Monitoramento das Produções

Title: COVID-19 in Brazil: advantages of a socialized unified health system and preparation to contain cases
Authors: Croda, Julio; Oliveira, Wanderson Kleber de; Frutuoso, Rodrigo Lins; Mandetta, Luiz Henrique; Baia-da-Silva, Djane Clarys; Brito-Sousa, José Diego; Monteiro, Wuelton Marcelo; Lacerda, Marcus Vinícius Guimarães

by Gurjit S. Randhawa, Maximillian P. M. Soltysiak, Hadi El Roz, Camila P. E. de Souza, Kathleen A. Hill, Lila Kari

The 2019 novel coronavirus (renamed SARS-CoV-2, and generally referred to as the COVID-19 virus) has spread to 184 countries with over 1.5 million confirmed cases. Such major viral outbreaks demand early elucidation of taxonomic classification and origin of the virus genomic sequence, for strategic planning, containment, and treatment. This paper identifies an intrinsic COVID-19 virus genomic signature and uses it together with a machine learning-based alignment-free approach for an ultra-fast, scalable, and highly accurate classification of whole COVID-19 virus genomes. The proposed method combines supervised machine learning with digital signal processing (MLDSP) for genome analyses, augmented by a decision tree approach to the machine learning component, and a Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient analysis for result validation. These tools are used to analyze a large dataset of over 5000 unique viral genomic sequences, totalling 61.8 million bp, including the 29 COVID-19 virus sequences available on January 27, 2020. Our results support a hypothesis of a bat origin and classify the COVID-19 virus as Sarbecovirus, within Betacoronavirus. Our method achieves 100% accurate classification of the COVID-19 virus sequences, and discovers the most relevant relationships among over 5000 viral genomes within a few minutes, ab initio, using raw DNA sequence data alone, and without any specialized biological knowledge, training, gene or genome annotations. This suggests that, for novel viral and pathogen genome sequences, this alignment-free whole-genome machine-learning approach can provide a reliable real-time option for taxonomic classification.

Title: Papel da caspase-1 na infecção experimental pelo vírus Chikungunya
Authors: Farias, Pablo Cantalice Santos
Abstract: O Chikungunya (CHIKV) é um arbovírus da família Togaviridae, gênero Alphavirus,
transmitido por vetores do gênero Aedes. Os principais sintomas da febre Chikungunya
incluem febre, artralgia severa, mialgia, cefaleia e exantemas, podendo ser detectados
também casos envolvendo complicações neurológicas, como a Síndrome de Guillaín-Barré,
meningoencefalite, mielite entre outras patologias do sistema nervoso central (SNC). Dessa
forma, este trabalho visa identificar o papel da caspase-1 durante infecção pelo vírus
Chikungunya buscando elucidar formas de prevenção às complicações, visto que ainda não
há tratamentos específicos contra o vírus. Inicialmente, a infecção foi realizada em células de
linhagem neuronal (SH-SY5Y) utilizando um MOI de 0,5. Para confirmação da infecção foi
realizada imunofluorescência utilizando anticorpos específicos anti-CHIKV nos tempos de
12, 24, 36 e 48 horas pós infecção (hpi). Nas mesmas condições foi avaliada a cinética de
replicação do vírus por meio de ensaio de placa, onde foi observado um pico da replicação
em 36 hpi. Ainda sob o contexto celular foi realizado o ensaio de morte celular, utilizando
anexina V/7AAD, pelo qual foi observada uma taxa de morte crescente a partir de 36 hpi.
Um dos elementos da via em estudo, a caspase-1, foi marcada nos diferentes tempos
detectando-se uma crescente ativação. Além disso, níveis de IL-1β foram dosados no
sobrenadante observando-se uma diminuição nesses níveis em 36 e 48 hpi. Estudos prévios já
demonstraram que de fato o CHIKV é capaz de infectar e se replicar em SH-SY5Y, porém,
não se tem dados à respeito dos níveis de caspase-1 ativadas em cultura celular. Em relação
aos níveis de IL-1β, torna-se importante avaliar mecanismos anti-inflamatórios que possam
estar envolvidos. O CHIKV é capaz de ativar caspase-1, porém necessita-se de mais estudos
a fim de elucidar mecanismos imunológicos em 36 e 48 hpi.

Title: Coagulation modifiers targeting SARS-CoV-2 main protease Mpro for COVID-19 treatment
Authors: Biembengut, Ísis Venturi; Souza, Tatiana de Arruda Campos Brasil de

Title: Presidente da Fiocruz fala dos desafios da pandemia de Covid-19
Authors: Lima, Nísia Trindade
Abstract: Em entrevista à Agência Fiocruz de Notícias, a presidente da Fiocruz, Nísia Trindade Lima, comentou o contexto da pandemia de Covid-19 e os desafios de sua chegada ao Brasil. Ela também elenca algumas ações da instituição na resposta à crise sanitária, que vai desde a produção de testes ao atendimento aos infectados. Todos os setores e unidades da Fundação estão mobilizadas para o enfrentamento da epidemia. “A Fiocruz está completando 120 anos em maio e o aniversário vai ser marcado pela resposta à essa pandemia, assim como o início da instituição foi uma resposta sanitária às epidemias no Rio de Janeiro”, destacou Nísia.

Title: Comunicação popular e comunitária em tempos de Covid-19: o direito de se comunicar e o direito à saúde
Authors: Informe ENSP
Abstract: As desigualdades existentes no Brasil têm imposto grandes dificuldades nas respostas à pandemia do coronavírus. O problema, que perpassa as condições de moradia, acesso à alimentação segura e à saúde, também está presente no tocante à comunicação. No lugar de uma construção da comunicação como um direito de todos, o que presenciamos por aqui é a uma grande concentração de veículos de mídia nas mãos de poucos empresários, que, com isso, determinam o conteúdo a ser veiculado, além da forma e da linguagem a ser utilizada. Isso tem efeitos no exercício da cidadania de toda a população, e em tempos de emergência de saúde e com a necessidade de cuidados específicos, como é o atual cenário com a Covid-19, a situação se agrava. Entretanto, a resistência de comunicadores e comunicadoras populares e comunitários se mantém no período de pandemia e supera as dificuldades para dialogar em diversos territórios. E a boa notícia é que, em muitos casos, contam com parcerias de instituições ligadas à área da saúde para realizar esse trabalho e passar adiante informações qualificadas.

Title: APS na rede de enfrentamento à Covid-19
Authors: Giovanella, Ligia
Abstract: A Rede de Pesquisas em Atenção Primária à Saúde considera necessário manter um debate qualificado e a difusão de informações e orientações adequadas com transparência para o controle da Covid-19. Nós, do comitê gestor da Rede de Pesquisa em APS da Abrasco, neste momento excepcional de muitas incertezas, temos dialogado, em encontros semanais virtuais, sobre estratégias de atuação da APS no SUS para o enfrentamento da Covid-19. Para discutir tais estratégias, foram constituídos grupos de trabalho que estão elaborando análises apresentadas e discutidas no seminário.

by Sangay Zangmo, Jit Bdr Darnal, Tsheten, Sonam Gyeltshen, Binay Thapa Thapa, Prinyada Rodpradit, Piyawan Chinnawirotpisan, Wudtichai Manasatienkij, Louis R. Macareo, Stefan Fernandez, Sonam Wangchuk, Chonticha Klungthong

Dengue continues to pose a significant public health problem in tropical and subtropical countries. In Bhutan, first outbreak of dengue fever (DF) was reported in 2004 in a southern border town, followed by sporadic cases over the years. In this study, we analysed DF outbreaks that occurred in 3 different places during the years 2016 and 2017. A total of 533 cases in 2016 and 163 in 2017 were suspected of having of DF, where young adults were mostly affected. A total of 240 acute serum specimens collected and analyzed for serotype by nested RT-PCR revealed predominance of serotypes 1 and 2 (DENV-1 and 2). Phylogenetic analysis using envelope gene for both the serotypes demonstrated cosmopolitan genotype which were closely related to strains from India, indicating that they were probably imported from the neighboring country over the past few years.

Title: A fórceps: Paulo Buss fala sobre Covid-19 e a saúde em todas as políticas
Authors: Informe ENSP
Abstract: Em artigo exclusivo para a revista Radis, o professor emérito da Fiocruz e membro titular da Academia Nacional de Medicina do Brasil, sanitarista Paulo Buss, alerta para relação entre determinantes sociais, econômicos e ambientais e pandemia. “Precisaremos de um novo fórceps, que certamente virá, para extrair de governos e da sociedade políticas públicas definitivamente comprometidas com a saúde humana e planetária?”, questiona Buss.

