Javier Ventura-Juarez

Universidad autónoma de aguascalienres · Morphology

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a progressive disease with a high mortality rate and a worldwide prevalence of 13.4%, triggered by various diseases with high incidence. The aim of the present study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effect of pioglitazone on kidney in an adenine-induced Wistar rats and the mechanisms possibly...

In chronic liver injury, quiescent hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) transdifferentiate into activated myofibroblast-like cells and produce large amounts of extracellular matrix components, e.g. collagen type 1. Cellular senescence is characterized by irreversible cell-cycle arrest, arrested cell proliferation and the acquisition of the senescence-asso...

Neuroimmune regulation of inflammation is only beginning to be explored in depth. In the case of amebiasis, the inflammatory process prompted by E. histolytica has been well characterized, but the modulation of this process by neurotransmitters is not as well defined. Regarding the inflammatory process, it is known that neutrophils and macrophages...

El propósito de este libro es recordar que en el mundo de la medicina hay un constante surgimiento de enfermedades, algunas de ellas con una cronicidad de miles de años que, al no poderse erradicar de la humanidad, tienden a ser olvidadas y pasan a formar un grupo que los científicos actuales clasifican como “enfermedades tropicales olvidadas” (neg...

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by renal parenchymal damage leading to a reduction in the glomerular filtration rate. The inflammatory response plays a pivotal role in the tissue damage contributing to renal failure. Current therapeutic options encompass dietary control, mineral salt regulation, and management of blood pressure, blood...

The present study aimed to analyze the antioxidant and hepatoprotective efficacy of watercress extract against liver fibrosis induced by CCl4 (0.8 mL/kg, i.p) in an in vivo rat model. Four groups were included, each with five animals (n = 5): 1) Intact, 2) CCl4-induced for 4 weeks, 3) CCl4-induced for 8 weeks, and 4) CCl4-induced for 4 weeks follow...

Entamoeba histolytica (E. histolytica) is a protozoan responsible for intestinal amebiasis in at least 500 million people per year, although only 10% of those infected show severe symptoms. It is known that E. histolytica captures molecules released during the host immune response through membrane receptors that favor its pathogenetic mechanisms fo...

Acanthamoeba griffini is known to cause amoebic keratitis (AK); its main causes are inadequate hygiene when contact lenses are handled and/or its prolonged use at night, as well as the use of contact lenses during underwater activities. The most used treatment for AK is the combination of propamidine isethionate combined with polyhexamethylene bigu...

Glaucoma is the main cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. In short, it is a multifactorial progressive optic neuropathy that correlates with retinal ganglion cell death, optic nerve head disturbances, and visual field disorders. Leuprolide acetate have recently been reported to have neurotrophic properties, the aim of this work was to determi...

Arginine vasopressin (AVP) is a naturally occurring hormone synthesized in the hypothalamus. AVP demonstrates pro-fibrotic effects as it stimulates hepatic stellate cells to secrete transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and collagen. Previous work in liver cirrhotic (CCL4 -induced) hamsters demonstrated that AVP deficiency induced by neurointermedia...

Introduction: Collagenase II has been used to induce experimental keratoconus in animal models. However, its effect when administered by intrastromal injection has not been studied, so the purpose of this study was to study the effects of intrastromal injection of collagenase II on corneal surface and corneal morphology. Methods: Six New Zealand...

The sympathetic nervous system and the immune system are responsible for producing neurotransmitters and cytokines that interact by binding to receptors; due to this, there is communication between these systems. Liver immune cells and nerve fibres are systematically distributed in the liver, and the partial overlap of both patterns may favour inte...

Citation: Villa-Jaimes, G.S.; Moshage, H.; Avelar-González, F.J.; González-Ponce, H.A.; Buist-Homan, M.; Guevara-Lara, F.; Sánchez-Alemán, E.; Martínez-Hernández, S.L.; Ventura-Juárez, J.; Muñoz-Ortega, M.H.; et al. Molecular and Antioxidant Characterization of Opuntia robusta Fruit Extract and Its Protective Effect against Diclofenac-Induced Acute...

