Molecular epidemiological tracing of a cattle rabies outbreak lasting less than a month in Rio Grande do Sul in southern Brazil

Abstract\ud \ud Background\ud Vampire bat-transmitted cattle rabies cases are typically encountered in areas where the disease is endemic. However, over the period of a month in 2009, an outbreak of cattle rabies occurred and then ended spontaneously in a small area of the Rio Grande do Sul State in southern Brazil. To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of this rabies outbreak in Rio Grande do Sul, 26 nucleotide sequences of rabies virus (RABV) genomes that were collected in this area were analyzed phylogenetically.\ud \ud \ud Results\ud Nucleotide sequence identities of the nucleoprotein gene and G–L intergenic region of the 26 RABVs were greater than 99.6 %. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all RABVs clustered with the vampire bat-related cattle RABV strains and that the RABVs were mainly distributed in southern Brazil.\ud \ud \ud Conclusions\ud The findings of the present study suggested that a small population of rabid vampire bats carrying a single RABV strain produced a spatiotemporally restricted outbreak of cattle rabies in southern Brazil.This study was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research\ud (24580453) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science and the\ud Strategic Research Base Development Program, “International joint research\ud and training of young researchers for zoonosis control in a globalized world”,\ud and a matching fund subsidy from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,\ud Science and Technology of Japan (S0991023 and S1491007)

Molecular and geographic analyses of vampire bat-transmitted cattle rabies in central Brazil

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Vampire bats are important rabies virus vectors, causing critical problems in both the livestock industry and public health sector in Latin America. In order to assess the epidemiological characteristics of vampire bat-transmitted rabies, the authors conducted phylogenetic and geographical analyses using sequence data of a large number of cattle rabies isolates collected from a wide geographical area in Brazil.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Partial nucleoprotein genes of rabies viruses isolated from 666 cattle and 18 vampire bats between 1987 and 2006 were sequenced and used for phylogenetic analysis. The genetic variants were plotted on topographical maps of Brazil.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this study, 593 samples consisting of 24 genetic variants were analyzed. Regional localization of variants was observed, with the distribution of several variants found to be delimited by mountain ranges which served as geographic boundaries. The geographical distributions of vampire-bat and cattle isolates that were classified as the identical phylogenetic group were found to overlap with high certainty. Most of the samples analyzed in this study were isolated from adjacent areas linked by rivers.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study revealed the existence of several dozen regional variants associated with vampire bats in Brazil, with the distribution patterns of these variants found to be affected by mountain ranges and rivers. These results suggest that epidemiological characteristics of vampire bat-related rabies appear to be associated with the topographical and geographical characteristics of areas where cattle are maintained, and the factors affecting vampire bat ecology.</p

Malignancy in Guillain-Barré syndrome:A twelve-year single-center study

The relationship between Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and malignancy is uncertain. We retrospectively analyzed data of 118 consecutive patients admitted with GBS from Birmingham, U.K. (2001 − 2012). We calculated relative cancer risk using different definitions and determined characteristics of malignancy-associated GBS. Malignancy was globally commoner in our GBS cohort compared to the general population (odds ratio: 2.08; CI: 1.06–3.71; p = 0.036). However, this was unconfirmed if paraneoplastic criteria were applied. GBS patients with cancer were significantly more likely to be older (p = 0.043), hyponatremic (p = 0.037) and demonstrate more axonal loss (p < 0.05). Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) protein levels were lower in the malignancy group (p = 0.002) and neurological improvement less likely (p = 0.023). In-patient mortality was significantly higher in patients with malignancy (p < 0.01). We conclude global cancer risk is higher in GBS than in the general population, although definition-dependent. Malignancy requires consideration in elderly, hyponatremic subjects with normal CSF protein, severe axonal loss, who fail to improve post-treatment

Estudo imunológico e genético de 10 isolados do vírus da raiva de morcegos do Rio de Janeiro, Sudeste do Brasil

O presente trabalho visou estudar dez isolados de vírus da raiva de morcegos hematófagos e não-hematófagos do Estado do Rio de Janeiro em suas características genéticas quanto aos genes N e G. Além disso, estudou-se a resposta de camundongos vacinados com a vacina antirrábica produzida pela replicação da amostra Pitman-Moore em cultivo celular, frente ao desafio com estes isolados virais, utilizando-se um ensaio imunológico baseado no teste de potência NIH. A vacina antirrábica utilizada na imunização dos camundongos ofereceu proteção em mais de 80% dos camundongos vacinados com a diluição 1:5 da vacina, frente à maioria dos isolados. A análise filogenética do gene da proteína N apresentou um padrão de agregação dividido em variante de morcego hematófago e variante de morcego insetívoro, com todos os isolados de morcegos frugívoros Artibeus sp. tendo sido segregados com a variante característica de morcegos Desmodus rotundus. Foram observadas diferenças filogenéticas entre as variantes do vírus da raiva de morcego hematófago isoladas na Região Noroeste do Estado do Rio de Janeiro e aquelas isoladas nas Regiões Metropolitana e Sul do Estado. A substituição do resíduo ácido aspártico por ácido glutâmico na posição 118, encontradas na caracterização genética da proteína G dos isolados 704/97BR-DR e 151/98BR-DR, permite inferir que esta posição esteja relacionada à antigenicidade viral. Não foram observadas diferenças genéticas temporais entre os isolados estudados. A vacina antirrábica utilizada ofereceu proteção satisfatória contra a maioria dos isolados estudados.In the present study we analyzed ten bats rabies viruses isolated from Rio de Janeiro State, focusing on its genetic characteristics from genes N and G, and also in the response of mice vaccinated with cell-culture rabies vaccine, produced with the Pitman-Moore strain, after viral challenge with bat rabies isolates, using an immunologic essay based on NIH vaccine potency test. The vaccine used conferred protection in more than 80% of the mice vaccinated with 1:15 vaccine dilution, after viral challenge. N gene genetic analysis divided the rabies virus isolates into haematophagous and insectivorous bat variants, with all isolates from Artibeus sp. frugivorous bats being clustered with the variant characteristic of the Desmodus rotundus vampire bat. Phylogenetic differences between isolates from Northeast Region and those from the Metropolitan and South Regions of Rio de Janeiro State were observed. The substitution of an aspartic acid to a glutamic acid found in the position 118 of G gene genetic characterization from samples 704/97BR-DR and 151/98BR-DR seems to be related to viral antigenicity. There were no time-related genetic differences between the studied samples. The vaccine employed was found with satisfactory protection against the majority of the isolates used

Expression of Acetobacter xylinum Cellulose Synthase in Insect Cells

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