BackgroundPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is known by its aggressiveness and lack of effective therapeutic options. Thus, improvement in current knowledge of molecular changes associated with pancreatic cancer is urgently needed to explore novel venues of diagnostics and treatment of this dismal disease. While there is mounting evidence that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) transcribed from intronic and intergenic regions of the human genome may play different roles in the regulation of gene expression in normal and cancer cells, their expression pattern and biological relevance in pancreatic cancer is currently unknown. In the present work we investigated the relative abundance of a collection of lncRNAs in patients' pancreatic tissue samples aiming at identifying gene expression profiles correlated to pancreatic cancer and metastasis.MethodsCustom 3,355-element spotted cDNA microarray interrogating protein-coding genes and putative lncRNA were used to obtain expression profiles from 38 clinical samples of tumor and non-tumor pancreatic tissues. Bioinformatics analyses were performed to characterize structure and conservation of lncRNAs expressed in pancreatic tissues, as well as to identify expression signatures correlated to tissue histology. Strand-specific reverse transcription followed by PCR and qRT-PCR were employed to determine strandedness of lncRNAs and to validate microarray results, respectively.ResultsWe show that subsets of intronic/intergenic lncRNAs are expressed across tumor and non-tumor pancreatic tissue samples. Enrichment of promoter-associated chromatin marks and over-representation of conserved DNA elements and stable secondary structure predictions suggest that these transcripts are generated from independent transcriptional units and that at least a fraction is under evolutionary selection, and thus potentially functional.Statistically significant expression signatures comprising protein-coding mRNAs and lncRNAs that correlate to PDAC or to pancreatic cancer metastasis were identified. Interestingly, loci harboring intronic lncRNAs differentially expressed in PDAC metastases were enriched in genes associated to the MAPK pathway. Orientation-specific RT-PCR documented that intronic transcripts are expressed in sense, antisense or both orientations relative to protein-coding mRNAs. Differential expression of a subset of intronic lncRNAs (PPP3CB, MAP3K14 and DAPK1 loci) in metastatic samples was confirmed by Real-Time PCR.ConclusionOur findings reveal sets of intronic lncRNAs expressed in pancreatic tissues whose abundance is correlated to PDAC or metastasis, thus pointing to the potential relevance of this class of transcripts in biological processes related to malignant transformation and metastasis in pancreatic cancer.

RESUMENObjetivo: Analizar la oferta de acciones en los servicios de salud que prestan asistencia a las personas que viven con SIDA en el seguimiento de los servicios especializados del municipio de Ribeirão Preto-SP. Método: Estudo descriptivo, exploratorio, del tipo encuesta. Se llevaron a cabo entrevistas con cuestionario estructurado y análisis de datos por medio de estadísticas descriptivas. Resultados: La oferta de acciones y servicios de salud se la ve como regular. Para los 301 sujetos, la atención de rutina por el equipo de referencia; exáme-nes de laboratorio y facilitación de antirretrovirales, vacunas y preservativos obtuvieron evaluación satisfactoria. Evaluadas como regular la oferta de exámenes para la prevención y el diagnóstico de comorbilidades, e insatisfactoria la oferta de atención especializada por otros profesionales; de grupos de apoyo psicosocial y fármacos preventivos de efecto colateral de los antirretrovirales. Conclusión: Debilidades permean el seguimiento y la gestión del cuidado, con predominio del enfoque biologicista, centrado en el médico, en el que el control clínico y el acceso a la Terapia Antirretroviral se constituyen como el enfoque esencial de la asistencia prestada. DESCRIPTORES ABSTRACTObjective: To analyse the provision of health care actions and services for people living with AIDS and receiving specialised care in Ribeirão Preto, SP. Method: A descriptive, exploratory, survey-type study that consisted of interviews with structured questionnaires and data analysis using descriptive statistics. Results: The provision of health care actions and services is perceived as fair. For the 301 subjects, routine care provided by the reference team, laboratory tests and the availability of antiretroviral drugs, vaccines and condoms obtained satisfactory evaluations. The provision of tests for the prevention and diagnosis of comorbidities was assessed as fair, whereas the provisions of specialised care by other professionals, psychosocial support groups and medicines for the prevention of antiretroviral side effects were assessed as unsatisfactory. Conclusion: Shortcomings were observed in follow-up and care management along with a predominantly biological, doctor-centred focus in which clinical control and access to antiretroviral therapy comprise the essential focus of the care provided.

