Digital contact tracing and network theory to stop the spread of COVID-19 using big-data on human mobility geolocalization

The spread of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has become a worldwide problem with devastating consequences. Here, we implement a comprehensive contact tracing and network analysis to find an optimized quarantine protocol to dismantle the chain of transmission of coronavirus with minimal disruptions to society. We track billions of anonymized GPS human mobility datapoints to monitor the evolution of the contact network of disease transmission before and after mass quarantines. As a consequence of the lockdowns, people’s mobility decreases by 53%, which results in a drastic disintegration of the transmission network by 90%. However, this disintegration did not halt the spreading of the disease. Our analysis indicates that superspreading k-core structures persist in the transmission network to prolong the pandemic. Once the k-cores are identified, an optimized strategy to break the chain of transmission is to quarantine a minimal number of ‘weak links’ with high betweenness centrality connecting the large k-cores.     

Clonal multidrug-resistant Corynebacterium striatum within a nosocomial environment,Rio de Janeiro,Brazil

Corynebacterium striatum is a potentially pathogenic microorganism with the ability to produce outbreaks of nosocomial infections. Here, we document a nosocomial outbreak caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) C. striatum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. C. striatum identification was confirmed by 16S rRNA and rpoB gene sequencing. Fifteen C. striatum strains were isolated from adults (half of whom were 50 years of age and older). C. striatum was mostly isolated in pure culture from tracheal aspirates of patients undergoing endotracheal intubation procedures. The analysis by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) indicated the presence of four PFGE profiles, including two related clones of MDR strains (PFGE I and II). The data demonstrated the predominance of PFGE type I, comprising 11 MDR isolates that were mostly isolated from intensive care units and surgical wards. A potential causal link between death and MDR C. striatum (PFGE types I and II) infection was observed in five cases.     

Aglycone flavonoid brachydin A shows selective cytotoxicity and antitumoral activity in human metastatic prostate (DU145) cancer cells

Cytotechnology - In prostate cancer, flavonoids possess a wide variety of anticancer effects, focused on the antioxidant/pro-oxidant activity, inactivation of the androgen receptor, cell cycle...