Protective role of macrophages from maternal-fetal interface in unvaccinated coronavirus disease 2019 pregnant women.

Pregnant women represent a high-risk population for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 has been reported in placenta from infected pregnant women, but whether the virus influences placenta immune response remains unclear. We investigated the properties of maternal-fetal interface macrophages (MFMs) in a cohort of unvaccinated women who contracted coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during their pregnancy.

The cytotoxic, genotoxic and mitotoxic effects of extract in vitro.

Background: The Mediterranean thistle L. (Asteraceae; AG) has diterpenoid glucosides; atractyloside and carboxyatractyloside that interact with mitochondrial protein adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT) and resulted in ATP inhibition. Despite its well-known toxicity, acute poisonings still occur with this plant.

First-principle investigations of structural, electronic, thermal, and mechanical properties of AlPBi alloys.

Context: In this work, a comprehensive study concerning the physical properties of ternary alloys system (AlPBi) at different concentrations is presented. The obtained results from our first-principle calculations are compared with previously reported studies in the literature and discussed in detail. Our computed results are found in a nice agreement where available with earlier reported results.

, a Key Gene of the Circadian Rhythm of .

Circadian rhythms are present in almost all living organisms, and their activity relies on molecular clocks. In prokaryotes, a functional molecular clock has been defined only in cyanobacteria. Here, we investigated the presence of circadian rhythms in non-cyanobacterial prokaryotes.

Phosphide in gallium bismuth: structural, electronic, elastic, and optical properties of GaPBi alloys.

The structural, electronic, elastic, and optical properties of ternary alloys GaPBi as a function of phosphorus concentration were studied using ab initio calculations. We have used the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method-based density functional theory. The potentials have been described by the generalized gradient and modified Becke-Johnson approximations.

Whipple's disease and Tropheryma whipplei infections: from bench to bedside.

Whipple's disease is a chronic and systemic disease caused by the Gram-positive bacterium Tropheryma whipplei that primarily affects the gastrointestinal tract. Data from the last two decades have substantially increased our knowledge of the spectrum and our understanding of T whipplei infections. Although T whipplei seems ubiquitously present in the environment, Whipple's disease itself is very rare.

Phenotypic diversity of Tropheryma whipplei clinical isolates.

Tropheryma whipplei is a bacterial pathogen responsible for a wide range of infections in humans, covering asymptomatic carriage, acute infections, chronic isolated infections and classic Whipple's disease. Although the bacterium is commonly found in the environment, it very rarely causes disease. Genetic comparison of clinical isolates has revealed that main variations were found in region encoding T.

Monocytes and Macrophages, Targets of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2: The Clue for Coronavirus Disease 2019 Immunoparalysis.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) clinical expression is pleiomorphic, severity is related to age and comorbidities such as diabetes and hypertension, and pathophysiology involves aberrant immune activation and lymphopenia. We wondered if the myeloid compartment was affected during COVID-19 and if monocytes and macrophages could be infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Methods: Monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) from COVID-19 patients and controls were infected with SARS-CoV-2 and extensively investigated with immunofluorescence, viral RNA extraction and quantification, and total RNA extraction followed by reverse-transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction using specific primers, supernatant cytokines (interleukins 6, 10, and 1β; interferon-β; transforming growth factor-β1, and tumor necrosis factor-α), and flow cytometry.

A Granulocytic Signature Identifies COVID-19 and Its Severity.

Background: An unbiased approach to SARS-CoV-2-induced immune dysregulation has not been undertaken so far. We aimed to identify previously unreported immune markers able to discriminate COVID-19 patients from healthy controls and to predict mild and severe disease.

Methods: An observational, prospective, multicentric study was conducted in patients with confirmed mild/moderate (n = 7) and severe (n = 19) COVID-19.

Full-Term Human Placental Macrophages Eliminate Through an IFN-γ Autocrine Loop.

The intracellular bacterium is responsible for Q fever, an infectious disease that increases the risk of abortion, preterm labor, and stillbirth in pregnant women. It has been shown that replicates in BeWo trophoblast cell line and inhibits the activation and maturation of decidual dendritic cells. Although tissue macrophages are known to be targeted by , no studies have investigated the interplay between placental macrophages and .

Structural, electronic and thermal properties of AlxGa1-xAs ternary alloys: Insights from DFT study.

In this research paper, we studied the structural, electronic and thermal properties of the zinc blende ternary alloys (AlGaAs) by the use of first-principles calculations based on FP-LAPW method (Full Potential Linear Augmented Plane Wave) within DFT (Density Functional Theory). Basically, the impact dependence of the lattice constants, band gaps, bulk moduli, heat capacities, Debye temperatures and mixing entropies on the composition x were investigated for different values of x (x = 0, 0.25, 0.

Tropheryma whipplei Increases Expression of Human Leukocyte Antigen-G on Monocytes to Reduce Tumor Necrosis Factor and Promote Bacterial Replication.

Background & Aims: Infection with Tropheryma whipplei has a range of effects-some patients can be chronic carriers without developing any symptoms, whereas others can develop systemic Whipple disease, characterized by a lack a protective inflammatory immune response. Alterations in HLA-G function have been associated with several diseases. We investigated the role of HLA-G during T whipplei infection.