Article
Immunology
Megan B. Vogt, Erin M. McDonald, Mark Delorey, Paul S. Mead, Sarah A. Hook, Alison F. Hinckley, Stephen R. Werre, Aaron C. Brault, Nisha K. Duggal
Summary: In a study of Zika virus-infected men, prolonged shedding of Zika virus RNA in semen was associated with inflammation in the male reproductive tract, indicated by higher leukocyte counts and inflammatory cytokine levels in semen.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Virology
Rhys Kingston, Isobel Routledge, Samir Bhatt, Leigh R. Bowman
Summary: Arboviruses, such as Zika and dengue, continue to have a significant impact on global health, causing morbidity, mortality, and economic burden. This study examined the transmission of Zika and dengue in the Dominican Republic from 2014 to 2016 at a sub-national level. The findings highlight the importance of disease surveillance and the need for targeted interventions to control these infectious diseases.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Christiana Stavrou, Ophelia Veraitch, Stephen Morris-Jones, Stephen L. Walker
Summary: The case illustrates the importance of maintaining a high level of clinical suspicion and close microbiological liaison in individuals returning from South-East Asia and northern Australia with symptoms indicative of cutaneous melioidosis. This is crucial as many clinical microbiology laboratories may have limited diagnostics for security-related organisms, potentially leading to misidentification of the causative bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Victoria Liu, Adnan Pirbhai, Syed Faraz Masood
Summary: A 67-year-old woman developed painful, acute vision loss after experiencing fever and muscle aches while visiting the Dominican Republic. Despite medical treatment, the left eye progressed to corneal perforation 5 weeks later. Evisceration with orbital implantation successfully alleviated pain and provided good cosmetic outcomes for the patient.
Article
Cell Biology
Elizabeth Balint, Armaan Amin Somani, Elizabeth C. Giles, Emily Feng, Fatemeh Vahedi, Ali A. Ashkar
Summary: This study investigated the impact of vaginal infection on Zika virus shedding and dissemination. The findings revealed that vaginal infection led to prolonged virus shedding in the vaginal mucosa and delayed systemic infection. Additionally, heightened vaginal inflammation did not affect virus replication or dissemination, in contrast to mosquito-borne infection.
IMMUNOLOGY AND CELL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Phillip Howells, Steven Laird, Andrew McD Johnston, Thomas Billyard
Summary: Critical illness in returning travellers, especially the elderly with comorbidities and immunosuppression, presents challenges in the ICU due to the need for extensive diagnostic tests, potential broad differential diagnoses, and risks of infection transmission. Unusual infections and venous thromboembolic disease from prolonged immobility should be considered. Effective infection control and a multidisciplinary team approach are crucial for optimal patient care.
JOURNAL OF THE INTENSIVE CARE SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Parasitology
Amy J. Schuh, Brian R. Amman, Jonathan C. Guito, James C. Graziano, Tara K. Sealy, Jonathan S. Towner
Summary: Tick salivary gland components were found to inhibit the infection and shedding of KASV virus in Egyptian rousette bats, providing new insights into the biological factors that maintain arbovirus in nature.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2023)
Article
Entomology
Pedro Maria Alarcon-Elbal, Maria Altagracia Rodriguez-Sosa, Carlos Ruiz-Matuk, Leandro Tapia, Cesar Alberto Arredondo Abreu, Anthony Alexander Fernandez Gonzalez, Rosa Mayra Rodriguez Lauzurique, Robert Paulino-Ramirez
Summary: The study revealed that household water storage containers in the Dominican Republic are ideal breeding grounds for synanthropic mosquitoes, including important disease vectors like Aedes aegypti. The larval indices in most neighborhoods exceeded accepted threshold values, and the presence of Aedes spp. was closely related to the availability of water-holding containers.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MOSQUITO CONTROL ASSOCIATION
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Katherine Julian, Neal Shah, Rashmi Banjade, Dhirisha Bhatt
Summary: This case highlights the challenge of distinguishing between reinfections and prolonged shedding of the virus in patients who repeatedly test positive for COVID-19 PCR testing, emphasizing the importance of understanding and using cycle threshold values to discern these etiologies.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Raquel Pimentel, Shaveta Khosla, Josefina Rondon, Farah Pena, Gwyneth Sullivan, Martha Perez, Supriya D. Mehta, Maximo O. Brito
Summary: The study revealed that 11% of infants born to women with suspected or confirmed ZIKV infection during pregnancy had microcephaly. Additionally, 4% of ZKV-exposed infants developed neurodevelopmental abnormalities, emphasizing the need for long-term monitoring.
