Qualea amapaënsis (Vochysiaceae), a new and phytogeographically interesting species from Brazil

Qualea amapaËnsis, the second species of sect. Polytrias Stafleu is described. It differs from its close relative, Q. cymulosa, principally in its entirely glabrous leaves and more profusely branched cymes. The two species add a new pair to the growing list of taxa disjunct between eastern Panama/Colombia and the Guianas.     

A new Catasetum species (Catasetinae,Orchidaceae) from Goiás,Brazil

A new Catasetum species from Brazil,Catasetum confusum, is described and illustrated. This widely cultivated species had been referred previously toCatasetum ornithoides Pabst.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Chamaecrista elata</Emphasis> (Leguminosae,Caesalpinioideae), a new species from the highlands of Goiás,Brazil

During the course of a taxonomic study of Chamaecrista sect. Absus subsect. Absus ser. Rigidulae, a new species of Chamaecrista was discovered growing in disturbed areas of Cerrado sensu stricto in the municipality of Alto Paraíso de Goiás. Chamaecrista elata is herein described and illustrated. Morphological comparison with related species and information on geographical distribution, environmental preferences, conservation status, and phenology are provided.     

A new species of Alstroemeria (Alstroemeriaceae) from Pará, Brazil

A new species,Alstroemeria paraensis, from Pará, Brazil, is described and illustrated. This species is characterized by its robust floral stem, reduced leaves, congested inflorescence, and maculated inner and outer tepals.     

Toward a census of genus Mimosa (Mimosaceae) in the Americas: a new species from Mexico (Baja California Sur) and two from planaltine Brazil (Goiás, Minas Gerais)

Three new species of Mimosa are described: M. (sect. Batocaulon) epitropica Barneby & León de la Luz from Mexico (Baja California Sur); and two from planaltine Brazil, M. (sect. Habbasia) bispiculata Barneby and M. (sect. Mimosa) demissa Barneby. The affinity of each is discussed, and all are illustrated.     

Epidemiological features of rotavirus infection in Goiânia,Goiás,Brazil, from 1986 to 2000

A total of 2,605 faecal specimens from children up to 10 years old with or without diarrhoea were collected. Samples were obtained from 1986 to 2000 in hospitals, outpatient clinics and day-care centers in Goiania, Goiás. Two methodologies for viral detection were utilized: a combined enzyme immunoassay for rotavirus and adenovirus and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Results showed 374 (14.4%) faecal specimens positive for Rotavirus A, most of them collected from hospitalized children. A significant detection rate of rotavirus during the period from April to August, dry season in Goiania, and different frequencies of viral detection throughout the years of study were also observed. Rotavirus was significantly related to hospitalization and to diarrhoeal illness in children up to 24 months old. This study reinforces the importance of rotavirus as a cause of diarrhoea in children and may be important in regards to the implementation of rotavirus vaccination strategies in our country.     

Symplocos saxatilis (Symplocaceae), a new dioecious species from Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Symplocos saxatilis from Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, is newly described and illustrated on the basis of field and herbarium studies. It appears to be restricted to “campo rupestre” (rocky field) habitats. This new species is characterized by its 1- to 3-flowered pedunculate inflorescence, 11 to 14 staminodes of the pistillate flowers, and 0.7–1.5 mm thick endocarp.     

Emergence of nosocomial Mycobacterium massiliense infection in Goiás, Brazil

A cluster of surgical site infection cases after arthroscopic and laparoscopic procedures occurred between 2005 and 2007 in Goiania, in the central region of Brazil. Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) were isolated from samples (exudates from cutaneous abscesses) from 18 patients of seven private hospitals. There were no reports of post-surgical arthroscopic and laparoscopic mycobacterial infections in Goiania apart from this period. The 18 isolates were identified as Mycobacterium massiliense by PCR-restriction digestion of the hsp65 gene, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) comparisons, and rpoB partial gene sequencing. All isolates were typed as a single clone, indicating that they have the same origin, which suggests a common source of infection for all patients.     

