Rocky Mountain or Brazilian spotted fever, caused by Rickettsia rickettsii, is a fulminant, seasonal, and neglected disease that occurs in focal points of North America and South America. Its rapid detection is essential for the better prognosis and survival rate of infected individuals. However, disease diagnosis still faces challenges as the accuracy of many of the available laboratory tests fluctuates. This review aimed to analyze methods for antibody or antigen detection, their gaps, and their evolution over time. A search was conducted to find all studies in the Pubmed database that described the antibody or antigen detection of R. rickettsii infections. Initially, a total of 403 articles were screened. Of these articles, only 17 fulfilled the pre-established inclusion criteria and were selected. Among the different methods applied, the IFA technique was the one most frequently found in the studies. However, it presented varied results such as a low specificity when using the indirect method. Other techniques, such as ELISA and immunohistochemistry, were also found, although in smaller numbers and with their own limitations. Although some studies showed promising results, there is a pressing need to find new techniques to develop a rapid and effective diagnosis of R. rickettssi infection.

Rocky Mountain or Brazilian spotted fever, caused by Ricketsia ricketssi, is a fulminant, seasonal, and neglected disease that occurs in focal points of North America and South America. Rapid detection are essential for a better prognosis and survival rate of the infected individual. However, disease diagnosis still faces challenges as the accuracy of many of the available laboratory tests fluctuates. Therefore, this review aimed to identify methods for antibody or antigen detection, its gaps, and evolution over time. A search was conducted to find all studies in the Pubmed database that described antibody or antigen detection for Ricketsia ricketsii infection. Initially, a total of 403 articles were screened. Of these articles, only 19 fulfilled the pre-established inclusion criteria and were selected. Among the different methods applied, the IFA technique was the one most frequently found in the studies. However, it presented varied results such as low specificity using the indirect method. Other techniques, such as ELISA and immunohistochemistry, were also found, although in smaller numbers and with their own limitations. Although some studies showed promising results, there is a pressing need to find new techniques to develop a rapid and effective Ricketsia ricketssi infection diagnosis.

The treatment of wastewater has been the subject of increasing studies aimed at developing less costly and more efficient methods to be applied as can be observed in the present article. Today, with industrial growth, the discharge of dyes, medications, pesticides, and other harmful substances into the aquatic environment, there is a perception that improving the quality of water bodies is an emerging need worldwide, given that the evolution of industrial processes tends to increase the disposal of these materials into water. It should be highlighted that the use of alternative methods for treating contaminated water, such as adsorption, has sparked interest in various research institutions worldwide. This is because the processes currently used have a high cost but lack high efficiency for some types of contaminants. Consequently, the search for an efficient and low-cost material is increasingly growing, with an annual growth rate of 32,33% between 2003 and 2023. For example, in the last five years, 792 articles have been published, which represents 79% of the articles published between 2003 and 2023. This observed increase in annual production shows how important it is to develop new technologies for wastewater treatment.