ANNALS OF GLOBAL HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Hattie E. Webb, Justin Y. Kim, Kaitlin A. Tagg, Curtis J. Kapsak, Farrell Tobolowsky, Meseret G. Birhane, Louise Francois Watkins, Jason P. Folster
Summary: This report highlights the association between travel to the Dominican Republic and the presence of mcr-1-positive Salmonella enterica isolates in patients in the United States.
MICROBIOLOGY RESOURCE ANNOUNCEMENTS
(2022)
Article
Reproductive Biology
Luca De Toni, Ilaria Cosci, Andrea Carosso, Luisa Barzon, Bruno Engl, Carlo Foresta, Andrea Garolla
Summary: The treatment of semen with hyaluronidase leads to complete removal of HPV virions bound to spermatozoa, showing potential application in assisted reproduction techniques.
BIOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION
(2021)
Correction
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Enrico Lavezzo, Elisa Franchin, Constanze Ciavarella, Gina Cuomo-Dannenburg, Luisa Barzon, Claudia Del Vecchio, Lucia Rossi, Riccardo Manganelli, Arianna Loregian, Nicolo Navarin, Davide Abate, Manuela Sciro, Stefano Merigliano, Ettore De Canale, Maria Cristina Vanuzzo, Valeria Besutti, Francesca Saluzzo, Francesco Onelia, Monia Pacenti, Saverio G. Parisi, Giovanni Carretta, Daniele Donato, Luciano Flor, Silvia Cocchio, Giulia Masi, Alessandro Sperduti, Lorenzo Cattarino, Renato Salvador, Michele Nicoletti, Federico Caldart, Gioele Castelli, Eleonora Nieddu, Beatrice Labella, Ludovico Fava, Matteo Drigo, Katy A. M. Gaythorpe, Alessandra R. Brazzale, Stefano Toppo, Marta Trevisan, Vincenzo Baldo, Christl A. Donnelly, Neil M. Ferguson, Ilaria Dorigatti, Andrea Crisanti, Andrea Crisanti
Summary: The correction to this paper has been published.
Editorial Material
Pathology
Ambrogio Fassina, Matteo Fassan, Giorgetta Bonfiglio Dosio, Luisa Barzon
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ilaria Dorigatti, Enrico Lavezzo, Laura Manuto, Constanze Ciavarella, Monia Pacenti, Caterina Boldrin, Margherita Cattai, Francesca Saluzzo, Elisa Franchin, Claudia Del Vecchio, Federico Caldart, Gioele Castelli, Michele Nicoletti, Eleonora Nieddu, Elisa Salvadoretti, Beatrice Labella, Ludovico Fava, Simone Guglielmo, Mariateresa Fascina, Marco Grazioli, Gualtiero Alvisi, Maria Cristina Vanuzzo, Tiziano Zupo, Reginetta Calandrin, Vittoria Lisi, Lucia Rossi, Ignazio Castagliuolo, Stefano Merigliano, H. Juliette T. Unwin, Mario Plebani, Andrea Padoan, Alessandra R. Brazzale, Stefano Toppo, Neil M. Ferguson, Christl A. Donnelly, Andrea Crisanti
Summary: A study in Vo', Italy, conducted two mass swab testing campaigns in February and March 2020, followed by serological surveys in May and November. The findings show a seroprevalence of 3.5% in May and indicate that the majority of positive sera in May still reacted against at least one antigen in November. Analysis of household members revealed a Susceptible-Infectious Transmission Probability of 26.0%, with limited impact of contact tracing on epidemic suppression.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Correction
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ilaria Dorigatti, Enrico Lavezzo, Laura Manuto, Constanze Ciavarella, Monia Pacenti, Caterina Boldrin, Margherita Cattai, Francesca Saluzzo, Elisa Franchin, Claudia Del Vecchio, Federico Caldart, Gioele Castelli, Michele Nicoletti, Eleonora Nieddu, Elisa Salvadoretti, Beatrice Labella, Ludovico Fava, Simone Guglielmo, Mariateresa Fascina, Marco Grazioli, Gualtiero Alvisi, Maria Cristina Vanuzzo, Tiziano Zupo, Reginetta Calandrin, Vittoria Lisi, Lucia Rossi, Ignazio Castagliuolo, Stefano Merigliano, H. Juliette T. Unwin, Mario Plebani, Andrea Padoan, Alessandra R. Brazzale, Stefano Toppo, Neil M. Ferguson, Christl A. Donnelly, Andrea Crisanti
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Virology
Laura Manuto, Marco Grazioli, Andrea Spitaleri, Paolo Fontana, Luca Bianco, Luigi Bertolotti, Martina Bado, Giorgia Mazzotti, Federico Bianca, Francesco Onelia, Giovanni Lorenzin, Fabio Simeoni, Dejan Lazarevic, Elisa Franchin, Claudia Del Vecchio, Ilaria Dorigatti, Giovanni Tonon, Daniela Maria Cirillo, Enrico Lavezzo, Andrea Crisanti, Stefano Toppo
