Outstanding insecurities concerning the use of an Ov16-based ELISA in the Amazonia onchocerciasis focus

In a recent issue of Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, published in Rio de Janeiro in February 2014 (109: 87-92), Adami et al. have published a survey reporting Mansonella parasite prevalence in the Amazon Region. This report makes a useful contribution to the existing knowledge of filarial parasite distribution within the Amazon area, parasite prevalence rates in relation to age and occupation and provides observations on the possible clinical impact of Mansonella ozzardi. Their publication also provides an account of what appears to be a novel ELISA that has recently been used in the Simuliidae and Onchocerciasis Laboratory of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We are concerned that the publication of this ELISA may have created an excessively positive impression of the effectiveness of the onchocerciasis recrudescence serological surveillance tools that are presently available for use in the Amazonia onchocerciasis focus. In this letter we have, thus, sought to highlight some of the limitations of this ELISA and suggest how continuing insecurities concerning the detection of antibodies to Onchocerca volvulus within the Amazonia onchocerciasis focus might be minimised.     

New insights on the development of fungal vaccines: from immunity to recent challenges

Fungal infections are emerging as a major problem in part due to high mortality associated with systemic infections, especially in the case of immunocompromised patients. With the development of new treatments for diseases such as cancer and the acquired immune deficiency syndrome pandemic, the number of immunosuppressed patients has increased and, as a consequence, also the number of invasive fungal infections has increased. Several studies have proposed new strategies for the development of effective fungal vaccines. In addition, better understanding of how the immune system works against fungal pathogens has improved the further development of these new vaccination strategies. As a result, some fungal vaccines have advanced through clinical trials. However, there are still many challenges that prevent the clinical development of fungal vaccines that can efficiently immunise subjects at risk of developing invasive fungal infections. In this review, we will discuss these new vaccination strategies and the challenges that they present. In the future with proper investments, fungal vaccines may soon become a reality.     

List of the type species of Ceratopogonidae (Diptera, Nematocera) deposited in the Entomological Collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil]

A list of all type specimens of the Family Ceratopogonidae, present in the Entomological Collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil is presented. This list includes the genera Bahiahelea, Culicoides, Dasyhelea, Downeshelea, Forcipomyia, Leptoconops, Mallochohelea, Monohelea, Neobezzia, Palpomyia and Sphaerohelea.     

Triatoma jatai sp. nov. in the state of Tocantins,Brazil (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Triatominae)

Triatoma jatai sp. nov. is the first new species of triatomine to be described in the state of Tocantins, in the northern region of Brazil. It was caught on rock outcrops in the wild environment and, more recently, invading homes. While T. jatai sp. nov. is morphologically similar to Triatoma costalimai, it is distinguished by its general colouring, differences in the blotches on the connexivum, wing size in females and external structures of the male genitalia. The type series has been deposited in the Entomological Collection and Herman Lent Collection, Oswaldo Cruz Institute-Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.     

The type specimens of chewing lice (Insecta,Mallophaga) deposited in the entomological collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz,Rio de Janeiro,RJ, Brazil

This paper presents a list of 131 Mallophaga type specimens deposited in the Werneck Collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. It includes 69 holotypes, 62 allotypes, 683 paratypes, 1 syntype and 2 neoparatypes, distributed among 6 families and 35 genera. The types are listed with their respective data and literature.     

Ultrastructure of male sex pheromone glands in abdominal tergites of five Lutzomyia sandfly species (Diptera: Psychodidae)

