The highly contagious nature of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), requires rapid diagnostic tests to ...prevent the virus from spreading within hospitals and communities. Reverse transcription followed by the polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test is the gold standard for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infections but is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and restricted to centralized laboratories. There is a growing need to develop and implement point-of-care and rapid tests for SARS-CoV-2 detection to address these limitations. We aimed to evaluate the performance of BioFire Film Array Respiratory Panel 2.1 (BioFire FA-RP2.1) for SARS-CoV-2 detection in a pediatric hospital setting. The BioFire FA-RP2.1 test provides rapid results and can identify several viral and bacterial infections in a single test. This prospective, cross-sectional, diagnostic accuracy study enrolled participants ranging from 0 to 18 years of age, seeking medical consultation for any reason, who had been in contact with individuals confirmed to have COVID-19 or managed at the hospital for medical or surgical reasons. We employed a systematic sampling technique to ensure a representative sample. The study included 339 participants with a median age of 5 years. The BioFire FA-RP2.1 test detected SARS-CoV-2 in 18.6% of cases, while the reference RT-PCR test in 14% of cases. The BioFire FA-RP2.1 sensitivity and specificity for SARS CoV-2 detection were 98% and 94%, respectively. The positive probability coefficient (LR+) was 18. The agreement between the two tests was 0.80. In addition, the BioFire FA-RP2.1 test detected coinfection with two viruses in 7,6% of cases. The BioFire FA-RP2.1 is a reliable solution to meet pediatric healthcare needs and improve prognosis in the post-pandemic era thanks to its friendly interface and rapid testing process.
The arrival of the Zika virus (ZIKV) in dengue virus (DENV)-endemic areas has posed challenges for both differential diagnosis and vaccine development. Peptides have shown promise in addressing these ...issues. The aim of this study was to identify the linear epitope profile recognized by serum samples from dengue and Zika patients in the E and NS1 proteins of DENV and ZIKV. This cross-sectional study included individuals of all ages with laboratory-confirmed DENV and ZIKV infections, who were selected through convenience sampling. The serum samples from dengue and Zika patients detected epitopes evenly distributed across the viral proteins in a peptide microarray platform. However, several epitopes were located within “epitope hotspots”, characterized by clusters of peptides recognized in more than 30% of the sub-arrays analyzed using individual or pooled serum samples. The serum samples from dengue and Zika patients showed a high level of cross-reactivity with peptides in the DENV and ZIKV proteins. Analysis using an additional peptide microarray platform, which contained peptides selected based on the results of the initial screening, revealed that two DENV and one ZIKV peptide, highly specific to their related viruses, were located within the epitope hotspots; however, they presented low detection rates (32.5, 35.0, and 28.6%, respectively). In addition, two DENV peptides detected at similarly high rates by both dengue and Zika patients were also found within the epitope hotspots. These hotspots contain several immunodominant epitopes that are recognized by a larger number of individuals when compared to 15-amino acid (aa) sequence peptides. Thus, epitope hotspots may have greater potential to serve as antigens in diagnostic tests and vaccine development than peptides composed of only 15 amino acids.
Latin America in the clutches of an old foe: Dengue Alied, Marcel; Endo, Patricia Takako; Aquino, Victor Hugo ...
The Brazilian journal of infectious diseases,
07/2023, Letnik:
27, Številka:
4
Journal Article
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is the etiologic agent of Chikungunya fever, a globally spreading mosquito-borne disease. There is no approved antiviral or vaccine against CHIKV, highlighting an urgent ...need for novel therapies. In this context, snake venom proteins have demonstrated antiviral activity against several viruses, including arboviruses which are relevant to public health. In particular, the phospholipase A2
(PLA2
), a protein isolated from the venom of Crotalus durissus terrificus was previously shown to possess anti-inflammatory, antiparasitic, antibacterial and antiviral activities. In this study, we investigated the multiple effects of PLA2
on the CHIKV replicative cycle in BHK-21 cells using CHIKV-nanoluc, a marker virus carrying nanoluciferase reporter. The results demonstrated that PLA2
possess a strong anti-CHIKV activity with a selectivity index of 128. We identified that PLA2
treatment protected cells against CHIKV infection, strongly impairing virus entry by reducing adsorption and post-attachment stages. Moreover, PLA2
presented a modest yet significant activity towards post-entry stages of CHIKV replicative cycle. Molecular docking calculations indicated that PLA2
may interact with CHIKV glycoproteins, mainly with E1 through hydrophobic interactions. In addition, infrared spectroscopy measurements indicated interactions of PLA2
and CHIKV glycoproteins, corroborating with data from in silico analyses. Collectively, this data demonstrated the multiple antiviral effects of PLA2
on the CHIKV replicative cycle, and suggest that PLA2
interacts with CHIKV glycoproteins and that this interaction blocks binding of CHIKV virions to the host cells.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is one of the main causes of liver disease and transplantation worldwide. Current therapy is expensive, presents additional side effects and viral resistance has been ...described. Therefore, studies for developing more efficient antivirals against HCV are needed. Compounds isolated from animal venoms have shown antiviral activity against some viruses such as Dengue virus, Yellow fever virus and Measles virus. In this study, we evaluated the effect of the complex crotoxin (CX) and its subunits crotapotin (CP) and phospholipase A2 (PLA2-CB) isolated from the venom of Crotalus durissus terrificus on HCV life cycle. Huh 7.5 cells were infected with HCVcc JFH-1 strain in the presence or absence of these toxins and virus was titrated by focus formation units assay or by qPCR. Toxins were added to the cells at different time points depending on the stage of virus life cycle to be evaluated. The results showed that treatment with PLA2-CB inhibited HCV entry and replication but no effect on HCV release was observed. CX reduced virus entry and release but not replication. By treating cells with CP, an antiviral effect was observed on HCV release, the only stage inhibited by this compound. Our data demonstrated the multiple antiviral effects of toxins from animal venoms on HCV life cycle.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is one of the most important pathogens associated with congenital infection worldwide. Most congenital CMV-infected infants are asymptomatic at birth; however, some can develop ...delayed sequelae, especially hearing loss.
This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of congenital CMV infection in a neonatal intensive care unit in a low-income region of Brazil. The objectives extended to identifying associated factors, assessing the clinical status of infected newborns, and undertaking a two-year follow-up to discern potential long-term consequences in the affected infants. This cross-sectional prospective study enrolled newborns up to three weeks of life requiring intensive medical care. We employed a convenience sampling method to include 498 newborns and 477 mothers in the study. Categorical variables underwent analysis employing Fisher's exact test, whereas the examination of continuous variables involved the Mann‒Whitney test.
CMV DNA was detected in saliva/urine samples from 6 newborns (1.21%), confirming congenital infection. We noted a significantly greater incidence (OR: 11.48; 95% CI: 2.519-52.33; p = 0.0094) of congenital infection among twins (7.14%) than among nontwins (0.66%). The twin patients exhibited discordant infection statuses, suggesting that only one of the babies tested positive for CMV. Most of the infected children were born to mothers who initiated sexual activity at a younger age (p = 0.0269). Only three out of the six newborns diagnosed with CMV infection underwent comprehensive clinical assessments and received continuous follow-up until they reached two years of age. Only one of the children had weight and height measurements below the norm for their age, coupled with developmental delays.
The prevalence of congenital CMV infection among newborns admitted to the NICU was low and similar to that in the general population. However, we found a significantly greater incidence of congenital CMV infection in twins than in singletons. Interestingly, the twin-infected patients exhibited discordant infection statuses, suggesting that CMV was present in only one of the babies. We also found that most of the infected children were born to mothers who initiated sexual activity at a younger age. Diagnostic accessibility and comprehensive surveillance programs are imperative for effectively managing and preventing congenital CMV infections.
This manuscript is an up-to-date review of experimentally validated linear and continuous epitopes identified from arbovirus members of the
Flavivirus
genus. We summarized 153 immunoreactive peptides ...from the Dengue virus, Zika virus, Japanese encephalitis virus, West Nile virus, and tick-borne encephalitis virus described in studies published from 1989 to 2020. We included peptides from structural (envelope, capsid, and pre-membrane) and nonstructural (Ns1–5) viral proteins that demonstrated relevant immunoreactivity with antibodies from naturally infected or vaccinated humans. We included peptides that demonstrated relevant reactivity features, such as indicators of disease severity related to immunological or immunopathological outcomes, differential or group diagnostic markers, immunotherapy candidates, and potential for vaccine formulation. The majority of immunoreactive peptides were described for DENV probably due to its long-lasting impact on human health and the lack of efficient vaccines and therapeutic methods. Immune landscape data regarding linear immunoreactive and continuous flavivirus peptides are still scarce, and a complete and more detailed map remains to be elucidated. Therefore, this review provides valuable data for those investigating the antibody response against flavivirus infection.
The Flaviviridae family includes several virus pathogens associated with human diseases worldwide. Within this family, Dengue virus is the most serious threat to public health, especially in tropical ...and sub-tropical regions of the world. Currently, there are no vaccines or specific antiviral drugs against Dengue virus or against most of the viruses of this family. Therefore, the development of vaccines and the discovery of therapeutic compounds against the medically most important flaviviruses remain a global public health priority. We previously showed that phospholipase A2 isolated from the venom of Crotalus durissus terrificus was able to inhibit Dengue virus and Yellow fever virus infection in Vero cells. Here, we present evidence that phospholipase A2 has a direct effect on Dengue virus particles, inducing a partial exposure of genomic RNA, which strongly suggests inhibition via the cleavage of glycerophospholipids at the virus lipid bilayer envelope. This cleavage might induce a disruption of the lipid bilayer that causes a destabilization of the E proteins on the virus surface, resulting in inactivation. We show by computational analysis that phospholipase A2 might gain access to the Dengue virus lipid bilayer through the pores found on each of the twenty 3-fold vertices of the E protein shell on the virus surface. In addition, phospholipase A2 is able to inactivate other enveloped viruses, highlighting its potential as a natural product lead for developing broad-spectrum antiviral drugs.
Background:
Obesity impairs lung function and mechanics and leads to low-grade inflammation, but the effects of combined physical exercise (CPE) on that are unknown.
Methods:
We investigated the ...effects of 12 weeks of combined physical exercise (aerobic + resistance training), in non-obese (
n
= 12), overweight (
n
= 17), and obese grade I (
n
= 11) women. Lung function and lung mechanics were evaluated. The systemic immune response was evaluated by whole blood analysis and biomarker measurements, while pulmonary fibrotic biomarkers were evaluated in the breath condensate.
Result:
CPE improved forced vital capacity (FVC) % (
p
< 0.001) and peak expiratory flow (PEF) % (
p
< 0.0003) in the obese group; resistance of the respiratory system (R5Hz) in non-obese (
p
< 0.0099), overweight (
p
< 0.0005), and obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups; resistance of proximal airways (R20Hz) in non-obese (
p
< 0.01), overweight (
p
< 0.0009), and obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups; resistance of distal airways (R5Hz–R20Hz) in non-obese (
p
< 0.01), overweight (
p
< 0.0012), and obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups; reactance of the respiratory system (X5Hz) in non-obese (
p
< 0.01), overweight (
p
< 0.0006), and obese (
p
< 0.0005) groups; impedance of the respiratory system (Z5Hz) in non-obese (
p
< 0.0099), overweight (
p
< 0.0005), and obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups; central resistance (RCentral) in non-obese (
p
< 0.01), overweight (
p
< 0.001), and obese (
p
< 0.0003) groups; and the peripheral resistance (RPeripheral) in non-obese (
p
< 0.03), overweight (
p
< 0.001), and obese (
p
< 0.0002) groups. CPE reduced the pro-fibrotic IGF-1 levels in BC in overweight (
p
< 0.0094) and obese groups (
p
< 0.0001) and increased anti-fibrotic Klotho levels in BC in obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups, and reduced levels of exhaled nitric oxide in overweight (
p
< 0.03) and obese (
p
< 0.0001) groups.
Conclusion:
CPE improves lung function, mechanics, and pulmonary immune response in overweight and obese grade I women by increasing anti-fibrotic protein Klotho and reducing pro-fibrotic IGF-1.
The Yucatan Peninsula, located in southern Mexico, is a central honey-producing region with extraordinary biodiversity of melliferous plants. Approximately 900 plant species have been described as ...being a source of nectar and pollen for bees and other pollinators. They provide ecosystem services that help to keep plant biodiversity high and mitigate the effects of climate change. This study aimed to reveal the diversity of the pollen content in honey through a melissopalynological analysis of 22 honey samples collected in February–August 2021 from the north-central area of Campeche, Mexico. The extraction of pollen from the honey was carried out using standard methods for melissopalynological analysis. The honeys were classified by botanical origin to determine their floral sources and a diverse spectrum of 19 pollen types from 13 families was identified. Only eight were predominant: Milleria quinqueflora, Gymnopodium floribundum, Terminalia buceras, Amaranthus spinosus, Zea mays, Talisia floresii, Guazuma ulmifolia, and Croton icche. Our research shows the high quality of the honey analyzed and highlights the diversity and critical role of local melliferous flora and crops in beekeeping development in southern Mexico. The results in this study are useful for confirming the botanical origins of honey, generating information for designing nature conservation and agroecosystem management strategies, and increasing the knowledge of beekeepers in Campeche, Mexico.
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