Spatiotemporal transmission of SARS-CoV-2 lineages during 2020-2021 in Pernambuco-Brazil.

SARS-CoV-2 virus emerged as a new threat to humans and spread around the world, leaving a large death toll. As of January 2023, Brazil is among the countries with the highest number of registered deaths. Nonpharmacological and pharmacological interventions have been heterogeneously implemented in the country, which, associated with large socioeconomic differences between the country regions, has led to distinct virus spread dynamics.

Outbreak of Chagas disease in Brazil: Validation of a molecular diagnostic method.

Chagas disease (CD), caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), affects millions of people worldwide. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) have been used as tools to monitor parasitic levels in the bloodstream of individuals exposed to infection, thus enabling the monitoring of relapses and the effectiveness of therapy, for example.

Clinical-therapeutic follow-up of patients with American cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by different Leishmania spp. in Brazil.

American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) may present different clinical manifestations, immune and therapeutic responses, depending on the Leishmania species, as well as inoculum size and factors inherent to the affected individual. Thus, the aim of this study was to carry out clinical-therapeutic follow-up of Brazilian patients with ACL caused by different Leishmania species. Between 2015 and 2018, patients with ACL from Amazonas and Pernambuco states (Brazil) were submitted to blood collection before and after treatment.

Therapeutic Potential of Photosynthetic Microorganisms for Visceral Leishmaniasis: An Immunological Analysis.

New therapeutic strategies for visceral leishmaniasis (VL) have been studied, and the development of an immunotherapeutic agent that modulates the host's immune response is necessary. The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioactive extracts of photosynthetic microorganisms (PMs) for their leishmanicidal/leishmanistatic and immunomodulatory potentials. Bioactive extracts from PMs ( and ) were obtained by sonication.

Evaluation of long-term stability of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid extracted from human nasopharyngeal samples.

The maintenance of SARS-Cov-2 RNA samples poses a new challenge for laboratories and researchers. In addition, it is a requirement in order to identify what strain of the new coronavirus is predominant in a region, for instance. Therefore, it is a must to keep the quality and viability of stored RNA to respond to this and other valid questions.

Enhanced rapid commercial DNA extraction kit for the molecular detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2: Easy adaptation to current protocols.

Introduction: Herein, the authors describe a simple enhancement to a commercial rapid DNA extraction kit based on simple viral lysis for detecting COVID-19 via RT-qPCR.

Methods: After testing several different modifications, the adapted protocol with the best results in preliminary experiments was statistically evaluated in comparison with an automated robotic protocol.

Results: Processing and testing of 119 nasopharyngeal samples ultimately yielded near-perfect agreement with the automated protocol (κ = 0.

Detection of Leishmania infantum amastigotes in neutrophil from peripheral blood in a naturally infected dog.

Canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) is a zoonotic disease of high lethality caused by Leishmania infantum in the Americas. In the infected dog, the amastigotes are scarce in blood, especially in the late phase of the disease. This study aimed to report a rare case of L.

Immunoprophylactic Potential of a New Recombinant Antigen for Canine Visceral Leishmaniasis: An Finding.

The development and application of safe and effective immunoprophylactic/immunotherapeutic agents against canine visceral leishmaniasis (CanL) have been pointed out as the only means for the real control of the disease. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the cellular immune response of dogs, elicited by the new recombinant proteins of , Lci10 and Lci13, in order to investigate their potential for vaccinology. Twenty-four dogs were submitted to clinical, parasitological, serological and molecular tests, and then separated into two study groups: 12 infected (InD) and 12 non-infected dogs (NInD), and six of each group were directed for Lci10 and Lci13 evaluation.

Clinical and epidemiological profiles of patients with American cutaneous leishmaniasis from the states of Pernambuco and Amazonas, Brazil.

Introduction: Brazil has a high number of cases of American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) in the north and northeast regions. Therefore, continuous surveillance of environmental and socioeconomic factors in endemic areas is needed to develop strategic control measures. This study aimed to describe the clinical and epidemiological profiles of patients with ACL.

