Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients from Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil, with AIDS and oportunistic infections

Com o objetivo de conhecer e atualizar as características clínicas e epidemiológicas dos pacientes com aids e infecções oportunistas na região de Ribeirão Preto, foram revisados os prontuários médicos de 1019 pacientes com aids, do sub - grupo IVc (CDC), atendidos no HCFMRP, no período de janeiro de 1992 a agosto de 1996.Os seguintes itens foram analisados: data do primeiro atendimento, sexo, idade, cidade em que residia, via provável de aquisição do HIV, época do primeiro exame anti -HIV positivo, número de linfócitos CD4/mm3 por ocasião do primeiro atendimento, data da primeira manifestação infecciosa após o início do seguimento, tipo e número de complicação(ões) infecciosa(s), data do óbito e tipo de infecção(ões) diagnosticada(s) nos pacientes que faleceram. Os resultados, quando comparados com os obtidos no período de 1987 a 1991, apontam para modificações importantes em algumas características dos pacientes no segundo período, como aumento da via de transmissão heterossexual do HIV, aumento da participação de mulheres na casuística, uma tendência de diagnóstico mais precoce da infecção pelo HIV e aumento da sobrevida dos pacientes. Por outro lado, os pacientes continuam sendo acometidos por ampla gama de processos infecciosos durante a evolução da aids, com destaque para a candidíase, as pneumonias bacterianas, a neurotoxoplasmose, a pneumonia por P.carinii, a sinusite, a diarréia e a neurocriptococose. Menção especial deve ser feita à tuberculose que acometeu cerca de 30% dos pacientes durante o período de seguimento.    In order to up-to-date informations about the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of AIDS patients with opportunistic infections, from the Ribeirão Preto region, we revised 1019 medical records of individuals belonging to IVc AIDS sub-group attended in HCFMRP in the period from January 1992 to August 1996. The following parameters were analyzed: date of the first medical examination, sex, age, city of residence, probable form of acquisition of HIV, time of the first anti-HIV positive test, number of CD4+/mm3 lymphocytes at the beginning of the follow-up, date of the first infectious episodes after the beginning of the follow-up, type and number of infectious episodes, date of the death and the type of infectious processes diagnosed in the patients that died. The results point out for important modifications in some characteristics of the patients over the last five years. We noted, by comparing with the results obtained in the period of 1987 to 1991, an increase in the heterosexual transmission of HIV and an increase of the number of women with AIDS; a tendency of an early diagnosis of the HIV infection and an increase in patients’ survival. In the other hand patients continued presenting a wide range of infectious processes during the AIDS evolution with emphasis for candidiasis, for bacterial pneumonia, for neuro-toxoplasmosis, for pneumocystosis, for sinusitis, for diarrhoea, and for neuro-cryptococcosis. Special mention must be done for tuberculosis, which was diagnosed in 30% of the patients during the follow-up period

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora