scholarly journals Vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals have similar viral loads in communities with a high prevalence of the SARS-CoV-2 delta variant

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasen K Riemersma ◽  
Brittany E Grogan ◽  
Amanda Kita-Yarbro ◽  
Gunnar E Jeppson ◽  
David H O'Connor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Vaccine Coverage ◽  
High Volume ◽  
The United States ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Viral Load Data ◽  
Single Standard

SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.617.2 (delta) is associated with higher viral loads [1] and increased transmissibility relative to other variants, as well as partial escape from polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies [2]. The emergence of the delta variant has been associated with increasing case counts and test-positivity rates, indicative of rapid community spread. Since early July 2021, SARS-CoV-2 cases in the United States have increased coincident with delta SARS-CoV-2 becoming the predominant lineage nationwide [3]. Understanding how and why the virus is spreading in settings where there is high vaccine coverage has important public health implications. It is particularly important to assess whether vaccinated individuals who become infected can transmit SARS-CoV-2 to others. In Wisconsin, a large local contract laboratory provides SARS-CoV-2 testing for multiple local health departments, providing a single standard source of data using the same assay to measure virus burdens in test-positive cases. This includes providing high-volume testing in Dane County, a county with extremely high vaccine coverage. These PCR-based tests provide semi-quantitative information about the viral load, or amount of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, in respiratory specimens. Here we use this viral load data to compare the amount of SARS-CoV-2 present in test-positive specimens from people who self-report their vaccine status and date of final immunization, during a period in which the delta variant became the predominant circulating variant in Wisconsin. We find no difference in viral loads when comparing unvaccinated individuals to those who have vaccine "breakthrough" infections. Furthermore, individuals with vaccine breakthrough infections frequently test positive with viral loads consistent with the ability to shed infectious viruses. Our results, while preliminary, suggest that if vaccinated individuals become infected with the delta variant, they may be sources of SARS-CoV-2 transmission to others.

scholarly journals Routine Use of Quantitative Disease Activity Measurements among US Rheumatologists: Implications for Treat-to-target Management Strategies in Rheumatoid Arthritis

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey R. Curtis ◽  
Lang Chen ◽  
Maria I. Danila ◽  
Kenneth G. Saag ◽  
Kathy L. Parham ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Mail Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Treat To Target ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Quantitative Measurements ◽  
Activity Measurements

Objective.The aim of our study was to examine why real-world practices and attitudes regarding quantitative measurements of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have received limited attention.Methods.An e-mail survey asked US rheumatologists to self-report on their use of quantitative measurements (metric).Results.Among 439 respondents, metric rheumatologists (58%) were more likely to be in group practice and to use tumor necrosis factor inhibitors. The quantitative tools most commonly used were the Health Assessment Questionnaire (35.5%) and the Routine Assessment of Patient Index Data 3 (27.1%). Reasons for not measuring included time needed and electronic availability. Based on simulated case scenarios, providing more quantitative information increased the likelihood that a patient would change to a different disease-modifying antirheumatic drug or biologic.Conclusion.Routine use of quantitative measurement for patients in the United States with RA is increasing over time but remains low.

scholarly journals High prevalence of Lynx rufus gammaherpesvirus 1 in wild Vermont bobcats

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4982 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dagan A. Loisel ◽  
Ryan M. Troyer ◽  
Sue VandeWoude
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Viral Load ◽  
Horizontal Transmission ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
The United States ◽  
Lynx Rufus ◽  
Pcr Analysis ◽  
Dna Viruses ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
High Prevalence

Gammaherpesviruses (GHVs) are host specific DNA viruses that infect a large range of mammalian species. These viruses preferentially target host lymphocyte cell populations and infection may lead to morbidity or mortality in immunocompromised, co-infected, or non-adapted hosts. In this study, we tested for the presence of Lynx rufus gammaherpesvirus 1 (LruGHV1) in a northeastern United States population of wild bobcats (L. rufus). We estimated prevalence of infection and viral load in infected individuals using quantitative real-time PCR analysis of spleen DNA from 64 Vermont bobcats. We observed an overall prevalence of 64% using this methodology. Bobcat age was significantly positively associated with GHV infection status, and we noted a trend for higher viral loads in young animals, but prevalence and viral load were similar in male and female bobcats. A single LruGHV1 variant was identified from the sequencing of the viral glycoprotein B gene of Vermont bobcats. This gene sequence was 100% similar to that reported in Florida bobcats and slightly variant from other isolates identified in the Western USA. Our work suggests broad geographic distribution and high prevalence of LruGHV1 in bobcat populations across the United States with infection attributes that suggest horizontal transmission of the agent. Geographic differences in viral genotype may reflect historical migration and expansion events among bobcat populations.

