Review
Infectious Diseases
Ana Banko, Danijela Miljanovic, Andja Cirkovic
Summary: This study conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 36 publications, finding that the prevalence of active EBV, HHV6, HSV, CMV, HSV1, and VZV infection in COVID-19 patients was 41%, 3%, 28%, 25%, 22%, and 18%, respectively. The risk of active EBV infection in severe COVID-19 patients was 6 times higher than in non-COVID-19 controls. Prioritized research on co-infections of herpesviruses and SARS-CoV-2 is needed to determine who, when, and how to be tested, as well as how to effectively treat HHVs reactivations in acute and long COVID-19 patients.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Andrology
Shaian Tavakolian, Hossein Goudarzi, Nazarian Hamid, Pourya Raee, Sarah Niakan, Ebrahim Faghihloo
Summary: Viral infections, such as Papillomaviridae and Herpesviridae, can lead to infertility. HSV-1 and VZV were found in some semen samples, while HPV infection may be eliminated through sperm washing. Further investigation is needed due to the small sample size.
Review
Microbiology
Takayuki Murata
Summary: The immune system's activation and regulated downregulation are crucial for preventing immune disorders. The PD-1/PD-L1 pathway benefits the host but can also be exploited by pathogens to evade immunity. Herpesviruses like HSV, CMV, and EBV have complex relationships with this pathway and understanding them is essential for developing effective preventative and therapeutic methods.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anna Majewska, Beata Mlynarczyk-Bonikowska
Summary: Herpes simplex viruses and cytomegalovirus are common pathogens with significant impact on immunocompromised patients. Drug-resistant strains and frequent recurrences pose challenges, and congenital infections are particularly concerning. This article explores anti-herpesviral agents, drug resistance mechanisms, and potential treatments like immunotherapy and vaccines.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Frederick K. Ho, Carlos Celis-Morales, Stuart R. Gray, Evangelia Demou, Daniel Mackay, Paul Welsh, S. Vittal Katikireddi, Naveed Sattar, Jill P. Pell
Summary: This study found that shift workers have a higher risk of incident and fatal cardiovascular diseases compared to non-shift workers. Longer duration of shift work, female gender, and jobs with little heavy manual labour increase the risk. Current smoking, short sleep duration and poor sleep quality, adiposity, and metabolic status were identified as the main potentially modifiable mediators. Workplace interventions targeting these mediators can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases among shift workers.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Immunology
Susanna Esposito, Giulia Chiopris, Giulia Messina, Tiziana D'Alvano, Serafina Perrone, Nicola Principi
Summary: CMV is a common cause of congenital infection and non-genetic sensorineural hearing loss in children, with up to 2% of neonates affected, particularly in developing countries. Research on a vaccine to prevent CMV infection faces challenges due to the complex relationship between the host's immune system and the virus, highlighting the need for further studies.
Article
Virology
Chun Kiat Lee, Sau Yoke Ng, Chean Nee Chai, Yu Feng Lim, Tiffany Jingyan Hu, Ogestelli Fabia Lee, Gabriel Yan
Summary: This study reports a case where unbiased metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) was successfully used as a rapid method to confirm dual genital herpes co-infection. mNGS identified specific sequences for HSV-1 or HSV-2, ruling out potential mis-genotyping by the Luminex ARIES assay. The findings suggest that mNGS can serve as a rapid and reliable alternative confirmatory method for dual genital herpes infections.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Juan M. Farina, Kiera Liblik, Pablo Iomini, Andres F. Miranda-Arboleda, Clara Saldarriaga, Ivan Mendoza, Ezequiel J. Zaidel, Jose M. Rubio-Campal, Alvaro Sosa-Liprandi, Adrian Baranchuk
Summary: The burden of cardiovascular diseases is increasing in low- and middle-income countries, and alongside this, there is a recognition of the contribution of neglected tropical diseases and other infections. However, there is limited access to healthcare and insufficient data collection infrastructure, resulting in underestimation of the true impact of these infections on the cardiovascular system. Thorough research and strategies are urgently needed to address this issue in health systems with limited resources.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF CARDIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Mohamed S. Kamel, Rachel A. Munds, Mohit S. Verma
