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Male goats of mating age serologically negative for Toxoplasma gondii were divided into three groups: GI - controls (placebo) (n = 2); GII - infected with 1 × 10(6) tachyzoites (RH strains) (n = 2); and GIII - infected with 2 × 10(5) oocysts (P strains) (n = 2). Clinical, hematology, parasite and serology tests and studies of parasites in the semen through bioassay and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and in reproductive organs (bioassay) were performed to assess toxoplasma infection. Serological titers peaked at 4096 in two animal groups infected with the protozoan. The bioassays allowed an early detection of protozoa in semen samples of tachyzoite-inoculated animals. T. gondii DNA was identified through PCR in the semen in five (Days 5, 7, 28, 49, and 70) and two (both at day 56) different days post-inoculation in GII and GIII animals, respectively. It was also possible to detect T. gondii DNA in reproductive organs (prostate pool, testicles, seminal vesicle and epididymis) of goats inoculated with either tachyzoites or oocysts. The present study suggests the possibility of venereal transmission of T. gondii among goats and it should be further assessed.

The efficacy of Licochalcone A (LicoA) and its two analogs were reported against Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis and Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum in vitro, and in experimental model of L. (L.) infantum in vitro. Initially, LicoA and its analogs were screened against promastigote forms of L. (L.) amazonensis. LicoA was the most active compound, with IC50 values of 20.26 and 3.88 μM at 24 and 48 h, respectively. Against amastigote forms, the IC50 value of LicoA was 36.84 μM at 48 h. In the next step, the effectivity of LicoA was evaluated in vitro against promastigote and amastigote forms of L. (L.) infantum. Results demonstrated that LicoA exhibited leishmanicidal activity in vitro against promastigote forms with IC50 values of 41.10 and 12.47 μM at 24 and 48 h, respectively; against amastigote forms the IC50 value was 29.58 μM at 48 h. Assessment of cytotoxicity demonstrated that LicoA exhibited moderate mammalian cytotoxicity against peritoneal murine macrophages; the CC50 value was 123.21 μM at 48 h and showed about 30% of hemolytic activity at concentration of 400 μM. L. (L.) infantum-infected hamsters and treated with LicoA at 50 mg/kg for eight consecutive days was able to significantly reduce the parasite burden in both liver and spleen in 43.67 and 39.81%, respectively, when compared with negative control group. These findings suggest that chalcone-type flavonoids can be a promising class of natural products to be considered in the search of new, safe, and effective compounds capable to treat canine visceral leishmaniosis (CVL).

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O presente trabalho teve como objetivos determinar a prevalência, a distribuição geográfica bem como os fatores e áreas de risco associados à cisticercose bovina no Estado de São Paulo. Foram inspecionados 34.443 animais, machos e fêmeas e com faixas etárias variando entre 18 a 60 meses. Os bovinos eram procedentes de 97 municípios do Estado de São Paulo, devidamente identificados e abatidos no período de outubro de 2010 a agosto de 2011, em um frigorífico localizado na cidade de Ipuã-SP, sob supervisão do SIF 1387. O estado de São Paulo foi dividido em núcleos regionais, e os dados dos municípios pertencentes ao respectivo núcleo, foram agrupados, conforme a Secretaria de Abastecimento e Agropecuária de São Paulo, totalizando 13 núcleos estudados. Com base nos resultados encontrados, pode-se concluir que dos 97 municípios analisados, foi possível encontrar bovinos positivos para a enfermidade em questão em 86. A prevalência média de cisticercose bovina no estado de São Paulo foi de 4,80%, sendo que os núcleos de Franca e Barretos foram os que tiveram maior número de casos da enfermidade durante o período analisado. Além disso, o maior número de casos nestes núcleos coincidiu com o menor índice de desenvolvimento humano referente à educação, com a maior área de plantio de café (núcleo de Franca) e também como a maior área de cana-de-açúcar cultivada (núcleo de Barretos) nestes locais, o que por sua vez pode indicar que a presença da mão-de-obra temporária no meio rural, aliado a aspectos socioeconômico/cultural, pode estar contribuindo para a disseminação e estabelecimento da cisticercose bovina nestas áreas.