Malaria Infections Do Not Compromise Vaccine-Induced Immunity against Tuberculosis in Mice

BACKGROUND: Given the considerable geographic overlap in the endemic regions for malaria and tuberculosis, it is probable that co-infections with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Plasmodium species are prevalent. Thus, it is quite likely that both malaria and TB vaccines may be used in the same populations in endemic areas. While novel vaccines are currently being developed and tested individually against each of these pathogens, the efficacy of these vaccines has not been evaluated in co-infection models. To further assess the effectiveness of these new immunization strategies, we investigated whether co-infection with malaria would impact the anti-tuberculosis protection induced by four different types of TB vaccines in a mouse model of pulmonary tuberculosis. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we show that the anti-tuberculosis protective immunity induced by four different tuberculosis vaccines was not impacted by a concurrent infection with Plasmodium yoelii NL, a nonlethal form of murine malaria. After an aerogenic challenge with virulent M. tuberculosis, the lung bacterial burdens of vaccinated animals were not statistically different in malaria infected and malaria naïve mice. Multi-parameter flow cytometric analysis showed that the frequency and the median fluorescence intensities (MFI) for specific multifunctional T (MFT) cells expressing IFN-γ, TNF-α, and/or IL-2 were suppressed by the presence of malaria parasites at 2 weeks following the malaria infection but was not affected after parasite clearance at 7 and 10 weeks post-challenge with P. yoelii NL. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that the effectiveness of novel TB vaccines in protecting against tuberculosis was unaffected by a primary malaria co-infection in a mouse model of pulmonary tuberculosis. While the activities of specific MFT cell subsets were reduced at elevated levels of malaria parasitemia, the T cell suppression was short-lived. Our findings have important relevance in developing strategies for the deployment of new TB vaccines in malaria endemic areas

‘You have to choose a novel’: The biopolitics of critical management education

In this article, we engage empirically with the biopolitical nature of pedagogic practice in critical management education. We do so through considering the effects of employing literary fiction in an introductory management and organization module taught to master?s degree students in a UK business school. We see the deployment of fictional literature in teaching as a way of consciously intervening in this biopolitical predicament. By urging students to work with fictional literature that has been part of their personal past, we encourage them to develop a ?care of the self?. In the analysis, we first discuss the pedagogic process of the module, reflecting on our own presumptions and behaviours. Second, on the basis of students? assignments, we analyse the outcome of their learning. In the concluding discussion, we argue that the fact that critical management education is already biopolitical does not preclude the possibility for it to renew educational practice. We suggest that as a result of the potential for creative self-formation offered by the use of literary fiction, transformation of both students and educators is possible

Reversible posterior leucoencephalopathy syndrome associated with bone marrow transplantation Leucoencefalopatia posterior reversível associada a transplante de medula óssea

Reversible posterior leucoencephalopathy syndrome (RPLS) has previously been described in patients who have renal insufficiency, eclampsia, hypertensive encephalopathy and patients receiving immunosuppressive therapy. The mechanism by which immunosuppressive agents can cause this syndrome is not clear, but it is probably related with cytotoxic effects of these agents on the vascular endothelium. We report eight patients who received cyclosporine A (CSA) after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation or as treatment for severe aplastic anemia (SSA) who developed posterior leucoencephalopathy. The most common signs and symptoms were seizures and headache. Neurological dysfunction occurred preceded by or concomitant with high blood pressure and some degree of acute renal failure in six patients. Computerized tomography studies showed low-density white matter lesions involving the posterior areas of cerebral hemispheres. Symptoms and neuroimaging abnormalities were reversible and improvement occurred in all patients when given lower doses of CSA or when the drug was withdrawn. RPLS may be considered an expression of CSA neurotoxicity.<br>A síndrome de leucoencefalopatia posterior reversível (SLPR) tem sido descrita em pacientes com insuficiência renal, eclâmpsia, encefalopatia hipertensiva e em pacientes que recebem terapia imunossupressora. O mecanismo pelo qual os agentes imunossupressores podem causar a síndrome ainda não são conhecidos, porém estão provavelmente relacionados aos efeitos citotóxicos destes agentes no endotélio vascular. Relatamos oito pacientes que receberam ciclosporina A (CSA) após transplante de medula óssea alogênico ou para tratamento de anemia aplástica severa e que desenvolveram a SLPR. Os sinais e sintomas mais comuns foram convulsões e cefaléia. A disfunção neurológica ocorreu simultaneamente ou precedida por elevação da pressão arterial sistêmica e disfunção renal aguda em seis pacientes. O exame de tomografia computadorizada do crânio demonstrou a presença de áreas de baixos valores de atenuação na distribuição da substância branca, envolvendo áreas posteriores de ambos os hemisférios cerebrais. O quadro clínico e as anormalidades tomográficas foram reversíveis; a melhora ocorreu em todos os pacientes em que as doses de CSA foram reduzidas ou quando a droga foi retirada. A SLPR pode ser considerada uma expressão de neurotoxicidade da CSA