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M Palatnik

Publications and source records attributed to M Palatnik.

49 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

New genetic data on Amerindians from the Paraguayan Chaco.

New data on 17 blood group and protein genetic systems obtained among the Ayoreo and Lengua Indians of Paraguay are presented. They include the first report on the red cell band-3 protein investigated among South American Indians. This information was integrated with previous results available for these two and four other groups. Five of the six populations reside in the Chaco area, while the sixth was included as an outgroup living elsewhere in Paraguay. Four of the five Chaco tribes exhibit good genetic homogeneity, but the Ayoreo are somewhat different. The results confirm the Chaco as a distinct biological (as well as cultural and economic) region, which should be considered in evaluations of genetic variability among South American Indians.

Alleles↗

Leishmania donovani: titration of antibodies to the fucose-mannose ligand as an aid in diagnosis and prognosis of visceral leishmaniasis.

The fucose-mannose ligand (FML) is a complex glycoprotein fraction present on promastigotes and amastigotes of Leishmania donovani. It participates in parasite interaction with host macrophages in a species-specific pattern. We have tested its use in immunodiagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in a recent outbreak in Rio Grande do Norte, north-east Brazil. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) of low concentrations of FML in 462 sera showed 100% sensitivity and 96% specificity. The FML-ELISA identified patients with overt VL (P < 0.001, compared to normal sera). It could also identify inhabitants of the endemic area who had incipient or subclinical infection with potentially severe clinical disease: more than 20% of apparently healthy subjects with a positive ELISA for FML developed overt VL during the following 10 months. FML-ELISA reactivity decreased in all patients during treatment, and became negative after parasitological cure. No cross-reaction was observed in patients infected with other Leishmania species, nor in those with Chagas disease. Determination of antibody response to FML may be useful in diagnosis of VL and in identifying patients without overt disease but with a high risk of developing severe VL.

Animals↗

Genetic polymorphism of red cell membrane band 3 in Japanese Brazilians.

Limited proteolysis of intact red cells has been shown to yield peptides of 60 kDa and, in some individuals, 63 kDa, from the band-3 membrane protein. In a random population sample of 117 Brazilians of Japanese origin, the allele frequencies of the band-3 variants were p60 = 0.889 +/- 0.0205 and p63 = 0.111 +/- 0.0205. The phenotype frequencies fit the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for the hypothesis of three phenotypes controlled by two codominant alleles of a single autosomal locus. The frequencies of the alleles in this population of Japanese ancestry are highly different from those of Brazilian Caucasoid blood donors but rather similar to those of Brazilian Negroid donors.

Adoption↗