Effects of Hypothyroidism on the Extracellular Matrix of the Vocal Folds of Adult Female Rats.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the changes in the extracellular matrix of the vocal folds of female rats after induction of hypothyroidism.

Study Design: Prospective and experimental study.

Setting: Single tertiary center.

Polymorphism in IFNλ Can Impact the Immune/Inflammatory Response to COVID-19 Vaccination in Older CMV-Seropositive Adults.

Background: Chronic cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection may favor the development of immunosenescence and inflammation that impair vaccine responses, including COVID-19. In addition, the polymorphism of the interferon-lambda gene (IFNλ) affects COVID-19 immune responses in older adults.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the impact of IFNλ polymorphism ( gene-rs12979860) on the immune/inflammatory response to vaccination with CoronaVac for COVID-19 in older adults who were CMV-seropositive.

Cardiovascular and neuroimmune adaptations to enalapril and exercise training: A comparative study in male and ovariectomized female spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Unlabelled: Antihypertensive drug and exercise training are commonly prescribed to treat arterial hypertension. However, there is a considerable gap in understanding how physiological mechanisms of male and female adapt to the combination of these approaches. Therefore, we focused to investigate sexual differences in cardiovascular, autonomic, inflammation and systemic oxidative stress adaptations in male and OVX female ovariectomized spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) treated with enalapril associated with moderate-intensity concurrent exercise training.

Effect of non-surgical treatment in diabetes-associated periodontitis on immune/inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers: A pilot study.

Aims: To investigate the effects of non-surgical periodontal treatment on the levels of cytokines, sIgA, antimicrobial peptides, oxidative and antioxidative agents in comparison between patients with and without diabetes.

Methods: A case-control study that included patients (n = 45) with periodontitis who have or do not have diabetes. Cytokine concentrations in crevicular gingival fluid (GCF) and saliva were determined using LUMINEX and ELISA assays, respectively.

Long-Term Physical Activity Mitigates Inflammaging Progression in Older Adults Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: Inflammaging and physical performance were investigated in older adults before and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Older women ( = 18) and men ( = 7) (mean age = 73.8 ± 7.

Salivary assessment of the immune/inflammatory responses and oxidative stress in older adults vaccinated with CoronaVac or ChadOx-1.

Background: Although important information concerning COVID-19 vaccination is available, the effects of the CoronaVac and ChadOx-1 vaccines on immunity and the redox balance in the upper airway mucosa of the aged population are not fully understood. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the impacts of two doses of the CoronaVac or ChadOx-1 vaccine on immune/inflammatory responses and oxidative stress in the airway mucosa of older adults.

Methods: Seventy-six older adults of both sexes, with a mean age of 75.

Sudden sensorineural hearing loss: audiological profile during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is an otological emergency that requires prompt recognition and intervention to prevent devastating impacts on people's lives. During the COVID-19 pandemic, sensory deprivations have been reported in patients positive for SARS-CoV-2 virus, including deleterious effects on the auditory pathway. This study aims to describe the audiological profile of individuals with SSNHL during the COVID-19 pandemic and to correlate hearing recovery in subgroups of individuals with or without COVID-19.

Role of circulating microparticles and cytokines in periodontitis associated with diabetes.

Background: Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory condition that affects the supporting tissues of the teeth, and can lead to serious complications such as tooth loss and systemic health problems, including diabetes, which have a bidirectional relationship with periodontitis. Circulating microparticles originate from different cell types after stimuli such as activation or apoptosis. Interleukins are related to processes in the regulation of the immune response, inflammation, and cell growth.

The inflammatory and metabolic status of patients with sudden-onset sensorineural hearing loss.

Introduction: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is a common emergency symptom in otolaryngology that requires immediate diagnosis and treatment. SSNHL has a multifactorial etiology, and its pathophysiologic mechanisms may be associated with inflammatory and metabolic changes that may affect the cochlear microenvironment or its nervous component, thus triggering the process or hindering hearing recovery. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess metabolic and inflammatory changes to identify systemic parameters that could serve as prognostic factors for hearing recovery in patients with SSNHL.

