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It has been observed that air pollution can affect newborn health due to the negative effects of pollutants on pregnancy development. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of maternal exposure to urban air pollution on head circumference (HC) at birth. Reduced head growth during pregnancy may be associated with neurocognitive deficits in childhood. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the association between maternal exposure to air pollution and HC at birth and to provide context with a systematic review to investigate this association. This was a prospective study of low-risk pregnant women living in São Paulo, Brazil. Exposure to pollutants, namely, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3), was measured during each trimester using passive personal samplers. We measured newborn HC until 24 h after birth. We used multiple linear regression models to evaluate the association between pollutants and HC while controlling for known determinants of pregnancy. To perform the systematic review, four different electronic databases were searched through November 2018: CENTRAL, EMBASE, LILACS, and MEDLINE. We selected longitudinal or transversal designs associating air pollution and HC at birth. Two reviewers evaluated the inclusion criteria and risk of bias and extracted data from the included papers. Thirteen studies were selected for the systematic review. We evaluated 391 patients, and we did not observe a significant association between air pollution and HC. Regarding the systematic review, 13 studies were selected for the systematic review, 8 studies showed an inverse association between maternal exposure to pollutants and HC, 4 showed no association, and one observed a direct association. In the city of São Paulo, maternal exposure to pollutants was not significantly associated with HC at birth. The systematic review suggested an inverse association between air pollution and HC at birth.

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Residual oil fly ash (ROFA) is a common pollutant in areas where oil is burned. This particulate matter (PM) with a broad distribution of particle diameters can be inhaled by human beings and putatively damage their respiratory system. Although some studies deal with cultured cells, animals, and even epidemiological issues, so far a comprehensive analysis of respiratory outcomes as a function of the time elapsed after exposure to a low dose of ROFA is wanted. Thus, we aimed to investigate the time course of mechanical, histological, and inflammatory lung changes, as well as neutrophils in the blood, in mice exposed to ROFA until 5 days after exposure. BALB/c mice (25 ± 5 g) were randomly divided into 7 groups and intranasally instilled with either 10 µL of sterile saline solution (0.9% NaCl, CTRL) or ROFA (0.2 µg in 10 µL of saline solution). Pulmonary mechanics, histology (normal and collapsed alveoli, mononuclear and polymorphonuclear cells, and ultrastructure), neutrophils (in blood and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid) were determined at 6 h in CTRL and at 6, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h after ROFA exposure. ROFA contained metal elements, especially iron, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and organochlorines. Lung resistive pressure augmented early (6 h) in the course of lung injury and other mechanical, histological and inflammatory parameters increased at 24 h, returning to control values at 120 h. Blood neutrophilia was present only at 24 and 48 h after exposure. Swelling of endothelial cells with adherent neutrophils was detected after ROFA instillation. No neutrophils were present in the lavage fluid. In conclusion, the exposure to ROFA, even in low doses, induced early changes in pulmonary mechanics, lung histology and accumulation of neutrophils in blood of mice that lasted for 4 days and disappeared spontaneously.

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BACKGROUND: Airway structural changes occur early in childhood asthma, but it is unknown whether the development of airway alterations in children is similar to that of adults. We compared inflammation and remodeling parameters in allergic sensitized infantile, juvenile, and adult mice. METHODS: Infantile mice (18D) were sensitized with three intraperitoneal injections (i.p.) of ovalbumin (OVA) at days 5 and 7 and challenged with OVA at days 14-16. The 18D1 group received an additional challenge at days 9-11. The juvenile mice (40D) received challenges at days 22-24 and 36-38. Adult mice (100D) were sensitized at days 60-62 and received three inhalations at days 77-79 and 96-98. Animals were submitted to whole body plethysmography. Airway eosinophils, CD3+ T-lymphocytes, IL-5+ cells, mucus content, collagen and reticular fibers density, and smooth muscle thickness were quantified. RESULTS: All sensitized animals presented with airway hyperresponsiveness, without differences in eosinophil cell density. The density of CD3+ T-cells was higher in the 100D and 18D1 groups than in the 18D and 40D groups. Infantile sensitized groups demonstrated increased interleukin-5 expression in the airways. Infantile mice demonstrated more mucus in the bronchiolar epithelium than the 40D and 100D mice. The 18D animals demonstrated less collagen than the 18D1 group. Juvenile and adult mice had increased airway smooth muscle thickness when compared to age-matched controls, but no differences were observed in the infantile groups. CONCLUSION: We have shown that infantile mice develop inflammatory and structural alterations in the airways that are partially different from those developed in older animals.

