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Toxoplasmosis is a zoonotic illness that spreads from animals to people. Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan parasite that infects warm-blooded mammals, causes the sickness. Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection that causes abortion and death in animals. Cats are the parasite's sole sexual hosts, thus they're the only ones who can get it. Because cats are frequent pets, they are highly likely to come into touch with humans. As a result, the disease poses a risk to human health. The potential danger is influenced by the frequency of oocyst secretion and the level of contamination in the environment. Toxoplasmosis has serious consequences for both animal and human health, hence preventative actions should be taken to reduce the dangers. COVID-19 is affected by such methods as well. Toxoplasmosis is thought to increase immunological and immunosuppressive factors, which increases the chance of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the severity of the resulting COVID-19. Research into Toxoplasma gondii intermediate hosts might help understand COVID-19's dynamics and determine if the virus can be transferred from animals to humans. We explore what we know about Toxoplasma gondii infection as a human parasitosis and how it may alter the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection in this review study.
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These proceedings comprise 85 articles spanning diverse fields such as bacteriology, molecular biology, biotechnology, dermatology, infectious and parasitic diseases, epidemiology, physiotherapy, immunology, mycology, parasitology, pathology, collective health, and virology. The articles delve into a wide range of research topics, from repurposing drugs for Mycobacterium abscessus complex infections to utilising artificial intelligence for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis. In bacteriology, investigations explore the correlation between smoking and Helicobacter pylori infection in gastric adenocarcinoma patients, as well as the resistance profiles of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in tracheostomised children. Molecular biology studies focus on gene polymorphisms related to diseases like paracoccidioidomycosis. Biotechnology research emphasises bioactive molecules in species like Croton urucurana and the development of computational models for cytotoxicity prediction. Dermatology articles address stability characterisation in vegetable oil-based nanoemulsions. The section on infectious and parasitic diseases encompasses studies on COVID-19 vaccine response in pregnant women and the impact of infection prevention measures in rehabilitation hospitals. Epidemiology investigations analyse trends in premature mortality, tuberculosis in diabetic patients, and public adherence to non-pharmacological COVID-19 measures. Physiotherapy research covers topics such as telerehabilitation through a developed game and the prevalence of congenital anomalies. Immunology studies explore immune responses in HIV and Leishmaniasis, whilst mycology investigates the biotechnological potential of fungi from the cerrado biome. Parasitology research evaluates treatment efficacy against vectors parasites such as Aedes aegypti and Toxoplasma gondii. Pathology articles discuss intentional intoxication in cattle and the influence of curcumin on acute kidney injury therapy. Collective health studies focus on intervention plan development in healthcare settings and pesticide use in horticulture. Lastly, virology research investigates parvovirus occurrence in hospitalised children during the COVID-19 pandemic, hidden hepatitis B virus infection in inmates, and the prevalence of HPV and HTLV-1/2 infections in specific populations.
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Coinfection caused by bacteria, parasites, or viruses complicates almost all feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) infections. Pathogens that colonize the gastrointestinal tract, Clostridium perfingens, Clostridium piliforme, Cryptosporidium spp, Giardia spp, Tritrichomonas fetus, canine parvovirus type 2,Salmonella sp., feline coronavirus, feline bocavirus, and feline astrovirus were isolated in the presence of FPV infection. Complex mechanisms between viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and hosts contribute to the pathogenesis and severity of coinfection. Prompt and accurate diagnosis, vaccination precautions, and appropriate treatment play important roles in reducing morbidity and mortality. This article outlines the etiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment that can help veterinarians and pet owners improve their knowledge of managing the diseases.
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In January 2023, a total of 64 infectious diseases were reported globally, affecting 235 countries and regions. Except for influenza, the top five infectious diseases affecting greatest number of countries and regions were COVID-19 (235), monkeypox (110), dengue fever (31), measles (27) and cholera (15). The top five infectious diseases with highest case fatality rates were Nipah virus disease (62.5%), Ebola virus disease (47.0%), Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (37.5%), Lassa fever (15.1%) and West Nile fever (7.6%). The top five infectious diseases with greatest number of deaths were COVID-19, malaria, cholera, measles and dengue fever. The prevalent infectious diseases in Asia were COVID-19, cholera and dengue fever, the prevalent infectious diseases in Africa were COVID-19, cholera, yellow fever, Lassa fever, malaria and monkeypox, the prevalent infectious diseases in America were COVID-19, cholera, monkeypox, dengue fever and chikungunya fever, the prevalent infectious disease in Europe were COVID-19, monkeypox and invasive group A streptococcus infection.
