Genomics and epidemiology of a novel SARS-CoV-2 lineage in Manaus, Brazil.

Cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Manaus, Brazil, resurged in late 2020, despite high levels of previous infection there. Through genome sequencing of viruses sampled in Manaus between November 2020 and January 2021, we identified the emergence and circulation of a novel SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern, lineage P.1, that acquired 17 mutations, including a trio in the spike protein (K417T, E484K and N501Y) associated with increased binding to the human ACE2 receptor.

Longitudinality and community orientation in the context of indigenous health.

Objectives: to analyze, from healthcare professionals' perspectives, the longitudinality and community orientation in Primary Health Care, offered both in the Special Indigenous Health District and in the primary network that assists non-indigenous population in municipal health services in Upper Rio Negro region.

Methods: a cross-sectional study with 116 professionals, 87 (75%) of indigenous health, 29 (25%) of municipal services. Primary Care Assessment Tool, professional version, used by Upper Rio Negro for Social Sciences region.

Nutrient conditions are primary drivers of bacterial capsule maintenance in .

The fitness cost associated with the production of bacterial capsules is considered to be offset by the protection provided by these extracellular structures against biotic aggressions or abiotic stress. However, it is unknown if the capsule contributes to fitness in the absence of these. Here, we explored conditions favouring the maintenance of the capsule in where the capsule is known to be a major virulence factor.

The industrial solvent trichloroethylene induces LRRK2 kinase activity and dopaminergic neurodegeneration in a rat model of Parkinson's disease.

Gene-environment interaction is implicated in the majority of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) risk, and some of the most widespread environmental contaminants are selectively toxic to dopaminergic neurons. Pesticides have long been connected to PD incidence, however, it has become increasingly apparent that other industrial byproducts likely influence neurodegeneration. For example, organic solvents, which are used in chemical, machining, and dry-cleaning industries, are of growing concern, as decades of solvent use and their effluence into the environment has contaminated much of the world's groundwater and soil.

Peptidogalactomannan from Histoplasma capsulatum yeast cell wall: role of the chemical structure in recognition and activation by peritoneal macrophages.

Histoplasma capsulatum is the causative agent of histoplasmosis, a systemic disease responsible for most reported causes of morbidity and mortality among immunosuppressed individuals. Peptidogalactomannan (pGM) was purified from the yeast cell wall of H. capsulatum isolated from bats, and its structure and involvement in modulating the host immune response were evaluated.

Concentrations, sources and risks of PAHs in dissolved and suspended material particulate fractions from the Northwest Atlantic Coast of the Iberian Peninsula.

Anthropogenic activities can introduce polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in coastal waters. Here, 16 priority PAHs were quantified by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) in seawater samples from three Iberian Atlantic habitats. Results showed global concentrations of ≅9 ng/L in the aqueous phase (DAP) and ≅94 ng/g, dw in suspended particulate matter (SPM).

Syncope in Patients with Cardiac Pacemakers.

Introduction: It is challenging to diagnose syncope in patients with pacemakers. Because these patients have increased morbidity and mortality risks, they require immediate attention to determine the causes in order to provide appropriate treatment. This study aimed to investigate the causes and predictive factors of syncope as well as the methods used to diagnose syncope in cardiac pacemaker patients.

Bacteria have numerous distinctive groups of phage-plasmids with conserved phage and variable plasmid gene repertoires.

Plasmids and temperate phages are key contributors to bacterial evolution. They are usually regarded as very distinct. However, some elements, termed phage-plasmids, are known to be both plasmids and phages, e.

PanACoTA: a modular tool for massive microbial comparative genomics.

The study of the gene repertoires of microbial species, their pangenomes, has become a key part of microbial evolution and functional genomics. Yet, the increasing number of genomes available complicates the establishment of the basic building blocks of comparative genomics. Here, we present PanACoTA (https://github.

Risk Analysis of the Organ Donation-Transplantation Process in Brazil.

Background: Organ transplantation has been for years one of the best treatment options for several medical conditions, and, all over the world, thousands of people need an organ transplant. However, the process through which an organ goes from a brain-dead patient to a new recipient is a complex and delicate one.

Research Questions: This study aims at identifying and assessing the main risks, their impact, and their relevance on the organ donation-transplantation (ODT) process in Brazil.

Cytotoxicity of Seaweed Compounds, Alone or Combined to Reference Drugs, against Breast Cell Lines Cultured in 2D and 3D.

Seaweed bioactive compounds have shown anticancer activities in in vitro and in vivo studies. However, tests remain limited, with conflicting results, and effects in combination with anticancer drugs are even scarcer. Here, the cytotoxic effects of five seaweed compounds (astaxanthin, fucoidan, fucosterol, laminarin, and phloroglucinol) were tested alone and in combination with anticancer drugs (cisplatin-Cis; and doxorubicin-Dox), in breast cell lines (three breast cancer (BC) subtypes and one non-tumoral).

Causes and Consequences of Bacteriophage Diversification via Genetic Exchanges across Lifestyles and Bacterial Taxa.

Bacteriophages (phages) evolve rapidly by acquiring genes from other phages. This results in mosaic genomes. Here, we identify numerous genetic transfers between distantly related phages and aim at understanding their frequency, consequences, and the conditions favoring them.

