SUMMARYThe role of rodents in the epidemiology of toxoplasmosis was investigated in Londrina, Paraná State, Brazil. One hundred and eighty-one Rattus rattus and one Mus musculus were caught in 37 places. Blood and tissues were collected and submitted to the indirect fluorescence antibody test (IFAT) and the bioassay. Serum samples from 61 contacting dogs were also collected. Sixteen rats (8.8%) were positive for Toxoplasma gondii, but just two of them were positive by serology and bioassay test. Antibodies were found in nine (4.9%) rats. Tissues of nine rats bioassayed were positive and four isolates were obtained. Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis was performed using 12 markers (SAG1, SAG2, SAG2-alt, C22-8, C29-2, L358, PK1, BTUB, GRA6, SAG3, Apico, CS3). Genotyping revealed that the four strains isolated from this study have been isolated before in cats and chickens from Brazil. None of the isolates was identified like clonal archetypal T-types I, II, and III. The rats presented lower serologic Toxoplasma gondii prevalence (8.8%) compared to contacting dogs (70.5%).

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ResumoA toxoplasmose é uma zoonose causada pelo Toxoplasma gondii que acomete várias espécies carnívoras e onívoras, incluindo o ser humano. Os roedores são importantes na cadeia epidemiológica da doença por servirem de fonte de infecção aos felídeos, os hospedeiros definitivos deste protozoário. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o Teste de Aglutinação Modificada (MAT) na detecção de anticorpos contra T. gondii em ratos, comparando-o à Reação de Imunofluorescência Indireta (RIFI), considerada padrão ouro para o diagnóstico da toxoplasmose animal. Empregou-se o teste kappa para a comparação dos testes sorológicos (RIFI e MAT) e para a determinação do ponto de corte mais apropriado para a utilização do MAT, nesta espécie animal. Foram capturados 182 ratos em locais de reciclagem e armazenagem de resíduos sólidos na cidade de Londrina, PR. Destes, nove (4,94%) foram positivos na RIFI na diluição 1:16; e 17 (9,34%) e cinco (2,75%) foram sororreagentes ao MAT nas diluições 1:25 e 1:50, respectivamente. A comparação dos resultados entre as técnicas apresentou coeficientes kappa de 0,26 e 0,55, respectivamente às diluições 1:25 e 1:50 do MAT. Conclui-se que a diluição 1:50 é a mais indicada para ser o ponto de corte na detecção de anticorpos contra T. gondii em ratos pelo MAT, por apresentar melhor concordância à RIFI. Palavras-chave: Ratos. Toxoplasma gondii, anticorpos, diagnóstico sorológico, RIFI e MAT AbstractThe toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis caused by Toxoplasma gondii and affects a lot of species of carnivores and omnivores, including the human. The rodents are important in the transmition cycle because they act as an infection font to felines, the definitive host of this protozoan. The objective of this work was to evaluate the Modified Agglutination Test (MAT) for the serologic diagnosis of toxoplasmosis in rats, comparing with the Indirect Fluorescent Antibody Test (IFAT), which has been considered the golden standard in animal toxoplasmosis diagnosis. Kappa test was used for comparing the serologic tests (IFAT and MAT) and for determination of cutoff appropriate to MAT in this animal species. 182 rats were caught on local recycling of solid waste and solid residue storage in Londrina city, Paraná. Out of

The leishmaniasis are a group of globally widespread parasitic diseases caused by a protozoa of the genus Leishmania, the state of Paraná accounts for 98% of leishmaniasis human cases in southern Brazil and the dogs might serve as a sentinel of the risk of infection to humans in a given area. The aim of this work was to study the epidemiology of leishmaniasis in dogs residents in two different environments, they are: recycling of solid waste centers (Group 1) and a neighborhood adjacent to a forest (Group 2), both in Londrina, Paraná State, Brazil and to determine epidemiological variables associated to infection in these different realities. Serum samples, randomly collected, from 61 dogs from Group 1 and from 74 dogs from Group 2 were submitted to Indirect Immunofluorescence Antibody Test (IFAT) to research for anti-Leishmania IgG antibodies. Of the 135 dogs analyzed, 13 animals (9.6%) were positive; nine (14.7%) in Group 1 and four (5.4%) in Group 2, the difference between the groups is not statistically significant. These results suggest the presence of the protozoan Leishmania spp. in both environments studied which indicate potential for infection in the human population. Key words: Environment. Leishmaniasis. Marginality. Risk factors. Seroprevalence. ResumoAs leishmanioses são um grupo de doenças parasitárias disseminadas por todo o mundo, causadas por protozoários do gênero Leishmania, o estado do Paraná é responsável por 98% dos casos de leishmaniose em humanos do Sul do Brasil e os cães podem servir como sentinelas para o risco de infecção em humanos em uma dada área. O objetivo desse trabalho foi estudar a epidemiologia da leishmaniose em cães residentes em dois diferentes ambientes, são eles: centros de reciclagem de resíduos sólidos (Grupo 1) e um bairro adjacente a uma floresta (Grupo 2) em Londrina/PR, Brasil e determiner variáveis epidemiológicas asociadas à infecção nessas diferentes realidades. Amostras de soro, randomicamente coletadas, de 61 cães do Grupo 1 e de 74 cães do Grupo 2 foram submetidos à Reação de Imunofluorescência Indireta (RIFI) para pesquisa de anticorpos IgG anti-Leishmania. Dos 135 cães analisados, 13 (9,6%) foram positivos; 9 (14,7%) no Grupo 1 e 4 (5,4%) no Grupo 2, a

Invasive plants affect ecosystems across various scales. In particular, they affect the quality and quantity of litter, which influences the composition of decomposing (lignocellulolytic) fungal communities. However, the relationship among the quality of invasive litter, lignocellulolytic cultivated fungal community composition, and litter decomposition rates under invasive conditions is still unknown. We evaluated whether the invasive herbaceous Tradescantia zebrina affects the litter decomposition in the Atlantic Forest and the lignocellulolytic cultivated fungal community composition. We placed litter bags with litter from the invader and native plants in invaded and non-invaded areas, as well as under controlled conditions. We evaluated the lignocellulolytic fungal communities by culture method and molecular identification. Litter from T. zebrina decomposed faster than litter from native species. However, the invasion of T. zebrina did not alter decomposition rates of either litter type. Although the lignocellulolytic fungal community composition changed over decomposition time, neither the invasion of T. zebrina nor litter type influenced lignocellulolytic fungal communities. We believe that the high plant richness in the Atlantic Forest enables a highly diversified and stable decomposing biota formed in conditions of high plant diversity. This diversified fungal community is capable of interacting with different litter types under different environmental conditions.