Spatial Mapping and Modeling of Reported Dengue Incidences in Luzon

Dengue, the most rapidly spreading mosquito-borne viral infection, has significantly spread worldwide in recent decades - flourishing both in affluent and impoverished locations of tropical and subtropical countries. In 2012, the Philippines ranked fourth out of the ten Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries in having the highest number of dengue cases. The following study intends to analyze the spatial distribution of dengue incidences across all Luzon provinces in 2018. It aims to determine significant correlates that affect dengue incidences, map the incidence rate of dengue cases, and explore the clustering of recorded dengue cases. Poisson and Negative Binomial (NB) regression analyses and Multiple Linear Regression Models (MLRM) were applied to determine the significant correlations affecting dengue incidence rates. Simultaneously, spatial mapping was utilized to visualize and detect clustering in the provinces through dengue count, incidence ratios, and standard incidence ratios (SIR). MLRM and NB showed that rainfall and poverty incidence are significant correlates of dengue counts and incidence, and Nueva Ecija and Tarlac were observed to be provinces with distinct dengue count and SIR greater than 1, as well as provinces found in clusters. With the provided results, health organizations can provide health programs and allocate more funds in areas with SIR greater than 1 to prevent dengue spreading

MSPEP: PROGRAMA PARA LA SINTESIS MULTIPLE Y SIMULTANEA DE PEPTIDOS

Los péptidos sintéticos son de gran aplicabilidad en la actualidad por su utilización en el desarrollo de vacunas, comó antigenos especificos en sistemas diagnosticos para la detección de anticuerpos y en el estudio de la estructura y la actividad de las diferentes zonas activas de los virus, entre otras aplicaciones. En este trabajo describimos la síntesis química en fase sólida de varios péptidos correspondientes a HCV, VIH, y Trypanosoma cruzi. El diseño de péptidos se realizó mediante programas de computación y consulta en base de datos de proteínas y con el objetivo de auxiliar Ia síntesis múltiple y simultánea de los péptidos en fase sólida se diseño y desarrolló un nuevo programa (MSPep). Esta aplicación se ejecuta sobre Microsoft Windows 95' utilizando Las facilidades inherentes a esta plataforma gráfica e incluye nuevas opciones que no se encuentran en sistemas anteriores que se ejecutan sobre MS-DOS. Todos los péptidos sintetizados fueron evaluados en Los ensayos ultramicroELISA respectivos, frente a muestras positivas caracterizadas para cada agente etiológieo, obteniéndose una sensibilidad en HCV entre 77,7 y 100 %, en VIH del 53 y 100 % y en Trypanosoma cruzi de on 100 %. En todos los casos la especificidad fue de un 100 %

Sustaining rare marine microorganisms: macroorganisms as repositories and dispersal agents of microbial diversity

Recent analyses revealed that most of the biodiversity observed in marine microbial communities is represented by organisms with low abundance but, nonetheless essential for ecosystem dynamics and processes across both temporal and spatial scales. Surprisingly, few studies have considered the effect of macroorganism-microbe interactions on the ecology and distribution dynamics of rare microbial taxa. In this review, we synthesize several lines of evidence that these relationships cannot be neglected any longer. First, we provide empirical support that the microbiota of macroorganisms represents a significant part of marine bacterial biodiversity and that host-microbe interactions benefit to certain microbial populations which are part of the rare biosphere (i.e., opportunistic copiotrophic organisms). Second, we reveal the major role that macroorganisms may have on the dispersal and the geographic distribution of microbes. Third, we introduce an innovative and integrated view of the interactions between microbes and macroorganisms, namely sustaining the rares, which suggests that macroorganisms favor the maintenance of marine microbial diversity and are involved in the regulation of its richness and dynamics. Finally, we show how this hypothesis complements existing theories in microbial ecology and offers new perspectives about the importance of macroorganisms for the microbial biosphere, particularly the rare members

