scholarly journals Improving the Breadth of the Host’s Immune Response to Lassa Virus

Pathogens ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Zapata ◽  
Sandra Medina-Moreno ◽  
Camila Guzmán-Cardozo ◽  
Maria Salvato

In 2017, the global Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI) declared Lassa virus disease to be one of the world’s foremost biothreats. In January 2018, World Health Organization experts met to address the Lassa biothreat. It was commonly recognized that the diversity of Lassa virus (LASV) isolated from West African patient samples was far greater than that of the Ebola isolates from the West African epidemic of 2013–2016. Thus, vaccines produced against Lassa virus disease face the added challenge that they must be broadly-protective against a wide variety of LASV. In this review, we discuss what is known about the immune response to Lassa infection. We also discuss the approaches used to make broadly-protective influenza vaccines and how they could be applied to developing broad vaccine coverage against LASV disease. Recent advances in AIDS research are also potentially applicable to the design of broadly-protective medical countermeasures against LASV disease.

Author(s):  
Zen Ahmad

Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19) is a contagious disease caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which was discovered in December 2019 in China. This disease can cause clinical manifestations in the airway, lung and systemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) representative of China reported a pneumonia case with unknown etiology in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China on December 31, 2019. The cause was identified as a new type of coronavirus on January 7, 2020 with an estimated source of the virus from traditional markets (seafood market). ) Wuhan city


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 7-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anamary Súarez Reyes ◽  
Carlos Agustín Villegas Valverde

Characteristics and Specialization of the Immune Response in COVID-19 Abstract The outbreak of coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China, became a pandemic on March 11, 2020. It has caused almost 4 million confirmed cases worldwide, with more than 270,000 deaths. Coronavirus is an enveloped RNA virus of the β-coronavirus genus distributed in birds, humans, and other mammals. The World Health Organization has named the new disease COVID-19. The scientific community is look http://doi.org/10.22201/fm.24484865e.2020.63.4.02 8 8 Revista de la Facultad de Medicina de la UNAM | ing for evidence that can lead to a better understanding of the infection and the immune response (IR), prognostic and therapeutic predictors, effective treatments and vaccines. The objective of this review was to compile updated scientific evidence of the IR to COVID-19, in order to guide professionals with solutions that have a clinical impact. The most important elements involve innate immunity with failures in the interferon system in the early stages of the infection and a sustained increase in proinflammatory interleukins. This can end in a potentially fatal cytokine storm. The infiltration of neutrophils and macrophages at the alveolar level, accompanied by neutrophilia, is very characteristic. Lymphopenia is evident at the adaptive immunity level, that, depending on the degree, can indicate the severity of the disease. Understanding the temporal sequence of the IR is crucial for choosing the appropriate and effective therapies, especially when selecting which type of anti-inflammatory drugs can be used and the frequency of the dosage. Due to the fact that it is difficult to determine when they will be clearly beneficial, not harmful to the IR and not too late, due to the irreversibility of the process. Key words: COVID-19; coronavirus; immune response


2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
Winny Zilkhalida Hadi ◽  
Rika Ampuh Hadiguna

The west coast of Sumatera island is one of potential areas of the earthquake and tsunami that requires high vigilance and preparedness seriously. One is the well-prepared-disaster logistics system. World Health Organization (WHO) has been divided into 10 categories of logistics, including the temporary shelter. The purpose of this study is to study attributes that should be required for the mosque as a shelter for victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Padang and provide recommendations to the government of Padang to prepare the mosque as a shelter. Formulation of mosque attributes as a shelter eligibility has been obtained through literature review and interviews. Attributes have been formulated in the form of questionnaires that filled out by prospective refugees of the earthquake and tsunami in Padang . Result of questionnaire has been used to build the House of Quality (HOQ). Furthermore, a SWOT analysis has been conducted to formulate a strategy for local government in an effort to empower mosques as shelters in Padang. This research has resulted 14 attributes of feasibility mosque as a shelter. Attributes divided into seven categories. Strategies that result based SWOT analysis have nine formulations that consists of two SO strategies, four WO strategies, two ST strategies, and one WT strategies. Implementation of this strategies required responsibility and cooperation between government, community, NGO, and leaders. Keywords: strategy, logistics, mosque, QFD, SWOT analysis AbstrakPantai barat pulau Sumatera merupakan salah satu potensi daerah gempa dan tsunami yang membutuhkan kewaspadaan tinggi dan kesiapan serius. Salah satunya adalah sistem logistik disiapkan bencana. Organisasi Kesehatan Dunia (WHO) telah membagi menjadi 10 kategori logistik termasuk tempat penampungan sementara. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mempelajari atribut yang harus diperlukan untuk masjid sebagai tempat penampungan bagi korban gempa dan tsunami di Padang dan memberikan rekomendasi kepada Pemerintah Kota Padang untuk menyiapkan masjid sebagai tempat berlindung. Perumusan masjid atribut sebagai kelayakan penampungan telah diperoleh melalui kajian pustaka dan wawancara. Atribut telah dirumuskan dalam bentuk kuesioner yang diisi oleh calon pengungsi dari gempa dan tsunami di Padang. Hasil kuesioner telah digunakan untuk membangun Rumah Kualitas (HOQ). Selain itu, analisis SWOT telah dilakukan untuk merumuskan strategi bagi pemerintah daerah dalam upaya memberdayakan masjid sebagai tempat penampungan di Padang. Penelitian ini telah menghasilkan 14 atribut kelayakan masjid sebagai tempat berlindung. Atribut dibagi menjadi tujuh kategori. Strategi yang hasil yang didasarkan analisis SWOT memiliki sembilan formulasi yang terdiri dari dua SO strategi, empat WO strategi, dua strategi ST, dan satu strategi WT. Pelaksanaan strategi ini diperlukan tanggung jawab dan kerjasama antara pemerintah, masyarakat, LSM, dan pemimpin.Kata Kunci : strategi, logistik, masjid, QFD, analisis SWOT


