Publications by authors named "Gabriela Abdalla"
Little is known about the epidemiology of leptospirosis in the Dominican Republic, the second most populous country in the Caribbean. We report on findings from a multi-stage household survey across two regions in the country that reveals a previously under-estimated burden of human Leptospira infection. Our findings, based on the reference-standard microscopic agglutination test, indicate a complex picture of serogroup diversity, spatial heterogeneity in infection and risk, and a marked discrepancy between reported cases and serologically estimated infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe 2014 chikungunya outbreak in the Dominican Republic resulted in intense local transmission, with high postoutbreak seroprevalence. The resulting population immunity will likely minimize risk for another large outbreak through 2035, but changes in population behavior or environmental conditions or emergence of different virus strains could lead to increased transmission.
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- Researchers studied how individual immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 affect overall population immunity and its impact on disease transmission.
- Blood samples were collected from participants in the Dominican Republic at two points during the pandemic to analyze changes in antibody levels using advanced statistical models.
- Findings revealed that widespread transmission led to a convergence in antibody levels across different individuals, suggesting that this could inform future vaccination strategies and improve public health planning.
Article Synopsis
- COVID-19 incidence in the Dominican Republic varies by sociodemographic factors, with a focus on regional differences in seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies from a study conducted between June and October 2021.
- A total of 6,683 participants were analyzed, revealing that the Enriquillo region had significantly higher odds of seropositivity and protection against symptomatic Delta and ancestral strains compared to Yuma.
- Vaccination had a substantial impact, with those receiving two or more doses showing a significantly higher likelihood of antibody positivity and protection compared to unvaccinated individuals, indicating the need for targeted public health strategies to improve vaccination in regions with lower immunity.
Films and coatings manufactured with bio-based renewable materials, such as biopolymers and essential oils, could be a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative for protecting and preserving agricultural products. In this work, we developed films and coatings from pectin and chitosan to protect strawberries (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) from spoilage and microbial contamination.
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- A study was conducted with 2,300 patients in the Dominican Republic between March 2021 and August 2022 to track changes in antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.
- The geometric mean of these spike-binding antibodies significantly increased from 6.6 BAU/mL early in the study to 1,332 BAU/mL by mid-2022.
- The results indicated that higher antibody levels were associated with a lower likelihood of acute infection, suggesting that monitoring both antibody levels and viral presence can help assess community immunity against emerging COVID-19 variants.
SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence, cumulative infections, and immunity to symptomatic infection - A multistage national household survey and modelling study, Dominican Republic, June-October 2021.
Lancet Reg Health Am
December 2022
Article Synopsis
- A study in the Dominican Republic assessed SARS-CoV-2 immunological protection and found that a significant percentage of the population had been exposed or infected.
- Out of 6,683 participants, the research estimated that 85% had immunological exposure, with 78% achieving at least 50% protection against symptomatic infection from the ancestral strain and 66% against the Delta strain.
- Factors such as age, outdoor work, smoking, urban living, and vaccination status influenced the level of protection, highlighting variations in immunological response across different demographics.
Rickettsia felis is an emerging human pathogen associated primarily with the cat flea Ctenocephalides felis. In this study, we investigated the presence of Rickettsia felis in C. felis from Guatemala and Costa Rica.
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