scholarly journals SNP and Phylogenetic Characterization of Low Viral Load SARS-CoV-2 Specimens by Target Enrichment

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory S. Orf ◽  
Kenn Forberg ◽  
Todd V. Meyer ◽  
Illya Mowerman ◽  
Aurash Mohaimani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
The United States ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Snp Analysis ◽  
Metagenomic Sequencing ◽  
Target Enrichment ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Genome Coverage ◽  
The Public ◽  
Viral Loads

Background: Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 across the globe has enabled detection of new variants and informed the public health response. With highly sensitive methods like qPCR widely adopted for diagnosis, the ability to sequence and characterize specimens with low titers needs to keep pace.Methods: Nucleic acids extracted from nasopharyngeal swabs collected from four sites in the United States in early 2020 were converted to NGS libraries to sequence SARS-CoV-2 genomes using metagenomic and xGen target enrichment approaches. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis and phylogeny were used to determine clade assignments and geographic origins of strains.Results: SARS-CoV-2-specific xGen enrichment enabled full genome coverage for 87 specimens with Ct values <29, corresponding to viral loads of >10,000 cp/ml. For samples with viral loads between 103 and 106 cp/ml, the median genome coverage for xGen was 99.1%, sequence depth was 605X, and the “on-target” rate was 57 ± 21%, compared to 13%, 2X and 0.001 ± 0.016%, respectively, for metagenomic sequencing alone. Phylogenetic analysis revealed the presence of most clades that existed at the time of the study, though clade GH dominated in the Midwest.Conclusions: Even as vaccines are being widely distributed, a high case load of SARS-CoV-2 infection persists around the world. Viral genetic surveillance has succeeded in warning the public of new variants in circulation and ensured that diagnostic tools remain resilient to a steadily increasing number of mutations. Target capture offers a means of characterizing low viral load samples which would normally pose a challenge for metagenomic sequencing.

scholarly journals Kinetics of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the human upper and lower respiratory tracts and their relationship with infectiousness

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruian Ke ◽  
Carolin Zitzmann ◽  
Ruy M. Ribeiro ◽  
Alan S. Perelson
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Respiratory Tract ◽  
Dynamic Models ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Upper Respiratory Tract ◽  
Viral Kinetics ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Viral Load Data ◽  
Upper Respiratory ◽  
Kinetics Of

SARS-CoV-2 is a human pathogen that causes infection in both the upper respiratory tract (URT) and the lower respiratory tract (LRT). The viral kinetics of SARS-CoV-2 infection and how they relate to infectiousness and disease progression are not well understood. Here, we develop data-driven viral dynamic models of SARS-CoV-2 infection in both the URT and LRT. We fit the models to viral load data from patients with likely infection dates known, we estimated that infected individuals with a longer incubation period had lower rates of viral growth, took longer to reach peak viremia in the URT, and had higher chances of presymptomatic transmission. We then developed a model linking viral load to infectiousness. We found that to explain the substantial fraction of transmissions occurring presymptomatically, the infectiousness of a person should depend on a saturating function of the viral load, making the logarithm of the URT viral load a better surrogate of infectiousness than the viral load itself. Comparing the roles of target-cell limitation, the innate immune response, proliferation of target cells and spatial infection in the LRT, we found that spatial dissemination in the lungs is likely to be an important process in sustaining the prolonged high viral loads. Overall, our models provide a quantitative framework for predicting how SARS-CoV-2 within-host dynamics determine infectiousness and represent a step towards quantifying how viral load dynamics and the immune responses determine disease severity.

scholarly journals DWV-A Lethal to Honey Bees (Apis mellifera): A Colony Level Survey of DWV Variants (A, B, and C) in England, Wales, and 32 States across the US