Title: MonitoraCovid-19 alerta para aumento de circulação nas ruas
Authors: Informe ENSP
Abstract: Com ferramentas de computação avançada, o MonitoraCovid-19, sistema que agrupa e integra dados sobre o novo coronavírus no Brasil e no mundo, tem observado como anda a adesão às medidas de isolamento social recomendadas pela Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS) pela população brasileira. O aumento da movimentação em grandes centros urbanos, como São Paulo e Porto Alegre, preocupa especialistas. Outro ponto sensível é a tendência de interiorização da pandemia para além das capitais dos estados brasileiros. O MonitoraCovid-19 faz parte do Observatório Covid-19 Fiocruz, que tem o objetivo produzir análises integradas, gerando informações para a tomada de decisão e ação no enfrentamento da pandemia pelo Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) e pela sociedade brasileira.

Title: Fake news colocam a vida em risco: a polêmica da campanha de vacinação contra a febre amarela no Brasil
Authors: Teixeira, Adriana; Santos, Rogério Da Costa
Abstract: Este artigo faz a leitura das notícias falsas que circulam conteúdo sobre saúde pública em redes digitais e aplicativos de troca de mensagens. Para enumerar os argumentos utilizados pelos divulgadores de fake news na disputa pela enunciação da verdade, no campo do discurso, os autores escolheram a campanha de vacinação contra a febre amarela, lançada em um surto da doença no Brasil, no fial de 2016. Selecionamos os textos de posts e áudios que se multiplicaram no WhatsApp, especifiamente no ano de 2018, para a análise ancorada nas teses sobre produção de verdade e poder de Michel Foucault e de Nikolas Rose. Iniciamos, assim, uma reflxão sobre a ação das fake news em defesa da vida e que, ao mesmo tempo, colocam a vida em risco. A Organização Mundial da Saúde já aponta as fake news como uma das responsáveis pela baixa nos níveis internacionais de imunização.

Title: Profissionais de saúde em tempos de Covid-19
Authors: Machado, Maria Helena
Description: O artigo foi originalmente publicado no jornal O Globo (23/3/2020).

by Warsito Tantowijoyo, Bekti Andari, Eggi Arguni, Nida Budiwati, Indah Nurhayati, Iva Fitriana, Inggrid Ernesia, Edwin W. Daniwijaya, Endah Supriyati, Dedik H. Yusdiana, Munasdi Victorius, Dwi S. Wardana, Hilmi Ardiansyah, Riris Andono Ahmad, Peter A. Ryan, Cameron P. Simmons, Ary A. Hoffmann, Edwige Rancès, Andrew P. Turley, Petrina Johnson, Adi Utarini, Scott L. O’Neill

The successful establishment of the wMel strain of Wolbachia for the control of arbovirus transmission by Aedes aegypti has been proposed and is being implemented in a number of countries. Here we describe the successful establishment of the wMel strain of Wolbachia in four sites in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. We demonstrate that Wolbachia can be successfully introgressed after transient releases of wMel-infected eggs or adult mosquitoes. We demonstrate that the approach is acceptable to communities and that Wolbachia maintains itself in the mosquito population once deployed. Finally, our data show that spreading rates of Wolbachia in the Indonesian setting are slow which may reflect more limited dispersal of Aedes aegypti than seen in other sites such as Cairns, Australia.

by Yinjun Fan, Patrick O'Grady, Melissa Yoshimizu, Alongkot Ponlawat, Phillip E. Kaufman, Jeffrey G. Scott
Background Aedes aegypti is a globally distributed vector of human diseases including dengue, yellow fever, chikungunya, and Zika. Pyrethroid insecticides are the primary means of controlling adult A. aegypti populations to suppress arbovirus outbreaks, but resistance to pyrethroid insecticides has become a global problem. Mutations in the voltage-sensitive sodium channel (Vssc) gene are a major mechanism of pyrethroid resistance in A. aegypti. Vssc resistance alleles in A. aegypti commonly have more than one mutation. However, our understanding of the evolutionary dynamics of how alleles with multiple mutations arose is poorly understood. Methodology/Principal findings We examined the geographic distribution and association between the common Vssc mutations (V410L, S989P, V1016G/I and F1534C) in A. aegypti by analyzing the relevant Vssc fragments in 25 collections, mainly from Asia and the Americas. Our results showed all 11 Asian populations had two types of resistance alleles: 1534C and 989P+1016G. The 1534C allele was more common with frequencies ranging from 0.31 to 0.88, while the 989P+1016G frequency ranged from 0.13 to 0.50. Four distinct alleles (410L, 1534C, 410L+1534C and 410L+1016I+1534C) were detected in populations from the Americas. The most common was 410L+1016I+1534C with frequencies ranging from 0.50 to 1.00, followed by 1534C with frequencies ranging from 0.13 to 0.50. Our phylogenetic analysis of Vssc supported multiple independent origins of the F1534C mutation. Our results indicated the 410L+1534C allele may have arisen by addition of the V410L mutation to the 1534C allele, or by a crossover event. The 410L+1016I+1534C allele was the result of one or two mutational steps from a 1534C background. Conclusions/Significance Our data corroborated previous geographic distributions of resistance mutations and provided evidence for both recombination and sequential accumulation of mutations contributing to the molecular evolution of resistance alleles in A. aegypti.

