The Omicron lineages BA.1 and BA.2 (Betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2) have repeatedly entered Brazil through a single dispersal hub

Brazil currently ranks second in absolute deaths by COVID-19, even though most of its population has completed the vaccination protocol. With the introduction of Omicron in late 2021, the number of COVID-19 cases soared once again in the country. We investigated in this work how lineages BA.1 and BA.2 entered and spread in the country by sequencing 2173 new SARS-CoV-2 genomes collected between October 2021 and April 2022 and analyzing them in addition to more than 18,000 publicly available sequences with phylodynamic methods. We registered that Omicron was present in Brazil as early as 16 November 2021 and by January 2022 was already more than 99% of samples. More importantly, we detected that Omicron has been mostly imported through the state of São Paulo, which in turn dispersed the lineages to other states and regions of Brazil. This knowledge can be used to implement more efficient non-pharmaceutical interventions against the introduction of new SARS-CoV variants focused on surveillance of airports and ground transportation

Identification of a Dental Anomaly in a Tiriyo Indigenous Park Patient by Computed Tomography: A Case Report

This report describes anatomical variations in an indigenous patient from the Brazilian Amazon. A 13-year-old indigenous girl attended the dental clinic for a routine examination. Clinically, a change in the coronary morphology of all upper incisors was observed; characterized by a shovel-shaped lingual surface-a feature considered a polygenic hereditary trait commonly found in native American people. The x-ray examination revealed the presence of a root anomaly in the left upper central incisor. A cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scan was performed, revealing the presence of a supernumerary root located on the lingual surface. A single wide canal, which bifurcated in the middle-third level into two canals with different foramina, was observed in the cervical portion. It is essential for dental surgeons to be aware of possible anatomical differences, especially considering the origin of the patient, to avoid interference in treatment success.Keywords: Abnormalities; Cone-beam Computed Tomography; Health Services; Indigenous; Tooth Roo

Protective effect and expression of defense-related ESTs induced by acibenzolar-S-methyl and a phosphorylated mannan oligosaccharide-based product against Moniliophthora perniciosa in Theobroma cacao

Witches’ broom disease (WBD), caused by the fungus Moniliophthora perniciosa, is one of the main diseases in cocoa (Theobroma cacao) and has caused severe economic losses. Integrated disease management has been the focus for its control and therefore, the identification of new inducers of plant resistance is desirable. Thus, the goal of this work was to evaluate two potential inducers of resistance against WBD. A phosphorylated mannan oligosaccharide-based product (PMO) and acibenzolar S-methyl (ASM) were tested on M. perniciosa inoculated seedlings and in field experiments and showed a reduction on the incidence of WBD. The expression of two defense-related expressed sequence tags (ESTs) in cocoa, coding for peroxidase (Pox) and chitinase (Chi), were accessed by qPCR. Both products induced the expression of the Pox defense-related EST. In general, ASM induced the expression of chitinase (Chi) and peroxidase (Pox) in earlier time-points than PMO. However, PMO provided long-lasting and higher levels of expression. Chi expression was triggered in the time-points succeeding the spraying but was very low. On the other hand, peaks of Pox transcripts were detected in later time-points for both inducers. ASM and PMO modes of action might be explained, at least partially, by the overexpression of defense-related ESTs.Keywords: Cocoa, witches’ broom disease, disease control, peroxidase, chitinase, induced resistance, elicitors, quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR (qRT-PCR)African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(12), pp. 1311-131

Effectiveness of Traditional Chinese Acupuncture versus Sham Acupuncture: a Systematic Review

