Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Chunnian Ren, Jie Tang, Liangfeng Xia
Summary: This study searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochran databases to obtain literature on the diagnosis of osteoarticular tuberculosis (OATB) by Interferon Gamma Release Assays (IGRA) from database establishment to June 2021. The bivariate random effect model was used to summarize the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of IGRA in diagnosing OATB, and forest plots and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used for testing.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Kathryn Winglee, Andrew N. Hill, Robert Belknap, Jason E. Stout, Tracy L. Ayers
Summary: Interferon-gamma release assays are important diagnostic tools for tuberculosis infection, but there has been little research on their performance in populations prioritized for tuberculosis testing in the United States. This study found that there is a certain degree of discordance and variability in the results of the QFT and TSPOT tests.
CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Zhenhong Zhou, Rui Zhu, Hongwei Yang, Longfa Xu, Hao Chen, Yuanyuan Wu, Zhichao Yin, Qiongzi Huang, Dongqing Zhang, Che Liu, Yuqiong Que, Jun Zhang, Ningshao Xia, Tong Cheng
Summary: Human Rhinoviruses are major pathogens causing respiratory tract diseases, particularly RV-C species which are associated with asthma. A rapid neutralization testing system for RV-C15 was developed in this study, which can detect infected cells and obtain neutralizing antibodies against RV-C15.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
J. Tan, Yan Yin, Guang Hua, Lili Wang
Summary: This study aims to observe and analyze the diagnostic value of T-cell enzyme linked immunospot assay for tuberculosis infection. The results show that this method has ideal sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis and extrapulmonary tuberculosis.
INDIAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Fan Jiang, Yong Han, Yinping Liu, Yong Xue, Peng Cheng, Li Xiao, Wenping Gong
Summary: In this study, a promising multi-epitope vaccine candidate, PP13138R, was developed using reverse vaccinology techniques for tuberculosis prevention. PP13138R demonstrated excellent antigenicity, immunogenicity, and solubility, and interacted strongly with Toll-like receptor 2 and 4, stimulating immune cells to produce specific antibodies and cytokines. The vaccine elicited enhanced immune responses across different stages of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Xiaoliang Li, Junli Wang, Zhigang Yang, Qiongzhu Song
Summary: This study assessed the diagnostic value of T-SPOT.TB and MRI in suspected osteoarticular tuberculosis patients, finding that a combination of the two methods had higher sensitivity and specificity for the noninvasive diagnosis of osteoarticular tuberculosis compared to using either method alone.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Maryam A. Amour, Christiaan A. Rees, Patricia J. Munseri, Jamila Said, Albert K. Magohe, Mecky Matee, Elizabeth A. Talbot, Robert D. Arbeit, Kisali Pallangyo, C. Fordham von Reyn
Summary: In tuberculosis-endemic regions, the long-term variability of interferon-gamma release assays (IGRA) on healthy subjects is crucial for understanding tuberculosis (TB) vaccine trials based on prevention of infection. By analyzing T-SPOT.TB assays on adolescents, it was found that the definitions of IGRA conversion, reversion, and persistence depend on the frequency of testing. These findings should be considered in the design and interpretation of TB vaccine trials.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Thomas Meier, Martin Enders
Summary: The longitudinal study in a medical laboratory in Germany demonstrated high reproducibility of T-SPOT.TB test in serial testing, with most subjects showing consistent results over time. Test conversions were observed in a small percentage of initially negative subjects, while test reversion occurred in some initially positive subjects, particularly associated with low spot numbers in the first test. The rate of test reversion was significantly higher in subjects retested after more than 1 year, especially in those above the age of 40.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
X. Xiao, G. Da, X. Xie, X. Liu, L. Zhang, B. Zhou, H. Li, P. Li, H. Yang, H. Chen, Y. Fei, G. C. Tsokos, L. Zhao, X. Zhang
Summary: SLE patients with concomitant TB exhibited distinct clinical characteristics compared to controls, including higher frequency of involvement in hematologic, mucocutaneous, and musculoskeletal systems, prior treatment with potent glucocorticoid/immunosuppressive agents, and an increased risk of miliary TB and intracranial TB in patients with lupus before TB infection. Lymphocytopenia was associated with poorer outcomes in SLE/TB + patients.
JOURNAL OF INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Tiantian Xu, Qi Lai, Ning Qu, Bin Zhang, Qihua Qi
Summary: This study aimed to improve the diagnostic accuracy and specificity of T-SPOT.TB in spinal tuberculosis (TB) identification. T-SPOT.TB values were compared and optimal cutoff values were determined. The test showed high sensitivity and specificity in assisting the diagnosis of spinal TB. During follow-up, there were differences in CRP, ESR, VAS score, and ODI% between groups.
