Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-30DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108005
Igor V. Gusmão , Rayline T.A. Figueredo , Lincoln L. Corrêa , Antônio A.M. Maia , Edson A. Adriano
{"title":"Integrative taxonomy reveals a novel Ceratomyxa (Cnidaria: Myxozoa) parasitizing the gallbladder of the Amazonian fish Pellona castelnaeana","authors":"Igor V. Gusmão , Rayline T.A. Figueredo , Lincoln L. Corrêa , Antônio A.M. Maia , Edson A. Adriano","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108005","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Freshwater species of the myxozoan genus <em>Ceratomyxa</em> have recently emerged as a diverse group of parasites infecting fish in South America, many of which exhibit vermiform plasmodia with dynamic motility. In this integrative taxonomic study, we describe <em>Ceratomyxa souzapintorum</em> n. sp., a novel species infecting the gallbladder of the Amazonian clupeiform fish <em>Pellona castelnaeana</em>. The prevalence of infection was 73%, and the parasite displayed worm-like plasmodia exhibiting nematode-like motility. Arcuate myxospores measured 14.8 ± 1.7 µm in thickness and 6.1 ± 0.7 µm in length, with a posterior angle of 59° (42–78°). The two spherical nematocysts measured 2.0 µm and contained filaments with 3–4 coils. Ultrastructural analyses revealed plasmodia consisting of an outer cytoplasmic region containing sporogonic stages and numerous tubular mitochondria, and internally a large central vacuole. Mature plasmodia exhibited a thin cytoplasmic layer, with mature myxospores apparently free within the central vacuole. Phylogenetic analyses positioned <em>C. souzapintorum</em> n. sp. within the clade of Amazonian <em>Ceratomyxa</em> species.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 108005"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146099888","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-26DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107995
Daniel Marcos J. Agostinho , José Vitorino dos Santos , Mariana Boité , Elisa Cupolillo , Matheus Nobrega Luques , Clarissa R. Damaso , Ulisses Gazos Lopes
{"title":"Development of an RT-PCR assay for American Phlebotomine-transmitted Bunyaviricetes and isolation of Pacuvirus (Peribunyaviridae) in dogs with canine visceral Leishmaniasis in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil","authors":"Daniel Marcos J. Agostinho , José Vitorino dos Santos , Mariana Boité , Elisa Cupolillo , Matheus Nobrega Luques , Clarissa R. Damaso , Ulisses Gazos Lopes","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107995","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107995","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sand fly vectors harbor and transmit <em>Leishmania</em> parasites and other pathogens, including arboviruses, to vertebrate hosts. The geographical distribution of phleboviruses transmitted by sand flies in areas affected by leishmaniasis has prompted research into coinfection in vectors and in <em>Leishmania</em> reservoirs in Europe and Africa. Despite the widespread occurrence of canine visceral Leishmaniasis in Brazil and the identification of several viruses carried by sand flies, the issue of coinfection remains unclear. We developed an RT-PCR-based assay to detect segmented (−) RNA arboviruses from the families <em>Phenuiviridae</em> and <em>Peribunyaviridae</em> in the Americas. This assay was based on a phylogenetic analysis of the genomes of 29 American species within these families. We processed serum and bone marrow samples from 25 dogs with confirmed cases of visceral leishmaniasis in Rio de Janeiro City, Brazil. Samples from two of the dogs were amplified using a set of primers tailored to the predicted amplicon size. DNA sequencing analysis revealed a high identity to members of the <em>Peribunyaviridae</em> family, specifically within the genus <em>Pacuvirus</em>. We successfully cultivated the virus from one of the samples and sequenced its genome, confirming the identification of a virus belonging to the species <em>Pacuvirus pacuiense</em> or a closely related variant. The implications of our results are discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 107995"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146163556","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108023
Ana Denise Fuenzalida , Luciana Mabel Diaz Briz , Sofia Lorian Moya , Giselle Alejandra Rodríguez , Oscar Daniel Salomón , Maria Gabriela Quintana
{"title":"Dispersion of Nyssomyia whitmani in the endemic rural area of cutaneous leishmaniasis, Iguazú, province of Misiones, Argentina","authors":"Ana Denise Fuenzalida , Luciana Mabel Diaz Briz , Sofia Lorian Moya , Giselle Alejandra Rodríguez , Oscar Daniel Salomón , Maria Gabriela Quintana","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108023","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108023","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We analyzed the dispersal capacity of <em>Nyssomyia whitmani</em> (Antunes & Coutinho 1939)<em>,</em> one of the main species involved in the transmission of the etiological agent of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL), in the Paranaense-Atlantic region of Argentina. The transmission of CL is influenced by ecological, climatic and social factors, and phlebotomine sand flies populations are affected by habitat modifications, such as deforestation, which favors contact between humans and vectors. The study focused on determining the dispersal distance of <em>Ny. whitmani</em> through mark-release-recapture experiments, in which adult sandflies were captured, marked with fluorescent powders, and released either at the same capture site or at predefined nearby sites on the same night of capture.