The outbreak of emerging severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) disease (COVID-19) in China has been brought to global attention and declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. In a recent study of Nanshan Chen et al., on patients of Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China, from the 99 patients with SARSCoV-2 infection, 51% had chronic diseases and they had symptoms of fever (83%), cough (82%) shortness of breath (31%), muscle ache (11%), fatigue (9%), headache (8%), sore throat (5%), rhinorrhea (4%), chest pain (2%), diarrhea (2%), and nausea and vomiting (1%) [1, 2]. The majority of patients can recover, however, about 25% of patients will progress into severe complications including acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), which may worsen rapidly into respiratory failure, need an intensive care unit (ICU) and even cause multiple organ failure [3]. Depending on the pathophysiological mechanisms supposed to be involved in the development of the various clinical forms of the disease, various types of treatment have been tested with varying degrees of success. We have developed a nanotherapy to block the entry of the virus into the host cell, to reduce its potential for replication and to regulate the immune response against the microbial aggressor [4].


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. e1009966
Author(s):  
Derek R. Stein ◽  
Bryce M. Warner ◽  
Jonathan Audet ◽  
Geoff Soule ◽  
Vinayakumar Siragam ◽  
...  

Nigeria continues to experience ever increasing annual outbreaks of Lassa fever (LF). The World Health Organization has recently declared Lassa virus (LASV) as a priority pathogen for accelerated research leading to a renewed international effort to develop relevant animal models of disease and effective countermeasures to reduce LF morbidity and mortality in endemic West African countries. A limiting factor in evaluating medical countermeasures against LF is a lack of well characterized animal models outside of those based on infection with LASV strain Josiah originating form Sierra Leone, circa 1976. Here we genetically characterize five recent LASV isolates collected from the 2018 outbreak in Nigeria. Three isolates were further evaluated in vivo and despite being closely related and from the same spatial / geographic region of Nigeria, only one of the three isolates proved lethal in strain 13 guinea pigs and non-human primates (NHP). Additionally, this isolate exhibited atypical pathogenesis characteristics in the NHP model, most notably respiratory failure, not commonly described in hemorrhagic cases of LF. These results suggest that there is considerable phenotypic heterogeneity in LASV infections in Nigeria, which leads to a multitude of pathogenesis characteristics that could account for differences between subclinical and lethal LF infections. Most importantly, the development of disease models using currently circulating LASV strains in West Africa are critical for the evaluation of potential vaccines and medical countermeasures.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia Bainga Kangbai ◽  
Ahmed Alameldeen

Abstract Background In Early August 2014, the World Health Organisation declared an Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in the region of West Africa. The West African EVD outbreak was the largest, most severe, and complex in the nearly four-decade history of this disease. The management of EVD cases in Liberia was similar to the other affected West African countries. Methods We reviewed the method and strategies used by some of the international humanitarian organisations in handling the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreak in Liberia. This report is a collection of personal field experiences in Liberia as well as personal interviews of healthcare personnel working for some of these international organisations working on the Ebola emergency in Liberia. Findings Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) was the first humanitarian NGO to deploy medical staff to the field in Liberia during the 2013-2016 EVD outbreak. MSF staffs were already operating in Liberia even before the declaration of the outbreak in August 2014.Conclusions The slow response by the international humanitarian organisations to lend their support in bringing the EVD outbreak to and exhibited the fear the international community have for deadly infectious diseases more than armed conflicts.Recommendations We recommend regularly training in public health emergency preparedness for third world countries that are highly susceptible to health emergencies such as Ebola outbreak to help prepared them ahead of such outbreak.


2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 67-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. B. Asare

Ghana is a West African state that attained independence from Great Britain in 1957 and became a republican state in 1960. Its population is about 22 million (2004 estimate), distributed in ten regions. The World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated that 650000 of the population are suffering from severe mental disorder and 2166000 are suffering from moderate to mild mental disorder (see www.who.int/mental_health/policy/country/ghana/en).


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