Importance of Microbiome of Fecal Samples Obtained from Adolescents with Different Weight Conditions on Resistance Gene Transfer.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a relevant public health problem worldwide, and microbiome bacteria may contribute to the horizontal gene transfer associated with antimicrobial resistance. The microbiome of fecal samples from Mexican adolescents were analyzed and correlated with eating habits, and the presence of AMR genes on bacteria in the microbiome was evaluated. Fecal samples from adolescents were collected and processed to extract genomic DNA. An Illumina HiSeq 1500 system was used to determine resistance genes and the microbiome of adolescents through the amplification of gene resistance and the V3-V4 regions of RNA, respectively. Analysis of the microbiome from fecal samples taken from 18 obese, overweight, and normal-weight adolescents revealed that the Firmicutes was the most frequent phylum, followed by Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria and Verrucomicrobia. The following species were detected as the most frequent in the samples: F. prausnitzii, P. cori, B. adolescentis, E. coli and A. muciniphila. The presence of Bacteroides, Prevotella and Ruminococcus was used to establish the enterotype; enterotype 1 was more common in women and enterotype 2 was more common in men. Twenty-nine AMR genes were found for ß-lactamases, fluoroquinolones, aminoglycosides, macrolide, lincosamides, streptogramin (MLS), tetracyclines and sulfonamides. The presence of microorganisms in fecal samples that harbor AMR genes that work against antimicrobials frequently used for the treatment of microbial infections such as b-lactams, macrolides, aminoglycosides, MLS, and tetracyclines is of great concern, as these organisms may be an important reservoir for horizontal AMR gene transfer.

Recordemos lo importante que es la lactancia en México / Let's Remember the Importance of Breastfeeding

Resumen La lactancia materna se considera una estrategia primordial en la promoción de la salud y prevención de la enfermedad. En este documento se abordan aspectos que hacen evidente la importancia de la lactancia materna para la salud de la madre y su hijo, y el papel de los profesionales de la salud para promover, proteger y apoyar la lactancia materna. Se presenta un panorama epidemiológico de la lactancia en México, los principales constituyentes de la leche, los beneficios de amamantar, tanto para el bebé como para la madre, las barreras y mitos que de alguna manera influyen en la lactancia materna, los principales problemas de la lactancia materna y cómo resolverlos, los pasos propuestos y la técnica para lograr una lactancia exitosa y promover una cultura de lactancia materna.

Abstract Breastfeeding is considered a primary strategy in health promotion and disease prevention. This document addresses aspects that make evident the importance of breastfeeding for the health of the mother and her child, and the role of health professionals to promote, protect and support breastfeeding. An epidemiological panorama of breastfeeding in Mexico is presented, the main constituents of milk, the benefits of breastfeeding, both for the baby and for the mother, the barriers and myths that somehow influence breastfeeding, the main problems of breastfeeding and how to solve them, the proposed steps and the technique to achieve successful breastfeeding and promote a culture of breastfeeding.

Neck circumference cut-offs for overweight and obesity in a group of Mexican adolescents.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Neck circumference (NC) has been used for screening overweight/obesity for its high correlation with age, weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC). Cut-offs should be population specific. The aim of the study was to obtain cut-offs of NC for overweight/obesity in Mexican adolescents and to correlate them with anthropometric indicators. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Weight, height, BMI, NC, WC, and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) of 465 12-14-year-old Mexican-mestizo students attending a public school in Mexico City were assessed. Using receiver operating characteristics analyses, neck cut-offs were obtained according to the WHO age and sex criteria for overweight/obesity. RESULTS: NC cut-offs with the highest sensitivity and specificity for males and females, respectively, were as follows: 30.0 and 29.3 cm for 12-year-olds; 31.9 and 30.4 cm for 13-year-olds; and, 33.5 and 30.7 cm for 14-year-old adolescents. Overweight/obesity was identified with NC cut-offs in 80% of males and 86% of females, and showed significant correlations (p < 0.01) in males and females with weight (r = 0.821 and r = 0.840, respectively), BMI (r = 0.649 and r = 0.819, respectively), WC (r = 0.710 and r = 0.813, respectively) and MUAC (r = 0.736 and r = 0.815, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Neck circumference may be used as a first-stage screening tool or jointly with BMI to identify overweight/obesity in 12-14-year-old Mexican adolescents.

