Aspectos da transmissão focal de malária na Ilha de São Luis, Maranhão

Santi²,

Rev. Bras. Parasitol. Vet.

et al. 2015

The states that make up the Legal Amazon Region, which include the state of Maranhão, account for 99% of registered cases of human malaria in Brazil. It is also believed that transmission of malaria from nonhuman primates (NHP) to humans occurs in this region, because of current reports of seroepidemiological results from samples from humans and NHP coexisting in the same areas. This study aimed to make morphological, serological and molecular diagnoses of Plasmodium spp. in neotropical primates on the island of São Luís, state of Maranhão, Brazil. The diagnostic techniques used were optical microscopy, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA). From June 2009 to April 2010, 70 NHP were sampled: 50 at the Wild Animal Screening Center (CETAS), located in the municipality of São Luís and 20 free-living individuals that were caught in a private reserve located in the municipality of São Jose de Ribamar, state of Maranhão. Under an optical microscope, 140 slides (two from each animal) were evaluated and five animals (7.1%) were found to be positive. IFA did not detect anti-Plasmodium spp. From PCR on the 70 animals sampled, amplified Plasmodium spp. products were observed in 13 samples, of which eight (61.5%) were from free-living animals and five (38.5%) were from animals at CETAS.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Inside the Guarapiranga village, there are two lakes, and Sítio Aguahy includes mangrove area, and an artificial pound, which serve as breeding grounds for many species of Anopheles. Also, the type of housing, open buildings without doors or windows, favor the free movement of the mosquito vector (SILVA et al, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Natural Plasmodium infection in neotropical primates in the island of São Luís, state of Maranhão, Brazil

Santi²,

Rev. Bras. Parasitol. Vet.

et al. 2015

Rev. Soc. Bras. Med. Trop.

“…Plasmodium vivax malaria, predominant in the State of Maranhão, is commonly considered a benign condition 13,14 . However, clear signs of severity have been observed, and in some cases hospitalization is required due to medical complications, such as those that occurred in the 13 cases in this study.…”

Section: Rev Soc Bras Med Trop 46(1):67-72 Jan-feb 2013mentioning

confidence: 99%

Plasmodium vivax malaria: related factors to severity in the State of Maranhão, Brazil

Raposo

Santos

Santos³

et al. 2013

Self Cite

Introduction: Malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax species has shown signs of severity, recorded with increasing frequency in the medical literature. This study aimed to characterize the signs of severe malaria by Plasmodium vivax in the State of Maranhão, Brazil. Methods: A descriptive cohort study of patients assisted in the field and a historical and concurrent study of a series of cases among hospitalized patients were undertaken to identify the clinical and laboratory signs of severity. Results: A total of 153 patients were included in the study, 13 of whom were hospitalized. Males made up the majority, numbering 103 (67.3%). The age of the patients ranged from 10 to 70 years, 92.2% were natives of the State of Maranhão, and 65% of the patients had had malaria before. The average time elapsed between symptom onset and diagnosis among outpatients was three days, while among hospitalized patients this average reached 15.5 days, a statistically significant difference (p=0.001). The parasitemia ranged from 500 to 10,000 parasites/µl in 92.8% of cases. The clinical and laboratory manifestations of severity were vomiting and diarrhea, jaundice, drowsiness, mental confusion, seizures, loss of consciousness, agitation, bleeding, pale skin, coughing and dyspnea, thrombocytopenia, anemia, elevation of nitrogenous compounds, and elevated transaminases and bilirubin. Conclusions: The monitoring of malaria patients with Plasmodium vivax showed the possibility of aggravation, the intensity of which varied in different circumstances, especially the interval time between falling ill and diagnostic confirmation.

“…Their larvae develop preferentially in brackish water such as in mangrove swamps and coastal ground pools, but they also are capable of living in fresh water and often occur several kilometers from the coast [7]. The species has been reported as malaria vector in Venezuela, Brazil, Trinidad and The Caribbean [8]–[12]. Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax , the two main human malaria parasites, are transmitted by An.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcriptome Sequencing and Developmental Regulation of Gene Expression in Anopheles aquasalis

et al. 2014

Background Anopheles aquasalis is a major malaria vector in coastal areas of South and Central America where it breeds preferentially in brackish water. This species is very susceptible to Plasmodium vivax and it has been already incriminated as responsible vector in malaria outbreaks. There has been no high-throughput investigation into the sequencing of An. aquasalis genes, transcripts and proteins despite its epidemiological relevance. Here we describe the sequencing, assembly and annotation of the An. aquasalis transcriptome.Methodology/Principal FindingsA total of 419 thousand cDNA sequence reads, encompassing 164 million nucleotides, were assembled in 7544 contigs of ≥2 sequences, and 1999 singletons. The majority of the An. aquasalis transcripts encode proteins with their closest counterparts in another neotropical malaria vector, An. darlingi. Several analyses in different protein databases were used to annotate and predict the putative functions of the deduced An. aquasalis proteins. Larval and adult-specific transcripts were represented by 121 and 424 contig sequences, respectively. Fifty-one transcripts were only detected in blood-fed females. The data also reveal a list of transcripts up- or down-regulated in adult females after a blood meal. Transcripts associated with immunity, signaling networks and blood feeding and digestion are discussed.Conclusions/SignificanceThis study represents the first large-scale effort to sequence the transcriptome of An. aquasalis. It provides valuable information that will facilitate studies on the biology of this species and may lead to novel strategies to reduce malaria transmission on the South American continent. The An. aquasalis transcriptome is accessible at http://exon.niaid.nih.gov/transcriptome/An_aquasalis/Anaquexcel.xlsx.