Hepatitis and Encephalitis due to Coxsackie Virus A9 in an Adult

Coxsackie virus infection most commonly manifests itself in the neonatal period as a multisystem disease. This life-threatening neonatal infection has been recently treated with a new anti-picornaviral drug, pleconaril. In contrast, in adults Coxsackie virus is an uncommon source of hepatitis, but Coxsackie virus type B has been described in case reports to cause hepatitis. This is the first case report of hepatitis and encephalitis secondary to Coxsackie virus type A9 in an adult. This virus was found in a culture of the cerebrospinal fluid and was confirmed by PCR. The patient recovered completely without specific treatment

Bone mass and microarchitecture of irradiated and bone marrow-transplanted mice: influences of the donor strain

Summary Total body irradiation and bone marrow transplantation induced dramatic trabecular bone loss and cortical thickening in mice. Transplanted cells were engrafted in bone marrow, along trabeculae, and in periosteal and endosteal envelopes. None of the osteocytes were of donor origin. Bone microarchitecture of transplanted mice changed to tend toward the donor phenotype. Introduction Osteopenia and osteoporosis are complications of bone marrow transplants (BMT) attributed to related chemotherapy. However, the specific influence of total body irradiation (TBI) is unknown. Methods We investigated the effects of TBI and BMT on bone mass and microarchitecture by micro-CT. Eighteen C57Bl/6 (B6) mice receiving lethal TBI had a BMT with marrow cells from green fluorescent protein--transgenic-C57Bl/6 (GFP) mice. Transplanted (TGFPB6), B6, and GFP mice were euthanized 1, 3, and 6 months after BMT or at a related age. Results TGFPB6 presented a dramatic bone loss compared with B6 and did not restore their trabecular bone mass over time, despite a cortical thickening 6 months after BMT. Serum testosterone levels were not significantly reduced after BMT. During aging, GFP mice have less trabeculae, thicker cortices, but a narrower femoral shaft than B6 mice. From 3 months after BMT, cortical characteristics of TGFPB6 mice differed statistically from B6 mice and were identical to those of GFP mice. GFP+ cells were located along trabecular surfaces and in periosteal and endosteal envelopes, but none of the osteocytes expressed GFP. Conclusion Our findings suggest that engrafted cells did not restore the irradiation-induced trabecular bone loss, but reconstituted a marrow microenvironment and bone remodeling similar to those of the donor. The effects of irradiation and graft on bone remodeling differed between cortical and trabecular bone

The Late Palaeozoic glaciation subsurface record, Chaco Basin (Bolivia)

Late Palaeozoic glaciation is the longest of the Phanerozoic era. It is recorded in numerous Gondwanian basins, some having a high petroleum potential like the Chaco Basin. In this basin, the quality of the available seismic, well and outcrop data permits to characterise the Late Palaeozoic glacial record. Palaeovalleys >500 m deep and ~7 km wide have here been analysed. Focusing on the glaciogenic Carboniferous deposits, the seismic data with well-ties and their outcrop analogues provide new sedimentological insights. The palaeovalley infill is imaged as a chaotic seismic facies overlain by an aggrading-prograding prism, interpreted as tillites covered by a fluvio-deltaic system respectively. Tillites form both under the ice and during rapid ice recession whereas fluvio-deltaic systems can only originate from a stable ice margin and last until the ice sheets withdraw inland. These two depositional modes are repeated several times generating the progressive burial of the Carboniferous palaeovalleys. This succession of erosions and fills records major glacial stages containing a series of glacial and interglacial phases from the Late Devonian to the Early Permian. Depicting the Late Palaeozoic glacial history of the Chaco Basin seems crucial for the localisation of potential good reservoirs

αvβ3-dependent cross-presentation of matrix metalloproteinase–2 by melanoma cells gives rise to a new tumor antigen

A large array of antigens that are recognized by tumor-specific T cells has been identified and shown to be generated through various processes. We describe a new mechanism underlying T cell recognition of melanoma cells, which involves the generation of a major histocompatibility complex class I–restricted epitope after tumor-mediated uptake and processing of an extracellular protein—a process referred to as cross-presentation—which is believed to be restricted to immune cells. We show that melanoma cells cross-present, in an αvβ3-dependent manner, an antigen derived from secreted matrix metalloproteinase–2 (MMP-2) to human leukocyte antigen A*0201-restricted T cells. Because MMP-2 activity is critical for melanoma progression, the MMP-2 peptide should be cross-presented by most progressing melanomas and represents a unique antigen for vaccine therapy of these tumors

ÉQOL : Une nouvelle base de données québécoise du lexique scolaire du primaire comportant une échelle d’acquisition de l’orthographe lexicale

L’élaboration de l’outil dont il est question dans cet article (la base de données ÉQOL) s’inscrit dans un projet québécois de plus grande envergure sur l’apprentissage de l’orthographe lexicale. Ce projet, financé par le FRQSC (Fonds de recherche du Québec - Société et Culture) et l’Institut universitaire en déficience intellectuelle et en trouble du spectre de l’autisme, s’est donné pour objectif principal de mieux cibler les différents facteurs en jeu dans l’apprentissage de l’orthographe des mots auxquels sont exposés les élèves à l’école primaire. Afin de répondre à cet objectif, il a d’abord été nécessaire de recenser le lexique scolaire qui constitue l’environnement écrit d’un élève de primaire scolarisé en français au Québec, et d’établir une échelle d’acquisition de ce lexique. Ces deux préalables sont décrits et discutés au sein du présent article

Double Positive CD4CD8 αβ T Cells: A New Tumor-Reactive Population in Human Melanomas

BACKGROUND: Double positive (DP) CD4CD8 Talphabeta cells have been reported in normal individuals as well as in different pathological conditions including inflammatory diseases, viral infections and cancer, but their function remains to be elucidated. We recently reported the increased frequency of DP Talphabeta cells in human breast pleural effusions. This manuscript addresses the question of the existence and above all the role of this non-conventional DP sub-population among tumor associated lymphocytes in melanomas. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We analyzed the intratumoral cell infiltrate in solid metastasis (n = 6) and tumor invaded lymph nodes (n = 26) samples from melanomas patients by multiparametric cytometry. Here we documented for the first time significant increased frequency of DP T cells in about 60% of melanoma tumors compared to blood samples. Interestingly, a high proportion of these cells produced TNF-alpha in response to autologous melanoma cell lines. Besides, they are characterized by a unique cytokine profile corresponding to higher secretion of IL-13, IL-4 and IL-5 than simple positive T cells. In deep analysis, we derived a representative tumor-reactive DP T cell clone from a melanoma patient's invaded lymph node. This clone was restricted by HLA-A*2402 and recognized both autologous and allogeneic tumor cells of various origins as well as normal cells, suggesting that the target antigen was a ubiquitous self antigen. However, this DP T cell clone failed to kill HLA-A*2402 EBV-transformed B cells, probably due to the constitutive expression of immunoproteasome by these cells. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: In conclusion, we can postulate that, according to their broad tumor reactivity and to their original cytokine profile, the tumor associated DP T cells could participate in immune responses to tumors in vivo. Therefore, the presence of these cells and their role will be crucial to address in cancer patients, especially in the context of immunotherapies