Experimental Animal Models of HIV/AIDS for Vaccine Trials

AIDS still persists as a relevant disease in public health and scientific research. There have been significant advances in HIV research, notably the development of an effective regimen in antiretroviral therapy. However, the emergence of drug resistance has facilitated continued research in administration of therapy and the development of new antiretroviral drugs. In spite of nearly three (3) decades of intensive research, there still is not an effective vaccine against HIV-1. Animal models have been a crucial tool in drug discovery process for invasive investigation of HIV disease mainly in preclinical evaluation of drugs and vaccines. This undoubtedly is an integral part of successes so far achieved in HIV/AIDS research. Advances in both non-human primate and murine model immunogenetics in response to recombinant viruses have greatly increased the options of animal models available for research. Understanding the pros and cons of these models is imperative for animal study design that could further the development of vaccines and antiretroviral therapies for HIV prevention and treatment of AIDS patients

Pro-inflammatory and toxicological evaluation of Hepacare� in mice

Objectives: Hepacare� is a widely marketed herbal formulation in Nigeria for treating chronic liver ailments. This study evaluated the safety, as well as proinflammatory and genotoxicity effects, of Hepacare� in mice. Methods: The effect of the formulation was estimated in a 28-day study where 25 mice were divided into five groups, and Hepacare� was orally administered at 250, 500, 750 and 2500 mg/kg body weight. The biochemical and haematological parameters were determined, organ weights were estimated and histopathology was also conducted. mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, TNF-a and IL-6 was estimated by RT-PCR in acute toxicity experiments. Results: The LD50 was calculated at 3807.89 mg/kg body weight in mice. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in the ALP activity in the 750 mg/kg treated group, while the 2500 mg/kg group exhibited significant increases in their AST, ALT, ALP, total bilirubin and total protein levels compared with the control group. However, there was a significant dose related increase in monocyte

Pro-inflammatory and toxicological evaluation of Hepacare in mice

Objectives: Hepacare! is a widely marketed herbal formulation in Nigeria for treating chronic liver ailments. This study evaluated the safety, as well as pro- inflammatory and genotoxicity effects, of Hepacare! in mice. Methods: The effect of the formulation was estimated in a 28-day study where 25 mice were divided into five groups, and Hepacare! was orally administered at 250, 500, 750 and 2500 mg/kg body weight. The biochemical and haematological parameters were determined, organ weights were estimated and histopathology was also conducted. mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, TNF-a and IL-6 was estimated by RT-PCR in acute toxicity experiments. Results: The LD50 was calculated at 3807.89 mg/kg body weight in mice. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in the ALP activity in the 750 mg/kg treated group, while the 2500 mg/kg group exhibited significant increases in their AST, ALT, ALP, total bilirubin and total protein levels compared with the control group. However, there was a significant dose related increase in monocyte

Evaluation of Biochemical Toxicity and Antioxidant Properties of Pioglitazone on Albino Wistar Rats

Pioglitazone is one of the thiazolidinedione anti-diabetic drugs which have been used for the treatment of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. This study aims at investigating the biochemical effects and safety of pioglitazone (PIO) at various concentrations in female Wistar rats. A total of 28 rats were randomly divided into four groups of seven animals each. Groups 1-4 were given 0.5 mL kgG1 b.wt., dayG1 of distilled water as normal control; 15, 30 and 45 mg kgG1 b.wt., dayG1 of PIO, respectively as treatment groups 2, 3 and 4, respectively for 28 days. Using standard biochemical kits and reported chemical procedures, plasma biochemical parameter and organ lipid peroxidation effects were determined in all the groups. There was significant increase (p<0.05) in plasma total protein concentration of group 3 and 4 in comparison with control. There was also significant (p<0.05) reduction in total and LDL cholesterols in PIO-treated groups and concentration of TBARS was reduced in the liver and heart of PIO-treated groups in comparison with normal control. There was no significant alteration in the concentrations and activities of liver and kidney function markers of PIO treated groups in comparison with normal control groups. Pioglitazone at highest concentration of 45 mg kgG1 b.wt., for the duration of 28 days did not elicit any measurable biochemical toxicity on non-diabetic rat mode

Global network of computational biology communities: ISCB's regional student groups breaking barriers [version 1; peer review: Not peer reviewed]

