Ornithodoros cf. mimon infected with a spotted fever group Rickettsia in Brazil.

Ornithodoros mimon is an argasid tick primarily associated with bats that also infest other animals including birds, opossums and humans. In this paper, we report the finding of an argasid species resembling O. mimon, which similarly may be found in human dwellings and parasitize humans in Brazil.

Parasite species variation and impact of spatial displacement of the population on cutaneous leishmaniasis in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis results from complex interactions between human beings, vectors and the environment. Parasitic species differ in epidemiological and geographical contexts.

Methods: We studied a retrospective cohort of 696 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis treated at a reference centre in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between 2000 and 2015.

Comparison of parasite load by qPCR and histopathological changes of inner and outer edge of ulcerated cutaneous lesions of cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is an infectious vector-borne disease caused by protozoa of the Leishmania genus that affects humans and animals. The distribution of parasites in the lesion is not uniform, and there are divergences in the literature about the choice of the better sampling site for diagnosis-inner or outer edge of the ulcerated skin lesion. In this context, determining the region of the lesion with the highest parasite density and, consequently, the appropriate site for collecting samples can define the success of the laboratory diagnosis.

Favorable responses to treatment with 5 mg Sbv/kg/day meglumine antimoniate in patients with American tegumentary leishmaniasis acquired in different Brazilian regions.

Introduction: Favorable responses in American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL) patients to treatment with 5 mg Sbv/kg/day meglumine antimoniate (MA) has been reported in Rio de Janeiro, but little is known regarding the therapeutic response to low doses in patients from other locations.

Methods: A retrospective review of medical records was conducted to compare the therapeutic response to 5 mg Sbv/kg/day MA treatment among 36 patients who acquired ATL in Brazilian states other than Rio de Janeiro (OS group) and 72 patients from Rio de Janeiro (RJ group).

Results: One course of 5 mg Sbv/kg/day MA cured 72.

Biological study of Trypanosoma caninum under co-culture with different feeder layer cells.

Trypanosoma caninum is a parasite isolated from domestic dogs, of which several biological aspects remain unknown, including evolutive forms found in vertebrate hosts. The objective of this study was to evaluate co-cultures of T. caninum with different cell lines as feeder layers to monitor the differentiation process and investigate infective potential.