Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome: A Report of Five Cases.

Compared to classic Lyme disease (LD), Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome (BYS) has the following distinctive characteristics: it is transmitted in the Amazon area and Northeast, Central-West, Southeast, and South regions of Brazil by hard ticks, notably or sp. The absence of sp. ticks in areas at risk of BYS in Brazil is probably the main reason for the disease's differences from LD in the United States, Europe, and Asia.

The Current State of Knowledge on Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome (Brazilian Lyme Disease-like Illness): Chronological Presentation of Historical and Scientific Events Observed over the Last 30 Years.

Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome (BYS) is an emerging Brazilian tick-borne infectious disease that clinically mimics Lyme Disease (LD) present in the Northern Hemisphere. LD is caused by spirochetes belonging to the sensu lato complex and transmitted by Ixodid ticks of complex . On the contrary, BYS is transmitted by hard Ixodid ticks of the genera , .

Innate and Th1/Th17 adaptive immunity in acute and convalescent Brazilian borreliosis disease.

Introduction: Brazilian borreliosis (BB) disease is an infectious disease transmitted by ticks that mimics Lyme disease (LD) from the Northern Hemisphere. The BB clinical picture is characterized by a pathognomonic skin lesion (migratory erythema) and joint, neurological, cardiac and psychiatric symptoms. Innate and Th1/Th17 adaptive immunity seem to play an important role in the pathogenesis of Lyme disease.

Pathological pulmonary vascular remodeling is induced by type V collagen in a model of scleroderma.

Objective: The pulmonary vascular remodeling in systemic sclerosis (SSc) is poorly understood and animal models are lacking. Type V collagen (COLV) is elevated in SSc and is implicated in the pathogenesis, and immunization with human COLV induces SSc-like skin and lung changes in rabbits and mice. Here we tested the hypothesis that COLV immunization will induce pathological and functional changes that phenocopy SSc-associated pulmonary vascular disease.

Brazilian borreliosis with special emphasis on humans and horses.

Borreliosis caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato is a cosmopolitan zoonosis studied worldwide; it is called Lyme disease in many countries of the Northern Hemisphere and Lyme-like or Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome in Brazil. However, despite the increasing number of suspect cases, this disease is still neglected in Brazil by the medical and veterinary communities. Brazilian Lyme-like borreliosis likely involves capybaras as reservoirs and Amblyomma and Rhipicephalus ticks as vectors.

Serological evidence of exposure to tick-borne agents in opossums (Didelphis spp.) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.

This work involved a serological investigation of tick-borne pathogens in opossums in eight municipalities of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Serum samples from 109 opossums (91 Didelphis aurita and 18 Didelphis albiventris) were tested to detect antibodies to Rickettsia rickettsii (Taiaçu strain, 1:64 cut-off) and Ehrlichia canis (São Paulo strain, 1:40 cut-off), by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA); and against Borrelia burgdorferi (strain G39/40) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The presence of antibodies to anti-R.

Anaphylactoid reaction caused by sodium ceftriaxone in two horses experimentally infected by Borrelia burgdorferi.

Background: Lyme borreliosis is a disease transmitted by ticks to mammals, especially in horses and humans. Caused by a spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, it can result in lameness, arthritis, carditis, dermatitis and neurological signs. Anaphylactoid reactions are severe responses caused by direct action of substances (drugs, toxins), which can pose risks to life.

First report of mild Brazilian spotted fever associated to arthritis.

We describe the first Brazilian case of mild Rickettsiosis, complicated by knee monoarthritis, in young adult bitten by a tick on his left leg in Camburi zone, located in São Sebastião municipality, southern coastal region of the State of São Paulo, in the Atlantic rainforest region, Brazil. The patient developed inoculation eschar at the tick bite site associated with enlarged lymph nodes in the left groin, fever, polyarthralgia, headache and macular rash. Twenty days after tick bite episode, he displayed monoarthritis in his right knee.

Evidence of Borrelia in wild and domestic mammals from the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

The main of the study was to evaluate the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi infection in domestic and wild vertebrates and ectoparasites in endemic areas from the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 445 serum samples were examined by ELISA, which used the Borrelia burgdorferi strain G39/40 U.S.

Chronic lymphomonocytic meningoencephalitis, oligoarthritis and erythema nodosum: report of Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome of long and relapsing evolution.

The Brazilian human borreliosis, also known as Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome (BYS), is a tickborne disease but whose ticks do not pertain to the Ixodes ricinus complex. It is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato microorganisms and resembles clinical and laboratory features of Lyme disease (LD). BYS is also distinguished from LD by its prolonged clinical evolution, with relapsing episodes and autoimmune dysfunction.

Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Brazilian version of the Scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire (SHAQ).

The Scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire (SHAQ) is a feasible multisystem specific tool that has been extensively used as an additional assessment for systemic sclerosis (SSc). The aim of this study is to cross-culturally adapt and validate the Brazilian version of the SHAQ. Construct validity was assessed based on the correlations between SHAQ and both the Medical Outcomes Survey Short Form 36 version 2 (SF-36v2™) and the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI).

Chronic unremitting headache associated with Lyme disease-like illness.

The Brazilian Lyme-disease-like illness (BLDLI) or Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome is a unique zoonosis found in Brazil. It reproduces all the clinical symptoms of Lyme disease except for the high frequencies of relapse and the presence of autoimmune manifestations. Two cases of borreliosis manifesting with unremitting headache, which is a symptom associated with late-stage BLDLI, were presented.

Systemic sclerosis sine scleroderma: distinct features in a large Brazilian cohort.

Objective: Systemic sclerosis sine scleroderma (ssSSc) is an infrequent SSc variant characterized by visceral and immunological manifestations of SSc in the absence of clinically detectable skin involvement. We sought to delineate the characteristics of ssSSc in a cohort of Brazilian patients and contrast them with those in the literature.