Limitations and advances in new treatments and future perspectives of corneal blindness.

This review is intended to describe the therapeutic approaches for corneal blindness, detailing the steps and elements involved in corneal wound healing. It also presents the limitations of the actual surgical and pharmacological strategies used to restore and maintain corneal transparency in terms of long-term survival and geographic coverage. In addition, we critically review the perspectives of anabolic agents, including vitamin A, hormones, growth factors, and novel promitotic and anti-inflammatory modulators, to assist corneal wound healing.

Lacrimal gland atrophy and dry eye related to isotretinoin, androgen, and prolactin: differential diagnosis for Sjögren's syndrome.

This report is of three cases of sicca syndrome, initially suspected to be Sjögren's syndrome, which was ruled out by clinical and laboratory investigations. The patients were a 24-year-old woman, a 32-year-old man, and a 77-year-old woman with chronic symptoms of sicca syndrome, including dry eye syndrome. The first case was associated with the use of isotretinoin, a retinoic acid.

Prevalence of Trypanosoma Cruzi Infection in Blood Donors.

Background: Chagas disease (CD) is considered a public health problem in Latin America. The northeastern region, especially the state of Ceará, still represents a major concern in terms of the risk of transmission of CD.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of T.

The impact of genetic diversity on gene essentiality within the Escherichia coli species.

Bacteria from the same species can differ widely in their gene content. In Escherichia coli, the set of genes shared by all strains, known as the core genome, represents about half the number of genes present in any strain. Although recent advances in bacterial genomics have unravelled genes required for fitness in various experimental conditions, most studies have focused on single model strains.

Culturable bacteria associated with Anopheles darlingi and their paratransgenesis potential.

Background: Malaria remains a major public health problem in South America, mostly in the Amazon region. Among newly proposed ways of controlling malaria transmission to humans, paratransgenesis is a promising alternative. Paratransgenesis aims to inhibit the development of parasites within the vector through the action of genetically modified bacteria.

Challenges for the Brazilian State from the COVID-19 pandemic: the case of paradiplomacy in the state of Maranhão.

As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread worldwide in 2020, populations, authorities, and local and global health governance institutions have been affected differently. Global Health Diplomacy and "paradiplomacy" have become relevant instruments and arenas for the challenges raised by the pandemic, especially for non-State or subnational actors. This Essay analyzes the case of the Brazilian state of Maranhão during the pandemic, which used a "wartime operation" to purchase more than a hundred mechanical ventilators on the international market, over the Federal Government's head, at a moment of fierce international competition for medical supplies and equipment.

Efforts to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: potential entry points for neglected tropical diseases.

Background: The damage inflicted by the coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic upon humanity is and will continue to be considerable. Unprecedented progress made in global health over the past 20 years has reverted and economic growth has already evaporated, giving rise to a global recession, the likes of which we may not have experienced since the Second World War. Our aim is to draw the attention of the neglected tropical disease (NTD) community towards some of the major emerging economic opportunities which are quickly appearing on the horizon as a result of COVID-19.

Progress towards elimination of lymphatic filariasis in the Americas region.

In South and Central America, lymphatic filariasis (LF) is caused by Wuchereria bancrofti, which is transmitted by Culex quinquefasciatus, the only vector species in this region. Of the seven countries considered endemic for LF in the Americas in the last decade, Costa Rica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago were removed from the World Health Organization list in 2011. The remaining countries, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Guyana and Haiti, have achieved important progress in recent years.

Protection from α-Synuclein induced dopaminergic neurodegeneration by overexpression of the mitochondrial import receptor TOM20.

Dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra are selectively vulnerable to mitochondrial dysfunction, which is hypothesized to be an early and fundamental pathogenic mechanism in Parkinson's disease (PD). Mitochondrial function depends on the successful import of nuclear-encoded proteins, many of which are transported through the TOM20-TOM22 outer mitochondrial membrane import receptor machinery. Recent data suggests that post-translational modifications of α-synuclein promote its interaction with TOM20 at the outer mitochondrial membrane and thereby inhibit normal protein import, leading to dysfunction, and death of dopaminergic neurons.

Neuraminidase inhibitors rewire neutrophil function in murine sepsis and in COVID-19.

Neutrophil overstimulation plays a crucial role in tissue damage during severe infections. Neuraminidase (NEU)-mediated cleavage of surface sialic acid has been demonstrated to regulate leukocyte responses. Here, we report that antiviral NEU inhibitors constrain host NEU activity, surface sialic acid release, ROS production, and NETs released by microbial-activated human neutrophils.

Acute kidney injury induced by glycerol is worsened by orchiectomy and attenuated by testosterone replacement.

Although several studies have demonstrated that the male gender represents an independent risk factor for renal disease, evidence shows that androgens exert renal protective actions. The findings are controversial and no studies have evaluated the effects of orchiectomy and testosterone replacement on glycerol-induced renal injury. Male Wistar rats were submitted to orchiectomy or sham surgery and divided into four groups: SC, sham control rats injected with NaCl; SG, sham rats injected with glycerol; OG, orchiectomized rats injected with glycerol; OGT, orchiectomized rats injected with glycerol and testosterone.