Objetivo: identificar e sintetizar as evidências oriundas de ensaios clínicos randomizados que testaram a efetividade da acupuntura tradicional chinesa em relação à sham acupuntura para o tratamento dos fogachos em mulheres com câncer de mama no climatério. Método: revisão sistemática guiada pelas recomendações da Colaboração Cochrane. A busca foi realizada nas bases de dados: MEDLINE via PubMed, Web of Science, CENTRAL Cochrane, CINAHL e LILACS. Adotou-se a combinação dos descritores: breast neoplasm, acupuncture, acupuncture therapy, acupuncture points, placebos, sham treatment, hot flashes, hot flushes, menopause, climacteric, vasomotor symptoms. Resultados: foram identificados 272 estudos, sendo 5 selecionados e analisados. Foi observada discreta superioridade da acupuntura tradicional em relação à sham, entretanto, sem fortes associações estatísticas. Conclusões: as evidências obtidas não foram suficientes para afirmar quanto à efetividade da acupuntura tradicional em relação à sham.Objetivo: Identificar y sintetizar la evidencia de un ensayo clínico aleatorizado que examinó la eficacia de la acupuntura tradicional en relación a la acupuntura sham para el tratamiento de sofocos en las mujeres menopáusicas con cáncer de mama. Método: Revisión sistemática guiada por las recomendaciones de la Colaboración Cochrane. Las referencias bibliográficas se buscaron en las siguientes bases de datos: MEDLINE vía PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), CINAHL y LILACS. Se utilizó una combinación de las siguientes palabras clave: breast neoplasm, acupuncture, acupuncture therapy, acupuncture points, placebos, sham treatment, hot flashes, hot flushes, menopause, climacteric, vasomotor symptoms. Resultados: Se identificó un total de 272 estudios, cinco de los cuales fueron seleccionados y analizados. Se encontró una ligera superioridad de la acupuntura tradicional comparada con la acupuntura sham; sin embargo, no se encontraron asociaciones estadísticas fuertes. Conclusiones: La evidencia obtenida no fue suficiente para confirmar la eficacia de la acupuntura tradicional comparada con la acupuntura sham.Objective: to identify and synthesize the evidence from randomized clinical trials that tested the effectiveness of traditional Chinese acupuncture in relation to sham acupuncture for the treatment of hot flashes in menopausal women with breast cancer. Method: systematic review guided by the recommendations of the Cochrane Collaboration. Citations were searched in the following databases: MEDLINE via PubMed, Web of Science, CENTRAL, CINAHL, and LILACS. A combination of the following keywords was used: breast neoplasm, acupuncture, acupuncture therapy, acupuncture points, placebos, sham treatment, hot flashes, hot flushes, menopause, climacteric, and vasomotor symptoms. Results: a total of 272 studies were identified, five of which were selected and analyzed. Slight superiority of traditional acupuncture compared with sham acupuncture was observed; however, there were no strong statistical associations. Conclusions: the evidence gathered was not sufficient to affirm the effectiveness of traditional acupuncture compared with sham acupuncture

Fatores de risco para mediastinite após revascularização do miocárdio: revisão integrativa

Esta revisão integrativa da literatura teve como objetivo identificar os fatores de risco relacionados à ocorrência de mediastinite em pacientes adultos submetidos à cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio. Para a busca dos estudos primários, foram utilizadas as bases de dados Medline, CINAHL, LILACS e EMBASE. A amostra foi constituída por 18 estudos. Os fatores de risco mais frequentemente identificados foram diabetes mellitus (DM) e obesidade, seguidos por reintervenção cirúrgica, doença pulmonar obstrutiva crônica (DPOC) e idade avançada. As evidências permitiram identificar que os fatores de risco mais frequentemente associados à ocorrência de mediastinite foram DM, obesidade, reintervenção cirúrgica, DPOC e idade maior de 65 anos e identificam a necessidade de se investir em pesquisas sobre fatores de risco passíveis de prevenção e controle, ou seja, os relacionados ao procedimento cirúrgico propriamente dito

Manifestações orais da doença cárie em pacientes odontopediátricos com Transtorno do Espectro Autista: revisão integrativa da literatura

Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder, characterized by impaired language and social interactions. Therefore, these patients present greater risks to oral health, as they tend not to be able to perform proper hygiene. The objective of this study was to identify the oral health condition and the occurrence of caries in children and adolescents with Autistic Spectrum Disorder. An integrative literature review was carried out in the electronic databases PubMed, LILACS and Scielo, using the following descriptors in Portuguese and their corresponding ones in English: dental caries OR dental caries OR decayed tooth AND autism spectrum disorder or Autism. Inclusion and exclusion criteria followed the PRISMA-ScR strategy. 43 articles were found, 5 of which were included in this review. A deficit in hygiene and food selectivity was noticed, which can have consequences in the oral cavity according to the cariogenic level of these foods, gingival alteration and molar-incisor hypomineralization (MIH). It was concluded, therefore, that given the multifactorial cause of caries disease and the various factors that can affect a patient with ASD, these, together, can cause a predisposition to the involvement of the caries lesion. Related factors are food selectivity, poor hygiene, behavioral changes and hypersensitivity. Furthermore, the studies showed that the medication and salivary composition acting on the protective buffering effect did not demonstrate a significant negative effect on the oral cavity of these patients.O Transtorno do Espectro Autista (TEA) é um transtorno complexo de neurodesenvolvimento, caracterizado por deficiência na linguagem e interações sociais. Sendo assim, esses pacientes apresentam maiores riscos à saúde oral, pois os mesmos tendem a não conseguir realizar a higienização de maneira adequada. O objetivo desse trabalho foi identificar a condição de saúde bucal e a ocorrência da doença cárie em crianças e adolescentes com Transtorno do Espectro Autista. Foi realizada uma revisão integrativa de literatura nas bases de dados eletrônicas PubMed, LILACS e Scielo, utilizando os seguintes descritores em português e seus correspondentes em inglês: cárie dentária OU cárie dental OU dente cariado AND transtorno do espectro autista ou Autismo. Os critérios de inclusão e exclusão seguiram a estratégia PRISMA-ScR. Foram encontrados 43 artigos, sendo 5 incluídos nessa revisão. Percebeu-se um déficit na higienização e seletividade alimentar, que pode apresentar consequências na cavidade oral de acordo com o nível cariogênico desses alimentos, alteração gengival e hipomineralização molar-incisivo (HMI). Concluiu-se, portanto que diante da causa multifatorial da doença cárie e dos diversos fatores que podem afetar um paciente com TEA, esses, em conjunto podem causar uma predisposição ao acometimento da lesão de cárie. Os fatores relacionados são seletividade alimentar, déficit na higienização, alterações comportamentais e hipersensibilidade. Ademais, os estudos mostraram que a medicação e composição salivar atuando no efeito tampão de proteção não demonstraram efeito negativo significativo na cavidade oral desses pacientes

Uso prolongado de DIU como fator de risco para Gravidez Ectópica / Prolonged IUD use as a risk factor for Ectopic Pregnancy

INTRODUÇÃO: A gravidez ectópica (GE) é responsável por elevada morbimortalidade, sendo um tema relevante entre as síndromes hemorrágicas na gravidez. A sua etiologia envolve fatores de riscos como: história prévia de GE, infecções pélvicas, infertilidade, tabagismo e uso de dispositivo intrauterino. Acredita-se que esses fatores causam alterações funcionais e estruturais da tuba uterina. Contudo, a associação do uso prolongado de DIU como fator de risco para gravidez ectópica não apresenta explicações biológicas definitivas. É sugestivo que há uma relação entre maior incidência de GE com o uso de DIU. METODOLOGIA: Estudo na modalidade revisão narrativa, realizado nas bases de dados: Pubmed, Scielo, NCBI e Research Gate, entre os anos de 2012 e 2021 na língua portuguesa e inglesa. RESULTADOS: Estudo de coorte histórica de 2013 a 2017 relatou índice de Pearl de 0,19 para DIU com levonorgestrel de 13,5mg e índice de 0,006 para os de 52mg. Uma coorte prospectiva de 2006 a 2012 relatou índice de 0,26, mas não expõe o tipo de dispositivo estudado. Um ensaio clínico de 2009 a 2019 apresentou índice de 0,20 em DIU de 52mg de levonorgestrel. Outro estudo de coorte, de 2018, apresentou risco 3,99 vezes maior de GE em mulheres com DIU. Dois casos controle, um de 2013 e outro de 2011 apresentaram OR de 1,48 e 4,49 respectivamente. DISCUSSÃO: O uso do DIU pode ocasionar um processo inflamatório tubário e uterino, o qual possivelmente afeta a endossalpinge e o batimento ciliar nas tubas, dificultando o transito do óvulo, aumentando o risco de ocorrência de uma GE. CONCLUSÃO: O presente estudo identificou que o DIU reduz o número absoluto de gravidez, mas, dentre as falhas desse método o risco de se gerar uma gestação ectópica é alta, sendo sempre essencial observar os sinais e sintomas que possam apontar para essa hipótese diagnóstica. É essencial que mais estudos sejam feitos para que um consenso seja estabelecido

