Application of Acid and Cold Stresses to Enhance the Production of Clavulanic Acid by Streptomyces clavuligerus.

Clavulanic acid (CA) is frequently prescribed for treatment of bacterial infections. Despite the large number of studies concerning CA production, there is still a need to search for more effective and productive processes because it is mainly produced by biochemical route and is chemically unstable. This paper evaluates the influence of acid and cold stresses on CA production by Streptomyces clavuligerus in bench scale stirred tank bioreactor. Four batch cultures were conducted at constant pH (6.8 or 6.3) and temperature (30, 25, or 20 °C) and five batch cultures were performed with application of acid stress (pH reduction from 6.8 to 6.3), cold stress (reduction from 30 to 20 °C), or both. The highest maximum CA concentration (684.4 mg L-1) was obtained in the culture conducted at constant temperature of 20 °C. However, the culture under acid stress, in which the pH was reduced from 6.8 to 6.3 at a rate of 0.1 pH unit every 6 h, provided the most promising result, exhibiting a global yield coefficient of CA relative to cell formation (YCA/X) of 851.1 mgCA gX-1. High YCA/X values indicate that a small number of cells are able to produce a large amount of antibiotic with formation of smaller amounts of side byproducts. This could be especially attractive for decreasing the complexity and cost of the downstream processing, enhancing CA production.

Effectiveness of Laser treatment at acupuncture sites compared to traditional acupuncture in the treatment of peripheral artery disease.

Cardiovascular diseases are the main causes of mortality, not only in Brazil, but around the world. The use of acupuncture as a complementary and alternative treatment for cardiovascular diseases has been suggested for animals as well as human beings. Possible advantages in using acupuncture are the low cost of treatment and low risks of collateral damage from a combination of acupuncture with other medical treatments. The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of traditional acupuncture with needles and laser acupuncture on arterial pressure and peripheral circulation of inferior limbs in patients with circulatory deficiency. Ten acupuncture points were stimulated in 40 individuals, being that 20 were stimulated by Aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) laser with emission in the red spectral region (650 nm) using an energy density of 2,4 J/cm2, and 20 were stimulated by systemic acupuncture needles. The analysis of peripheral circulation was performed based on the measurement of arterial pressure of the ankle and arms, using sphygmomanometer and Doppler equipment. The variance of the revascularization index of the laser acupuncture group was 0,057, and 0.030 for the needles group with p= 0,006. These results show that only those treated with laser acupuncture exhibit a significant increase in systolic pressure of their lower limbs, with a consequent improvement of the Revascularization Index, suggesting that different stimuli on acupuncture points generate different variations of peripheral resistance of lower limbs. is column.

Effect of hydroalcoholic extract of Zingiber officinalis rhizomes on LPS-induced rat airway hyperreactivity and lung inflammation.

Ginger, the rhizome of Zingiber officinalis Roscoe (Zingiberaceae), is a common constituent of diets around the world and its extracts have been reported to exhibit several pharmacological activities. We investigated the effect of crude hydroalcoholic extract of ginger on the rat trachea hyperreactivity (RTHR) and lung inflammation induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Our results demonstrate that ginger extract and celecoxib attenuated RTHR 90 min and 48 h after LPS. Ginger and celecoxib reduced the serum level of prostaglandin (PGE2) and thromboxane (TXA2) 90 min after LPS. Celecoxib and ginger also reduced myeloperoxidase activity and the number of cells in rat bronchoalveolar lavage 48 h post-LPS. On lung parenchyma, ginger and celecoxib reduced the release of PGE2 and TXA2 48 h post-LPS. These results suggest that ginger exerts an anti-inflammatory effect on lung attenuating RTHR and COX metabolites seem to be involved in these processes.

A mitogenic protein fraction in latex from Carica candamarcensis.

Latex from Caricaceae contains a number of proteins believed to be part of a defense mechanism that protects these plants from wounding. Prior evidence suggests that some components in Carica papaya improve healing of ulcerous wounds in mammals. This study shows the chromatographic isolation of a protein fraction from C. candamarcensis that stimulates cell proliferation of mammalian cells by measuring MTT reduction and thymidine incorporation. The effect appears to be cell specific as L929, MDA-MB231 and BHK-21 cells are stimulated while no effect is seen on CHO cells. The maximal stimulatory effect reaches 2.2-fold 72 h after addition of the active fraction to L929, 1.8-fold in MDA-MB231 cells and 1.6-fold in BHK cells. Proteolytic inactivation of the active fraction suggests that a protein is responsible for the proliferative activity and its size is estimated between 10 and 25 kDa. A potential candidate for this function is a 23 kDa protein found in the fraction that reacts with human EGF antibody.

Using the laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy in the differentiation between normal and neoplastichuman breast tissue.

This article reports results of the in vitro study for potential evaluation of the laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy in the differentiation between normal and neoplastic human breast tissue. A coumarine dye laser pumped by nitrogen laser generated an excitation light centered at 458 nm. In order to collect the fluorescence signal was used an optical fiber catheter coupled to a spectrometer and CCD detector. Fluorescence spectra were recorded from normal and neoplastic (benign and malignant) human breast tissue, adding up 94 different areas. The discrimination between normal and neoplasm groups reach a sensitivity and specificity of 100%.

Profilaxia antibiótica em cardiologia / Antibiotic prophylaxix in cardiology

Os autores discorrem a rerspeito da profilaxia antimicrobiana em pacientes cardiológicos, especificam suas indicaçöes em condiçöes de risco (prolapso mitral, procedimentos odontológicos, gastroenterológicos, genitourinários e do trato respirtório; cirurgia cardíaca; cardiopatia na gravidez), discutem os esquemas de tratamento e fazem uma revisäo da literatura internacional sobre o assunto. Consideram que o esquema profilático näo pode evitar todas as endocardites infecciosas (EI), que a mesma deve r diferenciada da antibioticoterapia curativa e que representa apenas um dos elementos na prevençäo das EI. Concluem enfatizando que a profilaxia antibiótica merece revisäo permanente, sendo necesário maior número de pesquisa para atingir-se um consenso no estabelecimento das condutas.