¿Por qué todos los técnicos de campo del Programa Nacional de Chagas de Argentina son varones? / Why all the field technicians of the National Chagas Program in Argentina are men? / Por que todos os técnicos de campo do Programa Nacional de Chagas na Argentina são homens?

Resumen El Chagas es una enfermedad causada por el parásito Trypanosoma cruzi y una problemática de salud socioambiental presente en todo el mundo. Una de las vías de transmisión de este parásito es a través del contacto con heces de vinchucas infectadas. En Argentina existen programas de control vectorial que se encargan de prevenir esta vía de transmisión. Específicamente quienes realizan este trabajo son los técnicos de campo, que son prácticamente todos varones. Mediante un abordaje cualitativo e interpretativo que incluyó entrevistas, análisis documental y observación, indagamos por qué las mujeres no se desarrollan en esta área ocupacional dentro del Programa Nacional de Chagas. La mayoría de las personas entrevistadas justificaron la falta de contratación de mujeres basándose en estereotipos de género. Otro gran grupo indicó que se debe al posible daño que los insecticidas les generarían. Sin embargo, no existen recomendaciones ni reglamentaciones oficiales que demuestren que las mujeres no deban realizar este tipo de trabajo, por lo que concluimos que se trata de un acto discriminatorio por género hacia ellas. Consideramos que es necesario que los equipos de trabajo sean diversos en cuanto a género, ya que podrían mejorar las intervenciones y estrategias de control vectorial en los diferentes territorios.

Abstract Chagas is a disease caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and a socio-environmental health problem present throughout the world. One of the routes of transmission of this parasite is through contact with feces of infected kissing bugs. In Argentina there are vector control programs that are responsible for preventing this route of transmission. Specifically, those who are in charge of this work are the field technicians, who are practically all men. Through a qualitative and interpretive approach that included interviews, documentary analysis and observation, we investigated why women do not participate in this occupational area in the National Program of Chagas. Most of the people interviewed justified the lack of women based on gender stereotypes. Another group indicated that it is due to the possible damage that insecticides would generate in women. We found that there is occupational segregation by gender towards women and other sex-gender identities, since there are no official recommendations or regulations which forbids women to perform in this type of job. We believe that it is necessary for the work teams to be diverse in terms of gender, since it would improve vector control interventions and strategies in the different territories.

Resumo A doença de Chagas é um problema de saúde socioambiental presente em todo o mundo. Uma das vias de transmissão é através do contato com fezes de barbeiros infectados com o parasita Trypanosoma cruzi. Na Argentina existem programas de controle de vetores que previnem esta forma de transmissão. Especificamente, os responsáveis por este trabalho são os técnicos de campo, que praticamente são todos homens. Neste estudo, procuramos encontrar respostas sobre porque as mulheres não participam dessa área ocupacional no Programa Nacional de Chagas por meio de uma abordagem qualitativa e interpretativa que incluiu entrevistas, análise documental e observação. A maioria das pessoas entrevistadas justificou a falta de mulheres com base em estereótipos de gênero. Outro grupo indicou que é devido ao possível dano que os inseticidas lhes causariam. No entanto, não existem recomendações ou regulamentos oficiais que demonstrem que as mulheres não devem exercer este tipo de trabalho, pelo que concluímos que se trata de um ato discriminatório com base no gênero em relação a elas. Acreditamos que é necessário que as equipes de trabalho sejam diversificadas em termos de gênero, pois isso melhoraria as intervenções e estratégias de controle de vetores nos diferentes territórios.

Proteus mirabilis outcompetes Klebsiella pneumoniae in artificial urine medium through secretion of ammonia and other volatile compounds.

Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis form mixed biofilms in catheter-associated urinary tract infections. However, co-inoculation of P. mirabilis with K. pneumoniae in artificial urine medium (AUM) resulted in a drastic reduction of K. pneumoniae cells in both biofilm and planktonic growth. Here, the mechanism behind this competitive interaction was studied. Both pH and aqueous ammonia (NH3aq) increased in mixed cultures (to 9.3 and 150 mM, respectively), while K. pneumoniae viable cells dramatically diminished over time (>6-log reduction, p < 0.05). Mixed cultures developed in either 2-(N-morpholino) ethanesulfonic acid (MES)-buffered AUM (pH 6.5) or AUM without urea did not show bacterial competition, evidencing that the increase in pH and/or NH3aq concentration play a role in the competitive interaction. Viability of K. pneumoniae single-species cultures decreased 1.5-log in alkaline AUM containing 150 mM NH3aq after 24 h inoculation, suggesting that ammonia is involved in this inter-species competition. Besides NH3aq, additional antimicrobials should be present to get the whole competitive effect. Supernatants from P. mirabilis-containing cultures significantly diminished K. pneumoniae viability in planktonic cultures and affected biofilm biomass (p < 0.05). When subjected to evaporation, these supernatants lost their antimicrobial activity suggesting the volatile nature of the antimicrobial compounds. Exposure of K. pneumoniae to volatile compounds released by P. mirabilis significantly decreased cell viability in both planktonic and biofilm cultures (p < 0.05). The current investigation also evidenced a similar bactericidal effect of P. mirabilis volatiles over Escherichia coli and Morganella morganii. Altogether, these results evidence the secretion of ammonia and other volatile compounds by P. mirabilis, with antimicrobial activity against gram-negative uropathogens including K. pneumoniae. This investigation provides novel insight into competitive inter-species interactions that are mediated by production of volatile molecules.

What are we talking about when we talk about education and Chagas? A systematic review of the issue.

More than 110 years has passed since the first publications on Chagas disease, and it still urges the necessity of understanding it as a complex socioenvironmental issue in which components of diverse nature converge and interact beyond the biomedical and epidemiological aspects. The current scenarios of the issue, both rural and Latin American as urban and global, demand that the education on Chagas disease include all possible contexts: where there are insect vectors and where there are not; inside and outside Latin America; in rural, periurban, and urban areas; in formal and non-formal educational environments. We consider essential the requirement of both an integral approach that overcomes the biomedical aspect to include the multidimensionality of the issue and a dialogical educational perspective that allows individuals and communities to analyze, decide, and lead contextualized prevention and promotion actions regarding their health. In this study, we surveyed, described, and critically analyzed studies approaching the link education-Chagas disease in scientific publications from the last 15 years. We aimed at contributing methodological-theoretical elements to (re)think the development of educational research and experiences that truly help facing this issue. From the electronic search of scientific literature in 6 databases, we found 426 articles, out of which we selected 25. We incorporated 10 articles from other sources to this initial corpus and performed both qualitative and quantitative analyses over the total number [35] to characterize the studied works in general, focusing on the conceptions on the Chagas disease issue and the underlying health education approaches.