Geographical Regions Of Colombia Research Articles

First report of Hibiscus soymovirus in Hibiscus rosa-sinensis in Colombia in mixed infection.

Hibiscus is native to southeast Asia but well suited to Colombia's arid soil and dry climates from the coast to the mountains of Bogotá. Viruses infecting hibiscus in Colombia are largely unexplored, with four viruses previously known: hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus (HCRSV), hibiscus latent Fort Pierce virus (HLFPV), hibiscus latent Singapore virus (HLSV), and citrus leprosis virus C2 (CiLV-C2) (Padmanabhan et al., 2023). Mixed infections between these viruses were frequently detected. A recent virome analysis of a single hibiscus plant from Colombia revealed multiple viruses in mixed infection; : HCRSV, HLFPV, passion fruit green spot virus (PFGSV), a strain of physalis vein necrosis nepovirus, four novel carlavirus, one new potexvirus and a mitovirus. In addition, few smaller contigs of blunervirus and soymovirus were also identified in the high throughput sequencing (HTS) data, but their presence in the mixed infection could not be validated (A. Roy et al. 2023unpublish data). During Brevipalpus-transmitted virus (BTV) surveys, two asymptomatic and 15 hibiscus foliar samples showing green ringspots with central chlorotic spots in senescing areas, mosaic, and black or chlorotic spots were collected from six departments (states) in three geographical regions of Colombia: Tolima (n=4) and Cauca Valley (n=2) (Andean region), Meta (n=6) and Casanare (n=1) (Orinoquia region), and Quindío (n=1) and Risaralda (n=1) (coffee growing region). About 100 mg of 17 hibiscus leaf samples were separately processed for RNA isolation without DNase I treatment and tested for known BTVs, and for newly discovered hibiscus soymovirus (HSV; genus Soymovirus family Caulimoviridae) using PCR assays (Padmanabhan et al. 2023, Wang et al. 2023). To identify potential HSV infection in the samples, published SVF1/SVR1 and newly designed primer pairs (HSV-REP-F/-R and HSV-CPG-F/-R) were used to amplify the 430 nt transactivation (ORF-VI), 631 nt replicase (REP) and 401 nt coat protein gene (CPG), respectively (Supplementary 1). Of 17 samples tested, three from Tolima and one each from Meta and Quindío yielded all three expected size amplicons. Bi-directional sequencing followed by BLASTn analysis revealed 95-98% nt identity with the CPG, REP, and ORF-VI genes of HSV (OP757659). Ribo-depleted libraries were prepared using the RNA extracts of five HSV PCR positive samples. HTS yielded 11.6 to 50.3 million raw reads per sample library. Adapters were trimmed and filtered from the raw reads with Trimmomatic v0.39 and then assembled using SPAdes v3.15.5 (Padmanabhan et al., 2023). Contigs were blasted against the Arabidopsis proteome and a RefSeq-based viral protein database. Potential viral sequences were then blasted against the complete NCBI nr database. Assembled soymo contigs covered 99-100% of the HSV genome, with per-nucleotide read depths of 23.8 to 393. Contigs from the Tolima (Accessions; OR621030- OR621032 and Quindío samples (OR621033) covered 99-100% of the HSV genome and had >96-98% nt identity to Hawaiian isolate (OP757659) whereas the Meta sample contigs covered 78% of the genome with 9495% nt identity. HTS contigs shared >98-99% nt identities with their PCR amplicons. Along with HSV, other virus sequences (HCRSV, HLFPV, PFGSV, CiLV-C2, and mycoviruses) were variously detected from all five libraries. Due to mixed infection no symptom similarity was noticed among these 5 samples. The findings in hibiscus in Tolima, Meta and Quindío represent the first confirmed report of HSV infection in hibiscus in Colombia. The widespread distribution suggests the possibility of HSV dispersion via movement of planting material, and potential further spread to another hibiscus growing region.