SURGICAL INFECTIONS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Monty B. Mazer, Charles C. Caldwell, Jodi Hanson, Daniel Mannion, Isaiah R. Turnbull, Anne Drewry, Dale Osborne, Andrew Walton, Tessa Blood, Lyle L. Moldawer, Scott Brakenridge, Kenneth E. Remy, Richard S. Hotchkiss
Summary: Sepsis triggers complex immune responses and the inability to rapidly and quantitatively assess the immune status of patients has been a major challenge in therapeutic trials. The use of a novel whole blood ELISpot assay offers significant advancements in immunophenotyping patients with sepsis.
JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Pei-Jean Feng, Yanjue Wu, Christine S. Ho, Lance Chinna, Andrew Christian Whelen, Angela Largen, Richard Brostrom, Randall Reves, Robert Belknap, Adithya Cattamanchi, Niaz Banaei
Summary: The study found that adding T-Cell Xtend before processing blood samples did not consistently mitigate the loss of spot-forming T cells due to processing delays.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Fangyu Shi, Xia Qiu, Mingjing Yu, Yan Huang
Summary: This study evaluated the performance of TBAg stimulated IFN-gamma (IGRA) and unstimulated IFN-gamma in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) for diagnosing tuberculous meningitis (TBM). The results showed that blood and CSF IGRA were good assays for detecting TBM, and unstimulated CSF IFN-gamma provided excellent accuracy for diagnosing TBM.
Article
Immunology
Saori C. Iwase, Paul T. Edlefsen, Lynnette Bhebhe, Kesego Motsumi, Sikhulile Moyo, Anna-Ursula Happel, Danica Shao, Nicholas Mmasa, Sara Schenkel, Melanie A. Gasper, Melanie Dubois, Megan A. Files, Chetan Seshadri, Fergal Duffy, John Aitchison, Mihai G. Netea, Jennifer Jao, Donald W. Cameron, Clive M. Gray, Heather B. Jaspan, Kathleen M. Powis
Summary: Infants exposed to HIV but not infected have a higher risk of infectious morbidity compared to those who are unexposed and uninfected. We conducted a study on 418 Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccinated sub-Saharan African infants aged 9-18 months to compare the prevalence of TB infection using T-SPOT.TB. The prevalence of TB infection was low and did not differ based on HIV exposure status.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Xin Li, Aihong Xia, Zhengzhong Xu, Jiaying Liu, Shasha Fu, Zhaoli Cao, Yechi Shen, Yuqing Xie, Chuang Meng, Xiang Chen, Xinan Jiao
Summary: This study aimed to develop an efficient assay for the diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis based on the ELISpot technique. The M. bovis IFN-eta ELISpot assay demonstrated a high level of agreement and had the ability to detect infected cattle earlier.
JOURNAL OF DAIRY SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Angharad G. Davis, Sean Wasserman, Cari Stek, Mpumi Maxebengula, C. Jason Liang, Stephani Stegmann, Sonya Koekemoer, Amanda Jackson, Yakub Kadernani, Marise Bremer, Remy Daroowala, Saalikha Aziz, Rene Goliath, Louise Lai Sai, Thandi Sihoyiya, Paolo Denti, Rachel P. J. Lai, Thomas Crede, Jonathan Naude, Patryk Szymanski, Yakoob Vallie, Ismail Abbas Banderker, Muhammed S. Moosa, Peter Raubenheimer, Sally Candy, Curtis Offiah, Gerda Wahl, Isak Vorster, Gary Maartens, John Black, Graeme Meintjes, Robert J. Wilkinson
Summary: In this study, it was demonstrated that high-dose rifampicin and adjunctive linezolid is safe in adult HIV-associated tuberculous meningitis patients. Larger studies are needed to evaluate the potential toxicity of high-dose aspirin and its benefits on morbidity and mortality.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Mary-Ann Davies, Erna Morden, Petro Rousseau, Juanita Arendse, Jamy-Lee Bam, Linda Boloko, Keith Cloete, Cheryl Cohen, Nicole Chetty, Pierre Dane, Alexa Heekes, Nei-Yuan Hsiao, Mehreen Hunter, Hannah Hussey, Theuns Jacobs, Waasila Jassat, Saadiq Kariem, Reshma Kassanjee, Inneke Laenen, Sue Le Roux, Richard Lessells, Hassan Mahomed, Deborah Maughan, Graeme Meintjes, Marc Mendelson, Ayanda Mnguni, Melvin Moodley, Katy Murie, Jonathan Naude, Ntobeko A. B. Ntusi, Masudah Paleker, Arifa Parker, David Pienaar, Wolfgang Preiser, Hans Prozesky, Peter Raubenheimer, Liezel Rossouw, Neshaad Schrueder, Barry Smith, Mariette Smith, Wesley Solomon, Greg Symons, Jantjie Taljaard, Sean Wasserman, Robert J. Wilkinson, Milani Wolmarans, Nicole Wolter, Andrew Boulle
Summary: The clinical severity of Omicron BA.4/BA.5 infection was compared to BA.1 and earlier variant infections, and it was found that vaccination and previous infection were protective against disease severity.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Leonardo Martinez, Diane M. Gray, Maresa Botha, Michael Nel, Shaakira Chaya, Carvern Jacobs, Lesley Workman, Mark P. Nicol, Heather J. Zar
Summary: This study found that children may experience respiratory difficulties, decreased lung function, and stunted growth after contracting tuberculosis. The results indicated that early TB diagnosis and prevention in childhood could have long-term benefits for their health.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF RESPIRATORY AND CRITICAL CARE MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Carly A. Bobak, Maresa Botha, Lesley Workman, Jane E. Hill, Mark P. Nicol, John W. Holloway, Dan J. Stein, Leonardo Martinez, Heather J. Zar
Summary: This study investigated the relationship between gene expression in umbilical cord blood and the risk of developing tuberculosis (TB) infection and disease in early life. Gene expression signatures were identified that were predictive of TB conversion and progression to TB disease in children with early infection. Coexpression network analysis revealed modules associated with neutrophil activation and defense responses to bacteria. These findings provide novel insights into TB pathogenesis and susceptibility.
CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Olivier Paccoud, Liliwe Shuping, Rudzani Mashau, Greg Greene, Vanessa Quan, Susan Meiring, Nelesh P. Govender, GERMS SA
Summary: Patients with CM or fungaemia detected through South Africa's laboratory CrAg screening program had better outcomes than those presenting directly to the hospital. Prior CrAg screening was associated with a lower 14-day case-fatality ratio, and the impact was greater during the COVID-19 period.
CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2023)
Article
Pediatrics
David A. Foley, Daniel K. Yeoh, Cara A. Minney-Smith, Christine Shin, Briony Hazelton, Tobias Hoeppner, Hannah C. Moore, Mark Nicol, Chisha Sikazwe, Meredith L. Borland, Avram Levy, Chris C. Blyth
Summary: The study examines the impact of a surge in hMPV cases on pediatric hospital admissions and the influence of changes in testing. Results show that hMPV-positive admissions in 2021 were significantly higher than the baseline period, particularly in children aged 1-4 years and those with other acute lower respiratory infection. The increase in testing contributed to the higher number of hMPV-positive cases, suggesting a genuine rise in hMPV infections.
JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRICS AND CHILD HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kevin Ng, Jesse Boumelha, Katey S. S. Enfield, Jorge L. Almagro, Hongui M. Cha, Oriol Pich, Takahiro Karasaki, David Moore, Roberto Salgado, Monica Sivakumar, George Young, Miriam L. Molina-Arcas, Sophie de Carne Trecesson, Panayiotis Anastasiou, Annika C. Fendler, Lewis Au, Scott T. C. Shepherd, Carlos Martinez-Ruiz, Clare Puttick, James R. M. Black, Thomas B. K. Watkins, Hyemin Kim, Seohee Shim, Nikhil Faulkner, Jan A. Attig, Selvaraju Veeriah, Neil J. Magno, Sophia T. Ward, Alexander Frankell, Maise Al Bakir, Emilia Lim, Mark Hill, Gareth Wilson, Daniel Cook, Nicolai Birkbak, Axel Behrens, Nadia Yousaf, Sanjay Popat, Allan Hackshaw, TRACERx Consortium, CAPTURE Consortium, Crispin T. Hiley, Kevin Litchfield, Nicholas McGranahan, Mariam Jamal-Hanjani, James Larkin, Se-Hoon Lee, Samra Turajlic, Charles Swanton, Julian Downward, George Kassiotis
Summary: This study reveals that lung adenocarcinomas in both humans and mice elicit local germinal center responses and tumour-binding antibodies, with endogenous retrovirus (ERV) envelope glycoproteins as the dominant anti-tumour antibody target. ERV-targeting B cell responses are enhanced by immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) and targeted inhibition of KRAS(G12C). ERV-reactive antibodies have anti-tumour activity and improve survival in a mouse model, and ERV expression predicts the response to ICB in human lung adenocarcinoma. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that effective immunotherapy in the mouse model requires CXCL13-dependent tertiary lymphoid structure (TLS) formation, and therapeutic CXCL13 treatment enhances anti-tumour immunity and synergizes with ICB. These findings provide a potential mechanistic basis for the association between TLS and immunotherapy response.