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In December 2022, a total of 68 infectious diseases were reported globally, affecting 235 countries and regions. Except for influenza, the top five infectious diseases affecting greatest number of countries and regions were COVID-19 (235), monkeypox (110), dengue fever (28), measles (27) and cholera (14). The top five infectious diseases with highest case fatality rates were Ebola virus disease (47.0%), Rift Valley fever (44.2%), Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (40.0%), Lassa fever (17.6%) and West Nile fever (7.6%). The top five infectious diseases with greatest number of deaths were COVID-19, malaria, cholera, dengue fever and measles. The prevalent infectious diseases in Asia were COVID-19, cholera and dengue fever, the prevalent infectious diseases in Africa were COVID-19, cholera, yellow fever, Lassa fever, monkeypox, malaria and measles, the prevalent infectious diseases in America were COVID-19, cholera, monkeypox, dengue fever and chikungunya fever, the prevalent infectious disease in Europe were COVID-19, monkeypox and invasive group A streptococcus infection.
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Malaria is long known as a deadly vector borne infection, caused by five parasite species of the coccidian genus Plasmodia that are present in as many as 85 countries. Despite significant progresses have been achieved to control the infection by early diagnosis and artemisinin combination treatment, insecticide-treated nets and indoor residual spraying, malaria still represents a major public health issue in many endemic low-income countries. New diagnostic tools of higher sensitivity and specificity are now available for use in endemic countries to better guide diagnosis and treatment. In particular, highly sensitive rapid antigenic tests are now available and the loop-mediated isothermal amplification is a very promising and highly sensitive diagnostic tool. After 2015, decreasing morbidity and mortality trends have been stagnating because of limited funding, emergence of parasite and vector resistance to drugs and insecticides respectively and, recently, by the disrupting effect of COVID-19 pandemic. The incomplete knowledge of the complex immunity of malaria infection has slowed the development of an effective vaccine. However, in 2021, the RTS-S vaccine, however of suboptimal protective efficacy, has been made available for routine use in children above 5 months of age. Population movements has increased the chance of observing imported malaria in non-endemic areas, where malaria competent vectors may still exist.
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The possession of exotic animals as pets is a social practice that has become more visible in Mexico in recent years, so it is interesting to understand its environmental and social implications and those related to human health. The present study aims to identify the main species of exotic animals kept as pets and the zoonotic diseases reported in these species. We analyzed official figures of seizures of exotic fauna in Mexico and reviewed specialized literature on zoonotic diseases documented in Mexico in these species. We identified zoonoses in species of fauna that can be acquired legally and illegally in the country, reported in environments in which animals coexist with other species and are in direct contact with people, which represents an important factor in the spread and propensity of this type of disease. We conclude that the sanitary regulation of wildlife markets, the monitoring and studying microorganisms associated with wildlife are valuable strategies to prevent the emergence of zoonoses.
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Objective: To analyze the laboratory indexes of patients infected with malaria patients and COVID-19, so as to provide reliable evidence for the diagnosis of mixed infection of both. Methods The routine clinical laboratory items such as routine blood, biochemistry and lymphocyte subsets were tested in three cases of COVID-19 complicated with falciparum malaria who admitted to Guangzhou Eighth People's Hospital Affiliated to Guangzhou Medical University from July to December 2020 were tested. Laboratory data were stage-wise analyzed in conjunction with changes in the course of disease. Results Three patients confirmed COVID-19 infection recruited all had malaria infection history. Fever, headache, and other symptoms emerged on the 4rd to 11th day after admission. Malaria parasite was detected by malaria parasite antigen testing and blood smear testing, and all three patients had re-ignition of malaria after being confirmed COVID-19 infection. In the early stage of malaria relapse, lymphocytes decreased, CRP and SAA increased, and gradually returned to normal level after antimalarial treatment. Interestingly, we only found one patient at the initial stage of malaria detection showed PLT decreased, no other unnormal changes in other routine blood results (WBC, ESO) and liver function results (ALT, AST, GGT, TBIL, DBIL, CG) were found from the beginning to end course of the disease. Conclusion COVID-19 infection may promote the resurgence of malaria, so the relapse of malaria should be monitored especially for the patient with malaria infection history who begin to develop fever and other symptoms a few days after the diagnosis of COVID-19. The inflammatory indicators would be worth able as an auxiliary judgment basis for the effective treatment of the two combined infection.
