Sepsis can trigger acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), which can lead to a series of physiological changes, modifying the effectiveness of therapy and culminating in death. For all experiments, male Wistar rats (200–250 g) were split into the following groups: control and sepsis-induced by endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS); the control group received only intraperitoneal saline or saline + CEF while the treated groups received ceftriaxone (CEF) (100 mg/kg) IP; previously or not with sepsis induction by LPS (1 mg/kg) IP. We evaluated respiratory mechanics, and alveolar bronchial lavage was collected for nitrite and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) quantification and cell evaluation. For pharmacokinetic evaluation, two groups received ceftriaxone, one already exposed to LPS. Respiratory mechanics shows a decrease in total airway resistance, dissipation of viscous energy, and elastance of lung tissues in all sepsis-induced groups compared to the control group. VEGF and NOx values were higher in sepsis animals compared to the control group, and ceftriaxone was able to reduce both parameters. The pharmacokinetic parameters for ceftriaxone, such as bioavailability, absorption, and terminal half-life, were smaller in the sepsis-induced group than in the control group since clearance was higher in septic animals. Despite the pharmacokinetic changes, ceftriaxone showed a reduction in resistance in the airways. In addition, CEF lowers nitrite levels in the lungs and acts on their adverse effects, reflecting pharmacological therapy of the disease.

Obesity induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) is a growing global health concern, often linked to numerous metabolic and respiratory disorders. This study investigates the impact of a maternal HFD on the respiratory physiology of adult offspring, emphasizing the potential for fetal programming to exacerbate airway responsiveness. Adult male offspring from dams fed a HFD or a control diet during gestation were submitted to ventilatory mechanical analysis following bronchoconstrictor and bronchodilator challenge. Offspring from the HFD group demonstrated increased body weight, elevated blood glucose levels, heightened airway responsiveness to methacholine-induced bronchoconstriction, and impaired bronchodilator efficacy compared to controls. These findings underscore the potential long-term impact of maternal nutrition on offspring respiratory health. The study also highlights the necessity of identifying critical therapeutic targets for managing respiratory dysfunction in populations exposed to maternal obesity, intending to improve treatment outcomes and prevent related respiratory complications.

This study evaluates the BioQueer guidebook, an educational intervention developed to improve undergraduate understanding of differences of sex development (DSD) and sex and gender concepts. With a one-group pretest-posttest design with ordinal analysis [cumulative link model (CLM)], results showed consistent increases in participant scores. Despite design limitations, findings support the guidebook’s clarity and pedagogical potential. This exploratory study informs future research, including a planned randomized controlled trial to assess causal effects in physiology education.

This report describes the creation of instructional materials, cordel literature, and comic strips, focused on airway reflexes, a topic of high clinical and physiological relevance. The materials address six key airway reflexes through poetic and visual narratives. Although not yet applied in classroom settings, they were designed to promote scientific understanding, accessibility, and cultural resonance, offering a supplementary tool for engaging students with complex physiological content.

Este estudo analisa o projeto BioQueer como uma estratégia de educação científica crítica no contexto do ensino superior, articulando ações de divulgação científica digital e atividades formativas presenciais voltadas à problematização das Diferenças do Desenvolvimento do Sexo (DDS), do sexo biológico e do gênero. Trata-se de um estudo de caso de natureza qualitativa e descritiva, com apoio de dados quantitativos descritivos, fundamentado na análise das métricas do perfil @bioqueer na plataforma Instagram, na sistematização dos conteúdos produzidos e na descrição das ações presenciais desenvolvidas no âmbito do projeto. Os resultados indicam amplo alcance dos conteúdos digitais, com predominância de visualizações por usuários não seguidores, evidenciando o potencial de circulação do conhecimento científico para além da comunidade acadêmica. Observou-se que os vídeos curtos se configuraram como a principal estratégia de engajamento, enquanto os materiais educativos impressos e digitais, aliados às ações presenciais, favoreceram o aprofundamento conceitual, a continuidade do vínculo com o público e a reflexão crítica sobre os conteúdos abordados. Conclui-se que a integração entre mídias digitais, materiais pedagógicos e práticas extensionistas potencializa a divulgação científica como prática pedagógica crítica, contribuindo para a formação cidadã, para a problematização de discursos biologizantes e normativos e para a democratização do conhecimento científico no ensino superior latino-americano.