Sea cucumber body wall contains several naturally occurring bioactive components that possess health-promoting properties. Isostichopus badionotus from Yucatan, Mexico is heavily fished, but little is known about its bioactive constituents. We previously established that I. badionotus meal had potent anti-inflammatory properties in vivo. We have now screened some of its constituents for anti-inflammatory activity in vitro. Glycosaminoglycan and soluble protein preparations reduced 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced inflammatory responses in HaCaT cells while an ethanol extract had a limited effect. The primary glycosaminoglycan (fucosylated chondroitin sulfate; FCS) was purified and tested for anti-inflammatory activity in vivo. FCS modulated the expression of critical genes, including NF-ĸB, TNFα, iNOS, and COX-2, and attenuated inflammation and tissue damage caused by TPA in a mouse ear inflammation model. It also mitigated colonic colitis caused in mice by dextran sodium sulfate. FCS from I. badionotus of the Yucatan Peninsula thus had strong anti-inflammatory properties in vivo.

Overfishing of sea cucumber Isostichopus badionotus from Yucatan has led to a major population decline. They are being captured as an alternative to traditional species despite a paucity of information about their health-promoting properties. The transcriptome of the body wall of wild and farmed I. badionotus has now been studied for the first time by an RNA-Seq approach. The functional profile of wild I. badionotus was comparable with data in the literature for other regularly captured species. In contrast, the metabolism of first generation farmed I. badionotus was impaired. This had multiple possible causes including a sub-optimal growth environment and impaired nutrient utilization. Several key metabolic pathways that are important in effective handling and accretion of nutrients and energy, or clearance of harmful cellular metabolites, were disrupted or dysregulated. For instance, collagen mRNAs were greatly reduced and deposition of collagen proteins impaired. Wild I. badionotus is, therefore, a suitable alternative to other widely used species but, at present, the potential of farmed I. badionotus is unclear. The environmental or nutritional factors responsible for their impaired function in culture remain unknown, but the present data gives useful pointers to the underlying problems associated with their aquaculture.

Introduction. Human papillomavirus infection is the most common sexually transmitted viral infection that might be prevented with knowledge and attitudes that promote safe sex. Males play a role in transmission as they are asymptomatic carriers of the virus, a situation that they ignore. The aim of the study is to determine association between knowledge and risk perception with subclinical infection. Methodology. A prospective, cross-sectional and analytical study was conducted, including 164 males between 18 and 45 years, self-selected to be included. A self-administered instrument was used to measure perception of risk and knowledge about human papillomavirus infection with ten items using the Likert scale, five for measure risk perception and five to knowledge. Molecular biology, to identify the virus in the genitals, was used. Results. The male's average age was 29 years, with an infection prevalence of 24 %, 68 % of the population studied had a high perception of risk for acquiring the infection; 30 % medium risk, and only 2 % had a low perception. Regarding knowledge, 88 % had a high level and 12 % medium level. No association between knowledge level (p=0.53299) and perception of infection risk (p=0.53299) was found. Conclusion. No association between knowledge and risk perception with asymptomatic papillomavirus infection was found.

Las G-cuádruples (G4s) son estructuras secundarias de ácidos nucleicos presentes en todos los reinos biológicos. En humanos, han sido identificadas principalmente en los telómeros y en los promotores de oncogenes. En virus, las G4s han sido evidenciadas en genomas de ADN y ARN, aunque su relevancia funcional en los procesos infectivos y de patogénesis permanece escasamente caracterizada. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue dar a conocer el estado del arte actual de las estructuras G4s en virus, abarcando su identificación, características estructurales, interactores (proteínas virales y celulares), y su implicación en la regulación del ciclo viral. La evidencia actual demuestra que las estructuras G4s están presentes en todos los grupos de la clasificación de Baltimore y participan en la regulación de procesos esenciales, como la replicación, transcripción y traducción de proteínas. Los hallazgos científicos posicionan a las G4s como prometedoras dianas moleculares con miras a ser consideradas como una opción innovadora y viable para fines terapéuticos.

Both plants and animals have developed a sophisticated two-tiered innate immune system. This involves an initial recognition of microbial patterns conserved on the cell surface (PAMP-triggered immunity) and a subsequent more specific intracellular recognition of pathogenic effectors or their activities (effector-triggered immunity). A common fundamental feature is the use of NLR-like intracellular receptors to detect insider threats. Both plant NLRs (receptors containing nucleotide-binding domains and leucine-rich repeats) and animal NLRs (NOD-like receptors) share a modular tripartite architecture, typically featuring a central nucleotide-binding domain (NBD/NOD) and C-terminal leucine-rich repeats (LRRs). The NBD/NOD is crucial for facilitating the exchange of ADP/ATP, acting as a molecular switch to promote oligomerization and activation of NLRs in both kingdoms. In this review, we summarize the similarities and differences between plant and animal molecular perception and immunity mechanisms. Additionally, we highlight the fact that some human pathogens can infect plants, and crucially, some plant pathogens are capable of causing disease in humans. This suggests conserved molecular strategies to invade and manipulate host cells belonging to different biological kingdoms, uncovering that plant and human pathology may benefit from future investigations in their respective fields.