Duplex qPCR for Leishmania species identification using lesion imprint on filter paper.

Background: American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) is caused by different Leishmania parasites, which stimulate and direct the immune response against the infection.

Objective: To evaluate the TaqMan probe technology applicability to diagnose and identifying of Leishmania spp. related to the ACL etiology.

The diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil: Confronting old problems.

In Brazil, the main strategy adopted to contain Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) is the controversial culling of dogs with reagent serology for Canine VL (CVL). Despite there are studies showing that significant reduction of human cases has not been observed, as well as there are works demonstrating the occurrence of false-positive results in the confirmatory test, the protocol has been maintained. Researches that can reinforce the existence and persistence of this problem, as well as bring concrete alternatives are pivotal.

Seroprevalence and spatial distribution of canine leishmaniasis in an endemic region in Brazil: how has the situation changed after 10 years?

Introduction: Herein, we assessed the seroprevalence and spatial distribution of Leishmania infantum in dogs in Garanhuns, Northeastern Brazil.

Methods: Sera samples (n = 242) were analyzed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The spatial distribution of dogs seropositive for anti-Leishmania infantum antibodies was evaluated using kernel density estimation.

The Equivocal Role of Th17 Cells and Neutrophils on Immunopathogenesis of Leishmaniasis.

Advances in the understanding of leishmaniasis progression indicate that cellular interactions more complex than the Th1/Th2 paradigm define the course of infection. Th17 cells are a crucial modulator of adaptive immunity against parasites acting mainly on neutrophil recruitment and playing a dual role at the site of infection. This review describes the roles of both these cell types in linking innate defense responses to the establishment of specific immunity.

Standardization and evaluation of a duplex real-time quantitative PCR for the detection of Leishmania infantum DNA: a sample quality control approach.

Introduction:: Molecular techniques have been shown to be alternative methods for the accurate detection of infectious and parasitic diseases, such as the leishmaniases. The present study describes the optimization and evaluation of a duplex real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) protocol developed for the simultaneous detection of Leishmania infantum DNA and sample quality control.

Methods:: After preliminary tests with the newly designed TaqMan® probes for the two targets ( L.

Real-time PCR for Leishmania species identification: Evaluation and comparison with classical techniques.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a parasitic disease caused by various Leishmania species. Several studies have shown that real time quantitative PCR (qPCR) can be used for Leishmania spp. identification by analyzing the melting temperature (Tm).

Leishmaniases diagnosis: an update on the use of immunological and molecular tools.

Leishmaniases are caused by obligate intracellular protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania. They cause a spectrum of diseases, most notably visceral (VL), cutaneous (CL), and mucosal (ML) leishmaniasis, which affect millions of people around the world, each year. Despite scientific advances, leishmaniases cases are expanding, constituting an important public health problem.

Inclusion of quality controls on leishmaniases molecular tests to increase diagnostic accuracy in research and reference laboratories.

Early detection of leishmaniases and prompt institution of treatment are paramount for individuals and communities affected by these diseases. To overcome the remaining limitations inherent to molecular methods currently used and to ensure the accuracy of results in leishmaniases diagnosis, two triplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays with quality controls for the reactions were developed. Validity indicators were assessed in 186 dog blood samples from endemic areas in Brazil.

Tracking false-negative results in molecular diagnosis: proposal of a triplex-PCR based method for leishmaniasis diagnosis.

Background: Molecular biological methods have become increasingly relevant to the diagnosis and control of infectious diseases, such as leishmaniasis. Since various factors may affect the sensitivity of PCR assays, including DNA yield and purity, an optimal extraction method is pivotal. Losses of a parasite's DNA during extraction may significantly impair its detection by PCR and lead to false-negative results.

Detection of Leishmania infantum in animals and their ectoparasites by conventional PCR and real time PCR.

Visceral leishmaniosis (VL) is a parasitic disease caused by Leishmania infantum, which is primarily transmitted by phlebotomine sandflies. However, there has been much speculation on the role of other arthropods in the transmission of VL. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the presence of L.