A localized outbreak of Chikungunya virus in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

A localized Chikungunya virus (CHIKV; East/Central/South African genotype) outbreak (50 cases, 70% laboratory-confirmed; attack rate: 5.3 confirmed cases/100 people) occurred in a Salvador, Brazil neighborhood, between Apr-Jun/2017. Highly clustered cases in space and time, mostly along a single street, highlight an increased risk of CHIKV transmission among pockets of susceptible populations. This finding underscores the need for ongoing local level surveillance for arboviral outbreaks.Fil: Tauro, Laura Beatriz. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; Brasil. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Instituto de Biología Subtropical - Nodo Puerto Iguazú | Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Instituto de Biología Subtropical - Nodo Puerto Iguazú; ArgentinaFil: Cardoso, Cristiane W.. Secretaria Municipal da Saúde de Salvador; BrasilFil: Souza, Raquel L.. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; BrasilFil: Nascimento, Leile Cj. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; BrasilFil: Santos, Daniela R Dos. Secretaria Municipal da Saúde de Salvador; BrasilFil: Campos, Gubio S.. Universidade Federal da Bahia; BrasilFil: Ferro Sardi, Silvia Natalia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidade Federal da Bahia; BrasilFil: Reis, Olivete B Dos. Secretaria Municipal da Saúde de Salvador; BrasilFil: Reis, Mitermayer G.. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; Brasil. Universidade Federal da Bahia; Brasil. University of Yale; Estados UnidosFil: Kitron, Uriel D.. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; Brasil. University of Emory; Estados UnidosFil: Ribeiro, Guilherme S.. Universidade Federal da Bahia; Brasil. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; Brasi

Temporal trends and clonal diversity of penicillin non-susceptible pneumococci from meningitis cases from 1996 to 2012, in Salvador, Brazil

Submitted by Ana Maria Fiscina Sampaio ([email protected]) on 2016-04-14T19:34:48Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Santos MS Temporal trends....pdf: 774496 bytes, checksum: 2fdb06791f67252aa819b6399160844c (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by Ana Maria Fiscina Sampaio ([email protected]) on 2016-04-15T13:08:57Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Santos MS Temporal trends....pdf: 774496 bytes, checksum: 2fdb06791f67252aa819b6399160844c (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-15T13:08:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Santos MS Temporal trends....pdf: 774496 bytes, checksum: 2fdb06791f67252aa819b6399160844c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, Brasil / Yale University. School of Public Health. Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases. New Haven, Connecticut, USA / Universidade Federal da Bahia. Instituto Multidisciplinar em Saúde. Vitória da Conquista, BA, BrasilFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, BrasilFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, Brasil / Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia. Jequié, BA, BrasilUniversidade Federal da Bahia. Faculdade de Farmácia. Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas. Salvador, BA, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, BrasilUniversidade Federal da Bahia. Instituto de Ciências da Saúde. Salvador, BA, BrasilFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, BrasilCenters for Disease Control and Prevention. Streptococcus Laboratory. Atlanta, GA, USAFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, BrasilFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, Brasil / Yale School of Public Health. Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases. New Haven, USAFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, BA, Brasil / Universidade Federal da Bahia. Faculdade de Farmácia. Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas. Salvador, BA, BrasilBACKGROUND: Hospital-based surveillance for pneumococcal meningitis has been conducted since January 1996 in the city of Salvador, Brazil. The purpose of this study was to describe the temporal evolution of Penicillin Non-Susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae (PNSSP) in regards to serotype distributions and clonal diversity recovered from meningitis cases over 17 years. METHODS: Broth microdilution was used to identify pneumococcal isolates that were PNSSP (Minimum Inhibitory Concentration > 0.12 µg/ml). The annual incidence rate of meningitis cases was calculated. Serotyping was defined using multiplex polymerase chain reaction assays and quellung reaction. Genetic diversity of PNSSP isolates was assessed using both pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) analyses. RESULTS: A total of 854 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture pneumococcal isolates were tested by broth microdilution method and serotyped. A total of 173 (20.3%) were penicillin non-susceptible (PNSSP) (Minimum Inhibitory concentration ≥ 0.12 µg/ml). The annual incidence of meningitis cases declined from 1.65/100,000 population (1996) to 0.2/100,000 population in 2012 and the rate due to PNSSP declined 82% over the 17-years of surveillance. PNSSP isolates were restricted to 13 serotypes, being the most common ones serotypes 14 (45.1%; 78/173), 23 F (19.1%; 33/173), 6B (14.4%; 25/173), 19 F (9.2%; 16/173) and 19A (5.2%; 9/173). Among the PNSSP isolates, 94% had serotypes represented in the 10-valent conjugate vaccine (PCV10). The predominant serotype 14 clonal groups were identified as PFGE group A/multilocus sequence type 66 (ST66) [35.3% (61/173)] and PFGE group GK/ST156 [4.6% (8/173)], the latter one associated with high level resistance to penicillin and ceftriaxone. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show sustained reductions in pneumococcal meningitis cases in the Metropolitan region of Salvador from 1996 to 2012. This might reflect a beneficial impact of conjugate vaccines. Continued surveillance and further studies need to be conducted to better understanding on PCV10 vaccine impact

Detection and Quantification of Leptospira interrogans in Hamster and Rat Kidney Samples: Immunofluorescent Imprints versus Real-time PCR

