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Researchers in Brazil and Belgium have developed a molecule of pharmaceutical interest from collinein-1, a protein found in rattlesnake venom. They used a technique called PEGylation to make the molecule, now called PEG-rCollinein-1, more stable in the organism and resistant to the immune system, obtaining a drug candidate to modulate blood clotting. An article reporting the results of the research has recently been published in the International Journal of Biological [...]

In COVID-19 patients, obesity is the factor most associated with the development of endothelial dysfunction, a condition in which the blood vessels become unable to contract and relax adequately, increasing the risk of events such as heart attacks, thrombosis (blood clotting), and stroke. Endothelium refers to the thin sheet of cells lining the walls of arteries and veins, as well as the inside of the heart. Endothelial cells release substances that control vascular relaxation and contraction, [...]

Torquetenovirus (TTV) is one of the viruses most frequently found in the human organism. It is also common in monkeys and domestic animals. Its presence has not been associated with any known disease, but its excessive replication is a sign that something is wrong with the immune system. The correlation between high TTV load and immunosuppression has been used in medicine in certain contexts, such as monitoring transplant patients who take medication to prevent rejection of the transplanted [...]

A water-borne fungus that has led to the extinction of several species of amphibians that spend all or part of their life cycle in water is also threatening terrestrial amphibians. In Brazil, researchers supported by FAPESP detected unprecedented mortality among a genus of tiny frogs known as pumpkin toadlets that live in the Atlantic Rainforest far from any aquatic environments. The animals were severely infected by chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis), which causes [...]

A Brazilian study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment shows how wildfires and forest burning for agriculture influence rain cloud formation in the Amazon. According to the authors, aerosols (tiny solid particles and liquid droplets emitted into the atmosphere by fire) hinder the freezing of cloud droplets when the atmosphere is humidified, but can also promote freezing when the atmosphere is dry. This alters the natural functioning of clouds and their typical height, [...]

In 2019, history student Rodrigo Gomes found out on social media about a call for volunteers to take part in a scientific project relating to the ocean and conducted by the Federal University of São Paulo’s Institute of Marine Sciences (IMAR-UNIFESP) in Santos, on the coast of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. He signed up for the project, took workshops, and trained in the field. “I was very fortunate to have all that contact with professors and learned a great deal [...]

Climate change was the main cause of the extremely heavy rainfall that led to severe flooding, deaths and massive damage in cities across Minas Gerais state, Southeast Brazil, in January 2020, according to a study published in the journal Climate Resilience and Sustainability. Using climate modeling for the region, the study shows that the effects of industrialization and global warming increased the probability of far higher volumes of rain than expected by 70% compared to scenarios with [...]

The Roman Empire was ruled by 175 men, from Augustus (63 BCE-19 CE) to Constantine XI (1405-53), including the Eastern or Byzantine Empire after the split in 395 CE, but excluding those who did not rule in their own right because they were minors during regencies or co-emperors. Only 24.8% of the 69 rulers of the Western Empire died of natural causes. The rest died a violent death on the battlefield or in palace plots. Considering all 175, 30% were murdered, committed suicide or died in [...]

Analysis of data collected over 20 years suggests the decline is due to the construction of over 180 dams on the Paraná basin and its tributaries. Research conducted in Brazil for more than 20 years in the Paraná River basin shows a drastic fall in the number of aquatic insects in the region, which is considered well-preserved and distant from the negative impacts of agriculture, cattle breeding, and urbanization. The fieldwork was done by researchers affiliated with the State [...]