GloPID-R report on chikungunya, o'nyong-nyong and Mayaro virus, part 5: Entomological aspects.

The GloPID-R (Global Research Collaboration for Infectious Disease Preparedness) chikungunya (CHIKV), o'nyong-nyong (ONNV) and Mayaro virus (MAYV) Working Group has been established to investigate natural history, epidemiology and clinical aspects of infection by these viruses. Here, we present a report dedicated to entomological aspects of CHIKV, ONNV and MAYV. Recent global expansion of chikungunya virus has been possible because CHIKV established a transmission cycle in urban settings using anthropophilic vectors such as Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. MAYV and ONNV have a more limited geographic distribution, being confined to Africa (ONNV) and central-southern America (MAYV). ONNV is probably maintained through an enzootic cycle that has not been characterized yet, with Anopheles species as main vectors and humans as amplification hosts during epidemics. MAYV is transmitted by Haemagogus species in an enzootic cycle using non-human primates as the main amplification and maintenance hosts, and humans becoming sporadically infected when venturing in or nearby forest habitats. Here, we focused on the transmission cycle and natural vectors that sustain circulation of these viruses in their respective locations. The knowledge of the natural ecology of transmission and the capacity of different vectors to transmit these viruses is crucial to understand CHIKV emergence, and to assess the risk that MAYV and ONNV will expand on wide scale using anthropophilic mosquito species not normally considered primary vectors. Finally, the experts identified knowledge gaps and provided adapted recommendations, in order to address future entomological investigations in the right direction.

Clonality and antimicrobial resistance gene profiles of multidrug- resistant Salmonella enterica serovar infantis isolates from four public hospitals in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

In Brazil, Salmonella enterica serovar Infantis resistant to various antimicrobials, including cephalosporins, has been identified as an etiological agent of severe gastroenteritis in hospitalized children since 1994. In this study, 35 serovar Infantis strains, isolated from children admitted to four different Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, hospitals between 1996 and 2001, were characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and antimicrobial susceptibility testing in order to determine their genetic relatedness and antimicrobial resistance profiles. Thirty-four serovar Infantis strains were resistant to at least two antibiotic classes, and all 35 strains were susceptible to fluoroquinolones, cephamycin, and carbapenem. Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) screening by double-disk diffusion indicated that 32 serovar Infantis strains (91.4%) produced beta-lactamases that were inhibited by clavulanic acid. Antimicrobial resistance gene profiles were determined by PCR for a subset of 11 multidrug-resistant serovar Infantis strains, and putative ESBLs were detected by isoelectric focusing. Ten serovar Infantis strains carried bla(TEM), catI, ant(3")Ia and/or ant(3")Ib, sulI and/or sulII, and tet(D) genes as well as an integron-associated aac(6')-Iq cassette. Eight strains possessed at least four different beta-lactamases with pI profiles that confirmed the presence of both ESBLs and non-ESBLs. Our PFGE profiles indicated that 33 serovar Infantis strains isolated from Rio de Janeiro hospitals came from the same genetic lineage.

Characterization of cigar tobaccos by gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric analysis of nonvolatile organic acids: application to the authentication of Cuban cigars.

A reliable method based on gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric (GC/MS) profiling of nonvolatile organic acids is described for the characterization of cigars. The method involves an aqueous extraction of ground tobacco and selective isolation of the acids by simply stirring strong anion exchange (SAX) disks in the aqueous tobacco extract. The acids are then directly silylated on the disk with N-methyl-N-trimethylsilyl-trifluroacetamide (MSTFA) in acetonitrile in an autosampler vial. Elution of the derivatized acids in situ allows the sample to be directly analyzed by GC/MS without further sample handling. Compared to the conventional disk-extraction technique using a vacuum manifold, this method is much less labor intensive, and is desirable for multiple sample analysis. Nicotinic acid, succinic acid, glyceric acid, malic acid, pyroglutamic acid, threonic acid, citric acid, uracil, and an unidentified acid were reproducibly quantified in tobacco samples. Principal component analysis (PCA) of the acid profiles of the filler tobaccos of 18 Cuban cigars and 31 non-Cuban cigars shows separation of the two groups, indicating that the acid profiles are potentially useful in the authentication of Cuban cigars.

Flagella as a potential marker for Campylobacter jejuni strains associated with Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Campylobacter jejuni recovered from patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) in different geographical locations and bearing different heat-labile and heat-stable antigens were found to have identical amino acid sequences in their flagellar flaA short variable region, suggesting that it may be a potentially useful marker for GBS association.