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Vaccination is effective in preventing the increase of disease, especially emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), and it is particularly important for people in close contact with infected sources and susceptible populations who are at increased risk of getting infectious diseases due to behavior, occupation or health. Despite targeted vaccination guidelines, inadequate vaccination of the key populations fails to receive widespread attention, resulting in a high-risk transition of disease from key populations to general populations. Strengthening the vaccination of the susceptible groups can effectively block the spread of pathogens to general populations, and reduce the consumption of medical resources in universal vaccination, which has significant economic value. In this review, we describe the prevalence of EIDs, analyze the experience and lessons of infectious disease vaccination in key populations through several cases, and further explore the causes for the decline in vaccination rates of key populations. According to the trends of EIDs, a plan to strengthen the vaccination of key populations is proposed to effectively prevent the transition of EIDs from key populations to general populations.
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The molecular structure of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) used in the treatment of malaria is recently suggested for emergency used in COVID-19. The chemical compound of HCQ is produced by chemical alteration of ethylene oxide from human products, such as waxy maize starch. The molecular graph is a graph comprising of atoms called vertices and the chemical bond between molecules is called edges. A topological index is a numerical representation of a chemical structure which correlates certain physico-chemical characteristics of underlying chemical compounds besides its numerical representation. To distinguish the creation of entropy-based measures from the structure of chemical graphs, several graph properties have been utilized. For computing the structural information of chemical graphs, the graph entropies have become the information-theoretic quantities. The graph entropy measure has attracted the research community due to its potential application in discrete mathematics, biology, and chemistry. In this paper, our contribution is to explore graph entropies for molecular structure of HCQ based on novel information function, which is the number of different degree vertices along with the number of edges between various degree vertices. More precisely, we have explored the degree-based topological characteristics of hydroxyethyl starch conjugated with hydroxychloroquine (HCQ-HEC). Also, we computed entropies of this structure by making a relation of degree-based topological indices with the help of information function. Moreover, we presented the numerical and graphical comparison of the computed results.
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There are some doubts about the exact relationship between neglected infectious diseases (NIDs) and COVID-19 disease, which remains to be clearly defined. The present review summarized the effect of parasitic infections as the risk factors or protective agents in the COVID-19 pandemic. Parasites could proficiently modulate immune responses. Thus, parasitic infections could have a different impact on the incidence and clinical severity of COVID-19 in different regions of the world. Also, restoring programs to prevent, treat, and control NIDs, in particular helminths, could help in reducing the incidence and mortality of COVID-19 in endemic areas and help to increase vaccination effectiveness. Changes in the gut microbiome associated with helminth infection may have systemic immunomodulatory effects toward suppressing host immune responses, reducing vaccine efficacy and increasing the severity of other infectious diseases. The cytokine storm observed in severe cases of COVID-19 is characterized by a predominance of proinflammatory cytokines, such as IL-6. However, it is possible that helminth infection could change the outcome of infection by modifying the Th2 response to limit the inflammatory component;this would be particularly apparent in areas endemic for helminthic infections, which suggests a possible protective effect against COVID-19. Because parasitic infections affect more than 2 billion people throughout the world, their impact on COVID-19- associated effects on public health could be considerable. Further studies with larger sample sizes would be needed to explore the possible role of neglected parasitic infections in the COVID-19 pandemic.
