Varicella Zoster Virus and Relapsing Remitting Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an immune-mediated disorder; however, little is known about the triggering factors of the abnormal immune response. Different viruses from the herpes family have been mentioned as potential participants. Here, we review the evidences that support the association of varicella zoster virus (VZV) with MS. Epidemiological studies from geographical areas, where incidence of MS has increased in recent decades, pointed out a high frequency of varicella and zoster in the clinical antecedents of MS patients, and also laboratory investigations have found large quantities of DNA from VZV in leucocytes and cerebrospinal fluid of MS patients restricted to the ephemeral period of MS relapse, followed by disappearance of the virus during remission. The above observations and the peculiar features of VZV, mainly characterized by its neurotropism and long periods of latency followed by viral reactivation, support the idea on the participation of VZV in the etiology of MS. However, as with reports from studies with other viruses, particularly Epstein Barr virus, conflicting results on confirmatory studies about the presence of viral gene products in brain tissue indicate the need for further research on the potential participation of VZV in the etiology of MS

Funktionelle Untersuchungen zur sequenz-spezifischen Rekombination durch die Integrase des Bakteriophagen Lambda in eukaryotischen Zellen

Im Gegensatz zur wild-typ-Integrase des Phagen Lambda katalysieren die Mutanten Int-h und Int-h/218 die sequenz-spezifische Rekombination zwischen zwei attachment-Regionen auch in Abwesenheit von Kofaktoren wie IHF, XIS und negativer gespannter DNA. In dieser Arbeit wurde untersucht, welchen Effekt das Milieu menschlicher Zellen auf diese Reaktionen hat. Der Vergleich der hier durchgeführten intermolekularen Rekombinationsreaktionen zwischen episomalen Substraten mit den Kinetiken von intramolekularen Reaktionen zeigt, dass offensichtlich keine Präferenz für einen der beiden Reaktionstypen besteht. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass zwei 21 bp umfassende Rekombinationsregionen, die nur DNA-Sequenz des core-Typs enthalten, durch Integrase Mutanten intermolekular rekombiniert werden können. Die Effizienz dieser Reaktion wurde durch die Anwesenheit von Sequenzen des Arm-Typs mehrfach gesteigert. Integrase-Proteine mit deletierter N-terminaler Domäne, die ebenfalls in dieser Arbeit generiert und getestet wurden, zeigen dagegen kaum Rekombinationsaktivität in eukaryotischen Zellen. Neben der Arm-Bindungs-Funktion der N-Domäne wurde somit auch ein Hinweis auf eine funktionelle Rolle bei der Rekombination erbracht. Bei der Analyse der chromosomalen Rekombinationsaktivität wurde für Int-h/218 nachgewiesen, dass neben der Inversion eines mit attB/attP flankierten Reportergens prinzipiell auch die Integration eines attP-tragenden Vektors in eine im Genom von HeLa-Zellen befindliche attB-Sequenz katalysiert wird. Das heterodimere IHF (Integration Host Factor) ist ein sequenz-spezifisches DNA-bindendes und -biegendes Protein aus E.coli und Kofaktor der Lambda-Intergrase. Es spielt eine wichtige Rolle in einer Vielzahl von DNA-Transaktionen einschließlich Rekombination, Transkription und Replikation. In eukaryotischen Zellen führt die Ausprägung seiner beiden Untereinheiten nicht zur Ausbildung einer nachweisbaren Proteinmenge. Für den Einsatz in Eukaryoten wurde daher ein rekombinantes IHF Protein (rIHF) untersucht, dass durch die Insertion der nahezu kompletten alpha-Untereinheit von IHF in seine beta-Untereinheit erstellt wurde. Dieses rIHF wurde in HeLa-Zellen stabil ausgeprägt und toleriert. Es wurde vornehmlich im Zellkern lokalisiert und stimulierte in rIHF-transgenen HeLa-Zelllinien die integrative Rekombination episomaler Substrate durch die wild-typ Integrase. Für weitere in vivo Studien mit rIHF wurden transgene Mäuse generiert und analysiert, in denen eine Expression des rekombinanten Proteins jedoch nicht nachgewiesen werden konnte