The flora and biogeochemistry of the ultramafic soils of Goiás state, Brazil

Major collections of the ultramafic flora of Goiás, central Brazil, were made by Brooks and co-workers in 1988 and 1990. At the time of reports on this material in 1990–1992 much of it had been identified only tentatively and incompletely, but the area was clearly interesting for taxonomic and biogeochemical reasons. Further progress has been made but still only two-thirds of the specimens are identified at the species level. Following a third collection in early 2005, we now have 800 specimens from this area, with chemical analyses of all the plants and of more than 120 representative soil samples. New species have been found, e.g., in Paspalum (Poaceae) and Pterolepis (Melastomataceae). There is a need for more taxonomic work in genera such as Cnidoscolus (Euphorbiaceae), Lippia (Verbenaceae), Turnera and Piriqueta (Turneraceae), and Vellozia (Velloziaceae). Ni hyperaccumulation (>1,000 mg/kg in dry plant matter) has now been found in a total of 79 specimens, representing more than 30 different species. Notable Ni hyperaccumulators include Pfaffia sarcophylla (Amaranthaceae), species of Justicia, Lophostachys and Ruellia (Acanthaceae), Porophyllum (Asteraceae), several species of Lippia (Verbenaceae), Turnera and Piriqueta (Turneraceae), and a possibly new Cnidoscolus (Euphorbiaceae). Ni hyperaccumulation has not been found in plants of the outcrops of Morro Feio or Crominia-Mairipotaba; it seems to be confined to the extensive layered ultramafics of Barro Alto and the Macedo-Niquelandia areas. The distribution of Ni-values in the Brazilian plant collection is different from that found in the Mediterranean and California, where there is a clear distinction between accumulator and non-accumulator plants: in Brazil the distribution is more continuous, and median Ni concentrations are much greater. An ultramafic hill just north of Niquelandia deserves to be protected because of the presence there of many of the hyperaccumulators and species probably endemic to the Goiás ultramafics.     

Clinical data and molecular analysis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from drug-resistant tuberculosis patients in Goiás, Brazil

Drug resistance is one of the major concerns regarding tuberculosis (TB) infection worldwide because it hampers control of the disease. Understanding the underlying mechanisms responsible for drug resistance development is of the highest importance. To investigate clinical data from drug-resistant TB patients at the Tropical Diseases Hospital, Goiás (GO), Brazil and to evaluate the molecular basis of rifampin (R) and isoniazid (H) resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Drug susceptibility testing was performed on 124 isolates from 100 patients and 24 isolates displayed resistance to R and/or H. Molecular analysis of drug resistance was performed by partial sequencing of the rpoB and katGgenes and analysis of the inhA promoter region. Similarity analysis of isolates was performed by 15 loci mycobacterial interspersed repetitive unit-variable number tandem repeat (MIRU-VNTR) typing. The molecular basis of drug resistance among the 24 isolates from 16 patients was confirmed in 18 isolates. Different susceptibility profiles among the isolates from the same individual were observed in five patients; using MIRU-VNTR, we have shown that those isolates were not genetically identical, with differences in one to three loci within the 15 analysed loci. Drug-resistant TB in GO is caused by M. tuberculosis strains with mutations in previously described sites of known genes and some patients harbour a mixed phenotype infection as a consequence of a single infective event; however, further and broader investigations are needed to support our findings.     

A new species of Simaba (Simaroubaceae) from Pará, Brazil,with a key to the species north of the Amazon River

A new species,Simaba cavalcantei, is described and illustrated. It is considered to be intermediate between sectionsGrandiflorae andFloribundae and is distinguished from potentially sympatric species in a key to the species occurring north of the Amazon River.     

Polymorphism of the progesterone receptor gene associated with endometriosis in patients from Goiás, Brazil

We investigated a possible link between endometriosis and polymorphism of the progesterone receptor gene (PROGINS). The endometriosis group consisted of 54 patients with a diagnosis of endometriosis by laparoscopy, and the control group comprised 44 women without endometriosis. Genotypes for PROGINS polymorphisms (A1/A1, A1/A2 and A2/A2) were determined by polymerase chain reaction and analyzed on a 2% agarose gel stained with ethidium bromide. The frequency of polymorphic genotypes (A1/A2 and A2/A2) was significantly higher in patients with endometriosis (33%) than in the control group (16%). We conclude that there is a significant correlation between PROGINS polymorphism and endometriosis.