In vitro assessment of the genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of clarified açai (Euterpe oleracea MART) extract in a gastric cancer cell line (AGP01 cells).

Açaí (Euterpe oleracea MART) is a fruit of great importance for the Amazon region in nutritional, cultural and socioeconomic terms. In recent years, açaí has been the subject of several studies due to its beneficial properties for health, including effects against tumor cells. Therefore, the present work aimed to evaluate in vitro the genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of the clarified extract of açaí juice in a human metastatic gastric cancer cell line (AGP01 cells). For comparison purposes, a non-transformed cell line of African green monkey renal epithelial cells (VERO cells) was used. The viability assay by resazurin reduction, the comet assay, the determination of cell death by differential fluorescent dyes and the wound healing migration assay were performed. A reduction in viability was observed only in the AGP01 line within 72 h. There was no genotoxic damage or cell death (through apoptosis or necrosis) in any of the cell lines. However, açaí extract induced motility reduction in both cell lines. The reduction in cell viability and the induction of the anti-migratory effect in the AGP01 cell line opens perspectives for exploring the potential of açaí as an adjuvant in the treatment of gastric cancer.

The zoonotic potential of avian influenza viruses isolated from wild waterfowl in Zambia.

Whilst remarkable progress in elucidating the mechanisms governing interspecies transmission and pathogenicity of highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses (AIVs) has been made, similar studies focusing on low-pathogenic AIVs isolated from the wild waterfowl reservoir are limited. We previously reported that two AIV strains (subtypes H6N2 and H3N8) isolated from wild waterfowl in Zambia harbored some amino acid residues preferentially associated with human influenza virus proteins (so-called human signatures) and replicated better in the lungs of infected mice and caused more morbidity than a strain lacking such residues. To further substantiate these observations, we infected chickens and mice intranasally with AIV strains of various subtypes (H3N6, H3N8, H4N6, H6N2, H9N1 and H11N9) isolated from wild waterfowl in Zambia. Although some strains induced seroconversion, all of the tested strains replicated poorly and were nonpathogenic for chickens. In contrast, most of the strains having human signatures replicated well in the lungs of mice, and one of these strains caused severe illness in mice and induced lung injury that was characterized by a severe accumulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes. These results suggest that some strains tested in this study may have the potential to infect mammalian hosts directly without adaptation, which might possibly be associated with the possession of human signature residues. Close monitoring and evaluation of host-associated signatures may help to elucidate the prevalence and emergence of AIVs with potential for causing zoonotic infections.

Serological and molecular evidence of HTLV-I infection among Japanese immigrants living in the Amazon region of Brazil.

Human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) infection was investigated in 168 Japanese immigrants (64 males and 104 females) living in the Tome-Acu county located in the State of Para, Brazil. The serological screening was performed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and showed the presence of anti-HTLV in four women whose ages ranged from 50 to 88. Confirmation of infection and discrimination HTLV typing was performed using a nested PCR on the extracted DNA targeting the pX region. In three of the samples, infection was confirmed to be HTLV-I. Sequencing HTLV-I 5'LTR and the RFLP pattern using DraI and SacI endonucleases indicated that the virus is a member of the Cosmopolitan group. These three women originated from the Kyushu region, though two of the corresponding HTLV-I strains were phylogenetically related to the Japanese subgroup and the third to the Transcontinental subgroup, which probably reflects the geographical origin of the infected individuals. The Japanese community residing in the northern Brazil apparently have not contributed to increase the prevalence of HTLV-I in the country.