Efficient transplacental IgG transfer in women infected with Zika virus during pregnancy

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a newly-identified infectious cause of congenital disease. Transplacental transfer of maternal IgG to the fetus plays an important role in preventing many neonatal infections. However, antibody transfer may also have negative consequences, such as mediating enhancement of flavivirus infections in early life, or trafficking of virus immune complexes to the fetal compartment. ZIKV infection produces placental pathology which could lead to impaired IgG transfer efficiency as occurs in other maternal infections, such as HIV-1 and malaria. In this study, we asked whether ZIKV infection during pregnancy impairs transplacental transfer of IgG. We enrolled pregnant women with fever or rash in a prospective cohort in Vitoria, Brazil during the recent ZIKV epidemic. ZIKV and dengue virus (DENV)-specific IgG, ZIKV and DENV neutralizing antibodies, and routine vaccine antigenspecific IgG were measured in maternal samples collected around delivery and 20 paired cord blood samples. We concluded that 8 of these mothers were infected with ZIKV during pregnancy and 12 were ZIKV-uninfected. The magnitude of flavivirus-specific IgG, neutralizing antibody, and vaccine-elicited IgG were highly correlated between maternal plasma and infant cord blood in both ZIKV-infected and -uninfected mother-infant pairs. Moreover, there was no difference in the magnitude of plasma flavivirus-specific IgG levels between mothers and infants regardless of ZIKV infection status. Our data suggests that maternal ZIKV infection during pregnancy does not impair the efficiency of placental transfer of flavivirus-specific, functional, and vaccine-elicited IgG. These findings have implications for the neonatal outomes of maternal ZIKV infection and optimal administration of antibody-based ZIKV vaccines and therapeutics

A high stability semiconductor laser system for a 88^{88}Sr-based optical lattice clock

We describe a frequency stabilized diode laser at 698 nm used for high resolution spectroscopy of the 1S0-3P0 strontium clock transition. For the laser stabilization we use state-of-the-art symmetrically suspended optical cavities optimized for very low thermal noise at room temperature. Two-stage frequency stabilization to high finesse optical cavities results in measured laser frequency noise about a factor of three above the cavity thermal noise between 2 Hz and 11 Hz. With this system, we demonstrate high resolution remote spectroscopy on the 88Sr clock transition by transferring the laser output over a phase-noise-compensated 200 m-long fiber link between two separated laboratories. Our dedicated fiber link ensures a transfer of the optical carrier with frequency stability of 7 \cdot 10^{-18} after 100 s integration time, which could enable the observation of the strontium clock transition with an atomic Q of 10^{14}. Furthermore, with an eye towards the development of transportable optical clocks, we investigate how the complete laser system (laser+optics+cavity) can be influenced by environmental disturbances in terms of both short- and long-term frequency stability.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Appl. Phys.

An organometallic tetranuclear complex of μ4-PO4: [{(Cp*Cr)2(μ-OMe)2} 2(μ4-PO4)]X (X - I, PF6)

10.1021/om048974dOrganometallics2471401-1403ORGN

Metallophilicity in annular Ru2M2 derivatives of (HMB)RuII(tpdt) versus (Bis)-η2-dithiolate bonding in Ru2M derivatives of Cp*RuIII(tpdt) (HMB = η6-C6Me6; Cp* = η5- C5Me5; M = CuI, Ag(I,II), Au (I,)

10.1021/om0491950Organometallics244539-551ORGN

Syntheses and x-ray crystal structures of di- and trinuclear trithiolate-thioether-bridged complexes of ruthenium. Electrochemistry of mixed-valence triruthenium complexes

10.1021/om034189+Organometallics233547-558ORGN

Exotic and indigenous viruses infect wild populations and captive collections of temperate terrestrial orchids (Diuris species) in Australia

Four species of Diuris temperate terrestrial orchids from wild and captive populations were tested for the presence of polyadenylated RNA viruses. The genomes of three exotic viruses were determined: two potyviruses, Bean yellow mosaic virus and Ornithogalum mosaic virus, and the polerovirus Turnip yellows virus. The genomes of five indigenous viruses were detected, including four novel species. They were the potyvirus Blue squill virus A, another potyvirus, two proposed capilloviruses, and a partitivirus. Partitivirus infection is of interest as this group of viruses is also associated with endophytic fungi (mycorrhizae) that are necessary for the germination, growth, development of many terrestrial orchids. Sequence divergence data indicate post-European, pre-European, and endemic origins for these viruses via inoculum from introduced and native plants. The implications of the findings of this study for orchid conservation, and particularly reintroduction programs where viruses may be spread inadvertently to wild populations from infected propagation sources, are discussed

Alopecia totalis and vitiligo in common variable immunodeficiency.

Three cases of severe and irreversible alopecia occurring in patients with common variable immunodeficiency are described. In all three cases, hair loss developed after the diagnosis of immune deficiency; one of the patients also had extensive vitiligo. A fourth patient had vitiligo in the absence of alopecia. No change in the alopecia or vitiligo was noted in any patient as a result of immunoglobulin replacement therapy