This study aimed to summarize the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 from Western Mexico people during 2020. A retrospective analysis from an electronic database of people visiting a sentinel center for molecular SARS-CoV-2 confirmatory diagnosis by RT-PCR from April to December 2020 was carried out for epidemiological and clinical description of COVID-19. Out of 23,211 patients evaluated, 6918 (29.8%) were confirmed for SARS-CoV-2 infection (mean age 38.5 ± 13.99), mostly females (53.8%). Comorbidities, such as diabetes (34.7%), obesity (31.15%), and hypertension (31.8%), presented an increased odds OR = 1.27, CI = 1.14–1.41; OR = 1.08, CI = 1.01–1.16; and OR = 1.09, CI = 0.99–1.19, respectively, for viral-infection. Moreover, fever, headache, and dry cough were the most frequent symptoms. No infection difference among sex was found. Those patients >60 years old were prone to COVID-19 severity (OR = 3.59, CI = 2.10–6.14), evaluated by the number of manifested symptoms, increasing with age. In conclusion, a high SARS-CoV-2 prevalence was found in Western Mexico. Comorbidities were frequent in infected people; nevertheless, no association with disease outcomes was observed, in contrast with the highest disease severity risk found in older patients; however, continuous monitoring should be carried since comorbidities have been reported as aggravating factors. This study can help the health officials for the elaboration of planning efforts of the disease management and others in the future.

Corneal chemical burns (CCBs) frequently result in corneal fibrosis or haze, an opacity of the cornea that obstructs vision and induces corneal blindness. Diverse strategies have been employed to prevent or reduce CCB-related corneal haze. In this study, we evaluated the physicochemical characteristics and biologic effects of a topical pirfenidone (PFD)-loaded liposomal formulation (PL) on a corneal alkali burn mice model. We found that PL was appropriate for ocular application due to its physiologic tear pH, osmolarity and viscosity suitable for topical ophthalmic use. Regarding its therapeutic activity, PL-treated mice had significantly reduced haze size and density, corneal edema, corneal thickness, and corneal inflammatory infiltration, in contrast to PFD in aqueous solution (p < 0.01). Importantly, the antifibrotic activity of PL (reduction of corneal haze) was associated with modulation of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β and Interleukin (IL)-1β genes. PL suppressed TGF-β expression and restored normal IL-1β expression in corneal tissue more efficiently in contrast to PFD in aqueous solution. In conclusion, PFD showed essential anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic effects in the treatment of alkali burns. Noteworthy, a new formulation of PFD-loaded liposomes remarkably improved these effects, standing out as a promising treatment for corneal haze.

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Introducción: Diversas citocinas proinflamatorias y factores de crecimiento han sido relacionados con la patogenia de pterigión (Pt); sin embargo, el efecto de las citocinas producidas por los linfocitos T cooperadores (Th) ha sido pobremente estudiado. Hasta la fecha, sólo la interleucina (IL) 4 de los linfocitos Th se ha relacionado con la recurrencia del Pt. Por lo tanto, este estudio se llevó a cabo para evaluar la expresión de las citocinas Th y los factores de transcripción Th en Pt primario. Métodos: Se obtuvieron biopsias de Pt de 28 ojos de 28 pacientes mexicanos sometidos a escisión primaria de Pt con autoinjerto conjuntival. Se utilizaron biopsias conjuntivales de 8 pacientes sometidos a cirugía de cataratas como grupo de control. Se analizó la expresión génica de las citocinas Th, interferón γ (IFN-γ), IL-13, IL-17, IL-10, así como de los factores de transcripción Th; T-bet, GATA3, Foxp3 y RORγt, mediante retrotranscripción-reacción en cadena de la polimerasa (RT-PCR) en tiempo real. resultados: La expresión de los marcadores T-bet, GATA3, RORγt, IFN-γ, IL-13 e IL-10 se encontró disminuida en Pt. La expresión de IL-17 y Foxp3 se encontró aumentada hasta seis veces en Pt en comparación con la conjuntiva sana (p < 0.0001), siendo este incremento dependiente del tamaño del Pt. Conclusiones: El aumento

introduction:The wet form of age-related macular degeneration (WAMD) is related to the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the VEGF gene are associated with different expression patterns of this cytokine (functional polymorphisms). In this study, we considered 4 SNPs that are located in the promoter region (rs699947 A/C, rs833061 C/T, rs1005230 C/T and rs1570360 A/G) and two in the 5' untranslated region (rs2010963 C/G and rs25648 C/T) that have an effect on transcriptional regulation. Objective: To associate functional SNPs with WAMD in a Mexican population. Methods: Through allelic discrimination assays, consisting in polymerase chain reactions (PCR) with Taqman® probes, the polymorphisms were genotyped. Genotype frequencies were compared using all inheritance models. results: SNPs were genotyped in 105 patients diagnosed with WAMD (61 women and 44 men, mean age 74.28 ± 8.32 years), and in 102 healthy control subjects (61 women and 41 men, mean age 67.41 ± 5.78 years). Genotypes in both groups were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. In all SNPs analyzed, the minor allele frequency was statistically significant different between the groups. Genotypes were not statistically significant different between the WAMD and the control groups (p > 0.05). conclusion: No association was observed between the studied SNPs and the presence of WAMD in the analyzed Mexican population. We consider that further analysis in larger samples is necessary to confirm these findings.