HSD58 Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cervical Cancer Screening Rates in Colombia: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis, Stratified By Region

The objective of this study is to measure the national impact of COVID-19 on cervical cancer screening rates in Colombia in five of its geographic regions to inform future health policy decision making. This study utilized a quasi-experimental interrupted time-series design to examine changes in trends for the number of cervical cancer screenings performed in five geographic regions of Colombia. In the rural region of Vichada, we found the lowest incidence of cervical cancer screenings, totaling at 3,771 screenings. In Cundinamarca, the region which hosts the capital city, a total of 1,213,048 cervical cancer screenings were performed. The researcher measured the impact on cervical cancer screenings in December 2021 against the counterfactual. This impact was ∼269 cases that were not performed in December 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the counterfactual. In Cundinamarca, unlike other regions, we observed a stagnant pre-pandemic trend, a sharp drop in screenings in March 2020, and an immediate upward trend starting in April 2020. In the month of April 2020, compared to the counterfactual, there were 27,359 screenings missed, and by the month of December 2021, there were only 5,633 cervical cancer screenings missed. The region of Cundinamarca’s sharp climb back to pre-pandemic screening levels could signal the relatively stronger communication system in the region, and especially in the capital district of Bogota, in re-activating the economy. This can serve as an example of what should be implemented in other regions to improve cervical cancer screening rates. Areas for further research include the examination of social determinants of health, such as the breakdown of the type of insurance screened patients hold (public versus private), zone (urban versus rural), insurance providers of those screened, ethnicities of the patients screened, and percentage of screenings that resulted in early detection of cervical cancer.

Concern levels of beta-lactamase-producing Gram-negative bacilli in hospital wastewater: hotspot of antimicrobial resistance in Latin-America

Hospital wastewater (HWW) discharges are among the main sources of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This study detected a high frequency of beta-lactamase-producing Gram-negative Bacilli in HWW of different geographical regions of Colombia, even in the presence of the wastewater treatment plant, highlighting the importance of regulating these environments in developing countries.

Survey of coccidia on commercial broiler farms in Colombia: frequency of Eimeria species, anticoccidial sensitivity, and histopathology

Avian coccidiosis continues to be one of the costliest diseases of commercial poultry. Understanding the epidemiology of Eimeria species in poultry flocks and the resistance profile to common anticoccidials is important to design effective disease prevention and control strategies. This study examined litter samples to estimate the prevalence and distribution of Eimeria species among broiler farms in 4 geographic regions of Colombia. A total of 245 litter samples were collected from 194 broiler farms across representative regions of poultry production between March and August 2019. The litter samples were processed for oocysts enumeration and speciation after sporulation. End-point polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis was conducted to confirm the presence of Eimeria species. Anticoccidial sensitivity was determined with 160 Ross AP males in 5 treatment groups: noninfected, nonmedicated control (NNC), infected, nonmedicated control (INC), infected salinomycin treated (SAL, dose: 66 ppm), infected diclazuril treated (DIC, dose: 1 ppm), and infected methylbenzocuate-Clopidol treated (MET.CLO, dose: 100 ppm), All birds were orally inoculated with 1 × 106 sporulated oocysts using a 1 mL syringe, except for the NNC- group who received 1ml of water.Eimeria spp. were found in 236 (96.3%) out of 245 individual houses, representing 180 (92.8%) out of 194 farms. Eimeria acervulina was the most prevalent species (35.0%) followed by Eimeria tenella (30.9%), Eimeria maxima (20.4%), and other Eimeria spp. (13.6%). However, mixed species infections were common, with the most prevalent combination being mixtures of E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, and other species in 31.4% of the Eimeria-positive samples. PCR analysis identified E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, Eimeria necatrix, Eimeria mitis, and Eimeria praecox with variable prevalence across farms and regions. Anticoccidial sensitivity testing of strains of Eimeria isolated from 1 region, no treatment difference (P > 0.05) was observed in final weight (BW), weight gain (BWG) or feed conversion (FCR). For the global resistance index (GI) classified SAL and MET.CLO as good efficacy (85.79 and 85.49, respectively) and DIC as limited efficacy (74.52%). These results demonstrate the ubiquitous nature of Eimeria spp. and identifies the current state of sensitivity to commonly used anticoccidials in a region of poultry importance for Colombia.

