Publications by authors named "Luis Duarte"

Purpose: This study focuses on the detection of human papillomavirus (HPV) in genital samples from heterosexual men, with or without HPV-like lesions, using molecular biology techniques for diagnosis and genotyping of the virus.

Method: A retrospective observational study was conducted with 294 male patients who visited a laboratory for molecular testing, with a presumptive clinical-epidemiological diagnosis of HPV infection, without prior HPV disease or vaccination. Samples were analyzed using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) techniques.

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Settleable atmospheric particulate matter (SePM) from metallurgical sources can introduce toxic elements into coastal ecosystems, affecting aquatic biota and human health. This study evaluated the effects of SePM exposure (0.01, 0.

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The Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event (ca. 183 million years ago) marks a global mass extinction coincident with dramatic changes in climate and ocean circulation, likely driven by large igneous province emplacement. Rapid carbon dioxide release may have induced global warming, widespread ocean deoxygenation, and ocean acidification.

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Concerns over fossil fuels are of increasing interest in biorefineries that utilize lignocellulosic residues. Besides sugars, inhibitors are formed during biomass pretreatment, including acetic acid (AI) and formic acid (FI), which can hinder microbial fermentation. The TG1 and Tuner strains of were subjected to various acid concentrations.

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Strong coupling between molecules and confined light modes of optical cavities to form polaritons can alter photochemistry, but the origin of this effect remains largely unknown. While theoretical models suggest a suppression of photochemistry due to the formation of new polaritonic potential energy surfaces, many of these models do not account for the energetic disorder among the molecules, which is unavoidable at ambient conditions. Here, we combine simulations and experiments to show that for an ultra-fast photochemical reaction such thermal disorder prevents the modification of the potential energy surface and that suppression is due to radiative decay of the lossy cavity modes.

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The impact of the polymeric matrix on the photophysical characteristics of monomeric dyes responsive to excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) was investigated through UV-Vis absorption as well as steady-state and time-resolved emission spectroscopies. For this purpose, two benzoxazole monomers (M1 and M2) with acryloyl groups at different positions in their molecular structures were employed to facilitate covalent bonding within a styrene chain. Our findings reveal significant variations in their excited-state properties due to the proximity of the acryloyl groups, which affects the energy barrier of the ESIPT reaction, the emission wavelength, and the balance between the normal and tautomeric forms.

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The microalgae and are valued for their nutrient-rich content, including lipids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). However, little is known about how storage and processing affect their lipid quality. This study aimed to assess the impact of domestic storage and cooking practices in dried biomass of and .

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The synthetic hormone 17α ethinyl estradiol (EE2) is a molecule widely used in female contraceptives and recognized as a contaminant of attention (Watch List) in the European Union due to its high consumption, endocrine effects and occurrence in aquatic environments. Its main source of introduction is domestic sewage where it can be associated with other contaminants such as microplastics (MPs). Due to their characteristics, they can combine with each other and exacerbate their isolated effects on biota.

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Objective: To investigate nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and hepatic fibrosis in biopsies of people with obesity who underwent bariatric surgery and examine the possible association of different variables with a diagnosis of NAFLD and NASH.

Materials And Methods: Epidemiological, clinical and laboratory data from 574 individuals with obesity of both genders seen by the same physician between 2003 and 2009 who had a liver biopsy during bariatric surgery were examined.

Results: Of the 437 patients included, 39.

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Facial aesthetic procedures have become increasingly popular and complex, making knowledge of facial anatomy crucial for achieving desired outcomes without complications. Some of the most common procedures include blepharoplasty, bichectomy, face-lifts, facial implants, thread lifting, and fillers. Blepharoplasty and bichectomy are surgical procedures that respectively aim to restore youthful contours to the periorbita and create a slimmer lower face by removing Bichat fat from the maxillofacial region.

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Propofol, a phenol derivative, is commonly employed as an intravenous anesthetic during clinical procedures, formulated as an oil/water emulsion due to its poor solubility in water. The stability limitations associated with emulsions have prompted research efforts towards developing aqueous formulations of propofol. In this work, we investigate the solubility enhancement of propofol in anionic and cationic surfactants.

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In this study, we present the synthesis of benzimidazo[1,2-a] quinoline-based heterocycles bearing organosulfur and organoselenium moieties through transition-metal-free cascade reactions involving a sequential intermolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution (SN). Both sulfur and selenium derivatives presented absorption maxima located around 355 nm related to spin and symmetry allowing electronic π-π* transitions, and fluorescence emission at the violet-blue region (~440 nm) with relatively large Stokes shift. The fluorescence quantum yields were slightly influenced by the chalcogen, with the sulfur derivatives presenting higher values than the selenium analogs.

