Publications by authors named "Sarah Guagliardo"

Article Synopsis
  • The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the urgent need for effective triage tools in healthcare to identify patients vulnerable to severe infections.
  • Researchers studied COVID-19 patients at multiple sites, analyzing plasma markers to link their levels to mortality and severity of illness within set timeframes.
  • Their findings showed higher suPAR levels correlated with increased mortality risk and severity, supporting the use of specific biomarkers like suPAR and sTREM-1 for better patient triage and hospital resource management.
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We used cross-sectional data from 226 patients with monkeypox virus to investigate the association between anatomic exposure site and lesion development. Penile, anorectal, and oral exposures predicted lesion presence at correlating anatomic sites. Exposure site also predicted the first lesion site of the penis and anus.

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  • Oropouche virus is spreading to new regions in South America and the Caribbean, raising concerns due to its vertical transmission and reported deaths.
  • A review highlights factors affecting its spread and assesses the risk of local transmission in the U.S., which is currently considered low due to ecological differences.
  • Emphasis is put on the need for better understanding and timely public health responses to control potential further outbreaks.
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Beginning in late 2023, Oropouche virus was identified as the cause of large outbreaks in Amazon regions with known endemic transmission and in new areas in South America and the Caribbean. The virus is spread to humans by infected biting midges and some mosquito species. Although infection typically causes a self-limited febrile illness, reports of two deaths in patients with Oropouche virus infection and vertical transmission associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes have raised concerns about the threat of this virus to human health.

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A comprehensive understanding of the spatial distribution and correlates of infection are key for the planning of disease control programs and assessing the feasibility of elimination and/or eradication. In this work, we used species distribution modeling to predict the environmental suitability of the Guinea worm (Dracunculus medinensis) and identify important climatic and sociodemographic risk factors. Using Guinea worm surveillance data collected by the Chad Guinea Worm Eradication Program (CGWEP) from 2010 to 2022 in combination with remotely sensed climate and sociodemographic correlates of infection within an ensemble machine learning framework, we mapped the environmental suitability of Guinea worm infection in Chad.

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Two doses of JYNNEOS vaccine are effective in preventing many mpox cases and can reduce the severity of symptoms in infected persons. However, infections among fully vaccinated persons can occur. During May 2022-May 2024, a total of 271 mpox cases among fully vaccinated persons were reported to CDC from 27 U.

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Article Synopsis
  • Orthopoxviruses, including the monkeypox virus (MPXV), have shown unpredictable patterns of illness and spread, first noted in the late 1950s among primates and later causing human cases in Africa since the 1970s.
  • In May 2022, a new MPXV outbreak emerged notably among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, marking a shift in transmission dynamics.
  • The article discusses prior knowledge of mpox, insights gained during the 2022 outbreak, and the ongoing research needed to enhance global health measures against this virus.
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Article Synopsis
  • - Since May 2022, mpox (monkeypox) has spread to 108 countries, predominantly affecting gay and bisexual men.
  • - Two studies conducted in mid-2022 revealed that 8% of men who have sex with men in San Francisco had orthopoxvirus antibodies, while approximately 5.6% of samples from across the U.S. tested positive for monkeypox.
  • - The findings suggest that there are likely very few undiagnosed mpox cases in areas with good sexual healthcare access and heightened awareness among patients and healthcare providers.
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The extent to which the 2022 mpox outbreak has affected persons without a recent history of male-to-male sexual contact (MMSC) is not well understood. During November 1-December 14, 2022, CDC partnered with six jurisdictional health departments to characterize possible exposures among mpox patients aged ≥18 years who did not report MMSC during the 3 weeks preceding symptom onset. Among 52 patients included in the analysis, 14 (27%) had a known exposure to a person with mpox, including sexual activity and other close intimate contact (eight) and household contact (six).

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The SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant, first identified in October 2020, quickly became the dominant variant worldwide. We used publicly available data to explore the relationship between illness and death (peak case rates, death rates, case-fatality rates) and selected predictors (percentage vaccinated, percentage of the population >65 years, population density, testing volume, index of mitigation policies) in 45 high-income countries during the Delta wave using rank-order correlation and ordinal regression. During the Delta-dominant period, most countries reported higher peak case rates (57%) and lower peak case-fatality rates (98%).

