scholarly journals A cluster of the new SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.621 lineage in Italy and sensitivity of the viral isolate to the BNT162b2 vaccine

Author(s):  
Serena Messali ◽  
Anna Bertelli ◽  
Giovanni Campisi ◽  
Alberto Zani ◽  
Massimo Ciccozzi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1051
Author(s):  
Brian G. Murphy ◽  
Diego Castillo ◽  
Asli Mete ◽  
Helena Vogel ◽  
Dayna Goldsmith ◽  
...  

Caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV) is a monocyte/macrophage-tropic lentivirus that primarily infects goats resulting in a well-recognized set of chronic inflammatory syndromes focused on the joint synovium, tissues of the central nervous system, pulmonary interstitium and mammary gland. Clinically affected animals generally manifest with one or more of these classic CAEV-associated tissue lesions; however, CAEV-associated renal inflammation in goats has not been reported in the peer-reviewed literature. Here we describe six goats with chronic, multisystemic CAEV infections in conjunction with CAEV-associated renal lesions. One of the animals had CAEV antigen-associated thrombotic arteritis resulting in infarction of both the kidney and heart. These goats had microscopic evidence of inflammatory renal injury (interstitial nephritis) with detectable renal immunolabeling for CAEV antigen in three of six animals and amplifiable proviral sequences consistent with CAEV in all six animals. Cardiac lesions (vascular, myocardial or endocardial) were also identified in four of six animals. Within the viral promoter (U3) region, known transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) were generally conserved, although one viral isolate had a duplication of the U3 A region encoding a second gamma-activated site (GAS). Despite the TFBS conservation, the isolates demonstrated a degree of phylogenetic diversity. At present, the clinical consequence of CAEV-associated renal injury is not clear.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra J. Weisberg ◽  
Haitham A. Elmarakeby ◽  
Lenwood S. Heath ◽  
Boris A. Vinatzer

Abstract Background.  Developing a universal standardized microbial typing and nomenclature system that provides phylogenetic and epidemiological information in real time has never been as urgent in public health as it is today. We previously proposed to use genome similarity as the basis for immediate and precise typing and naming of individual organisms or viruses. In this study, we tested the validity of the proposed system and applied it to the epidemiology of infectious diseases using Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks as the example. Methods.  One hundred twenty-eight publicly available ebolavirus genomes were compared with each other, and average nucleotide identity (ANI) was calculated. The ANI was then used to assign unique codes, hereafter referred to as Life Ide.jpegication Numbers (LINs), to every viral isolate, whereby each LIN consisted of a series of positions reflecting increasing genome similarity. Congruence of LINs with phylogenetic and epidemiological relationships was then determined. Results.  Assigned LINs correlate with phylogeny at the species and infraspecies level and can even ide.jpegy some individual transmission chains during the 2014–2015 EVD epidemic in West Africa. Conclusions.  Life Ide.jpegication Numbers can provide a fast, automated, standardized, and scalable approach to precisely ide.jpegy and name viral isolates upon genome sequence submission, facilitating unambiguous communication during disease epidemics among clinicians, epidemiologists, and governments.


2005 ◽  
Vol 86 (5) ◽  
pp. 1489-1497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Penny Rudd ◽  
Guy Lemay

Mammalian reoviruses exhibit a propensity to replicate in transformed cells. It is currently believed that the interferon-inducible RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR), an intracellular host-cell resistance factor that is inhibited by an activated Ras-dependent pathway in transformed cells, is responsible for this discrimination. In the present study, reovirus isolates differing in their sensitivity to interferon were obtained by chemical mutagenesis, and examined for their replicative properties in parental and Ras-transformed mouse NIH-3T3 cells. It was observed that most isolates can bypass resistance mechanisms of parental cells at high m.o.i., and that there is a correlation between the ability to discriminate between transformed and parental cells, and interferon sensitivity. Most interestingly, an interferon-hypersensitive mutant virus was more dependent on Ras activation than any other viral isolate. Altogether, this suggests that optimal reovirus isolates could be selected to attack tumour cells depending on the nature of the alterations in interferon-inducible pathways found in these cells.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. e52732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristin M. Narayan ◽  
Nitish Agrawal ◽  
Sean X. Du ◽  
Janelle E. Muranaka ◽  
Katherine Bauer ◽  
...  

2001 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 415-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. L. GOLDBERG ◽  
R. M. WEIGEL ◽  
E. C. HAHN ◽  
G. SCHERBA

Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis and partial-genome DNA sequencing are commonly used to infer genetic relationships among pathogens. This study compares the application of both techniques to the analysis of 16 pseudorabies virus isolates collected during a 1989 outbreak. Genetic distances derived from RFLP and DNA sequence data were not significantly correlated with geographic distances between farms from which isolates were collected. RFLP-based genetic distance was, however, strongly correlated with temporal distance between isolates (days separating time of isolation). Sequence-based genetic distance was significantly correlated with temporal distance only when synonymous changes (nucleotide changes not leading to amino acid changes) were considered separately. Conversely, non-synonymous changes were correlated with the host species of origin of the viral isolate. These results indicate that selectively-neutral genetic changes most accurately reflect historical relationships, but that non-neutral changes most accurately reflect the biological environment of the viral isolate (e.g. host immune system).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Divya Kanchibhotla ◽  
Jeetu Pathak ◽  
Hari Venkatesh K.R. ◽  
Ravi reddy ◽  
Monika Pathania