The fine structure of male sex pheromone disseminating structures on abdominal segments of five species of Lutzomyia sandflies (Diptera: Psychodidae) was analyzed. Scanning electron microscopy showed that in Lutzomyia cruzi [Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz 33 (1938) 349] and Lutzomyia longipalpis [Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz 4 (1912) 84], the disseminating structures are located in pale spots on abdominal tergites IV or III and IV and are morphologically similar, appearing as small round cuticular elevations with a central pore. Observation of abdominal tergites of L. longipalpis pupae showed that the spots, but not the structures, are already present in this stage. In Lutzomyia lenti [Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz 33 (1938) 349] and Lutzomyia carmelinoi [Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz 81 (1986) 323] adult males, the disseminating structures are present on tergal segments V and VI, where pale spots could not be observed, and appear as apple-like elevations with a central pore. In Lutzomyia renei, a single disseminating structure is found at the anterior region of tergal segment VI. Transmission electron microscopy was used to analyze the gland cell fine structure in L. cruzi. Several class III gland cells are located side by side in the fourth abdominal segment. Each epidermal secretory cell contains a small reservoir and a short outlet channel through the cuticle.     

The type specimens of sucking lice (Anoplura) deposited in the entomological collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.

This study presents a list of 34 Anoplura type specimens deposited in the Werneck Collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. It includes 18 holotypes, 16 allotypes, 88 paratypes and 10 neotypes, distributed among the genera: Enderleinellus, Fahrenholzia, Haematopinus, Hoplopleura, Linognathus, Microthoracius, Pecaroecus, Polyplax and Pterophthirus. The types are related according to their respective data and literature.     

Education for science and science for education: more than a play upon words

In the celebration of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute centenary, we wanted to stress our concern with the relationship between two of its missions: research and education. What are the educational bases required for science and technology activities on health sciences for the future years? How can scientists collaborate to promote the popularization of academic knowledge and to improve a basic education for citizenship in an ethic and humanistic view? In this article we pointed out to need of commitment, even in the biomedical post-graduation level, of a more integrated philosophy that would be centered on health education, assuming health as a dynamic biological and social equilibrium and emphasizing the need of scientific popularization of science in a cooperative construction way, instead of direct transfer of knowledge, preserving also macro views of health problems in the development of very specific studies. The contemporary explosion of knowledge, particularly biological knowledge, imposes a need of continuous education to face the growing illiteracy. In order to face this challenge, we think that the Oswaldo Cruz Institute honors his dialectic profile of tradition and transformation, always creating new perspectives to disseminate scientific culture in innovator forms.     

The Duffy binding protein as a key target for a Plasmodium vivax vaccine: lessons from the Brazilian Amazon

Plasmodium vivax infects human erythrocytes through a major pathway that requires interaction between an apical parasite protein, the Duffy binding protein (PvDBP) and its receptor on reticulocytes, the Duffy antigen/receptor for chemokines (DARC). The importance of the interaction between PvDBP (region II, DBPII) and DARC to P. vivax infection has motivated our malaria research group at Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (state of Minas Gerais, Brazil) to conduct a number of immunoepidemiological studies to characterise the naturally acquired immunity to PvDBP in populations living in the Amazon rainforest. In this review, we provide an update on the immunology and molecular epidemiology of PvDBP in the Brazilian Amazon - an area of markedly unstable malaria transmission - and compare it with data from other parts of Latin America, as well as Asia and Oceania.     

First report of Panstrongylus megistus sylvatic focus in municipality of Bambuí, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

In 1943, the Center for the Study and Prophylaxis of Chagas Disease, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, state of Minas Gerais (MG), was created in the municipality of Bambuí to carry out studies related to Chagas disease in the mid-western region of MG. Since that time, several investigations have been conducted to determine the natural habitat of triatomines, but Panstrongylus megistus colonies have never been found in this region. This paper records the first finding of a P. megistus sylvatic colony in 69 years of research. The characteristics of this ecotope and its implications for the epidemiology of Chagas disease are discussed.     

The Oswaldo Cruz Institute and its relationship with other biomedical research centers in São Paulo

This paper deals with the relationships between the Oswaldo Cruz Institute, a biomedical institution which was founded in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in the beginning of the 20th century, and other similar institutions founded in S?o Paulo during the same period, especially the Butantan and the Biological Institutes. The analysis comprehends the three first decades of the 20th century. The paper starts with a comparative presentation of the trajectory of these three institutions, showing the reasons which determined the great influence the Oswaldo Cruz Institute exerted on the other two. Then, it analyses these influences, principally on the basis of the interchange of researchers among the institutions. It concludes by showing that, due to the institutions' greater professionalization, these influences were increasingly turned into integration.     