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New infectious agents pose a global threat to the healthcare system, and studies are conducted to estimate their health and epidemiological outcomes in the long run. The SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has caused the COVID-19 disease, was formerly assumed to be a respiratory virus;however, it can have serious systemic effects, affecting organs such as the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Viral RNA was reported in the stool in a subset of patients, indicating another mode of transmission and diagnosis. In COVID-19, prolonged GIT symptoms, especially diarrhea, were associated with reduced diversity and richness of gut microbiota, immunological dysregulation, and delayed viral clearance. Intestinal coccidian parasites are intracellular protozoa that are most typically transmitted to humans by oocysts found in fecally contaminated food and water. Their epidemiological relevance is coupled to opportunistic infections, which cause high morbidity and mortality among immunocompromised individuals. Among immunocompetent people, intestinal coccidia is also involved in acute diarrhea, which is usually self-limiting. Evaluating the available evidence provided an opportunity to carefully consider that;the COVID-19 virus and coccidian protozoan parasites: namely, Cryptosporidium spp., Cyclospora cayetanensis, and Isospora belli, could mutually influence each other from the microbiological, clinical, diagnostic, and elimination aspects. We further systemically highlighted the possible shared pathogenesis mechanisms, transmission routes, clinical manifestations, parasite-driven immune regulation, and intestinal microbiota alteration. Finally, we showed how this might impact developing and developed countries prevention and vaccination strategies. To the best of our knowledge, there is no review that has discussed the reciprocal effect between coccidian parasites and COVID-19 coinfection.
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Malaria is an endemic disease in a true sense. It is an acute febrile disease caused due to the parasite Plasmodium. However, unlike COVID-19, it failed to raise an international concern or gain the scientific limelight. Most of the 200 million globally affected by malaria, half of them are from Africa. Four of the nations, Nigeria (25%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (11%), Mozambique (5%), and Uganda (4%), account for half of the world's malaria burden and is the leading cause of illness and death. In 2019, an estimated 5-6 million people died of malaria - most of them are young children in sub-Saharan Africa. Many of the countries affected by malaria have the lowest economic status. In the malaria-endemic region, the most vulnerable groups are young children and pregnant women. The costs of malaria are enormous to individuals, families, communities, societies, and nations. After a struggle for three decades, the much-awaited malaria vaccine, RTS, S (brand name Mosquirix), was finally launched;but it came with its controversies and allegations. This review explored the different angles of this disease, the vaccine development, and the emerging debates.
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In May 2022, a total of 66 infectious diseases were reported globally, affecting 233 countries and regions. Except for influenza, the top five infectious diseases affecting greatest number of countries and regions were COVID-19 (233), monkeypox (36), dengue fever (31), measles (24) and cholera (11). The top five infectious diseases with highest case fatality rates were Ebola virus disease (100.0%), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (34.4%), Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (22.2%), Lassa fever (19.8%) and monkeypox (4.0%). The top five infectious diseases with greatest number of deaths were COVID-19, malaria, cholera, dengue fever and measles. The prevalent infectious diseases in Asia were COVID-19, dengue fever and cholera, the prevalent infectious diseases in Africa were COVID-19, Ebola virus disease, cholera, yellow fever, Lassa fever, malaria and monkeypox, the prevalent infectious diseases in America were COVID-19, dengue fever, chikungunya fever and Zika virus disease, the prevalent infectious disease in Europe were COVID-19, monkeypox and acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology.
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Since 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally, it has undoubtedly had a huge negative impact on the prevention and control of many diseases including malaria, while malaria also brings new challenges to the prevention and control of COVID-19 in malaria endemic areas. Therefore, the awareness of malaria prevention and control to medical workers and the workers of parasitic disease prevention and control needs to be strengthened, and the knowledge of malaria prevention and control needs to be updated urgently. This article focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: on malaria prevention and control, the potential interaction of SARS-CoV-2-Plasmodium parasite co-infection, the challenge of the emergence of "diagnostic resistance" of Plasmodium falciparum strain to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the impact of malaria prevalence on COVID-19 mortality.
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Environmental factors and infectious diseases are closely related, mathematical models seek to explain these interactions, however, the same analytical practices are often observed with infectious diseases despite substantial differences from non-infectious diseases that can result in analytical challenges.
