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In 1992, a young child died when his two-year-old brother gave him more than 30 bright, colorful pills. Inside the pills was the metal iron, deadly when ingested in excess. The use of tablets at adequate levels by the children’s mothers characterized dietary supplementation, as iron is essential for human beings, and its deficiency also causes harmful effects on health.

The research group, coordinated by Professor Marcelo Farina from the Biochemistry department at UFSC, has studied how excess iron causes damage to organisms and how some fat molecules (lipids) protect against injuries caused by iron. In a study conducted in collaboration with American and Spanish researchers, the research group coordinated by Professor Farina discovered that one of the main mechanisms by which excess iron causes damage is through the induction of ferroptosis, a type of cell death that is still poorly understood and characterized by intense oxidation of lipids in cell membranes. The work was funded by CAPES, CNPq, and FAPESC.

According to the professor, the harmful effects of excess iron do not only occur in severe cases of acute poisoning. “In fact, there is a human disease called hemochromatosis characterized by excess iron in the body due to genetic defects or the need for repeated blood transfusions, which have high levels of this metal”, he explains.

According to him, scientific evidence supports an association between iron levels and aging and points to iron accumulation in aging-related diseases. Patients with Parkinson’s disease have high iron levels in certain regions of the central nervous system. Among the treatments currently available for individuals with excess iron in the body, phlebotomy (bleeding) and chelating medications stand out, which form complexes with iron and facilitate its elimination.

The study, which was based on experimental models using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, mice and human cell lines, detected a lipid compound called oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid present in abundance in olive oil, as a protective molecule capable of inhibiting ferroptosis. The consequence would be protection against damage induced by iron overload in the three experimental models.

“The study suggests that nutritional strategies based on the use of monounsaturated fatty acids, such as oleic acid, can mitigate the damage induced by excess iron, which could represent an additional therapeutic strategy”, explains the professor. “Interestingly, oleic acid is part of the Mediterranean diet, which is associated with health and longevity,” reinforces

Another mechanism uncovered in the study was the involvement of a key protein that determines whether oleic acid can be protective. In this case, the protein PPAR-alpha (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha) was considered fundamental to the ability of oleic acid to protect against damage induced by excess iron in cells and nematodes.

The results of the study were disclosed in a scientific article published in the journal Cell Chemical Biology, which has as its first author researcher Josiane Mann, who was supervised by professor Marcelo Farina during her doctorate in the Postgraduate Program in Neurosciences and is currently a postgraduate fellow -Ph.D. from PPGBQA. The UFSC team included PPGBQA doctoral student Melania Santer and professor Alcir Dafré. The work is also signed by Professor Brent Stockwell (Columbia University, United States), who coordinated the pioneering work that culminated in the discovery of ferroptosis around a decade ago.

The results of the study were published in the journal Cell Chemical Biology, which has as its first author the researcher Josiane Mann, who was supervised by professor Marcelo Farina during her Ph.D. in the Postgraduate Program in Neurosciences and is currently a post-doctoral fellow at the PPGBQA. The UFSC team also included PPGBQA doctoral student Melania Santer and professor Alcir Dafré. The work is also signed by Professor Brent Stockwell (Columbia University, United States), who coordinated the pioneering work that culminated in the discovery of ferroptosis around a decade ago.

See the report at: https://noticias.ufsc.br/2023/11/oleo-presente-no-azeite-de-oliva-pode-combater-morte-de-celulas-por-excesso-de-ferro-diz-pesquisa-da-ufsc/  and the manuscript at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451945623003732?via%3Dihub

Three PPGBQA doctoral students were awarded with honorable mentions at the XXXVII Annual Meeting of FeSBE, held from August 27 to 30, 2023 in Búzios, RJ. The student Claudia Daniele Bianco supervised by Profa. Dr. Ariane Zamoner Pacheco de Souza presented the work “Glyphosate increases cell proliferation and causes DNA damage in glioblastoma cell line”. The student Pedro Borges de Souza supervised by Prof. Dr. Ana Lúcia S. Rodrigues, presented the work “Physical exercise and/or agmatine have a prophylatic effect against depressive-like behavior induced by an inflammatory challenge in mice”. The student Melania Santer, supervised by Prof. Dr. Marcelo Farina presented the work “Metformin protects against iron overload through SKN-1 in C. elegans. Congratulations to the students and research groups!

Cognitive Training for the Idle with Smartphones: The outreach project coordinated by Prof. Dr. Alexandre Pastoris Muller (PPGBQA) aims to explore the use of resources on smartphones for cognitive training in the elderly. The apps are carefully selected and designed to work on different cognitive areas, such as memory, attention, language, logical reasoning, and visual skills. Besides, the project seeks to promote moments of interaction and entertainment, improving the participants’ quality of life.

@ppgbqa.ufsc @profalexandremuller ou https://ppgbqa.ufsc.br/o-programa/acoes-de-extencao/

O PRÓ-REITOR DE PÓS-GRADUAÇÃO DA UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE SANTA CATARINA, no uso de suas atribuições, torna pública a abertura as inscrições para os processo seletivos de bolsistas de capacitação, doutorado sanduíche no exterior (DSE), professor visitante no Brasil (PVB) e professor visitante no exterior (PSE), disponibilizadas aos Subprojetos vinculados ao Projeto Institucional de Internacionalização (PII) do Programa PRINT-CAPES/UFSC, para saídas em 2024, conforme Ofício nº 113/2022-DRI/CAPES.

Mais info: https://print.cfm.ufsc.br/2023/07/07/editais-capes-print-para-saidas-em-2024/

Position: Post-Doctoral Fellow (R-23152)

Institution: Laboratory for Energy Metabolism / Division of Metabolic Disorders, Children’s Hospital of Orange, CA, USA. The hospital is affiliated to UCLA and UCI – This position will be responsible for the design and execution of studies to assess cellular energy metabolism and BH4-related pathways in fibroblasts, iPSC–derived neuronal cells, and genetically-modified animals.  Required: The ideal candidate should possess experience in animal behavior, cell culture, Image J, and related platforms. Experience with the use of a Seahorse Bioanalyzer, HPLC system, and flow cytometer is a plus.

More information in: http://ppgbqa.paginas.ufsc.br/oportunidades/
Website: https://www.choc.org/careers/