Oswaldo Cruz Foundation

About: Oswaldo Cruz Foundation is a facility organization based out in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Trypanosoma cruzi. The organization has 18673 authors who have published 36752 publications receiving 802378 citations. The organization is also known as: Fundação Oswaldo Cruz & FIOCRUZ.

Ticks infesting humans in Italy and associated pathogens

Abstract: Ticks may transmit a large variety of pathogens, which cause illnesses in animals and humans, commonly referred to as to tick-borne diseases (TBDs). The incidence of human TBDs in Italy is underestimated because of poor surveillance and the scant amount of studies available. Samples (n = 561) were collected from humans in four main geographical areas of Italy (i.e., northwestern, northeastern, southern Italy, and Sicily), which represent a variety of environments. After being morphologically identified, ticks were molecularly tested with selected protocols for the presence of pathogens of the genera Rickettsia, Babesia, Theileria, Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis, Borrelia and Anaplasma. Ticks belonged to 16 species of the genera Argas, Dermacentor, Haemaphysalis, Hyalomma, Ixodes and Rhipicephalus, with Ixodes ricinus (59.5%) being the species most frequently retrieved, followed by Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato (21.4%). Nymphs were the life stage most frequently retrieved (41%), followed by adult females (34.6%). The overall positivity to any pathogen detected was 18%. Detected microorganisms were Rickettsia spp. (17.0%), Anaplasma phagocytophilum (0.8%), Borrelia afzelii (0.5%), Borrelia valaisiana (0.3%), C. N. mikurensis (0.5%) and Babesia venatorum (0.6%). Results indicate that people living in the Italian peninsula are at risk of being bitten by different tick species, which may transmit a plethora of TBD causing pathogens and that co-infections may also occur.

Body size-associated survival and dispersal rates of Aedes aegypti in Rio de Janeiro.

Abstract: The daily survival rate of Aedes aegypti (L) (Diptera: Culicidae) is one of the most important parameters in mathematical models of dengue transmission. In this report, we evaluate the effect of adult body size on the survival and dispersal rates of male and female Ae. aegypti , the primary dengue vector in Brazil. Independent of larval diet (i.e. size), the daily survival rate of females recaptured in the field was greater than that of males (smaller: t = 5.617; d.f. = 15; P < 0.05; larger: t = 4.241; d.f. = 16; P < 0.05). Larger males lived longer than smaller males (t = 2.2893; d.f. = 7; P < 0.05), but no size effect was observed for females (t = - 0.086; d.f. = 19; P = 0.932). The daily survival rate of smaller females was similar to that of larger females (0.712 and 0.730, respectively, as calculated by an exponential model, and 0.743 and 0.779, respectively, calculated by a non-linear model), and they dispersed further than larger females (mean distances trav- elled were 78.8 m and 40.9 m, respectively; t = − 10.22; d.f. = 323; P < 0.05). Adult body size did not influence male dispersal distances (t = 0.904; d.f. = 206; P = 0.367). Given our evidence that smaller females appear to have similar lifespans and evidence from other studies that they bite more frequently during a single gonotrophic cycle than larger females, our results suggest that smaller females have a higher vectorial capacity.

Venezuela's humanitarian crisis, resurgence of vector-borne diseases, and implications for spillover in the region

Abstract: In the past 5-10 years, Venezuela has faced a severe economic crisis, precipitated by political instability and declining oil revenue. Public health provision has been affected particularly. In this Review, we assess the impact of Venezuela's health-care crisis on vector-borne diseases, and the spillover into neighbouring countries. Between 2000 and 2015, Venezuela witnessed a 359% increase in malaria cases, followed by a 71% increase in 2017 (411 586 cases) compared with 2016 (240 613). Neighbouring countries, such as Brazil, have reported an escalating trend of imported malaria cases from Venezuela, from 1538 in 2014 to 3129 in 2017. In Venezuela, active Chagas disease transmission has been reported, with seroprevalence in children (<10 years), estimated to be as high as 12·5% in one community tested (n=64). Dengue incidence increased by more than four times between 1990 and 2016. The estimated incidence of chikungunya during its epidemic peak is 6975 cases per 100 000 people and that of Zika virus is 2057 cases per 100 000 people. The re-emergence of many vector-borne diseases represents a public health crisis in Venezuela and has the possibility of severely undermining regional disease elimination efforts. National, regional, and global authorities must take action to address these worsening epidemics and prevent their expansion beyond Venezuelan borders.

Effect of Nitrogen and Carbon Sources on Lipase Production by Penicillium aurantiogriseum

Abstract: Summary A wild fungal strain isolated from soybean oil and identified as Penicillium aurantiogriseum initially presented a volumetric lipase activity of 0.4 U/mL in submerged culture in a medium containing 0.5 % yeast extract and 1 % olive oil. Studies were undertaken to improve lipase production. The effect of nitrogen source was studied by adding casein peptone, meat peptone, yeast extract or ammonium sulfate to a medium containing potassium nitrate and other mineral salts. The best yield, of 13 U/mL after 72 h, was obtained with the medium supplemented with ammonium sulfate. With the ammonium sulfate concentration increased to double the C/N ratio from 2.5 to 5, a lipolytic activity of 18 U/mL was obtained. Olive, corn, soy and sunflower oils were tested as carbon sources in this medium, with olive oil at 1 % giving a lipolytic activity of 25 U/mL after 48 h, the highest yield obtained in this study. Enzyme production was best at 29 °C, within a range tested from 26 to 32 °C. These results are promising because this strain produces lipase in an inexpensive inorganic medium and we succeeded in increasing the lipolytic activity 62-fold over the initial values obtained with the non-optimized medium.