Native American ancestry significantly contributes to neuromyelitis optica susceptibility in the admixed Mexican population

Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) is an autoimmune disease with a higher prevalence in non-European populations. Because the Mexican population resulted from the admixture between mainly Native American and European populations, we used genome-wide microarray, HLA high-resolution typing and AQP4 gene sequencing data to analyze genetic ancestry and to seek genetic variants conferring NMO susceptibility in admixed Mexican patients. A total of 164 Mexican NMO patients and 1,208 controls were included. On average, NMO patients had a higher proportion of Native American ancestry than controls (68.1% vs 58.6%; p = 5 × 10⁻⁶). GWAS identified a HLA region associated with NMO, led by rs9272219 (OR = 2.48, P = 8 × 10⁻¹⁰). Class II HLA alleles HLA-DQB1*03:01, -DRB1*08:02, -DRB1*16:02, -DRB1*14:06 and -DQB1*04:02 showed the most significant associations with NMO risk. Local ancestry estimates suggest that all the NMO-associated alleles within the HLA region are of Native American origin. No novel or missense variants in the AQP4 gene were found in Mexican patients with NMO or multiple sclerosis. To our knowledge, this is the first study supporting the notion that Native American ancestry significantly contributes to NMO susceptibility in an admixed population, and is consistent with differences in NMO epidemiology in Mexico and Latin America

Antibacterial activity of Borago officinalis and Brassica juncea aqueous extracts evaluated in vitro and in situ using different food model systems

The present study was undertaken to characterize the antibacterial activity of the aqueous extracts (AEs) obtained from the leaves of Borago officinalis L. and Brassica juncea L. The antagonistic activity was evaluated against several bacteria (42 strains of Listeria monocytogenes, 35 strains of Staphylococcus aureus, 38 strains of Enterobacter spp. and 18 strains of Salmonella enterica) commonly associated with foodborne diseases by paper disc diffusion method. The susceptibility to the plant extracts was strain specific. Thirty-five strains (7 L. monocytogenes, 11 S. aureus, 1 S. Enteritidis, 1 S. Veneziana, 7 Enterobacter hormaechei, 5 Enterobacter cloacae, 1 Enterobacter sakazakii and 2 Enterobacter amnigenus) were sensitive to both AEs. The activity of B. juncea AE towards the Gram-positive strains was generally higher than that observed for B. officinalis (45 and 22 strains inhibited by B. juncea and B. officinalis, respectively), while an opposite trend was registered against the Gram-negative strains (22 and 35 strains inhibited by B. juncea and B. officinalis, respectively). The highest inhibition was displayed by B. juncea AE against E. sakazakii 23A. B. officinalis AE showed the same minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) (10 mg/mL) for the majority of the most sensitive strains, while the MIC of B. juncea AE was different for each bacterial species and the lowest concentration was registered to inhibit enterobacteria (3.1 mg/mL). After 1-year storage in different thermal conditions (room temperature, 4 C and 20 C), both AEs lost their inhibitory power. The extracts did not show cellular toxicity when tested against sheep erythrocytes. Hence, B. officinalis and B. juncea AEs were effective as natural antibacterial substances. AEs were tested in situ in three food model systems (meat, fish and vegetable) at two concentrations, but only when added at a concentration 10-fold higher than that showing definite efficacy in vitro (100 and 31 mg/mL for B. officinalis and B. juncea, respectively), they inhibited the growth of the sensitive strains, even though the cells were still viable after 24 h. The influence of AEs on the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) composition of the food models was analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The different levels of alcohols, aldehydes, esters, hydrocarbons, ketones and phenol registered, showed a consistent effect of B. officinalis and B. juncea AEs on the VOCs of the food models. However, the sniffing assay found only B. juncea AE impacting consistently the final aroma of the food models

Antimicrobial Activity and Physicochemical Characterization of Oregano, Thyme and Clove Leave Essential Oils, Nonencapsulated and Nanoencapsulated, Using Emulsification

