Publications by authors named "Rebecca Abreu-Fernandes"
Article Synopsis
- Malaria, caused by Plasmodium spp. and transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes, remains a significant global health threat, with 249 million cases and 608,000 deaths reported in 2022.
- The study evaluated the GENEYE® ERA Plasmodium detection kit for rapid and accurate malaria diagnosis in the Brazilian Amazon, comparing it with traditional methods like microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDT).
- Results indicated that the ERA test demonstrated 100% sensitivity alongside qPCR, while microscopy and RDT had lower sensitivity, highlighting the need for improved diagnostic tools in malaria-endemic regions.
Investigation of Mutations in the and Genes of for the Molecular Surveillance of Chloroquine Resistance in Parasites from Gold Mining Areas in Roraima, Brazil.
Microorganisms
August 2024
Article Synopsis
- - The study focuses on chloroquine-resistant malaria in Brazil, specifically linked to illegal mining in the Roraima Yanomami Indigenous territory which increases the risk of resistant parasites.
- - Researchers collected blood samples from patients in Boa Vista and performed genetic analysis to understand mutations associated with chloroquine resistance, finding that 98% of participants were from mining areas.
- - The analysis revealed specific genetic mutations in the studied genes, but these mutations do not effectively predict chloroquine resistance, and there were no severe cases among the participants.
Multidrug- and artemisinin-resistant (ART-R) parasites represent a challenge for malaria elimination worldwide. Molecular monitoring in the Kelch domain region gene allows tracking mutations in parasite resistance to artemisinin. The increase in illegal miners in the Roraima Yanomami indigenous land (YIL) could favor ART-R parasites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF(1) Background: Malaria remains a significant global public health issue. Since parasites quickly became resistant to most of the available antimalarial drugs, treatment effectiveness must be constantly monitored. In Brazil, up to 10% of cases of vivax malaria resistant to chloroquine (CQ) have been registered.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF(1) Background: Malaria is a public health problem worldwide. Despite global efforts to control it, antimalarial drug resistance remains a great challenge. In 2009, our team identified, for the first time in Brazil, chloroquine (CQ)-susceptible parasites in isolates from the Brazilian Amazon.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArtemisinin (ART) is recommended as the first-line drug for infections combined with a long-acting partner drug. The emergence of resistance to ART (ARTR) is a concern for malaria. The most feared threat remains the spread of ARTR from Southeast Asia to Africa or the independent emergence of ARTR in Africa, where malaria accounts for 93% of all malaria cases and 94% of deaths.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCorrection: Balancing selection and high genetic diversity of Plasmodium vivax circumsporozoite central region in parasites from Brazilian Amazon and Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest.
PLoS One
February 2022
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBalancing selection and high genetic diversity of Plasmodium vivax circumsporozoite central region in parasites from Brazilian Amazon and Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest.
PLoS One
December 2020
Circumsporozoite protein (CSP) is the primary pre-erythrocytic vaccine target in Plasmodium species. Knowledge about their genetic diversity can help predict vaccine efficacy and the spread of novel parasite variants. Thus, we investigated pvcsp gene polymorphisms in 219 isolates (136 from Brazilian Amazon [BA], 71 from Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest [AF], and 12 from non-Brazilian countries [NB]).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Plasmodium vivax merozoite surface proteins (PvMSP) 1 and 7 are explored as potential vaccine targets due to their genetic diversity, which can reveal insights into parasite population structure in varying epidemiological contexts.
- There are significant genetic variations identified in the pvmsp-1 and pvmsp-7E genes from samples in the Brazilian Amazon and Rio de Janeiro, indicating high nucleotide diversity and potential for evolutionary adaptation.
- The study highlights that while pvmsp-1 and pvmsp-7E are genetically diverse and conserved across regions, pvmsp-7F shows low diversity, suggesting that these proteins could be promising candidates for developing a malaria blood-stage vaccine.
Background: Plasmodium vivax is the most widespread human malaria parasite outside Africa and is the predominant parasite in the Americas. Increasing reports of P. vivax disease severity, together with the emergence of drug-resistant strains, underscore the urgency of the development of vaccines against P.
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