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Congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) is a rare pancreatic ß-cell disease of neonates, characterized by inappropriate insulin secretion with severe persistent hypoglycemia, with regard to which many questions remain to be answered, despite the important acquisition of its molecular mechanisms in the last decade. The aim of this study was to examine pancreatic histology, ß-cell proliferation (immunohistochemistry with double staining for Ki-67/insulin), and ß-cell adenosine triphosphate-sensitive potassium channels genes from 11 Brazilian patients with severe medically unresponsive CHI who underwent pancreatectomy. Pancreatic histology and ß-cell proliferation in CHI patients were compared to pancreatic samples from 19 age-matched controls. Ten cases were classified as diffuse form (D-CHI) and 1 as focal form (F-CHI). ß-cell nucleomegaly and abundant cytoplasm were absent in controls and were observed only in D-CHI patients. The Ki-67 labeling index (Ki-67-LI) was used to differentiate the adenomatous areas of the F-CHI case (10.15%) from the "loose cluster of islets" found in 2 D-CHI samples (2.29% and 2.43%) and 1 control (1.54%) sample. The Ki-67-LI was higher in the F-CHI adenomatous areas, but D-CHI patients also had significantly greater Ki-67-LI (mean value  =  2.41%) than age-matched controls (mean value  =  1.87%) (P  =  0.009). In this 1st genetic study of CHI patients in Brazil, no mutations or new polymorphisms were found in the 33-37 exons of the ABCC8 gene (SUR1) or in the entire exon of the KCNJ11 gene (Kir 6.2) in 4 of 4 patients evaluated. On the other hand, enhanced ß-cell proliferation seems to be a constant feature in CHI patients, both in diffuse and focal forms.

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OBJECTIVES: To analyze the presence and distribution of collagen fibers and versican in human vocal fold lamina propria of fetal larynges. STUDY DESIGN: Cross sectional analysis of cadaveric vocal folds of human fetuses. METHODS: Seven fetal larynges obtained from 28- to 36-week-old fetuses were analyzed with the Picrosirius-polarization method, immunohistochemistry, and image analysis. RESULTS: Collagen fibers within the lamina propria exhibited a monolaminar distribution pattern and spatial arrangement in "wicker basket." Versican distribution was larger in the superficial and intermediate layers when compared to the deep layer. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that collagen and versican distribution and arrangement within the lamina propria in the developing fetus are important for vocalization at birth.

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The current neuropathological staging models of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been developed within the last 20 years. Nevertheless, they were mostly tested on Caucasians of Northern European ancestry or on Asians. OBJECTIVE: To verify which of the accepted neuropathologic criteria best discriminates AD from normal aging in a well characterized Brazilian clinicopathological series. METHODS: A random sample consisting of 89 subjects belonging to the Brazilian Brain Bank of the Aging Brain Study were clinically and neuropathologically fully assessed using immunohistochemistry. Clinical and functional statuses were assessed by interviewing a reliable informant. The Clinical dementia rating scale (CDR) was compared to Braak and Braak stage, the consortium to establish a registry for Alzheimer's disease (CERAD) score and NIA-Reagan (National Institute of Aging - Reagan Institute) score. Subjects with a neuropathologic diagnosis other then AD were excluded (n=27). RESULTS: The CDR score distribution for the 62 selected subjects was as follows: CDR0=39, CDR0.5=9, CDR1=14. There were no differences regarding age, gender and education among the groups. CDR score correlated best with the CERAD score (r=0.5303; p<0.001) . Braak and Braak stage was significantly higher in subjects with higher CDR. Correlation of the NIA-Reagan criteria was partially disrupted because a large proportion of subjects did not fit any of its categories. CONCLUSIONS: In this series, CERAD criteria better correlated with the CDR groups. Consistent with earlier studies, some cognitively normal subjects have AD neuropathological diagnosis.

