Sustainable Electrochemical-Magnetic Biosensor Fabricated from Recycled Materials for Label-Free Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in Human Saliva.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical need for scalable, rapid, and cost-effective diagnostic solutions, especially in resource-limited settings. In this study, we developed a sustainable magnetic electrochemical biosensor for the mass testing of SARS-CoV-2, emphasizing affordability, environmental impact reduction, and clinical applicability. By leveraging recycled materials from spent batteries and plastics, we achieved a circular economy-based fabrication process with a recyclability rate of 98.

Transcriptomic insights into early mechanisms underlying post-chikungunya chronic inflammatory joint disease.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infection often results in a chronic joint condition known as Post-Chikungunya Chronic Inflammatory Joint Disease (pCHIKV-CIJD). This condition disrupts individuals' daily lives and contributes to increased healthcare expenditure. This study investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying pCHIKV-CIJD development by analyzing RNA transcripts, including small RNAs, of whole blood from CHIKV-infected patients.

Assessing HIV trends among blood donors in five Brazilian blood centers: The impact of individual donor assessment.

Background: In many countries, including Brazil, time-based blood donation deferral policies for gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (gbMSM) have been replaced by individual donor assessment (IDA). We examined HIV prevalence and incidence among first-time (FTD) and repeat donors (RD), comparing data from ~3.5 years before and after the IDA policy implementation in 2020.

Understanding context to plan antimicrobial stewardship: A mixed-method study in a Brazilian urban primary care.

Background: The Centres for Antimicrobial Optimization Network Brazil aims to implement an antimicrobial stewardship program in Brazilian municipality. This study explores barriers and enablers to its implementation, through understanding the context and beliefs regarding antimicrobial use in this environment.

Methods: The study occurred in 12 primary health care units, where a mixed-method study was conducted.

Effect of ultra-processed food consumption on the gut microbiota in the first year of life: Findings from the MINA-Brazil birth cohort study.

Background And Aims: The first years of life are fundamental for the establishment of the gut microbiota, with diet being one of the main early exposures. During this period, the beneficial effect of breastfeeding on modulating the gut microbiota is well known; however, there are important gaps in the literature on the effects of ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption, particularly in longitudinal and large sample designs. Through a prospective birth cohort study, we investigated the effects of UPF consumption on the gut microbiota of children during the first year of life.

Addressing under-registration in Chagas disease mortality: insights from the SaMi-Trop and REDS cohorts.

Chagas disease (ChD) remains a significant public health concern in the Americas, with challenges to accurately assessing its mortality burden due to under-reporting and misclassification. This study aimed to analyze mortality patterns of two cohorts of individuals with ChD-one comprising asymptomatic individuals with positive serology (REDS) and another with patients showing Chagas cardiomyopathy (SaMi-Trop)-to propose a method for estimating the potential under-registration of Chagas-related deaths and to find the factors influencing the identification of ChD as the underlying cause of death. We carried out a retrospective analysis of mortality data from these cohorts together with data on the Brazilian Mortality Information System.

Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 infection over two epidemic waves in Manaus, Brazil: A serological study of seven thousand blood donors.

Background: Most longitudinal studies of COVID-19 incidence have used unlinked samples. The city of Manaus, Brazil, has a blood donation program which allows sample linkage, and was struck by two large COVID-19 epidemic waves between mid-2020 and early 2021.

Methods: We estimated the changing force of infection, i.

Syphilis reactivity among blood donors in Brazil: associated factors and implications for public health monitoring.

Background: Increasing syphilis infection rates are a concerning issue worldwide. Blood donation screening is an opportunity to monitor the burden of asymptomatic infections, providing information on contemporary factors associated with infection and public health insights into transmission.

Methods: Blood donations collected at five Brazilian blood centers between January 2020 and February 2022 were screened with treponemal or non-treponemal assays according to local protocols, followed by alternate Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA); samples with reactive or indeterminate results in the alternate ELISA were further tested with the rapid plasma reagin (RPR), and categorized as RPR-positive or RPR-negative.

Health literacy assessment of individuals with and without Chagas disease: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Chagas disease (CD) is neglected that affects vulnerable individuals, whose majority has low ability to understand health information.

Objectives: To assess health literacy and its association with sociodemographic, clinical, and quality of life (QoL) characteristics.

