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1.
J Health Commun ; 29(4): 284-293, 2024 Apr 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38646930

ABSTRACT

Fruit and vegetable intake is essential for health, but global adherence to recommended levels remains insufficient. Health information exposure positively influences consumption, yet the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. This study aims to explore the relationships between information seeking and scanning, attitudes, norms, perceived behavioral control (PBC), intentions, and fruit and vegetable intake, following the main tenets of the Integrative Model of Behavioral Prediction (IM). Data were collected through face-to-face surveys in Santiago, Chile, with a representative sample of individuals aged 25 and older in two waves. Findings revealed that intentions in Wave 1 predicted fruit and vegetable consumption in Wave 2, with positive associations between attitudes, norms, PBC, and intentions. Information seeking was positively associated with attitudes, norms, and PBC, and it had indirect effects on fruit and vegetable consumption through attitudes, norms, PBC, and intentions. Information scanning did not show significant indirect effects on fruit and vegetable consumption, even though the path between scanning and attitudes was significant. The study provides support for the IM and highlights the importance of information seeking in promoting fruit and vegetable consumption through its influence on attitudes, norms, and PBC. The findings have practical implications for health campaigns, educational programs, healthcare interactions, and public policies targeting healthier dietary habits.


Subject(s)
Fruit , Information Seeking Behavior , Intention , Vegetables , Humans , Female , Male , Adult , Middle Aged , Longitudinal Studies , Chile , Health Behavior , Aged , Diet, Healthy/psychology , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Feeding Behavior/psychology , Surveys and Questionnaires
2.
J Commun Healthc ; 16(3): 245-254, 2023 10.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37403453

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: During health crisis, individuals need information to comprehend their circumstances. Channel complementarity theory posits that in meeting their informational needs, people will use different sources in a complementary fashion. This paper puts to test the main tenet of channel complementarity theory by focusing on information scanning (i.e. routine health information exposure) in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile. METHOD: A survey was conducted among a sample of Chilean adults (N = 2,805). The questionnaire addressed information scanning across six sources (television, radio, internet, social media, family, and friends or coworkers) and explores how socioeconomic and demographic variables, as well as COVID-19 perceived risk related to scanning. Latent class analysis was employed to identify patterns of complementarity across channels. RESULTS: The analysis yielded a solution of five classes, namely 'high complementarity and high frequency' (21%), 'high complementarity and low frequency' (34%), 'high frequency on television and digital media' (19%), 'mass media predominant' (11%), and 'no scanning' (15%). Educational attainment, age, and COVID-19 perceived risk were associated with scanning. CONCLUSIONS: Television was a central channel for information scanning during the pandemic in Chile and more than half of participants scanned COVID-19 information complementarily. Our findings expand channel complementarity theory to information scanning in a non-US context and provide guidelines for designing communication interventions aiming at informing individuals during a global health crisis.


Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Adult , Humans , COVID-19/epidemiology , Pandemics , Internet , Latent Class Analysis , Surveys and Questionnaires
3.
Salud Colect ; 19: e4305, 2023 02 04.
Article in Spanish | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37311143

ABSTRACT

As a part of the EIS-COVID project on the access and use of information during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile, the objective of this paper was to ascertain how people's informational environment was constructed during the first stage of the pandemic. It discusses the results of a qualitative study of people belonging to risk groups for COVID-19: people over 18 and under 65 with chronic diseases (hypertension and diabetes) and people 65 and over. Ninety semi-structured interviews were conducted in the Metropolitan and Valparaíso regions between September 2020 and January 2021. The results reveal the problematic nature of the information overload encountered by these groups and the strategies they used to navigate it: a) information avoidance; b) content corroboration and active search for reliable sources; and c) differentiated media use.


