scorpio

Rickett s ial agents are a diverse group of alpha-proteobacteria within the order Rickettsiales, which possesses two families with human pathogens, Rickettsiaceae and Anaplasmataceae. These obligate intracellular bacteria are most frequently transmitted by arthropod vectors, a first step in the pathogens' avoidance of host cell defenses. Considerable study of the immune responses to infection and those that result in protective immunity have been conducted. Less study has focused on the initial events and mechanism by which these bacteria avoid the innate immune responses of the hosts to survive within and propagate from host cells...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an RNA virus that evolves over time, leading to new variants. In the current study, we assessed the genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in the Dominican Republic. A total of 1149 SARS-CoV-2 complete genome nucleotide sequences from samples collected between March 2020 and mid-February 2022 in the Dominican Republic were obtained from the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) database. Phylogenetic relationships and evolution rates were analyzed using the maximum likelihood method and the Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approach...

BACKGROUND: Annually, thousands of scorpion stings and rare mortalities are recorded in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. In the present study, we prepared a checklist for the geographical distribution of scorpion fauna composition, new localities data, and scorpion sting profile for the years 2019-2020 in the region. METHODS: Random field surveys for scorpion collection were carried out in 22 localities in the Kurdistan Region from June 2020 to October 2021. Clinical data related to scorpion stings in 2019 and 2020 were obtained from the medical records of public health offices in the region...

The province of Azilal is one of the most scorpion-infested areas in Morocco. The current study aims to investigate the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of scorpion envenomation in the Azilal province, as well as to contribute to the study of its scorpio-faunistic diversity. We examined clinical and epidemiological data from 5684 scorpion stings recorded between 2017 and 2021. Prospections on the ground were carried out in the study area. The species were identified using the taxonomic keys. Distribution maps of inventoried species have been created using SIG...

Marmosets' small body size makes anesthesia challenging. Ideally, small volumes of drugs should be administered intramuscularly (i.m.). In addition, dose-dependent sedation and anesthesia are desirable properties for sedatives and anesthetics in marmosets. Telazol® (tiletamine and zolazepam) is highly concentrated, allowing the use of small injection volumes and dose-dependent sedation and anesthesia. A randomized, blinded study with crossover design in ten healthy adult common marmosets ( Callithrix jacchus ) was performed to evaluate the anesthetic and cardiorespiratory effects of three doses of i...

In 2019, there were about 100,000 kidney transplants globally, with more than a quarter of them performed in the United States. Unfortunately, some engrafted organs are lost to polyomavirus-associated nephropathy (PyVAN) caused by BK and JC viruses (BKPyV and JCPyV). Both viruses cause brain disease and possibly bladder cancer in immunosuppressed individuals. Transplant patients are routinely monitored for BKPyV viremia, which is an accepted hallmark of nascent nephropathy. If viremia is detected, a reduction in immunosuppressive therapy is standard care, but the intervention comes with increased risk of immune rejection of the engrafted organ...

Phylogenetic gene trees recapitulate the evolutionary history of genes across species, forming an essential framework for comparative genomic studies. In particular, within the context of whole-genome duplications (WGDs), they serve as a basis to investigate patterns of duplicate gene retention and loss, timing of genome rediploidization, and, more generally, to explore the functional consequences of the duplication in descending species. Yet, despite ever more sophisticated models to describe the evolution of gene sequences, building accurate gene trees remains a challenge in ancient polyploid taxons...

The multiscale structure of biomaterials enables their exceptional mechanical robustness, yet the impact of each constituent at their relevant length scale remains elusive. We used SAXD analysis to expose the intact chitin-fiber architecture within the exoskeleton on a scorpion's claw, revealing varying orientations, including Bouligand and unidirectional regions different from other arthropod species. We uncovered the contribution of individual components' constituent behavior to its mechanical properties from the micro- to the nanoscale...

The first manifestation of a viral infection may be conjunctivitis. There are limited data on the etiology of viral conjunctivitis in Vanuatu, a country in the South Pacific Ocean. Patients presenting to one of two Vanuatu health centers with presumed infectious conjunctivitis were eligible if symptom onset was within 14 days of screening. Conjunctival and anterior nasal swabs were obtained and subjected to unbiased RNA deep sequencing (RNA-seq) to identify DNA and RNA viruses. For samples collected from May to November 2021, RNA-seq identified a viral etiology in 12/48 patients...

Hypoxic preconditioning is protective in multiple models of injury and disease, but whether it is beneficial for cells transplanted into sites of spinal cord injury (SCI) is largely unexplored. In this study, we analyzed whether hypoxia-related preconditioning protected Schwann cells (SCs) transplanted into the contused thoracic rat spinal cord. Hypoxic preconditioning was induced in SCs prior to transplantation by exposure to either low oxygen (1% O2 ) or pharmacological agents (deferoxamine or adaptaquin)...