Design And Setting: A cross-sectional study the participants with Chagas disease (ChD) were identified through serological diagnosis during blood donation, while those without the disease were seronegative blood donors.

Impact of Exogenous on the Gut Microbiome of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Patients Colonized by Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria: An Observational Study.

can inhibit the growth of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) and modulate the gut microbiome. However, data on hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) are scarce. In an observational study, we assessed the impact of on the modulation of the gut microbiome in HSCT patients colonized by MDROs.

Colonisation by multidrug-resistant organisms in health workers in primary care: narrow spectrum oral antimicrobials are a risk factor.

Background: Limited information exists on carriage of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) by health workers (HWs) in primary care settings. This study aims to determine the prevalence of MDRO carriage among HWs in primary care and to identify associated risk factors.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted across all 12 primary care units in São Caetano do Sul-SP, Brazil, from October to December 2023.

Genetic variants associated with white blood cell count amongst individuals with sickle cell disease.

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a Mendelian disorder characterized by a point mutation in the β-globin gene that leads to sickling of erythrocytes. Several studies have shown that absolute neutrophil count is strongly associated with clinical severity of SCD, suggesting an apparent role of white blood cells (WBC) in SCD pathology. However, the mechanism by which genetic variants lead to WBC count differences in SCD patients remains unclear.

Immunologic mediators profile in COVID-19 convalescence.

SARS-CoV-2 caused the pandemic situation experienced since the beginning of 2020, and many countries faced the rapid spread and severe form of the disease. Mechanisms of interaction between the virus and the host were observed during acute phase, but few data are available when related to immunity dynamics in convalescents. We conducted a longitudinal study, with 51 healthy donors and 62 COVID-19 convalescent patients, which these had a 2-month follow-up after symptoms recovery.

Prevalence analysis of Chagas disease by age group in an endemic region of Brazil: possible scenario of active vectorial transmission.

Objectives: Chagas disease (CD) is an infectious disease that predominantly affects poor and vulnerable populations. The last estimate conducted by the World Health Organization in Latin America regarding the prevalence of CD occurred more than 10 years ago. However, there is a scarcity of data assessing the magnitude of CD in populations residing in considered high-risk regions.

Identification of Chagas disease biomarkers using untargeted metabolomics.

Untargeted metabolomic analysis is a powerful tool used for the discovery of novel biomarkers. Chagas disease (CD), caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, is a neglected tropical disease that affects 6-7 million people with approximately 30% developing cardiac manifestations. The most significant clinical challenge lies in its long latency period after acute infection, and the lack of surrogate markers to predict disease progression or cure.

Simultaneous detection of arboviruses by a multiplex RT-qPCR assay in Tocantins, a northern state of Brazil.

In Brazil, Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya viruses constitute a major threat to the public health system. Simultaneous circulation of these arboviruses occurs in many regions of the world due to the expansion of transmission vectors. The infection by these arboviruses triggers similar symptoms during their acute phase.

Association between positive serology for COVID-19 and chagas cardiomyopathy progression: The SaMi-Trop project.

Background: Chagas Disease (CD) can cause Chagas cardiomyopathy. The new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) also affects the cardiovascular system and may worsen Chagas cardiomyopathy. However, the cardiac evolution of patients with CD infected by COVID-19 is not known.

Cardiac involvement in Chagas disease and African trypanosomiasis.

Trypanosomiases are diseases caused by various species of protozoan parasite in the genus Trypanosoma, each presenting with distinct clinical manifestations and prognoses. Infections can affect multiple organs, with Trypanosoma cruzi predominantly affecting the heart and digestive system, leading to American trypanosomiasis or Chagas disease, and Trypanosoma brucei primarily causing a disease of the central nervous system known as human African trypanosomiasis or sleeping sickness. In this Review, we discuss the effects of these infections on the heart, with particular emphasis on Chagas disease, which continues to be a leading cause of cardiomyopathy in Latin America.

Genetic diversity in the partial sequence of the HIV-1 gag gene among people living with multidrug-resistant HIV-1 infection.

The group-specific antigen (gag) plays a crucial role in the assembly, release, and maturation of HIV. This study aimed to analyze the partial sequence of the HIV gag gene to classify HIV subtypes, identify recombination sites, and detect protease inhibitor (PI) resistance-associated mutations (RAMs). The cohort included 100 people living with HIV (PLH) who had experienced antiretroviral treatment failure with reverse transcriptase/protease inhibitors.