HERV-W upregulation expression in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia: unraveling potential links to systemic immune/inflammation status.

Background: Bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ) are the two main mental disorders with unknown etiology that significantly impact individuals' quality of life. The potential pro-inflammatory role in their pathogenesis is postulated and Human Endogenous Retrovirus W (HERV-W) is an emerging candidate to modulate this pathogenic finding. HERVs, ancient retroviruses in the human genome, may play roles in inflammation and disease pathogenesis.

Expression of monocyte chemokine receptors in diabetes after non-surgical periodontal treatment: A pilot study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of non-surgical periodontal treatment in the expression of chemokine receptors, in individuals with Periodontitis, associated or not with Diabetes. Pilot study, which included patients (n = 45) with Periodontitis, associated (n = 25) or not (n = 20) with Diabetes, submitted to the non-surgical periodontal treatment for one month. The expression of chemokine receptors CCR2, CCR5, and CX3CR1 at the mRNA level was evaluated in the peripheral mononuclear cells, as well as the expression of these receptors at the protein level was verified in monocyte subtypes (classical, intermediate, and non-classical monocytes).

Effect of Testosterone on the Thyroarytenoid Muscle and Lamina Propria of Female Rat Vocal Folds.

Objective: To analyze the effects of androgen therapy on the thyroarytenoid (TA) muscle, expression of androgen receptors (ARs) and hyaluronic acid (HA) concentration in the vocal folds (VFs) of adult female rats.

Methods: Twenty-one adult female Wistar rats were divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group received weekly intramuscular injections of nandrolone decanoate for 9 weeks.

Association among inflammaging, body composition, physical activity, and physical function tests in physically active women.

Background: Inflammaging is a phenomenon that has been associated with the development and progression of sarcopenia and frailty syndrome. According to the literature, on the one side, the increase in body fat is associated with a systemic pro-inflammatory status, which consequently favors inflammaging, and on the other side, the regular practice of physical exercise can mitigate the development of this scenario. Therefore, here, we aimed to evaluate the association between inflammaging and physical factors, both body and functional, in a group of physically active older women.

Persistence of a proinflammatory status after treatment of the acute myocardial infarction.

Aim: To evaluate the lipid-lowering and antiplatelet combined strategies on the expression of the receptors CCR2, CCR5, and CX3CR1 and the percentage of CCR2, CCR5, and CX3CR1 cells in monocyte subtypes after acute myocardial infarction.

Methods: Prospective, randomized, open-label study, with blinded analyses of endpoints (PROBE, ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02428374, registration date: April 28, 2015).

Differential Angiogenic Induction Impacts Nasal Polyp Tissue Growth.

In chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, inflammatory edema drives tissue remodeling favoring anomalous growth of the nasal mucosa, but a proangiogenic contribution of nasal polyp in support of tissue growth is still controversial. The chorioallantoic membrane of chicken embryo model was employed to address the potentiality of nasal tissue fragments to modulate angiogenesis. Fifty-seven fertilized eggs were implanted with polyp or healthy nasal mucosa tissue or were kept as non-implanted controls.

Cellular and Humoral Immune Responses to Vaccination for COVID-19 Are Negatively Impacted by Senescent T Cells: A Case Report.

Background: Herein, we aimed to follow up on the cellular and humoral immune responses of a group of individuals who initially received the CoronaVac vaccine, followed by a booster with the Pfizer vaccine.

Methods: Blood samples were collected: before and 30 days after the first CoronaVac dose; 30, 90, and 180 days after the second CoronaVac dose, and also 20 days after the booster with the Pfizer vaccine.

Results: Whilst the positivity to gamma interferon-type cellular response increased after the first CoronaVac dose, neutralizing and IgG antibody levels only raised 30 days after the second dose, followed by a drop in these responses after 90 and 180 days.

Monocytes presenting a pro-inflammatory profile persist in patients submitted to a long-term pharmacological treatment after acute myocardial infarction.

