The Old World bollworm Helicoverpa armigera is now established in Brazil but efforts to identify incursion origin(s) and pathway(s) have met with limited success due to the patchiness of available data. Using international agricultural/horticultural commodity trade data and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) cytochrome oxidase I (COI) and cytochrome b (Cyt b) gene markers, we inferred the origins and incursion pathways into Brazil. We detected 20 mtDNA haplotypes from six Brazilian states, eight of which were new to our 97 global COI-Cyt b haplotype database. Direct sequence matches indicated five Brazilian haplotypes had Asian, African, and European origins. We identified 45 parsimoniously informative sites and multiple substitutions per site within the concatenated (945 bp) nucleotide dataset, implying that probabilistic phylogenetic analysis methods are needed. High diversity and signatures of uniquely shared haplotypes with diverse localities combined with the trade data suggested multiple incursions and introduction origins in Brazil. Increasing agricultural/horticultural trade activities between the Old and New Worlds represents a significant biosecurity risk factor. Identifying pest origins will enable resistance profiling that reflects countries of origin to be included when developing a resistance management strategy, while identifying incursion pathways will improve biosecurity protocols and risk analysis at biosecurity hotspots including national ports.

The cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) is one of the most serious insect pest species to evolve resistance against many insecticides from different chemical classes. This species has evolved resistance to the pyrethroid insecticides across its native range and is becoming a truly global pest after establishing in South America and having been recently recorded in North America. A chimeric cytochrome P450 gene, CYP337B3, has been identified as a resistance mechanism for resistance to fenvalerate and cypermethrin. Here we show that this resistance mechanism is common around the world with at least eight different alleles. It is present in South America and has probably introgressed into its closely related native sibling species, Helicoverpa zea. The different alleles of CYP337B3 are likely to have arisen independently in different geographic locations from selection on existing diversity. The alleles found in Brazil are those most commonly found in Asia, suggesting a potential origin for the incursion of H. armigera into the Americas.

Introduction: Myopia is the main refractive disorder and the main cause of visual loss worldwide. It is estimated that by 2050 half of the world's population will be nearsighted, doubling the current figures for the condition. 1 To fight against the progression of this epidemic, the topical application of different doses of atropine has been discussed. 6,7,8,9 Objective: To highlight in the literature the efficacy of using atropine eye drops to delay myopia in children, considering the differences in dosages. Methods. A systematic literature review was carried out in the Pub-Med and Lilacs databases with the keywords "myopia AND atropine AND children AND treatment". The search resulted in 103 publications in total. From these, literature reviews, meta-analyzes, observational studies, articles on the etiology of the disease were excluded, according to the title. Studies with a randomized clinical trial were included. In addition, articles with up to 5 years of publication were accepted, resulting in 4 studies used. Discussion: The use of atropine eye drops is advantageous because it is a non-invasive, painless and low-cost treatment.6 The use of atropine in different concentrations was tested in the three experimental trials included in the present study. In them, the respective concentrations of the substance in the eye drops were used, being: 0.5%, 0.1%, 0.01% in the study by Chia et al (2016), 0.05%, 0.025% and 0.01% in the study by Yam et al (2019), 0.01% in the study by Diaz-Llopis et al (2018) and 0.5% in the study by Polling et al (2016). The first clinical trial demonstrated that the mean progression of myopia was -1.38 + 0.98 D to 0.01%, being less than 0.1 and 0.5% of atropine. In the data obtained by Yam et al (2019), the concentration of 0.05% was considered the best for reducing the spherical equivalent (SE). The data obtained by Yam (2019) concluded that the best cost-benefit ratio is also in the concentration of 0.05%, still proposing the use of lower concentrations more times a day. Diaz-Llopis (2018) proved that the 0.01% dilution reduced the progression of myopia to -0.14 + 0.35 D compared to the control, which was -0.65 + 0.54 D. Finally, Polling et al (2016) demonstrated that the use of 0.5% atropine for 1 year reduced the progression to -0.1D / year in relation to the group that abandoned treatment, which was -0.5D / year. Conclusion: The usage of low dose atropine seems to be efficient in slowing the progression of myopia in children. However, the studies, although scientifically relevant and with significant samples, have some limitations because they are unable to cover different populations. Therefore, more research is needed to access results of this substance in other groups.

Introdução: O "novo coronavírus" da Síndrome Respiratória Aguda Grave 2 (SARS-CoV-2) foi descoberto na China em 2019, sendo responsável por causar o COVID-19. Essa doença pode afetar os sistemas respiratório, gastrointestinal e neurológico. Quanto às afecções neurológicas, os sintomas envolvem convulsões febris e encefalite, sendo a encefalopatia uma das principais manifestações do SNC nesses pacientes com a doença em fase avançada. Metodologia: Revisão sistemática nas bases de dados PubMed, SciELO e periódicos CAPES empregando-se os descritores encefalopatia e COVID-19. Resultados: Importantes associações foram encontradas entre a encefalopatia e os pacientes infectados com o coronavírus. Nesse sentido, mais da metade desses pacientes receberam o diagnóstico dessa afecção neurológica. Discussão: No COVID-19, a encefalopatia predomina como manifestação neurológica quando comparada ao AVC e encefalite. A resposta inflamatória contra o vírus faz parte da fisiopatologia da doença dando origem a alterações como hipóxia, isquemia e alterações metabólicas. Além disso, sua manifestação clínica envolve disfunção cerebral difusa, confusão mental, cefaléia, convulsões e delirium. Conclusão: Os pacientes infectados com a doença do coronavírus possuem vários sinais e sintomas neurológicos, sendo a encefalopatia mais incidente, fazendo-se necessário cuidados intensivos.