HIV-related Differences in Placental Immunology: Data From the PRACHITi Cohort in Pune, India.

Background: Maternal HIV infection can affect placental immunology and expression of the neonatal crystallizable fragment receptor (FcRn), which allows transplacental antibody transfer. This study delineated differences in placental FcRn and T-cell expression by HIV status, with or without viral suppression.

Methods: This observational cohort study in Pune, India, followed pregnant women with and without HIV through 1 year postpartum; 42 had placenta collected, stratified by HIV status.

Discordance of 3rd and 4th generation QuantiFERON-TB Gold assays by pregnancy stages in India.

Background: Pregnancy and HIV affect CD4+ T lymphocytes and impact performance of QuantiFERON-TB Gold (QFT). We compared the results of QFT with QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus), which also measures CD8+ responses to TB antigens, during pregnancy and postpartum.

Methods: We screened 516 pregnant women for TB infection (TBI) with IGRA.

The prevalence of gestational diabetes among underweight and normal weight women worldwide: a scoping review.

Background: Gestational diabetes (GDM) affects nearly 15% of pregnancies worldwide and is increasing globally. While this growth is thought to be primarily from overweight and obesity, normal and underweight women are affected as well, particularly in low and middle-income countries. However, GDM in non-overweight women remains understudied.

A molecularly engineered antiviral banana lectin inhibits fusion and is efficacious against influenza virus infection in vivo.

There is a strong need for a new broad-spectrum antiinfluenza therapeutic, as vaccination and existing treatments are only moderately effective. We previously engineered a lectin, H84T banana lectin (H84T), to retain broad-spectrum activity against multiple influenza strains, including pandemic and avian, while largely eliminating the potentially harmful mitogenicity of the parent compound. The amino acid mutation at position 84 from histidine to threonine minimizes the mitogenicity of the wild-type lectin while maintaining antiinfluenza activity in vitro.