The objective of this article is to identify and describe the illness experiences of people living with communicable chronic conditions. An integrative literature review was carried out in May 2015 in the PubMed, the Literature in the Health Sciences in Latin America and the Caribbean (LILACS) and in the Scopus databases. Through the intersection of keywords and controlled descriptors, eight search strategies were conducted and resulted in the final selection of 12 articles, which were catalogued into two theme categories, in order to group matching themes: (1) experiences with communicable chronic conditions; (2) coping strategies for communicable chronicle diseases. Stigma was identified as the most impacting experience in subjects' lives, which reverberated negatives feelings. In spite of their illness, subjects adopted healthy lifestyle habits and found support on religiosity/spirituality and on the dimensionality of time as a way to live harmoniously with diseases. We also noticed that the support network (family, health services) plays a key role in the process of living with communicable chronicle diseases. Since the diagnostic, the subjects experience negative feelings and sensations not only because of the fragileness that the disease imposes on their body but also because of the maintenance of the condition, which make them more vulnerable to discrimination, prejudice and stigma. It becomes necessary to strengthen the support network around the subject, in order to encourage improvements in the quality of life of people living with communicable diseases. Resumo O objetivo deste artigo é identificar e descrever as experiências de adoecimento de pessoas que vivem com condições crônicas transmissíveis. Revisão integrativa da literatura foi realizada em maio de 2015 nas bases de dados PubMed, Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde (Lilacs) e Scopus. A partir do cruzamento de palavras-chave e de descritores controlados, foram adotadas oito estratégias de busca, que resultaram na seleção final de 12 artigos. Realizou-se fichamento dos artigos, sendo elaboradas duas categorias temáticas, tendo em vista o agrupamento de temas coincidentes: (1) experiências com as condições crônicas transmissíveis; e (2) estratégias de enfrentamento das condições crônicas transmissíveis. Identificou-se o estigma como sendo a experiência de maior impacto na vida dos sujeitos, o qual reverberou em sentimentos negativos. Apesar disso, os sujeitos adoecidos adotaram hábitos de vida saudáveis, bem como apoiaram-se na religiosidade/ espiritualidade e no dimensionamento do tempo como forma de harmonizar sua convivência com as doenças. Observou-se, ainda, que a rede de apoio (família, serviços de saúde) tem papel fundamental na vivência das condições crônicas transmissíveis. Os sujeitos experimentam sensações e sentimentos negativos desde o diagnóstico, seja pela fragilidade que a doença impõe ao seu organismo, seja pela manutenção da condição que os torna mais vulneráveis à discriminação, ao preconceito e...

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Despite technological and therapeutic advances in the HIV/ADS management unfavorable outcomes of the disease, as the case of hospitalization, remains a challenge to public health. In this sense, this study aimed to analyze hospital admissions due to AIDS in 2013 occurred in a large hospital in a city of São Paulo. This is a descriptive, exploratory study, type survey, quantitative. Were included individuals aged over 18 years, hospitalized in the period of January-December/2013 whose main or secondary causes of hospitalization were related to HIV/AIDS, considering the following codes according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD 10) the B20.0 to B24, Z20, Z20.6, Z21 and R75. A specific form was elaborated for data collection, whose secondary sources of information were used: System Hospitalization, clinical record, System for Notifiable Diseases, HygiaWeb, Logistics Management System of Medicines. Data were analyzed using exploratory techniques, including proportions, measures of central tendency and variability. Were identified 259 hospitalizations related to 179 people living with AIDS, with readmissions in the period (42.5%). The profile of the individuals is constituted by men (62.1%); aged between 40 and 50 years (38%); white color skin (62.1%); single (50.8%); low education (40.2%); some source of income (36.3%); history of alcohol use (49.2%), tobacco (63.1%) and other illicit drugs (46.3%) and poor adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) (49.7%). The average length of hospitalization was 14.1 days (SD ± 12.6) and the predominant outcome was medical discharge (83.4%. In most cases there was any clinical signs at admission (55.2%) as well as the presence of opportunistic infections (71.8%) and chronic conditions associated (55.2%). of hospitalized persons, the majority had low CD4+ T cell count (83.8%) and detectable viral load (71 %). As for healthcare background, 49.7% of subjects had a history of treatment in specialized care services on HIV/AIDS (SHS) of the municipal public network. Considering the 12 months prior to admission, 35.8% the subjects passed in at least one visit in the municipal SHS; 46.9% never used primary care services; 64.8% used emergency care; 67.6% have carried out any withdrawal of antiretroviral therapy and 29% had 80% or more of possible withdrawn from ART. Despite the improvement of diagnostic tests and the availability of HAART on a large scale, hospitalization for HIV/AIDS remains relation to disadvantaged minority groups, which have the immune status worsened due to the viral action in the body, suggesting disparities that pervade the access to early diagnosis, timely treatment and prophylaxis of opportunistic infections. There is an urgent need for intra and inter-sectoral actions aimed at targeting vulnerable individuals to overcome barriers assistance so that the benefits of ART are available to all people living with the disease.