Burden of Pneumococcal Disease in Young Children Due to Serotypes Contained in Different Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccines in Eight Asian Countries and Territories.

Background: Pneumococcal disease (PD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in young children in Asia and globally. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) have significantly reduced the burden of PD when included in pediatric national immunization programs (NIPs). This study estimates the clinical and economic burden of PD due to serotypes contained in different PCVs in children aged < 5 years in eight Asian countries/territories.

National recommendations for adult pneumococcal vaccination in countries of the WHO regions of Americas, Africa, Eastern Mediterranean, South East Asia, and Western Pacific.

Background: Adults who are elderly or who have underlying health conditions are at particular risk of Streptococcus pneumoniae infections, and pneumococcal vaccines are available. Nonetheless, only national recommendations from countries of North America and Europe have been previously reviewed in the literature.

Methods: Consequently, we aimed to collate national guidelines for adult pneumococcal immunization across the 161 countries within the World Health Organization (WHO) regions-the Americas (except Canada and the United States of America), Africa, Eastern Mediterranean, South East Asia, and Western Pacific-from country-level official websites and documents, from the WHO portal, and from direct contact with public health officials, pertinent governmental sources, or local vaccination experts.

Adult indication 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine clinical development overview: formulation, safety, immunogenicity (dosing and sequence), coadministration, and efficacy.

Introduction: There was no 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) adult antibody concentration threshold regulatory criterion for licensure - unlike the pediatric indication; consequently, for the adult indication, PCV13 serotype-specific opsonophagocytic activity (OPA) geometric mean titer (GMT) values were immunobridged to the 23-valent plain polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) to infer efficacy against invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Subsequently, a double-blind, randomized, controlled PCV13 efficacy trial (CAPiTA) was performed in community-living, older adults to confirm efficacy against vaccine-serotype IPD (VT-IPD) and establish efficacy against vaccine-serotype pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia (VT-CAP).

Areas Covered: This article summarizes 31 publications from the PCV13 adult indication clinical development trials and other PCV13 clinical studies, organized by formulation, reactogenicity and safety, immunogenicity, coadministration, and clinical efficacy.

Serotype distribution of invasive pneumococcal disease from countries of the WHO Africa, Americas, Eastern Mediterranean, South-East Asia, and Western Pacific regions: a systematic literature review from 2010 to 2021.

Background: Most publications on invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) serotype distribution are from about 20 countries (Australia, Canada, China, European Union members, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, and USA). Here, we reviewed the literature among underrepresented countries in the Americas (AMRO), Africa (AFRO), Eastern Mediterranean (EMRO), South-East Asia (SEARO), and Western Pacific (WPRO) WHO regions.

Methods: We performed a systematic review of the most recent IPD serotype surveillance publications (from 01/01/2010 to 31/12/2021, Medline/Embase) in those WHO regions.

Valpromide Inhibits Lytic Cycle Reactivation of Epstein-Barr Virus.

Unlabelled: Reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) from latency into the lytic phase of its life cycle allows the virus to spread among cells and between hosts. Valproic acid (VPA) inhibits initiation of the lytic cycle in EBV-infected B lymphoma cells. While VPA blocks viral lytic gene expression, it induces expression of many cellular genes, because it is a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor.

Activation and repression of Epstein-Barr Virus and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus lytic cycles by short- and medium-chain fatty acids.

The lytic cycles of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) are induced in cell culture by sodium butyrate (NaB), a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. Valproic acid (VPA), another SCFA and an HDAC inhibitor, induces the lytic cycle of KSHV but blocks EBV lytic reactivation. To explore the hypothesis that structural differences between NaB and VPA account for their functional effects on the two related viruses, we investigated the capacity of 16 structurally related short- and medium-chain fatty acids to promote or prevent lytic cycle reactivation.

High-throughput sequencing of PCR products tagged with universal primers using 454 life sciences systems.

This unit describes a method to convert PCR products (amplicons) flanked by universal M13 primers into a library for use on all 454 Sequencing Systems (454 Life Sciences, a Roche Company). This is especially useful for simultaneous sequencing and analysis of large numbers of amplicons or for the detection of minor variations within the amplified products. The method described here involves preparing a library of DNA with specific primers containing adaptor sequences recognized by the GS Junior System sequencing process.

Valproic acid antagonizes the capacity of other histone deacetylase inhibitors to activate the Epstein-barr virus lytic cycle.

Diverse stimuli reactivate the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) lytic cycle in Burkitt lymphoma (BL) cells. In HH514-16 BL cells, two histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors, sodium butyrate (NaB) and trichostatin A (TSA), and the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor azacytidine (AzaCdR) promote lytic reactivation. Valproic acid (VPA), which, like NaB, belongs to the short-chain fatty acid class of HDAC inhibitors, fails to induce the EBV lytic cycle in these cells.

Upregulation of STAT3 marks Burkitt lymphoma cells refractory to Epstein-Barr virus lytic cycle induction by HDAC inhibitors.

A fundamental problem in studying the latent-to-lytic switch of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and the viral lytic cycle itself is the lack of a culture system fully permissive to lytic cycle induction. Strategies to target EBV-positive tumors by inducing the viral lytic cycle with chemical agents are hindered by inefficient responses to stimuli. In vitro, even in the most susceptible cell lines, more than 50% of cells latently infected with EBV are refractory to induction of the lytic cycle.

De novo protein synthesis is required for lytic cycle reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus, but not Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus, in response to histone deacetylase inhibitors and protein kinase C agonists.

The oncogenic human gammaherpesviruses, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), are latent in cultured lymphoma cells. We asked whether reactivation from latency of either virus requires de novo protein synthesis. Using Northern blotting and quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR, we measured the kinetics of expression of the lytic cycle activator genes and determined whether abundance of mRNAs encoding these genes from either virus was reduced by treatment with cycloheximide (CHX), an inhibitor of protein synthesis.