Viruses ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Kevill ◽  
Flaviane S. de Souza ◽  
Christopher Sharples ◽  
Randy Oliver ◽  
Declan C. Schroeder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Viral Load ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
The United States ◽  
Supporting Evidence ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
The Us ◽  
Colony Level

The strong association between Varroa destructor, deformed wing virus (DWV), and high overwintering colony losses (OCL) of honey bees is well established. Three DWV master variants (DWV-A, -B, and -C) have been described, and their role in colony mortality remains an open question. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the seasonal prevalence, viral load, and changing distribution of the three DWV master variants within honey bee colonies from England, Wales, and 32 states across the United States. Here, we report that in 2016, DWV-B was prevalent (100%, n = 249) and dominant (95%) in England and Wales, compared to the US. (56%, n = 217 and 23%, respectively), where DWV-A was prevalent (83%, n = 217) and dominant (63%). DWV-C was regularly detected in low viral loads (<1 × 107 genome equivalents per bee) and at lower prevalence (58% in England and Wales, n = 203, and 14% across the United States, n = 124) compared to DWV-A and -B. DWV-B prevalence and dominance in England and Wales coincided with low OCL (6%). Meanwhile, a 60% loss was reported by participating U.S. beekeepers. In the United States, DWV-A prevalence (89%, n = 18) and viral load were significantly (p = 0.002) higher (1 × 10 8–1 × 1011) in colonies that died when compared to the surviving colonies (49% (n = 27), 1 × 106–1 × 1010). DWV-B had low prevalence (56%, n = 18) in the colonies that died with viral loads of <1 × 1010. However, DWV-B was routinely detected in high viral loads (>1 × 1010) in surviving colonies from all sample locations, providing further supporting evidence of DWV-A exhibiting increased virulence over DWV-B at the colony level.

scholarly journals Lower nasopharyngeal viral load during the latest phase of COVID-19 pandemic in a Northern Italy University Hospital

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (9) ◽  
pp. 1573-1577 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Clementi ◽  
Roberto Ferrarese ◽  
Marco Tonelli ◽  
Virginia Amato ◽  
Sara Racca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Pcr Amplification ◽  
Clinical Severity ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Viral Load Data ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Polymerase Chain

AbstractObjectivesA milder clinical course of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection has been anecdotally reported over the latest phase of COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. Several factors may contribute to this observation, including the effect of lockdown, social distancing, lower humidity, lower air pollution, and potential changes in the intrinsic pathogenicity of the virus. In this regard, the clinical severity of COVID-19 could be attenuated by mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genome that decrease its virulence, as well as by lower virus inocula.MethodsIn this pilot study, we compared the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) amplification profile of 100 nasopharyngeal swabs consecutively collected in April, during the peak of SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, to that of 100 swabs collected using the same procedure in May.ResultsThe mean Ct value of positive samples collected in May was significantly higher than that of samples collected in the previous period (ORF 1a/b gene: 31.85 ± 0.32 vs. 28.37 ± 0.5, p<0.001; E gene: 33.76 ± 0.38 vs. 29.79 ± 0.63, p<0.001), suggesting a lower viral load at the time of sampling. No significant differences were observed between male and females in the two periods, whilst higher viral loads were found in (i) patients over 60-years old, and (ii) patients that experienced severe COVID-19 during the early stages of the pandemic.ConclusionsThis pilot study prompts further investigation on the correlation between SARS-CoV-2 load and different clinical manifestation of COVID-19 during different phases of the pandemic. Laboratories should consider reporting quantitative viral load data in the molecular diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

scholarly journals The HIV Index: Using a Patient-Reported Outcome on Engagement in HIV Care to Explain Sub-Optimal Retention in Care and Virologic Control

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katerina A Christopoulos ◽  
Torsten B Neilands ◽  
Kimberly A Koester ◽  
John A Sauceda ◽  
Samantha E Dilworth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Roc Curves ◽  
Retention In Care ◽  
The United States ◽  
Index Score ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
Odds Ratios ◽  
Patient Reported ◽  
Engagement In Hiv Care

