Mortality due to non-AIDS-defining cancers among people living with HIV in Spain over 18 years of follow-up

Cancer; HIV; MortalityCáncer; VIH; MortalidadCàncer: VIH; MortalitatPurpose Our aim was to describe non-AIDS-defining cancer (NADC) mortality among people living with HIV (PLWH), to compare it with that of the general population, and to assess potential risk factors. Methods We included antiretroviral-naive PLWH from the multicentre CoRIS cohort (2004–2021). We estimated mortality rates and standardised mortality ratios (SMRs). We used cause-specific Cox models to identify risk factors. Results Among 17,978 PLWH, NADC caused 21% of all deaths observed during the follow-up. Mortality rate due to NADC was 1.58 (95%CI 1.36, 1.83) × 1000 person-years and lung and liver were the most frequent cancer-related causes of death. PLWH had 79% excess NADC mortality risk compared to the general population with the highest SMR found for Hodgkin lymphoma, anal and liver cancers. The SMRs decreased with age and were the highest in age groups under 50 years. The most important prognostic factor was low CD4 count, followed by smoking, viral hepatitis and HIV transmission through heterosexual contact or injection drug use. Conclusion Non-AIDS cancers are an important cause of death among PLWH. The excess mortality related to certain malignancies and the association with immunodeficiency, smoking, and coinfections highlights the need for early detection and treatment of cancer in this population.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. This research was supported by CIBER -Consorcio Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red- (CB21/13/00091), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación and Unión Europea – NextGenerationEU, the Gilead Scholarship Program for Biomedical Research (GLD19_00106) and the ISCIII- Miguel Servet CP19CIII—00002 contract

Método de muestreo secuencial-enumerativo y binomial para Calepitrimerus vitis (Nalepa, 1905) (Acari: Eriophyidae)

El eriófído Calepitrimerus vitis (Nal.) es la especie responsable de la afección conocida como acariosis de la vid. En Rioja, esta plaga puede provocar importantes pérdidas, sobre todo en aquellos años cuyas primaveras son frías. Se ha desarrollado un método de muestreo secuencial-enumerativo y un método de muestreo binomial para estimar la densidad poblacional de este acaro. Con el propósito de caracterizar la distribución espacial de C. vitis se han calculado los índices de agregación de Taylor e Iwao, comprobando que el ajuste es mejor para los índices de Taylor, siendo b=l,79. En el muestreo enumerativo se han obtenido las curvas que relacionan la densidad poblacional del erió- fído con el tamaño de la muestra, con una precisión E=0,25, basánsose en los índices de Taylor encontrados. El muestreo binomial para la estimación de la densidad poblacional se ha desarrollado en base a obtener la relación existente entre el número de ácaros por hoja y el porcentaje de hojas ocupadas.The eriophyid mite Calepitrimerus vitis (Nal.) is an important pest in vineyards of Rioja (Spain). The agregation indexes of this mite have been calculated, and diferent sampling plans for this species have been developed, including enumerative and binomial schemes to estimate population density. Taylor's index has given better fitting than Iwao's. The coefficent b of Taylor is 1,79. To develop an enumerative sampling plan, the sample size based on Taylor's index has been calculated with a 25% precision level. It has been developed a binomial sampling scheme based on de relationship between the number of individuals per leaf and the proportion of leafs occupied by C. vitis

Identification and characterization of the Plasmodium vivax thrombospondin-related apical merozoite protein

