Publications by authors named "Vania Lucia da Silva"

Weissella, a genus of lactic acid bacteria, has diverse beneficial attributes including probiotic activity and biotechnological applications. Therefore, the investigation of the Weissella genus has garnered growing interest. In this study, we sequenced the complete genome of Weissella paramesenteroides UFTM 2.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) mesophilic facultatively anaerobic Gram-negative rods are a public health issue and their spread from animal-source foods to humans is of concern worldwide. Hence, the aim of this study was to examine the antibiotic susceptibility patterns and physiological aspects of such rods, including their tolerance to toxic metals and the screening of efflux pumps expressing isolates among enterobacteria isolated from meat (chicken, beef and pork) and fish samples acquired from retail establishments in a Brazilian urban Centre of over 2,300,000 inhabitants. The study revealed that 62.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: An experimental infection based on a tissue cage model was reproduced to evaluate the interference subinhibitory concentration (SIC) of metronidazole in Bacteroides fragilis OMV production patterns and immunological and histological characteristics of the host facing the experimental challenge.

Methods: A tissue cage model was reproduced for B. fragilis experimental challenge in three Wistar rats groups: negative control group (NC) without bacterial inoculation; positive control group (PC) infected with parental strain; and experimental group (EG) infected with the parental strain and treated with metronidazole SIC.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Water is the main resource for maintaining life. Anthropic activities influence the microbial epidemiological chain in watersheds, which can act as ways of disseminating microorganisms resistant to antimicrobial drugs, with impacts on human, animal, and environmental health. Here, we characterized aquatic microbial communities and their resistomes in samples collected along Rio das Ostras watershed during two seasons.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The use of xenobiotics in food production and how food intake is carried out in different cultures, along with different eating habits (omnivorism (ON), ovolactovegetarianism (VT), and strict vegetarianism (VG)) seem to have implications for antimicrobial resistance, especially in the human gut microbiota. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate aspects of the clinical resistome of the human gut microbiota among healthy individuals with different eating habits. Volunteers were divided into 3 groups: = 19 omnivores (ON), = 20 ovolactovegetarians (VT), and = 19 strict vegetarians (VG), and nutritional and anthropometric parameters were measured.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Although lifestyle and physiology in obese individuals are accepted to lead to changes in the intestinal microbiota, uncertainty remains about microbiota dysbiosis, and xenobiotics intake, as a source of selective pressure, independent of antimicrobial chemotherapy. The aim of this study was to compare the occurrence of antimicrobial resistance genetic markers (ARG) in faecal specimens of eutrophic, overweight and obese individuals, and their correlation with xenobiotic intake and gut bacteria density. : This was a cross-sectional case-controlled study including 72 adult participants with no record of intestinal or systemic diseases, or recent use of antimicrobials, grouped as eutrophic, overweight, or obese.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Novel lipophilic gold(I) complexes containing 1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-thione or 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione derivatives were synthesized and characterized by IR, high resolution mass spectrometry, and H, C P NMR. The cytotoxicity of the compounds was evaluated considering cisplatin and/or auranofin as reference in different tumor cell lines: colon cancer (CT26WT), metastatic skin melanoma (B16F10), breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7), cervical carcinoma (HeLa), glioblastoma (M059 J). Normal human lung fibroblasts (GM07492-A) and kidney normal cell (BHK-21) were also evaluated.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Nonfermenting Gram-negative bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii are widespread in the environment and are increasingly associated with nosocomial infections, often associated with multidrug-resistance phenotypes. This study aimed to evaluate epidemiological, physiological, and molecular characteristics of carbapenem resistance in P. aeruginosa and A.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a syndrome related to Gardnerella vaginalis and is characterized by an imbalance in the vaginal microbiota. This work focused on the evaluation of antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and the occurrence of the vaginolysin (vly) gene in G. vaginalis isolated from BV and non-BV patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Bacterial resistance is a growing concern in the nosocomial environment in which Klebsiella pneumoniae and Enterobacter aerogenes play an important role due to their opportunism and carbapenemase-production. This work aimed to evaluate physiological and molecular characteristics of carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae and E.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Non-fermenting Gram-negative bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii are widespread in the environment and are increasingly associated with nosocomial infections. Extensive and indiscriminate use of antibiotics in hospitals has contributed to an increased number of infections caused by these microorganisms, that are resistant to a wide variety of antimicrobials, including β-lactams. This study aimed to isolate and identify carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Healthcare waste (HCW) might potentially harbor infective viable microorganisms in sanitary landfills. We investigated the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and the occurrence of the mecA gene in coagulase-negative Staphylococcus strains (CoNS) recovered from the leachate of the HCW in an untreated sanitary landfill.

