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This work presents the phytosociological characteristics of Todos os Santos Bay mangrove communities in Brazil as well as the chemical composition of the leaves of the three mangrove species and their associated sediment. For the qualitative, phytosociological investigation, the contiguous parcel method was used at five sites associated with petroleum extraction (Site 4, Fontes Island), transportation (Site 2, Madre de Deus and 3, Pati Island), and refining (Site 1, Mataripe). Each site was divided into seven 10 x 10 m parcels. Results indicated that the Todos os Santos mangrove ecosystem has a fringe physiognomy with low bearing, containing the obligate species, Laguncularia racemosa, Rhizophora mangle, and Avicennia schaueriana, the former being the dominant species. The sediment presented a predominantly sandy texture and the average levels of the elements P, Ca, K, Mg, Na, Cu, Zn, Mn, and Fe were within the normal range of variation for this kind of environment. The chemical analysis of leaves revealed significant differences among the species, although Rhizophora mangle and Laguncularia racemosa demonstrated a great similarity in their average concentrations of the minerals N, P,K. Ca, Mg, S, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn. For the three species, the individuals collected at Mataripe (Site 1) site, presented significantly higher (p<0.05) concentration of the elements N, P,and Cu, when compared to the others sites, thus suggesting the influence of the oil refinery on mangrove plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to reconstruct vegetation changes and to infer climate changes during the late Pleistocene and the Holocene in the southeast (Botucatu, Anhembi and Jaguariúna, São Paulo State) and centerwest of Brazil (Pontes e Lacerda, Mato Grosso State). The research approach included the use of carbon isotopes (13C and 14C) in soil organic matter (SOM) and the evaluation of charcoal distribution and its identification at the species level. Soils sampled in this study were located under natural vegetation, along the slopes of small hills. Charcoal was found predominantly between 150 and 50-cm depth, indicating a period of greater frequency of fires in the study areas, between 6000 and 3000 years BP. For the Botucatu, Anhembi and Pontes e Lacerda sites, the δ13C profiles suggest the predominance of C3 plants during the entire Holocene. The 13C patterns obtained at the Jaguariúna site that show a more significant presence of C4 plants compared to the other regions, suggest that this region has been drier than the others during the Holocene. These patterns also indicate the presence of a drier climate compared with present-day conditions at the Jaguariúna region during late Pleistocene until the middle Holocene. This study shows the complexity of vegetation dynamics in the southeast of Brazil during the Holocene. It also shows that the analyses of multiple soil cores representative of the main vegetation communities are necessary for paleovegetation studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Meningococcal Serogroup C Conjugate Vaccine (MenC) was introduced into the Brazilian Immunization Program in 2010. However, in Salvador, the fourth largest capital in Brazil, an extended catch-up campaign was conducted earlier in that year, which focused on adolescents and young adults aged 10-24 years. To evaluate the long-term impact of MenC vaccination, we analyzed hospital-based surveillance data on cases of meningococcal disease in the Salvador metropolitan region during the pre-vaccine (2005-2009) and post-vaccine (2011-2016) campaign periods. Six years after the introduction of the MenC vaccine, the mean incidence rate decreased from 3.20 to 0.93 cases per 100,000 individuals (71% reduction, 95% CI [58.7-83.3]) in children <4 years. Reductions of 25.6% and 21.1% were also observed for the age groups of 5-9 and 10-14 years, respectively. On the other hand, incidence increased in the 15-24-year age group from 0.72 to 1.11, and from 0.31 to 0.60 in individuals aged >25 years (p < 0.05). At the end of the study period, serogroup C was the most prevalent (65.7%), followed by serogroups B (9.8%), W (2.3%), Y (1.6%) and A (1.0%); serogrouping was not possible in 19.6% of the cases, or adequate material was not available for serogroup identification. The use of real-time PCR from 2010 onwards increased detection rates of meningococcal meningitis by 29.6%. The long-term impact of the MenC vaccination campaign was associated with a significant reduction in MenC disease in children aged 0-4 years, yet no effect was observed in adolescents and adults, as evidenced by increasing trends in infection rates. In addition, the emergence of meningococcal serogroup A was identified, which should serve as an alert to public health officials and deserves further investigation., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Positive feedback between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) and vascular plants can contribute to plant species establishment, but how this feedback affects plant invasion by Prosopis juliflora SW. (DC.), or resistance to invasion by Mimosa tenuiflora (Willd.) Poir in Brazilian semi-arid region is not well known. In this work, we tested how modified and native AMF communities affect the establishment of P. juliflora and M. tenuiflora plants. We examined the effects of inoculation with modified and native AMF communities on number of AMF spores, root colonization, number of N-fixing nodules, plant dry biomass, plant phosphorous concentration, and plant responsiveness to mycorrhizas of P. juliflora and M. tenuiflora. We found that the modified AMF community enhanced the root colonization, plant dry biomass, and plant phosphorous concentration of invasive P. juliflora, whereas native AMF enhanced M. tenuiflora. Our results demonstrate that the invasive P. juliflora alters soil AMF community composition, and this change generates positive feedback to the invasive P. juliflora itself and decreases AMF associations with native M. tenuiflora.

