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In diabetes, tissue repair is impaired, increasing susceptibility to Staphylococcus aureus infections, a pathogen commonly found in wounds. The emergence of S. aureus strains that are highly resistant to antimicrobial agents highlights the urgent need for alternative therapeutic options. One promising candidate is Cramoll (Cratylia mollis seed lectin), known for its immunomodulatory, mitogenic, and healing properties. However, its efficacy in infected diabetic wounds remains unexplored. This study evaluated the effects of topical Cramoll treatment on diabetic wounds infected by S. aureus. Diabetic Swiss mice (induced by streptozotocin) were subjected to an 8-mm wound on the back and subsequently infected with a suspension of multidrug-resistant S. aureus. During the treatment period, the wounds were clinically evaluated for inflammation and the area of injury. After seven days, samples were collected from the wounds to quantify the bacterial load and histopathological and immunological analyses. Wounds infected by S. aureus exhibited more pronounced areas and severity indices, which were significantly reduced by Cramoll treatment (p < 0.05). Histopathological analysis revealed a reduction in inflammatory cells and an increase in revascularization with Cramoll treatment (p < 0.05). Cramoll also promoted greater collagen production compared to controls (p < 0.05). Furthermore, Cramoll treatment significantly reduced the S. aureus load in wounds (p < 0.0001), decreased TNF-α and IL-6 levels in infected wounds, and increased ERK pathway activation (p < 0.05). In conclusion, Cramoll lectin improves the healing of diabetic wounds, and these results contribute to the understanding of Cramoll healing mechanisms, reinforcing its potential as a healing agent in various clinical conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the levels of adipokines and other endocrine biomarkers and patient outcomes in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Methods: In a prospective study that included 213 subjects with COVID-19 admitted to the intensive care unit, we measured the levels of cortisol, C-peptide, glucagonlike peptide-1, insulin, peptide YY, ghrelin, leptin, and resistin.; their contributions to patient clustering, disease severity, and predicting in-hospital mortality were analyzed. Results: Cortisol, resistin, leptin, insulin, and ghrelin levels significantly differed between severity groups, as defined by the World Health Organization severity scale. Additionally, lower ghrelin and higher cortisol levels were associated with mortality. Adding biomarkers to the clinical predictors of mortality significantly improved accuracy in determining prognosis. Phenotyping of subjects based on plasma biomarker levels yielded two different phenotypes that were associated with disease severity, but not mortality. Conclusion: As a single biomarker, only cortisol was independently associated with mortality; however, metabolic biomarkers could improve mortality prediction when added to clinical parameters. Metabolic biomarker phenotypes were differentially distributed according to COVID-19 severity but were not associated with mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eugenia brejoensis Mazine (Myrtaceae) is source of an essential oil (EbEO) with anti-infective activities against Staphylococcus aureus. This study evaluated the antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory potentials of EbEO in S. aureus-infected skin wounds. The excisional lesions (64 mm2 ) were induced on Swiss mice back (6 to 8-week-old) that were allocated into 3 groups (n = 12): 1) non-infected wounds (CON); 2) wounds infected with S. aureus ATCC 6538 (Sa); 3) S. aureusinfected wounds and treated with EbEO (Sa + EbEO). The infected groups received approximately 104 CFU/wound. The animals were treated with EbEO (10 µg/wound/day) or vehicle from the 1-day post-infection (dpi) until the 10th dpi. The clinical parameters (wound area, presence of exudate, edema intensity, etc.) were daily analyzed. The levels of inflammatory mediators (cytokines, nitric oxide, VEGF) and bacterial load were measured at the cutaneous tissue at 4th dpi and 10th dpi. Topical application of EbEO accelerated wound contraction with an average contraction of 83.48 ± 11.27 % of the lesion area until 6th dpi. In this period, the rates of lesion contraction were 54.28 ± 5.57% and 34.5 ± 2.67% for CON and Sa groups, respectively. The positive effects of EbEO on wound contraction were associated with significantly (p < 0.05) reduction on bacterial load and the release of inflammatory mediators (IL-6, IL-17A, TNF-α, NO and VEGF). Taken together, these data confirm the antimicrobial potential of EbEO and provide insights into its anti-inflammatory effects, making this essential oil an interesting candidate for the development of new therapeutic alternatives for infected cutaneous wounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Skin injuries constitute a gateway for pathogenic bacteria that can be either part of tissue microbiota or acquired from the environmental. These microorganisms (such as Acinetobacter baumannii, Enterococcus faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus) produce virulence factors that impair tissue integrity and sustain the inflammatory phase leading for establishment of chronic wounds. The high levels of antimicrobial resistance have limited the therapeutic arsenal for combatting skin infections. Thus, the treatment of non-healing chronic wounds is a huge challenge for health services worldwide, imposing great socio-economic damage to the affected individuals. This scenario has encouraged the use of natural polymers, such as polysaccharide, in order to develop new formulations (membranes, nanoparticles, hydrogels, scaffolds) to be applied in the treatment of skin infections. In this non-exhaustive review, we discuss the applications of polysaccharide-based formulations in the healing of infected wounds in animal models and clinical trials. The formulations discussed in this review were prepared using alginate, cellulose, chitosan, and hyaluronic acid. In addition to have healing actions per se, these polysaccharide formulations can act as transdermal drug delivery systems, controlling the release of active ingredients (such as antimicrobial and healing agents). The papers show that these polysaccharides-based formulations are effcient in controlling infection and improve the healing, even in chronic infected wounds. These data should positively impact the design of new dressings to treat skin infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In diabetes, tissue repair is impaired, increasing susceptibility to Staphylococcus aureus infections, a pathogen commonly found in wounds. The emergence of S. aureus strains that are highly resistant to antimicrobial agents highlights the urgent need for alternative therapeutic options. One promising candidate is Cramoll (Cratylia mollis seed lectin), known for its immunomodulatory, mitogenic, and healing properties. However, its efficacy in infected diabetic wounds remains unexplored. This study evaluated the effects of topical Cramoll treatment on diabetic wounds infected by S. aureus. Diabetic Swiss mice (induced by streptozotocin) were subjected to an 8-mm wound on the back and subsequently infected with a suspension of multidrug-resistant S. aureus. During the treatment period, the wounds were clinically evaluated for inflammation and the area of injury. After seven days, samples were collected from the wounds to quantify the bacterial load and histopathological and immunological analyses. Wounds infected by S. aureus exhibited more pronounced areas and severity indices, which were significantly reduced by Cramoll treatment (p < 0.05). Histopathological analysis revealed a reduction in inflammatory cells and an increase in revascularization with Cramoll treatment (p < 0.05). Cramoll also promoted greater collagen production compared to controls (p < 0.05). Furthermore, Cramoll treatment significantly reduced the S. aureus load in wounds (p < 0.0001), decreased TNF-α and IL-6 levels in infected wounds, and increased ERK pathway activation (p < 0.05). In conclusion, Cramoll lectin improves the healing of diabetic wounds, and these results contribute to the understanding of Cramoll healing mechanisms, reinforcing its potential as a healing agent in various clinical conditions., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)