Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul

About: Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul is a education organization based out in Campo Grande, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Species richness. The organization has 6903 authors who have published 9030 publications receiving 78977 citations. The organization is also known as: UFMS & Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul.

Screening of recombinant proteins as antigens in indirect ELISA for diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis.

Abstract: Bovine tuberculosis is an important infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis, which is responsible for considerable economic losses. This disease constitutes a serious public health problem. Control programs in most countries, including Brazil, are based on the identification and slaughter of infected animals, as defined by the skin tuberculin test, which has its constraints. In the present study, the recombinant proteins CFP-10, ESAT-6, Mb0143, MPB83, PE5, PE13, TB10.4, TB15.3 and a chimera of ESAT-6/MPB70/MPB83 (fusion protein) were tested as ELISA antigens for the diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis. The proteins were produced in Escherichia coli, purified and tested in ELISAs with sera from 126 cattle having tested negative in the comparative intradermal tuberculin test (CITT) and 107 sera from cattle having tested positive in the CITT. Also, 236 sera from two BTB-free beef cattle herds were tested. Among the proteins tested, only the ESAT-6/MPB70/MPB83 chimera demonstrated satisfactory agreement with the CITT (kappa index: 0.688), reflecting in 83.2% sensitivity and 86.5% specificity. The ELISA absorbances of the cattle sera from BTB-free herds showed similar levels to those of CITT positive cattle, probably as the result of successive skin tuberculinizations to define the BTB-free status of the herds. However, the ELISA with the ESAT-6/MPB70/MPB83 chimera was useful to discriminate BTB positive and negative cattle in herds prior to the tuberculin skin test.

Fauna de morcegos em remanescentes urbanos de Cerrado em Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul

Abstract: Campo Grande is the largest city of the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, located in the Cerrado domain, a biodiversity hotspot. Urban bat faunas have been poorly studied in Brazil, markedly in cities in the Cerrado region. The main objective here is describing composition, richness, and diversity of bat species which occur in the urban Cerrado remnants of Campo Grande. Bat samplings were carried out with mist-nets from March to August 2009 in eight urban parks. One sampling night was performed per month in each site, except in one; 47 nights at all. Each night, six 2.6 x 12 m nets were kept open for six hours after sunset; the capture effort was 52.790.4 m2/h. We captured 701 bats belonging to 14 species of which 12 were phyllostomids (98.6% of captures). Artibeus lituratus was the dominant species, such as reported in other urban regions in Brazil. Artibeus planirostris was the second most abundant species, in contrast to other urban bat assemblages. Chiroderma doriae, C. villosum, Phyllostomus hastatus e Platyrrhinus helleri were rare and registered for the first time in Campo Grande. Gathering other studies, 24 bat species are known to occur in Campo Grande, a high value among cities in the Cerrado. Bat diversity (H' = 1.65) in Campo Grande was also higher than that reported for other cities in the Cerrado or Atlantic Forest domains. The wide presence of forested parks in the urban zone may partially explain the great richness and diversity of bats in the Campo Grande city.

Experimental infection and transmission of Leishmania by Lutzomyia cruzi (Diptera: Psychodidae): Aspects of the ecology of parasite-vector interactions

Abstract: Several parameters should be addressed before incriminating a vector for Leishmania transmission. Those may include its ability to become infected by the same Leishmania species found in humans, the degree of attractiveness for reservoirs and humans and capacity to sustain parasite infection under laboratory conditions. This study evaluated the vectorial capacity of Lutzomyia cruzi for Leishmania infantum and gathered information on its ability to harbor L. amazonensis. Laboratory-reared Lu. cruzi were infected experimentally by feeding them on dogs infected naturally with L. infantum and hamsters infected with L. amazonensis. Sand fly attractiveness to dogs and humans was determined using wild caught insects. The expected daily survival of infected Lu. cruzi, the duration of the gonotrophic cycle, and the extrinsic incubation period were also investigated for both parasites. Vector competence was investigated for both Leishmania species. The mean proportion of female sand flies that fed on hosts was 0.40. For L. infantum and L. amazonensis, Lu. cruzi had experimental infection rates of 10.55% and 41.56%, respectively. The extrinsic incubation period was 3 days for both Leishmania species, regardless of the host. Survival expectancy of females infected with L. infantum and L. amazonensis after completing the gonotrophic cycle was 1.32 and 0.43, respectively. There was no association between L. infantum infection and sand fly longevity, but L. amazonensis-infected flies had significantly greater survival probabilities. Furthermore, egg-laying was significantly detrimental to survival. Lu. cruzi was found to be highly attracted to both dogs and humans. After a bloodmeal on experimentally infected hosts, both parasites were able to survive and develop late-stage infections in Lu. cruzi. However, transmission was demonstrated only for L. amazonensis-infected sand flies. In conclusion, Lu. cruzi fulfilled several of the requirements of vectorial capacity for L. infantum transmission. Moreover, it was also permissive to L. amazonensis.