by SarahAnn M. McFadden, Amyn A. Malik, Obianuju G. Aguolu, Kathryn S. Willebrand, Saad B. Omer

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is spreading globally. Although COVID-19 has now been declared a pandemic and risk for infection in the United States (US) is currently high, at the time of survey administration the risk of infection in the US was low. It is important to understand the public perception of risk and trust in sources of information to better inform public health messaging. In this study, we surveyed the adult US population to understand their risk perceptions about the COVID-19 outbreak. We used an online platform to survey 718 adults in the US in early February 2020 using a questionnaire that we developed. Our sample was fairly similar to the general adult US population in terms of age, gender, race, ethnicity and education. We found that 69% of the respondents wanted the scientific/public health leadership (either the CDC Director or NIH Director) to lead the US response to COVID-19 outbreak as compared to 14% who wanted the political leadership (either the president or Congress) to lead the response. Risk perception was low (median score of 5 out of 10) with the respondents trusting health professionals and health officials for information on COVID-19. The majority of respondents were in favor of strict infection prevention policies to control the outbreak. Given our results, the public health/scientific leadership should be at the forefront of the COVID-19 response to promote trust.

by Luciano Veiga Cosme, Andrea Gloria-Soria, Adalgisa Caccone, Jeffrey Robert Powell, Ademir Jesus Martins

Aedes aegypti is the primary vector of dengue, chikungunya, Zika, and urban yellow fever. Insecticides are often the most effective tools to rapidly decrease the density of vector populations, especially during arbovirus disease outbreaks. However, the intense use of insecticides, particularly pyrethroids, has selected for resistant mosquito populations worldwide. Mutations in the voltage gated sodium channel (NaV) are among the principal mechanisms of resistance to pyrethroids and DDT, also known as “knockdown resistance,” kdr. Here we report studies on the origin and dispersion of kdr haplotypes in samples of Ae. aegypti from its worldwide distribution. We amplified the IIS6 and IIIS6 NaV segments from pools of Ae. aegypti populations from 15 countries, in South and North America, Africa, Asia, Pacific, and Australia. The amplicons were barcoded and sequenced using NGS Ion Torrent. Output data were filtered and analyzed using the bioinformatic pipeline Seekdeep to determine frequencies of the IIS6 and IIIS6 haplotypes per population. Phylogenetic relationships among the haplotypes were used to infer whether the kdr mutations have a single or multiple origin. We found 26 and 18 haplotypes, respectively for the IIS6 and IIIS6 segments, among which were the known kdr mutations 989P, 1011M, 1016I and 1016G (IIS6), 1520I, and 1534C (IIIS6). The highest diversity of haplotypes was found in African samples. Kdr mutations 1011M and 1016I were found only in American and African populations, 989P + 1016G and 1520I + 1534C in Asia, while 1534C was present in samples from all continents, except Australia. Based primarily on the intron sequence, IIS6 haplotypes were subdivided into two well-defined clades (A and B). Subsequent phasing of the IIS6 + IIIS6 haplotypes indicates two distinct origins for the 1534C kdr mutation. These results provide evidence of kdr mutations arising de novo at specific locations within the Ae. aegypti geographic distribution. In addition, our results suggest that the 1534C kdr mutation had at least two independent origins. We can thus conclude that insecticide selection pressure with DDT and more recently with pyrethroids is selecting for independent convergent mutations in NaV.

by Junling Gao, Pinpin Zheng, Yingnan Jia, Hao Chen, Yimeng Mao, Suhong Chen, Yi Wang, Hua Fu, Junming Dai