Abstract Background We investigated the prospective association between a brief self-report measure of engagement in HIV care (the Index) and suboptimal retention and viral suppression (VS) outcomes. Methods The CNICS cohort study combines medical record data with patient-reported outcomes from eight HIV clinics in the United States, which from April 2016–March 2017 included the 10-item Index. Multivariable logistic regression (LR) was used to estimate the risk and odds ratios of mean Index score on two outcomes in the subsequent year: 1) not keeping at least 75% of scheduled HIV care appointments, and; 2) for those with VS at Index, having viral load &gt;200 copies/mL on at least one measurement. We also employed generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) to estimate the risk and odds ratios of appointment non-attendance or unsuppressed viral load at any given observation. We generated receiver-operator characteristic (ROC) curves for the full models overlaid with Index as a sole predictor. Results Mean Index score was 4.5 (SD 0.6). Higher Index scores were associated with lower relative risk of suboptimal retention (N=2,576; LR aRR 0.88, 95% CI 0.87 – 0.88; GLMM aRR 0.85, 95% CI 0.83 – 0.87 and lack of sustained VS (N=2,499; LR aRR 0.75, 95% CI 0.68 – 0.83; GLMM aRR 0.74, 95% CI 0.68 – 0.80. Areas under the ROC curve for the full models were 0.69 (95% CI = 0.67 – 0.71) for suboptimal retention and 0.76 (95% CI = 0.72 – 0.79) for lack of sustained VS. Conclusions Index scores are significantly associated with suboptimal retention and VS outcomes.

Cultural Awareness of Students in Communication Sciences and Disorders: A Mixed-Methods Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. 1231-1242
Author(s):  
Celeste Domsch ◽  
Lori Stiritz ◽  
Jay Huff
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
The United States ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Global Awareness ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Study ◽  
Short Term Study

Purpose This study used a mixed-methods design to assess changes in students' cultural awareness during and following a short-term study abroad. Method Thirty-six undergraduate and graduate students participated in a 2-week study abroad to England during the summers of 2016 and 2017. Quantitative data were collected using standardized self-report measures administered prior to departure and after returning to the United States and were analyzed using paired-samples t tests. Qualitative data were collected in the form of daily journal reflections during the trip and interviews after returning to the United States and analyzed using phenomenological methods. Results No statistically significant changes were evident on any standardized self-report measures once corrections for multiple t tests were applied. In addition, a ceiling effect was found on one measure. On the qualitative measures, themes from student transcripts included increased global awareness and a sense of personal growth. Conclusions Measuring cultural awareness poses many challenges. One is that social desirability bias may influence responses. A second is that current measures of cultural competence may exhibit ceiling or floor effects. Analysis of qualitative data may be more useful in examining effects of participation in a short-term study abroad, which appears to result in decreased ethnocentrism and increased global awareness in communication sciences and disorders students. Future work may wish to consider the long-term effects of participation in a study abroad for emerging professionals in the field.

Shale, Quakes, and High Stakes: Regulating Fracking-Induced Seismicity in Oklahoma, USA and Lancashire, UK

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Miriam R. Aczel ◽  
Karen E. Makuch
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Hydraulic Fracturing ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
Seismic Activity ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Oil And Gas Industry ◽  
High Volume ◽  
The United States ◽  
Horizontal Drilling ◽  
Induced Seismic Activity

High-volume hydraulic fracturing combined with horizontal drilling has “revolutionized” the United States’ oil and gas industry by allowing extraction of previously inaccessible oil and gas trapped in shale rock [1]. Although the United States has extracted shale gas in different states for several decades, the United Kingdom is in the early stages of developing its domestic shale gas resources, in the hopes of replicating the United States’ commercial success with the technologies [2, 3]. However, the extraction of shale gas using hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling poses potential risks to the environment and natural resources, human health, and communities and local livelihoods. Risks include contamination of water resources, air pollution, and induced seismic activity near shale gas operation sites. This paper examines the regulation of potential induced seismic activity in Oklahoma, USA, and Lancashire, UK, and concludes with recommendations for strengthening these protections.

scholarly journals Estimation of the incubation period of COVID-19 using viral load data

Epidemics ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 100454
Author(s):  
Keisuke Ejima ◽  
Kwang Su Kim ◽  
Christina Ludema ◽  
Ana I. Bento ◽  
Shoya Iwanami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Incubation Period ◽  
Viral Load Data
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document