A diarréia é considerada uma das principais causas de morbidade e mortalidade de bezerros neonatos. Foram colhidas 100 amostras fecais diarréicas e 30 amostras não diarréicas (grupo controle), de bezerros Nelore com até nove semanas de idade com o objetivo de detectar os enteropatógenos Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, rotavírus, coronavírus, Cryptosporidium spp. e ovos de helmintos. Enteropatógenos foram detectados em 79,0% das amostras diarréicas e em 70,0% das amostras não-diarréicas. No grupo de bezerros com diarréia, E. coli (69,0%) foi o agente mais freqüentemente isolado, seguido de Cryptosporidium spp. (30,0%), coronavírus (16,0%) e rotavírus (11,0%). No grupo controle, E. coli, Cryptosporidium spp. e coronavírus foram detectados, respectivamente, em 66,7%, 10,0% e 3,3% das amostras. Salmonella spp. e ovos de estrongilídeos não foram encontrados nos dois grupos avaliados. A fímbria K99 foi identificada exclusivamente nas linhagens de E. coli isoladas de bezerros com diarréia (5,8%). Entre os antimicrobianos avaliados "in vitro" a enrofloxacina, a norfloxacina e a gentamicina foram os mais efetivos. O peso dos bezerros aos 210 dias de idade não apresentou diferença significativa entre os animais com e sem diarréia.

SUMMARYThe occurrence of the enteroparasites was verified in 279 children (0 to 6 years) of four municipal day cares of Botucatu/SP. Three samples of each child's feces were collected and processed by the methods of Hoffman-Pons-Janner, Faust and Ritchie and subsequent coloration of the fecal smear by the methods of Auramina-O and Ziehl-Neelsen modified for diagnosis of Cryptosporidium sp. and Graham method for diagnosis of Enterobius vermicularis. Of the analyzed children we verified a prevalence of intestinal parasitism in 53.40%, and the most frequent parasite was Giardia duodenalis (26.88%). Significant association was verified among enteroparasitosis, family income, maternal education and age; the lowest enteroparasite frequency occurred in children of families with larger income and higher education. It was observed that G. duodenalis is more prevalent in children from 0 to 4 years and E. vermicularis is more frequent in children between three and four years old. The high enteroparasite prevalence in day cares suggests complex structure in its epidemiology, where factors beyond sanitation should be considered.

The present study was effected aiming the verification of the seasonal, spatial and hourly of the phlebotominic species found in the county of Itupeva. Captures were performed fortnightly and 864 sand flies were collected between april/94 and march/95. 81.3% of the captured specimens belonged to 4 species: L. migonei (32.4%), L. whitmani (26.0%), L. intermedia (12.0%) e L. fischeri (10.9%). Such species showed larger densities during the cold and dry season of the year (from april to september/94) and were more active between the second and the fifth hour after twilight. L. migonei predominated almost in all the investigated surroundings being followed by L. whitmani and L. longipalpis in the domestic environments. In conclusion it is thought that in conjunction with L. intermedia, a suspect vector in the State of São Paulo, L. migonei and L. whitmani may have an important role in the transmission of cutaneous leishmaniasis in the area under study.

A região do litoral norte do Estado de São Paulo registrou 14, 30 e 104 casos de leishmaniose tegumentar americana nos anos de 1993, 1994 e 1995 respectivamente. Com objetivo de caracterizar a fauna e a distribuição sazonal e horária das espécies de flebotomíneos foram realizadas coletas quinzenais de formas adultas durante o período de dezembro de 1995 a novembro de 1996, utilizando-se armadilhas luminosas do tipo CDC, no interior da residência, no peridomicílio e na mata durante 12 horas a partir do crepúsculo vespertino. No peridomicílio foi utilizada, durante 6 horas também a partir do crepúsculo vespertino, armadilha de Shannon instalada a 100 metros da casa. A cada 3 meses esta armadilha foi utilizada durante 12 horas. Foram observadas flutuações das densidades populacionais, bem como as ocorrências intra e extradomiciliar das espécies predominantes. Lutzomyia intermedia foi a espécie mais abundante nas diferentes armadilhas utilizadas e nos ambientes investigados.