Background and objective: Functional properties of essential oils are attributed to their components, many of which exhibit antimicrobial activity against pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms in a wide variety of foods. However, essential oils are unstable compounds; therefore, they can be encapsulated for a better protection and increase of functionality. In this work, antimicrobial activities of oregano, thyme and clove leave essential oils (non-encapsulated and nanoencapsulated) were assessed against Escherichia coli ATCC 29922, Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 14028 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 using emulsification.Material and methods: The essential oils were characterized based on their physicochemical properties. Nanoemulsions were prepared, using 5% (w w-1) of essential oils, and then characterized based on their physical properties, stability and encapsulation efficiency. The microdilution antimicrobial assay was carried out to assess minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration of the essential oils and their nanoemulsions. Data from physical properties of the essential oils and physical properties, stability and encapsulation efficiency of the nanoemulsions were statistically analyzed.Results and conclusion: Antimicrobial activity of the essential oils showed decreases in minimum inhibitory concentration by 27-60% for the nanoencapsulated oils, compared to nonencapsulated oils. Nanoencapsulated and nonencapsulated oregano essential oils exhibited the lowest minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration values. Based on the results, nanoencapslulated essential oils may further be used in various foods to avoid microbial contaminations.Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest

Food prospects of selenium enriched-Lactobacillus acidophilus CRL 636 and Lactobacillus reuteri CRL 1101

Selenium, which is present as SeCys in selenoproteins, is involved in cancer prevention, thyroid functioning, and pathogen inhibition. Lactobacilli can biotransform inorganic Se into seleno-amino acids. Growth, Se accumulation and seleno-amino acid formation by Lactobacillus acidophilus CRL636 and L. reuteri CRL1101 in a Se-supplemented medium were studied. Moreover, survival of Se-enriched strains to different pH values and bile salts was analyzed. L. acidophilus CRL636 showed low growth rate in the presence of Se while differences were less evident for L. reuteri CRL1101, which displayed higher amounts of intracellular SeCys and SeMet than the CRL636 strain. Interestingly, both lactobacilli could produce Se-nanoparticles. Se-enriched lactobacilli showed lower growth rates than non-Se exposed cells. The adverse effect of bile salts and the ability to survive at pH 4.0 diminished for the Se-enriched L. reuteri strain. The studied lactobacilli could be used as Se-enriched probiotics or as a vehicle for manufacturing Se-containing fermented foods.Fil: Pescuma, Micaela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Centro de Referencia Para Lactobacilos; Argentina. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Gomez Gomez, Beatríz. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Perez Corona, Teresa. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Font, Graciela Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Centro de Referencia Para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Madrid Albarrn, Yolanda. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Mozzi, Fernanda Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Centro de Referencia Para Lactobacilos; Argentin

(2,2′-Bipyridine)bis­(triphenyl­phosphine)copper(I) nitrate chloro­form solvate hemihydrate

In the title compound, [Cu(C10H8N2)(C18H15P)2]NO2·CHCl3·0.5H2O, the Cu atom is tetra­hedrally coordinated by a bidentate 2,2′-bipyridine ligand and two PPh3 ligands. The Cu—N and Cu—P distances are similar to those observed in similar compounds. The range of coordination angles shows a moderate distortion from ideal tetra­hedral geometry. The bipyridine ligand is twisted [14.2 (4)°] about the ring–ring C—C bond. The nitrate anion and the water and chloro­form mol­ecules of solvation are disordered. In the crystal structure, there are O(water)—H⋯O(nitrate), C—H⋯O(water) and C—H⋯O(nitrate) hydrogen bonds

Antimicrobial Activity of Lactoferrin-Related Peptides and Applications in Human and Veterinary Medicine

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) represent a vast array of molecules produced by virtually all living organisms as natural barriers against infection. Among AMP sources, an interesting class regards the food-derived bioactive agents. The whey protein lactoferrin (Lf) is an iron-binding glycoprotein that plays a significant role in the innate immune system, and is considered as an important host defense molecule. In search for novel antimicrobial agents, Lf offers a new source with potential pharmaceutical applications. The Lf-derived peptides Lf(1–11), lactoferricin (Lfcin) and lactoferrampin exhibit interesting and more potent antimicrobial actions than intact protein. Particularly, Lfcin has demonstrated strong antibacterial, anti-fungal and antiparasitic activity with promising applications both in human and veterinary diseases (from ocular infections to osteo-articular, gastrointestinal and dermatological diseases)