Scorpion-venom-derived peptides have become a promising anticancer agent due to their cytotoxicity against tumor cells via multiple mechanisms. The suppressive effect of the cationic antimicrobial peptide Smp24, which is derived from the venom of Scorpio Maurus palmatus , on the proliferation of the hepatoma cell line HepG2 has been reported earlier. However, its mode of action against HepG2 hepatoma cells remains unclear. In the current research, Smp24 was discovered to suppress the viability of HepG2 cells while having a minor effect on normal LO2 cells...

BACKGROUND: Seasonal outbreaks of infectious conjunctivitis remain a public health issue. Determination of outbreak etiologies in the context of a worldwide pandemic may provide useful information to guide public health strategies. The aim of this study was to identify pathogens associated with outpatient infectious conjunctivitis during the COVID-19 Delta surge. METHODS: This prospective study was conducted from April 2021 to September 2021. All outpatients presenting to the Aravind Eye Center (Madurai, India) with signs and symptoms consistent with acute infectious conjunctivitis were eligible...

The venom is a mixture of various compounds with specific biological activities, such as the phospholipase   A 2 (PLA2 ) enzyme present in scorpion venom. PLA2 plays a key role in inhibiting ryanodine receptor channels and has neurotoxic activity. This study is the first investigation of molecular characterization, cloning, and in silico analyses of PLA2  from Iranian Scorpio maurus, named Maurolipin. After RNA extraction from S. maurus venom glands, cDNA was synthesized and amplified through RT-PCR using specific primers...

BACKGROUND: Viral conjunctivitis (pink eye) can be highly contagious and is of public health importance. There remains significant debate whether SARS-CoV-2 can present as a primary conjunctivitis. The aim of this study was to identify pathogens associated with outpatient infectious conjunctivitis during the COVID-19 Delta surge. METHODS: This prospective study was conducted in the spring and summer months of 2021. 106 patients with acute conjunctivitis who presented to the Aravind Eye Center in Madurai, India were included...

During infection, Bacillus anthracis bacilli encounter potent antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) such as defensins. We examined the role that B. anthracis capsule plays in protecting bacilli from defensins and other cationic AMPs by comparing their effects on a fully virulent encapsulated wild type (WT) strain and an isogenic capsule-deficient capA mutant strain. We identified several human defensins and non-human AMPs that were capable of killing B. anthracis. The human alpha defensins 1-6 (HNP-1-4, HD-5-6), the human beta defensins 1-4 (HBD-1-4), and the non-human AMPs, protegrin, gramicidin D, polymyxin B, nisin, and melittin were all capable of killing both encapsulated WT and non-encapsulated capA mutant B...

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Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the leading cause of death in lung cancer due to its aggressiveness and rapid migration. The potent antitumor effect of Smp24, an antimicrobial peptide derived from Egyptian scorpion Scorpio maurus palmatus via damaging the membrane and cytoskeleton have been reported earlier. However, its effects on mitochondrial functions and ROS accumulation in human lung cancer cells remain unknown. In the current study, we discovered that Smp24 can interact with the cell membrane and be internalized into A549 cells via endocytosis, followed by targeting mitochondria and affect mitochondrial function, which significantly causes ROS overproduction, altering mitochondrial membrane potential and the expression of cell cycle distribution-related proteins, mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, MAPK, as well as PI3K/Akt/mTOR/FAK signaling pathways...

Posterior-stabilized total knee prostheses have been widely used in orthopedic clinical treatment of knee osteoarthritis, but the patients and surgeons are still troubled by the complications, for example severe wear and fracture of the post, as well as prosthetic loosening. Understanding the in vivo biomechanics of knee prostheses will aid in the decrease of postoperative prosthetic revision and patient dissatisfaction. Therefore, six different designs of posterior-stabilized total knee prostheses were used to establish the musculoskeletal multibody dynamics models of total knee arthroplasty respectively, and the biomechanical differences of six posterior-stabilized total knee prostheses were investigated under three simulated physiological activities: walking, right turn and squatting...

Cebrenus Rechenburgi, a member of the huntsman spider family have inspired researchers to adopt different locomotion modes in reconfigurable robotic development. Object-of-interest perception is crucial for such a robot to provide fundamental information on the traversed pathways and guide its locomotion mode transformation. Therefore, we present a object-of-interest perception in a reconfigurable rolling-crawling robot and identifying appropriate locomotion modes. We demonstrate it in Scorpio, our in-house developed robot with two locomotion modes: rolling and crawling...

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are naturally occurring compounds which possess a rapid killing mechanism and low resistance potential. Consequently, they are being viewed as potential alternatives to traditional antibiotics. One of the major factors limiting further development of AMPs is off-target toxicity. Enhancements to antimicrobial peptides which can maximise antimicrobial activity whilst reducing mammalian cytotoxicity would make these peptides more attractive as future pharmaceuticals. We have previously characterised Smp24, an AMP derived from the venom of the scorpion Scorpio maurus palmatus ...