Reliability, Validity, and Responsiveness of InFLUenza Patient-Reported Outcome (FLU-PRO (c)) Scores in Influenza-Positive Patients

OBJECTIVES: To assess the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of InFLUenza Patient-Reported Outcome (FLU-PRO©) scores for quantifying the presence and severity of influenza symptoms. METHODS: An observational prospective cohort study of adults (≥18 years) with influenza-like illness in the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and South America was conducted. Participants completed the 37-item draft FLU-PRO daily for up to 14 days. Item-level and factor analyses were used to remove items and determine factor structure. Reliability of the final tool was estimated using Cronbach α and intraclass correlation coefficients (2-day reliability). Convergent and known-groups validity and responsiveness were assessed using global assessments of influenza severity and return to usual health. RESULTS: Of the 536 patients enrolled, 221 influenza-positive subjects comprised the analytical sample. The mean age of the patients was 40.7 years, 60.2% were women, and 59.7% were white. The final 32-item measure has six factors/domains (nose, throat, eyes, chest/respiratory, gastrointestinal, and body/systemic), with a higher order factor representing symptom severity overall (comparative fit index = 0.92; root mean square error of approximation = 0.06). Cronbach α was high (total = 0.92; domain range = 0.71–0.87); test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient, day 1–day 2) was 0.83 for total scores and 0.57 to 0.79 for domains. Day 1 FLU-PRO domain and total scores were moderately to highly correlated (≥0.30) with Patient Global Rating of Flu Severity (except nose and throat). Consistent with known-groups validity, scores differentiated severity groups on the basis of global rating (total: F = 57.2, P < 0.001; domains: F = 8.9–67.5, P < 0.001). Subjects reporting return to usual health showed significantly greater (P < 0.05) FLU-PRO score improvement by day 7 than did those who did not, suggesting score responsiveness. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that FLU-PRO scores are reliable, valid, and responsive to change in influenza-positive adults

Manganese Superoxide Dismutase: Guardian of the Powerhouse

The mitochondrion is vital for many metabolic pathways in the cell, contributing all or important constituent enzymes for diverse functions such as β-oxidation of fatty acids, the urea cycle, the citric acid cycle, and ATP synthesis. The mitochondrion is also a major site of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in the cell. Aberrant production of mitochondrial ROS can have dramatic effects on cellular function, in part, due to oxidative modification of key metabolic proteins localized in the mitochondrion. The cell is equipped with myriad antioxidant enzyme systems to combat deleterious ROS production in mitochondria, with the mitochondrial antioxidant enzyme manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) acting as the chief ROS scavenging enzyme in the cell. Factors that affect the expression and/or the activity of MnSOD, resulting in diminished antioxidant capacity of the cell, can have extraordinary consequences on the overall health of the cell by altering mitochondrial metabolic function, leading to the development and progression of numerous diseases. A better understanding of the mechanisms by which MnSOD protects cells from the harmful effects of overproduction of ROS, in particular, the effects of ROS on mitochondrial metabolic enzymes, may contribute to the development of novel treatments for various diseases in which ROS are an important component

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Biodiversity of AM Fungi in Coffee Cultivated on Eroded Soil

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs) play an important role in soil improvement, leading to the enhanced growth and yield of the host plants. The diversity, abundance, and richness of AMFs were evaluated in eight coffee plantations (Coffea arabica L.) with different erosion degrees. The results indicated that 26 AMFs morphotypes scattered across four genera were recovered and included five species. Funneliformis species were the most dominant representatives of the total isolates followed by Claroideoglomus, Rhizoglomus, Gigaspora, Acaulospora, Glomus, Diversispora, Septoglomus, and Scutellospora. The highest diversity and richness were found in non-eroded agroecosystems, followed by sites with a minimum erosion, and the lowest values were reported within the highly eroded agroecosystems. These results suggest that eroded soil affects AMF fungi, creating the need to carry out studies that allow for the implementation of cultural practices where biodiversity and soil are preserved