Realizou-se dois estudos transversais em 2002 (N=379) e 2003 (N=397) onde estimou-se a prevalência de enteroparasitas em crianças de cinco creches municipais de Botucatu, SP. Coletou-se variáveis socioeconômicas, sanitárias e educacionais e realizou-se exames coproparasitológicos. Giardia duodenalis apresentou prevalência de 23,7% (2002) e 21,4% (2003) seguido por Cryptosporidium sp com 15,5% (2002) e 3,7% (2003).

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The objective of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium (Apicomplexa, Cryptosporidiidae) in the snake Crotalus durissus terrificus (Serpentes, Viperidae). Fifty animals were evaluated for the presence of oocysts of Cryptosporidium sp. at the time of arrival and 30 and 60 days later. Intestinal washings with saline solution (1% body weight), fecal samples, and organ scrapings were collected during the study. Oocysts were concentrated by an ether-phosphate-buffered saline sedimentation technique and then separated by a density gradient centrifugation technique. Smears were made with the sediment and submitted to modified acid-fast and auramine-rhodamine staining. Cryptosporidium-positive smears were used as controls for the experimental findings. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium sp. oocysts was 14%. Among the positive snakes, oocysts were detected only in the intestinal washing in two specimens, only in the feces in four specimens, and in both materials at least once in one specimen. The positive snakes were predominantly from Santa Maria da Serra city State of São Paulo (57.1%). We also observed that all of the examinations that presented positive results were obtained at least 27 days after the capture of the animals. Keywords: Cryptosporidium -Crotalus durissus terrificus -snakes -BrazilCryptosporidiosis is currently a topic of great worldwide interest in terms of hygiene and health because it can be detected in different hosts, including man, other mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish (Fayer & Ungar 1986.The etiological agent is a protozoan of the genus Cryptosporidium that colonizes the mucous membranes of the gastric or intestinal epithelium, sometimes causing clinical signs or subclinical infection. Several studies have been published on the occurrence of cryptosporidiosis in snakes , Graczyk et al. 1996a,b, 1998a. Infections described in Boa, Elaphe, and Crotalus species suggest that all snakes species may serve as hosts. Easily stressed species, such as rattlesnakes, seem to have a higher infection-rate.There are studies on the prevalence of Cryptosporidium sp. in Brazilian snakes such as Boa constrictor, Corallus caninus, and Epicrates cenchria cenchria, but no references are available for venomous snakes. Thus, the objective of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium in C. d. terrificus. MATERIALS AND METHODSThe study was conducted on C. d. terrificus snakes from Botucatu, State of São Paulo, Brazil, recently captured and donated to the Center for the Study of Venoms and Venomous Animals, of São Paulo State University, from October 2000 to January 2001. The animals were checked for the presence of oocysts of Cryptosporidium sp. at the time of arrival and 30 and 60 days later. Data concerning snake collection (origin, place, and date), biometry (total length and weight), and sex were recorded immediately after the arrival of each animal.Intestinal washings with saline solution (1% body weight) were performed on three occasi...

O texto relata os caminhos trilhados pela parasitologia, uma ciência que emergiu no século 19 com o surgimento e o estabelecimento de várias áreas da medicina, entre elas, a medicina tropical. Essa ciência, segundo o sumário bibliográfico, foi indicada inicialmente como um ramo da história natural, sendo construída com a descoberta e posterior descrição de vários agentes patogênicos, responsáveis por alguns processos mórbidos, até então não atribuíveis a organismos externos ao indivíduo. Alguns parasitologistas ao redor do mundo começaram a descrever, além dos agentes patogênicos, os vetores e os mecanismos de transmissão das diversas doenças causadas pelos parasitas. No Brasil, o histórico da parasitologia margeia o trajeto da medicina tropical, com o constante embate entre os médicos da Sociedade de Medicina e Cirurgia do Rio de Janeiro e da Escola Tropicalista Baiana. Já em 1900, renomados médicos parasitologistas surgem no cenário brasileiro: Oswaldo Cruz e Carlos Chagas que, através de suas descobertas, impulsionaram a parasitologia até os dias atuais.