Project description:Background and aims: The intrahepatic processes associated with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), especially in the context of HDV and HIV co-infection, require a better understanding. Spatial transcriptomics can provide new insights into the complex intrahepatic biological processes, guiding new personalized treatments. Our aim is to evaluate this method to characterize the hepatic transcriptional landscape, cellular composition and biological pathways in liver biopsy samples from patients infected with HBV and HDV or HIV co-infection. Method: The GeoMx nanostring Digital Spatial Profiling (DSP) platform was employed to assess expression of HBsAg and CD45 in formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) biopsies from three treatment-naïve patients with chronic HBV and HDV or HIV co-infection. The GeoMx whole transcriptome human atlas assay quantified the expression of genes enriched in specific regions of interest (ROIs). Cell type proportions within ROIs were deconvoluted using a training matrix from the human liver cell atlas. A weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA) evaluated transcriptomic signatures across sampled regions. Results: We identified spatially discrete transcriptomic signatures and distinct biological pathways that associate with HBV infection/disease status and immune responses. Shared features including cytotoxicity and B cell receptor signaling were consistent across patients, suggesting common elements alongside individual traits. HDV/HBV co-infection exhibited upregulated genes linked to apoptosis and immune cell recruitment, whereas HIV/HBV co-infection featured genes related to interferon response regulation. Varied cellular characteristics and immune cell populations, with an abundance of T cells in the HDV/HBV sample, were observed within analyzed regions. Transcriptional differences in hepatocyte function suggest disrupted metabolic processes in HDV/HBV co-infection potentially impacting disease progression. Conclusion: This proof-of-principle study shows the value of this platform in investigating the complex immune landscape highlighting relevant host pathways to disease pathogenesis.

Project description:Co-infection with soil transmitted helminths (STH) and Plasmodium spp. parasites is a common occurrence in tropical developing countries, but the consequences of this interaction remain poorly understood. Here, we performed a multi-omic analysis on the peripheral blood and fecal samples of 130 individuals in Tierralta, Córdoba, Colombia who were infected with P. vivax alone (n = 33), co-infected with P. vivax and STH (n = 27), infected with STH alone (n = 39) or were infected with neither P. vivax nor STH (n = 31). In addition to Complete Blood Count (CBC) with differential, transcriptional profiling of peripheral blood samples was performed by RNA-Seq, fecal microbial communities were determined by 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing and circulating cytokine levels were measured by bead-based immunoassays. Differences in blood cell counts were driven primarily by P. vivax infection, including an increased percentage of neutrophils that was associated with a transcriptional signature of neutrophil activation in the blood. P. vivax infection was also associated with increased levels of IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10 and these cytokine levels were not affected by STH co-infection. Surprisingly, P. vivax infection was more strongly associated with changes in the microbiome than STH infection. Children infected with P. vivax exhibited elevated Bacteroides and reduced Prevotella and Clostridiaceae, but these differences were not observed in individuals co-infected with STH. We also observed that P. vivax parasitemia is higher in STH-infected population. When we used machine learning to identify the most important predictors of P. vivax parasite burden from all measured variables, bacterial taxa were the strongest predictors of parasitemia levels in P. vivax infected individuals. In contrast, circulating TGF- β was identified as the strongest predictor of T. trichiura egg burden. This study provides unexpected evidence that the gut microbiota may have a stronger link with P. vivax than with STH infection.

Project description:Polymicrobial infections are intrinsically less susceptible to antimicrobial therapy, are more invasive and can induce enhanced inflammatory responses leading to negative clinical outcomes. The importance of studying the interaction between microbes themselves and their interactions with their host in combination has only been realised in recent years. However, there is a lack of simple, effective and low cost in vivo models to study these interactions with the host immune response. This study details the responses of Galleria mellonella larvae to disseminated combination infection by C. albicans and S. aureus and demonstrates the efficacy of antimicrobial chemotherapy on treating co-infected larvae. Doses of C. albicans (1 × 105 larva-1) and S. aureus (1 × 104 larva-1) which were non-lethal in mono-infection, when combined significantly lowered larval survival at (70 ± 3.33% [p < 0.01]), 48 (10 ± 3.33% [p < 0.0001]) and 72h (5 ± 6.66% [p < 0.0001]) h relative to larvae receiving S. aureus 2 × 104 larva-1 mono-infection. Co-infected larvae with S. aureus 2 × 104 larva-1 resulted in an increase in the density of circulating hemocytes relative to S. aureus mono-infected larvae. Co-infected larvae displayed a significantly higher overall S. aureus c.f.u larva-1 compared to larvae only infected with S. aureus. Co-infection resulted in dissemination throughout the host and the appearance of large nodules. Proteomic analysis of co-infected larval hemolymph revealed specific immune responses to bacterial and fungal infection by the increased abundance of a range of antimicrobial peptides, peptidoglycan, lipopolysaccharide and β-glucan recognition proteins and proteins associated with tissue invasion and nodule formation. The in vitro and in vivo efficacy of empirical antimicrobial drugs (amphotericin B & meropenem) was examined against C. albicans and S. aureus was also examined. meropenem was more effective than amphotericin B but a combination was most effective at improving survival of co-infected larvae. The effect of antimicrobial therapy on symptoms associated with co-infection was also assessed using Cryo-imaging. The processes of polymicrobial co-infection in G. mellonella are compared to those in mice models and larvae provide an easy to use and ethically acceptable in vivo system to assess polymicrobial interactions with their host.

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Co-Infection Samples

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