Regional Student Groups (RSGs) of the International Society for Computational Biology Student Council (ISCB-SC) have been instrumental to connect computational biologists globally and to create more awareness about bioinformatics education. This article highlights the initiatives carried out by the RSGs both nationally and internationally to strengthen the present and future of the bioinformatics community. Moreover, we discuss the future directions the organization will take and the challenges to advance further in the ISCB-SC main mission: “Nurture the new generation of computational biologists”.Fil: Shome, Sayane. University of Iowa; Estados UnidosFil: Parra, Rodrigo Gonzalo. European Molecular Biology Laboratory; Alemania. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Fatima, Nazeefa. Uppsala Universitet; SueciaFil: Monzon, Alexander Miguel. Università di Padova; ItaliaFil: Cuypers, Bart. Universiteit Antwerp; BélgicaFil: Moosa, Yumna. University of KwaZulu Natal; SudáfricaFil: Da Rocha Coimbra, Nilson. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Assis, Juliana. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Giner Delgado, Carla. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Dönertaş, Handan Melike. European Molecular Biology Laboratory. European Bioinformatics Institute; Reino UnidoFil: Cuesta Astroz, Yesid. Universidad de Antioquia; Colombia. Universidad Ces. Facultad de Medicina.; ColombiaFil: Saarunya, Geetha. University of South Carolina; Estados UnidosFil: Allali, Imane. Universite Mohammed V. Rabat; Otros paises de África. University of Cape Town; SudáfricaFil: Gupta, Shruti. Jawaharlal Nehru University; IndiaFil: Srivastava, Ambuj. Indian Institute of Technology Madras; IndiaFil: Kalsan, Manisha. Jawaharlal Nehru University; IndiaFil: Valdivia, Catalina. Universidad Andrés Bello; ChileFil: Olguín Orellana, Gabriel José. Universidad de Talca; ChileFil: Papadimitriou, Sofia. Vrije Unviversiteit Brussel; Bélgica. Université Libre de Bruxelles; BélgicaFil: Parisi, Daniele. Katholikie Universiteit Leuven; BélgicaFil: Kristensen, Nikolaj Pagh. Technical University of Denmark; DinamarcaFil: Rib, Leonor. Universidad de Copenhagen; DinamarcaFil: Guebila, Marouen Ben. University of Luxembourg; LuxemburgoFil: Bauer, Eugen. University of Luxembourg; LuxemburgoFil: Zaffaroni, Gaia. University of Luxembourg; LuxemburgoFil: Bekkar, Amel. Universite de Lausanne; SuizaFil: Ashano, Efejiro. APIN Public Health Initiatives; NigeriaFil: Paladin, Lisanna. Università di Padova; ItaliaFil: Necci, Marco. Università di Padova; ItaliaFil: Moreyra, Nicolás Nahuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Development of Bioinformatics Infrastructure for Genomics Research:

Although pockets of bioinformatics excellence have developed in Africa, generally, large-scale genomic data analysis has been limited by the availability of expertise and infrastructure. H3ABioNet, a pan-African bioinformatics network, was established to build capacity specifically to enable H3Africa (Human Heredity and Health in Africa) researchers to analyze their data in Africa. Since the inception of the H3Africa initiative, H3ABioNet's role has evolved in response to changing needs from the consortium and the African bioinformatics community

Cluster analysis of Plasmodium RNA-seq time-course data identifies stage-specific co-regulated biological processes and regulatory elements [version 1; referees: 1 approved, 2 approved with reservations]

In this study, we interpreted RNA-seq time-course data of three developmental stages of Plasmodium species by clustering genes based on similarities in their expression profile without prior knowledge of the gene function. Functional enrichment of clusters of upregulated genes at specific time-points reveals potential targetable biological processes with information on their timings. We identified common consensus sequences that these clusters shared as potential points of coordinated transcriptional control. Five cluster groups showed upregulated profile patterns of biological interest. This included two clusters from the Intraerythrocytic Developmental Cycle (cluster 4 = 16 genes, and cluster 9 = 32 genes), one from the sexual development stage (cluster 2 = 851 genes), and two from the gamete-fertilization stage in the mosquito host (cluster 4 = 153 genes, and cluster 9 = 258 genes). The IDC expressed the least numbers of genes with only 1448 genes showing any significant activity of the 5020 genes (~29%) in the experiment. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis of these clusters revealed a total of 671 uncharacterized genes implicated in 14 biological processes and components associated with these stages, some of which are currently being investigated as drug targets in on-going research. Five putative transcription regulatory binding motifs shared by members of each cluster were also identified, one of which was also identified in a previous study by separate researchers. Our study shows stage-specific genes and biological processes that may be important in antimalarial drug research efforts. In addition, timed-coordinated control of separate processes may explain the paucity of factors in parasites

