Progression of the leprosy reaction and nerve damage: A prospective cohort study in children with leprosy from the Brazilian Amazon.

Introduction: Leprosy reactions being closely related to damage to peripheral nerves and physical disabilities associated with disease progression. Disabilities in childhood can have a devastating effect with impaired children's cognitive, emotional, social, and educational development. We followed up the progression of leprosy reactions in children identifying associated factors with the emergence and/or worsening of nerve damage.

Cryptic diversity in southern African kelp.

The southern coast of Africa is one of the few places in the world where water temperatures are predicted to cool in the future. This endemism-rich coastline is home to two sister species of kelps of the genus Ecklonia maxima and Ecklonia radiata, each associated with specific thermal niches, and occuring primarily on opposite sides of the southern tip of Africa. Historical distribution records indicate that E.

Antibiofilm activity of promethazine, deferiprone, and Manuka honey in an ex vivo wound model.

This study evaluated the antibiofilm activity of promethazine, deferiprone, and Manuka honey against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in vitro and ex vivo in a wound model on porcine skin. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and the effects of the compounds on biofilms were evaluated. Then, counting colony-forming units (CFUs) and confocal microscopy were performed on biofilms cultivated on porcine skin for evaluation of the compounds.

Specialized active leprosy search strategies in an endemic area of the Brazilian Amazon identifies a hypermutated strain causing primary drug resistance.

Introduction: Leprosy, an infectious disease caused by , remains a public health concern in endemic countries, particularly in Brazil. In this study, we conducted an active surveillance campaign in the hyperendemic city of Castanhal in the northeastern part of the state of Pará using clinical signs and symptoms combined with serological and molecular tools to diagnose new cases and to identify drug resistance of circulating strains and their distribution in the community.

Methods: During an active surveillance of one week, we enrolled 318 individuals using three different strategies to enroll subjects for this study: (i) an active survey of previously treated cases from 2006 to 2016 found in the Brazil National Notifiable Disease Information System database ( = 23) and their healthy household contacts (HHC) ( = 57); (ii) an active survey of school children (SC) from two primary public schools in low-income neighborhoods ( = 178), followed by visits to the houses of these newly diagnosed SC ( = 7) to examine their HHC ( = 34) where we diagnosed additional new cases ( = 6); (iii) and those people who spontaneously presented themselves to our team or the local health center with clinical signs and/or symptoms of leprosy ( = 6) with subsequent follow-up of their HHC when the case was confirmed ( = 20) where we diagnosed two additional cases ( = 2).

Marine macroinvertebrate ecosystem services under changing conditions of seagrasses and mangroves.

This study aimed to investigate the impact of changing environmental conditions on MMI ES in seagrasses and mangroves. We used data from satellite and biodiversity platforms combined with field data to explore the links between ecosystem pressures (habitat conversion, overexploitation, climate change), conditions (environmental quality, ecosystem attributes), and MMI ES (provisioning, regulation, cultural). Both seagrass and mangrove extents increased significantly since 2016.

Effect of promethazine on biofilms of gram-positive cocci associated with infectious endocarditis.

This study evaluated the antimicrobial activity of promethazine against , and and its effect on the antimicrobial susceptibility of biofilms grown and on porcine heart valves. Promethazine was evaluated alone and in combination with vancomycin and oxacillin against spp. and vancomycin and ceftriaxone against in planktonic form and biofilms grown and .

TB treatment non-adherence in São Tomé and Príncipe.

Setting: Sao Tomé and Principe (STP) is a lower middle-income country in the Gulf of Guinea that has a persistent high loss of TB patients on treatment.

Objective: To investigate factors associated with patient loss to follow-up (LTFU) and to assess health worker perceptions on non-adherence.

Design: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from the national database.

All in all its just another branch in the tree: A new species of Acanthocercus Fitzinger, 1843 (Squamata: Agamidae), from Angola.

Recent integrative taxonomic studies of the agamid genus Acanthocercus Fitzinger, 1843 have shown that Angola harbors three different taxa, all within the Acanthocercus atricollis (Smith, 1849) species complexA. cyanocephalus (Falk, 1925) in the northeastern parts of the country, A. margaritae Wagner et al.

