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Brazilian science: towards extinction?
No full textBrazilian science is under attack. In this manuscript, we will discuss the most recent events that, if not reverted, will make
Brazilian science inviable. We urge the scientific community in Brazil and abroad to stand up and resist in defense of more than
a century of essential scientific contributions
Use of an evidence-based health portal to improve teaching and learning in primary care: a mixed methods evaluation
No full textBackground: Worldwide, primary care is for most people the gateway into many health systems. Offering solutions
to the demands of the communities served requires the constant preparation of professionals, especially doctors
and medical undergraduate students. We analyze and propose ways to improve the teaching and learning
processes facilitated by the Basic Family Health Units (BFHUs) based on the use of electronic portals with evidence based medicine criteria.
Method: First phase: The authors conducted a qualitative-quantitative study on students and instructors of primary
care (PC) medicine by administering a survey of open- and closed-ended questions at medical schools. The closed ended questions were studied with descriptive statistics, and open-ended questions were analyzed via the creation
of categories. Perceptions of major teaching and learning problems were then identified.
Second phase: Meetings were held with students and their instructors for 6 months and involved the use of
electronic portals and the application of new questionnaires using a Likert scale for pre- and postevaluation.
Results: In the first phase, 40% of the students considered local instructor training levels a problem. A similar result
was found regarding teachers’ lectures, revealing a lack of adequate PC training and performance.
Building on our results, we focused on BFHUs to apply new strategies for teaching and learning, such as the use of
the Evidence-Based Health (SBE) Portal, which includes several databases with clinical evidence criteria. In the
second phase, the authors identified an improvement in the quality of learning among instructors and students.
This outcome improved safety in daily clinical practice in PC, possibly with better results for its users.
Conclusions: The use of electronic portals can facilitate BFHU teaching and learning and promote the health of
users
Social preference is maintained in mice with impaired startle refex and glutamate/D‑serine imbalance induced by chronic cerebral toxoplasmosis
No full textToxoplasma gondii is an opportunistic protozoan pathogen with a wide geographic distribution.
The chronic phase of toxoplasmosis is often asymptomatic in humans and is characterized by
tissue cysts throughout the central nervous system and muscle cells. T. gondii and other pathogens
with tropism for the central nervous system are considered risk factors in the etiology of several
neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, besides neurological diseases.
Currently, it is known that cerebral toxoplasmosis increases dopamine levels in the brain and it is
related to behavioral changes in animals and humans. Here we evaluate whether chronic T. gondii
infection, using the cystogenic ME-49 strain, could induce behavioral alterations associated with
neuropsychiatric disorders and glutamatergic neurotransmission dysfunction. We observed that
the startle amplitude is reduced in the infected animals as well as glutamate and D-serine levels in
prefrontal cortical and hippocampal tissue homogenates. Moreover, we did not detect alterations in
social preference and spontaneous alternation despite severe motor impairment. Thus, we conclude
that behavioral and cognitive aspects are maintained even though severe neural damage is observed
by chronic infection of C57Bl/6 mice with the ME-49 strain
SARS-CoV-2 Infection Dynamics in Children and Household Contacts in a Slum in Rio de Janeiro
No full textA Rede Genômica Fiocruz é formada por especialistas de todas as unidades da Fundação no país e de institutos parceiros que se empenham diariamente em gerar dados mais robustos sobre o comportamento do SARS-Cov-2 e contribuir para um melhor preparo do país no enfrentamento da pandemia em termos de diagnóstico mais precisos e vacinas eficazes. Saiba mais sobre a Rede Genômica Fiocruz em: http://www.genomahcov.fiocruz.br/Objectives: To investigate the dynamics of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in a vulnerable population of children and their household contacts. Methods: SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) immunoglobulin G serology tests were performed in children and their household contacts after enrollment during primary health care clinic visits. Participants were followed prospectively with subsequent specimens collected through household visits in Manguinhos, an impoverished urban slum (a favela) in Rio de Janeiro at 1, 2, and 4 weeks and quarterly post study enrollment. Results: Six hundred sixty-seven participants from 259 households were enrolled from May to September 2020. This included 323 children (0-13 years), 54 adolescents (14-19 years), and 290 adults. Forty-five (13.9%) children had positive test results for SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction. SARS-CoV-2 infection was most frequent in children aged <1 year (25%) and children aged 11 to 13 years (21%). No child had severe COVID-19 symptoms. Asymptomatic infection was more prevalent in children aged <14 years than in those aged ≥14 years (74.3% and 51.1%, respectively). All children (n = 45) diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection had an adult contact with evidence of recent infection. Conclusions: In our setting, children do not seem to be the source of SARS-CoV-2 infection and most frequently acquire the virus from adults. Our findings suggest that, in settings such as ours, schools and child care potentially may be reopened safely if adequate COVID-19 mitigation measures are in place and staff are appropriately immunized
