ABSTRACT Syphilis, an infectious disease considered a global public health concern, can cause stillbirths and neonatal deaths. This highlights the importance of continuous surveillance studies among women of reproductive age. A cross-sectional study was carried out to analyze the prevalence and risk factors associated with Treponema pallidum infection in women assisted by primary health care units in Dourados, a city located in Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, which borders Paraguay. A questionnaire was applied to a population-based sample, blood samples were collected for syphilis testing and multivariable analyses were performed to screen associations with T. pallidum infection. The prevalence of T. pallidum infection was 6.04%. Bivariate analysis showed that women referring multiple sexual partners (c2: 6.97 [p=0.014]), income less 2 minimal wages (c2: 15.93 [p=0.003]), who did not have high school (c2: 12.64 [p=0.005]), and reporting history of STIs (c2: 7.30 [p=0.018]) are more likely to have syphilis. In the multivariate analysis, a highest prevalence ratio was observed in women with income less than 2 minimal wages (PR: 0.96 [95% CI: 0.85 - 0.97]), and who did not have high school (PR: 0.94 [95% CI: 0.90 - 0.98]). In addition, 80% of the women reported irregular use of condoms and 63.89% declared having sexual intercourses with multiple partners, which creates more opportunities for the transmission of the infection. These results highlight the need for healthcare systems to implement initiatives to monitor syphilis screening and the commitment of patients and their sexual partners to the treatment in order to achieve a decrease of new cases.

A sedimentação é freqüentemente relacionada a estresse em recifes de coral. Os recifes do Atlântico sul ocidental possuem grande sedimentação, entretanto carecem de séries temporais das taxas de deposição de sedimento. Foram avaliadas estas taxas e a composição carbonática do sedimento, além da cobertura de corais e zoantídeos em seis recifes brasileiros durante quatro anos consecutivos. A deposição variou de zero a 233 mg cm-2 dia-1, com picos entre agosto e dezembro e médias anuais variando de nove a 104 mg cm-2 dia-1. As taxas de deposição apresentaram correlação com o vento, indicando que a ressuspensão deve ser o fator preponderante. A contribuição do carbonato variou de 38% a 90%, com dois locais apresentando diferenciação sazonal. As comunidades bênticas foram similares entre locais, entretanto as análises sugerem freqüencias diferenciadas para cada local. Não houve correlação significativa entre sedimentação e a comunidade bêntica. Entretanto, maior cobertura de Palythoa caribaeorum normalmente ocorreu em áreas de maior sedimentação. Nossos resultados não corroboraram resultados prévios sugerindo que 10 mg cm-2 dia-1 seria "limite crítico para sobrevivência" dos corais. Recifes brasileiros podem estar associados a ambientes de alta deposição de sedimento com elevadas frações carbonáticas, o que não impede o desenvolvimento das comunidades recifais do Atlântico sul ocidental.

High sedimentation is often related to stress in coral reef communities. Most southwestern Atlantic reefs are characterized by high sedimentation. However, there are no temporal series of sediment deposition rates. We evaluated sediment deposition, the sediment carbonate composition and coral and zoanthid covers on six reefs in Brazil over four-years. Sediment deposition rates varied from near zero to 233 mg cm-2 day-1, with peaks between August and December, and yearly averages ranging from nine to 104 mg cm-2 day-1. Deposition rates presented site-specific correlations with wind, indicating that resuspension must be a major factor. The presence of carbonates varied from 38% to 90%, with two sites showing seasonal differences. Benthic communities were fairly similar among sites, but the analyses suggested particular frequencies at each site. There was no significant correlation between sediment and benthic communities. However, Palythoa caribaeorum usually occur in high sediment deposition areas. Our results did not corroborate previous data that suggested that a 10 mg cm-2 day-1 would be a "critical limit for coral survival". Some coral reefs may be associated with high sedimentation environments including carbonatic fractions, but which does not per se hinder the development of southwestern Atlantic coral reef communities.

Chlamydophila abortus (C. abortus) é frequentemente associada a distúrbios reprodutivos em bovinos, ovinos e caprinos. Para o diagnóstico, os métodos de cultivo em ovo embrionado de galinha e em células de linhagem contínua apresentam baixa sensibilidade. A reação em cadeia da polimerase (PCR) tem sido utilizada em placenta, órgãos fetais, secreção vaginal e sêmen para o diagnóstico da C. abortus. O objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver um sistema de PCR para a amplificação de um fragmento de 856-pb do gene rRNA da família Chlamydiaceae. A PCR foi avaliada em órgãos de 15 camundongos infectados experimentalmente com a estirpe de referência S26/3 da C. abortus. Os resultados foram comparados com os obtidos em outro sistema de PCR, previamente descrito para o gene Omp2 (outer major protein) da família Chlamydiaceae. Dos 15 camundongos inoculados com C. abortus, 13 (K=0,84, erro padrão=0,20) foram positivos na rRNA PCR e nove (K=0,55, erro padrão=0,18) na Omp2 PCR. O limite de detecção da C. abortus na rRNA PCR (1,05 UFI) foi 100 vezes inferior à Omp2 PCR (105 UFI). A maior sensibilidade em comparação ao sistema de PCR anteriormente descrito, bem como a especificidade demonstrada frente a diferentes microrganismos patogênicos do sistema reprodutivo, abrem a perspectiva da utilização da PCR desenvolvida nesse estudo para o diagnóstico molecular da C. abortus em casos de abortamentos e outros distúrbios reprodutivos em bovinos, ovinos e caprinos.

Chlamydophila abortus (C. abortus) is associated with reproductive problems in cattle, sheep, and goats. Diagnosis of C. abortus using embryonated chicken eggs or immortalized cell lines has a very low sensitivity. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays have been used to detect C. abortus infection in clinical specimens and organ fragments, such as placenta, fetal organs, vaginal secretions, and semen. The aim of this study was to develop a PCR assay for the amplification of an 856-bp fragment of the rRNA gene of the Chlamydiaceae family. The PCR assay was evaluated using organs from 15 mice experimentally infected with the S26/3 reference strain of C. abortus. The results of the rRNA PCR were compared to the results from another PCR system (Omp2 PCR) that has been previously described for the Omp2 (outer major protein) gene from the Chlamydiaceae family. From the 15 C. abortus-inoculated mice, 13 (K=0.84, standard error =0.20) tested positive using the rRNA PCR assay and 9 (K=0.55, standard error=0.18) tested positive using the Omp2 PCR assay. The detection limit, measured using inclusion-forming units (IFU), for C. abortus with the rRNA PCR (1.05 IFU) was 100-fold lower than for the Omp2 PCR (105 IFU). The higher sensitivity of the rRNA PCR, as compared to the previously described PCR assay, and the specificity of the assay, demonstrated using different pathogenic microorganisms of the bovine reproductive system, suggest that the new PCR assay developed in this study can be used for the molecular diagnosis of C. abortus in abortion and other reproductive failures in bovines, caprines, and ovines.