Baseline anti-NS4a antibodies in combination with on-treatment quantitative HCV-RNA reliably identifies nonresponders to pegylated interferon-ribavirin combination therapy after 4 weeks of treatment

Background Early detection of nonresponders to hepatitis C therapy limits unnecessary exposure to treatment and its side-effects. A recent algorithm combining baseline anti-NS4a antibodies and on-treatment quantitative PCR identified nonresponders to a combination of interferon and ribavirin after 1 week of treatment. Aim To validate a stopping rule based on baseline anti-NS4a antibody levels and early on-treatment virological response in treatment-naive genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C patients treated with the current standard pegylated interferon and ribavirin combination therapy. Methods Eighty-nine genotype 1 patients from the Dynamically Individualized Treatment of hepatitis C Infection and Correlates of Viral/Host dynamics Study treated for 48 weeks with standard 180 mu g pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN)-alpha-2a (weekly) and ribavirin 1000-1200mg (daily) were analysed. Baseline anti-NS4a antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (NS4a AA 1687-1718) was performed on pretreatment serum. Hepatitis C virus-RNA was assessed at days 0, 1, 4, 7, 8, 15, 22, 29, weeks 6, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 6 weekly thereafter until end of treatment. Multiple regression logistic analysis was performed. Results Overall 54 of 89 (61%) patients achieved sustained virological response. A baseline anti-NS4a antibody titre less than 1/1250 correlated with absence of favourable initial viral decline according to variable response types (P=0.015). The optimal algorithm was developed using the combination of the absence of anti-NS4a Ab (= 100.000 IU/ml at week 4. This algorithm has a specificity of 43% and negative predictive value of 100% to detect nonresponse to standard PEG-IFN-alpha-2a and ribavirin therapy at fourth week of therapy (intention-to-treat analysis). Conclusion The decision to stop the therapy in genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C patients treated with PEG-IFN-alpha-2a and ribavirin can be confidently made after 4 weeks of treatment based on the absence of baseline anti-NS4a Ab and a week-4 hepatitis C virus-RNA above 100.000 IU/ml. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 22:1443-1448 (C) 2010 Wolters Kluwer Health vertical bar Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Rat testicular germ cells and sertoli cells release different types of bioactive transforming growth factor beta in vitro

Several in vivo studies have reported the presence of immunoreactive transforming growth factor-β's (TGF-β's) in testicular cells at defined stages of their differentiation. The most pronounced changes in TGF-β(1 )and TGF-β(2 )immunoreactivity occurred during spermatogenesis. In the present study we have investigated whether germ cells and Sertoli cells are able to secrete bioactive TGF-β's in vitro, using the CCl64 mink lung epithelial cell line as bioassay for the measurement of TGF-β. In cellular lysates, TGF-β bioactivity was only observed following heat-treatment, indicating that within these cells TGF-β is present in a latent form. To our surprise, active TGF-β could be detected in the culture supernatant of germ cells and Sertoli cells without prior heat-treatment. This suggests that these cells not only produce and release TGF-β in a latent form, but that they also release a factor which can convert latent TGF-β into its active form. Following heat-activation of these culture supernatant's, total TGF-β bioactivity increased 6- to 9-fold. Spermatocytes are the cell type that releases most bioactive TGF-β during a 24 h culture period, although round and elongated spermatids and Sertoli cells also secrete significant amounts of TGF-β. The biological activity of TGF-β could be inhibited by neutralizing antibodies against TGF-β(1 )(spermatocytes and round spermatids) and TGF-β(2 )(round and elongating spermatids). TGF-β activity in the Sertoli cell culture supernatant was inhibited slightly by either the TGF-β(1 )and TGF-β(2 )neutralizing antibody. These in vitro data suggest that germ cells and Sertoli cells release latent TGF-β's. Following secretion, the TGF-β's are converted to a biological active form that can interact with specific TGF-β receptors. These results strengthen the hypothesis that TGF-β's may play a physiological role in germ cell proliferation/differentiation and Sertoli cell function

Multispacecraft current estimates at swarm

During the first several months of the three-spacecraft Swarm mission all three spacecraft camerepeatedly into close alignment, providing an ideal opportunity for validating the proposed dual-spacecraftmethod for estimating current density from the Swarm magnetic field data. Two of the Swarm spacecraftregularly fly side-by-side in closely similar orbits, while the third at times approaches the other two. Thisprovides a data set which under certain assumptions of stationarity of the magnetic field can produce 2, 3, 4,5 (or more) point measurements, which can be cross compared. We find that at low Earth orbit the use oftime-shifted positions allow stable estimates of current density to be made and can verify temporal effects aswell as validating the interpretation of the current components as arising predominantly from field-alignedcurrents. In the case of four-spacecraft configurations we can resolve the full vector current and therefore cancheck the perpendicular as well as parallel current density components directly, together with the qualityfactor for the estimates directly (for the first time in situ at low Earth orbit)

ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile:Coronaviridae 2023

The family Coronaviridae includes viruses with positive-sense RNA genomes of 22-36 kb that are expressed through a nested set of 3' co-terminal subgenomic mRNAs. Members of the subfamily Orthocoronavirinae are characterized by 80-160 nm diameter, enveloped virions with spike projections. The orthocoronaviruses, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and Middle East respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus are extremely pathogenic for humans and in the last two decades have been responsible for the SARS and MERS epidemics. Another orthocoronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, was responsible for the recent global COVID-19 pandemic. This is a summary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) Report on the family Coronaviridae which is available at www.ictv.global/report/coronaviridae.</p

A human monoclonal antibody blocking SARS-CoV-2 infection

The emergence of the novel human coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan, China has caused a worldwide epidemic of respiratory disease (COVID-19). Vaccines and targeted therapeutics for treatment of this disease are currently lacking. Here we report a human monoclonal antibody that neutralizes SARS-CoV-2 (and SARS-CoV) in cell culture. This cross-neutralizing antibody targets a communal epitope on these viruses and may offer potential for prevention and treatment of COVID-19

Interferon (IFN)-γ-Inducible Protein-10: Association with Histological Results, Viral Kinetics, and Outcome during Treatment with Pegylated IFN-α2a and Ribavirin for Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection

BackgroundWe investigated associations between interferon (IFN)-γ-inducible protein (IP)-10 and liver histological results, viral kinetic response, and treatment outcome in patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes 1-4 MethodsPlasma IP-10 was monitored before, during, and after treatment with pegylated IFN-α2a and ribavirin in 265 HCV-infected patients ResultsIn univariate analyses, a low baseline IP-10 level was significantly associated with low baseline viral load, rapid viral response (RVR), a sustained viral response (SVR), body mass index <25 kg/m2, and less-pronounced fibrosis, inflammation, and steatosis (for HCV genotypes other than 3). When the results of the univariate analyses were included in multivariate analyses, a low plasma IP-10 level, low baseline viral load, and genotype 2 or 3 infection were independent predictors of an RVR and SVR. IP-10 levels decreased 6 weeks into treatment and remained low in patients with an SVR. By contrast, plasma levels of IP-10 rebounded in patients who had detectable HCV RNA after the completion of treatment. Using cutoff IP-10 levels of 150 and 600 pg/mL for predicting an SVR in patients infected with HCV genotype 1 yielded a specificity and sensitivity of 81% and 95%, respectively ConclusionBaseline IP-10 levels are predictive of the response to HCV treatmen

Development of a Synthetic Earth Gravity Model by 3D mass optimisation based on forward modelling

Several previous Synthetic Earth Gravity Model (SEGM) simulations are based on existing information about the Earth’s internal mass distribution. However, currently available information is insufficient to model the Earth’s anomalous gravity field on a global scale. The low-frequency information is missing when modelling only topography, bathymetry and crust (including the Mohorovičić discontinuity), but the inclusion of information on the mantle and core does not seem to significantly improve this situation. This paper presents a method to determine a more realistic SEGM by considering simulated 3D mass distributions within the upper mantle as a proxy for all unmodelled masses within the Earth.The aim is to improve an initial SEGM based on forward gravity modelling of the topography, bathymetry and crust such that the missing low-frequency information is now included. The simulated 3D mass distribution has been derived through an interactive and iterative mass model optimisation algorithm, which minimises geoid height differences with respect to a degree-360 spherical harmonic expansion of the EGM2008 global external gravity field model. We present the developed optimisation algorithm by applying it to the development of a global SEGM that gives a reasonably close fit to EGM2008, and certainly closer than a SEGM based only on the topography, bathymetry and crust

Microneedle array delivered recombinant coronavirus vaccines: Immunogenicity and rapid translational development

Background: Coronaviruses pose a serious threat to global health as evidenced by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and COVID-19. SARS Coronavirus (SARS-CoV), MERS Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), and the novel coronavirus, previously dubbed 2019-nCoV, and now officially named SARS-CoV-2, are the causative agents of the SARS, MERS, and COVID-19 disease outbreaks, respectively. Safe vaccines that rapidly induce potent and long-lasting virus-specific immune responses against these infectious agents are urgently needed