Methods: SSc patients seen at two academic medical centres in Brazil were retrospectively analysed.

Experimental diabetes modulates collagen remodelling of joints in rats.

Unlabelled: The aim of this study was to evaluate extracellular matrix components in articular cartilage, ligaments and synovia in an experimental model of diabetes. Young Wistar rats were divided into a streptozotocin-induced (STZ; 35 mg/kg) diabetic group (DG; n=15) and a control group (CG; n=15). Weight, blood glucose and plasma anti-carboxymethyllysine were measured 70 days after STZ infusions.

Survival, causes of death, and prognostic factors in systemic sclerosis: analysis of 947 Brazilian patients.

Objective: To analyze survival, prognostic factors, and causes of death in a large cohort of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Methods: From 1991 to 2010, 947 patients with SSc were treated at 2 referral university centers in Brazil. Causes of death were considered SSc-related and non-SSc-related.

Fluctuation of anti-endothelial cell antibody titers in " mixed connective tissue disease.

Background: Antibodies directed against endothelial cell surface antigens have been described in many disorders and have been associated with disease activity. Since the most prominent histopathologic feature in mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) is the widespread and unique proliferative vascular lesion, our aim was to evaluate the frequency of anti-endothelial cell antibodies (AECA) in this condition.

Objectives: To evaluate the frequency of AECA in this disease and assess its clinical and laboratory associations.

Amplification of the flgE gene provides evidence for the existence of a Brazilian borreliosis.

Introduction: The symptoms of Brazilian borreliosis resemble the clinical manifestations of Lyme disease (LD). However, there are differences between the two in terms of epidemiological and laboratory findings. Primers usually employed to diagnose LD have failed to detect Borrelia strains in Brazil.

Abnormal collagen V deposition in dermis correlates with skin thickening and disease activity in systemic sclerosis.

Objective: The physiological and mechanical properties of the skin, the primary tissue affected by systemic sclerosis, depend on the assembly of collagen types I, III and V, which form heterotypic fibers. Collagen V (COLV) regulates heterotypic fiber diameter, and the maintenance of its properties is important for maintaining normal tissue architecture and function. Based on a COLV-induced experimental SSc model, in which overexpression of abnormal COLV was a prominent feature, we assumed that this abnormality could be present in SSc patients and could be correlated to disease duration, skin thickening and disease activity.

Profile of patients with Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome admitted at "Instituto de Infectologia Emilio Ribas".

The aim of this study was to evaluate the epidemiological, clinical and laboratorial profile of patients with Baggio-Yoshinari Syndrome (BYS), who underwent internment at the Instituto de Infectologia Emilio Ribas in São Paulo, Brazil, during the period from July 1990 to July 2006. BYS is a new Brazilian tick-borne disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato microorganisms that resembles features of Lyme disease (LD), except for its epidemiological, clinical and laboratorial particularities. From 60 patients' records with positive serology to B.

Influence of suture on peripheral nerve regeneration and collagen production at the site of neurorrhaphy: an experimental study.

Background: Restoration of nerve continuity and effective maintenance of coaptation are considered fundamental principles of end-to-end peripheral nerve repair.

Objective: To evaluate the influence of the number of stitches on axonal regeneration and collagen production after neurorrhaphy.

Methods: Thirty male Wistar rats were equally divided into 3 groups and were all operated on with the right sciatic nerve exposed.

Growth, cysts and kinetics of Borrelia garinii (Spirochaetales: Spirochaetacea) in different culture media.

The aim of the present paper was to evaluate cyst formation and growth parameters of Borrelia garinii in a range of media differing in formulation and cost. A qualitative assessment of morphology and motility of B. garinii was conducted.

Brazilian lyme-like disease or Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome: exotic and emerging Brazilian tick-borne zoonosis.

Lyme disease (LD) is a frequent zoonosis found in the Northern Hemisphere and is considered an infectious disease caused by spirochetes belonging sensu lato to the Borrelia burgdorferi complex transmitted by ticks of the Ixodes ricinus group. In 1992, first cases similar to LD were described in Brazil, when brothers, after a tick bite episode developed symptoms , as erythema migrans, general flu-like symptoms and arthritis. Careful analysis of Brazilian LD-like illness casuistry showed that epidemiological, clinical and laboratorial features in the country were very different from those exhibited by North American and Eurasian LD patients.

Survey for tick-borne zoonoses in the state of Espirito Santo, southeastern Brazil.

Blood samples collected from 201 humans, 92 dogs, and 27 horses in the state of Espirito Santo, Brazil, were tested by polymerase chain reaction, indirect immunofluorescence assays, and indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for tick-borne diseases (rickettsiosis, ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis, borreliosis, babesiosis). Our results indicated that the surveyed counties are endemic for spotted fever group rickettsiosis because sera from 70 (34.8%) humans, 7 (7.

Collagen V and vascular injury promote lung architectural changes in systemic sclerosis.

Background: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a multisystem disorder characterized by inflammation, fibrosis and vascular damage. The aim of this study was to evaluate the interactions between basement membrane disruption, endothelial injury and collagen V deposition on the vascular wall, as well as their association with pulmonary function tests in patients with SSc.

Method: The endothelial apoptosis was assessed by TUNEL and electron microscopy, and quantified through the point-counting technique.

Novel spotted fever group rickettsiosis, Brazil.

We report a clinical case of spotted fever group rickettsiosis acquired in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Definitive diagnosis was supported by seroconversion between acute-phase and convalescent-phase serum samples. Molecular analysis of skin samples indicated the agent was a novel spotted fever group strain closely related to Rickettsia africae, R.