</div><div>Over 66,000 phlebotomine specimens were captured, of which 14,920 were used in the experiment. Recaptures indicated that females of <em>Ny. whitmani</em> were recaptured more frequently and at greater distances than males, suggesting a tendency to disperse from release sites to nearby areas with food sources, such as animal pens.</div><div>The results support the hypothesis of a sylvatic-peridomestic transmission cycle, with a focal distribution of vector populations, especially in areas near vegetation and blood sources. These findings are key to designing control strategies, such as physical barriers between humans and phlebotomine sand flies, and improving preventive measures in CL endemic areas.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 108023"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146197333","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-02-03DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108010
Hương Giang Lê , Tuấn Cường Võ , Thu Hằng Nguyễn , Minkyoung Cho , Yeonchul Hong , Hak Sun Yu , Byoung-Kuk Na
{"title":"(‒)-Epicatechin enhances the anti-Acanthamoeba activity of chlorhexidine through synergistic action","authors":"Hương Giang Lê , Tuấn Cường Võ , Thu Hằng Nguyễn , Minkyoung Cho , Yeonchul Hong , Hak Sun Yu , Byoung-Kuk Na","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108010","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Acanthamoeba</em> species are causative agents of the sight-threatening ocular disease, <em>Acanthamoeba</em> keratitis (AK). (‒)-Epicatechin (EC) has been reported to exhibit anti-amoebic activity against laboratory strains of <em>A. castellanii</em> and <em>A. polyphaga</em>, suggesting its potential as an AK drug alternative. However, its efficacy against clinical isolates of <em>Acanthamoeba</em> species and its feasibility as a treatment for AK have not yet been investigated. In this study, we analyzed the anti-amoebic activity of EC against <em>Acanthamoeba</em> clinical isolates and its synergistic effect with chlorhexidine (CHX) to validate its potential in developing or optimizing AK treatment regimes. The anti-amoebic activity of EC against trophozoites and cysts of 10 clinical isolates of <em>Acanthamoeba</em> species was analyzed. The synergistic anti-amoebic effect of EC and CHX was also investigated. EC exhibited anti-amoebic activity against clinical isolates of <em>Acanthamoeba</em>, but showed varying efficacy, with IC<sub>50</sub> values ranging from 43.24 to 271.30 µM against trophozoites. EC induced apoptosis-like programmed cell death in the trophozoites of these clinical isolates, and also had partial cysticidal activity. Co-treatment with EC and CHX exhibited prominent <em>in vitro</em> synergistic anti-amoebic activity against <em>Acanthamoeba</em> trophozoites and cysts, and co-treatment with EC and a subclinical dose of CHX (0.001 and 0.002%) revealed a dose-dependent anti-amoebic effect on both trophozoites and cysts equivalent to or greater than a clinical dose of CHX (0.02%). The promising anti-amoebic activity of EC against <em>Acanthamoeba</em> clinical isolates, along with the observed synergistic effect with CHX, highlights its potential as a drug candidate or an adjunctive treatment for AK.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 108010"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146123487","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-28DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107998
Katherine O’Brien , Hellen Nyakundi , Mwatela Kitondo , John Olawepo , Katie McCreedy , Koen Tieskens , Richard Wamai
{"title":"Mapping visceral leishmaniasis and examining environmental influences in Baringo County, Kenya","authors":"Katherine O’Brien , Hellen Nyakundi , Mwatela Kitondo , John Olawepo , Katie McCreedy , Koen Tieskens , Richard Wamai","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107998","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107998","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a highly debilitating parasitic disease that primarily affects people living in poverty. In northern Baringo County, Kenya, VL contributes greatly to the overall burden of disease. The aim of this study was to identify hotspots of VL transmission and regional environmental associations in this area. Data was obtained from Chemolingot Sub-County Hospital’s laboratory records and VL prevalence was assessed at the sub-location level. Monthly environmental covariates—mean, maximum, and minimum temperature, total precipitation, relative humidity, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and elevation—were retrieved from Google Earth Engine. Spatial clustering was assessed with Getis-Ord GI* hotspot analysis in ArcGIS Pro. VL prevalence were modelled at the sub-location level with negative binomial regression to identify environmental risk factors for transmission. Between July 2019 and December 2024, 637 confirmed cases translated to an overall period prevalence of 2.71 per 1000 residents across Tiaty East and West. Four sub-locations were identified as VL hotspots; Losikiriamoi recorded the highest prevalence, 43.4 per 1000. The final model after excluding collinear variables included mean monthly temperature, precipitation, elevation, and NDVI. Mean monthly temperature and precipitation were significantly associated with VL prevalence at the sub-location level. Elevation and NDVI were not significant predictors. These findings can inform targeted VL surveillance and control strategies, which is particularly important in a resource-limited field. Changes in temperature and precipitation should be monitored by local public health officials to anticipate changes in VL transmission.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 107998"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146091727","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-28DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107993