Este artículo se enmarca en el proyecto EIS-COVID sobre acceso y uso de información en el contexto de la pandemia de COVID-19 en Chile. Su objetivo fue conocer cómo se constituyó el entorno informativo de las personas en la primera etapa de la pandemia. El artículo muestra los resultados de un estudio cualitativo enfocado en personas pertenecientes a grupos de riesgo por COVID-19: personas mayores de 18 y menores de 65 años con enfermedades crónicas (hipertensión y diabetes) y personas de 65 años y más. Se realizaron 90 entrevistas semiestructuradas en las regiones Metropolitana y de Valparaíso entre septiembre de 2020 y enero de 2021. Se identifica la problemática de la sobrecarga informativa para estos grupos y las estrategias que utilizaron para enfrentarla: a) la evitación de información, b) la corroboración de contenidos y búsqueda activa de fuentes confiables, o c) el uso diferenciado de medios.


Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Hypertension , Humans , Pandemics , Chile/epidemiology , COVID-19/epidemiology , Qualitative Research
5.
Salud colect ; 19: 4305-4305, 2023. tab
Article in Spanish | LILACS-Express | LILACS | ID: biblio-1442156

ABSTRACT

RESUMEN Este artículo se enmarca en el proyecto EIS-COVID sobre acceso y uso de información en el contexto de la pandemia de COVID-19 en Chile. Su objetivo fue conocer cómo se constituyó el entorno informativo de las personas en la primera etapa de la pandemia. El artículo muestra los resultados de un estudio cualitativo enfocado en personas pertenecientes a grupos de riesgo por COVID-19: personas mayores de 18 y menores de 65 años con enfermedades crónicas (hipertensión y diabetes) y personas de 65 años y más. Se realizaron 90 entrevistas semiestructuradas en las regiones Metropolitana y de Valparaíso entre septiembre de 2020 y enero de 2021. Se identifica la problemática de la sobrecarga informativa para estos grupos y las estrategias que utilizaron para enfrentarla: a) la evitación de información, b) la corroboración de contenidos y búsqueda activa de fuentes confiables, o c) el uso diferenciado de medios.


ABSTRACT As a part of the EIS-COVID project on the access and use of information during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile, the objective of this paper was to ascertain how people's informational environment was constructed during the first stage of the pandemic. It discusses the results of a qualitative study of people belonging to risk groups for COVID-19: people over 18 and under 65 with chronic diseases (hypertension and diabetes) and people 65 and over. Ninety semi-structured interviews were conducted in the Metropolitan and Valparaíso regions between September 2020 and January 2021. The results reveal the problematic nature of the information overload encountered by these groups and the strategies they used to navigate it: a) information avoidance; b) content corroboration and active search for reliable sources; and c) differentiated media use.

6.
Health Commun ; 37(12): 1544-1551, 2022 11.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35791928

ABSTRACT

The literature in the field of health communication has shown the existence of gaps between groups of different socioeconomic levels both in exposure to health campaign messages and in the influence these messages exert on individuals' health decisions. In this article, we examine the association between educational attainment and exposure to messages promoting COVID-19 preventive behaviors, namely, physical distancing, handwashing, and masks wearing in Chile. In addition, we model the association between exposure to these messages and the intentions to carry out the behaviors, as well as the differences attributable to educational attainment in the influence of exposure. A cross-sectional population survey combining online and telephone techniques was conducted among 3,592 adults in Chile. Regression analysis revealed that lower educational level and frequency of television use were positively associated with greater exposure to preventive messages. Exposure to preventive messages, in turn, was positively associated with intentions to maintain the three behaviors examined. Individuals in the lower educational attainment group had lower intentions to engage in two of the three behaviors, but those in these segments who were more exposed to preventive messages were as likely as their more educated counterparts to intend wearing masks and adhering to physical distance. The findings of this study underscore the importance of reaching the least educated segments with campaign messages in the context of public health crisis, since these messages can close gaps between the more and less educated group in their intentions to engage in preventive behaviors.


Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Adult , COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/prevention & control , Chile , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Intention , Surveys and Questionnaires
7.
Health Educ Res ; 37(4): 242-253, 2022 08 01.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35686999

ABSTRACT

The Healthy Change Program aimed to improve the accuracy of maternal perceptions of children's weight (MPCW), maternal feeding style (MFS) and feeding practices. Using a randomized control trial design, the intervention group received 4-weekly group sessions focusing on MPCW, MFS and healthy behaviors. The control group received the same dose of attention-control sessions on food hygiene. Data were collected at the baseline and at the end of the program via self-administered questionnaires and anthropometric measurements. Participants included 294 mother-child dyads with 149 in the intervention group and 145 in the control group. The accuracy of MPCW significantly increased at the study end point in the intervention group (57.0-67.1%, P < 0.05) but not in the control group (67.6-69.7%, P > 0.05), with no between-group difference in pre- and post-change (P > 0.05). At the study end point, more mothers of overweight and obese children in the intervention group had accurate MPCW than their control counterparts (31.4% versus 11.1%, P < 0.01). The intervention group had a shift toward an authoritative style at the study end point (17.4% versus 26.2%, P < 0.001) and favorable changes in feeding practices. The Healthy Change Program contributed to improving the accuracy of MPCW and shifts toward favorable MFS and feeding practices.


Subject(s)
Pediatric Obesity , Child , Child, Preschool , Feeding Behavior , Female , Humans , Mexico , Mothers , Overweight/prevention & control , Pediatric Obesity/prevention & control , Surveys and Questionnaires
8.
Rev. méd. Chile ; 150(5): 603-610, mayo 2022. tab, graf
Article in Spanish | LILACS | ID: biblio-1409838

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: People base their health decisions on the information they obtained from their environment, which includes health care providers, the media, and interpersonal networks. Learning about patterns of information acquisition allows the identification of people's preferred sources. Aim: To report the results of a survey about health information seeking, source trust, and routine exposure to health information. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A health information trend survey, modeled after the U.S. National Cancer Institute's Health Information National Trends Survey was answered by 1411 Chilean participants aged over 25 years. Results: Seventy six percent of respondents sought general health information at least once. Internet (32%) and the health care center (30%) were the most common sources. One fourth of respondents sought, during the last 30 days, information about physical activity, and one third about fruit and vegetable consumption. Physicians and other healthcare workers were the most trusted sources, but only half of participants recalled having received a recommendation from them regarding the practice of healthy behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: This survey about health information seeking is a valuable tool to learn about people's health information environments and how these contents can influence their practices.


Subject(s)
Humans , Adult , Aged , Health Behavior , Information Seeking Behavior , Chile , Surveys and Questionnaires , Health Surveys
10.
Hum Mol Genet ; 31(14): 2370-2385, 2022 07 21.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35157076

ABSTRACT

α-syntrophin (α-syn) and α-dystrobrevin (α-dbn), two components of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex, are essential for the maturation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) and mice deficient in either α-syn or α-dbn exhibit similar synaptic defects. However, the functional link between these two proteins and whether they exert distinct or redundant functions in the postsynaptic organization of the NMJ remain largely unknown. We generated and analyzed the synaptic phenotype of double heterozygote (α-dbn+/-, α-syn+/-), and double homozygote knockout (α-dbn-/-; α-syn-/-) mice and examined the ability of individual molecules to restore their defects in the synaptic phenotype. We showed that in double heterozygote mice, NMJs have normal synaptic phenotypes and no signs of muscular dystrophy. However, in double knockout mice (α-dbn-/-; α-syn-/-), the synaptic phenotype (the density, the turnover and the distribution of AChRs within synaptic branches) is more severely impaired than in single α-dbn-/- or α-syn-/- mutants. Furthermore, double mutant and single α-dbn-/- mutant mice showed more severe exercise-induced fatigue and more significant reductions in grip strength than single α-syn-/- mutant and wild-type. Finally, we showed that the overexpression of the transgene α-syn-GFP in muscles of double mutant restores primarily the abnormal extensions of membrane containing AChRs that extend beyond synaptic gutters and lack synaptic folds, whereas the overexpression of α-dbn essentially restores the abnormal dispersion of patchy AChR aggregates in the crests of synaptic folds. Altogether, these data suggest that α-syn and α-dbn act in parallel pathways and exert distinct functions on the postsynaptic structural organization of NMJs.