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Article Synopsis
  • - Baseline mapping revealed trachoma as a significant public health issue in Kiribati, prompting the government to implement two rounds of mass drug administration (MDA) of antibiotics.
  • - An impact survey conducted in 2019 on Kiritimati Island and Tarawa found that while there was a 40% decrease in trachomatous inflammation (TF) in children aged 1-9 years, prevalence still surpassed the threshold required to stop MDA.
  • - Despite some reductions in infection indicators, trachomatous trichiasis rates remained constant and above elimination targets, indicating that trachoma continues to be a public health challenge in Kiribati even after intervention efforts.
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As of March 7, 2023, a total of 30,235 confirmed and probable monkeypox (mpox) cases were reported in the United States, predominantly among cisgender men who reported recent sexual contact with another man (1). Although most mpox cases during the current outbreak have been self-limited, cases of severe illness and death have been reported (2-4). During May 10, 2022-March 7, 2023, 38 deaths among persons with probable or confirmed mpox (1.

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Yaws is a chronic, relapsing disease of skin, bone, and cartilage caused by Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue. Yaws was last reported in Nigeria in 1996, although neighboring countries have recently reported cases.

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DNA topoisomerases are essential for preserving genomic integrity. DNA topoisomerases induce breakage of DNA to facilitate replication and transcription by relaxing DNA and relieving supercoiling. Aberrant expression and deletions of topoisomerases are associated with psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.

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The relative contribution of the respiratory route to transmission of mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) is unclear. We review the evidence for respiratory transmission of monkeypox virus (MPXV), examining key works from animal models, human outbreaks and case reports, and environmental studies. Laboratory experiments have initiated MPXV infection in animals via respiratory routes.

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Beginning December 6, 2021, all international air passengers boarding flights to the United States were required to show either a negative result from a SARS-CoV-2 viral test taken ≤1 day before departure or proof of recovery from COVID-19 within the preceding 90 days (1). As of June 12, 2022, predeparture testing was no longer mandatory but remained recommended by CDC (2,3). Various modeling studies have estimated that predeparture testing the day before or the day of air travel reduces transmission or importation of SARS-CoV-2 by 31%-76% (4-7).

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Article Synopsis
  • Early in the pandemic, cruise travel led to increased spread of COVID-19, particularly from Nile River cruises in Egypt, with 149 confirmed cases reported across various US states after travelers returned.
  • Among those affected, there was a notable impact with 4.7% mortality and 28.1% hospitalization rates, and most transmission events traced back to Wisconsin.
  • Phylogenetic analysis indicated that travelers were likely infected in Egypt, emphasizing the heightened risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure associated with river cruises.
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Viral genomic surveillance has been a critical source of information during the COVID-19 pandemic, but publicly available data can be sparse, concentrated in wealthy countries, and often made public weeks or months after collection. We used publicly available viral genomic surveillance data submitted to GISAID and GenBank to examine sequencing coverage and lag time to submission during 2020-2021. We compared publicly submitted sequences by country with reported infection rates and population and also examined data based on country-level World Bank income status and World Health Organization region.

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Article Synopsis
  • The 2022 monkeypox epidemic in non-endemic countries showed different epidemiological patterns compared to those previously reported in endemic areas, prompting a study to analyze clinical characteristics of confirmed cases.
  • Data from 226 reported monkeypox cases across 71 sites in 29 countries highlighted that a vast majority (99%) of the affected individuals were gay, bisexual, or men who have sex with men, with a median age of 37.
  • Of the patients studied, 44% were HIV positive, with many having close contact or sexual history related to their monkeypox exposure, and 13% required hospitalization, with over half experiencing severe illness.
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We enrolled arriving international air travelers in a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 genomic surveillance program. We used molecular testing of pooled nasal swabs and sequenced positive samples for sublineage. Traveler-based surveillance provided early-warning variant detection, reporting the first US Omicron BA.

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Background: Dracunculiasis (also known as Guinea worm disease), caused by the Dracunculus medinensis nematode, is progressing towards eradication, with a reduction in cases from 3·5 million cases in the mid-1980s to only 54 human cases at the end of 2019. Most cases now occur in Chad. On April 19, 2019, a 19-year-old woman presented with D medinensis in an area within the Salamat region of Chad, where the disease had not been previously reported.

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The SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant emerged shortly after COVID-19 vaccines became available in 2021. We describe SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections in a highly vaccinated, well-monitored US Embassy community in Kampala, Uganda. Defining breakthrough infection rates in highly vaccinated populations can help determine public health messaging, guidance, and policy globally.

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Centrioles are submicron-scale, barrel-shaped organelles typically found in pairs, and play important roles in ciliogenesis and bipolar spindle assembly. In general, successful execution of centriole-dependent processes is highly reliant on the ability of the cell to stringently control centriole number. This in turn is mainly achieved through the precise duplication of centrioles during each S phase.

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