Huge citizens expose to social media during a novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbroke in Wuhan, China. We assess the prevalence of mental health problems and examine their association with social media exposure. A cross-sectional study among Chinese citizens aged≥18 years old was conducted during Jan 31 to Feb 2, 2020. Online survey was used to do rapid assessment. Total of 4872 participants from 31 provinces and autonomous regions were involved in the current study. Besides demographics and social media exposure (SME), depression was assessed by The Chinese version of WHO-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5) and anxiety was assessed by Chinese version of generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7). multivariable logistic regressions were used to identify associations between social media exposure with mental health problems after controlling for covariates. The prevalence of depression, anxiety and combination of depression and anxiety (CDA) was 48.3% (95%CI: 46.9%-49.7%), 22.6% (95%CI: 21.4%-23.8%) and 19.4% (95%CI: 18.3%-20.6%) during COVID-19 outbroke in Wuhan, China. More than 80% (95%CI:80.9%-83.1%) of participants reported frequently exposed to social media. After controlling for covariates, frequently SME was positively associated with high odds of anxiety (OR = 1.72, 95%CI: 1.31–2.26) and CDA (OR = 1.91, 95%CI: 1.52–2.41) compared with less SME. Our findings show there are high prevalence of mental health problems, which positively associated with frequently SME during the COVID-19 outbreak. These findings implicated the government need pay more attention to mental health problems, especially depression and anxiety among general population and combating with “infodemic” while combating during public health emergency.

Title: Epidemia de dengue em Salvador, 2001-2002: Avaliação do impacto na comunidade
Authors: Maciel, Elves A. P.; Neves, Talles B.; Carvalho, Ana L. F.; Chang, Alicia; Barbosa, Rosan; Albuquerque, Fernanda; Figliuolo, Simone; Reis, Mitermayer Galvão dos; Ko, Albert Icksang
Abstract: Até o ano de 2001, apenas os sorotipos DEN-1 e DEN-2 foram responsáveis por epidemias de Dengue no Brasil.

Title: Zika virus in the Americas: Early epidemiological and genetic findings
Authors: Faria, Nuno Rodrigues; Azevedo, Raimunda do Socorro da Silva; Kraemer, Moritz U. G.; Souza, Renato; Cunha, Mariana Sequetin; Hill, Sarah C.; Thézé, Julien; Bonsall, Michael B.; Bowden, Thomas A.; Rissanen, Ilona; Rocco, Iray Maria; Nogueira, Juliana Silva; Maeda, Adriana Yurika; Vasami, Fernanda Giseli da Silva; Macedo, Fernando Luiz de Lima; Suzuki, Akemi; Rodrigues, Sueli Guerreiro; Cruz, Ana Cecilia Ribeiro; Nunes, Bruno Tardeli; Medeiros, Daniele Barbosa de Almeida; Rodrigues, Daniela Sueli Guerreiro; Queiroz, Alice Louize Nunes; Silva, Eliana Vieira Pinto da; Henriques, Daniele Freitas; Rosa, Elisabeth Salbe Travassos da; Oliveira, Consuelo Silva de; Martins, Livia Caricio; Vasconcelos, Helena Baldez; Casseb, Livia Medeiros Neves; Simith, Darlene de Brito; Messina, Jane P.; Abade, Leandro; Lourenço, José; Alcantara, Luiz Carlos Junior; Lima, Maricélia Maia de; Giovanetti, Marta; Hay, Simon I.; de Oliveira, Rodrigo Santos; Lemos, Poliana da Silva; Oliveira, Layanna Freitas de; Lima, Clayton Pereira Silva d; Silva, Sandro Patroca da; Vasconcelos, Janaina Mota de; Franco, Luciano; Cardoso, Jedson Ferreira; Vianez-Júnior, João Lídio da Silva Gonçalves; Mir, Daiana; Bello, Gonzalo; Delatorre, Edson; Khan, Kamran; Creatore, Marisa; Coelho, Giovanini Evelim; Oliveira, Wanderson Kleber de; Tesh, Robert; Pybus, Oliver G.; Nunes, Marcio R. T.; Vasconcelos, Pedro F. C.

Title: Epidemiological study on dengue in southern Brazil under the perspective of climate and poverty
Authors: Bavia, Lorena; Melanda, Francine Nesello; Arruda, Thais Bonato de; Mosimann, Ana Luiza Pamplona; Silveira, Guilherme Ferreira; Aoki, Mateus Nóbrega; Kuczera, Diogo; Lo Sarzi, Maria; Costa Junior, Wilson Liuti; Conchon-Costa, Ivete; Pavanelli, Wander Rogério; Santos, Claudia Nunes Duarte dos; Barreto, Rafael Carvalho; Bordignon, Juliano

