Background: Several tests are performed to obtain better accuracy when diagnosing American tegumentary leishmaniasis (ATL). It is believed that antigens released via secretion, excretion and metabolism are more specific than are antigens released by the lysis of Leishmaniaparasites. Such antigens are known as exo-antigens (exo-Ag) and are formed from products released by cultured parasites in a way that is similar to that in which they cause infections in hosts.Objective: We attempted to validate a Leishmania mexicanaELISA exo-Ag for ATL diagnosis in Midwestern Brazil.Methods: A total of 281 patients were included in the study. We analysed pre-treatment blood from 98 ATL patients; out of those, 85.7% and 14.3% had cutaneous and mucosal forms, respectively.Results: The exo-Ag accuracy was 83.99% (95% CI = 79.24-87.81) with a sensitivity value of 90.82% (95% CI = 83.46-95.09) and an overall specificity value of 80.33% (95% CI = 73.97-85.44). The positive predictive value and negative predictive value were 71.20% (95% CI = 62.72-78.41) and 94.23% (95% CI = 89.40-96.94), respectively. Among healthy controls, exo-Ag had a specificity of 91.25% (95% CI = 83.02-95.70); additionally, the test had specificity rates of 66.67% (95% CI = 46.71-82.03) in Chagas disease patients, 60.61% (95% CI = 43.68-75.32) in patients with rheumatic diseases, 76.92% (95% CI = 49.74-91.82) in pemphigus foliaceus patients, 87.50% (95% CI = 52.91-97.76) in leprosy patients, 87.50% (95% CI = 63.98-96.50) in VRDL-positive patients, and 77.78 (95% CI = 45.26-93.68) in deep mycosis patients.Conclusion: Based on the indicators of validity, we conclude that the results obtained in this study enable the recommendation of the exo-Ag ELISA for ATL diagnosis once it presented a reasonable accuracy compared to classical methods. Cost evaluations are necessary to completely define the role of this technique in large scale.

Objetivou-se classificar e selecionar clones de batata-doce, utilizando-se a metodologia REML/BLUP. O experimento foi conduzido no município de Rio Largo, Estado de Alagoas, situado a 127 m de altitude, com latitude 9º27'S e longitude 35º27'W. Foram avaliados cinco clones (CL-2, CL-3, CL-4, CL-6 e CL-8) em delineamento experimental de blocos completos casualizados com oito repetições. As variáveis analisadas foram Número de Raízes Comerciais (NRC); Número de Raízes Não-Comerciais (NRNC); Número Total de Raízes (NTR); Peso da Parte Aérea (PPA); Peso Médio de Raízes Não-Comerciais (PMRNC); Comprimento de Raízes Comerciais (CRC); Peso Médio de Raízes Comerciais (PMRC); Diâmetro de Raízes Comerciais (DRC). A análise de deviance indicou que os clones diferenciam-se estatisticamente para NRNC, NTR, PMRNC, CRC e DRC. O CL-06 ocupou a primeira colocação para NRNC, NTR, PMRNC, PMRC, DRC; o CL-03, para PPA e CRC e o CL-02, para NRC. Pela classificação das médias genotípicas, o melhor clone foi o CL-06.

The objective of this work was to classify and select sweet potato clones, using the REML/BLUP methodology. The study was carried out in Rio Largo, Alagoas State, located 127 m above sea level, 9º27'S and 35º27'W. Five clones were evaluated (CL-2, CL-3, CL-4, CL-6 and CL-8) in a randomized complete blocks design with eight replications. The analyzed variables were number of commercial roots (NCR), number of non-commercial roots (NNCR), total number of roots (TNR), aerial part weight (APW), average weight of non-commercial roots (AWNCR), commercial root length (CRL), average weight of commercial roots (AWCR), and diameter of commercial roots (DCR). The analysis of deviance showed that the clones differ statistically for NNCR, TNR, AWNCR, AWCR, CRL and DCR. CL-06 had the best NCRN, NNCR, TNR, AWNCR, AWCR, DCR; CL-03 for APW and CRL, and CL-02 for NCR. By the classification of genotypic averages, the best clone was CL-06.