BioMOF@cellulose Glycerogel Scaffold with Multifold Bioactivity: Perspective in Bone Tissue Repair.

The development of new biomaterials for musculoskeletal tissue repair is currently an important branch in biomedicine research. The approach presented here is centered around the development of a prototypic synthetic glycerogel scaffold for bone regeneration, which simultaneously features therapeutic activity. The main novelty of this work lies in the combination of an open meso and macroporous nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC)-based glycerogel with a fully biocompatible microporous bioMOF system (CaSyr-1) composed of calcium ions and syringic acid.

Cost-effective fully 3D-printed on-drop electrochemical sensor based on carbon black/polylactic acid: a comparative study with screen-printed sensors in food analysis.

3D-printing technology allows scientist to fabricate easily electrochemical sensors. Until now, these sensors were designed employing a large amount of material, which increases the cost and decreases manufacturing throughput. In this work, a low-cost 3D-printed on-drop electrochemical sensor (3D-PES) was fully manufactured by fused filament fabrication, minimizing the number of printing layers.

Supercritical CO Synthesis of Porous Metalloporphyrin Frameworks: Application in Photodynamic Therapy.

A series of porous metalloporphyrin frameworks prepared from the 5,10,15,20-tetra(4-pyridyl)porphyrin (HTPyP) linker and four metal complexes, M(hfac) M = Cu(II), Zn(II), Co(II), and Ni(II) (hfac: 1,1,1,5,5,5-hexafluoroacetylacetonate), were obtained using supercritical CO (scCO) as a solvent. All the materials, named generically as [M-TPyP] , formed porous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), with surface areas of ∼450 m g. All MOFs were formed through the coordination of the metal to the exocyclic pyridine moieties in the porphyrin linker.

Generation of a high yield vaccine backbone for influenza B virus in embryonated chicken eggs.

Influenza B virus (IBV) strains are one of the components of seasonal influenza vaccines in both trivalent and quadrivalent formulations. The vast majority of these vaccines are produced in embryonated chickens' eggs. While optimized backbones for vaccine production in eggs exist and are in use for influenza A viruses, no such backbones exist for IBVs, resulting in unpredictable production yields.

Coronavirus as the Possible Causative Agent of the 1889-1894 Pandemic.

Using new and original nineteenth-century sources, we analysed the epidemiology, clinical features and virology of the 1889 pandemic, which was referred to at the time as 'Russian flu' or 'Asiatic flu'. However, we rejected this identification of the disease as an 'influenza', which we believe to have been based on insufficient knowledge of the causative agent and instead posit that the pandemic was caused by a coronavirus. We provide a new account of the 1889-1893 pandemic, with a more detailed chronology that included at least four epidemiological waves.

Tuning Photophysical Properties by -Functional Groups in Zn(II) and Cd(II) Complexes with Piperonylic Acid.

Aggregation between discrete molecules is an essential factor to prevent aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ). Indeed, functional groups capable of generating strong hydrogen bonds are likely to assemble and cause ACQ and photoinduced electron transfer processes. Thus, it is possible to compare absorption and emission properties by incorporating two ligands with a different toward intra- and intermolecular interactions that can induce a specific structural arrangement.

Single molecule magnets of cobalt and zinc homo- and heterometallic coordination polymers prepared by a one-step synthetic procedure.

The synthesis of 1D cobalt and zinc monometallic and heterometallic coordination polymers (CPs) was carried out applying one-pot synthetic methods by using either supercritical carbon dioxide or ethanol as the solvent. A collection of four 1D CPs were thus obtained by the combination of a metal (or a mixture of metals) with the linker 1,4-bis(4-pyridylmethyl)benzene. The used metallic complexes were zinc and cobalt hexafluoroacetylacetonate, which can easily incorporate pyridine ligands in the coordination sphere of the metal centre.

Pre-existing Hemagglutinin Stalk Antibodies Correlate with Protection of Lower Respiratory Symptoms in Flu-Infected Transplant Patients.