Influenza A H1N1 Virus 2009 Synthetic Hemagglutinin and Neuraminidase Peptides for Antibody Detection.

BACKGROUND: Influenza serologic diagnosis is mainly based on hemagglutination inhibition and microneutralization methods, both methods require handling living viruses under an enhanced biosafety level. AIM: The current study was performed for developing an ELISA using synthetic peptides to detect influenza A H1N1 virus 2009 specific antibodies in serum and saliva. METHODS: Alignments were made with H1N1 hemagglutinin and neuraminidase (HA and NA, respectively) sequences; only conserved sites were used for antigenicity prediction. Two synthetic peptides were assayed; one of neuraminidase (NA15) and one of hemagglutinin (HA-15) and used in ELISA for detecting IgG and IgA antibodies. A cross-sectional study was performed in three municipalities of Mexico City, using negative samples collected before the 2009 influenza outbreak, samples of people who became ill during the outbreak, and samples of the participants in the epidemiological study with or without symptoms. RESULTS: The determination of serum IgG antibodies with both peptides allowed differentiating between the post outbreak groups with respect to all others. No differences were found in IgA determination in saliva against both peptides. The frequency of positive participants for NA-15 was 9.5 and 8.8% for HA-15 in serum IgG; whereas the frequency of positive participants for NA-15 was 11%, and for HA-15 was 8.6% for saliva IgA. CONCLUSIONS: Synthetic peptides of the neuraminidase and hemagglutinin proteins can be used in ELISA for the determination of IgG and IgA antibodies against the influenza A H1N1 virus 2009.

Assessing the measurement invariance of a Latin-American Spanish translation of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 in Mexican, Argentinean, and Colombian adolescents.

In order to advance in the study of positive body image among different cultures, it is important to create culturally appropriate measures. We examined the psychometric properties of a Latin-American Spanish translation of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2; Tylka & Wood-Barcalow, 2015a), specifically assessing measurement invariance using a large sample of 3845 male and female adolescents from Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia. Participants completed the BAS-2, Eating Disorder Inventory-2, Male Body Attitude Scale and the Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance Questionnaire-3. The BAS-2 had a unidimensional factor structure in each of the three samples. We confirmed the structural, metric, and scalar invariance of the scale regardless of gender or country. Adolescents in Argentina had lower body appreciation compared with those in Mexico and Colombia. Overall, females had lower body appreciation than males, with the greatest gender difference found in the Argentinean sample. Our findings strongly support the validity and reliability of this Latin-American translation of the BAS-2 in measuring positive body image in adolescents in Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia.

[Flu symptoms and preventive measures practiced by the inhabitants of Mexico City during the AH1N1 influenza epidemic]. / Sintomas de influenza y medidas preventivas que practicaron los habitantes de la Ciudad de Mexico durante la epidemia de influenza AH1N1.

OBJECTIVE: To know the frequency of flu symptoms and describe preventive measures practiced by the inhabitants of Mexico City during the AH1N1 epidemic. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used and a survey containing demographic and health information was conducted in August and September 2009 in a sample of 4003 randomly selected people living in Mexico City. RESULTS: Referred flu symptoms were: 29% running nose, 25% cough, 25% throat infection, 17% muscle and joint pain, 10% respiratory problems, and 7% fever. Also 16% said having hypertension, 10% diabetes, and 2% morbid obesity. Among the preventive measures, 74% washed hands, 32% covered the nose and mouth with the forearm when coughing or sneezing, 28% used sanitizer gel five times a day in average, and 47% did not greet with a kiss or handshake. CONCLUSIONS: Almost all the population followed preventive measures and did not show high percentages of influenza symptoms. Useful elements for prevention were identified, such as the frequency of seasonal influenza vaccination, self-medication, and living with a person diagnosed with AH1N1. It is important to continue with mass communication to strengthen adequate hygiene and health measures.