Pro-inflammatory and toxicological evaluation of Hepacare® in mice

أهداف البحث: إن ”هيباكير“ مستحضر عشبي واسع التسويق في نيجيريا لعلاج أمراض الكبد المزمنة. قَيَّمت هذه الدراسة سلامة استخدام ”هيباكير“ بالإضافة إلى آثاره المحفزة للإلتهاب وسُميتة الوراثية في الفيران. طرق البحث: قُدِّر تأثير المستحضر في دراسة دامت ٢٨ يوما تم فيها تقسيم ٢٥ فأرا إلى خمس مجموعات وأُعطي ”هيباكير“ عن طريق الفم بتركيز ٢٥٠ و٥٠٠ و٧٥٠ و٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم من وزن الفأر. حُددت المعلمات الكيميائية الحيوية والدموية وقُدرت أوزان الأعضاء، كما أُجريت التحاليل النسيجية. تم تقدير تعبير الحمض النووي الريبي المرسال بالنسبة للسيتوكاينات المحفزة للإلتهاب وعامل نخر الورم- ألفا وإنترلوكن- 6 باستخدام تفاعل البلمرة المتسلسل بالنسخ العكسي في تجربة التسمم الحاد. النتائج: تم احتساب الجرعة المميتة للنصف عند ٣٨٠٧.٨٩ مجم/كجم من وزن الفأر. كانت هناك زيادة ذات قيمة في نشاط الفوسفاتيز القلوي في المجموعة التي أُعطيت ٧٥٠ مجم/كجم في حين أن المجموعة التي أُعطيت ٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم أظهرت زيادة ذات قيمة في مستويات كل من ناقلة أسبارتات وناقلة ألانين والفوسفاتيز القلوي والبيليروبين الكلي والبروتين الكلي، مقارنة مع مجموعة التحكم. ولكن كانت هناك زيادة ذات قيمة ومرتبطة بالجرعة في تعداد الخلايا البيضاء ذات النواة أحادية الفص في المجموعات التي أُعطيت ٧٥٠ و٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم. لم يكن هناك فرق ذا قيمة في تعبير الحمض النووي الريبي المرسال بالنسبة لكل من عامل نخر الورم -ألفا وإنترلوكن -6 والسُمية الوراثية في جميع المجموعات العلاجية مقارنة مع مجموعة التحكم. إلا أنه تمت ملاحظة بعض الاضطرابات الكبدية والكلوية في المجموعات المُعطاة جرعات أعلى من المستحضر. الاستنتاجات: أكدت الدراسة بأن المستحضر العشبي قد لا يُنتج ردود فعل سامة محفزة للإلتهاب وآثارا سمية وراثية ذات قيمة، إلا أن تناول جرعات أعلى لفترات طويلة قد يسبب اضطرابات كيميائية حيوية وسريرية شديدة

ISCB-Student Council narratives : strategical development of the ISCB-Regional Student Groups in 2016

Regional Student Groups are groups established and managed by the ISCB-Student Council in different regions of the world. The article highlights some of the initiatives and management lessons from our 'top-performing' Spotlight Regional Student Groups (RSGs), RSG-Argentina and RSG-UK, for the current year (2016). In addition, it details some of the operational hurdles faced by RSGs and possible solutions

ISCB-Student Council Narratives: Strategical development of the ISCB-Regional Student Groups in 2016

Regional Student Groups are groups established and managed by the ISCB-Student Council in different regions of the world. The article highlights some of the initiatives and management lessons from our 'top-performing' Spotlight Regional Student Groups (RSGs), RSG-Argentina and RSG-UK, for the current year (2016). In addition, it details some of the operational hurdles faced by RSGs and possible solutions.Fil: Shome, Sayane. Iowa State University; Estados UnidosFil: Meysman, Pieter. Universiteit Antwerp; BélgicaFil: Parra, Rodrigo Gonzalo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry; AlemaniaFil: Monzón, Alexander. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Quilmes. Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnología; ArgentinaFil: Palopoli, Nicolás. Universidad Nacional de Quilmes. Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: White, Benjamen. Earlham Institute; Reino UnidoFil: Rahman, Farzana. University of South Wales; Reino UnidoFil: Hassan, Mehedi. University of South Wales; Reino UnidoFil: Özkeserli, Zeynep. Acibadem University; TurquíaFil: Ashano, Efejiro. National Biotechnology Development Agency; Nigeria. Covenant University; NigeriaFil: Hughitt, V. Keith. University of Maryland; Estados UnidosFil: Uzair Khan, Muhammad. CECOS University of Information Technology and Emerging Sciences; PakistánFil: Murphy, Denis J.. University of South Wales; Reino Unid