Universidade Estadual de Londrina

About: Universidade Estadual de Londrina is a education organization based out in Londrina, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Toxoplasma gondii. The organization has 13052 authors who have published 19291 publications receiving 212123 citations.

Probiotic viability, physicochemical characteristics and acceptability during refrigerated storage of clarified apple juice supplemented with Lactobacillus paracasei ssp. paracasei and oligofructose in different package type

Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the supplementation of clarified apple juice with probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei ssp. paracasei and/or oligofructose (prebiotic and sugar substitute) on the physicochemical characteristics, probiotic viability and on the acceptability during refrigerated storage (4 °C for 28 days) in plastic or glass packages. Probiotic juices showed chemical composition, density, acceptability and purchase intent similar to products without supplementation but higher acidity, turbidity and red color. Supplementation with oligofructose did not change the physicochemical characteristics, acceptability, purchase intent and storage stability of the products, and enhanced the probiotic survival during storage. Oligofructose was stable to storage in apple juice and could be used as a sugar substitute as oligofructose added products had similar physicochemical characteristics and acceptability of the products with sucrose. The glass package was more appropriate than the plastic package in maintaining the viability of the probiotic culture, with no effect of packaging (glass or plastic) on the physicochemical characteristics and acceptability of juices.

A Multicentre, Prospective Study to Evaluate Costs of Septic Patients in Brazilian Intensive Care Units

Abstract: Background Sepsis has a high prevalence within intensive care units, with elevated rates of morbidity and mortality, and high costs. Data on sepsis costs are scarce in the literature, and in developing countries such as Brazil these data are largely unavailable.

Características gerais e epidemiologia dos arbovírus emergentes no Brasil

Abstract: Arbovirus (Arthropod-borne virus) sao assim designados pelo fato de parte de seu ciclo de replicacao ocorrer nos insetos, podendo ser transmitidos aos seres humanos e outros animais pela picada de artropodes hematofagos. Dos mais de 545 especies de arbovirus conhecidos, cerca de 150 causam doencas em humanos. As arboviroses tem representado um grande desafio a saude publica, devido as mudancas climaticas e ambientais e aos desmatamentos que favorecem a amplificacao, a transmissao viral, alem da transposicao da barreira entre especies. Neste trabalho de revisao discorremos sobre as caracteristicas gerais, patogenia e epidemiologia dos arbovirus e das infeccoes resultantes, que tem emergido ou reemergido no Brasil nas ultimas decadas. Pela potencial ameaca que significam a saude humana no Brasil, os arbovirus mencionados neste trabalho merecem especial atencao no que refere ao estabelecimento/consolidacao de programas compulsorios de controle e combate eficazes das doencas em humanos e animais domesticos.

Quercetin Enhances Ligand-induced Apoptosis in Senescent Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Fibroblasts and Reduces Lung Fibrosis In Vivo.

Abstract: Although cellular senescence may be a protective mechanism in modulating proliferative capacity, fibroblast senescence is now recognized as a key pathogenic mechanism in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). In aged mice, abundance and persistence of apoptosis-resistant senescent fibroblasts play a central role in nonresolving lung fibrosis after bleomycin challenge. Therefore, we investigated whether quercetin can restore the susceptibility of senescent IPF fibroblasts to proapoptotic stimuli and mitigate bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in aged mice. Unlike senescent normal lung fibroblasts, IPF lung fibroblasts from patients with stable and rapidly progressing disease were highly resistant to Fas ligand (FasL)-induced and TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL)-induced apoptosis. Senescent IPF fibroblasts exhibited decreased expression of FasL and TRAIL receptors and caveolin-1, as well as increased AKT activation, compared with senescent normal lung fibroblasts. Although quercetin alone was not proapoptotic, it abolished the resistance to FasL- or TRAIL-induced apoptosis in IPF fibroblasts. Mechanistically, quercetin upregulated FasL receptor and caveolin-1 expression and modulated AKT activation. In vivo quercetin reversed bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis and attenuated lethality, weight loss, and the expression of pulmonary senescence markers p21 and p19-ARF and senescence-associated secretory phenotype in aged mice. Collectively, these data indicate that quercetin reverses the resistance to death ligand-induced apoptosis by promoting FasL receptor and caveolin-1 expression and inhibiting AKT activation, thus mitigating the progression of established pulmonary fibrosis in aged mice. Therefore, quercetin may be a viable therapeutic option for IPF and other age-related diseases that progress with the accumulation of senescent fibroblasts.

Individual and combined effects of subclinical doses of deoxynivalenol and fumonisins in piglets.

Abstract: Scope: Deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisins (FB) are the most frequently encountered mycotoxins produced by Fusarium species and most commonly co-occur in animal diets. These mycotoxins were studied for their toxicity in piglets on several parameters including plasma biochemistry, organ histopathology and immune response. Methods and results: Twenty-four 5-wk-old animals were randomly assigned to four different groups, receiving separate diets for 5 wk, a control diet, a diet contaminated with either DON (3 mg/kg) or FB (6 mg/kg) or both toxins. At days 4 and 16 of the trial, the animals were subcutaneously immunized with ovalbumin to assess their specific immune response. The different diets did not affect animal performance and had minimal effect on hematological and biochemical blood parameters. By contrast, DON and FB induced histopathological lesions in the liver, the lungs and the kidneys of exposed animals. The liver was significantly more affected when the two mycotoxins were present simultaneously. The contaminated diets also altered the specific immune response upon vaccination as measured by reduced anti-ovalbumin IgG level in the plasma and reduced lymphocyte proliferation upon antigenic stimulation. Because cytokines play a key role in immunity, the expression levels of IL-8, IL-1β, IL-6 and macrophage inflammatory protein-1β were measured by RT-PCR at the end of the experiment. The expression of these four cytokines was significantly decreased in the spleen of piglets exposed to multi-contaminated diet. Conclusion: Taken together, our data indicate that ingestion of multi-contaminated diet induces greater histopathological lesions and higher immune suppression than ingestion of mono-contaminated diets.