IHMT

Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical

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2012

Sexually transmitted infections in pregnant adolescents: prevalence and association with maternal and foetal morbidity

Background Pregnant adolescents have a high incidence of sexually transmitted infections and higher risk of adverse birth outcome. Objectives To assess the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections in pregnant adolescents and the associations between these infections and adverse birth outcome.
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The Culex pipiens complex in continental Portugal: distribution and genetic structure.

Portugal is a southern European country that displays favorable ecological conditions for the establishment of West Nile virus (WNV) transmission cycles. Competent mosquito vector species are present throughout the country.
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The new flow system approach in packed bed reactor applicable for immobilized enzyme

Several studies have been directed to development of reactors for chemical-biological reactions have been carried out successfully. “Dead zones” are areas where the substrate has non-contact with catalyst, and this situation in reactors has been seen as inconvenience in relation to productivity.
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Interpersonal violence among immigrants in Portugal.

To assess prevalence of interpersonal violence among a mixed gender sample of immigrants in Portugal, describing the type of violence and associated factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2008 and May 2009, evaluating a sample of 702 immigrants residing in the Lisbon region. Information was obtained by trained interviewers using a structured questionnaire.
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Phylogeographical footprint of colonial history in the global dispersal of human immunodeficiency virus type 2 group A.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2) emerged in West Africa and has spread further to countries that share socio-historical ties with this region. However, viral origins and dispersal patterns at a global scale remain poorly understood. Here, we adopt a Bayesian phylogeographic approach to investigate the spatial dynamics of HIV-2 group A (HIV-2A) using a collection of 320 partial pol and 248 partial env sequences sampled throughout 19 countries worldwide.
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High frequency of antiviral drug resistance and non-b subtypes in HIV-1 patients failing antiviral therapy in Cuba.

INTRODUCTION:
Emergence of HIV-1 drug resistance may limit the sustained benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in settings with limited laboratory monitoring and drug options. The objective is to implement the surveillance of drug resistance and subtypes in HIV-1 patients failing ART in Cuba.
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A new cloning system based on the OprI lipoprotein for the production of recombinant bacterial cell wall-derived immunogenic formulations.

The conjugation of antigens with ligands of pattern recognition receptors (PRR) is emerging as a promising strategy for the modulation of specific immunity. Here, we describe a new Escherichia coli system for the cloning and expression of heterologous antigens in fusion with the OprI lipoprotein, a TLR ligand from the Pseudomonas aeruginosa outer membrane (OM).
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Sample size for estimating a binomial proportion: comparison of different methods.

The poor performance of the Wald method for constructing confidence intervals (CIs) for a binomial proportion has been demonstrated in a vast literature. The related problem of sample size determination needs to be updated and comparative studies are essential to understanding the performance of alternative methods.
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HIV-1 protease mutation 82M contributes to phenotypic resistance to protease inhibitors in subtype G.

OBJECTIVES:
The purpose of this study was the qualitative and quantitative assessment of the in vitro effect of HIV-1 protease (PR) mutation 82M on replication capacity and susceptibility to the eight clinically available PR inhibitors (PIs).
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Genetic response of Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis to thioridazine rendering the organism resistant to the agent.

Thioridazine (TZ)-induced accumulation of the universal efflux pump substrate ethidium bromide and its subsequent efflux by Salmonella strains with various degrees of overexpressed efflux pumps takes place automatically at pH 7.4, is independent of a metabolic source, is not affected by a proton ionophore and is precluded by palmitic acid.
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