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This article is based on a recommendation from an ongoing pilot programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi that has reached more than 800,000 children since 2019, with key findings: (1) The vaccine introduction is feasible, improves health and saves lives, with good and equitable coverage of RTS,S seen through routine immunisation systems. This has occurred even in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, (2) RTS,S has increased equity in access to malaria prevention, with data from the pilot programme showing that more than two-thirds of children in the three pilot programme countries, who do not sleep under a bednet, have benefitted from the RTS,S vaccine, (3) To date, more than 2.3 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in three African countries, with a favourable safety profile, (4) In areas where the vaccine has been introduced, there has been no decrease in the use of insecticide-treated nets, uptake of other childhood vaccinations, or health seeking behaviour for febrile illness, (5) A reduction of 30% in deadly severe malaria, even when introduced in areas where insecticide-treated nets are widely used and there is good access to diagnosis and treatment, and (6) Modelling estimates that the vaccine is cost-effective in areas of moderate to high malaria transmission. Therefore, this recommendation includes funding decisions from the global health community for broader rollout, and country decision-making on whether to adopt the vaccine as part of national malaria control strategies.
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We have evaluated the diagnostic performance of immunochromatographic point-of-care tests (POCT) for the detection of rotavirus, coronavirus, Escherichia (E.) coli F5, Cryptosporidium (C.) parvum, Clostridium (Cl.) perfringens and Giardia (G.) intestinalis in fresh and thawed faecal samples from calves aged up to six months with diarrhoea. We performed POCTs to detect rotavirus, coronavirus, E. coli F5, C. parvum, Cl. perfringens and G. intestinalis on fresh samples in a field study and re-evaluated the performance for C. parvum, Cl. perfringens and G. intestinalis using thawed samples. We calculated the performance based on the results of the reference methods, which were RT-qPCR for the detection of rota- and coronavirus and bacteriological culturing and PCR to detect E. coli F5 and Cl. perfringens a and ss2 toxins. C. parvum was detected by phase-contrast microscopy and G. intestinalis by immunofluorescence microscopy. We collected 177 faecal samples from diarrhoeic calves. We found good performance for the POCT targeting rotavirus (sensitivity (SE)=92.9%;specificity (SP)=95.6%) and C. parvum (SE=63.3%;SP=96.2%). For E. coli F5, the number of true positive samples (n=1) was too low to evaluate the performance. The POCT to detect coronavirus gave a poor performance (SE=3.3%;SP=96.6%) and the POCT to detect Cl. perfringens a moderate performance (SE=52.8%;SP=78.2%). G. intestinalis POCT showed a higher sensitivity to immunofluorescence microscopy in thawed than in fresh faecal samples (SE=43.9% versus SE=29.2%). There are substantial differences in diagnostic performance between the commercially available immunochromatographic POCTs. Still, POCT can make a valuable contribution to the diagnosis and prevention of calf diarrhoea.
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Introduction: Neonatal calf diarrhoea is a multifactorial disease that sometimes leads to high economic losses. It can be fatal due to dehydration and acidosis and has been one of the main causes of calf mortality. Material and methods: This retrospective study considered calves of a maximum of 35 days of age and with a diagnosed infection with rotavirus and/or bovine coronavirus. We examined the clinical records of 156 calves that were referred to the University Clinic for Ruminants in Vienna. Results Calves that had been treated with antibiotics before admission to the Clinic had a higher risk of staying longer, suggesting either that these calves had a more serious illness or that antibiotic treatment was not indicated and so therapeutic success was not achieved. Twenty-three calves died or were euthanized at the Clinic. At the time of admission, they were younger than the surviving calves and they had a lower inner body temperature and a lower base excess at the first examination. The four most common pathogens in faecal samples were rotavirus, bovine coronavirus, Cryptosporidium parvum and Escherichia coli, which were detected in 67.1%, 53.9%, 48.1% and 94.1% of the faecal samples examined. The most common co-infection was rotavirus with Cryptosporidium parvum (17 faecal samples). We inspected the four most common pathogens in more detail. There were significant correlations between bovine coronavirus and season, with the risk of suffering from bovine coronavirus 1.6 times higher in winter than in other seasons. There was also a correlation between Cryptosporidium parvum and general behaviour: the risk of being infected with Cryptosporidium parvum was 2.6 times higher in calves that were moderately to severely depressed at the first examination. There was a correlation between co-infections and mortality, with calves with a co-infection at three times higher risk of dying than calves with a mono-infection.