Teniosis y cisticercosis en comerciantes de alimentos en mercados de una área de la ciudad de México / Taeniosis and cysticercosis in food traders in markets in México city

Con el objeto de conocer la prevalencia de teniosis y cisticercosis en comerciantes de alimentos de mercados de la Delegación política de Xochimilco de la Ciudad de México, se encuestaron 262 comerciantes de 11 mercados. En ellos se hicieron estudios coproparasi-toscopicos seriados y en la sangre se buscaron anticuerpos específicos contra cisticerco mediante inmunoelectrotransferencia. Sólo 115 entregaron las muestras fecales, y de ellas, en 110 se obtuvo la muestra de sangre. La seroprevalencia de anticuerpos para cisticercos fue del 0,9 per cent una muestra de material fecal se encontraron huevos de T. solium. Entre los comerciantes, 56,4 per cent algunos alimentos con carne de cerdo; 11,3 per cent de ellos criaban los cerdos en su casa y los sacrificaban de manera clandestina para vender su carne. Por lo tanto, los comerciantes de alimentos con carne de cerdo, que expenden sus productos en estos mercados, parecen estar rara vez expuestos a la T. solium.

Blastocystis hominis among food vendors in Xochimilco markets.

Blastocystis hominis is a pathogenic protozoon that lives in the human bowel and causes diarrhea: the mode of transmission is a passive one, through the ingestion of stool-contaminated water or foods that contain infective forms of the parasite. The purpose of this study is to report the prevalence of Blastocystis hominis among food vendors in the markets within the Xochimilco jurisdiction, Mexico City, Mexico. A cross-sectional study was conducted in which food vendors answered an epidemiological questionnaire and underwent a serial stool culture. The frequency of the intestinal parasitoses reported was estimated and an analysis was carried out associating the presence of Blastocystis hominis with socio-economic and hygienic factors using the odds ratio at a 95% confidence interval. The frequency of intestinal parasites and commensals was 50.4%; Blastocystis hominis was found in 48 (41.7%) food vendors. The risk analysis showed that Blastocystis hominis was associated with: male gender, poor personal hygiene habits, personal history of parasitosis, and family history of parasitosis. The prevalence reported is high when compared with other populations studied. The relevance of this report lies on the fact that food vendors handle foods and could transmit the infection to consumers.

Uso de la computadora en estudiantes de medicina / Computer's use by medical students

El uso de la computadora en el área de la salud es cada día más frecuente, los estudiantes de medicina deben ver el uso de la computadora como una herramienta para simplificar su trabajo y ampliar sus perspectivas de información.Objetivos: Conocer la frecuencia de uso de la computadora y su relación con algunos factores que podrían estar asociados al uso o no de la computadora.Diseño: Se realizó un estudio transversal con muestreo aleatorio.Población: Estudiantes de primer año de la carrera de Médico Cirujano de la Facultad de Medicina de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.Resultados: La frecuencia de uso de la computadora entre los estudiantes de medicina fue del 84.2 por ciento, el uso de la computadora se asoció a factores como: nivel alto de escolaridad de los padres (madre RM=6.59, p<0.05 y padre RM=5.00, p<0.05), tener computadora en casa (RM=1.33, p<0.05) y provenir de escuelas particulares (RM=1.23, p<0.05). Conclusiones: En comparación con estudiantes de medicina de otras universidades de otros países, el uso de la computadora en los estudiantes de esta facultad es mayor; sin embargo el uso de bases de datos como el MEDLINE no es del todo aprovechado por los estudiantes de medicina en esta facultad.