ABSTRACT Rapid identification of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) can assist in choosing the appropriate treatment and preventing VRE spread. The performance of chromIDTM VRE agar was evaluated using 184 clinical isolates of Enterococcus spp. and reference strains. The test had a sensitivity of 95.52% but a low specificity of 30%.

A sublineage of Mycobacterium tuberculosis called RD Rio was described in 2007. Although only recently described, this strain may have been present previously in the population, and its identification in clinical isolates will elucidate bacterial transmission dynamics and host-pathogen interactions. This study evaluated the clonal diversity of the RD Rio sublineage in clinical isolates from Rio Grande-RS obtained between 1998 and 2001. Among the 45 samples analyzed by the MIRU-VNTR method, there were six clusters with two samples each and 33 orphan strains with unique pattern. The strains were distributed across several different lineages including LAM (34.04%), X (14.89%), Haarlem (12.77%), UgandaI (10.64%), S (4.26%), NEW-1 (2.13%) and Cameroon (2.13%); 14.89% of the strains matched to multiple lineages. RD Rio strains were present in 28.9% of the samples and 81.25% of the identified strains belonged to the LAM family. The high clonal diversity observed in this study is a constant feature in this region. The RD Rio sublineage has been in Rio Grande-RS since 1998. The continued monitoring of RD Rio in clinical isolates will enhance the understanding of its epidemiological significance.

Muitas são as substâncias do metabolismo vegetal que têm despertado grande interesse, principalmente no setor de fármacos. No presente estudo, foram avaliadas as atividades antineoplásica e tripanocida de extratos vegetais de Hovenia dulcis (Rhamnaceae) cultivada sob condições in vivo e in vitro. Extratos metanólicos das folhas de material jovem desenvolvido in vivo e in vitro, exibiram altas porcentagens na inibição do crescimento de todas as linhagens de células tumorais testadas, enquanto extratos etanólicos do pseudofruto mostraram seletividade com elevado percentual de inibição do crescimento celular nas linhagens SP2/0 e BW. Quanto à atividade tripanocida, os extratos aquoso do pseudofruto e metanólico das folhas das plantas germinadas in vivo, apresentaram percentual de inibição em 48 h, de 95% e 100%, respectivamente.

Plants produce a wide range of secondary metabolites, many of which are pharmaceutically important. In this paper were evaluated anti-cancer and trypanocidal activities from Hovenia dulcis (Rhamnaceae) in vivo and in vitro propagated plants. Methanolic extracts of young leaves from in vivo and in vitro material were remarkably active for all tumor cells lines tested, while ethanolic extracts of pseudofruit showed high degree of selectivity against to SP2/0 and BW cells in culture. Mortality of 95 and 100% (48 h) on Trypanosoma cruzi were observed on the aqueous extract of pseudofruit and methanolic extracts of leaves from seedlings.