Summary: This study investigates the COVID-19 outbreak in a small Italian town and reveals the unique ancestor haplotype of the virus, as well as its evolution within and across households. It provides evidence that novel viral haplotypes can naturally arise within a short time period, regardless of symptom severity or immune system deficiencies. The study also shows that the lockdown measures effectively controlled viral spread and the emergence of new variants.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Rachel M. Gittelman, Enrico Lavezzo, Thomas M. Snyder, H. Jabran Zahid, Cara L. Carty, Rebecca Elyanow, Sudeb Dalai, Ilan Kirsch, Lance Baldo, Laura Manuto, Elisa Franchin, Claudia Del Vecchio, Monia Pacenti, Caterina Boldrin, Margherita Cattai, Francesca Saluzzo, Andrea Padoan, Mario Plebani, Fabio Simeoni, Jessica Bordini, Nicola Lore, Dejan Lazarevic, Daniela M. Cirillo, Paolo Ghia, Stefano Toppo, Jonathan M. Carlson, Harlan S. Robins, Andrea Crisanti, Giovanni Tonon
Summary: This study investigates the role of T cells in the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection, demonstrating their importance in both clinical presentation and long-term immunity. The findings show that T cells contribute to the production of neutralizing antibodies and remain detectable up to 15 months after infection.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Luisa Barzon, Fabrizio Montarsi, Erika Quaranta, Isabella Monne, Monia Pacenti, Alice Michelutti, Federica Toniolo, Patrizia Danesi, Giulio Marchetti, Federica Gobbo, Alessandro Sinigaglia, Silvia Riccetti, Emanuela Dal Molin, Laura Favero, Francesca Russo, Gioia Capelli
Summary: In spring 2022, Europe experienced an unprecedented heatwave, which heightened the risk of West Nile virus outbreaks. The virus was detected in Culex mosquitoes in northern Italy, as well as in two blood donors, a patient with encephalitis, wild birds, and additional mosquito pools. Genome sequencing revealed the co-circulation of WNV lineage 2 and a newly introduced WNV lineage 1, previously discovered in the region in 2021.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Enrico Lavezzo, Monia Pacenti, Laura Manuto, Caterina Boldrin, Margherita Cattai, Marco Grazioli, Federico Bianca, Margherita Sartori, Federico Caldart, Gioele Castelli, Michele Nicoletti, Eleonora Nieddu, Elisa Salvadoretti, Beatrice Labella, Ludovico Fava, Maria Cristina Vanuzzo, Vittoria Lisi, Maria Antonello, Carmela Ileana Grimaldi, Chiara Zulian, Claudia Del Vecchio, Mario Plebani, Andrea Padoan, Daniela Maria Cirillo, Alessandra R. Brazzale, Giovanni Tonon, Stefano Toppo, Ilaria Dorigatti, Andrea Crisanti
Summary: The study investigated the long-term antibody persistence in previously infected individuals and the extent of antibody-mediated protection against different SARS-CoV-2 variants in vaccinated and unvaccinated subjects.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Claudia Del Vecchio, Bethan Cracknell Daniels, Giuseppina Brancaccio, Alessandra Rosalba Brazzale, Enrico Lavezzo, Constanze Ciavarella, Francesco Onelia, Elisa Franchin, Laura Manuto, Federico Bianca, Vito Cianci, Anna Maria Cattelan, Ilaria Dorigatti, Stefano Toppo, Andrea Crisanti
Summary: Antigen tests are widely used for COVID-19 population testing, but they have limitations in detecting variant strains of the virus. Molecular testing should be retained alongside antigen testing for surveillance purposes to improve detection accuracy.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Review
Biochemical Research Methods
Emilio Ispano, Federico Bianca, Enrico Lavezzo, Stefano Toppo
Summary: Predicting protein function is a major challenge, and traditional methods can be resource-intensive and time-consuming. Automated protein function prediction techniques, especially those using machine learning, have shown promise in providing faster and cost-effective alternatives. Recent research has focused on improving prediction accuracy using machine learning, with the goal of closing the gap between predicted and experimental evidence.
CURRENT BIOINFORMATICS
(2023)
