estimulação antigênica, fenômeno este que se mostrou extensivo a outros sítios do organismo incluindo pele, traquéia e intestino. Através do processo de transferência adotiva de células da cavidade pleural, verificamos que a repopulação mastocitária foi capaz de restaurar a reatividade de ratos diabéticos à provocação antigênica. Vimos ainda, que mastócitos provenientes de ratos diabéticos sensibilizados quando transferidos para animais normais, induziram uma resposta inflamatória de menor intensidade, sugerindo haver uma falha na reatividade destas células. Isto foi confirmado in vitro, quando mastócitos isolados mostraram-se menos reativos a estímulos como antígeno, bradicinina e composto 48/80, secretando menor quantidade de histamina e PGD2 que mastócitos normais. Mais ainda, mastócitos diabéticos apresentaram níveis elevados de AMPc em nítida associação com aumento no conteúdo de actina polimerizada e na taxa de apoptose. O pré-tratamento de ratos diabéticos com RU 486 foi capaz de inibir a refratariedade de mastócitos diabéticos, indicando clara associação deste fenômeno à elevação nos níveis de hormônios esteróides verificados na condição diabética. De forma particular, não foram identificadas alterações nos mastócitos presentes no timo de ratos diabéticos à despeito do marcado processo de atrofia tímica e elevação na deposição de matriz extracelular. A ausência de alteração na população mastocitária tímica sugere que esta encontra-se sob regulação diferente daquela presente em outros sítios do organismo, fenômeno este que precisa ser melhor investigado.

Antigen-induced pleural eosinophilia is suppressed in diabetic rats: role of corticosteroid hormones

Previous studies have evidenced for the existence of interactive regulatory mechanisms between insulin and steroid hormones in different systems. In this study, we have investigated whether endogenous corticosteroids could be implicated in the hyporeactivity to antigen challenge observed in sensitized diabetic rats. Alloxinated rats showed a long-lasting increase in the blood glucose levels and a reduction in the number of pleural mast cells at 48 and 72 hr, but not at 24 hr after alloxan administration. In parallel, they also showed a significant elevation in the plasma levels of corticosterone together with an increase in the adrenal/body weight ratio. Antigen-evoked eosinophil accumulation appeared significantly reduced in rats pretreated with dexamethasone as weel as in those rendered diabetic 72 hr after alloxan. In the same way, naive animals treated with dexamethasone also responded with a significant decrease in the number of pleural mast cells. Interestingly, when sensitized diabetic rats were pretreated with the steroid antagonist RU 38486 a reversion of the reduction in the allergen-induced eosinophil accumulation was noted. We conclude that the down-regulation of the allergic inflammatory response in diabetic rats is close-related to reduction in mast cell numbers and over expression of endogenous corticosteroids.