Acute respiratory infection

BACKGROUND: Understanding the association between the immune response and the risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection has implications for forthcoming prevention strategies. We evaluated the association between antibody titers and the risk of infection for the general population during the Omicron-dominant phase. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study of residents or people affiliated with institutions in Bizen City, which included 1,899 participants...

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 was an unprecedented challenge worldwide; however, disease epidemiology has evolved, and COVID-19 no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. Nonetheless, COVID-19 remains a global threat and uncertainties remain, including definition of the end of the pandemic and transition to endemicity, and understanding true rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection/transmission. AREAS COVERED: Six international experts convened (April 2023) to interpret changing COVID-19 epidemiology and public health challenges...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes chronic lung infection in cystic fibrosis (CF), resulting in structural lung damage and progressive pulmonary decline. P. aeruginosa in the CF lung undergoes numerous changes, adapting to host-specific airway pressures while establishing chronic infection. P. aeruginosa undergoes lipid A structural modification during CF chronic infection, not seen in any other disease state. Lipid A, the membrane anchor of lipopolysaccharide (i.e., endotoxin), comprises the majority of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and is a potent toll-like receptor (TLR)4 agonist...

Elderly patients infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 are at higher risk of severe clinical manifestation, extended hospitalization, and increased mortality. Those patients are more likely to experience persistent symptoms and exacerbate the condition of basic diseases with long COVID-19 syndrome. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying severe COVID-19 in the elderly patients remain unclear. Our study aims to investigate the function of the interaction between disease-characteristic genes and immune cell infiltration in patients with severe COVID-19 infection...

Pathogenic infections cause thymic atrophy, perturb thymic T-cell development, and alter immunological response. Previous studies reported dysregulated T-cell function and lymphopenia in coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). However, immunopathological changes in the thymus associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection have not been elucidated. Here, we report that SARS-CoV-2 infects thymocytes, and induces CD4+ CD8+ (double positive; DP) T-cell apoptosis leading to thymic atrophy and loss of peripheral TCR repertoire in K18-hACE2 transgenic mice...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common chronic respiratory illness in older adults. A major cause of COPD-related morbidity and mortality is acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD). Bacteria in the lungs play a role in exacerbation development, and the most common pathogen is non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi). A vaccine to prevent AECOPD containing NTHi surface antigens was tested in a clinical trial. This study measured IgG and IgA against NTHi vaccine antigens in sputum. Sputum samples from 40 COPD patients vaccinated with the NTHi vaccine were collected at baseline and 30 days after the second dose...

Recent literature advocates for delayed or avoidance of catheter drainage of infected peri-pancreatic collections (IPCs) in acute pancreatitis (AP). This may not be realistic for patients at academic centers, many of whom are critically ill. We retrospectively reviewed 72 patients admitted to our institution from 2016-2021 with AP and IPCs. 34.7% had a Bedside Index of Severity in Acute Pancreatitis (BISAP) score ≥3, and 56.9% had a Balthazar score of E. 65.3% were admitted to the ICU, 51.4% experienced respiratory failure, and 47...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The COVID-19 pandemic and the infection of numerous individuals from diverse societies have emerged as major global challenges. Given the limited resources in intensive care units, effective bed management and resource allocation require a deep understanding of the disease. This study aimed to assess the epidemiology and treatment outcomes of COVID-19 patients admitted to an intensive care unit in an Iranian hospital in Neyshabur city. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on COVID-19 patients hospitalized in intensive care units in Razavi Khorasan, Iran in 2021...

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection, which, if untreated, leads to multi-organ failure. One of the severe possible complications is sepsis associated encephalopathy (SAE), a neurological dysfunction occurring secondary to a severe inflammatory response. It manifests as acute cognitive dysfunction and sudden-onset dysfunctions in mental state. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli is the most common pathogen causing bacteremia, responsible for 80% of uncomplicated outpatient urinary tract infections and 40% of nosocomial infections...

The use of devices for tissue dissection and hemostasis during surgery is almost unavoidable. Electrically powered devices such as electrocautery, ultrasonic and laser units produce surgical smoke containing more than a thousand different products of combustion. These include large amounts of carcinogenic, mutagenic and potentially teratogenic noxae. The smoke contains particles that range widely in size, even as small as 0.007 µm. Most of the particles (90%) in electrocautery smoke are ≤6.27 µm in size, but surgical masks cannot filter particles smaller than 5 µm...