Subject(s)
Dystrophin , Receptors, Cholinergic , Animals , Calcium-Binding Proteins , Dystrophin/genetics , Dystrophin/metabolism , Dystrophin-Associated Proteins/genetics , Dystrophin-Associated Proteins/metabolism , Glycoproteins/metabolism , Membrane Proteins , Mice , Muscle Proteins/genetics , Muscle Proteins/metabolism , Muscle, Skeletal/metabolism , Receptors, Cholinergic/genetics , Receptors, Cholinergic/metabolism , Synapses/genetics , Synapses/metabolism
11.
Rev Med Chil ; 150(5): 603-610, 2022 May.
Article in Spanish | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37906760

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: People base their health decisions on the information they obtained from their environment, which includes health care providers, the media, and interpersonal networks. Learning about patterns of information acquisition allows the identification of people's preferred sources. AIM: To report the results of a survey about health information seeking, source trust, and routine exposure to health information. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A health information trend survey, modeled after the U.S. National Cancer Institute's Health Information National Trends Survey was answered by 1411 Chilean participants aged over 25 years. RESULTS: Seventy six percent of respondents sought general health information at least once. Internet (32%) and the health care center (30%) were the most common sources. One fourth of respondents sought, during the last 30 days, information about physical activity, and one third about fruit and vegetable consumption. Physicians and other healthcare workers were the most trusted sources, but only half of participants recalled having received a recommendation from them regarding the practice of healthy behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: This survey about health information seeking is a valuable tool to learn about people's health information environments and how these contents can influence their practices.


Subject(s)
Health Behavior , Information Seeking Behavior , Adult , Humans , Aged , Chile , Surveys and Questionnaires , Health Surveys
12.
Patient Educ Couns ; 105(2): 375-382, 2022 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34144855

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: This study assessed whether socioeconomic disparities in fruit and vegetable consumption and its differences by social capital are accounted for by exposure to media information about fruits and vegetables and reflective integration of that information. METHODS: Online survey data were collected in July 2014 from 572 U.S. adults from a nationally representative online panel. Path analysis was employed to test our models. RESULTS: Education and social capital were positively associated with media exposure, which was in turn positively related to reflective integration and finally led to fruit and vegetable consumption. Education and income were positively associated with social capital. CONCLUSION: Differences in fruit and vegetable consumption across social groups are at least partly explained by exposure to information about fruits and vegetables from the media, and by reflective integration of that information. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Healthcare professionals and health educators should create health messages delivered via the media that are easy to understand with an appropriate level of health literacy. Also, health interventions that aim to build social capital may promote health media use and its reasoning processes, thereby reducing communication inequalities by SES as well as disparities in fruit and vegetable consumption.


Subject(s)
Fruit , Vegetables , Adult , Communication , Diet , Feeding Behavior , Health Promotion , Humans , Socioeconomic Factors
13.
Int J Surg ; 97: 106168, 2022 Jan.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34785344

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Emergency General Surgery (EGS) conditions account for millions of deaths worldwide, yet it is practiced without benchmarking-based quality improvement programs. The aim of this observational, prospective, multicenter, nationwide study was to determine the best benchmark cutoff points in EGS, as a reference to guide improvement measures. METHODS: Over a 6-month period, 38 centers (5% of all public hospitals) attending EGS patients on a 24-h, 7-days a week basis, enrolled consecutive patients requiring an emergent/urgent surgical procedure. Patients were stratified into cohorts of low (i.e., expected morbidity risk <33%), middle and high risk using the novel m-LUCENTUM calculator. RESULTS: A total of 7258 patients were included; age (mean ± SD) was 51.1 ± 21.5 years, 43.2% were female. Benchmark cutoffs in the low-risk cohort (5639 patients, 77.7% of total) were: use of laparoscopy ≥40.9%, length of hospital stays ≤3 days, any complication within 30 days ≤ 17.7%, and 30-day mortality ≤1.1%. The variables with the greatest impact were septicemia on length of hospital stay (21 days; adjusted beta coefficient 16.8; 95% CI: 15.3 to 18.3; P < .001), and respiratory failure on mortality (risk-adjusted population attributable fraction 44.6%, 95% CI 29.6 to 59.6, P < .001). Use of laparoscopy (odds ratio 0.764, 95% CI 0.678 to 0.861; P < .001), and intraoperative blood loss (101-500 mL: odds ratio 2.699, 95% CI 2.152 to 3.380; P < .001; and 500-1000 mL: odds ratio 2.875, 95% CI 1.403 to 5.858; P = .013) were associated with increased morbidity. CONCLUSIONS: This study offers, for the first time, clinically-based benchmark values in EGS and identifies measures for improvement.


Subject(s)
General Surgery , Surgical Procedures, Operative , Adult , Aged , Benchmarking , Cohort Studies , Emergencies , Female , Hospital Mortality , Humans , Middle Aged , Postoperative Complications , Prospective Studies , Quality Improvement , Retrospective Studies
14.
Cells ; 10(2)2021 02 09.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33572348

ABSTRACT

The clustering and maintenance of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) at high density in the postsynaptic membrane is a hallmark of the mammalian neuromuscular junction (NMJ). The regulation of receptor density/turnover rate at synapses is one of the main thrusts of neurobiology because it plays an important role in synaptic development and synaptic plasticity. The state-of-the-art imaging revealed that AChRs are highly dynamic despite the overall structural stability of the NMJ over the lifetime of the animal. This review highlights the work on the metabolic stability of AChRs at developing and mature NMJs and discusses the role of synaptic activity and the regulatory signaling pathways involved in the dynamics of AChRs.


Subject(s)
Neuromuscular Junction/metabolism , Receptors, Nicotinic/metabolism , Animals , Humans , Models, Biological , Protein Stability , Signal Transduction , Synapses/metabolism
15.
Ann Med Surg (Lond) ; 56: 186-193, 2020 Aug.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32642061

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Omental infarction (OI) is an infrequent cause of acute abdominal pain and there is no consensus on whether conservative or surgical treatment is the best strategy when performing positive CT diagnosis. OBJECTIVES: To assess which of the two treatments is the most commonly adopted and compare outcomes in terms of success rate in resolution of symptoms and hospital length of stay. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Case report and case series of patients with abdominal pain and positive diagnosis by CT of omental infarction. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, Science Direct and Google Scholar in combination with cross-referencing searches and manual searches of eligible articles from January 2000 to June 2018. PARTICIPANTS: Patients older than 18 years of age. METHODS: Patient characteristics and results were summarized descriptively. Categorical variables were assessed by chisquare test or Fischer's exact test, and continuous variables by the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney or Kruskal-Wallis test. Risk factors for failure of the conservative management were identified using multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: 90 articles were included in the final analysis (146 patients). 107 patients (73.3%) received conservative treatment with a failure rate of 15.9% (patients needing surgery) and 39 patients (26.7%) received surgery as first treatment. The mean hospital length of stay was 5.1 days for the conservative treatment group and 2.5 days for the surgery group with statistically significant differences (p = 0.00). Younger age and white blood cells count ≥12000/µl were predictive factors of conservative treatment failure. CONCLUSIONS: Although conservative treatment is effective in most patients, surgery has advantages in terms of hospital length of stay.

16.
Enferm. univ ; 17(2): 136-147, abr.-jun. 2020. tab
Article in Spanish | LILACS-Express | LILACS, BDENF - Nursing | ID: biblio-1345980

ABSTRACT

Resumen Introducción: La obesidad es uno de los problemas de salud pública más graves del siglo XXI. Durante la etapa infantil la madre es el cuidador principal y modelador de las conductas de salud del hijo; factores como metas maternas y prácticas de alimentación determinan el índice de masa corporal en el hijo. Objetivo: Identificar si las metas y prácticas maternas de alimentación, así como el consumo de alimentos predicen el índice de masa corporal en niños preescolares. Método: Estudio descriptivo correlacional. Participaron 217 diadas (madre e hijo preescolar). Se aplicó el Cuestionario Elección de Alimentos, Cuestionario Integral de Prácticas de Alimentación y el Cuestionario de Frecuencia de Alimentos. Se midió peso y talla de las diadas, se calculó el índice de masa corporal y se obtuvo el estado nutricio. Se aplicó estadística descriptiva e inferencial a través de regresión lineal múltiple. Resultados: La meta conveniencia, el consumo de alimentos lácteos y cereales dulces, edad y el índice de masa corporal materno, contribuyeron al índice de masa corporal en el hijo preescolar, varianza explicada de 28.3%. Conclusión: Las variables estudiadas tuvieron mínima contribución al índice de masa corporal del hijo. Se recomienda realizar estudios multivariados para explicar de forma más integral el exceso de peso infantil.


Abstract Introduction: Obesity is one of the most severe public health problems of the 21st century. During childhood, the mother is the main care provider and model of the health the son´s behaviors; and thus, factors such as the mother's objectives and the food choices habits have an impact on the body mass index of the son. Objective: To identify if the objectives and food choices of the mother, as well as the specific food can predict the body mass index in pre-school children. Method: This is a descriptive and correlational study. 217 dyads (mother and pre-school son) participated. The Food Choices Questionnaire, the Integral Questionnaire on Feeding Practices and the Food Frequency Questionnaire were administered. Weight and size were measured. The body mass index was calculated and nutritional status was estimated. Descriptive and inferential statistics, including multiple linear regression, were obtained. Results: Convenience as an objective, the consumption of dairy products and sweet cereals, the age, and the mother's body mass index, had an impact on the body mass index of the son and accounted for 28.3% of the explained variance. Conclusion: The studied variables had a minimal contribution to the BMI of the sons. It is recommended to carry out multivariate studies in order to explain more integrally the excess of weight among pre-school children.


Resumo Introdução: A obesidade é um dos problemas de saúde pública mais graves do século XXI. Durante a etapa infantil a mãe é o cuidador principal e modelador das condutas de saúde do filho; fatores como metas maternas e práticas de alimentação determinam o índice de massa corporal no filho. Objetivo: Identificar se as metas e práticas maternas de alimentação, bem como o consumo de alimentos, predizem o índice de massa corporal em crianças pré-escolares. Método: Estudo descritivo correlacional. Participaram 217 díades (mãe e filho pré-escolar). Aplicou-se o Questionário Eleição de Alimentos, Questionário Integral de Práticas de Alimentação e o Questionário de Frequência de Alimentos. Mediu-se peso e tamanho das díades, calculou-se o índice de massa corporal e obteve-se o estado nutrício. Aplicou-se estatística descritiva e inferencial através de regressão lineal múltipla. Resultados: A meta conveniência, o consumo de alimentos laticínios e cereais doces, idade e o índice de massa corporal materno, contribuíram ao índice de massa corporal no filho pré-escolar, variância explicada de 28.3%. Conclusão: As variáveis estudadas tiveram mínima contribuição ao índice de massa corporal do filho. Recomenda-se realizar estudos multivariados para explicar de forma mais integral o excesso de peso infantil.