The taxonomy of Brazilian insects vectors of transmissible diseases (1900-2000)--then and now

A brief historical overview is given of the most relevant taxonomic studies of insect groups vectors of transmissible diseases in Brazil, from the "heroic" times of the foundation of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz in Rio de Janeiro up to the present. The following orders are considered: Phthiraptera (Anoplura, Amblycera and Ischnocera), Hemiptera (Reduviidae: Triatominae), Siphonaptera and Diptera (Culicidae, Ceratopogonidae, Psychodidae: Phlebotominae, Simuliidae, Tabanidae, Chloropidae and Muscidae). The most important Brazilian collections of each group are cited.     

Detection of stabilizing selection in favor of the Santa Cruz homokaryotype in Drosophila pseudoobscura populations from the high plateau of the Colombian Andes

Chromosome 3 rearrangements were studied in five Drosophila pseudoobscura populations from the high plateau of the Colombian Andes. As in previous studies, the Santa Cruz and Tree Line rearrangements were predominant in these populations, but for the first time other rearrangements such as the Olympic, Cuernavaca and a rearrangement similar to the endemic Mexican Amecameca rearrangement were also discovered. Researchers in the early 1960's showed that Colombian D. pseudoobscura populations were not in accordance with Carson's theory. They found a special heterotic system in this geographically isolated population. Our current results do not support these findings but instead favor Carson's theory, because in practically all the populations studied the homokaryotype excess was close to fixation. These new results indicate that some stabilizing selective pressures in favor of the homokaryotypes (especially Santa Cruz) have appeared in the Colombian plateau during the last 10-12 years. These new changes may be related to deforestation and habitat destruction by human beings and/or climatic changes motivated by the El Ni?o phenomenon. Genetic heterogeneity between populations was not significant and there was no isolation-by-distance between them, findings which are contrary to those observed in some North American populations and which show that the Colombian populations now have rigid genetic systems. The frequency of the Santa Cruz rearrangement was also found to have increased in some populations over the last few years.     

Overview of some biomedical research projects in tropical medicine conducted at the Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas

The Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas (IVIC) is a government-funded multidisciplinary academic institution dedicated to research, development and technology in many areas of knowledge. Biomedical projects and publications comprise about 40% of the total at IVIC. In this article, we present an overview of some selected research and development projects conducted at IVIC which we believe contain new and important aspects related to malaria, ancylostomiasis, dengue fever, leishmaniasis and tuberculosis. Other projects considered of interest in the general area of tropical medicine are briefly described. This article was prepared as a small contribution to honor and commemorate the centenary of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz.     

Molecular analysis of yellow fever virus 17DD vaccine strain.

The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation produces most of the yellow fever (YF) vaccine prepared worldwide. As part of a broader approach to determine the genetic variability in YF 17D seeds and vaccines and its relevance to viral attenuation the 17DD virus was purified directly from chick embryo homogenates which is the source of virus used for vaccination of millions of people in Brazil and other countries for half a century. Neutralization and hemagglutination tests showed that the purified virus is similar to the original stock. Furthermore, radioimmune precipitation of 35S-methionine-labeled viral proteins using mouse hyperimmune ascitic fluid revealed identical patterns for the purified 17DD virus and the YF 17D-204 strain except for the 17DD E protein which migrated slower on SDS-PAGE. This difference is likely to be due to N-linked glycosylation. Finally, comparison by northern blot hybridization of virion RNAs of purified 17DD with two other strains of YF 17D virus revealed only genome-sized molecules for all three viruses. These observations suggest that the vaccine phenotype is primarily associated with the accumulation of mutations.     

Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome in Santa Cruz,Bolivia: Outbreak Investigation and Antibody Prevalence Study

We report the results of an investigation of a small outbreak of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in 2002 in the Department of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, where the disease had not previously been reported. Two cases were initially reported. The first case was a physician infected with Laguna Negra virus during a weekend visit to his ranch. Four other persons living on the ranch were IgM antibody-positive, two of whom were symptomatic for mild hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The second case was a migrant sugarcane worker. Although no sample remained to determine the specific infecting hantavirus, a virus 90% homologous with Río Mamoré virus was previously found in small-eared pygmy rice rats (Oligoryzomys microtis) trapped in the area. An antibody prevalence study conducted in the region as part of the outbreak investigation showed 45 (9.1%) of 494 persons to be IgG positive, illustrating that hantavirus infection is common in Santa Cruz Department. Precipitation in the months preceding the outbreak was particularly heavy in comparison to other years, suggesting a possible climatic or ecological influence on rodent populations and risk of hantavirus transmission to humans. Hantavirus infection appears to be common in the Santa Cruz Department, but more comprehensive surveillance and field studies are needed to fully understand the epidemiology and risk to humans.     

Sexual reproduction in subcultures of Absidia blakesleeana after years of preservation under mineral oil

Two subcultures of Absidia blakesleeana IOC No. 2425 (-) mating type strain preserved in 1959 and 1981 on a thick layer of potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium under sterile mineral oil and maintained at room temperature in the Fungal Cultural Collection of Institute Oswaldo Cruz--IOC--were paired with the defined Absidia blakesleeana URM-UFP No. 2076 (+) mating type strain. Portions of the line where mycelia of the two strains met were observed under light microscopy. Zygospores belonging to Subgenus Mycocladus were observed. The results demonstrated conservation and re-establishment of the physiological and genetic metabolic processes of two subcultures preserved under mineral oil.     

IL-10 and IFN-γ gene expression in chronic Chagas disease patients after in vitro stimulation with recombinant antigens of Trypanosoma cruzi

Along with several other aspects of Chagas disease, the mechanisms responsible for the different clinical outcomes observed in chronic infected individuals have not yet been clarified. It is believed that the host immune response to the parasite plays an important role in the development of the pathology. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between IL-10 and IFN-γ gene expression profile, after in vitro stimulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) with Trypanosoma cruzi recombinant antigens CRA (cytoplasmatic repetitive antigen) and FRA (flagellar repetitive antigen), and the clinical forms of chronic Chagas disease. Twenty patients with the cardiac form of the disease (CARD), of whom 10 had the mild cardiac form (CARD 1) and 10 the severe cardiac form (CARD 2), and 20 patients with the indeterminate form (IND), were selected at the Chagas Disease Unit of the Oswaldo Cruz University Hospital, University of Pernambuco, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. The PBMCs of these individuals were cultured in the presence of CRA or FRA for 3 days and IL-10 and IFN-γ gene expression was evaluated by detection of its messenger RNA using Real Time Quantitative PCR. Although no significant difference was observed between the groups of individuals studied, we found that most patients with IND displayed high levels of IFN-γ gene expression, while the majority of patients with CARD 1 presented high levels of IL-10. The results of this study thus highlight the important role that inflammatory cytokines play in patients with the IND group controlling for parasite replication, and that anti-inflammatory cytokines play in determining susceptibility to progression to symptomatic clinical forms of the disease.     

Prophet in his own country: Carlos Chagas and the Nobel Prize

In 1909, Carlos Chagas (1878-1934) discovered a new protozoon, Trypanosoma cruzi, and the (previously unknown) disease that it causes. Within a few months, virtually single-handed, he described the pathogen, its vector, and the clinical features of American trypanosomiasis (Chagas disease), a feat unique in medical history. He headed the Oswaldo Cruz Institute after the death of its founder (1917) until his own death; and from 1920 until 1926 he also directed the Brazilian Department of Public Health. His discovery brought him worldwide acclaim, but at home antagonism against Chagas, muted for years, finally flared up in a campaign that was acted out in the 1921-22 plenary sessions of the National Academy of Medicine. Chagas's name was repeatedly proposed for the Nobel Prize but he never received it; this hostile campaign may have been instrumental in costing him the award.