Title: Genomic and structural features of the yellow fever virus from the 2016-2017 Brazilian outbreak
Authors: Gómez, Mariela Martínez; Abreu, Filipe Vieira Santos de; Santos, Alexandre Araujo Cunha dos; Mello, Iasmim Silva de; Santos, Marta Pereira; Ribeiro, Ieda Pereira; Brito, Anielly Ferreira de; Miranda, Rafaella Moraes de; Castro, Marcia Gonçalves de; Ribeiro, Mario Sergio; Laterrière Junior, Roberto da Costa; Aguiar, Shirlei Ferreira; Meira, Guilherme Louzada Silva; Antunes, Deborah; Torres, Pedro Henrique Monteiro; Mir, Daiana; Vicente, Ana Carolina Paulo; Guimarães, Ana Carolina Ramos; Caffarena, Ernesto Raul; Bello, Gonzalo; Oliveira, Ricardo Lourenço de; Bonaldo, Myrna Cristina

Title: Clinical, hematological, and biochemical findings in puppies with coronavirus and parvovirus enteritis
Authors: Castro, Tatiana X.; Garcia, Rita de Cássia N. Cubel; Gonçalves, Luciana P. S.; Costa, Erika M.; Marcello, Gracy C. G.; Labarthe, Norma V.; Almeida, Flavya Mendes de

Title: Visual function in infants with antenatal Zika virus exposure
Authors: Zin, Andrea A; Tsui, Irena; Rossetto, Julia D.; Gaw, Stephanie L.; Neves, Luiza M.; Zin, Olivia A.; Haefeli, Lorena; Silveira Filho, Joel Carlos Barros; Adachi, Kristina; Pone, Marcos Vinicius da Silva; Pone, Sheila Moura; Molleri, Natalia; Pereira, Jose Paulo; Belfort, Rubens; Arumugaswami, Vaithilingaraja; Vasconcelos, Zilton; Brasil, Patricia; Nielsen-Saines, Karin; Moreira, Maria Elisabeth Lopes
Abstract: Objetivo: Relatar os resultados de um estudo transversal da função visual em lactentes com infecção pré-natal confirmada ou suspeita pelo vírus Zika (ZIKV) observada em um único centro de referência no Rio de Janeiro. Métodos: Os bebês foram examinados após o período de surto de ZIKV no Instituto Fernandes Figueira / FIOCRUZ. A função visual era considerada anormal se uma criança não pudesse fixar e seguir uma meta padronizada de alto contraste (10 cm) aos 3-6 meses de idade. A função visual e as associações com anormalidades estruturais dos olhos, anormalidades do sistema nervoso central (SNC), microcefalia e nistagmo foram avaliadas. A sensibilidade e especificidade dos critérios de triagem para anormalidades estruturais dos olhos foram avaliadas. Resultados: Um total de 173 crianças atendeu aos critérios de inclusão. A função visual anormal foi encontrada em 52 crianças (30,0%) e foi significativamente associada a anormalidades oculares (40/52; OR = 44,2; IC95%, 16,6-117,6), anormalidades no SNC (50/52; OR = 64,0; 95% IC 14,7-277,6), microcefalia (44/52; OR = 31,5; IC 95%, 12,7-77,8) e nistagmo (26/52; OR = 120,0; IC 95%, 15,6-924,5). O uso da microcefalia como critério de triagem para a detecção de anormalidades oculares forneceu uma sensibilidade de 88,9% (IC 95%, 76,0-96,3) e especificidade de 82,8% (IC 95%, 75,1-88,9). O uso da função visual anormal e a microcefalia aumentaram a sensibilidade para 100% (IC 95%, 92,1-100,0) e diminuíram a especificidade para 80,5% (IC 95%, 72,5-86,9). Conclusões: Lactentes com suspeita de infecção pré-natal por ZIKV e função visual reduzida devem ser encaminhados a um oftalmologista. As avaliações da função visual são úteis no rastreamento da exposição pré-natal ao ZIKV em ambientes com recursos limitados e podem identificar bebês que podem se beneficiar da habilitação visual.