Frequency analysis of the g.7081T>G/A and g.10872T>G polymorphisms in the FCGR3A gene (CD16A) using nested PCR and their functional specific effects.

Polymorphic variants p.66L>R/H (g.7081T>G/A; rs10127939) and p.176F>V (g.10872T>G; rs396991) in FCGR3A (CD16A) have been associated with defects in cytotoxic function of natural killer (NK) cells in humans. Genotyping of these variants in genomic DNA has been ambiguous because of high degree of homology between FCGR3A and FCGR3B. We designed a strategy to genotype these polymorphisms and to evaluate their effects on NK cells' cytotoxic activity. One hundred and fifteen individuals from different geographical regions of Colombia were included. Specific primers were designed to amplify FCGR3A exons 4 and 5 encompassing g.7081T>G/A and g.10872T>G by long-range and nested polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. The binding of different monoclonal antibodies to CD16A and NK antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) were evaluated. We demonstrate that amplifying and sequencing FCGR3A allows genotyping of g.7081T>G/A and g.10872T>G without interference from FCGR3B. Allele frequencies in our population were as follows: 7081T = 0.895, 7081G = 0.065, 7081 A = 0.039, 10872T = 0.673, and 10872G = 0.326. We also observed linkage disequilibrium between variants 7081T and 10872G. Interestingly, 176FF variant affected the reactivity of MEM154 monoclonal antibody against CD16A, but it did not affect ADCC. Our studies aimed to determine whether clinical association exists between these polymorphisms and NK cell function defects in patients with compatible phenotypes.

Improvement of Axle Load Spectra Characterization by a Mixture of Three Distributions

AbstractTraffic is one of the most important variables used in pavement design methods. There are currently two methods for characterizing wheel load repetitions: equivalent single axle load (ESAL) and load spectra, which is a more precise characterization of traffic but relies on the same input data used to calculate ESALs. Although the load spectra are described using a bimodal mixture distribution, samples taken in Colombia indicate that the load spectra exhibit an intermediate region that can be modelled with an additional distribution. This research proposes the use of a mixture of three distributions: two log-normal distributions for the description of the peaks and a normal distribution for the intermediate region, finding a closed statistical solution for the formal evaluation of its properties, and deduces the expression of the nth moment that facilitates obtaining important features of the proposed distribution. In a case of application in two geographic regions of Colombia, with more than 53,00...

Cuidadores y cuidadoras familiares de personas con enfermedad crónica en Colombia: más similitudes que diferencias

Objective: To describe and compare the burden level of the male and female relative caregivers of people with chronic diseases in Colombia. Methodology: A descriptive and comparative cross-sectional study that was carried out between 2012 and 2014 with 1,555 relative caregivers of people with chronic disease living in the five geographical regions of Colombia. The GCPC-A-C instruments for characterization and the Caregiver Perception of Burden Survey of Zarit in order to determine the perceived burden were used. Results: In the group of relative caregivers of the study, 80.3% belong to the Andean region, 5.6% were from the Pacific region, 3.6 % from the Orinoco region, 6.6% from the Caribbean region, and 3.6% from the Amazon region. The average age is 50. Most of them are spouses, children or parents of the care receiver and they spend at least a quarter of the day for his/ her work as caregivers. Most of them have more than 36 months caring for the sick relative. 31% of male caregivers and 33% of female careers expressed to be experiencing an overload with the care of his/her relative. Conclusions: The findings reflect the existence of a majority of female relative caregivers of people with chronic disease, as reported in another studies in Latin America. Unlike previous research, there is no strong difference in the perceived and the expressed load by caregivers, according to gender.

Caracterización y carga del cuidado en hombres cuidadores familiares de personas con enfermedad crónica en colombia.