Summary: Herpesviruses, as powerful gene therapy tools, have been extensively used and developed as vaccine vectors to combat infectious diseases and develop cancer-related antigen vaccines. Better understanding of herpesvirus biology and the interactions between viruses and host cells can improve vaccine development and enhance safety and efficacy.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Soudeh Ghafouri-Fard, Bashdar Mahmud Hussen, Hazha Hadayat Jamal, Mohammad Taheri, Guive Sharifi
Summary: Non-coding RNAs, especially lncRNAs and miRNAs, play important roles in regulating viral infections and immune responses. The expression of various host and viral lncRNAs is altered during viral infection, which can either inhibit viral infection, promote viral replication, or suppress antiviral responses.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Irina Anatolyevna Andrievskaya, Irina Valentinovna Zhukovets, Inna Victorovna Dovzhikova, Nataliya Alexandrovna Ishutina, Ksenia Konstantinovna Petrova
Summary: The research aims to evaluate HSV-1 seropositivity among pregnant women and its impact on pregnancy, childbirth, and newborns. The findings suggest that different titers of HSV-1 antibodies during different trimesters are associated with various complications such as threatened miscarriage, anemia, and placental insufficiency.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Cheng Xu, Zhenkun Weng, Liye Zhang, Jin Xu, Maginsh Dahal, Til Bahadur Basnet, Aihua Gu
Summary: Evidence suggests that urinary cadmium and metal mixtures are significantly and positively associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, with urinary cadmium levels being linked to changes in blood lipid levels. HDL cholesterol plays a mediating role in the association between urinary cadmium and the prevalence of CVD.
ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Adrian Filiberti, Grzegorz B. B. Gmyrek, Amanda N. N. Berube, Daniel J. J. Carr
Summary: This study investigated the role of osteopontin (OPN) in corneal inflammation and host resistance to ocular herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 infection. OPN knockout (OPN KO) mice showed increased susceptibility to infection, with higher viral load and decreased expression of immune response markers. However, OPN KO mice exhibited reduced corneal opacity and neovascularization, suggesting a role for OPN in promoting inflammation but also viral replication in the cornea.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Ilina Bhattacharya, Ipsita Volety, Deepak Shukla
Summary: Tank-binding kinase 1 (TBK1) plays a crucial role in defending against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), and the interplay between OPTN, TBK1, and autophagy significantly impacts the outcome of HSV-1 infection.
Article
Virology
Elena Weiss, Thomas Hennig, Pilar Grassl, Lara Djakovic, Adam W. W. Whisnant, Christopher S. S. Juerges, Franziska Koller, Michael Kluge, Florian Erhard, Lars Doelken, Caroline C. C. Friedel
Summary: This study provides a genome-wide analysis of changes in promoter-proximal polymerase II (Pol II) pausing on host genes induced by HSV-1 infection. It shows that standard measures of pausing, i.e., pausing indices, do not properly capture the complex and unsuspected alterations in Pol II pausing occurring in HSV-1 infection. HSV-1 infection leads to a shift of pausing to downstream and less well-positioned sites than in uninfected cells for the majority of host genes. Thus, HSV-1 infection fundamentally reshapes a key regulatory step at the beginning of the host transcriptional cycle on a genome-wide scale.
JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Rebecca C. Stebbins, Grace A. Noppert, Yang Claire Yang, Jennifer B. Dowd, Amanda Simanek, Allison E. Aiello
Summary: Chronic infections like cytomegalovirus (CMV) have been shown to have an association with cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease, particularly among individuals with lower educational resources.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Grace A. Noppert, Rebecca C. Stebbins, Jennifer B. Dowd, Robert A. Hummer, Allison E. Aiello
Summary: This study investigated the association between life course socioeconomic disadvantage and immune response to cytomegalovirus (CMV) among older adults. Findings showed a significant association between educational attainment and parental education with CMV IgG response. This suggests that both early-life and adult SES may contribute to disparities in immunological aging.
