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The efficacy of biosensors used in clinical tests depends critically on the surface of the device on which the biorecognition molecules are immobilized. This surface can be adjusted and sometimes controlled using self-assembled molecular monolayers as matrices. The monolayers are films made up of organic molecules that under the right conditions assemble spontaneously on metal surfaces via chemical bonds between the sulfur atoms and the metal. A study conducted at the University of São [...]

Genetic factors that reduce the placenta’s capacity to protect the fetus from the zika virus are described by Brazilian researchers in an article published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. According to the authors, the findings help explain why only some babies whose mothers are infected by zika virus during pregnancy are born with some kind of anomaly. Since the 2015 epidemic at least 3,500 babies have suffered from zika congenital syndrome, which includes microcephaly, brain [...]

The firm plans to produce ELISA kits that will detect antibodies against the novel coronavirus in blood serum. Researchers at Biolinker, a biotech startup based in São Paulo, Brazil, are developing a low-cost high-performance COVID-19 diagnostic test using only locally sourced inputs. Biolinker is incubated at the University of São Paulo’s Center for Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Technology (CIETEC), jointly run by the University of São Paulo (USP) and the [...]

Shortly after the explosion in microcephaly cases caused by Zika virus in Brazil in 2015-16, several scientific studies were published with evidence that the pathogen is capable of crossing the human placenta, the organ that keeps the fetus connected to the mother’s body during pregnancy. From then on, the states began following a protocol established by the National Ministry of Health requiring collection of placental samples to help diagnose the disease in women with symptoms during [...]

Italy was the main origin of the individuals who first brought the novel coronavirus to Brazil, according to a study by Brazilian researchers in collaboration with colleagues in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Brazil between February and early March. “In contrast with China and other countries, where the outbreak began slowly with a small number of cases, it was started in Brazil by more than 300 people, most of whom came from Italy. [...]

In São José do Rio Preto, state of São Paulo (Brazil), almost a third of the population aged 10-40 are estimated to have no antibodies against measles, according to a new study that tested 981 people in various age groups. São José do Rio Preto is the largest city in the state’s northwestern region, with approximately half a million inhabitants. According to the survey, 32.9% of those tested in the under-40 age group were not immune to measles, compared [...]

A study by Brazilian researchers suggests that cardiac overload due to the stress of driving in heavy traffic can be attenuated by listening to instrumental music Stress while driving is a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease and sudden cardiac complications such as heart attack (myocardial infarction), according to studies published in recent years. Selecting suitable driving music may be one way to mitigate this risk. A study by researchers at São Paulo State [...]

Researchers in Brazil have prepared modified forms of the alkaloids produced by Uncaria guianensis, a woody vine native to the Amazon Rainforest. U. guianensis is a medicinal plant commonly known as cat’s claw. The natural versions of alkaloids are widely used to combat tumors and inflammation, and they can help modulate the immune system. The scientists sought to design therapeutically more potent chemicals. The study was supported by São Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP [...]

A system created in Brazil using cheap, biodegradable materials permits controlled release of larvicide and can be used in small amounts of water. Corn starch, an abundant, cheap and biodegradable raw material, is the basis for a novel larvicide developed by researchers at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in São Paulo State, Brazil. The material is used in microcapsules for storage and controlled release of active compounds to kill larvae of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito that [...]