Abstract Introduction: SARS-CoV-2 virus caused COVID-19 pandemic with 218 million cases and 45 million deaths world over. It has challenged the already overburdened healthcare systems and created an urgent need to investigate solutions present in other healthcare systems. In this study Kabasura Kudineer is investigated as an intervention to influence the immune response which is beneficial for the host and stop the viral replication. Methods: Kabasura Kudineer is a polyherbal formulation containing 15 herbal drugs mixed in equal quantity. It is an official Siddha formulation, used for phlegmatic fevers and flu-like symptoms. To conduct this study Vero E6 (CL1008), the African monkey kidney epithelial cell line was taken and infected with SARS-CoV-2 viral isolate. The Kabasura Kudineer was added in different concentrations; 0.5 mg/mL, 0.25 mg/mL, 0.12 mg/mL, 0.06 mg/mL and 0.03 mg/mL to the infected cells respectively. These cell plates were incubated for 3 days in 5% CO2 incubator. Remdesivir was used as a positive control. The cells were fixed with formaldehyde, stained with crystal violet and plaques were visualised. Plaques were counted as PFU/ml. Result: Kabasura Kudineer was found to exhibit good antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. The highest antiviral activity was 81.5% at a concentration of 0.5 mg/ml. The IC-50 value was found to be 0.2 mg/mL. Conclusion: The antiviral efficacy of Kabasura Kudineer in our study showed reduction in the viral load which supports the results of clinical studies. Kabasura Kudineer can be used widely in a clinical setting as a treatment for COVID-19.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiri Zahradnik ◽  
Aekkachai Tuekprakhon ◽  
Helen M Ginn ◽  
Helen M.E. Duyvesteyn ◽  
Mohammad Bahar ◽  
...  

On the 24th November 2021 the sequence of a new SARS CoV-2 viral isolate spreading rapidly in Southern Africa was announced. Omicron contains a total of 30 substitutions plus deletions and an insertion in Spike, far more than any previously reported variant. The mutations include those previously identified by In-vitro evolution to contribute to high-affinity binding to ACE2, including mutations Q498R and N501Y critical in forming additional interactions in the interface. Together with increased charge complementarity between the RBD and ACE2, these substantially increase affinity and potentially virus transmissibility through increased syncytia formation. Further mutations promote immune evasion. We have studied the binding of a large panel of potent monoclonal antibodies generated from early pandemic or Beta infected cases. Mutations in Omicron will likely compromise the binding of many of these and additionally, the binding of antibodies under commercial development, however residual binding should provide protection from severe disease.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chengjin Ye ◽  
Kevin Chiem ◽  
Jun-Gyu Park ◽  
Fatai Oladunni ◽  
Roy Neal Platt ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTAn infectious coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emerged in the city of Wuhan (China) in December 2019, causing a pandemic that has dramatically impacted public health and socioeconomic activities worldwide. A previously unknown coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoV-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been identified as the causative agent of COVID-19. To date, there are no United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved vaccines or therapeutics available for the prevention or treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or associated COVID-19 disease, which has triggered a large influx of scientific efforts to develop countermeasures to control SARS-CoV-2 spread. To contribute to these efforts, we have developed an infectious cDNA clone of the SARS-CoV-2 USA-WA1/2020 strain based on the use of a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC).Recombinant (r)SARS-CoV-2 was readily rescued by transfection of the BAC into Vero E6 cells. Importantly, the BAC-derived rSARS-CoV-2 exhibited growth properties and plaque sizes in cultured cells comparable to those of the SARS-CoV-2 natural isolate. Likewise, rSARS-CoV-2 showed similar levels of replication to that of the natural isolate in nasal turbinates and lungs of infected golden Syrian hamsters. This is, to our knowledge, the first BAC based reverse genetics system for the generation of infectious rSARS-CoV-2 that displays similar features in vivo to that of a natural viral isolate. This SARS-CoV-2 BAC-based reverse genetics will facilitate studies addressing several important questions in the biology of SARS-CoV-2, as well as the identification of antivirals and development of vaccines for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection and associated COVID-19 disease.


Author(s):  
F. K. Lee ◽  
N. Anderson ◽  
F. W. Doane

In 1973 Anderson and Doane described a rapid method for serotyping enteroviruses on the EM grid, using immunoelectron microscopy (IEM). By mixing an unknown viral isolate with individual or pooled enterovirus antisera, the resulting typing test could be read by electron microscopy, using the presence of virus-antibody aggregates as indication of a positive result. The reaction was found to be serotype specific when tested with a wide range of enteroviruses (coxsackie, polio, echo). These results were in contrast to those obtained earlier by Chaudhary et al., who observed cross-reactivity among enteroviruses using IEM. In light of the potential usefulness of this method for rapid virus diagnosis, a study was carried out on some of the experimental factors that might affect the reliability of enterovirus serotyping by IEM.The most important factor in avoiding heterologous cross reactions was found to be the concentration of antiserum. As shown in Table I, when antisera were used at low dilutions they produced aggregation not only with the. homologous virus but also with the heterologous strains.


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