Title: Application of the ARIMA model on the COVID2019 epidemic dataset
Authors: Benvenuto, Domenico; Giovanetti, Marta; Vassallo, Lazzaro; Angeletti, Silvia; Ciccozzi, Massimo
Description: Since January 2020 Elsevier has created a COVID-19 resource centre with
free information in English and Mandarin on the novel coronavirus COVID19. The COVID-19 resource centre is hosted on Elsevier Connect, the company's public news and information website. Elsevier hereby grants permission to make all its COVID-19-related research that is available on the COVID-19 resource centre - including this research content - immediately available in PubMed Central and other publicly funded repositories, such as the WHO COVID database with rights for unrestricted research re-use and analyses in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for free by Elsevier for as long as the COVID-19 resource centre remains active.

by Thiago Nunes Pereira, Fabiano Duarte Carvalho, Silvana Faria De Mendonça, Marcele Neves Rocha, Luciano Andrade Moreira

Newly emerging or re-emerging arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) are important causes of human morbidity and mortality worldwide. Arboviruses such as Dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV), Chikungunya (CHIKV), and West Nile virus (WNV) have undergone extensive geographic expansion in the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. In the Americas the main vectors of DENV, ZIKV, and CHIKV are mosquito species adapted to urban environments, namely Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, whereas the main vector of WNV is Culex quinquefasciatus. Given the widespread distribution in the Americas and high permissiveness to arbovirus infection, these mosquito species may play a key role in the epidemiology of other arboviruses normally associated with sylvatic vectors. Here, we test this hypothesis by determining the vector competence of Ae. aegypti, Ae. albopictus, and Cx. quinquefasciatus to Mayaro (MAYV) virus, a sylvatic arbovirus transmitted mainly by Haemagogus janthinomys that has been causing an increasing number of outbreaks in South America, namely in Brazil. Using field mosquitoes from Brazil, female mosquitoes were experimentally infected, and their competence for infection and transmission rates of MAYV was evaluated. We found consistent infection rate for MAYV in Ae. aegypti (57.5%) and Ae. albopictus (61.6%), whereas very low rates were obtained for Cx. quinquefasciatus (2.5%). Concordantly, we observed high potential transmission ability in Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus (69.5% and 71.1% respectively), in contrast to Cx. quinquefasciatus, which could not transmit the MAYV. Notably, we found that very low quantities of virus present in the saliva (undetectable by RT-qPCR) were sufficiently virulent to guarantee transmission. Although Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes are not the main vectors for MAYV, our studies suggest that these mosquitoes could play a significant role in the transmission of this arbovirus, since both species showed significant vector competence for MAYV (Genotype D), under laboratory conditions.

by Maria E. Ramos-Nino, Daniel M. Fitzpatrick, Korin M. Eckstrom, Scott Tighe, Lindsey M. Hattaway, Andy N. Hsueh, Diana M. Stone, Julie A. Dragon, Sonia Cheetham

The mosquitoes Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) (Diptera: Culicidae) and Culex quinquefasciatus Say, 1823 (Diptera: Culicidae) are two major vectors of arthropod-borne pathogens in Grenada, West Indies. As conventional vector control methods present many challenges, alternatives are urgently needed. Manipulation of mosquito microbiota is emerging as a field for the development of vector control strategies. Critical to this vector control approach is knowledge of the microbiota of these mosquitoes and finding candidate microorganisms that are common to the vectors with properties that could be used in microbiota modification studies. Results showed that bacteria genera including Asaia, Escherichia, Pantoea, Pseudomonas, and Serratia are common to both major arboviral vectors in Grenada and have previously been shown to be good candidates for transgenetic studies. Also, for the first time, the presence of Grenada mosquito rhabdovirus 1 is reported in C. quinquefasciatus.

by Sandra R. Abbo, Tessa M. Visser, Haidong Wang, Giel P. Göertz, Jelke J. Fros, Marleen H. C. Abma-Henkens, Corinne Geertsema, Chantal B. F. Vogels, Marion P. G. Koopmans, Chantal B. E. M. Reusken, Sonja Hall-Mendelin, Roy A. Hall, Monique M. van Oers, Constantianus J. M. Koenraadt, Gorben P. Pijlman
Background The Asian bush mosquito Aedes japonicus is invading Europe and was first discovered in Lelystad, the Netherlands in 2013, where it has established a permanent population. In this study, we investigated the vector competence of Ae. japonicus from the Netherlands for the emerging Zika virus (ZIKV) and zoonotic Usutu virus (USUV). ZIKV causes severe congenital microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome in humans. USUV is closely related to West Nile virus, has recently spread throughout Europe and is causing mass mortality of birds. USUV infection in humans can result in clinical manifestations ranging from mild disease to severe neurological impairments. Methodology/Principal findings In our study, field-collected Ae. japonicus females received an infectious blood meal with ZIKV or USUV by droplet feeding. After 14 days at 28°C, 3% of the ZIKV-blood fed mosquitoes and 13% of the USUV-blood fed mosquitoes showed virus-positive saliva, indicating that Ae. japonicus can transmit both viruses. To investigate the effect of the mosquito midgut barrier on virus transmission, female mosquitoes were intrathoracically injected with ZIKV or USUV. Of the injected mosquitoes, 96% (ZIKV) and 88% (USUV) showed virus-positive saliva after 14 days at 28°C. This indicates that ZIKV and USUV can efficiently replicate in Ae. japonicus but that a strong midgut barrier is normally restricting virus dissemination. Small RNA deep sequencing of orally infected mosquitoes confirmed active replication of ZIKV and USUV, as demonstrated by potent small interfering RNA responses against both viruses. Additionally, de novo small RNA assembly revealed the presence of a novel narnavirus in Ae. japonicus. Conclusions/Significance Given that Ae. japonicus can experimentally transmit arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) like ZIKV and USUV and is currently expanding its territories, we should consider this mosquito as a potential vector for arboviral diseases in Europe.

