Thus, it is concluded that administration of intraperitoneal STAT can reduce inflammation and fibrosis in the heart of mice chronically infected with T. cruzi; however, there were no effects on the cardiac function two months after transplantation.

Background/ObjectivesHigh fat diet (HFD) is a major contributor to the development of obesity and cardiovascular diseases due to the induction of cardiac structural and hemodynamic abnormalities. We used a model of diabetic cardiomyopathy in C57Bl/6 mice fed with a HFD to investigate the effects of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), a cytokine known for its beneficial effects in the heart, on cardiac anatomical and functional abnormalities associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes.MethodsGroups of C57Bl/6 mice were fed with standard diet (n = 8) or HFD (n = 16). After 36 weeks, HFD animals were divided into a group treated with G-CSF + standard diet (n = 8) and a vehicle control group + standard diet (n = 8). Cardiac structure and function were assessed by electrocardiography, echocardiography and treadmill tests, in addition to the evaluation of body weight, fasting glicemia, insulin and glucose tolerance at different time points. Histological analyses were performed in the heart tissue.ResultsHFD consumption induced metabolic alterations characteristic of type 2 diabetes and obesity, as well as cardiac fibrosis and reduced exercise capacity. Upon returning to a standard diet, obese mice body weight returned to non-obese levels. G-CSF administration accelerated the reduction in of body weight in obese mice. Additionally, G-CSF treatment reduced insulin levels, diminished heart fibrosis, increased exercise capacity and reversed cardiac alterations, including bradycardia, elevated QRS amplitude, augmented P amplitude, increased septal wall thickness, left ventricular posterior thickening and cardiac output reduction.ConclusionOur results indicate that G-CSF administration caused beneficial effects on obesity-associated cardiac impairment.

Epilepsy is defined as a temporary and reversible alteration in the electrical activity of the brain, and seizures should not be caused by fever, drugs or metabolic disorders. The electroencephalogram (EEG) is the initial investigation of epilepsy, but the functional images by Magnetic Resonance (MRI) make it possible to indirectly measure brain activity, since they are sensitive to oxygenation, volume and blood flow in response to neuronal activity. The objective of this study was to evaluate magnetic resonance imaging in the investigation of epilepsy. His study is characterized as a systematized bibliographical review, where for data collection a bibliographical survey was carried out in the literature from the period of 2012 to 2016. For this, the databases were used: Google Academic, Scientific Electronic Library Online (Scielo) and Literature Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences (Lilacs) as well as traditional literature in the area. The study revealed that MRI is an important tool and superior to other diagnostic methods in the evaluation and follow-up of epilepsy. Because it is a non-invasive technique, it does not offer risks to the patient and the precision of the techniques by functional magnetic resonance.