JOURNALS OF GERONTOLOGY SERIES B-PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Jose Manuel Aburto, Ridhi Kashyap, Jonas Scholey, Colin Angus, John Ermisch, Melinda C. Mills, Jennifer Beam Dowd
Summary: By analyzing data from England and Wales from week 10 to week 47 in 2020, it was found that COVID-19 led to over 57,000 excess deaths, with higher mortality rates in men. Life expectancy at birth decreased, and lifespan inequality also decreased during the same period.
JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Ashley Z. Ritter, Shoshana Aronowitz, Lindsey Leininger, Malia Jones, Jennifer Beam Dowd, Sandra Albrecht, Alison M. Buttenheim, Amanda M. Simanek, Lauren Hale, Aparna Kumar
Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic and the spread of misinformation have created dual public health crises. Social media provides a new platform for evidence-based communication to reach wider audiences. The Dear Pandemic campaign, led by an interdisciplinary team of female scientists, now has over 97,000 followers globally, highlighting the potential of social media in combating misinformation and guiding individual behavior.
PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Pamela Herd, Melinda C. Mills, Jennifer Beam Dowd
Summary: This paper explores the implications of sociogenomics on social determinants research, with a focus on race and education. It discusses the invalidity of race as a biological or genetic construct, the powerful influence of environments on genetic traits, and the potential risks associated with sociogenomics research. The paper argues for sociologists' meaningful engagement in genetics research, pointing out the lack of attention to history and social structure in shaping genetic influence in the field dominated by psychologists and behaviorists.
JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Jose Manuel Aburto, Jonas Scholey, Ilya Kashnitsky, Luyin Zhang, Charles Rahal, Trifon Missov, Melinda C. Mills, Jennifer B. Dowd, Ridhi Kashyap
Summary: The study analyzed the life tables of 29 countries in 2020, finding that life expectancy at birth declined in most countries from 2019 to 2020, mainly due to increased mortality above age 60 and official COVID-19 deaths. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered significant mortality increases in 2020 on a scale not seen since World War II in Western Europe or the breakup of the Soviet Union in Eastern Europe.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Chloe Mirzayi, Audrey Renson, Fatima Zohra, Shaimaa Elsafoury, Ludwig Geistlinger, Lora J. Kasselman, Kelly Eckenrode, Janneke van de Wijgert, Amy Loughman, Francine Z. Marques, David A. MacIntyre, Manimozhiyan Arumugam, Rimsha Azhar, Francesco Beghini, Kirk Bergstrom, Ami Bhatt, Jordan E. Bisanz, Jonathan Braun, Hector Corrada Bravo, Gregory A. Buck, Frederic Bushman, David Casero, Gerard Clarke, Maria Carmen Collado, Paul D. Cotter, John F. Cryan, Ryan T. Demmer, Suzanne Devkota, Eran Elinav, Juan S. Escobar, Jennifer Fettweis, Robert D. Finn, Anthony A. Fodor, Sofia Forslund, Andre Franke, Cesare Furlanello, Jack Gilbert, Elizabeth Grice, Benjamin Haibe-Kains, Scott Handley, Pamela Herd, Susan Holmes, Jonathan P. Jacobs, Lisa Karstens, Rob Knight, Dan Knights, Omry Koren, Douglas S. Kwon, Morgan Langille, Brianna Lindsay, Dermot McGovern, Alice C. McHardy, Shannon McWeeney, Noel T. Mueller, Luigi Nezi, Matthew Olm, Noah Palm, Edoardo Pasolli, Jeroen Raes, Matthew R. Redinbo, Malte Ruhlemann, R. Balfour Sartor, Patrick D. Schloss, Lynn Schriml, Eran Segal, Michelle Shardell, Thomas Sharpton, Ekaterina Smirnova, Harry Sokol, Justin L. Sonnenburg, Sujatha Srinivasan, Louise B. Thingholm, Peter J. Turnbaugh, Vaibhav Upadhyay, Ramona L. Walls, Paul Wilmes, Takuji Yamada, Georg Zeller, Mingyu Zhang, Ni Zhao, Liping Zhao, Wenjun Bao, Aedin Culhane, Viswanath Devanarayan, Joaquin Dopazo, Xiaohui Fan, Matthias Fischer, Wendell Jones, Rebecca Kusko, Christopher E. Mason, Tim R. Mercer, Susanna-Assunta Sansone, Andreas Scherer, Leming Shi, Shraddha Thakkar, Weida Tong, Russ Wolfinger, Christopher Hunter, Nicola Segata, Curtis Huttenhower, Jennifer B. Dowd, Heidi E. Jones, Levi Waldron
Summary: The STORMS tool is a reporting guideline for human microbiome studies, consisting of a 17-item checklist to help researchers report study results concisely and completely, facilitating manuscript preparation, peer review, and reader comprehension.
