Evaluation of Soluble Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor in COVID-19 Patients.

This retrospective study analyzed soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) plasma levels alongside routine inflammatory markers, including the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte count ratio, C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), procalcitonin (PCT), and D-dimers in COVID-19 patients hospitalized during the Omicron wave of the pandemic. We measured plasma suPAR levels using a suPARnostic Quick Triage kit. We divided COVID-19 patients into two groups based on the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) criteria.

Specific immune responses after BNT162b2 mRNA vaccination and COVID-19 infection.

Although vaccines against COVID-19 are effective tools in preventing severe disease, recent studies have shown enhanced protection after vaccine boosters. The aim of our study was to examine the dynamics and duration of both humoral and cellular immune responses following a three-dose regimen of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine. In a longitudinal prospective study we enrolled 86 adults who received the BNT162b2 vaccine, 35 unvaccinated individuals with a history of mild COVID-19 and a control group of 30 healthy SARS-CoV-2 seronegative persons.

Multilocular infection caused by hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Hypervirulent strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) can cause atypical multilocular infections in otherwise healthy patients. Diagnosis of infection caused by hvKP is based mainly on clinical findings and laboratory results, including detection of virulence genes. It typically manifests as hepatic abscess with metastatic spread.

Elevated regulatory T cells after antibiotic treatment of infectious spondylodiscitis as biomarker of recovery?

Dysregulated systemic immune responses during infectious spondylodiscitis (IS) may impair microbial clearance and bone resorption. Therefore, the aim of the study was to examine whether circulating regulatory T cells (Tregs) are elevated during IS and whether their frequency is associated with alterations in T cells and the presence of markers of bone resorption in the blood. A total of 19 patients hospitalized with IS were enrolled in this prospective study.

Decreased quality of care for Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objectives: Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is one of the most frequent bloodstream infections. High mortality of SAB can be significantly reduced by regular infectious disease (ID) consultations and appropriate clinical management. Because the pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a negative impact on hospital ID service, it can be assumed that it has also led to decreased quality of care for SAB patients.

Acute phase of COVID-19 is associated with elevated plasmablasts in the blood.

Objectives: The study was aimed at the characterization of humoral immunity in acute SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Background: Humoral immunity plays a central role in the protection from infection due to SARS-CoV-2, causative agent of coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19).

Patients And Methods: In 24 adult patients hospitalized with COVID-19, the functional subsets of circulating B-lymphocytes and SARS-CoV-2 specific IgA and IgG antibodies were analyzed using a flow cytometry and immunoassays, respectively.

Salmonella Paratyphi Infection: Use of Nanopore Sequencing as a Vivid Alternative for the Identification of Invading Bacteria.

In our study we present an overview of the use of Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) sequencing technology on the background of Enteric fever. Unlike traditional methods (e.g.

Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection Modulates the Transcriptional Profiles of CD4 T Cells.

Background: Chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is associated with altered cell-mediated immune response.

Objective: The aim of the study was to characterize functional alterations in CD4 T cell subsets and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) during chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. .

Data from the first wave of Covid-19 from the Central Military Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic.

Aims: To process data from the first wave of Covid-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) collected in the Infectious Diseases Clinic (IDC) of the First Faculty of Medicine and Central Military Hospital, Prague. To analyse some clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of Covid-19 in the context of the Czech Republic and to compare them with the data from the most recent literature.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective study analysed data on patients admitted to the IDC between 12 March 2020 and 5 May 2020.

Frequent Recurrences of Genital Herpes Are Associated with Enhanced Systemic HSV-Specific T Cell Response.

Objectives: Genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection is controlled by HSV-specific T cells in the genital tract, and the role of systemic T cell responses is not fully understood. Thus, we analysed T cell responses in patients with recurrent genital herpes (GH).

Methods: T cell responses to HSV-1 and HSV-2 native antigens and the expression of HLA-DR and CD38 molecules on circulating CD8+ T cells were analysed in adults with high frequency of GH recurrences (19 patients) and low frequency of GH recurrences (7 patients) and 12 HSV-2 seronegative healthy controls.

Antithrombin as a marker of severe acute hepatitis B.

Background: Acute hepatitis B (AHB) can run a severe course, which sometimes leads to a fulminant disease with acute liver failure (ALF). Pro-coagulation factors are well-established markers of AHB severity, but less is known about the levels of anti-coagulation parameters in AHB.

Methods: In this study, we demonstrate that antithrombin (AT) plasma levels were associated with AHB severity in 161 patients.

