In vitro and in vivo models for studying Zika virus biology.

The emergence and rapid spread of Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Americas has prompted the development of in vitro and in vivo models to understand several aspects of ZIKV biology and boost the development of vaccines and antivirals. In vitro model studies include reverse genetics systems, two-dimensional (2D) cell models, such as primary cells and cell lines, and ex vivo three-dimensional (3D) models derived from skin, brain and placenta. While these models are cost-effective and allow rigorous control of experimental variables, they do not always recapitulate in vivo scenarios. Thus, a number of in vivo models have been developed, including mosquitoes (Aedes sp. and Culex sp.), embryonated chicken eggs, immunocompetent and immunodeficient mice strains, hamsters, guinea pigs, conventional swine and non-human primates. In this review, we summarize the main research systems that have been developed in recent years and discuss their advantages, limitations and main applications.

First case report of infection by Mycobacterium wolinskyi after mammoplasty in Brazil.

Mycobacterium wolinskyi is a rapidly growing mycobacterium, first described in 1999 as a member of the group Mycobacterium smegmatis (Mycobacterium smegmatis, Mycobacterium wolinskyi and Mycobacterium goodii). Only 19 case reports all over the world have been described on literature, none of them in Brazil. On this report, it is described one case of infection after a mammoplasty procedure performed in a private health service in the county of Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, in 2009. The mycobacteria specie was identified using biochemical tests and sequencing the specific gene rpoB. To treat the infection by Mycobacterium wolinskyi it was necessary to combine antibiotics for a long period of time associated with surgical procedures of the breast abscesses.