A major limitation in the clinical management and experimental research of leptospirosis is the poor performance of the available methods for the direct detection of leptospires. In this study, we compared real-time PCR (qPCR), targeting the lipL32 gene, with the immunofluorescent imprint method (IM) for the detection and quantification of leptospires in kidney samples from the rat and hamster experimental models of leptospirosis. Using a virulent strain of Leptospira interrogans serovar Copenhageni, a chronic infection was established in the rat model, which were euthanized 28 days post-infection, while the hamster model simulated an acute infection and the hamsters were euthanized eight days after inoculation. Leptospires in the kidney samples were detected using culture isolation, qPCR and the IM, and quantified using qPCR and the IM. In both the acute and chronic infection models, the correlation between quantification by qPCR and the IM was found to be positive and statistically significant (P<0.05). Therefore, this study demonstrates that the IM is a viable alternative for not only the detection but also the quantification of leptospires, particularly when the use of qPCR is not feasible

Simplified sewerage to prevent urban leptospirosis transmission: a cluster non-randomised controlled trial protocol in disadvantaged urban communities of Salvador, Brazil.

INTRODUCTION: Leptospirosis is a globally distributed zoonotic and environmentally mediated disease that has emerged as a major health problem in urban slums in developing countries. Its aetiological agent is bacteria of the genus Leptospira, which are mainly spread in the urine of infected rodents, especially in an environment where adequate sanitation facilities are lacking, and it is known that open sewers are key transmission sources of the disease. Therefore, we aim to evaluate the effectiveness of a simplified sewerage intervention in reducing the risk of exposure to contaminated environments and Leptospira infection and to characterise the transmission mechanisms involved. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This matched quasi-experimental study design using non-randomised intervention and control clusters was designed to assess the effectiveness of an urban simplified sewerage intervention in the low-income communities of Salvador, Brazil. The intervention consists of household-level piped sewerage connections and community engagement and public involvement activities. A cohort of 1400 adult participants will be recruited and grouped into eight clusters consisting of four matched intervention-control pairs with approximately 175 individuals in each cluster in baseline. The primary outcome is the seroincidence of Leptospira infection assessed through five serological measurements: one preintervention (baseline) and four postintervention. As a secondary outcome, we will assess Leptospira load in soil, before and after the intervention. We will also assess Leptospira exposures before and after the intervention, through transmission modelling, accounting for residents' movement, contact with flooding, contaminated soil and water, and rat infestation, to examine whether and how routes of exposure for Leptospira change following the introduction of sanitation. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study protocol has been reviewed and approved by the ethics boards at the Federal University of Bahia and the Brazilian National Research Ethics Committee. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and presentations to implementers, researchers and participating communities. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (RBR-8cjjpgm)

Comparative Analysis by Polymerase Chain Reaction Amplified Minicircles of Kinetoplast DNA of a Stable Strain of Trypanosoma cruzi from São Felipe, Bahia, its Clones and Subclones: Possibility of Predominance of a Principal Clone in this Area

Molecular characterization of one stable strain of Trypanosoma cruzi, the 21 SF, representative of the pattern of strains isolated from the endemic area of São Felipe, State of Bahia, Brazil, maintained for 15 years in laboratory by serial passages in mice and classified as biodeme Type II and zymodeme 2 has been investigated. The kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) of parental strain, 5 clones and 14 subclones were analyzed. Schizodeme was established by comparative study of the fragments obtained from digestion of the 330-bp fragments amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from the variable regions of the minicicles, and digested by restriction endonucleases Rsa I and Hinf I. Our results show a high percentual of similarity between the restriction fragment lenght polymorphism (RFLP) for the parental strain and its clones and among these individual clones and their subclones at a level of 80 to 100%.This homology indicates a predominance of the same "principal clone" in the 21SF strain and confirms the homogeneity previously observed at biological and isozymic analysis. These results suggest the possibility that the T. cruzi strains with similar biological and isoenzymic patterns, circulating in this endemic area, are representative of one dominant clone. The presence of "principal clones" could be responsible for a predominant tropism of the parasites for specific organs and tissues and this could contribute to the pattern of clinico-pathological manifestations of Chagas's disease in one geographical area

Comparative Analysis by Polymerase Chain Reaction Amplified Minicircles of Kinetoplast DNA of a Stable Strain of Trypanosoma cruzi from São Felipe, Bahia, its Clones and Subclones: Possibility of Predominance of a Principal Clone in this Area

Molecular characterization of one stable strain of Trypanosoma cruzi, the 21 SF, representative of the pattern of strains isolated from the endemic area of São Felipe, State of Bahia, Brazil, maintained for 15 years in laboratory by serial passages in mice and classified as biodeme Type II and zymodeme 2 has been investigated. The kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) of parental strain, 5 clones and 14 subclones were analyzed. Schizodeme was established by comparative study of the fragments obtained from digestion of the 330-bp fragments amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from the variable regions of the minicicles, and digested by restriction endonucleases Rsa I and Hinf I. Our results show a high percentual of similarity between the restriction fragment lenght polymorphism (RFLP) for the parental strain and its clones and among these individual clones and their subclones at a level of 80 to 100%.This homology indicates a predominance of the same "principal clone" in the 21SF strain and confirms the homogeneity previously observed at biological and isozymic analysis. These results suggest the possibility that the T. cruzi strains with similar biological and isoenzymic patterns, circulating in this endemic area, are representative of one dominant clone. The presence of "principal clones" could be responsible for a predominant tropism of the parasites for specific organs and tissues and this could contribute to the pattern of clinico-pathological manifestations of Chagas's disease in one geographical area