Veículo

• Home
• Veículos
• The Uncover Reality (Índia)

A group led by researchers at Butantan Institute and funded by FAPESP has completed the first sequencing of a Brazilian snake’s genome. The study is reported in an article published in the journal PNAS. It suggests that the nine genes that encode toxins produced by the jararaca pit viper Bothrops jararaca probably originated in genes that had different functions in the ancestral species. “In sequencing the snake’s genome, we identified markers that [...]

Magnetizing a material without applying an external magnetic field is proposed by researchers at São Paulo State University (UNESP), Brazil, in an article published in the journal Scientific Reports, where they detail the experimental approach used to achieve this goal. The study was part of the PhD research pursued by Lucas Squillante under the supervision of Mariano de Souza, a professor at UNESP’s Department of Physics in Rio Claro. Contributions were also made by Isys Mello, [...]

In Situ Terapia Celular, a startup based in Ribeirão Preto (state of São Paulo, Brazil), has developed a biodressing for smart treatment of wounds and burns. The project was supported by FAPESP’s Innovative Research in Small Business Program (PIPE). Outwardly resembling a contact lens, the biodressing is produced by a 3D bioprinter using stem cells and a hydrogel. It is more effective than currently available alternatives because it can be applied directly to human skin. [...]

Pure quantum systems can undergo phase transitions analogous to the classical phase transition between the liquid and gaseous states of water. At the quantum level, however, the particle spins in states that emerge from phase transitions display collective entangled behavior. This unexpected observation offers a new avenue for the production of materials with topological properties that are useful in spintronics applications and quantum computing. The discovery was made by an international [...]

In Brazil, researchers at the University of São Paulo’s Medical School (FM-USP) have discovered that SARS-CoV-2 infects and replicates in the salivary glands. Analysis of samples from three types of salivary gland obtained during a minimally invasive autopsy procedure performed on patients who died from complications of COVID-19 at Hospital das Clínicas, FM-USP’s hospital complex, showed that tissues specializing in producing and secreting saliva serve as reservoirs [...]

Besides common symptoms such as fever, cough and respiratory distress, some children have an atypical form of COVID-19 known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), characterized by persistent fever and inflammation of several organs, such as the heart and intestines, as well as the lungs to a lesser extent. Reports of MIS-C have been increasingly associated with severe cases and deaths in several countries including Brazil since the onset of the pandemic. Researchers [...]

An in vitro study conducted by a group of researchers at São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Araraquara, Brazil, shows how fungi and bacteria can activate genes associated with head and neck tumors, as the metabolism of biofilms (communities in which these microorganisms self-organize in a structured and coordinated manner) stimulate tumor cells by favoring the cell signaling pathways required for tumor development and resistance to treatment. The findings include entirely novel [...]

Protein intake is more important than protein source if the goal is to gain muscle strength and mass. This is the key finding of a study that compared the effects of strength training in volunteers with a vegan or omnivorous diet, both with protein content considered adequate. In the study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil, 38 healthy young adults, half of whom were vegans and half omnivores, were monitored for 12 weeks. In addition to [...]

An article published in Frontiers in Immunology suggests that sepsis can cause alterations in the functioning of defense cells that persist even after the patient is discharged from hospital. This cellular reprogramming creates a disorder the authors call post-sepsis syndrome, whose symptoms include frequent reinfections, cardiovascular alterations, cognitive disabilities, declining physical functions, and poor quality of life. The phenomenon explains why so many patients [...]