Necrotizing sarcoid granulomatosis in a family of patients with sarcoidosis reinforces the association between both entities

Necrotizing sarcoid granulomatosis (NSG) is a rare entity mainly characterized by a prominent granulomatous vasculitis affecting middle-aged or old individuals and with a favorable prognosis. Although many believe it is a variant of sarcoidosis, the proper classification is still a matter of debate as some of its features are found in sarcoidosis but also in Churg-Strauss syndrome, Wegener's disease and hypersensitivity pneumonitis. In this paper, we described for the first time a case of NSG in a family with several cases of sarcoidosis, reinforcing the relationship between NSG and sarcoidosis. Additional interesting findings were the young age of the patient (15 years old), the symptoms limited to the respiratory tract (uncommon when NSG affects youngsters) and the increase in serologic markers of autoimmune disease. Though complete criteria for autoimmune disease were not present, systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjogren's syndrome are possible candidates. As sarcoidosis is described to be associated with several autoimmune diseases, this finding is an additional suggestion of the relationship between both entities.     

Treino de Força Reduz Stress Oxidativo Cardíaco e Renal em Ratos com Hipertensão Renovascular

BackgroundStrength training has beneficial effects on kidney disease, in addition to helping improve antioxidant defenses in healthy animals.ObjectiveTo verify if strength training reduces oxidative damage to the heart and contralateral kidney caused by the renovascular hypertension induction surgery, as well as to evaluate alterations in the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) endogenous antioxidant enzymes.MethodsEighteen male rats were divided into three groups (n=6/group): sham, hypertensive, and trained hypertensive. The animals were induced to renovascular hypertension through left renal artery ligation. Strength training was initiated four weeks after the induction of renovascular hypertension, continued for a 12-weeks period, and was performed at 70% of 1RM. After the training period, the animals were euthanized and the right kidney and heart were removed for quantitation of hydroperoxides, malondialdehyde and sulfhydryl groups, which are markers of oxidative damage. In addition, the activity of SOD, CAT, and GPx antioxidant enzymes was also measured. The adopted significance level was 5% (p < 0.05).ResultsAfter strength training, a reduction in oxidative damage to lipids and proteins was observed, as could be seen by reducing hydroperoxides and total sulfhydryl levels, respectively. Furthermore, an increased activity of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase antioxidant enzymes was observed.ConclusionStrength training is able to potentially reduce oxidative damage by increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes. (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2021; 116(1):4-11)     

The effects of resistance training in patients with primary Sjogren’s syndrome

Clinical Rheumatology - Resistance training (RT) is well tolerated and has shown promise for decreasing fatigue. However, the effects of RT have never been examined in primary Sjogren’s...     

The correlation between ancestry and color in two cities of Northeast Brazil with contrasting ethnic compositions

The degree of admixture in Brazil between historically isolated populations is complex and geographically variable. Studies differ as to what the genetic and phenotypic consequences of this mixing have been. In Northeastern Brazil, we enrolled 522 residents of Salvador and 620 of Fortaleza whose distributions of self-declared color were comparable to those in the national census. Using the program Structure and principal components analysis there was a clear correlation between biogeographic ancestry and categories of skin color. This correlation with African ancestry was stronger in Salvador (r=0.585; P<0.001) than in Fortaleza (r=0.236; P<0.001). In Fortaleza, although self-declared blacks had a greater proportion of European ancestry, they had more African ancestry than the other categories. When the populations were analyzed without pseudoancestors, as in some studies, the relationship of ‘race'' to genetic ancestry tended to diffuse or disappear. The inclusion of different African populations also influenced ancestry estimates. The percentage of unlinked ancestry informative markers in linkage disequilibrium, a measure of population structure, was 3–5 times higher in both Brazilian populations than expected by chance. We propose that certain methods, ascertainment bias and population history of the specific populations surveyed can result in failure to demonstrate a correlation between skin color and genetic ancestry. Population structure in Brazil has important implications for genetic studies, but genetic ancestry is irrelevant for how individuals are treated in society, their health, their income or their inclusion. These track more closely with perceived skin color than genetic ancestry.     

Characteristics of oleate binding to liver plasma membranes and its uptake by isolated hepatocytes

To clarify mechanisms of hepatic free fatty acid uptake, [3H]oleate uptake by isolated rat hepatocytes was studied, using solutions of 150 microM bovine serum albumin at oleate:albumin molar ratios of 0.033-6.7:1. Oleate partitioning between liver plasma membranes and albumin was also studied, and used to ascertain the membrane binding function for oleate. The experimental uptake curve was complex, but could be resolved by computer fitting into a sum of two components, one a saturable and the second a linear function of the unbound oleate concentration. The saturable component comprises > 90% of total oleate uptake when the oleate:albumin molar ratio is < 2.5, but < 50% when this ratio is > 5. Membrane binding also consisted of a sum of a saturable and a linear component. By comparison of the computer-fitted uptake and binding functions, separate rate constants for the transfer into the cell of the saturably and non-saturably bound oleate were estimated to be 0.7 s-1 and 0.05 s-1, respectively. The former is compatible with a specific, protein-mediated process. It is 15-times greater than the corresponding rate constant for transfer of non-saturably bound oleate into the cell, which in turn is similar to reported rates of non-specific 'flip-flop' of fatty acids across lipid bilayers. The observed kinetics are not consistent with models in which uptake occurs principally from the albumin-bound pool of oleate, or solely from the oleate which has partitioned passively into the lipid bilayer of the plasma membrane.     

Suppression of HCV-specific T cells without differential hierarchy demonstrated ex vivo in persistent HCV infection

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) has a high propensity for persistence. To better define the immunologic determinants of HCV clearance and persistence, we examined the circulating HCV-specific T-cell frequency, repertoire, and cytokine phenotype ex vivo in 24 HCV seropositive subjects (12 chronic, 12 recovered), using 361 overlapping peptides in 36 antigenic pools that span the entire HCV core, NS3-NS5. Consistent with T-cell-mediated control of HCV, the overall HCV-specific type-1 T-cell response was significantly greater in average frequency (0.24% vs. 0.04% circulating lymphocytes, P =.001) and scope (14/36 vs. 4/36 pools, P =.002) among the recovered than the chronic subjects, and the T-cell response correlated inversely with HCV titer among the chronic subjects (R = -0.51, P =.049). Although highly antigenic regions were identified throughout the HCV genome, there was no apparent difference in the overall HCV-specific T-cell repertoire or type-1/type-2 cytokine profile relative to outcome. Notably, HCV persistence was associated with a reversible CD4-mediated suppression of HCV-specific CD8 T cells and with higher frequency of CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells (7.3% chronic vs. 2.5% recovered, P =.002) that could directly suppress HCV-specific type-1 CD8 T cells ex vivo. In conclusion, we found that HCV persistence is associated with a global quantitative and functional suppression of HCV-specific T cells but not differential antigenic hierarchy or cytokine phenotype relative to HCV clearance. The high frequency of CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells and their suppression of HCV-specific CD8 T cells ex vivo suggests a novel role for regulatory T cells in HCV persistence.