Genomic epidemiology reveals the circulation of the Chikungunya virus east/central/south african lineage in Tocantins State, north Brazil

The chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-borne virus of the family Togaviridae transmitted to humans by Aedes spp. mosquitoes. In Brazil, imported cases have been reported since June 2014 through two independent introductions, one caused by Asian Lineage in Oiapoque, Amapá state, North Region, and another caused by East/Central/South African (ECSA) in Feira de Santana, Bahia state, Northeast Region. Moreover, there is still limited information about the genomic epidemiology of the CHIKV from surveillance studies. The Tocantins state, located in Northern Brazil, reported an increase in the number of CHIKV cases at the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022. Thus, to better understand the dispersion dynamics of this viral pathogen in the state, we generated 27 near-complete CHIKV genome sequences from four cities, obtained from clinical samples. Our results showed that the newly CHIKV genomes from Tocantins belonged to the ECSA lineage. Phylogenetic reconstruction revealed that Tocantins’ strains formed a single well-supported clade, which appear to be closely related to isolates from the Rio Grande do Norte state (Northeast Brazil) and the Rio de Janeiro state (Southeast Brazil), that experienced an explosive ECSA epidemic between 2016–2019. Mutation analyses showed eleven frequent non-synonymous mutations in the structural and non-structural proteins, indicating the autochthonous transmission of the CHIKV in the state. None of the genomes recovered within the Tocantins samples carry the A226V mutation in the E1 protein associated with increased transmission in A. albopictus. The study presented here highlights the importance of continued genomic surveillance to provide information not only on recording mutations along the viral genome but as a molecular surveillance tool to trace virus spread within the country, to predict events of likely occurrence of new infections, and, as such, contribute to an improved public health service

The Genomic Ancestry of Individuals from Different Geographical Regions of Brazil Is More Uniform Than Expected

Based on pre-DNA racial/color methodology, clinical and pharmacological trials have traditionally considered the different geographical regions of Brazil as being very heterogeneous. We wished to ascertain how such diversity of regional color categories correlated with ancestry. Using a panel of 40 validated ancestry-informative insertion-deletion DNA polymorphisms we estimated individually the European, African and Amerindian ancestry components of 934 self-categorized White, Brown or Black Brazilians from the four most populous regions of the Country. We unraveled great ancestral diversity between and within the different regions. Especially, color categories in the northern part of Brazil diverged significantly in their ancestry proportions from their counterparts in the southern part of the Country, indicating that diverse regional semantics were being used in the self-classification as White, Brown or Black. To circumvent these regional subjective differences in color perception, we estimated the general ancestry proportions of each of the four regions in a form independent of color considerations. For that, we multiplied the proportions of a given ancestry in a given color category by the official census information about the proportion of that color category in the specific region, to arrive at a “total ancestry” estimate. Once such a calculation was performed, there emerged a much higher level of uniformity than previously expected. In all regions studied, the European ancestry was predominant, with proportions ranging from 60.6% in the Northeast to 77.7% in the South. We propose that the immigration of six million Europeans to Brazil in the 19th and 20th centuries - a phenomenon described and intended as the “whitening of Brazil” - is in large part responsible for dissipating previous ancestry dissimilarities that reflected region-specific population histories. These findings, of both clinical and sociological importance for Brazil, should also be relevant to other countries with ancestrally admixed populations

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio