Volume 221, Issue 2, 15 January 2020

Viral dynamics and ecology of influenza A viruses in nonavian wildlife are poorly characterized. Our results indicate that wild African mammals are exposed to different viral strains and that a diet including birds is a key driver of exposure.

Population-based surveillance of acute respiratory infections among Auckland, New Zealand residents during 2012–2015 revealed significantly higher incidence and risk of influenza-related hospitalizations in adults with chronic medical conditions, with the largest effects occurring in CHF, ESRD, CAD, and COPD.

Female mice vaccinated with a Chlamydia trachomatis recombinant major outer membrane protein mounted robust immune responses and were cross-serogroup protected against a chlamydial genital challenge determined by rates of infection, shedding, upper genital tract pathology, and infertility.

Our current study has demonstrated the phenotype and function of human DCs, in particular, human CD141⁺CD11c⁺ and CD1c⁺CD11c⁺ DCs, in a humanized mouse model, which may facilitate the future preclinical assessment of the immunogenicity of human vaccines in vivo.

A correlation between human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) incidence and rectal gonorrhea incidence in men who have sex with men is presented; with exploration of broader implications including the construction of an index that predicts HIV incidence in preexposure prophylaxis trials.

Among human immunodeficiency virus-hepatitis B virus (HIV-HBV) coinfected patients in Zambia, 10.2% experienced hepatitis B surface antigen loss within 2 years of tenofovir-containing antiretroviral therapy. Understanding the mechanisms of HBsAg loss during HIV treatment could inform HBV cure immune therapies.

Concurrent treatment of chronic HCV infection with direct-acting antiviral agents and HIV infection with antiretroviral agents in coinfected patients requires careful consideration of potential drug-drug interactions. Results and implications of clinical studies for glecaprevir/pibrentasvir with 15 antiretroviral agents are summarized.

In a cohort of breastfeeding mother-infant pairs, plasma antibody binding to the gp41 ectodomain was associated with increased odds of transmission. Whether gp41 ectodomain-specific antibodies are directly risk-enhancing or driving immune responses away from protective epitopes is not yet understood.

We examined the association of sanitation and socioeconomic factors with rotavirus seasonality and found that drinking water from tube wells, which are less likely to be contaminated, has a protective effect against rotavirus during the monsoon season in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Factors associated with hepatitis B exposure among National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey participants who reported ever using methamphetamine include female sex, injection drug use, living below the poverty level, and active hepatitis C infection.

p38 MAPK-mediated matrix metalloproteinase-13 expression by influenza A virus infection led to destabilization of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques in the artery.

The optimum fluid management in severe malaria has not been established. In this prospective observational study, restrictive fluid management did not impair kidney function and tissue perfusion, supporting the safety of this approach in adults with severe falciparum malaria.

Intermittent preventive antimalarial therapy of African pregnant women with mefloquine significantly reduced the prevalence of pfmdr N86Y mutants. This demonstrates the impact of interventions on the spread of resistance and how counter-selecting drugs could be exploited to curtail resistance evolution.

Continuous measures of malaria incidence over repeated rounds of indoor residual spraying is needed to better understand the dynamics between IRS and malaria. Our findings indicate that repeated IRS activity in a high-transmission setting significantly reduced malaria incidence in children.

This study identified a protein marker panel on plasma small extracellular vesicles as possible biomarkers for discrimination of community-acquired pneumonia and acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.