Idalia Valerio-Campos

Eimeria marmosopos (Coccidia: Eimeriidae) from the Opossum Didelphis marsupialis L., 1758 (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae), in Costa Rica

ABSTRACT: Oocysts of a coccidium found in the small intestine of a road-killed opossum, Didelphis marsupialis (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae), are described and identified as Eimeria marmosopos. Sporulated oocysts (n  =  57) were subspherical to spherical and measured 21.9 × 22.1 (20–25 × 20–25); oocyst wall rough and striated, yellowish and bilayered; micropyle, polar body, and oocyst residuum all absent, but some oocysts have a polar granule. Sporocysts were ovoidal, 9.8 × 8.7 (8–13 × 7–12), with both a conspicuous Stieda body and sub-Stieda body, but para-Stieda body was absent. The sporocyst residuum was composed of 2–5 globules (1–4 wide) and several smaller ones. Sporozoites (n  =  10) were comma-shaped, ~7 × 2.7 and had 1 refractile body at their wider end and a centrally located nucleus. These morphological characters were compared with other Eimeria species found in related genera of New World marsupials; based on oocyst morphology, we identified this species as Eimeria marmosopos Heckscher, Wickesberg, Duszynski, and Gardner 1999. This finding constitutes both a new host genus and new geographical record for this species.

Miocarditis y miocardiopatía dilatada por Trypanosoma cruzi: Reporte de un caso

EVA MORENO-MEDINA*, IDALIA VALERIO-CAMPOS**, y PABLO GOYENAGA-CASTRO**** Servicio de Anatomia Patologica, Hospital Mexico. Catedra de Patologia, Universidad de Ciencias Medicas, SanJose, Costa Rica.** Instituto de Investigacion en Ciencias Medicas (IICM), Catedra de Parasitologia Medica UCIMED, San Jose,Costa Rica.***Servicio de Anatomia Patologica, Hospital Mexico, San Jose, Costa Rica.

Antimalarial Activity of an Alkaloid Mixture Isolated from the Tender Leaves of the Nectandra membranacea (Laureaceae)

Despite the breadth of knowledge about malaria, its transmission, preventive measures and available treatments and its difficulty in controlling the vector and the rapid spread of resistance to current drugs, there is a stimulus to develop new research looking for active molecules. The phytochemical studies of the active extract confirmed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, coumarins, tannins, reducing compounds, anthocyanins, terpenes, triterpenes and steroids. In the present work, it was possible to isolate a mixture of isoquinolinic alkaloids from the tender leaves of Nectandra membranacea (Laureaceae) with antimalarial activity. The mixture composed of (-) gliazovine and (+) aplogliazovine showed an IC50 value of 32.18 μg/mL against the P. berghei NK65 strain. It is important to continue with these studies and their chemical components isolated from N. membranacea that could be used as an alternative the treatment of malaria.