Introduction and Objectives The liver is one of the most important organs in the organism due to its multifunctionality. For this reason, any damage affecting this organ can promote a systemic imbalance, starting from the formation of hepatic fibrosis to encephalopathy due to the increase of ammonium. This study aimed to evaluate the treatment with...

Liver fibrosis is a chronic disease associated with oxidative stress that has a great impact on the population mortality. Due to their antioxidant capacity, we evaluated the protective effect of Opuntia robusta fruit (Or) on liver fibrosis. A nutraceutical characterization of Or was performed and a model of fibrosis was induced with thioacetamide (...

Secretions of beneficial intestinal bacteria can inhibit the growth and biofilm formation of a wide range of microorganisms. Curcumin has shown broad spectrum antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial potential. It is important to evaluate the influence of these secretions with bioactive peptides, in combination with curcumin, to limit grow...

Sodium selenite modulates the activity of lymphocytes. It negatively regulates the suppressive activity of cells and increases the immune response. In this study, we evaluated whether the regulatory T cell differentiation was modulated by sodium selenite. The percentages of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+, CD4+CD25+, and CD4+CTLA-4+ cells in CD4+ T cells cultures...

Doxazosin and carvedilol have been evaluated as an alternative treatment against chronic liver lesions and for their possible role during the regeneration of damage caused by liver fibrosis in a hamster model. However, these drugs have been reported to induce morphological changes in hepatocytes, affecting the recovery of liver parenchyma. The effe...

Liver diseases, including cirrhosis, viral hepatitis, and hepatocellular carcinoma, account for approximately two million annual deaths worldwide. They place a huge burden on the global healthcare systems, compelling researchers to find effective treatment for liver fibrosis-cirrhosis. Portacaval anastomosis (PCA) is a model of liver damage and fib...

Background Activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSCs) are the main effector cells during liver fibrogenesis. α-1 adrenergic antagonist doxazosin (DX) was shown to be anti-fibrotic in an in vivo model of liver fibrosis (LF), but the mechanism remains to be elucidated. Recent studies suggest that reversion of LF can be achieved by inducing cellular sen...

The role of immune cells associated with sporotrichosis caused by Sporothrix schenckii is not yet fully clarified. Macrophages through pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) can recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) of Sporothrix, engulf it, activate respiratory burst, and secrete pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory biological me...

Entamoeba histolytica is an intestinal parasite that causes dysentery and amebic liver abscess. E. histolytica has the capability to invade host tissue by union of virulence factor Gal/GalNAc lectin; this molecule induces an adherence-inhibitory antibody response as well as to protect against amebic liver abscess (ALA). The present work showed the...

Background: The α and β adrenoblockers have been tested as an alternative treatment for chronic liver lesions such as fibrosis and cirrhosis in animal models, as well as their possible participation during the regeneration of the damage caused by liver cirrhosis in a hamster model. However, it was observed that doxazosin caused slight morphological...

Hepatic cirrhosis is a chronic disease that affects one fifth of the World's population and is the third leading cause of death in Mexico. Attempts have been made to develop treatments for this hepatic cirrhosis, which include manipulating the intestinal microbiota and thus decreasing the early inflammatory response. The microbiota is reportedly al...

Entamoeba histolytica is an invasive enteric protozoan, whose infections are associated to high morbidity and mortality rates. However, only less than 10% of infected patients develop invasive amebiasis. The ability of E. histolytica to adapt to the intestinal microenvironment could be determinant in triggering pathogenic behavior. Indeed, during c...

Background: The parasite Entamoeba histolytica is the causal agent of amoebiasis, a worldwide emerging disease. Amebic brain abscess is a form of invasive amebiasis that is both rare and frequently lethal. This condition always begins with the infection of the colon by E. histolytica trophozoites, which subsequently travel through the bloodstream...

