1,720,998 research outputs found

    Neurovirulence factors coding sequences of Herpes simplex virus type 1 map in two distinct genomic loci

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    We studied the Herpes simplex virus type 1 neurovirulence by characterizing two isogenic mutants, named HSV-1(LV) and HSV-1(SV). The two mutants tested "in vivo" differ in neurovirulence by four orders of magnitude. Indeed, the HSV-1(LV) LD50 was 102, whereas the HSV-1 (SV) LD50 was 106. By DNA recombinant technology we transferred the genomic traits encoding for the neurovirulence factors of HSV-1 (LV), the neurovirulent donor strain, to HSV-1 (SV) the non-neurovirulent recipient strain

    SARS-CoV-2 Spike 1 Protein Controls Natural Killer Cell Activation via the HLA-E/NKG2A Pathway

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    Natural killer cells are important in the control of viral infections. However, the role of NK cells during severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection has previously not been identified. Peripheral blood NK cells from SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 naïve subjects were evaluated for their activation, degranulation, and interferon-gamma expression in the presence of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins. K562 and lung epithelial cells were transfected with spike proteins and co-cultured with NK cells. The analysis was performed by flow cytometry and immune fluorescence. SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins did not alter NK cell activation in a K562 in vitro model. On the contrary, SARS-CoV-2 spike 1 protein (SP1) intracellular expression by lung epithelial cells resulted in NK cell-reduced degranulation. Further experiments revealed a concomitant induction of HLA-E expression on the surface of lung epithelial cells and the recognition of an SP1-derived HLA-E-binding peptide. Simultaneously, there was increased modulation of the inhibitory receptor NKG2A/CD94 on NK cells when SP1 was expressed in lung epithelial cells. We ruled out the GATA3 transcription factor as being responsible for HLA-E increased levels and HLA-E/NKG2A interaction as implicated in NK cell exhaustion. We show for the first time that NK cells are affected by SP1 expression in lung epithelial cells via HLA-E/NKG2A interaction. The resulting NK cells' exhaustion might contribute to immunopathogenesis in SARS-CoV-2 infection

    Soluble HLA-G pre-transplant levels to identify the risk for development of infection in heart transplant recipients

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    Infection is still a leading cause of death during the first year after heart transplantation. We evaluated the pre-transplant levels of HLA (Human Leukocyte antigen) - G molecules as a means of identifying heart recipients at risk of serious infections. We prospectively analyzed 122 adult heart transplant (HT) recipients. Serum samples were collected beforetransplantation and analyzed for sHLA-G levels by ELISA assay. The clinical follow-up period lasted 5 years. Clinical outcomes were bacterial infections requiring intravenous anti-microbial agents, cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease, and fungal infections requiring therapy. We found that 39 patients (32%) developed at least 1 serious bacterial infection. Higher pre-transplant sHLA-G levels were a risk factor for serious infection (above median value 5.4 ng/ml; relative risk 3.70; 95% confidence interval 1.03-12.64; p = 0.043). Patients with high levels of pre-transplant sHLA-G are also characterized by a lower overall survival at 5 years (p = 0.017), with microbial infections as major causes of death. No association was observed with the development rejection episode. Early monitoring of sHLA-G molecules proved useful for the identification of heart recipients who are at risk of serious infections

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Reciprocal in vitro interactions between human herpesvirus-6 and HIV-1 Tat.

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    The transactivation induced by human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) on the HIV-1 promoter was studied both in the presence and in the absence of the retroviral transactivator protein (Tat) constitutively expressed in Jurkat cells. Jurkat-tat cells were infected with HHV-6, transfected with a plasmid containing HIV-1 long terminal repeat (LTR)/chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), and CAT assays were performed. HHV-6 infection in the presence of Tat resulted in significantly higher LTR activation than that observed by Tat or HHV-6 alone, indicating that HHV-6 and Tat interact synergically. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that expression of HIV-1 tat inhibits HHV-6 replication, as shown by a 3.6-15.4-fold reduction in infectious yield. We suggest that HHV-6 could trigger HIV reactivation in HIV-seropositive patients which, in turn, could inhibit HHV-6 productio
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