Evaluation of Dengue, Zika virus, and Chikungunya virus transmission by blood components in recipients of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Background: Brazil has a high prevalence of arboviruses, especially Dengue (DENV), Zika (ZKV), and Chikungunya (CHKV).

Objectives: To study the risk of DENV, ZKV, and CHKV transmission by blood components in the haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) population.

Methods: Prospective cohort of HSCT recipients and donors performed at the Hospital das Clinicas da FMUSP, São Paulo-Brazil.

Graphene-based hybrid electrical-electrochemical point-of-care device for serologic COVID-19 diagnosis.

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemics highlighted the need of sensitive, selective, and easy-to-handle biosensing devices. In the contemporary scenario, point-of-care devices for mass testing and infection mapping within a population have proven themselves as of primordial importance. Here, we introduce a graphene-based Electrical-Electrochemical Vertical Device (EEVD) point-of-care biosensor, strategically engineered for serologic COVID-19 diagnosis.

Polymerase chain reaction targeting 16S ribosomal RNA for the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis after neurosurgery.

Objectives: Bacterial and aseptic meningitis after neurosurgery can present similar clinical signs and symptoms. The aims of this study were to develop and test a molecular method to diagnose bacterial meningitis (BM) after neurosurgery.

Methods: A 16S ribosomal RNA gene PCR-based strategy was developed using artificially inoculated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) followed by sequencing.

Detection of HIV-1 infections in blood donors during the pre-seroconversion window period in São Paulo, Brazil.

By decreasing the pre-seroconversion window period, nucleic acid testing (NAT) has improved the safety of blood products and reduced the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections. Between 2011 and 2017, NAT determinations for approximately 898,202 donations were performed at Fundação Pró-Sangue/Hemocentro de São Paulo (FPS-HSP). Three seronegative HIV-viremic donations were detected.

Epstein-Barr Viral Load is Associated to Response in AIDS-Related Lymphomas.

AIDS-related lymphoma (ARL) development is associated to immunodeficiency state with proliferation of B-cells driven by HIV itself and EBV infection. However, Epstein-Barr DNA is not detected in malignant cells of all ARL subtypes. A prospective and controlled study to analyze EBV viral load (VL) in plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of ARL patients was performed to analyze if Epstein-Barr VL could be related to response in these patients.

Comparison of two methods of RNA extraction from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue specimens.

The present study aimed to compare two different methods of extracting RNA from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) specimens of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). We further aimed to identify possible influences of variables--such as tissue size, duration of paraffin block storage, fixative type, primers used for cDNA synthesis, and endogenous genes tested--on the success of amplification from the samples. Both tested protocols used the same commercial kit for RNA extraction (the RecoverAll Total Nucleic Acid Isolation Optimized for FFPE Samples from Ambion).

Distribution of hepatitis B virus genotypes and viral load levels in Brazilian chronically infected patients in São Paulo city.

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the serum viral load in chronically infected Hepatitis B virus (HBV) patients and to investigate the distribution of HBV genotypes in São Paulo city. Quantitative HBV-DNA assays and HBV genotyping have gained importance for predicting HBV disease progression, have been employed for assessing infectivity, for treatment monitoring and for detecting the emergence of drug resistance. Twenty-nine Brazilian patients with suspected chronic hepatitis B were studied, using real time PCR for viral load determination and direct DNA sequencing for the genotyping.