Will there be a cure for HIV/AIDS? Making the dream a reality

It has been more than 30 years since AIDS was introduced in people's daily life, and it is a milestone that causes taboos, myths and prejudices. At that time, a patient told me his feelings, and he was very convincing: "I am horrified of living and afraid of dying." Three decades later, AIDS infection is not a death sentence anymore. First, doctors could make that infected patients did not die from the disease; then, that the medication which kept them alive was not so toxic. And finally, that the treatments were more comfortable. And once at this point, the possibility that the virus may disappear from the body is a more realistic goal than ever. The story of AIDS has changed and, for the first time, we can foresee in the short term the beginning of the end of the pandemic. Now it is not about whether the cure is possible or not, but about when we will have it. This current momentum, so hard to get, should be maintained. We have never been so close to achieving this goal. Although the end of the pandemic is close, this is not enough. It is worrying that some world leaders have absolved themselves of responsibility for not stopping or at least having understood the explosion of the pandemic as if it was a natural disaster. "Zero tolerance for HIV" requires a profound understanding of the stigma and discrimination of the infected people to finally get rid of the epidemic of fear and the devastation that the pandemic caused.

Zika threatens to become a huge worldwide pandemic

The Aedes aegypti mosquito which transmits Zika virus (as well as dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever) represents a high risk for global transmission. This virus comes from Africa, the Zika forest in Uganda, where it was discovered in 1947 in a rhesus monkey. In May 2015, the first local cases were recorded in Brazil, surpassing 1.5 million cases in December of the same year. By March 2016, local transmission of Zika was recognized in 34 countries. Its clinical condition is similar to dengue febrile illness, although milder. The final geographical distribution area is constantly expanding. Recently, it has been associated with cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome in Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Venezuela and Suriname. Microcephaly was documented in Brazil. This article discusses some factors that contributed to the spread of Zika virus in South America. Climate change associated with the events of the phenomenon of "El Niño" is also analyzed. The biggest concern is how quickly Zika is spreading around the world and that it could be far more dangerous than previously thought. Zika virus infection, by its explosive potential, has every chance of becoming a global pandemic.

Ebola outbreak in West Africa: A neglected tropical disease

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are remediable injustices of our times. Poverty is the starting point, and the ultimate outcome, of NTD. Ebola is just one of many NTDs that badly need attention. Ebola exacerbates West Africa's poverty crisis. The virus spreading in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has led to food shortages and neglect of other devastating tropical illnesses. A health crisis that was ignored for months until it was out of control is now beginning to get the attention required, if not the resources. So far, the world's nations have contributed far less than the $ 1 billion. The U.N. estimates would need to control the epidemic before it becomes endemic. Past outbreaks of Ebola have flared up in remote, forested communities, disconnected from much of the outside world. But the outbreak in West Africa has not slowed yet, and it worsens there the chances of it spreading to other countries. Ebola draws attention to NTD. Ebola is not only a health emergency, but also it's a poverty crisis. The current Global Ebola crisis presents a multitude of challenges in terms of our capacity to respond; the future is even less predictable. Ebola outbreak represents inequity in health as the occurrence of health differences considered unnecessary, avoidable, unfair, and unjust, thus adding a moral and ethical dimension to health inequalities. Health equity does not refer only to the fairness in the distribution of health or the provision of health care; rather, it is linked with the larger issues of fairness and justice in social arrangements.

Giemsa and Grocott in the recognition of Histoplasma capsulatum in blood smears

Objective: To facilitate the recognition of intracellular yeasts of Histoplasma capsulatum and differentiate it from Leishmania amastigotes and other parasites, using the combination of then Giemsa) to previously fixed peripheral blood smears. Microscopy was performed with 400ístudy. Methods: The combination of both stains was applied consecutively (first Grocott and Giemsa and a rapid modification of Grocott stains to peripheral blood smears in a hematological and 1000í, the latter using immersion oil. Results: The yeasts of Histoplasma capsulatum were observed into the cytoplasm of leukocytes as brownish oval elements, with 3-4 μm in diameter. Conclusions: The combination of both techniques is a simple and fast method to facilitate recognition of intracellular yeasts and it is different from intracellular parasitic elements. Moreover, it allows distinguishing the cell elements that are in the microscopic preparations. It may be very helpful in those cases in which the presumptive diagnosis of histoplasmosis has not been established yet and where other more sophisticated methods are not available.

A case report of cutaneous larva migrans in Argentina

Cutaneous larva migrans (CLM) represents the most common tropically acquired dermatosis. CLM is caused by infection with hookworm larvae in tropical and sub-tropical areas, and people who have a history of foreign travel and of walking barefoot on sandy soil or beaches are at a high risk of getting infected with it. The diagnosis is usually made on the basis of the typical appearance of the lesion, intense itching and history of foreign travel. CLM is a common parasitic skin disease that can be easily prevented by wearing 'protective' footwear. A case of CLM is described in this article.

Diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis using molecular biology technology

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To present an integrated molecular biology dedicated system for tuberculosis diagnosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and five sputum specimens from patients strongly suspected by clinical parameters of tuberculosis were studied by Ziehl-Neelsen staining, by cultivation on solid medium and by a balanced heminested fluorometric PCR system (Orange G3TB) that could preserve worker safety and produce a rather pure material free of potential inhibitors. DNA amplification was performed in a low cost tuberculosis termocycler-fluorometer. Produced double stranded DNA was flurometrically detected. The whole reaction was conducted in one single tube which would not be opened after adding the processed sample in order to minimize the risk of cross contamination with amplicons.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The assay was able to detect 30 bacillus per sample mL with 99.8% interassay variation coefficient. PCR was positive in 23 (21.9%) tested samples (21 of them were smear negative). In our study it showed a preliminary sensitivity of 94.5% for sputum and an overall specificity of 98.7%.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Total run time of the test is 4 h with 2.5 real working time. All PCR positive samples are also positive by microbiological culture and clinical criteria. Results show that it could be a very useful tool to increase detection efficiency of tuberculosis disease in low bacilus load samples. Furthermore, its low cost and friendly using make it feasible to run in poor regions.</p>