BACKGROUND: Mounting evidence supports an association between the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and the risk of infection from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in dental healthcare workers (DCW). However, the prevalence and incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the setting of dental care remains poorly characterized. METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies published prior to Mai 2023 providing epidemiological data for the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 in DCW was performed...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have delineated different neurological manifestations associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Myelitis is identified as a rare neurological complication resulting from a COVID-19 infection. Limited information is available regarding the treatment of patients experiencing this condition. CASE REPORT: This report extracts data from the medical record of a post-COVID-19 myelitis patient at Buriram Hospital and follows up prospectively on the patient's symptoms after treatment...

BACKGROUND: Nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) targeted at SARS-CoV-2 have remarkably affected the circulation of other respiratory pathogens, including respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). This study aimed to assess the changes in epidemiological and clinical characteristics of RSV infections in hospitalized children before and during the pandemic in Suzhou, China. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled children aged < 18 years who were hospitalized in Soochow University Affiliated Children's Hospital with acute lower respiratory infection (ALRIs) from January 2018 to July 2022...

Peppermint (Mentha piperita) is a perennial medicinal plant containing active ingredients that can be used for treating liver and prostate cancers, acute respiratory infections, allergies, digestive problems, neuralgia, and migraines. The objective of this research is to investigate the expression of essential genes in the menthol pathway of Mentha piperita, including Pulegone reductase (Pr), Menthofuran synthase (Mfs), and limonene synthase (Ls) using qPCR, physiological analysis and essential oil composition in response to methyl jasmonate (MeJA) (0...

As the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need to understand patient factors that may be used to predict the occurrence of severe cases and patient mortality. Approximately 20% of SARS-CoV-2 infections lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by the harmful actions of inflammatory mediators. Patients with severe COVID-19 are often afflicted with neurologic symptoms, and individuals with pre-existing neurodegenerative disease have an increased risk of severe COVID-19. Although collectively, these observations point to a bidirectional relationship between severe COVID-19 and neurologic disorders, little is known about the underlying mechanisms...

Optimal activation of stimulator of interferon genes (STING) protein is crucial for host defenses against pathogens and avoiding detrimental effects. Various post-translational modifications control STING activity. However, the function of interferon (IFN)-stimulated gene (ISG) 15 modification (ISGylation) in controlling STING stability and activation is unclear. Here, we show that the E3 ISGylation ligases HECT domain- and RCC1-like domain-containing proteins (HERCs; HERC5 in humans and HERC6 in mice) facilitate STING activation by mediating ISGylation of STING at K150, preventing its K48-linked ubiquitination and degradation...

Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by a low platelet count with increased risk of bleeding, and viral infection may trigger ITP. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection-induced ITP has been increasingly reported. We systemically reviewed the previously reported cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection-induced ITP and identified a total of 105 patients from 68 studies. The median age was 61 years, and 14 patients (12%) were < 18 years old (pediatric cases)...

UNLABELLED: Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), the host receptor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, is differentially expressed in a wide variety of tissues and cell types. The expression of ACE2 is under tight regulation, but the mechanisms regulating ACE2 expression have not yet been well defined. Through a genome-wide CRISPR knockout screen, we discovered that host factors TRAF3, DYRK1A, and RAD54L2 (TDR) form a complex to regulate the expression of ACE2...

The recent COVID-19 pandemic underscored the limitations of currently available direct-acting antiviral treatments against acute respiratory RNA-viral infections and stimulated major research initiatives targeting anticoronavirus agents. Two novel nsp5 protease (MPro) inhibitors have been approved, nirmatrelvir and ensitrelvir, along with two existing nucleos(t)ide analogues repurposed as nsp12 polymerase inhibitors, remdesivir and molnupiravir, but a need still exists for therapies with improved potency and systemic exposure with oral dosing, better metabolic stability, and reduced resistance and toxicity risks...

Objectives: Some people do not fully recover from an acute viral infection and experience persistent symptoms or incomplete recovery for months or even years. This is not unique to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and history shows that post-viral conditions like post COVID-19 condition, also referred to as Long Covid, are not new. In particular, during and after pandemics caused by respiratory viruses in which large parts of the population were infected or exposed, professional and public attention was increased, not least because of the large number of people affected...