Evaluation of the Toxic Activity of the Graphene Oxide in the Ex Vivo Model of Human PBMC Infection with .

Graphene Oxide has been proposed as a potential adjuvant to develop improved anti-TB treatment, thanks to its activity in entrapping mycobacteria in the extracellular compartment limiting their entry in macrophages. Indeed, when administered together with linezolid, Graphene Oxide significantly enhanced bacterial killing due to the increased production of Reactive Oxygen Species. In this work, we evaluated Graphene Oxide toxicity and its anti-mycobacterial activity on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Are We Ready for Nosocomial Infections? Rapid Identification and Antifungal Resistance Detection Using MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry May Be the Answer.

The occurrence of multidrug-resistant isolates and the increased mortality associated with invasive infections or outbreaks due to this species have been reported in many healthcare settings. Therefore, accurate and rapid identification at the species level of clinical isolates as well as their timely differentiation as susceptible or resistant to antifungal drugs is mandatory. Aims of the present study were to implement the MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry (MS) Bruker Daltonics Biotyper database with spectrum profiles and to develop a fast and reproducible MS assay for detecting anidulafungin (AFG) resistance in isolates.

PE_PGRS3 ensures provision of the vital phospholipids cardiolipin and phosphatidylinositols by promoting the interaction between and host cells.

PE_PGRS proteins of () constitute a large family of complex modular proteins whose role is still unclear. Among those, we have previously shown, using the heterologous expression in , that PE_PGRS3 containing a unique arginine-rich C-terminal domain, promotes adhesion to host cells. In this study, we investigate the role of PE_PGRS3 and its C-terminal domain directly in using functional deletion mutants.

Comparative performance evaluation of Wako β-glucan test and Fungitell assay for the diagnosis of invasive fungal diseases.

The Fungitell assay (FA) and the Wako β-glucan test (GT) are employed to measure the serum/plasma 1,3-β-D-glucan (BDG), a well-known invasive fungal disease biomarker. Data to convincingly and/or sufficiently support the GT as a valuable alternative to the FA are yet limited. In this study, we evaluated the FA and the GT to diagnose invasive aspergillosis (IA), invasive candidiasis (IC), and Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP).

Increased CD95 (Fas) and PD-1 expression in peripheral blood T lymphocytes in COVID-19 patients.

A low count of CD4 and CD8 lymphocytes is a hallmark laboratory finding in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Using flow cytometry, we observed significantly higher CD95 (Fas) and PD-1 expression on both CD4 T and CD8 T cells in 42 COVID-19 patients when compared to controls. Higher CD95 expression in CD4 cells correlated with lower CD4 counts.