Although it is broadly known that monocyte recruitment is involved in atherosclerosis development and that, in accordance with the microenvironment, these cells can be modulated into three well-known subpopulations: Classical (CD14++CD16-), intermediate (CD14++CD16+), and non-classical (CD14+CD16++), the effects of treatment with different pharmacological strategies (based on lipid-lowering and antiplatelets) after acute myocardial infarction upon the monocytes modulation and the role of the chemokine receptors CCR2, CCR5 and CX3CR1 in this context, are poorly understood. In this study, patients [n = 148, both men (n = 105, 71%) and women (n = 43, 29%)] submitted to treatment with a 2×2 factorial design, in which they received rosuvastatin 20 mg or simvastatin 40 mg plus ezetimibe 10 mg, as well as ticagrelor 90 mg or clopidogrel 75 mg were enrolled. Monocyte subsets were analyzed by flow cytometry at baseline (BL), and after one (1-M) and 6 months (6-M) of treatment.

Effects of physical distancing by COVID-19 pandemic on diet quality, neurological and immunological markers, and fecal microbiota of Brazilian older women.

Physical distancing was used to prevent transmission of COVID-19, however there are concerns that this may promote harmful impacts on health, such as reduced levels of physical practice and changes in food intake and gut microbiota composition. This study evaluated the impacts of 6 months physical distancing on Brazilian older women upon body mass index (BMI), strength, physical activity level (IPAQ), eating habits, neurological markers (brain-derived neurotrophic factor-BDNF and cortisol), cytokines (IL-2, IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, interferon-IFN-γ, tumor necrosis factor-TNF-α), aging-associated markers (vascular endothelial growth factor-VEGF, insulin-like growth factor-IGF-1, klotho and thymic stromal lymphopoietin-TSLP), besides specific groups of fecal microbiota. Fifteen women, over 60 years old, residents of São Paulo state (Brazil), were evaluated in March and in September 2020.

Distinct Immunological Profiles Help in the Maintenance of Salivary Secretory IgA Production in Mild Symptoms COVID-19 Patients.

Background: Relevant aspects regarding the SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis and the systemic immune response to this infection have been reported. However, the mucosal immune response of the upper airways two months after SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with mild/moderate symptoms is still not completely described. Therefore, we investigated the immune/inflammatory responses of the mucosa of the upper airways of mild/moderate symptom COVID-19 patients two months after the SARS-CoV-2 infection in comparison to a control group composed of non-COVID-19 healthy individuals.

Evaluation of Oxidative-Stress Pathway and Recovery of Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss.

 Although the pathogenesis of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) has been discussed in the literature, many unclear points remain. Several authors have hypothesized that oxidative stress plays a role in the pathogenesis of noise-related hearing loss, as well as in drug- and aging-related hearing loss. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) may contribute to the pathogenesis of SSNHL in a similar way as in cases of ototoxicity, noise-induced hearing loss and presbyacusis.

In Nasal Mucosal Secretions, Distinct IFN and IgA Responses Are Found in Severe and Mild SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Likely as in other viral respiratory diseases, SARS-CoV-2 elicit a local immune response, which includes production and releasing of both cytokines and secretory immunoglobulin (SIgA). Therefore, in this study, we investigated the levels of specific-SIgA for SARS-CoV-2 and cytokines in the airways mucosa 37 patients who were suspected of COVID-19. According to the RT-PCR results, the patients were separated into three groups: negative for COVID-19 and other viruses (NEGS, = 5); negative for COVID-19 but positive for the presence of other viruses (OTHERS, = 5); and the positive for COVID-19 (COVID-19, = 27).

BMP-7, MMP-9, and TGF-β tissue remodeling proteins and their correlations with interleukins 6 and 10 in chronic rhinosinusitis.

Introduction: Chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyposis (CRSsNP) and Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP) present distinct tissue remodeling processes. The proteins involved in the process of tissue remodeling have their production and activity related to the inflammatory environment they are. This study aimed to evaluate the protein expression of BMP-7, MMP-9, TGF-β in chronic sinusitis with and without nasal polyposis and their relations with IL-6 and IL-10.