Project description:Bovine respiratory epithelial cells have different susceptibility to bovine
respiratory syncytial virus infection. The cells derived from the lower
respiratory tract were significantly more susceptible to the virus than those
derived from the upper respiratory tract. Pre-infection with virus of lower
respiratory tract with increased adherence of P. multocida; this was not the
case for upper tract. However, the molecular mechanisms of enhanced
bacterial adherence are not completely understood. To investigate whether
virus infection regulates the cellular adherence receptor on bovine trachea-,
bronchus- and lung-epithelial cells, we performed proteomic analyses.
Project description:Ureaplasma are widespread parasites colonizing the mucosal surface of the human urogenital tract, and it has been suspected as a causative agent of nongonococcal urethritis, pregnancy complications and prenatal infections. Ureaplasma may also cause central nervous system infections and affect the lower respiratory tract of newborn babies. However, Ureaplasma spp. have also been detected in the urogenital tracts of clinically healthy patients, and their role in the development of infections thus remains unclear. Like in other organisms, virulence of Ureaplasma is determined by the presence of virulence factors - adhesions, human IgA protease, phospholipase and urease. However, the existence of interrelationships between the presence of these genes in the Ureaplasma genome and the incidence of diseases in man has not been demonstrated. Difficulties in the elucidation of these interrelationships may arise from significant macro- (gene mutation, chromosomal rearrangements) and micro- (nucleotide polymorphism) genomic heterogeneity. It is possible that the combination of the variable strain-specific genes in Ureaplasma with generally known virulence factors determine the development of pathological processes on the mucosal surface of the human urogenital tract. In our research we used 10 clinical and 1 laboratory strain
Project description:Acute respiratory infections (ARI), which generally begin with colonization of the mucosal surfaces of the upper respiratory tract (URT), are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality with the highest rate in infants. As a common colonizer of the URT, and one of the most prevalent causes of life-threatening infections in the pediatric population, Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) was used as a model pathogen to investigate the effect of age during URT infection. We used RNA-sequencing to transcriptionally profile and compare the mucosal epithelia of infant and adult mice at baseline (mock-infected) and during Spn infection. Analysis of the screen revealed an age-dependent alteration of genes involved in mucosal defense mechanisms that included dampened expression of ubiquitous antimicrobial molecules and tight junction proteins in infant mice compared to adults. These results demonstrate a window of vulnerability during postnatal development when altered mucosal barrier function may facilitate bacterial colonization and invasion.
Project description:Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are key players during an immune response at the mucosal surfaces, such as lung, skin, and gastrointestinal tract. Giardia lamblia is an extracellular protozoan pathogen that inhabits the human small intestine. In this study, an ILC-containing fraction (ICF) were prepared from the lamina propria of murine small intestine and incubated with G. lamblia trophozoites in the presence of transwell membranes. Transcriptional changes in Giardia-exposed ICFs were examined by RNA-seq analysis, resulting in identification of activation of several immune pathways.
Project description:Respiratory tract vaccination has an advantage of needle-free delivery and induction of mucosal immune response in the portal of SARS-CoV-2 entry. We utilized human parainfluenza virus type 3 vector to generate constructs expressing the full spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2, its S1 subunit, or the receptor-binding domain, and tested them in hamsters as single-dose intranasal vaccines. The construct bearing full-length S induced high titers of neutralizing antibodies specific to S protein domains critical to the protein functions. Robust tissue-resident T cell responses in the lungs were also induced, which represent an additional barrier to infection and should be less sensitive than the antibody responses to mutations present in SARS-CoV-2 variants. Following SARS-CoV-2 challenge, animals were protected from the disease and detectable viral replication. Vaccination prevented induction of gene pathways associated with inflammation. These results indicate advantages of respiratory vaccination against COVID-19 and inform the design of mucosal SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.
Project description:Ureaplasma are widespread parasites colonizing the mucosal surface of the human urogenital tract, and it has been suspected as a causative agent of nongonococcal urethritis, pregnancy complications and prenatal infections. Ureaplasma may also cause central nervous system infections and affect the lower respiratory tract of newborn babies. However, Ureaplasma spp. have also been detected in the urogenital tracts of clinically healthy patients, and their role in the development of infections thus remains unclear. Like in other organisms, virulence of Ureaplasma is determined by the presence of virulence factors - adhesions, human IgA protease, phospholipase and urease. However, the existence of interrelationships between the presence of these genes in the Ureaplasma genome and the incidence of diseases in man has not been demonstrated. Difficulties in the elucidation of these interrelationships may arise from significant macro- (gene mutation, chromosomal rearrangements) and micro- (nucleotide polymorphism) genomic heterogeneity. It is possible that the combination of the variable strain-specific genes in Ureaplasma with generally known virulence factors determine the development of pathological processes on the mucosal surface of the human urogenital tract. Keywords: macroarray, variability of genome, Ureaplasma parvum
Project description:This series includes 278 microarrays used to detect respiratory viruses in a set of nasopharyngeal lavage specimens from children with respiratory tract infections Objective: To assess the utility of a pan-viral DNA microarray platform (Virochip) in the detection of viruses associated with pediatric respiratory tract infections. Study Design: The Virochip was compared to conventional clinical direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) and PCR-based testing for the detection of respiratory viruses in 278 consecutive nasopharyngeal aspirate samples from 222 children. Results: The Virochip was superior in performance to DFA, showing a 19% increase in the detection of 7 respiratory viruses included in standard DFA panels, and was similar to virus-specific PCR (sensitivity 85-90%, specificity 99%, PPV 94-96%, NPV 97-98%) in the detection of respiratory syncytial virus, influenza A, and rhino-/enteroviruses. The Virochip also detected viruses not routinely tested for or missed by DFA and PCR, as well as double infections and infections in critically ill patients that DFA failed to detect. Conclusions: Given its favorable sensitivity and specificity profile and greatly expanded spectrum of detection, microarray-based viral testing holds promise for clinical diagnosis of pediatric respiratory tract infections. Keywords: viral detection The series includes 278 clinical specimens