by Chad D. Nix, Jonathan Salberg, Felicity J. Coulter, Bettie W. Kareko, Zoe L. Lyski, Brian L. Booty, William B. Messer

Zika virus (ZIKV) emerged as a global public health threat throughout the Americas over the last six years. Phylogenetically, the virus is composed of three main lineages, an African, Asian, and American lineage. The recent emergence and spread of ZIKV has raised questions regarding the breadth and potency of human primary ZIKV immune sera against antigenically diverse ZIKV. Although ZIKV is thought to compose a single antigenic serotype, in-depth evaluation of the antigenic relatedness of ZIKV across genetic variants has been limited to a relatively small series of early convalescent human immune sera (4–12 weeks) against a limited number (3) of genetic variants. Using virus neutralization assays, we characterize the potency and breadth of twelve primary ZIKV immune sera from adults infected 5 to 38 months previously against a panel of 11 ZIKV isolates from the African, Asian and American lineages. We assess the variability of neutralization potency of immune sera from these subjects and the variability of susceptibility to neutralization for each virus isolate. Overall, we found all sera neutralized all viruses at FRNT50 ranging from 1:271 to 1:4271, a 15.8-fold range, with only small differences between subject geometric mean titers (GMT) against all viruses and small differences between each ZIKV isolate and sensitivity to neutralization by all sera: when pooled, African strains were 1.3-fold more sensitive to neutralization by subject immune sera compared to pooled American strains. Finally, we subjected our data to analysis using antigenic cartography, finding that ZIKV are highly antigenically similar, with only a ~4-fold range across all antigenic distances between viruses, consistent with a single serotype.

by Peter J. Hotez, Maria E. Bottazzi, Sunit K. Singh, Paul J. Brindley, Shaden Kamhawi

by Audrey Lenhart, Amy C. Morrison, Valerie A. Paz-Soldan, Brett M. Forshey, Jhonny J. Cordova-Lopez, Helvio Astete, John P. Elder, Moises Sihuincha, Esther E. Gotlieb, Eric S. Halsey, Tadeusz J. Kochel, Thomas W. Scott, Neal Alexander, Philip J. McCall

Dengue is one of the most important vector-borne diseases, resulting in an estimated hundreds of millions of infections annually throughout the tropics. Control of dengue is heavily dependent upon control of its primary mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti. Innovative interventions that are effective at targeting the adult stage of the mosquito are needed to increase the options for effective control. The use of insecticide-treated curtains (ITCs) has previously been shown to significantly reduce the abundance of Ae. aegypti in and around homes, but the impact of ITCs on dengue virus (DENV) transmission has not been rigorously quantified. A parallel arm cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted in Iquitos, Peru to quantify the impact of ITCs on DENV seroconversion as measured through plaque-reduction neutralization tests. Seroconversion data showed that individuals living in the clusters that received ITCs were at greater risk to seroconverting to DENV, with an average seroconversion rate of 50.6 per 100 person-years (PY) (CI: 29.9–71.9), while those in the control arm had an average seroconversion rate of 37.4 per 100 PY (CI: 15.2–51.7). ITCs lost their insecticidal efficacy within 6 months of deployment, necessitating re-treatment with insecticide. Entomological indicators did not show statistically significant differences between ITC and non-ITC clusters. It’s unclear how the lack of protective efficacy reported here is attributable to simple failure of the intervention to protect against Ae. aegypti bites, or the presence of a faulty intervention during much of the follow-up period. The higher risk of dengue seroconversion that was detected in the ITC clusters may have arisen due to a false sense of security that inadvertently led to less routine protective behaviors on the part of households that received the ITCs. Our study provides important lessons learned for conducting Randomized Cluster Trials for vector control interventions against Aedes-transmitted virus infections.