Members of the Tydeidae are cosmopolitan, soft-bodied, striated or reticulated mites that are reported to be mainly phytophages, mycophages, pollenophages, insect parasites or scavengers. This catalogue includes 328 species belonging to 30 genera, and their distributions and type habitat. Until now, Brachytydeus comprises the largest number of species with 200, followed by Tydeus, with 50 species, and Pretydeus and Pseudolorryia, with 12 species each. An updated list of the Tydeidae (Acari: Prostigmata), a world key to the species and data on the zoogeographical distribution of the species are presented.

Aedes mosquitoes are important vectors for emerging diseases caused by arboviruses, such as chikungunya (CHIKV). These viruses’ main transmitting species are Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, which are present in tropical and temperate climatic areas all over the globe. Knowledge of vector characteristics is fundamentally important to the understanding of virus transmission. Only female mosquitoes are able to transmit CHIKV to the vertebrate host since they are hematophagous. In addition, mosquito microbiota is fundamentally important to virus infection in the mosquito. Microorganisms are able to modulate viral transmission in the mosquito, such as bacteria of the Wolbachia genus, which are capable of preventing viral infection, or protozoans of the Ascogregarina species, which are capable of facilitating virus transmission between mosquitoes and larvae. The competence of the mosquito is also important in the transmission of the virus to the vertebrate host, since their saliva has several substances with biological effects, such as immunomodulators and anticoagulants, which are able to modulate the host’s response to the virus, interfering in its pathogenicity and virulence. Understanding the Aedes vector-chikungunya interaction is fundamentally important since it can enable the search for new methods of combating the virus’ transmission.

Mite fauna (Acari) in soybean agroecosystem in the northwestern region of Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil

SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2) affects the central nervous system (CNS), which is shown in a significant number of patients with neurological events. In this study, an updated literature review was carried out regarding neurological disorders in COVID-19. Neurological symptoms are more common in patients with severe infection according to their respiratory status and divided into three categories: (1) CNS manifestations; (2) cranial and peripheral nervous system manifestations; and (3) skeletal muscle injury manifestations. Patients with pre-existing cerebrovascular disease are at a higher risk of admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) and mortality. The neurological manifestations associated with COVID-19 are of great importance, but when life-threatening abnormal vital signs occur in severely ill COVID-19 patients, neurological problems are usually not considered. It is crucial to search for new treatments for brain damage, as well as for alternative therapies that recover the damaged brain and reduce the inflammatory response and its consequences for other organs. In addition, there is a need to diagnose these manifestations as early as possible to limit long-term consequences. Therefore, much research is needed to explain the involvement of SARS-CoV-2 causing these neurological symptoms because scientists know zero about it.

We report the finding of a female brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Acari: Ixodidae) on the scalp of a male patient inPorto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Human parasitism by this tick is rare and has seldomly been reported in the literature, despite its recognized importance since it can act as a vector of Rickettsia rickettsii, the agent of spotted fever.