High performance of a novel antigen detection test on nasopharyngeal specimens for diagnosing SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has become a major public health issue worldwide. Developing and evaluating rapid and easy-to-perform diagnostic tests is a high priority. The current study was designed to assess the diagnostic performance of an antigen-based rapid detection test (COVID-VIRO®) in a real-life setting.

Rescue of preimplantatory egg development and embryo implantation in prolactin receptor-deficient mice after progesterone administration.

PRL, a hormone secreted essentially by the pituitary and other extrapituitary sources such as decidua, has been attributed regulatory roles in reproduction and cell growth in mammals. These effects are mediated by a membrane PRL receptor belonging to the cytokine receptor superfamily. Null mutation of the PRL receptor gene leads to female sterility due to a severely compromised preimplantation development and a complete failure of the implantation of the few embryos reaching the blastocyst stage, strongly implicating PRL in the maternal control of implantation.

From the molecular biology of prolactin and its receptor to the lessons learned from knockout mice models.

Prolactin (PRL), a polypeptide hormone secreted mainly by the pituitary and, to a lesser extent, by peripheral tissues, affects more physiological processes than all other pituitary hormones combined since it is involved in > 300 separate functions in vertebrates. Its main actions are related to lactation and reproduction. The initial step of PRL action is the binding to a specific membrane receptor, the PRLR, which belongs to the class 1 cytokine receptor superfamily.