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Objective: Growth hormone (GH) deficiency has been associated with increased steatosis but the molecular mechanism has not been fully elucidated. We investigated the effect of GH on lipid accumulation of HepG2 cells cultured on an in vitro steatosis model and examined the potential involvement of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) as well as lipo...

Liver fibrosis occur in liver diseases and its complications is cause of the increased rate of human mortality. The disease is characterized by the gradual accumulation of scar tissue in the liver parenchyma with decrease in metabolic capacity and liver failure. It is known that arginine vasopressin (AVP) participate in the regulation of the immune...

Amoebic liver abscess (ALA) is the main extra-intestinal complication caused by Entamoeba histolytica. Given the histological features of ALA in hamsters and the importance of the vagus nerve in the immune response, the aim of this study was to identify and analyze the major changes in ALA that are caused by a vagotomy. The changes found are relate...

Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the inflammation process that resulted from the inoculation of Wister rats with Acanthamoeba griffini, a virulent T3 Acanthamoeba genotype that produces keratitis. Methods and results: H&E, periodic acid stain, immunohistochemistry and morphometry were used to analyze tissues from rats of an Acanthamoe...

Entamoeba histolytica ( Eh ) is an anaerobic parasitic protozoan and the causative agent of amoebiasis. Eh expresses proteins that are structurally homologous to humans and use them as virulence factors. We have previously shown that Eh binds exogenous interferon gamma (IFN-γ) on its surface and in this study, we explored whether exogenous IFN-γ co...

To assess the impact of vagotomy on the IgA-response, male BALB/c mice underwent anterior vagotomy or a sham procedure were sacrificed on day 14 post-operation and the proximal and distal small-gut segments were dissected. In intestinal lavages IgA/IgM antibodies were analysed by ELISA; in Peyer's-patches and lamina-propria cell suspensions the int...

It was developed a fed-batch bioprocess to produce a recombinant vaccine against Entamoeba histolytica under operational conditions attainable to large scale bioprocesses. We have produced this recombinant protein in shake flask and stirred tank bioreactor. Initial results in shake flask cultures under different methanol concentration of 0.5, 1.5 a...

Liver cirrhosis is the result of an uncontrolled fibrogenetic process, due to the activation and subsequent differentiation into myofibroblasts of the hepatic stellate cells (HSC). It is known that HSC express adrenoreceptors (AR), and the use of AR antagonists protects experimental animals from cirrhosis. However, several studies suggest that the...

Amoebic liver abscess (ALA) is the most common extraintestinal amoebiasis caused by Entamoeba histolytica ( E. histolytica ). However, despite current knowledge and scientific advances about this infection, there are no effective treatments to prevent it. Herein, the antiamoebic capacity of curcumin in a hamster model was evaluated. Curcumin (150 m...

Histopathological studies of human sporotrichosis lesions show pyogenic and granulomatous processes in which polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) play a central role. Few studies regarding the events associated with the interaction of human PMNs with Sporothrix schenckii have been made despite their importance in the clinical manifestations of the...

Regulation of the mechanisms of fibrosis is an important goal in the treatment of liver cirrhosis. One mechanism is the participation of hepatic stellate cells in fibrogenesis when activated by catecholamines. Consequently, α/β adrenoblockers are proposed as an alternative treatment for chronic liver lesions such as fibrosis and/or cirrhosis and fo...

Two images of the amplification plots are presented with the replicas obtained for alpha-fetoprotein by qPCR for the different experimental animals treated and cirrhotic and intact controls. Where the amplification cycles are observed, the alpha-fetoprotein begins to be detected according to the threshold.

The neuroimmunoregulation of inflammation has been well characterized. Entamoeba histolytica provokes an inflammatory response in the host in which macrophages and neutrophils are the first line of defense. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of the 220 kDa lectin of Entamoeba histolytica on stimulation of human macrophages and neutroph...