Os modelos de estadiamento neuropatológico da doença de Alzheimer (DA) têm sido desenvolvidos nos últimos 20 anos. Entretanto, têm sido quase exclusivamente testados em caucasianos de ascendência norte-européia ou em asiáticos. OBJETIVOS: verificar quais dos critérios neuropatológicos discrimina melhor entre a DA e o envelhecimento normal em uma casuística clinicopatológica brasileira bem caracterizada. MÉTODOS: uma amostra aleatória de 89 casos do Banco Brasileiro de Encéfalos do Estudo de Envelhecimento Cerebral foi submetida à avaliação neuropatológica completa com imunohistoquímica. As condições clínicas e funcionais foram avaliadas mediante entrevista com informante confiável. Os escores na Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) foram comparados com os escores dos estágios de Braak e Braak, do CERAD (Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease) e do consórcio NIA-Reagan (National Institute of Aging-Reagan Institute). Casos com diagnósticos neuropatológicos diferentes de DA foram excluídos (n=27). RESULTADOS: Os 62 casos foram classificados em: CDR0=39, CDR0,5=9, CDR1=14. Não havia diferenças quanto a idade, gênero e escolaridade entre os grupos. Os escores no CERAD correlacionaram-se melhor com os do CDR (r=0,5303; p<0,001). Os escores nos estágios de Braak e Braak foram significativamente mais elevados nos casos com CDR mais altos. A correlação do CDR com os escores dos critérios NIA-Reagan foi parcialmente rompida porque grande proporção de casos não se enquadrava em nenhuma das categorias diagnósticas destes critérios. CONCLUSÕES: Nesta casuística, os critérios do CERAD correlacionam-se melhor com os do CDR. Como observado por outros estudos, alguns casos de indivíduos cognitivamente normais, preencheram critérios neuropatológicos para o diagnóstico de DA.

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The authors report a case of a 40-year-old woman who developed claudication of the right limb 3 months after extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) owing to a pyelic calculus. Patient had no previous vascular disease. Arteriography revealed a 12-cm-long 80% stenosis of the right common, external, and internal iliac arteries; the rest of the arterial tree had no detectable pathology. Arterial complications related to ESWL have been reported before in patients with aortic aneurysms or very intense calcifications. To the authors' knowledge this is the first report of ESWL-induced injury in a patient without previous arterial pathology.

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Este estudo foi realizado com o objetivo de avaliar a influência do uso tópico da mitomicina C, a 0,4 mgml, 0,2 mgml e 0,8 mgml, no epitélio corneano, com investigaçäo feita em uma populaçäo de coelhas. A mitomicina C e a água destilada (controle) foram instiladas duas vezes ao dia, por 4 dias, em olhos com superfície córneo-conjuntival íntegra e em olhos com defeito epitelial corneano central, com diâmetro de 7,75 mm. O epitélio corneano, de ambos os olhos, foi avaliado com exame histopatológico, complementado por análise morfométrica. A análise realizada pelo método do point couting, sob microscopia de luz, avaliou nas regiöes límbica, intermediária e central do epitélio corneano, a área do epitélio/ o número de núcleos/ a relaçäo núcleo-citoplasma e a área da célula epitelial. Nos olhos com superfície ocular íntegra, ocorreram variaçöes dos parâmetros morfométricos avaliados, notadamente na regiäo límbica. Nos olhos com defeito epitelial, as alteraçöes morfométricas mostraram variaçöes caracterizadas por alteraçäo da área epitelial (aumento no limbo e diminuiçäo nas regiöes intermediária e central), hipertrofia da célula epitelial, reduçäo da relaçäo núcleo-citoplasma e diminuiçäo do número de núcleos

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Os autores analisam a resposta inflamatória e reparacional às inclusöes e suas conseqüências, quando inseridos nos tecidos moles de organismos vivos. A resposta tissular final às inclusöes tem sido atribuída à sua composiçäo química. No entanto, esta afirmaçäo näo persiste isoladamente. Os efeitos físicos produzidos pela superfície de contato das inclusöes com os tecidos receptores interferem profundamente na intensidade da resposta inflamatória e, como conseqüência, também no processo reparacional. E ainda, a medida destas respostas está diretamente relacionada à quantidade da superfície de contato da inclusäo com os tecidos receptores. Por essa razäo, a lâmina de poliamida causa menor resposta inflamatória que a mesma quantidade desse material sob a forma de lä. A forma das inclusöes, abrangendo a presença de arestas ou superfícies polidas, denota evidentes diferenças na resposta tissular. Mesmo näo considerando esses fatores como definitivos, se for feita a comparaçäo entre inclusöes com arestas mais agudas ou mais arredondadas, as primeiras causam maior inflamaçäo. Atualmente encontra-se bem estabelecido que o efeito físico possui maior representaçäo na resposta provocada no tecido receptor do que a composiçäo química das inclusöes

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