Hemagglutination-inhibitory antibodies are usually highly strain specific with little effect on infection with drifted or shifted strains. The significance of broadly cross-reactive non-HAI anti-influenza antibodies against conserved domains of virus glycoproteins, such as the hemagglutinin (HA) stalk, is of great interest. We characterize a cohort of 40 H1N1pmd09 influenza-infected patients and identify lower respiratory symptoms (LRSs) as a predictor for development of pneumonia.

Activity of human serum antibodies in an influenza virus hemagglutinin stalk-based ADCC reporter assay correlates with activity in a CD107a degranulation assay.

The stalk of the influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) is an attractive target for antibody-based universal influenza virus vaccine development. While antibodies that target this part of the virus can be neutralizing, it has been shown in recent years that Fc receptor-mediated effector functions are of significant importance for the protective effect of anti-stalk antibodies. Several assays to measure Fc-Fc receptor interaction-based effector functions like antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis exist, but they suffer from limitations such as low throughput and high run-to-run variability.

Viral Fitness Landscapes in Diverse Host Species Reveal Multiple Evolutionary Lines for the NS1 Gene of Influenza A Viruses.

Influenza A viruses (IAVs) have a remarkable tropism in their ability to circulate in both mammalian and avian species. The IAV NS1 protein is a multifunctional virulence factor that inhibits the type I interferon host response through a myriad of mechanisms. How NS1 has evolved to enable this remarkable property across species and its specific impact in the overall replication, pathogenicity, and host preference remain unknown.

Broadly Cross-Reactive, Nonneutralizing Antibodies against Influenza B Virus Hemagglutinin Demonstrate Effector Function-Dependent Protection against Lethal Viral Challenge in Mice.

Protection from influenza virus infection is canonically associated with antibodies that neutralize the virus by blocking the interaction between the viral hemagglutinin and host cell receptors. However, protection can also be conferred by other mechanisms, including antibody-mediated effector functions. Here, we report the characterization of 22 broadly cross-reactive, nonneutralizing antibodies specific for influenza B virus hemagglutinin.

Effects of a home-based participatory play intervention on infant and young child nutrition: a randomised evaluation among low-income households in El Alto, Bolivia.

Background: Stunting affects child survival and is a key indicator of child well-being. Therefore, reducing stunting is a global goal. Improving infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices is a recommended approach to reduce the risk of mortality and ameliorate nutritional status.

Modulating p-hydroxycinnamate behavior as a ditopic linker or photoacid in copper(ii) complexes with an auxiliary pyridine ligand.

The reaction of copper(ii) acetate monohydrate with p-hydroxycinnamic acid (HpOHcinn) and different pyridine derivatives (4-tert-butylpyridine, 4-tBupy; 4-acetylpyridine, 4-Acpy; 3-phenylpyridine, 3-Phpy; 4-phenylpyridine, 4-Phpy) was essayed in methanol solvent at room temperature. The crystal structures of the resulting compounds were elucidated. Their analysis shows that the choice of pyridine ligands determines different coordination modes of the pOHcinn ligand and the Cu(ii) coordination, nuclearity and geometry.

Influenza B virus reverse genetic backbones with improved growth properties in the EB66® cell line as basis for vaccine seed virus generation.

Vaccination remains the best available prophylaxis to prevent influenza virus infections, yet current inadequacies in influenza virus vaccine manufacturing often lead to vaccine shortages at times when the vaccine is most needed, as it was the case during the last influenza virus pandemic. Novel influenza virus vaccine production systems will be crucial to improve public health and safety. Here we report the optimization of influenza B virus growth in the proprietary EB66® cell line, currently in use for human vaccine production.

Specific Mutations in the PB2 Protein of Influenza A Virus Compensate for the Lack of Efficient Interferon Antagonism of the NS1 Protein of Bat Influenza A-Like Viruses.

Recently, two new influenza A-like viruses have been discovered in bats, A/little yellow-shouldered bat/Guatemala/060/2010 (HL17NL10) and A/flat-faced bat/Peru/033/2010 (HL18NL11). The hemagglutinin (HA)-like (HL) and neuraminidase (NA)-like (NL) proteins of these viruses lack hemagglutination and neuraminidase activities, despite their sequence and structural homologies with the HA and NA proteins of conventional influenza A viruses. We have now investigated whether the NS1 proteins of the HL17NL10 and HL18NL11 viruses can functionally replace the NS1 protein of a conventional influenza A virus.