Prolonged and continuous use of contact lenses for as long as 3 or 4 weeks is common in Mexico due to the low socioeconomic status, poor patient education and self-neglect. Furthermore, wearing contact lenses with low oxygen permeability is common due to their low cost. Thus, patients seek ophthalmologic evaluation due to signs and symptoms of over...

Oxidative stress and transcriptional pathways of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) are critically involved in the etiopathology of amebic liver abscess (ALA). In this work, we studied the relationship between the adrenergic nervous system and ALA in the hamster. ALA was visible at 12 h of infectio...

Liver fibrosis occurs in the presence of continuous insults, including toxic or biological agents. Novel treatments must focus on ceasing the progression of cellular damage, promoting the regeneration of the parenchyma and inhibition of the fibrotic process. The present study analyzed the effect of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)‑7 gene therapy wi...

Objective: To generate an immunogenic chimeric protein containing the Entamoeba histolytica LC3 fragment fused to the retrograde delivery domains of exotoxin A of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and KDEL3 for use as an effective vaccine. Results: A codon-optimized synthetic gene encoding the PEΔIII-LC3-KDEL3 fusion construct was designed for expression i...

Regulating mechanisms of fibrosis is an important goal in the treatment of fibrosis and liver cirrhosis. The role of arginine vasopressin (AVP) in promoting fibrosis in several organs has been well documented. However, the result of an AVP deficiency during liver fibrosis has not been reported. We herein study the effects of an AVP deficiency, whic...

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most common skin diseases, whose incidence is increasing in industrialized countries. The epicutaneous application of a hapten, such as 2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB), evokes an experimental murine AD-like reaction. Glycomacropeptide (GMP) is a dairy bioactive peptide derived from hydrolysis of κ -casein by chy...

Entamoeba histolytica is the causative agent of amoebic liver abscess (ALA), which course with an uncontrolled inflammation and nitro-oxidative stresses, although it is well known that amoeba has an effective defence mechanisms against this toxic environment, the underlying molecular factors responsible for progression of tissue damage remain large...

Bioaccumulation of trivalent (CrIII) and hexavalent chromium (CrVI), and its adverse effects were studied in two rotifer species: Brachionus calyciflorus (two different strains), and Lecane quadridentata. Median Lethal Concentration (LC50) at 24 h of both species showed that CrVI is highly toxic: LC50 ranges from 4.7 × 10−5 to 4 × 10−6 mg L−1), com...

The parasympathetic nervous system has a crucial role in immunomodulation of the vagus nerve, its structure provides a pathogen detection system, and a negative feedback to the immune system after the pathogenic agent has been eliminated. Amebiasis is a disease caused by the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica, considered the third leading cau...

Entamoeba histolytica invades the intestine and other organs during the pathogenesis of amoebiasis. In the early stages, the host organism responds with an inflammatory infiltrate composed mostly of neutrophils. It has been reported that these immune cells, activated by Entamoeba histolytica, exert a protective role by releasing proteolytic enzymes...

Purpose: Primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) are a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized mainly by recurrent infections. Late diagnosis remains as one of the main issues to solve. We aimed to increase PID diagnosis in Aguascalientes, a 1.3 million inhabitants state in the center of Mexico, and to describe the clinical features of such patie...

Host invasion by Entamoeba histolytica, the pathogenic agent of amebiasis, can lead to the development of amebic liver abscess (ALA). Due to the difficulty of exploring host and amebic factors involved in the pathogenesis of ALA in humans, most studies have been conducted with animal models (e.g., mice, gerbils, and hamsters). Histopathological fin...

Background/aims: The development of therapeutic strategies for the treatment of cirrhosis has become an important focus for basic and clinical researchers. Adrenergic receptor antagonists have been evaluated as antifibrotic drugs in rodent models of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced cirrhosis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the eff...

An inflammation is generated during formation of Amoebic Liver Abscess. We analyzed chemically sympathectomized hamsters with Amoebic Liver Abscess, in a period between 6 hours to 7 days. The liver tissue samples were analyzed by haematoxylin and eosin staining, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence and morphometry. Sympathectomy caused a lower...