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Some atmospheric pollutants may affect aquatic ecosystems after settling, generating contamination, bioaccumulation, and threats to aquatic species. Metallurgical processes result in the emission of settleable atmospheric particulate matter (SePM), including metals and metalloids, along with rare earth elements (REE) that are considered emerging contaminants. We report the 30-day exposure of brown mussels (Perna perna) to SePM collected in a metallurgical area of southeast Brazil close to estuarine ecosystems, followed by a 30-day clearance period, to evaluate the toxic potential of SePM to this model mollusk.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers studied active enhancer elements identified by open chromatin and H3K27 acetylation (H3K27ac), but the role of enhancers without H3K27ac remains unclear.
  • They discovered a new type of enhancer, called 'macro-Bound Enhancers,' marked by macroH2A variants, which seem to control enhancer activity even when H3K27ac isn't present.
  • In breast cancer, reactivating these macro-bound enhancers is linked to cancer growth, while a deficiency in macroH2A enhances stem cell activity in normal mammary cells, suggesting a complex role in cell identity and cancer development.
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Choanoflagellates are microeukaryotes that inhabit freshwater and marine environments and have long been regarded as the closest living relatives of Metazoa. Knowledge on the evolution of choanoflagellates is key for the understanding of the ancestry of animals, and although molecular clock evidence suggests the appearance of choanoflagellates by late Neoproterozoic, no specimens of choanoflagellates are known to occur in the fossil record. Here the first putative occurrence of choanoflagellates in sediments from the Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) is described by means of several cutting-edge petrographic techniques, and a discussion of its paleoenvironmental significance is performed.

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In the present study, the effect of 6-((4-fluorophenyl) selanyl)-9H-purine (FSP) was tested against memory impairment and sensitivity to nociception induced by intracerebroventricular injection of amyloid-beta peptide (Aβ) (25-35 fragment), 3 nmol/3 μl/per site in mice. Memory impairment was determined by the object recognition task (ORT) and nociception by the Von-Frey test (VFT). Aβ caused neuroinflammation with upregulation of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) (in hippocampus), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), and the proinflammatory cytokines interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in cerebral cortex and hippocampus.

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Herein, we report the synthesis and characterization of two Pt(II) coordination compounds, the new platinum(II)[,'-bis(salicylidene)-3,4-diaminobenzophenone)] ([Pt(sal-3,4-ben)]) and the already well-known platinum(II)[,'-bis(salicylidene)-o-phenylenediamine] ([Pt(salophen)]), along with their application as guests in a poly [9,9-dioctylfluorenyl-2,7-diyl] (PFO) conjugated polymer in all-solution processed single-layer white organic light-emitting diodes. Completely different performances were achieved: 2.2% and 15.

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Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal-dominant neurodegenerative disorder with no effective therapies. Mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT), the main HD proteinaceous hallmark, has been linked to reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation and mitochondrial dysfunction, among other pathological mechanisms. Importantly, Src-related kinases, c-Src and Fyn, are activated by ROS and regulate mitochondrial activity.

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This study investigated the effects of embryo reduction and transfer of Day 11 embryos, with or without subsequent reduction, on luteostasis in the mare. In Experiment 1, reduction of embryos at Days 10 (n = 15), 11 (n = 47), 12 (n = 36), 13 (n = 27), 14 (n = 5) and 16 (n = 2) of pregnancy resulted in luteostasis in 13%, 47%, 78%, 89%, 80% and 100% mares. Mares undergoing > 1 embryo reduction showed consistency in when luteostasis occurred.

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Large-scale release of isotopically light carbon is responsible for the carbon isotope excursion (CIE) of the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event during the Lower Jurassic. Proposed sources include methane hydrate dissociation, volcanogenic outgassing of carbon dioxide and/or thermogenic methane release from the Karoo-Ferrar magmatic province (southern Africa). Distinct small-scale shifts superimposed on the long-term CIE have been interpreted as rapid methane pulses linked to astronomically forced climate changes.

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Speeding up the phosphorescence channel in luminescent copper(I) complexes has been extremely challenging due to the copper atoms relatively low spin-orbit coupling constant compared to heavier metals such as iridium. Here, we report the synthesis and characterization of three mononuclear copper(I) complexes with diimines, triphenylphosphine, and iodide ligands to evaluate the effect of the copper-iodide (Cu-I) moiety into the phosphorescence decay pathway. Temperature-dependent photophysical studies revealed combined thermally activated delayed fluorescence and phosphorescence emission, with a phosphorescence decay rate of the order of 10 s.

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Introduction: Despite the growing evidence supporting the use of 2-[F-18]-fluor-2-desoxi-D-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography in cervical and ovarian malignant tumours, data on vulvar and vaginal cancer is sparse. Our aim was to assess the role of 2-[F-18]-fluor-2-desoxi-D-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography in patients with vulvar and vaginal cancer.

Material And Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on a cohort of 20 patients with biopsy-proven vulvar (n = 17) and vaginal (n = 3) cancer who performed 2-[F-18]-fluor-2-desoxi-D-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography, between January 2013 and April 2018.

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Background: Computed tomography (CT) accounts for 13% of all radiological examinations in the United States and 40-70% of the radiation that patients receive. Even with the advent of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), CT continues to be the gold standard for diagnosing bone fractures. There is uncertainty as to whether CT with a low radiation dose has a fracture detection rate similar to that of standard-dose CT.

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Article Synopsis
  • Exhausted olive pomace (EOP) is a significant agro-industrial waste that contains valuable phenolic compounds and mannitol, making its bioactive extraction a key step for its valorization.
  • A study utilized ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) to optimize conditions for extracting these compounds, determining the best results with 40% acetone, 8.6% solids, and 43 minutes of extraction time.
  • Additionally, a probe-type UAE method was tested to reduce extraction time, successfully achieving similar phenolic compound levels in just 12 minutes, which may lower costs in industrial applications.
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