Objetivo. Describir y comparar las características y percepción de carga del cuidado de hombres cuidadores familiares de personas con enfermedad crónica en diversas regiones de Colombia.Método. Estudio descriptivo, comparativo, transversal con una muestra por conveniencia de 372 cuidadores familiares hombres de personas con enfermedad crónica de las diferentes regiones geográficas de Colombia. Se emplearon los instrumentos GCPC-UN-C para la caracterización y la encuesta de percepción de Sobrecarga del Cuidador de Zarit para determinar la carga percibida.Resultados: Los cuidadores familiares del estudio residentes en Colombia son en 83% de los casos de la región andina, 7% del Pacífico, 4% de la Orinoquía, 4% del Caribe y 2% de la Amazonía. La edad promedio es de 50 años, en su mayoría esposos, hijos o padres del receptor del cuidado, dedican al menos una cuarta parte del día al cuidado, y la mayoría lleva más de 36 meses como cuidadores. El 22% de ellos percibe sobrecarga intensa con el cuidado.Conclusiones. Tendencias demográficas y laborales dan mayor protagonismo masculino en el cuidado de familiares enfermos. La caracterización de hombres cuidadores familiares de personas con enfermedad crónica en Colombia, incluida su percepción de carga con el cuidado, aporta al conocimiento de esta población como base de construcción de respuestas específicas a sus necesidades.

Evaluation of pesticide residues in honey from different geographic regions of Colombia

To assess potential exposure of bees to chemicals contaminants, pesticides and other management practices of local beekeepers and farmers, four Colombian regions were surveyed and residue concentrations were determined on some pesticides used and others banned for honey. A total of 61 honey samples were collected and analyzed during 2011. Residual levels of selected insecticides, fungicides and acaricides were determined by a multiresidue method, using gas chromatography with nitrogen phosphorous detector/micro electron capture detector for the analysis and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry detector to confirmation. In this study, pesticide residues were identified in 32 samples (52.4% incidence), where organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides were frequently found. The main detected compounds were chlorpyrifos (36.1% incidence), followed by profenofos (16.4% incidence), DDT (6.6% incidence), HCB, γ-HCH (4.9% incidence) and fenitrothion (1.6% incidence).However, the found concentrations found were low and just 4.9% of the samples exceeded the MRL concentration established in Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 by European Parliament. According to the survey results, it is highly probable that the honey contamination produced in Colombia beekeeping regions under study, is caused by agricultural practices developed around of the hives installed.

Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus as a potential biological insecticide: Genetic and phenotypic comparison of field isolates from Colombia

Thirty-eight isolates of Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV), collected from infected larvae on pastures, maize, and sorghum plants in three different geographical regions of Colombia, were subjected to molecular characterization and were compared with a previously characterized Nicaraguan isolate (SfNIC). Restriction endonuclease analysis (REN) using six different enzymes showed two different patterns among Colombian isolates, one profile was particularly frequent (92%) and was named SfCOL. The physical map of SfCOL was constructed and the genome was estimated to be 133.9kb, with few differences in terms of number and position of restriction sites between the genomes of SfNIC and SfCOL. The PstI-K and PstI-M fragments were characteristic of SfCOL. These fragments were sequenced to reveal the presence of seven complete and two partial ORFs. This region was collinear with SfMNPV sf20–sf27. However, two ORFs (4 and 5) had no homologies with SfMNPV ORFs, but were homologous with Spodoptera exigua MNPV (se21 and se22/se23) and Spodoptera litura NPV (splt20 and splt21). Biological characterization was performed against two different colonies of S. frugiperda, one originating from Colombia and one from Mexico. Occlusion bodies (OBs) of the SfCOL isolate were as potent (in terms of concentration–mortality metrics) as SfNIC OBs towards the Mexican insect colony. However, SfCOL OBs were 12 times more potent for the Colombian colony than SfNIC OBs and three times more potent for the Colombian colony than for the Mexican colony. SfCOL and SfNIC showed a slower speed of kill (by ∼50h) in insects from the Colombian colony compared to the Mexican colony, which was correlated with a higher production of OBs/larvae. SfCOL is a new strain of SfMNPV that presents pathogenic characteristics that favor its development as the basis for a biopesticide product in Colombia.