A prognostic value of CD45RA +, CD45RO +, CCL20 + and CCR6 + expressing cells as 'immunoscore' to predict cervical cancer induced by HPV
No full textThe interplay between cervical cancer (CC) and immune cells, mainly intratumoral lymphocytes, has a pivotal role in carcinogenesis. In this context, we evaluated the distribution of CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ cells as well as CCR6+ and CCL20+ cells in intraepithelial (IE) and marginal stroma (MS) areas from cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) I-III, and CC as 'immunoscore' for HPV-induced CC outcome. We observed increased CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ cells distribution in IE and MS areas in the CC group compared to CIN groups and healthy volunteers. Interestingly, there is a remarkable reduction of CCL20+ expressing cells distribution according to lesion severity. The CC group had a significant decrease in CCL20+ and CCR6+-expressing cells distribution in both IE and MS areas compared to all groups. Using the 'immunoscore' model, we observed an increased number of women presenting high CD45RA+/CD45RO+ and low CCL20+/CCR6+ 'immunoscore' in the CC group. Our results suggested a pattern in cervical inflammatory process with increasing CD45RA+/CD45RO+, and decreasing CCL20+/CCR6+ expression in accordance with CIN severity. Taken together, these markers could be evaluated as 'immunoscore' predictors to CC response. A more comprehensive analysis of longitudinal studies should be conducted to associate CD45RA+/CD45RO+ and CCL20+/CCR6+ 'immunoscore' to CC progression and validate its value as a prognosis method
The Chemokine CCL5 Inhibits the Replication of Influenza A Virus Through SAMHD1 Modulation
No full textInfluenza A virus (IAV) is the main etiological agent of acute respiratory tract infections.
During IAV infection, interferon triggers the overexpression of restriction factors (RFs), the
intracellular antiviral branch of the innate immune system. Conversely, severe influenza is
associated with an unbalanced pro-inflammatory cytokine release. It is unclear whether
other cytokines and chemokines released during IAV infection modulate RFs to control
virus replication. Among the molecules enhanced in the infected respiratory tract, ligands
of the CCR5 receptor play a key role, as they stimulate the migration of inflammatory cells
to the alveoli. We investigated here whether ligands of the CCR5 receptor could enhance
RFs to levels able to inhibit IAV replication. For this purpose, the human alveolar basal
epithelial cell line (A549) was treated with endogenous (CCL3, CCL4 and CCL5) or
exogenous (HIV-1 gp120) ligands prior to IAV infection. The three CC-chemokines tested
reduced infectious titers between 30% to 45% upon 24 hours of infection. Eploying RT PCR, a panel of RF mRNA levels from cells treated with CCR5 agonists was evaluated,
which showed that the SAMHD1 expression was up-regulated four times over control
upon exposure to CCL3, CCL4 and CCL5. We also found that IAV inhibition by CCL5 was
dependent on PKC and that SAMHD1 protein levels were also increased after treatment
with CCL5. In functional assays, we observed that the knockdown of SAMHD1 resulted in
enhanced IAV replication in A549 cells and abolished both CCL5-mediated inhibition of
IAV replication and CCL5-mediated cell death inhibition. Our data show that stimuli
unrelated to interferon may trigger the upregulation of SAMHD1 and that this RF may
directly interfere with IAV replication in alveolar epithelial cells
MULTIPLICASSAN publica relatório sobre comensalidades em tempos de COVID
No full textO grupo do Projeto de Extensão “Multiplica Soberania e Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional” (MSSAN) publicou e o Relatório de Pesquisa “Comensalidades em tempos da Pandemia de COVID-19”
Vídeo: Programas de Residência em Saúde Fiocruz
No full textVídeo sobre as Residências em saúde da Fiocruz, feito a partir de uma parceria entre Fórum de Coordenadores de Residências em Saúde da Fiocruz e o Canal Saúde
Nota Técnica 22 de 9 de novembro de 2021. O “represamento” do atendimento em saúde no SUS
No full textMonitoraCovid-19: https://bigdata-covid19.icict.fiocruz.br/A comparação entre o período de janeiro de 2018 a junho de 2019 (pré-epidêmico) com o período de janeiro de 2020 a junho de 2021 (após o início da epidemia) apresenta uma diferença de 1.7 milhões de internações, só de internações eletivas são 1.2 milhões. Os dados de mortalidade apontam que nos períodos em que ocorreram os maiores volumes de óbitos por Covid-19 coincidem com os maiores volumes de óbitos por outras causa, e também coincidem com os menores volumes de atendimentos em diversos sistemas o que sugere o colapso e represamento dos problemas de saúde. Os dados apontam que a queda em ações de prevenção e promoção de saúde já apresentava diminuição em períodos anteriores a epidemia de Covid-19, e se mantendo prejudicarão ainda mais outros problemas de saúde. O investimento massivo no SUS é necessário para identificação de problemas que não
puderam ser diagnosticado e ainda é necessário monitorar a longo prazo os impactos indiretos que serão decorrentes da Covid-19, sobretudo em casos que não puderam ser atendidos em momento oportuno