Genomic epidemiology unveils the dynamics and spatial corridor behind the Yellow Fever virus outbreak in Southern Brazil.

Despite the considerable morbidity and mortality of yellow fever virus (YFV) infections in Brazil, our understanding of disease outbreaks is hampered by limited viral genomic data. Here, through a combination of phylogenetic and epidemiological models, we reconstructed the recent transmission history of YFV within different epidemic seasons in Brazil. A suitability index based on the highly domesticated Aedes aegypti was able to capture the seasonality of reported human infections. Spatial modeling revealed spatial hotspots with both past reporting and low vaccination coverage, which coincided with many of the largest urban centers in the Southeast. Phylodynamic analysis unraveled the circulation of three distinct lineages and provided proof of the directionality of a known spatial corridor that connects the endemic North with the extra-Amazonian basin. This study illustrates that genomics linked with eco-epidemiology can provide new insights into the landscape of YFV transmission, augmenting traditional approaches to infectious disease surveillance and control.

Statistically enriched geospatial datasets of Brazilian municipalities for data-driven modeling.

The lack of georeferencing in geospatial datasets hinders the accomplishment of scientific studies that rely on accurate data. This is particularly concerning in the field of health sciences, where georeferenced data could lead to scientific results of great relevance to society. The Brazilian health systems, especially those for Notifiable Diseases, in practice do not register georeferenced data; instead, the records indicate merely the municipality in which the event occurred. Typically in data-driven modeling, accurate disease prediction models based on occurrence requires socioenvironmental characteristics of the exact location of each event, which is often unavailable. To enrich the expressiveness of data-driven models when the municipality of the event is the best available information, we produced datasets with statistical characterization of all 5,570 Brazilian municipalities in 642 layers of thematic data that represent the natural and artificial characteristics of the municipalities' landscapes over time. This resulted in a collection of datasets comprising a total of 11,556 descriptive statistics attributes for each municipality.

SISS-Geo: Leveraging Citizen Science to Monitor Wildlife Health Risks in Brazil.

The well-being of human and wildlife health involves many challenges, such as monitoring the movement of pathogens; expanding health surveillance; collecting data and extracting information to identify and predict risks; integrating specialists from different areas to handle data, species and distinct social and environmental contexts; and the commitment to bringing relevant information to society. In Brazil, there is still the difficulty of building a system that is not impaired by its large territorial extension and its poorly integrated sectoral policies. The Brazilian Wildlife Health Information System, SISS-Geo (SISS-Geo is the abbreviation of "Sistema de Informação em Saúde Silvestre Georreferenciado" (which translates to "Georeferenced Wildlife Health Information System") and can be accessed at http://www.biodiversidade.ciss.fiocruz.br or http://sissgeo.lncc.br (in Portuguese)), is a platform for collaborative monitoring that intends to overcome the challenges in wildlife health. It aims at the integration and participation of various segments of society, encompassing the registration of animals occurrences by citizen scientists; the reliable diagnosis of pathogens from the laboratory and expert networks; and computational and mathematical challenges in analytical and predictive systems, model interpretation, data integration and visualization, and geographic information systems. It has been successfully applied to support decision-making on recent wildlife health events, such as a Yellow Fever epizootic.

Animals in the Zika Virus Life Cycle: What to Expect from Megadiverse Latin American Countries.

Zika virus (ZIKV) was first isolated in 1947 in primates in Uganda, West Africa. The virus remained confined to the equatorial regions of Africa and Asia, cycling between infecting monkeys, arboreal mosquitoes, and occasionally humans. The ZIKV Asiatic strain was probably introduced into Brazil in or around late 2013. Presently, ZIKV is in contact with the rich biodiversity in all Brazilian biomes, bordering on other Latin American countries. Infections in Brazilian primates have been reported recently, but the overall impact of this virus on wildlife in the Americas is still unknown. The current epidemic in the Americas requires knowledge on the role of mammals, especially nonhuman primates (NHPs), in ZIKV transmission to humans. The article discusses the available data on ZIKV in host animals and issues of biodiversity, rapid environmental change, and impact on human health in megadiverse Latin American countries. The authors reviewed scientific articles and recent news stories on ZIKV in animals, showing that 47 animal species from three orders (mammals, reptiles, and birds) have been investigated for the potential to establish a sylvatic cycle. The review aims to contribute to epidemiological studies and the knowledge on the natural history of ZIKV. The article concludes with questions that require urgent attention in epidemiological studies involving wildlife in order to understand their role as ZIKV hosts and to effectively control the epidemic.

Selamectin for the prevention of canine Dirofilaria immitis infection: field efficacy in client-owned dogs in a high risk area.

BACKGROUND: Dog owners and veterinarians in small animal practices began to waive prevention of canine heartworm disease after heartworm infections seemed to have disappeared in Brazil. After 2013, infection rates rebounded, and an evaluation of the efficacy of chemoprophylactic drugs became necessary. Included in this re-evaluation was the efficacy of selamectin in client-owned dogs residing in a high infection-risk area. METHODS: The preventive efficacy of selamectin was evaluated by the topical application of selamectin to 24 client-owned dogs at the recommended rate (minimum of 6 mg/kg) by a veterinarian monthly for 36 months. Blood samples were collected before the first treatment and at the end of the study for testing to detect microfilariae by the modified Knott's test and Dirofilaria immitis antigens using a commercial antigen test. Exposure to risk of heartworm infection was confirmed by the presence of infection in dogs living in low-income communities within a 2 km radius from the homes of dogs in the study. The dogs were managed according to routine practice by the owners within each household throughout the study. RESULTS: All dogs tested negative by both tests after receiving topical treatment with selamectin monthly for 36 months. Testing of 204 dogs from the communities confirmed the presence of heartworm in the area by detection of microfilariae or D. immitis antigen in 44 dogs (21.6 %). CONCLUSIONS: Topical selamectin was 100 % effective for D. immitis prevention in 24 dogs that received monthly treatments by a veterinarian. Detection of heartworm infections in untreated dogs in the area suggests that clients need to be better informed regarding the prevalence of D. immitis and the importance of maintaining regular preventive treatments.