Novel Bat Influenza Virus NS1 Proteins Bind Double-Stranded RNA and Antagonize Host Innate Immunity.

We demonstrate that novel bat HL17NL10 and HL18NL11 influenza virus NS1 proteins are effective interferon antagonists but do not block general host gene expression. Solving the RNA-binding domain structures revealed the canonical NS1 symmetrical homodimer, and RNA binding required conserved basic residues in this domain. Interferon antagonism was strictly dependent on RNA binding, and chimeric bat influenza viruses expressing NS1s defective in this activity were highly attenuated in interferon-competent cells but not in cells unable to establish antiviral immunity.

Exploring a novel preparation method of 1D metal organic frameworks based on supercritical CO2.

The preparation of copper(II) one-dimensional MOFs using an eco-efficient method is reported here. This method is based exclusively on using supercritical CO2 as a solvent, without the addition of any other additive or co-solvent. Neutral acetylacetonate copper complexes and two linear linkers, namely, the bidentate 4,4'-bipyridine and 4,4'-trimethylenedipyridine molecules, were reacted under compressed CO2 at 60 °C and 20 MPa for periods of 4 or 24 h.

Enhancement of the proapoptotic properties of newcastle disease virus promotes tumor remission in syngeneic murine cancer models.

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) is considered a promising agent for cancer therapy due to its oncolytic properties. These include preferential replication in transformed cells, induction of innate and adaptive immune responses within tumors, and cytopathic effects in infected tumor cells due to the activation of apoptosis. To enhance the latter and thus possibly enhance the overall oncolytic activity of NDV, we generated a recombinant NDV encoding the human TNF receptor Fas (rNDV-B1/Fas).

The interferon signaling antagonist function of yellow fever virus NS5 protein is activated by type I interferon.

To successfully establish infection, flaviviruses have to overcome the antiviral state induced by type I interferon (IFN-I). The nonstructural NS5 proteins of several flaviviruses antagonize IFN-I signaling. Here we show that yellow fever virus (YFV) inhibits IFN-I signaling through a unique mechanism that involves binding of YFV NS5 to the IFN-activated transcription factor STAT2 only in cells that have been stimulated with IFN-I.

A single amino acid substitution in the novel H7N9 influenza A virus NS1 protein increases CPSF30 binding and virulence.

Although an effective interferon antagonist in human and avian cells, the novel H7N9 influenza virus NS1 protein is defective at inhibiting CPSF30. An I106M substitution in H7N9 NS1 can restore CPSF30 binding together with the ability to block host gene expression. Furthermore, a recombinant virus expressing H7N9 NS1-I106M replicates to higher titers in vivo, and is subtly more virulent, than the parental virus.

The NS1 protein: a multitasking virulence factor.

The non-structural protein 1 of influenza virus (NS1) is a relatively small polypeptide with an outstanding number of ascribed functions. NS1 is the main viral antagonist of the innate immune response during influenza virus infection, chiefly by inhibiting the type I interferon system at multiple steps. As such, its role is critical to overcome the first barrier the host presents to halt the viral infection.

HIV-1 interacts with human endogenous retrovirus K (HML-2) envelopes derived from human primary lymphocytes.

Unlabelled: Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) are viruses that have colonized the germ line and spread through vertical passage. Only the more recently acquired HERVs, such as the HERV-K (HML-2) group, maintain coding open reading frames. Expression of HERV-Ks has been linked to different pathological conditions, including HIV infection, but our knowledge on which specific HERV-Ks are expressed in primary lymphocytes currently is very limited.

Solution processable titanium dioxide precursor and nanoparticulated ink: application in Dye Sensitized Solar Cells.

Colloidal TiO2 anatase nanoparticles of 4-8 nm diameter capped with 3,6,9-trioxadecanoic acid (TODA) were synthesized at low temperature using water and ethanol as the solvents. ATR-FTIR and (1)H NMR characterization showed the capping acid capability of stabilizing the TiO2 nanoparticles through labile hydrogen bonds. The presence of the capping ligand permitted the further preparation of homogeneous and stable colloidal dispersions of the TiO2 powder in aqueous media.