Methodology: Bacterial identification was performed by physiological and molecular approaches, and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of antimicrobial drugs were determined by the agar dilution method according to CLSI guidelines.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Beta-lactamases enzymes such as extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL) and carbapenemase type beta-lactamases (KPC) confer resistance to beta-lactam drugs among Gram-negative rods, mainly Enterobacteriaceae, as those frequently related to urinary tract infections (UTI). The aim of this study was to evaluate ESBL and KPC among enterobacteria isolated from monomicrobial UTI and to establish correlations between the presence of genetic markers and the phenotypic resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics. Out of 12 304 urine samples collected during 2009, 93 enterobacteria showing an ESBL phenotype were recovered.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To investigate the etiology and the epidemiological profile of patients with vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) and predisposing factors.

Methods: Vaginal secretions were streaked in Sabouraud agar and yeast samples were isolated and identified by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Demographic and clinical data were obtained with a questionnaire.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Apoptosis of macrophages has been reported as an effective host strategy to control the growth of intracellular pathogens, including pathogenic mycobacteria. Tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) plays an important role in the modulation of apoptosis of infected macrophages. It exerts its biological activities via two distinct cell surface receptors, TNFR1 and TNFR2, whose extracellular domain can be released by proteolysis forming soluble TNF receptors (sTNFR1 and sTNFR2).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Subinhibitory concentrations (SICs) of antimicrobials may result in alterations in bacterial biology with implications for its potential aggression. This has considerable importance for the resident microbiota. Our aim was to analyze the effects of SICs of antimicrobials on the morphological, biochemical, physiological and molecular characteristics of the resident anaerobic Fusobacterium nucleatum.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Enterococcus are emerging as important putative pathogens resistant to chemicals that are widely released into the environment, and urban pigeons might act as a natural reservoir contributing to the spread of resistant strains. This study aimed to evaluate the occurrence of Enterococcus in pigeon feces and their antimicrobial and toxic metal susceptibility. Bacteria were isolated and identified from 150 fresh feces by phenotypic and genetic techniques.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pequi (Caryocar brasiliense Camb.), babaçu (Orbignya phalerata Mart.), buriti (Mauritia flexuosa), and passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) oils were studied to determine their antibacterial, antioxidant and cytotoxic activities, as well as their total phenol and carotenoid contents.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is still not routinely screened during pregnancy in Brazil, being prophylaxis and empirical treatment based on identification of risk groups. This study aimed to investigate GBS prevalence in Brazilian pregnant women by culture or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) associated to the enrichment culture, and to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of isolated bacteria, so as to support public health policies and empirical prophylaxis. After an epidemiological survey, vaginal and anorectal specimens were collected from 221 consenting laboring women.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Health service waste gives rise to controversy regarding its importance for human, animal and environmental health. Occurrences of clinically relevant bacteria in piles of health service waste in a sanitary landfill and their antimicrobial susceptibility profile were evaluated. Aliquots of leachate were processed for selective isolation of Staphylococcus sp, Gram-negative rods of the Enterobacteriaceae family and non-fermenters.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF