Heavy Schistosomiasis Associated With Poor Short-Term Memory and Slower Reaction Times in Tanzania Schoolchildren

Cross-sectional studies of the relationship between helminth infection and cognitive function can be informative in ways that treatment studies cannot. However, interpretation of results of many previous studies has been complicated by the failure to control for many potentially confounding variables.We gave Tanzanian schoolchildren aged 9±14 a battery of 11 cognitive and three educational tests and\ud assessed their level of helminth infection. We also took measurements of an extensive range of potentially confounding or mediating factors such as socioeconomic and educational factors, anthropometric and other biomedical measures. A total of 272 children were moderately or heavily\ud infected with Schistosoma haematobium, hookworm or both helminth species and 117 were uninfected with either species. Multiple regression analyses, controlling for all confounding and mediating variables, revealed that children with a heavy S. haematobium infection had signi®cantly lower scores than uninfected children on two tests of verbal short-term memory and two reaction time tasks. In one of\ud these tests the effect was greatest for children with poor nutritional status. There was no association between infection and educational achievement, nor between moderate infection with either species of helminth and performance on the cognitive tests. We conclude that children with heavy worm burdens and poor nutritional status are most likely to suffer cognitive impairment, and the domains of verbal\ud short-term memory and speed of information processing are those most likely to be affected

Infectious rhythms

A commentary on the 1st Auckland Triennial, the chapter engages with the work of artists John Lyall, Mariele Neudecker, Michael Parekowhai and Bill Hammond in order to explore the biological and cultural dimensions of inhabiting an island. It links together processes of biological species introduction (and bio-invasion) with cultural transmission, suggesting that there are similar dynamics at work in the biological and cultural realms. As a site of `infectious rhythms' of invasion, catastrophe and creativity, the material experience of island life, it is suggested, is far from that of the tranquillity and timelessness often imagined by distant metropolitan centres

Towards the elimination of infectious endogenous Banana streak virus sequences from Musa balbisiana

Infectious endogenous sequences of at least 3 distinct Banana streak virus species are present in the genome of Musa balbisiana spp [1, 2], which are important progenitors for breeding improved banana varieties. Once activated by biotic or abiotic stresses, these sequences can cause infection in natural and synthetic interspecific hybrids harbouring the M. balbisiana genome [3]. Therefore, infectious endogenous BSV (eBSV) sequences are currently the main constraint for breeding much needed banana and plantain interspecific hybrids and for exchanging Musa germplasm. The full genomic and genetic organization of eBSV sequences present in diploid M. balbisiana cultivar Pisang Klutuk Wulung (PKW) was recently elucidated [1, 4], showing that endogenous BSGFV, BSOLV and BSImV sequences in PKW result from a single integration event. This work also showed that integration of infectious eBSGFV and eBSOLV is di-allelic whereas that of infectious eBSImV is monoallelic. In the case of eBSGFV and eBSOLV, only one allele is infectious. Taking advantage of recently designed primer sets [1, 3; Baurens, unpublished], we have undertaken the characterization of eBSOLV, eBSGFV and eBSImV in the M. balbisiana accessions of CIRAD Guadeloupe's germplasm collection. This work unveiled important differences between accessions, which were shown to harbor all combinations of infectious and non infectious alleles for one or several distinct BSV species. Some accessions were even found to be exempt from eBSImV. These results were confirmed biologically, by following the kinetics of expression of infectious eBSV sequences in various genotypes during cell culture, which is the most potent abiotic stress activating infectious eBSV sequences. Based on these results, breeding improved M. balbisiana progenitors devoid of infectious eBSGfV and/or BSOLV sequences was undertaken by segregating the corresponding infectious and non infectious alleles. This was achieved in several selfed and/or double haploid lines. This work paves the way to the elimination of infectious eBSV sequences from M. balbisiana progenitors, and to the safe use of M. balbisiana genitors for creating interspecific banana and plantain hybrids. (Texte intégral

The Infectious Disease Ontology in the Age of COVID-19

The Infectious Disease Ontology (IDO) is a suite of interoperable ontology modules that aims to provide coverage of all aspects of the infectious disease domain, including biomedical research, clinical care, and public health. IDO Core is designed to be a disease and pathogen neutral ontology, covering just those types of entities and relations that are relevant to infectious diseases generally. IDO Core is then extended by a collection of ontology modules focusing on specific diseases and pathogens. In this paper we present applications of IDO Core within various areas of infectious disease research, together with an overview of all IDO extension ontologies and the methodology on the basis of which they are built. We also survey recent developments involving IDO, including the creation of IDO Virus; the Coronaviruses Infectious Disease Ontology (CIDO); and an extension of CIDO focused on COVID-19 (IDO-CovID-19).We also discuss how these ontologies might assist in information-driven efforts to deal with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, to accelerate data discovery in the early stages of future pandemics, and to promote reproducibility of infectious disease research

Telemedicine infectious diseases consultations and clinical outcomes: A systematic review

Background: Telemedicine use is increasing in many specialties, but its impact on clinical outcomes in infectious diseases has not been systematically reviewed. We reviewed the current evidence for clinical effectiveness of telemedicine infectious diseases consultations, including outcomes of mortality, hospital readmission, antimicrobial use, cost, length of stay, adherence, and patient satisfaction. Methods: We queried Ovid MEDLINE 1946-, Embase.com 1947-, Scopus 1823-, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and ClinicalTrials.gov 1997- through August 5, 2019, for studies looking at clinical outcomes of infectious diseases in the setting of telemedicine use. We did not restrict by language or year of publication. Clinical outcomes searched included 30-day all-cause mortality, 30-day readmissions, patient compliance/adherence, patient satisfaction, cost or cost-effectiveness, length of hospital stay, antimicrobial use, and antimicrobial stewardship. Bias was assessed using standard methodologies. PROSPERO CRD42018105225. Results: From a search pool of 1154 studies, only 18 involved telemedicine infectious diseases consultation and our selected clinical outcomes. The outcomes tracked were heterogeneous, precluding meta-analysis, and the majority of studies were of poor quality. Overall, clinical outcomes with telemedicine infectious diseases consultation seem comparable to in-person infectious diseases consultation. Conclusions: Although in widespread use, the clinical effectiveness of telemedicine infectious diseases consultations has yet to be sufficiently studied. Further studies, or publication of previously collected and available data, are warranted to verify the cost-effectiveness of this widespread practice. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42018105225

Infectious diseases and autoimmunity

Introduction: Autoimmunity occurs when the immune system recognizes and attacks host tissue. In addition to genetic factors, environmental triggers (in particular viruses, bacteria and other infectious pathogens) are thought to play a major role in the development of autoimmune diseases. Methodology: We searched PubMed, Cochrane, and Scopus without time limits for relevant articles. Results: In this review, we (i) describe the ways in which an infectious agent can initiate or exacerbate autoimmunity; (ii) discuss the evidence linking certain infectious agents to autoimmune diseases in humans; and (iii) describe the animal models used to study the link between infection and autoimmunity. Conclusions: Besides genetic predisposition to autoimmunity, viral and bacterial infections are known to be involved in the initiation and promotion of autoimmune diseases. These studies suggest that pathogens can trigger autoimmunity through molecular mimicry and their adjuvant effects during initiation of disease, and can promote autoimmune responses through bystander activation or epitope spreading via inflammation and/or superantigens.</br

Epstein-Barr virus lytic infection promotes activation of Toll-like receptor 8 innate immune response in systemic sclerosis monocytes

BACKGROUND: Monocytes/macrophages are activated in several autoimmune diseases, including systemic sclerosis (scleroderma; SSc), with increased expression of interferon (IFN)-regulatory genes and inflammatory cytokines, suggesting dysregulation of the innate immune response in autoimmunity. In this study, we investigated whether the lytic form of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection (infectious EBV) is present in scleroderma monocytes and contributes to their activation in SSc. METHODS: Monocytes were isolated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) depleted of the CD19+ cell fraction, using CD14/CD16 negative-depletion. Circulating monocytes from SSc and healthy donors (HDs) were infected with EBV. Gene expression of innate immune mediators were evaluated in EBV-infected monocytes from SSc and HDs. Involvement of Toll-like receptor (TLR)8 in viral-mediated TLR8 response was investigated by comparing the TLR8 expression induced by infectious EBV to the expression stimulated by CL075/TLR8/agonist-ligand in the presence of TLR8 inhibitor in THP-1 cells. RESULTS: Infectious EBV strongly induced TLR8 expression in infected SSc and HD monocytes in vitro. Markers of activated monocytes, such as IFN-regulated genes and chemokines, were upregulated in SSc- and HD-EBV-infected monocytes. Inhibiting TLR8 expression reduced virally induced TLR8 in THP-1 infected cells, demonstrating that innate immune activation by infectious EBV is partially dependent on TLR8. Viral mRNA and proteins were detected in freshly isolated SSc monocytes. Microarray analysis substantiated the evidence of an increased IFN signature and altered level of TLR8 expression in SSc monocytes carrying infectious EBV compared to HD monocytes. CONCLUSION: This study provides the first evidence of infectious EBV in monocytes from patients with SSc and links EBV to the activation of TLR8 and IFN innate immune response in freshly isolated SSc monocytes. This study provides the first evidence of EBV replication activating the TLR8 molecular pathway in primary monocytes. Immunogenicity of infectious EBV suggests a novel mechanism mediating monocyte inflammation in SSc, by which EBV triggers the innate immune response in infected cells

How genomics fuel breeding: unraveling the structure of infectious eBSV lead to the end of the BSV constraint for breeding banana interspecific hybrids

Infections of banana and plantain by banana streak viruses (BSV) can occur in the absence of vector-mediated transmission, through the activation of infectious endogenous BSV sequences (eBSVs). Such infectious eBSVs are present in the genome of Musa balbisiana spp, which are important progenitors for breeding improved banana varieties. Once activated by biotic or abiotic stresses, these viral integrants cause spontaneous infection in both natural and synthetic interspecific hybrids harbouring the M. balbisiana (B) genome. Therefore, the presence of infectious eBSVs within B genomes is the main constraint for breeding banana and plantain interspecific hybrids and for exchanging Musa germplasm. The sequence and organization of eBSVs in the diploid M. balbisiana genitor Pisang Klutuk Wulung (PKW) was elucidated for BSV species Obino l'EwaI (BSOLV), Goldfinger (BSGFV) and ImovO (BSIMV). This work showed that integration of BSGFV and BSOLV is di-allelic, with one infectious and one non-infectious allele, whereas that of BSImV is monoallelic. Allele-specific molecular markers were developed and used to genotype M. balbisiana germplasm, unveiling important differences between accessions and the presence of modified eBSV alleles in several accessions. Breeding improved M. balbisiana progenitors devoid of infectious eBSGFV and/or eBSOLV alleles was achieved through self-pollination and chromosome doubling of haploid lines. Both approaches lead to M. balbisiana cultivars devoid of infectious eBSOLV and/or eBSGFV resulting from the segregation of eBSOLV and eBSGFV alleles. These results pave the way to the safe use of M. balbisiana in breeding programs, and open new perspectives for breeding improved banana and plantain hybrid varieties. (Texte intégral