J.A. Martínez-Cadena , J.M. Sánchez-Cerritos , J. Alvarez-Ramirez , A. Marin-Lopez , J. Delgado-Fernández , I. Fuentecilla-Carcamo
{"title":"Eco-epidemiological clustering and cluster-wise forecasting of dengue in Mexico, 2020–2025","authors":"J.A. Martínez-Cadena , J.M. Sánchez-Cerritos , J. Alvarez-Ramirez , A. Marin-Lopez , J. Delgado-Fernández , I. Fuentecilla-Carcamo","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107993","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107993","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Dengue transmission varies markedly across Mexico, posing challenges for short-term operational planning. We propose a two-layer framework that (i) constructs incidence-free eco-epidemiological clusters for the 32 Mexican states and (ii) produces one-week-ahead forecasts of weekly dengue cases at the cluster level with quantified uncertainty, expressed through P10–P90 prediction bands. Our analysis covers 283 epidemiological weeks per state from 2020 to 2025, with all 32 states retained after meteorological quality control. Clusters are identified using full-covariance Gaussian mixture models applied to seasonal summaries of temperature, relative humidity and vapour-pressure deficit, precipitation, solar radiation, and wind, together with descriptors of weekly seasonality. We select the number of clusters, k, using the Bayesian information criterion or integrated complete likelihood, and we confirm robustness with bootstrap adjusted Rand index, favoring <em>k</em> = 5. For forecasting, we train cluster-specific HistGradientBoosting (Poisson) models using leak-free lagged incidence and lagged or rolling meteorological data, fitting quantile variants (<span><math><mi>α</mi></math></span>=0.10, 0.90) to create P10-P90 bands. Over the last 20 weeks, the overall performance measures are a mean absolute error of 17.1 and a root mean square error of 27.7, outperforming a seasonal-naïve baseline in several clusters. The best-performing cluster achieves a mean absolute error of about 5.6 and a root mean square error of about 10.2, while the most variable cluster reaches a mean absolute error of about 38.1 and a root mean square error of about 55.1. Residuals center around zero but show heavy tails during rapid changes. Ablation studies show that climate contributes small, regime-specific improvements at <em>h</em> = 1 (mean absolute error +1.8%, root mean square error -1.4% without climate), whereas removing autoregressive terms more than doubles the error (mean absolute error +109.7%, root mean square error +106.9%). Based on open surveillance and NASA POWER data, this framework provides understandable spatial types and practical, uncertainty-aware forecasts to aid in subnational dengue preparedness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 107993"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146091704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-27DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107997
Ana Paula De Jesus Menezes , Melissa Martins De Oliveira , Sergio Schenkman , Ariel Mariano Silber , Julia Pinheiro Chagas da Cunha , Maria Carolina Elias
{"title":"A two-step model of cell cycle–linked metacyclogenesis in Trypanosoma cruzi","authors":"Ana Paula De Jesus Menezes , Melissa Martins De Oliveira , Sergio Schenkman , Ariel Mariano Silber , Julia Pinheiro Chagas da Cunha , Maria Carolina Elias","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107997","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107997","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The causative protozoan of Chagas disease, <em>Trypanosoma cruzi</em>, undergoes a complex life cycle involving cell cycle regulation and differentiation. However, the connection between these processes remains unclear. Here, we investigated the cell cycle phase in which commitment to metacyclogenesis occurs. Using synchronized populations, CFSE labeling, and cytokinesis inhibition, we show that differentiation stimuli can be perceived from G2/M to G1, but execution takes place exclusively in G1. CFSE results revealed that parasites already in G1 differentiate without division, whereas inhibition of cytokinesis assays demonstrated that post-G1 cells must complete cytokinesis before producing metacyclics. Together, these findings support a two-step model, stimulus perception followed by execution in G1, providing new insights into <em>T. cruzi</em> differentiation and advancing our understanding of parasite development and transmission.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 107997"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146083810","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-01-30DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108001
Do Huy Loc , Tatiana Șuleşco , Felix G. Sauer , Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit , Thirumalaisamy P. Velavan , Renke Lühken