COVID-19 related acute genital ulcer: a case report.

Acute vulvar ulcer (Lipschütz's ulcer) is a rare lesion with local hyperimmunoreactivity triggered by infection, which is characterized by acute, painful, and necrotic ulcerations. This condition is usually found in non-sexually active adolescents, and it resolves spontaneously. We report a case of a 35-year-old woman who was diagnosed with COVID-19 who did not have severe symptoms, but had high levels of D-dimer for 9 days.

Structural Integrity of Polymeric Components Produced by Additive Manufacturing (AM)-Polymer Applications.

In the work presented herein, the structural integrity of polymeric functional components made of Nylon-645 and Polylactic acid (PLA) produced by additive manufacturing (Fused Deposition Modelling, FDM) is studied. The PLA component under study was selected from the production line of a brewing company, and it was redesigned and analyzed using the Finite Element Method, 3D printed, and installed under real service. The results obtained indicated that, even though the durability of the 3D printed part was lower than the original, savings of about EUR 7000 a year could be achieved for the component studied.

Alkaloids as Photosensitisers for the Inactivation of Bacteria.

Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy has emerged as a powerful approach to tackle microbial infections. Photodynamic therapy utilises a photosensitiser, light, and oxygen to generate singlet oxygen and/or reactive oxygen species in an irradiated tissue spot, which subsequently react with nearby biomolecules and destroy the cellular environment. Due to the possibility to irradiate in a very precise location, it can be used to eradicate bacteria, fungus, and parasites upon light activation of the photosensitiser.

Ex situ model of biofilm-associated wounds: providing a host-like environment for the study of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms.

Aim: This study aimed to assess an ex situ model of biofilm-associated wounds on porcine skin for the study of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms in a host-like environment, after 48 to 120 h of incubation.

Material And Results: Ex situ and in vitro biofilms were comparatively analysed. Overall, CFU-counts and matrix quantification yielded significantly (P < 0·05) higher results for ex situ than in vitro biofilms.

A revision of the Dwarf Geckos, genus Lygodactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae), from Angola, with the description of three new species.

At present the genus Lygodactylus is represented by three species in Angola confirmed by voucher specimens-L. angolensis, L. bradfieldi, and L.

Leprosy Reactions In Childhood: A Prospective Cohort Study In The Brazilian Amazon.

Background And Objective: In highly endemic areas, severe multibacillary forms of leprosy and reactional episodes are not rare in children. The objective of the present study was to describe the clinical and epidemiological aspects of leprosy reactions in children from the Brazilian Amazon.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of 34 leprosy patients aged under 15 years diagnosed at a health referral unit in northern Brazil between April 2014 and June 2015.

A new species of Girdled Lizard (Squamata: Cordylidae) from the Serra da Neve Inselberg, Namibe Province, southwestern Angola.

A new species of rupicolous girdled lizard is described from Serra da Neve Inselberg, Namibe Province, southwestern Angola. We sequenced two mitochondrial gene regions (16S and ND2) for the new species and compared these data with those previously published for other Cordylus species. The new species is genetically divergent from the closely related Cordylus machadoi and C.

Description of a new long-tailed skink (Scincidae: Trachylepis) from Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are relatively unknown in terms of their herpetological diversity. Based on specimens collected in the Congolese region of the Katanga and the northeast of Angola during the first decades of the twentieth century, de Witte and Laurent independently suggested, based on morphological and coloration differences, that populations of T. megalura of these regions could belong a new "race".

An autochthonous case of paracoccidioidomycosis in a new area of Ceara State, Northeastern Brazil.

The largest endemic areas of paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) in Brazil comprise the humid agricultural regions of the Southeast, South, and, recently, the Midwest and North regions. The Ceara State, located in the Brazilian Northeast region, presents semi-arid climate in most of its territory, characterized by high temperatures, scarce vegetation and low humidity. The objective of the present study was to describe a new autochthonous case of paracoccidioidomycosis from a distinct area of Ceara and review the characteristics of PCM occurrence in Northeastern Brazil.