Calprotectin and calgranulin C serum levels in bacterial sepsis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum levels of calprotectin and calgranulin C and routine biomarkers in patients with bacterial sepsis (BS). The initial serum concentrations of calprotectin and calgranulin C were significantly higher in patients with BS (n = 66) than in those with viral infections (n = 24) and the healthy controls (n = 26); the level of calprotectin was found to be the best predictor of BS, followed by the neutrophil-lymphocyte count ratio (NLCR) and the level of procalcitonin (PCT). The white blood cell (WBC) count and the NLCR rapidly returned to normal levels, whereas PCT levels normalized later and the increased levels of calprotectin, calgranulin C, and C-reactive protein persisted until the end of follow-up.

Bacteremia due to Staphylococcus aureus - the importance of appropriate management.

Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is the most common cause of severe bloodstream infections with high incidence and lethality. The diagnosis of SAB must be followed by an appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic management. The aim of the study was to identify clinical and epidemiological characteristics of SAB cases treated in the Central Military Hospital Prague and to assess compliance with the guidelines for diagnosis and thera-py.

[New definitions for sepsis and septic shock - Sepsis-3].

The article discusses new definitions for sepsis and septic shock called Sepsis-3. The definitions are put in the historical and factual context of the 1992 definition and their extended 2003 version. Also mentioned are potential impacts on clinical practice, with it-being clear that the new definition shifts the sepsis issues more to intensive care as it emphasizes organ failure.

Effect of antiviral treatment of chronic hepatitis C on the frequency of regulatory T cells, T-cell activation, and serum levels of TGF-beta.

The aim was to analyze T-regulatory cells (Tregs), activated CD8(+) T cells, and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF)-β in hepatitis C patients. We enrolled 31 patients with chronic genotype 1 hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, 30 seropositive persons with spontaneous HCV elimination, and 23 healthy volunteers. The patients were examined at the beginning of the interferon-alpha (IFN-α)-based therapy (baseline) and at weeks 4 (W4) and 12 (W12) of the therapy.

[Immune response in the pathogenesis of hepatitis C virus infection].

The pathogenesis of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is regulated by the host immunity and several metabolic factors affecting liver metabolism, including oxidative stress, insulin resistance, and hepatic steatosis. Both innate and adaptive immunity play an important role in HCV infection. Cytotoxic lymphocytes have a crucial role in viral eradication or viral persistence.

The Effect of Latent Toxoplasma gondii Infection on the Immune Response in HIV-Infected Patients.

A relationship between latent toxoplasmosis and the immune system during HIV disease is poorly understood. Therefore, the aim of this follow-up study was to characterize immunological parameters in HIV-infected patients with latent toxoplasmosis and noninfected individuals. A total of 101 HIV-infected patients were enrolled in the study.

[Toxoplasmosis in immunocompromised patients].

In humans, toxoplasmosis mostly occurs as a latent infection, but in immunocompromised individuals, the agent may reactivate and cause severe to life-threatening disease. HIV positive individuals and transplant recipients, in particular hematopoietic stem cell transplant and heart transplant recipients, are at highest risk. The disease most often affects the central nervous system but can involve any organ.

[A case of tuberculous meningitis associated with persistently reduced CD4+ T lymphocyte counts].

A case history is presented of a 35-year-old man admitted to the hospital with tuberculous meningitis complicated by caseous necrosis of cervical lymph nodes and thrombosis of the left jugular vein. Another complication, malignant brain edema, appeared more than one year after discharge from hospital and was managed at the neurosurgery department. The most probable cause was a post-inflammatory obstruction of the cerebrospinal fluid pathways.

Incidence, immunological and clinical characteristics of reactivation of latent Toxoplasma gondii infection in HIV-infected patients.

To determine changes in incidence of reactivation of Toxoplasma gondii infection, manifesting as toxoplasmic encephalitis, and to assess the immunological mechanisms controlling reactivation in HIV-infected patients, a Czech cohort of 502 HIV/T. gondii co-infected patients was followed for 2909·3 person-years. The incidence of toxoplasmic encephalitis between the periods before and after the introduction of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) was compared.

Cytokines and chemokines as biomarkers of community-acquired bacterial infection.

Routinely used biomarkers of bacterial etiology of infection, such as C-reactive protein and procalcitonin, have limited usefulness for evaluation of infections since their expression is enhanced by a number of different conditions. Therefore, several inflammatory cytokines and chemokines were analyzed with sera from patients hospitalized for moderate bacterial and viral infectious diseases. In total, 57 subjects were enrolled: 21 patients with community-acquired bacterial infections, 26 patients with viral infections, and 10 healthy subjects (control cohorts).

Different cytokine production and Toll-like receptor expression induced by heat-killed invasive and carrier strains of Neisseria meningitidis.

Neisseria meningitidis may cause severe invasive disease. The carriage state of the pathogen is common, and the reasons underlying why the infection becomes invasive are not fully understood. The aim of this study was to compare the differences between invasive and carrier strains in the activation of innate immunity.