Experimental assessment of cross-species transmission in a natural multihost-multivector-multipathogen community.

Vector-borne pathogens, many of which cause major suffering worldwide, often circulate in diverse wildlife communities comprising multiple reservoir host and/or vector species. However, the complexities of these systems make it challenging to determine the contributions these different species make to transmission. We experimentally manipulated transmission within a natural multihost-multipathogen-multivector system, by blocking flea-borne pathogen transmission from either of two co-occurring host species (bank voles and wood mice).

A ketogenic diet can mitigate SARS-CoV-2 induced systemic reprogramming and inflammation.

The ketogenic diet (KD) has demonstrated benefits in numerous clinical studies and animal models of disease in modulating the immune response and promoting a systemic anti-inflammatory state. Here we investigate the effects of a KD on systemic toxicity in mice following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our data indicate that under KD, SARS-CoV-2 reduces weight loss with overall improved animal survival.

Interaction of the antiphospholipid syndrome autoantigen beta-2 glycoprotein I with DNA and neutrophil extracellular traps.

Beta-2 glycoprotein I (βGPI) is a phospholipid-binding plasma protein and prominent autoantigen in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Here, we tested the hypothesis that βGPI might bind to not only phospholipids, but also cell-free DNA and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). We report that βGPI interacts with cell-free DNA from different species, as well as NETs, in a dose-dependent manner, retarding their migration in an agarose-gel electrophoretic mobility shift assay.

Response Hand and Motor Set Differentially Modulate the Connectivity of Brain Pathways During Simple Uni-manual Motor Behavior.

We investigated the flexible modulation of undirected functional connectivity (uFC) of brain pathways during simple uni-manual responding. Two questions were central to our interests: (1) does response hand (dominant vs. non-dominant) differentially modulate connectivity and (2) are these effects related to responding under varying motor sets.

Cortical-hippocampal functional connectivity during covert consolidation sub-serves associative learning: Evidence for an active "rest" state.

We studied modulation of undirected functional connectivity (uFC) in cortical-hippocampal sub-networks during associative learning. Nineteen healthy individuals were studied (fMRI acquired on a Siemens Verio 3T), and uFC was studied between nodes in a network of regions identified by standard activation models based on bivariate correlational analyses of time series data. The paradigm alternated between Memory Encoding, Rest and Retrieval.

Salutary effects of glibenclamide during the chronic phase of murine experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.

Background: In multiple sclerosis (MS) and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), inflammation is perpetuated by both infiltrating leukocytes and astrocytes. Recent work implicated SUR1-TRPM4 channels, expressed mostly by astrocytes, in murine EAE. We tested the hypothesis that pharmacological inhibition of SUR1 during the chronic phase of EAE would be beneficial.

Effect of two commercial herbicides on life history traits of a human disease vector, Aedes aegypti, in the laboratory setting.

Some mosquito species utilize the small niches of water that are abundant in farmland habitats. These niches are susceptible to effects from agricultural pesticides, many of which are applied aerially over large tracts of land. One principal form of weed control in agricultural systems involves the development of herbicide-tolerant crops.

Release of neutrophil extracellular traps by neutrophils stimulated with antiphospholipid antibodies: a newly identified mechanism of thrombosis in the antiphospholipid syndrome.

Objective: Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL), especially those targeting β2 -glycoprotein I (β2 GPI), are well known to activate endothelial cells, monocytes, and platelets, with prothrombotic implications. In contrast, the interaction of aPL with neutrophils has not been extensively studied. Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) have recently been recognized as an important activator of the coagulation cascade, as well as an integral component of arterial and venous thrombi.

Price subsidies increase the use of private sector ACTs: evidence from a systematic review.

Background: Although artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) are the recommended first-line treatment for uncomplicated malaria in most endemic countries, they have been prohibitively expensive in the retail sector where many suspected malaria cases purchase treatment. ACT subsidies seek to stimulate consumer demand for the drugs over cheaper but often ineffective alternatives by reducing their prices. Recent evidence from eight regions implementing such subsidies suggests that they are generally successful in improving availability of the drugs and decreasing their retail prices, but it remains unclear whether these outcomes translate to improved use by patients with suspected malaria.

Do patients adhere to over-the-counter artemisinin combination therapy for malaria? evidence from an intervention study in Uganda.

Background: Increasing affordability of artemisinin combination therapy (ACT) in the African retail sector could be critical to expanding access to effective malaria treatment, but must be balanced by efforts to protect the efficacy of these drugs. Previous research estimates ACT adherence rates among public sector patients, but adherence among retail sector purchasers could differ substantially. This study aimed to estimate adherence rates to subsidized, over-the-counter ACT in rural Uganda.