Article
Microbiology
Michaela Zwyer, Liliana Rutaihwa, Etthel Windels, Jerry Hella, Fabrizio Menardo, Mohamed Sasamalo, Gregor Sommer, Lena Schmulling, Sonia Borrell, Miriam C. Reinhard, Anna Dotsch, Hellen Hiza, Christoph D. Stritt, George Sikalengo, Lukas Fenner, Bouke De Jong, Midori Kato-Maeda, Levan Jugheli, Joel Ernst, Stefan Niemann, Leila Jeljeli, Marie Ballif, Matthias Egger, Niaina J. Rakotosamimanana, Dorothy Yeboah-Manu, Prince Asare, Bijaya Malla, Horng Yunn Dou, Nicolas Zetola, Robert Wilkinson, Helen Cox, E. Jane Carter, Joachim Gnokoro, Marcel Yotebieng, Eduardo Gotuzzo, Alash'le Abimiku, Anchalee Avihingsanon, Zhi Ming Xu, Jacques Fellay, Damien Portevin, Klaus Reither, Tanja Stadler, Sebastien Gagneux, Daniela Brites
Summary: In Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, the tuberculosis epidemic is dominated by multiple Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) genotypes introduced from different parts of the world. These genotypes differ in transmission rates and infectious period duration, but have similar overall fitness. The high prevalence of the L3.1.1 genotype is attributed to its early introduction and high transmission rate.
Correction
Immunology
Elsa Du Bruyn, Sheena Ruzive, Patrick Howlett, Maddalena Cerrone, Ashley J. Jacobs, Cecilia Lindestam S. Arlehamn, Alessandro Sette, Alan Sher, Katrin D. Mayer-Barber, Daniel L. Barber, Bongani Mayosi, Mpiko Ntsekhe, Robert J. Wilkinson, Catherine Riou
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Muki Shehu Shey, Avuyonke Balfour, Nomawethu Masina, Abulele Bekiswa, Charlotte Schutz, Rene Goliath, Rachel Dielle, Patrick DMC. Katoto, Katalin Andrea Wilkinson, David Lewinsohn, Deborah Anne Lewinsohn, Graeme Meintjes
Summary: In this study, it was found that individuals who showed resistance to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection despite sustained exposure had lower secretion of IFN-gamma, a cytokine traditionally associated with Mtb infection. However, these individuals showed similar secretion levels of other immune response-related cytokines and chemokines, indicating their ability to mount non-IFN-gamma immune responses to Mtb infection.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Edgar Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Mia Zol-Hanlon, Ganka Bineva-Todd, Andrea Marchesi, Mark Skehel, Keira E. Mahoney, Chloe Roustan, Annabel Borg, Lucia Di Vagno, Svend Kjaer, Antoni G. Wrobel, Donald J. Benton, Philipp Nawrath, Sabine L. Flitsch, Dhira Joshi, Andres Manuel Gonzalez-Ramirez, Katalin A. Wilkinson, Robert J. Wilkinson, Emma C. Wall, Ramon Hurtado-Guerrero, Stacy A. Malaker, Benjamin Schumann
Summary: The polybasic cleavage motif for the protease furin is a major factor in human viral transmission of SARS-CoV-2 spike. Variants of concern (VOCs) have extensive mutations in the region preceding this motif. Besides furin, spikes from these variants rely on other proteases such as TMPRSS2 for maturation. Glycans near the cleavage site have implications for proteolytic processing and the effects of variant-borne mutations.
ACS CENTRAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Robert J. Wilkinson, Joseph Donovan, Guy E. Thwaites, Reinout van Crevel, Sean Wasserman
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Elouise E. Kroon, Wilian Correa-Macedo, Rachel Evans, Allison Seeger, Lize Engelbrecht, Jurgen A. Kriel, Ben Loos, Naomi Okugbeni, Marianna Orlova, Pauline Cassart, Craig J. Kinnear, Gerard C. Tromp, Marlo Moller, Robert J. Wilkinson, Anna K. Coussens, Erwin Schurr, Eileen G. Hoal
Summary: Persons living with HIV who never develop tuberculosis and show no immune sensitization to Mycobacterium tuberculosis have been identified as HIV+ persistently TB, tuberculin, and IGRA negative (HITTIN). In this study, their neutrophil Mtb infection response was compared to PLWH with no TB history but who test persistently IGRA positive and tuberculin positive (HIT). The HITTIN group exhibited distinct innate mechanisms in response to Mtb infection.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Noor-Ul-Huda Ghori, Christopher A. Mullally, Mark P. Nicol, Andrew Currie, Julie Hibbert, Matthew S. Payne, Sanjay Patole, Tobias Strunk
Summary: The structure and function of infant skin is not fully developed until 34 weeks of gestation, and this immaturity is associated with risk of late-onset sepsis (LOS). Topical coconut oil improves preterm-infant skin integrity and may reduce LOS. Our study provides novel data on preterm-infant skin-microbiome composition and highlights the modifying potential of emollient skin care.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)