BUSCADOR RECOLECTA

Dades primàries associades a l'article publicat a BMC Pediatrics, vol. 17 [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-017-0816-x], Background: Young children bear the world’s highest prevalence of anaemia, the majority of which is of multifactorial aetiology, which in turn hampers its successful prevention. Even moderate degrees of anaemia are associated with increased mortality and morbidity. Despite this evidence, there is a lack of effective preventive programs and absence of consensus in the safety of iron supplementation in malaria areas, which reflects the poor understanding of the contribution of different aetiologies to anaemia. In order to reduce the anaemia burden in the most vulnerable population, a study to determine the aetiology of anaemia among pre-school Mozambican children was performed. Methods: We undertook a case-control study of 443 preschool hospitalized children with anaemia (haemoglobin concentration <11g/dl) and 289 community controls without anaemia. Inclusion criteria were: age 1-59 months, no blood transfusion in the previous month, residence in the study area and signed informed consent. Both univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with anaemia and adjusted attributable fractions (AAF) were estimated when appropriate. Results: Malaria (adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=8.39, p<0.0001; AAF=37%), underweight (AOR=8.10, p<0.0001; AAF=43%), prealbumin deficiency (AOR=7.11, p<0.0001; AAF=77%), albumin deficiency (AOR=4.29, p=0.0012; AAF=30%), HIV (AOR=5.73, p=0.0060; AAF=18%), and iron deficiency (AOR=4.05, p<0.0001; AAF=53%) were associated with anaemia. Vitamin A deficiency and α-thalassaemia were frequent (69% and 64%, respectively in cases) but not independently related to anaemia. Bacteraemia (odds ratio (OR)=8.49, p=0.004), Parvovirus-B19 (OR=6.05, p=0.017) and Epstein-Barr virus (OR=2.10, p=0.0015) infections were related to anaemia only in the unadjusted analysis. Neither vitamin B12 deficiency nor intestinal parasites were associated with anaemia. Folate deficiency was not observed. Conclusions: Undernutrition, iron deficiency, malaria, and HIV are main factors related to anaemia in hospitalised Mozambican preschool children. Effective programs and strategies for the prevention and management of these conditions need to be reinforced. Specifically, prevention of iron deficiency that accounted in this study for more than half of anaemia cases would have a high impact in reducing the burden of anaemia in children living under similar conditions. However this deficiency, a common preventable and treatable condition, remains neglected by the international public health community.

Dades primàries associades a un article enviat a la revista PeerJ i pendent d'avaluació (maig 2017), Podeu consultar l'article a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/115482, Background: Diet deeply affects the food selection and ingestion both in humans and rodents, often resulting in excess energy intake. Methods: We investigated this process comparing two different high-fat dietary approaches to induce obesity, in which all rats received about 40% of their energy intake as lipids. The main nutrient difference between the diets, when compared with controls fed standard lab chow, was the lipid content. Cafeteria diets (K) were devised to be tasty, and thus highly desirable to the rats, mainly for its diverse mix of tastes, particularly salty and sweet. This diet was compared with another high-fat (HF) potentially obesogenic diet, devised not to be as tasty as K, and prepared just supplementing standard chow pellets with fat. We also analysed the influence of sex on the effects of the diets. Results: K rats grew faster, especially the males, although females showed a higher proportion of body lipid, because of a high lipid, sugar and protein intake. HF weight change rates were not different from those of controls. In addition to high sugar, K rats also ingested large amounts of salt. With this study we have shown that the key factor eliciting the excess energy intake in a high-energy diet rat model was not solely or mainly their fat intake. The changes in body fat accrual were more a consequence of their appetence for the food. Conclusions: The results show that the significant presence of sugar and salt is a powerful factor promoting excess food intake, more effective than increasing diet lipid content. These effects were already observed after a relatively short treatment, additionally confirming the differential effects of sex on the hedonic and obesogenic response to diet.

Study of immune correlates against malaria after vaccination with RTS,S/ASO1E: a comphrensive immunological arm of a Phase III double-blind, randomize, controlled multi-centre trial (MAL067)., Dades primàries associades a l'article publicat a NPJ Vaccines, vol. 5 [https://doi.org/10.1038/s41541-020-0192-7], The RTS,S/AS01E vaccine has shown consistent but partial vaccine efficacy in a pediatric phase 3 26 clinical trial using a 3-dose immunization schedule. A fourth dose 18 months after the primary 27 vaccination was shown to restore the waning efficacy. However, only total IgG against the 28 immunodominant malaria vaccine epitope has been analyzed following the booster. To better 29 characterize the magnitude, nature and longevity of the immune response to the booster, we 30 measured levels of total IgM, IgG and IgG1-4 subclasses against three constructs of the 31 circumsporozoite protein (CSP) and the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg, also present in RTS,S) 32 by quantitative suspension array technology in 50 subjects in the phase 3 trial in Manhiça, 33 Mozambique. To explore the impact of vaccination on naturally acquired immune responses, we 34 measured antibodies to P. falciparum antigens not included in RTS,S. We found increased IgG, 35 IgG1, IgG3 and IgG4, but not IgG2 nor IgM, levels against vaccine antigens one month after the 4th 36 dose. Overall, antibody responses to the booster dose were lower than the initial peak 37 response to primary immunization and children had higher IgG and IgG1 levels than infants. 38 Higher anti-Rh5 IgG and IgG1-4 levels were detected after the booster dose, suggesting that RTS,S 39 partial protection could increase some blood stage antibody responses. Our work shows that the 40 response to the RTS,S/AS01E booster dose is different from the primary vaccine immune 41 response and highlights the dynamic changes in subclass antibody patterns upon the vaccine 42 booster and with acquisition of adaptive immunity to malaria.