Recurrent community-acquired pneumococcal meningitis in adults with and without identified predisposing factors.

Bacterial meningitis is still a significant public health concern, with high morbidity and mortality rates. Despite this, it is still a rare event that requires the bacterial invasion of the meninges. However, some predisposing factors can trigger recurrent episodes of meningitis.

Multiplex PCR to Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype identification directly in cerebrospinal fluid samples.

Streptococcus pneumoniae causes invasive diseases of significant public health concern, such as meningitis. The culture of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples, the standard technique for meningitis diagnoses, is not always positive. Consequently, meaningful information about the etiological agent is lost, which can compromise effective epidemiological surveillance and the improvement of immunization policies.

Multiplex real-time PCR using SYBR Green: Unspecific intercalating dye to detect antimicrobial resistance genes of Streptococcus pneumoniae in cerebrospinal fluid.

Meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae is still a disease of great impact on Public health, which requires immediate diagnosis and treatment. However, the culture of clinical specimens is often negative and antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) must be performed with isolated strains. Multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) has high sensitivity and specificity, produces faster results to identify the pathogen, and it can also be an important tool to identify resistance antibiotic genes earlier than AST, especially in the absence of an isolated strain.

Tuberculosis/COVID-19 co-infection detected in a single sputum sample using a rapid molecular test.

Tuberculosis (TB) and COVID-19 affect the lungs and are transmitted mainly by aerosols or particles of saliva from infected persons. Clinical similarities between diseases can affect correct diagnosis. Individuals belonging to the population deprived of liberty (PDL) are at increased risk of contagion due to precarious sanitary conditions and overcrowded environments.

SARS-CoV-2 intralineage variation and temporal patterns of COVID-19 risk factors in three cities of southeastern Brazil: Age, sex, and race.

The Santo André Regional Center from Adolfo Lutz Institute evaluated 91 537 samples by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from March 2020 to April 2021. The age, sex, and race of patients from three cities in southeastern Brazil, namely São Bernardo do Campo (SBC), Diadema, and Mauá were assessed in association to the rate of positive results using generalized linear models. Circulating lineages were obtained from GISAID and intralineage genetic variation was investigated employing Lasergene software.

Viability assessment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in OMNIgene • SPUTUM reagent using the BACTEC MGIT 960 System and Xpert MTB/RIF assay.

The World Health Organization advocates that sputum specimens submitted to tuberculosis (TB) diagnostic should be processed within 48 h after collection and be stored under cooling. We aimed to assess the performance of OMNIgene • SPUTUM reagent in maintaining viable specimens of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) during transportation of sputum samples without refrigeration, in comparison to the standard protocol of the National TB Control Program. Sputum samples obtained in southeastern Brazil (June 2017 to July 2018) from 100 sequential patients with positive acid-fast bacillus smear microscopy were divided into two portions.

Fragment detection of Coleopteran and Triatomine insects in experimentally contaminated acai pulp and sugarcane juice.

Introduction: Oral transmission of acute Chagas disease is an emerging public health concern. This study aimed to detect insect fragments in experimentally contaminated food, by comparing triatomines with other insects.

Methods: Food samples were experimentally contaminated with insects, processed to recover their fragments by light filth, and analyzed by microscopy and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR).