The increasing use of plastics in human activities has resulted in an enormous amount of residues which became a matter of great environmental concern. Scientific studies on the microbial degradation of natural and synthetic molecules show the potential of fungal application on cleaning technologies. The biodegradation of PCL (polycaprolactone) and PVC (polyvinyl chloride) films by Aspergillus brasiliensis (ATCC 9642), Penicillium funiculosum (ATCC 11797), Chaetomium globosum (ATCC 16021), Trichoderma virens (ATCC 9645), and Paecilomyces variotii (ATCC 16023) was studied. According to ISO 846-1978-"Testing of Plastics - Influence of fungi and bacteria", samples of the studied polymers were inoculated with a mix suspension of 10 fungal inoculum and maintained in moisture glass chambers in a bacteriological incubator at 28 °C for 28 days. The samples were analyzed by means of morphological and color changes, mass loss, optical microscopy (OM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) after 28 days of culturing. After the incubation period, visual observations of the PCL films showed many micropores and cracks, pigmentation, surface erosion and hyphal adhesion on the sample surfaces, and a mass loss of up to 75%. On the contrary, there was no evidence of PVC biodegradation, such as changes in color and significant mass loss. Chaetomium globosum ATCC 16021 was a pioneer in the colonization and attack of PCL, resulting in significant mass losses. Although PVC was less attacked by the ascomycete, the polymer supported the adhesion and growth of its fertile structures (perithecia), suggesting the fungal potential to degrade both plastics.

In this work, different reactions in vitro between

Introduction: Incarcerated women are exposed to a potential environment precursor of risk for various types of illnesses, including leptospirosis. Aim: To identify the risk factors for Leptospira infection in female prison in the state of Mato Grosso (MT). Outlining: This is a quantitative open cohort study conducted between the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 in the Female Public Prison of a municipality in the middle-north region of MT. Results: Although there was no detection of seroreactivity among the incarcerated women, the profile points to young women, with a mean age of 31.45 years, brown, single, with education that did not exceed elementary school, with children and low income. Rodent contact was evidenced prior to incarceration, as well as in the prison environment by viewing the animal or its excreta, which may suggest the close and daily relationship between these women and rodents. Implications: The presence of the previous risk and during imprisonment reinforce the vulnerabilities to which these women are exposed from social interaction to the context of imprisonment, being fundamental propositions of health promotion and prevention of zoonoses in prisons.

A hantavirose, doença emergente e endêmica no Mato Grosso, assim como a dengue, apresenta alto risco de complicações e óbito, sendo importante o estabelecimento de ações estratégicas de prevenção. Objetivou-se comparar as estratégias preventivas implementadas para hantavirose em comparação com a dengue nos municípios endêmicos para esses agravos em Mato Grosso, Brasil. Trata-se de um estudo quantitativo, documental e descritivo sobre as ações preventivas para dengue e SPH nos municípios mato-grossenses que registraram casos dessas doenças. Os resultados permitiram verificar que as estratégias adotadas pelos municípios eram fragmentadas e concentravam-se em ações voltadas preferencialmente para dengue, em detrimento da importância endêmica da hantavirose e de seus impactos. Concluiu-se que a comparação das estratégias preventivas implementadas em Mato Grosso para a hantavirose e a dengue mostrou a priorização da dengue nos municípios endêmicos, demonstrando que a doença de maior incidência é considerada prioritária em relação àquela de maior letalidade.   Palavras-chave: Hantavírus. Dengue. Prevenção de doenças. Promoção da saúde.

Introduction: The chikungunya virus has already been identified in more than 60 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas, and chronicity after the disease impacts the lives of those affected by the virus, as well as society, the economy and public health. The objective was to characterize, through epidemiological survey, the profile of chikungunya infection in a mid-sized municipality in Mato Grosso according to sociodemographic and sanitary factors. Methods: The serum-epidemiological survey was conducted with 596 adults aged ≥ 18 years selected by cluster sampling process, with application of questionnaires and biological material collection. Positive cases of chikungunya fever were those with positive results in the anti-chikungunya virus enzyme immunoassay (ELISA). The statistical analyses used descriptive and inferential techniques with confidence intervals of 95% and a significance level of 5%. Results: The overall prevalence of chikungunya fever found in the community was 8.4%. The profile of infection by chikungunya fever is composed of women (p<0.204), aged between 18 and 39 years (p<0.780), more than 08 years of study (p<0.079), non-white reported race/color p<0.871) and employed in the past 12 months (p<0.927). Not residing with affective companion was statistically significant for infection by chikungunya virus (CHIKV) (p<0.028). Conclusion: The study found that women are the most affected by the infection, as well as being single represented a risk factor, and risk behaviors, such as presence of larvae and breeding of mosquitos at home, reflect a low level of awareness of the disease.