Distribution Patterns of Infection with Multiple Types of Human Papillomaviruses and Their Association with Risk Factors

BackgroundInfection with multiple types of human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the main risk factors associated with the development of cervical lesions. In this study, cervical samples collected from 1,810 women with diverse sociocultural backgrounds, who attended to their cervical screening program in different geographical regions of Colombia, were examined for the presence of cervical lesions and HPV by Papanicolau testing and DNA PCR detection, respectively.Principal FindingsThe negative binomial distribution model used in this study showed differences between the observed and expected values within some risk factor categories analyzed. Particularly in the case of single infection and coinfection with more than 4 HPV types, observed frequencies were smaller than expected, while the number of women infected with 2 to 4 viral types were higher than expected. Data analysis according to a negative binomial regression showed an increase in the risk of acquiring more HPV types in women who were of indigenous ethnicity (+37.8%), while this risk decreased in women who had given birth more than 4 times (−31.1%), or were of mestizo (−24.6%) or black (−40.9%) ethnicity.ConclusionsAccording to a theoretical probability distribution, the observed number of women having either a single infection or more than 4 viral types was smaller than expected, while for those infected with 2–4 HPV types it was larger than expected. Taking into account that this study showed a higher HPV coinfection rate in the indigenous ethnicity, the role of underlying factors should be assessed in detail in future studies.

Low genetic polymorphism of merozoite surface proteins 7 and 10 in Colombian Plasmodium vivax isolates

The merozoite surface protein (MSP) family is involved in the initial interaction between merozoites and erythrocytes in Plasmodium species, its members are therefore becoming major targets for vaccine development. Considering that antigens included in a subunit malaria vaccine should be both accessible to the immune system and lack genetic diversity or have very limited polymorphism, we have analyzed the genetic diversity of three msp genes (msp-7A, msp-7K and msp-10) in different geographical regions of Colombia. The results showed that these genes follow the neutral model of evolution and also display low genetic diversity. The strong conservation found for msp-7 haplotypes in isolates from geographically different regions further suggests that these proteins could be good components of a vaccine against Plasmodium vivax malaria, thereby avoiding strain-specific immune responses.

Prevalence of infection with high-risk human papillomavirus in women in Colombia

The prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in 2109 females inhabiting five cities of Colombia was determined. Of the 49.2% with an HPV infection, 59.8% were infected with more than one viral type. Species 7 (of the the genus Alphapapillomavirus) was associated with multiple infections. Analysis of the socio-demographic data revealed a statistically significant protective effect associated with the status of civil union (civil recognition of cohabitation without marriage), and indigenous ethnicity proved to be a risk factor for HPV infection. This is the first study comparing HPV infection among women from geographical regions of Colombia with different socio-cultural structures.

Identifying four Trypanosoma cruzi I isolate haplotypes from different geographic regions in Colombia

Trypanosoma cruzi has been classified into the groups T. cruzi I and T. cruzi II. The latter is subdivided into five smaller lineages based on multilocus enzyme electrophoresis and random amplified polymorphic DNA, designated as IIa-IIe, which shows correspondence with rRNA/mini-exon lineages. Twelve previously characterised T. cruzi isolates from different hosts, including humans, Didelphis marsupialis, and triatomines were analysed to establish genetic variability in T. cruzi group T. cruzi I isolates from different geographical regions of Colombia. DNA samples were sequenced based on the mini-exon gene intergenic region. Sequences were analysed using Clustal W, Staden 1.5 and MEGA3 software, and using reported sequences from the GenBank as reference. The genetic distances were analysed using Kimura's two-parameter model. The isolates’ joint alignment was of 350 bp, and the calculated nucleotide divergence was of 17.5%. The differences consisted of 23 transitions (7.2%), 14 transversions (4.4%) and 19 insertion–deletions (5.9%). The Colombian T cruzi I isolates revealed sufficient genetic variability for us to propose the existence of four haplotypes identified through single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and insertion/deletion found in the mini-exon gene's non-transcribed spacer intergenic region.