{"title":"Host-feeding patterns of mosquitoes across land use types and regions in Vietnam and its implications for mosquito-borne disease transmission","authors":"Do Huy Loc , Tatiana Șuleşco , Felix G. Sauer , Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit , Thirumalaisamy P. Velavan , Renke Lühken","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Understanding mosquito host-feeding patterns is essential for elucidating the transmission dynamics of mosquito-borne pathogens and informing targeted control strategies. In this study, we investigated the host-feeding patterns of mosquitoes collected in 2022 and 2023 across three land use types (urban, rural, and forest) in four geographical regions of Vietnam (North, South, Central Coast, and Central Highlands). Mosquitoes were sampled using BG-Pro traps, and host identification was performed via DNA barcoding of the cytochrome b and 16S rRNA genes. A total of 349 blood-fed mosquito specimens, representing 13 species and three undifferentiated taxa, were analyzed. The dominant species were <em>Culex tritaeniorhynchus, Cx. quinquefasciatus</em>, and <em>Cx. vishnui</em>. Host-DNA was successfully identified in 267 specimens (77%), revealing blood meals from 18 mammal and 4 bird species. Chickens (45%), humans (28%), and dogs (12%) were the most frequent hosts. Mixed blood meals were detected in 23% of successfully analyzed specimens, indicating potential for bridge vector transmission between host groups. No statistically significant effect of land use on host-feeding patterns was observed for the three dominant mosquito species. These findings highlight the diverse feeding behaviour of mosquitoes in Vietnam, characterize by broad host species and frequent mixed blood meals, and emphasize the need for continued research to better understand mosquito-host interactions and their implications for vector-borne pathogen transmission.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 108001"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146096755","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-02-23DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108031
Riteshkumar Arya, Amruta Desai, Rajni Prakash
{"title":"WITHDRAWN: Comment on \"Machine Learning forecasting of dengue in São Paulo using virtual data augmentation and urban incident predictors: Addressing the exceptional surge of cases in 2024\".","authors":"Riteshkumar Arya, Amruta Desai, Rajni Prakash","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108031","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.108031","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":" ","pages":"108031"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-02-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147300804","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta tropicaPub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2026-01-12DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107978
Xiang Chen, Paula Moraga
{"title":"Spatio-temporal dynamics of leptospirosis in Brazil between 2010 and 2023: Identifying high-risk regions and gender-specific patterns","authors":"Xiang Chen, Paula Moraga","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107978","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2026.107978","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background:</h3><div>Leptospirosis is a globally neglected zoonotic disease with heightened transmission in tropical regions. Brazil bears a disproportionate burden in Latin America, driven by socio-economic vulnerability, urban infrastructure deficiencies, occupational exposure, and hydrological factors such as rainfall and flooding. Despite its significance, spatio-temporal patterns of leptospirosis across Brazil’s diverse regions remain poorly understood. This study examines the spatial distribution, temporal dynamics, and gender-specific patterns of leptospirosis risk in Brazil from 2010 to 2023.</div></div><div><h3>Methods:</h3><div>We conducted a national-level retrospective analysis using confirmed leptospirosis cases and population data aggregated at the microregional level (<span><math><mrow><mi>n</mi><mo>=</mo><mn>558</mn></mrow></math></span>) from official surveillance systems. Descriptive statistics assessed overall trends. Spatio-temporal scan statistics with a discrete Poisson model identified high-risk clusters. Bayesian spatio-temporal models estimated annual relative risks (RRs) and 95% credible intervals for total, male, and female populations. An interactive dashboard was developed for dissemination.</div></div><div><h3>Results:</h3><div>A total of 48,190 cases were reported, with males accounting for 80.1%. Temporal variation was notable, with peaks in 2011 and 2018 and a sharp decline during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thirty significant clusters were identified, mainly in Acre and southern Brazil. RR estimates confirmed persistent endemicity in these regions, with some microregions exceeding <span><math><mrow><mi>R</mi><mi>R</mi><mo>></mo><mn>20</mn></mrow></math></span>. Gender-disaggregated analyses revealed divergent trends between males and females in several areas.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion:</h3><div>This study highlights marked spatial heterogeneity and gender disparities in leptospirosis risk across Brazil. Persistent hotspots underscore the need for long-term, localized interventions. High-resolution spatio-temporal modeling and interactive tools can inform equitable, data-driven disease control strategies in endemic regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"274 ","pages":"Article 107978"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145974368","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}