17.
Mol Metab ; 36: 100979, 2020 06.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32283080

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: A sustained high fat diet in mice mimics many features of human obesity. We used male and female Non-Swiss albino mice to investigate the impact of short and long-term high-fat diet-(HFD)-induced obesity on the peripheral neuromuscular junction (NMJ) and whether obesity-related synaptic structural alterations were reversible after switching obese mice from HFD to a standard fat diet (SD). METHODS: HFD-induced obese and age-matched control mice fed SD were used. We carried out in vivo time lapse imaging to monitor changes of synapses over time, quantitative fluorescence imaging to study the regulation of acetylcholine receptor number and density at neuromuscular junctions, and high resolution confocal microscope to study structural alterations in both the pre- and postsynaptic apparatus. RESULTS: Time-lapse imaging in vivo over a 9 month period revealed that NMJs of HFD obese male mice display a variety of obesity-related structural alterations, including the disappearance of large synaptic areas, significant reduction in the density/number of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChRs), abnormal distribution of AChRs, high turnover rate of AChRs, retraction of axons from lost postsynaptic sites, and partially denervated synapses. The severity of these synaptic alterations is associated with the duration of obesity. However, no substantial alterations were observed at NMJs of age-matched HFD obese female mice or male mice fed with a standard or low fat diet. Intriguingly, when obese male mice were switched from HFD to a standard diet, receptor density and the abnormal pattern of AChR distribution were completely reversed to normal, whereas lost synaptic structures were not restored. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that the obese male mice are more vulnerable than female mice to the impacts of long-term HFD on the NMJ damage and provide evidence that diet restriction can partially reverse obesity-related synaptic changes.


Subject(s)
Neuromuscular Junction/metabolism , Neuromuscular Junction/physiology , Acetylcholine/metabolism , Animals , Axons , Diet, High-Fat/adverse effects , Female , Male , Mice , Mice, Obese , Motor Neurons/physiology , Muscle, Skeletal/physiology , Neuromuscular Junction/drug effects , Obesity/physiopathology , Receptors, Cholinergic/analysis , Sex Factors , Synapses/physiology , Synaptic Transmission/physiology
18.
Parasitology ; 147(9): 949-956, 2020 08.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32234095

ABSTRACT

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a zoonotic disease caused by a complex of species known as Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato. CE is endemic in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay and the South part of Brazil. In contrast, little is known regarding the presence of CE in Bolivia. In this study, 35 cysts isolated from livestock (mostly from the Department of La Paz) and 3 from humans (La Paz, Oruro and Potosi) were genetically characterized analysing the sequence of the cox1 gene (1609 bp). In total, 30 cysts (from La Paz, Cochabamba and Beni) were characterized as E. granulosus sensu stricto (3 fertile and 4 non-fertile cysts from sheep, 8 fertile and 12 non-fertile cysts from cattle and 3 fertile cysts from humans). A detailed analysis of the cox1 haplotypes of E. granulosus s.s. is included. Echinococcus ortleppi (G5) was found in 5 fertile cysts from cattle (from La Paz and Cochabamba). Echinococcus intermedius (G7) was identified in 3 fertile cysts from pigs (from Santa Cruz). Additionally, E. granulosus s.s. was detected in 4 dog faecal samples, while E. ortleppi was present in other two dog faecal samples. The implications of these preliminary results in the future implementation of control measures are discussed.


Subject(s)
Cattle Diseases/parasitology , Dog Diseases/parasitology , Echinococcosis/parasitology , Echinococcosis/veterinary , Echinococcus/isolation & purification , Sheep Diseases/parasitology , Swine Diseases/parasitology , Animals , Bolivia , Cattle , Dogs , Feces/parasitology , Humans , Sheep , Sheep, Domestic , Sus scrofa , Swine
20.
Rev. méd. (La Paz) ; 25(2): 54-57, Jul. Dic., 2019.
Article in Spanish | LILACS | ID: biblio-1102685

ABSTRACT

Se reporta caso clínico de hígado ectópico intratorácico derecho en paciente de sexo femenino de 27 años de edad, que consulta por tos moderada no productiva y por dolor torácico persistente. La evaluación clínica y los estudios complementarios efectuados no permitieron alcanzar correcto diagnóstico, pero se propuso actitud quirúrgica que fue aceptada por la paciente. Mediante toracotomía se realizó excéresis completa de tumor supradiafragmático derecho, cuyo estudio anatomopatológico reportó tejido hepático normal con leve infiltración grasa. Las anomalías de posición del hígado son infrecuentes y habitualmente constituyen un hallazgo inesperado; por su potencial de malignidad, su resección está plenamente indicada.La decisión de actitud quirúrgica originó resultado satisfactorio y permite compartir una entidad intratorácica de tejido hepático histológicamente normal con localización anormal.


Subject(s)
Liver
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