Identificación de antígenos de aislamientos colombianos de Giardia duodenalis reconocidos por IgG total y subclases.

Antigen profiles were described for Giardia duodenalis cysts and trophozoites that are recognized by IgG and its anti-G. dudodenalis subclasses (IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4). Antigens were identified by Western blot from G. duodenalis cyst and trophozoite isolates. Cysts and trophozoites were each subjected to protein separation by SDS-PAGE. The proteins were then transferred to nitrocellulose membranes by electroimmunoblot, and their antigenicity was determined by exposing them to sera from patients with confirmed diagnosis of G. duodenalis infection. The antigen-antibody reaction was revealed by specific alkaline phosphatase antibody conjugates against IgG, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4: bands were visualized by addition of the substrate 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-phosphate and the stain nitro blue tetrazolium. The bands were read and analyzed by linear regression using Quantity One software. Thirty two antigens were simultaneously recognized by total IgG anti-G. duodenalis in the cyst and trophozoite stages. The antigens varied in molecular weight from 22 to 185 kDa. Nineteen antigens were identified by both IgG, and IgG3 anti-G duodenalis, with molecular weights ranging from 42 to 180 kDa. IgG2 and IgG4 did not identify any antigen in either stage. The antigens of molecular weights 27, 30, 31, 33, 45, 49, 57, 78, 89 and 170 kDa are shared with G. duodenalis isolates from other geographical regions of Colombia. The recognition of cyst and trophozoite antigens of Colombian G. duodenalis isolates by IgG, IgG1 and IgG3 anti-G. duodenalis suggested that they are involved in the induction of the host immune response.

Variants of the Plasmodium vivax circumsporozoite protein (VK210 and VK247) in Colombian isolates

Phenotypic diversity has been described in the central repeated region of the circumsporozoite protein (CSP) from Plasmodium vivax. Two sequences VK210 (common) and VK247 (variant) have been found widely distributed in P. vivax isolates from several malaria endemic areas around the world. A third protein variant called P. vivax-like showing a sequence similar to the simian parasite P. simioovale has also been described. Here, using an immunofluorescent test and specific monoclonal antibodies, we assessed the presence of two of these protein variants (VK210 and VK247) in laboratory produced sporozoite. Both sequences were found in parasite isolates coming from different geographic regions of Colombia. Interestingly, sporozoites carrying the VK247 sequence were more frequently produced in Anopheles albimanus than sporozoites with the VK210 sequence. This difference in sporozoites production was statistically significant (p <0.05, Kruskal-Wallis); not correlation was found with parameters as the total number of parasites or gametocytes in blood from human donors used to feed mosquitoes. Previous studies in the same region have shown a higher prevalence of anti-VK210 antibodies which in theory may suggest their role in blocking the development of sporozoites carrying the CSP VK210 sequence.

Estabilidad de la actividad neutralizante del antiveneno ofídico conservado a 4°C y 16°C contra el veneno de tayas (complejo Bothrops atrox-asper) de Colombia

Neutralisation of the lethal activity of various batches of liquid antivenom maintained in complete darkness at 4°C and 16°C respectively, produced by the lnstituto Nacional de Salud, were studied. The venoms used to challenge the antivenoms came from a mixture of the complex Bothrops asper-atrox, obtained from different geographical regions of Colombia. The protection is given as the percentage of neutralisation remaining for each batch per year at a given storage temperature, in order to confirm the expiry date of the liquid product. The results of the study show that when the antivenoms are kept at 4-C and in the dark, after three (3) years of storage, they maintain almost the totality of their neutralisation power (95%). Where as, the antivenom stored at 16º C and in the dark, after two (2) years, has a neutralisation power of 87 per cent, therefore we recommend that the product, maintained under the conditions referred to for two (2) years, should be discarded.