Editorial Material
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Lindsey J. Leininger, Sandra S. Albrecht, Alison Buttenheim, Jennifer Beam Dowd, Ashley Z. Ritter, Amanda M. Simanek, Mary-Jo Valentino, Malia Jones
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH PROMOTION
(2022)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Benedetta Pongiglione, George B. Ploubidis, Jennifer B. Dowd
Summary: There are significant differences in health between older adults in the United States and England, including higher prevalence of diabetes, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and high inflammation in the United States. Although extreme obesity is more common in the United States, differences in body mass index (BMI) cannot fully explain the cross-country differences in measured biological risk.
JOURNALS OF GERONTOLOGY SERIES B-PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Sandra S. Albrecht, Shoshana Aronowitz, Alison M. Buttenheim, Sarah Coles, Jennifer Beam Dowd, Lauren Hale, Aparna Kumar, Lindsey Leininger, Ashley Z. Ritter, Amanda M. Simanek, Christine B. Whelan, Malia Jones
Summary: Dear Pandemic is a multidisciplinary social media project aimed at educating and empowering individuals to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic information overload. It disseminates trustworthy scientific content through social media and promotes media literacy and information hygiene practices. With a personal, practical, and responsive approach, it serves as a promising paradigm for public health communication.
PUBLIC HEALTH REPORTS
(2022)
Editorial Material
Medicine, General & Internal
Jennifer Beam Dowd
BMJ-BRITISH MEDICAL JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Elias Nosrati, Jennifer B. Dowd, Michael Marmot, Lawrence P. King
Summary: International financial organizations, such as the IMF, have a significant impact on the developmental paths of financially distressed countries through their conditional lending programs. However, these programs as currently implemented have a harmful effect on population health and contribute to the burden of infectious diseases worldwide.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jose Manuel Aburto, Andrea M. Tilstra, Ginevra Floridi, Jennifer Beam Dowd
Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a decline in global life expectancy, with the United States being heavily affected, particularly among high-income countries. Early data from the United States showed significant differences in life expectancy losses among different races/ethnicities in 2020, with Hispanic and Black Americans experiencing larger losses compared to White people. Various factors such as specific causes of death and ages contribute to these disparities in life expectancy.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Biological
Jonas Schoeley, Jose Manuel Aburto, Ilya Kashnitsky, Maxi S. Kniffka, Luyin Zhang, Hannaliis Jaadla, Jennifer B. Dowd, Ridhi Kashyap
Summary: In 2021, there were diverging impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on life expectancies in different regions, with vaccination rates negatively correlated with life expectancy deficits. Generally, countries in western Europe saw improvements in life expectancy, while those in eastern Europe and the United States experienced sustained deficits.
NATURE HUMAN BEHAVIOUR
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Grace A. Noppert, Rebecca C. Stebbins, Jennifer Beam Dowd, Allison E. Aiello
Summary: This study investigated the variation in immunosenescence among individuals aged 50 and older in the US. The findings showed that older age and lower educational attainment were associated with higher levels of immunosenescence. Minoritized racial and ethnic groups exhibited immune markers suggestive of a more aged immune profile. Race/ethnicity and education were found to be associated with differences in immune ratio measures. This population variation may have important implications for the risk of age-related diseases and vulnerability to emerging pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2.
BRAIN BEHAVIOR AND IMMUNITY
(2023)