Plant-soil feedback is recognized as the mutual interaction between plants and soil microorganisms, but its role on the biological invasion of the Brazilian tropical seasonal dry forest by invasive plants still remains unclear. Here, we analyzed and compared the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) communities and soil characteristics from the root zone of invasive and native plants, and tested how these AMF communities affect the development of four invasive plant species (Cryptostegia madagascariensis, Parkinsonia aculeata, Prosopis juliflora, and Sesbania virgata). Our field sampling revealed that AMF diversity and frequency of the Order Diversisporales were positively correlated with the root zone of the native plants, whereas AMF dominance and frequency of the Order Glomerales were positively correlated with the root zone of invasive plants. We grew the invasive plants in soil inoculated with AMF species from the root zone of invasive (I changed ) and native (I unaltered ) plant species. We also performed a third treatment with sterilized soil inoculum (control). We examined the effects of these three AMF inoculums on plant dry biomass, root colonization, plant phosphorous concentration, and plant responsiveness to mycorrhizas. We found that I unaltered and I changed promoted the growth of all invasive plants and led to a higher plant dry biomass, mycorrhizal colonization, and P uptake than control, but I changed showed better results on these variables than I unaltered . For plant responsiveness to mycorrhizas and fungal inoculum effect on plant P concentration, we found positive feedback between changed-AMF community (I changed ) and three of the studied invasive plants: C. madagascariensis, P. aculeata, and S. virgata.

Since the World Health Assembly's (Resolution WHA 50.29, 1997) call for the elimination of lymphatic filariasis by the year 2020, most of the endemic countries identified have established programmes to meet this objective. In 1997, a National Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination Plan was drawn up by the Ministry of Health of Brazil, creating local programs for the elimination of Bancroftian filariasis in areas with active transmission. Based on a comprehensive bibliographic search for available studies and reports of filariasis epidemiology in Brazil, current status of this parasitic infection and the outlook for its elimination in the country were analysed. From 1951 to 1958 a nationwide epidemiological study conducted in Brazil confirmed autochthonous transmission of Bancroftian filariasis in 11 cities of the country. Control measures led to a decline in parasite rates, and in the 1980s only the cities of Belém in the Amazonian region (Northern region) and Recife (Northeastern region) were considered to be endemic. In the 1990s, foci of active transmission of LF were also described in the cities of Maceió, Olinda, Jaboatão dos Guararapes, and Paulista, all in the Northeastern coast of Brazil. Data provide evidence for the absence of microfilaremic subjects and infected mosquitoes in Belém, Salvador and Maceió in the past few years, attesting to the effectiveness of the measures adopted in these cities. Currently, lymphatic filariasis is a public health problem in Brazil only in four cities of the metropolitan Recife region (Northeastern coast). Efforts are being concentrated in these areas, with a view to eliminating the disease in the country.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the complement activation in Brazilian patients with preeclampsia and to correlate it with the severity and clinical outcome of the disease. Plasma levels of C3d, SC5b-9, C3 and C4 were measured in 16 patients with preeclampsia and in 17 normotensive pregnant women. Ten patients developed severe and six mild disease. C3 and C4 levels were determined by turbidimetry using polyclonal specific antisera. C3d concentrations were evaluated through double-decker rocket immunoelectrophoresis and SC5b-9 was assayed by a double-antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using a monoclonal antibody against a neoantigen expressed in the formed complex. The mean levels of all variables were significantly higher in the preeclamptic group (before the delivery) when compared to the normal pregnancies. The complex SC5b-9 followed by C3d showed the most significant results for those comparisons (p < or = 0.00001). The levels of all parameters in the preeclampsia patients decreased significantly after the delivery. Again, the complex SC5b-9 and C3d showed the most significant results (p < or = 0.0004). None of the studied variables showed statistically significant differences regarding the severity of preeclampsia. These results confirm the activation of complement in preeclampsia, suggesting that this activation is related to the disease manifestation. Our findings further emphasize the involvement of complement activation in the pathological manifestations of preeclampsia.