Background. Malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax is a major public health problem worldwide that affects 70-80 million people in the Middle East, Asia, Western Pacific, South America and the Caribbean. Despite its epidemiological importance, few antigens from this parasite species have been characterized to date compared to Plasmodium falciparum, due in part to the difficulties of maintaining an in vitro culture of P. vivax. This study describes the identification of the P. falciparum thrombospondin-related apical merozoite protein homologue in P. vivax (PvTRAMP) and examines its potential to be further evaluated as vaccine candidate. Methods. The gene encoding PvTRAMP was identified through an extensive search of the databases hosting the genome sequence of P. vivax. Genes adjacent to pvtramp were identified in silico to determine the degree of similarity between the protein sequences encoded by equivalent chromosomic fragments in P. falciparum and Plasmodium knowlesi. The pvtramp gene was amplified from cDNA of P. vivax schizont stages, cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. Anti-PvTRAMP antisera was obtained by inoculating rabbits with PvTRAMP B cell epitopes produced as synthetic peptides in order to assess its recognition in parasite lysates by Western blot and in intact parasites by indirect immunofluorescence. The recognition of recombinant PvTRAMP by sera from P. vivax-infected individuals living in endemic areas was also assessed by ELISA. Results. The PfTRAMP homologue in P. vivax, here denoted as PvTRAMP, is a 340-amino-acid long antigen encoded by a single exon that could have a potential role in cytoadherence, as indicated by the presence of a thrombospondin structural homology repeat (TSR) domain. According to its transcription and expression profile, PvTRAMP is initially located at the parasite's apical end and later on the parasite surface. Recombinant PvTRAMP is recognized by sera from infected patients, therefore, indicating that it is targeted by the immune system during a natural infection with P. vivax. Conclusions. The results of this work support conducting further studies with PvTRAMP to evaluate its immunogenicity and protection-inducing ability in the Aotus animal model. © 2010 Mongui et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Identification and characterization of the Plasmodium vivax thrombospondin-related apical merozoite protein

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Malaria caused by <it>Plasmodium vivax </it>is a major public health problem worldwide that affects 70-80 million people in the Middle East, Asia, Western Pacific, South America and the Caribbean. Despite its epidemiological importance, few antigens from this parasite species have been characterized to date compared to <it>Plasmodium falciparum</it>, due in part to the difficulties of maintaining an <it>in vitro </it>culture of <it>P. vivax</it>. This study describes the identification of the <it>P. falciparum </it>thrombospondin-related apical merozoite protein homologue in <it>P. vivax </it>(PvTRAMP) and examines its potential to be further evaluated as vaccine candidate.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The gene encoding PvTRAMP was identified through an extensive search of the databases hosting the genome sequence of <it>P. vivax</it>. Genes adjacent to <it>pvtramp </it>were identified <it>in silico </it>to determine the degree of similarity between the protein sequences encoded by equivalent chromosomic fragments in <it>P. falciparum </it>and <it>Plasmodium knowlesi</it>. The <it>pvtramp </it>gene was amplified from cDNA of <it>P. vivax </it>schizont stages, cloned and expressed in <it>Escherichia coli</it>. Anti-PvTRAMP antisera was obtained by inoculating rabbits with PvTRAMP B cell epitopes produced as synthetic peptides in order to assess its recognition in parasite lysates by Western blot and in intact parasites by indirect immunofluorescence. The recognition of recombinant PvTRAMP by sera from <it>P. vivax-</it>infected individuals living in endemic areas was also assessed by ELISA.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The PfTRAMP homologue in <it>P. vivax</it>, here denoted as PvTRAMP, is a 340-amino-acid long antigen encoded by a single exon that could have a potential role in cytoadherence, as indicated by the presence of a thrombospondin structural homology repeat (TSR) domain. According to its transcription and expression profile, PvTRAMP is initially located at the parasite's apical end and later on the parasite surface. Recombinant PvTRAMP is recognized by sera from infected patients, therefore, indicating that it is targeted by the immune system during a natural infection with <it>P. vivax.</it></p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results of this work support conducting further studies with PvTRAMP to evaluate its immunogenicity and protection-inducing ability in the <it>Aotus </it>animal model.</p

New speleothem data from Molinos and Ejulve caves reveal Holocene hydrological variability in northeast Iberia

New speleothem records from northeastern Iberian caves provide data to explore the climatic patterns during the Holocene. We present delta C-13 and Mg/Ca from three speleothems from two different caves located in the Iberian Range allowing replication of the climatic signal for several millennia. Through the integration of those stalagmites covering since the Holocene onset to 2 ka, the early Holocene (11.7-8.5 ka) appears as the wettest interval. A marked change towards aridity is observed during the middle Holocene (8.5-4.8 ka) and an increase of humidity afterwards (4.8-2 ka). This three-part pattern, contrasting with other Iberian sequences, seems to be associated with the different role that seasonality has played in the response of different proxies (or records) to changes in water availability. Interpreting our speleothem records as changes in winter-spring precipitation along the Holocene allows reconciling previous data on hydrological variability from the western Mediterranean borderlands