Epidemiological, clinical and genomic snapshot of the first 100 B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 cases in Madrid

A new SARS-CoV-2 variant, B.1.1.7, emerged in September in the UK, and is responsible for 76.6% of COVID-19 cases.1 This variant has also been reported in another 45 countries, 17 of them European.2,3 B.1.1.7 is considered to have higher transmissibility.4 It carries an unusually high number of specific mutations/deletions, 18, mostly non-synonymous and eight concentrate in the S gene,5 including several which might have relevant functional roles. The 69/70 deletion may be associated to immune response evasion6 and the N501Y substitution increases the affinity to the ACE2 receptor.7 These findings have raised the alarm of having to face a new variant with the potential to accelerate the spread of the pandemic. A recent report finds a realistic possibility that B.1.1.7 is associated with an increased risk of death.This work was supported by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (Ref COV20/00140: SeqCOVID—Consorcio para la epidemiología genómica de SARS-CoV-2 en España) and by Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) (PTI Salud Global). LPL holds a Miguel Servet Contract CP15/00075).Peer reviewe

Systematic Genomic and Clinical Analysis of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Reinfections and Recurrences Involving the Same Strain

10 páginas, 2 figuras, 3 tablasEstimates of the burden of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 reinfections are limited by the scarcity of population-level studies incorporating genomic support. We conducted a systematic study of reinfections in Madrid, Spain, supported by genomic viral analysis and host genetic analysis, to cleanse laboratory errors and to discriminate between reinfections and recurrences involving the same strain. Among the 41,195 cases diagnosed (March 2020-March 2021), 93 (0.23%) had 2 positive reverse transcription PCR tests (55-346 days apart). After eliminating cases with specimens not stored, of suboptimal sequence quality, or belonging to different persons, we obtained valid data from 22 cases. Of those, 4 (0.01%) cases were recurrences involving the same strain; case-patients were 39-93 years of age, and 3 were immunosuppressed. Eighteen (0.04%) cases were reinfections; patients were 19-84 years of age, and most had no relevant clinical history. The second episode was more severe in 8 cases.This work was supported by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (Ref COV20/00140: SeqCOVID—Consorcio para la epidemiología genómica de SARS-CoV-2 en España) and by Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) (PTI Salud Global). L.P.L. is the recipient of a Miguel Servet Research contract (CPII20/00001) from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III.Peer reviewe

4to. Congreso Internacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación para la Sociedad. Memoria académica

Este volumen acoge la memoria académica de la Cuarta edición del Congreso Internacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación para la Sociedad, CITIS 2017, desarrollado entre el 29 de noviembre y el 1 de diciembre de 2017 y organizado por la Universidad Politécnica Salesiana (UPS) en su sede de Guayaquil. El Congreso ofreció un espacio para la presentación, difusión e intercambio de importantes investigaciones nacionales e internacionales ante la comunidad universitaria que se dio cita en el encuentro. El uso de herramientas tecnológicas para la gestión de los trabajos de investigación como la plataforma Open Conference Systems y la web de presentación del Congreso http://citis.blog.ups.edu.ec/, hicieron de CITIS 2017 un verdadero referente entre los congresos que se desarrollaron en el país. La preocupación de nuestra Universidad, de presentar espacios que ayuden a generar nuevos y mejores cambios en la dimensión humana y social de nuestro entorno, hace que se persiga en cada edición del evento la presentación de trabajos con calidad creciente en cuanto a su producción científica. Quienes estuvimos al frente de la organización, dejamos plasmado en estas memorias académicas el intenso y prolífico trabajo de los días de realización del Congreso Internacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación para la Sociedad al alcance de todos y todas

Description of mpox reinfection by whole genome sequencing

Several possible mpox reinfections have been reported, however, the debate on whether these are confirmed reinfections remains open.A 30-year-old male living with HIV and a history of single-dose mpox vaccination, first diagnosed with mpox in September 2022, presented with genital ulcers in March 2023, testing positive for mpox virus. Real-time polymerase chain reaction revealed the presence of viral DNA with cycle threshold values of 24 and 25, respectively. Whole genome sequencing and phylogenetic approach allowed us to classify these viruses as Clade IIb lineage B.1 and Clade IIb lineage B.1.4, respectively. Twelve nucleotide differences were identified. The observed difference was higher than the estimate of mutations/genome/year described.These data confirm that mpox reinfection is possible and reinforces current vaccination campaigns