The Natural History of Post-Chikungunya Viral Arthritis Disease Activity and T-cell Immunology: A Cohort Study.

Background: Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an alphavirus spread by mosquitos that causes arthralgias and arthritis that may last for years. The objective of this study was to describe the arthritis progression and T cell immunology over a two-year period.

Methods: A cohort of 40 cases of serologically confirmed CHIKV from Magdalena and Atlántico, Colombia were followed in 2019 and again in 2021.

Dengue NS1 Antibodies Are Associated With Clearance of Viral Nonstructural Protein-1.

Background: Dengue vascular permeability syndrome is the primary cause of death in severe dengue infections. The protective versus potentially pathogenic role of dengue nonstructural protein-1 (NS1) antibodies are not well understood. The main goal of this analysis was to characterize the relationship between free NS1 concentration and NS1 antibody titers in primary and secondary dengue infection to better understand the presence and duration of NS1 antibody complexes in clinical dengue infections.

Cytokine and T cell responses in post-chikungunya viral arthritis: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: To define the relationship between chronic chikungunya post-viral arthritis disease severity, cytokine response and T cell subsets in order to identify potential targets for therapy.

Methods: Participants with chikungunya arthritis were recruited from Colombia from 2019-2021. Arthritis disease severity was quantified using the Disease Activity Score-28 and an Arthritis-Flare Questionnaire adapted for chikungunya arthritis.

Effects of rIL2/anti-IL2 antibody complex on chikungunya virus-induced chronic arthritis in a mouse model.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is characterized by disabling joint pain that can cause persistent arthritis in approximately one-fourth of patients. Currently, no standard treatments are available for chronic CHIKV arthritis. Our preliminary data suggest that decreases in interleukin-2 (IL2) levels and regulatory T cell (Treg) function may play a role in CHIKV arthritis pathogenesis.

Effects of IL2/anti-IL2 antibody complex on chikungunya virus-induced arthritis in a mouse model.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is characterized by disabling joint pain that can cause persistent arthritis in approximately one-fourth of patients. Currently, no standard treatments are available for chronic CHIKV arthritis. Our preliminary data suggest that decreases in interleukin-2 (IL2) levels and regulatory T cell (Treg) function may play a role in CHIKV arthritis pathogenesis.

Regulatory T-cells and GARP expression are decreased in exercise-associated chikungunya viral arthritis flares.

Objective: Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) causes persistent arthritis, and our prior study showed that approximately one third of CHIKV arthritis patients had exacerbated arthritis associated with exercise. The underlying mechanism of exercise-associated chikungunya arthritis flare (EACAF) is unknown, and this analysis aimed to examine the regulatory T-cell immune response related to CHIKV arthritis flares.

Methods: In our study, 124 Colombian patients with a history of CHIKV infection four years prior were enrolled and 113 cases with serologically confirmed CHIKV IgG were used in this analysis.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment of HIV medication regimens using hematopoietic CD34+ progenitor cells.

Background: To determine the effects of integrase inhibitor (INSTI) in comparison with non-INSTI-based regimens such as non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs)-based regimens on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in HIV+ patients without overt history of CVD or diabetes, with normal CD4:CD8 count. For CVD risk assessment we primarily used hematopoietic CD34+ progenitor cells, as a biomarker.

Methods: Nineteen male subjects, ages 32-61 years with BMI 21.

Polymicrobial native valve endocarditis due to and .

We present a case of polymicrobial subacute bacterial endocarditis and bacteremia with and in a 72-year-old man with pre-existing mitral valve disease and prior mitral valve repair who presented with renal failure and glomerulonephritis. is often a contaminant in blood cultures but has been rarely implicated in patients with invasive infections such as endocarditis. Intravenous drug use, prosthetic heart valves, valvular heart disease and venous catheters are the most frequently described risk factors for bacteremia and endocarditis in the medical literature.

A Mouse Model for Studying Post-Acute Arthritis of Chikungunya.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) was introduced to the Americas in 2013, causing two million infections across over thirty countries. CHIKV causes a chronic debilitating arthritis in one fourth of infected individuals and currently evidence-based targeted therapies for the treatment of CHIKV arthritis are lacking. Multiple mouse models of chikungunya have been developed to study acute CHIKV infection.

Tender and swollen joint counts are poorly associated with disability in chikungunya arthritis compared to rheumatoid arthritis.

Chronic rheumatological manifestations similar to those of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are described after chikungunya virus infection. We aimed to compare the relevance of joint counts and symptoms to clinical outcomes in RA and chronic chikungunya disease. Forty patients with chronic chikungunya arthralgia and 40 patients with RA were enrolled in a cross-sectional study.

Sleep Disturbances are a Significant Predictor of Chikungunya Arthritis Flare Severity.

Objective: The primary objective of this research was to explore the link between sleep and flare pain associated with chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infection. The secondary objective was to investigate if cytokines and T regulatory (Treg) cells have an influence on this relationship.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed using data collected in Barranquilla, Colombia, which enrolled patients with and without chronic arthritis with a history of chikungunya infection.

Persistent Joint Pain Following Arthropod Virus Infections.

Purpose Of Review: Persistent joint pain is a common manifestation of arthropod-borne viral infections and can cause long-term disability. We review the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of arthritogenic alphavirus infection.

Recent Findings: The global re-emergence of alphaviral outbreaks has led to an increase in virus-induced arthralgia and arthritis.

septic polyarthritis in a young woman with neuromyelitis optica receiving rituximab.

We report a case of septic polyarthritis caused by in a woman with neuromyelitis optica who was receiving rituximab. Her case exemplifies some of the unique characteristics of invasive infections that can lead to delayed diagnosis as well as treatment challenges including recurrence following antibiotic discontinuation.

CBF-1 Promotes the Establishment and Maintenance of HIV Latency by Recruiting Polycomb Repressive Complexes, PRC1 and PRC2, at HIV LTR.

The C-promoter binding factor-1 (CBF-1) is a potent and specific inhibitor of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 LTR promoter. Here, we demonstrate that the knockdown of endogenous CBF-1 in latently infected primary CD4+ T cells, using specific small hairpin RNAs (shRNA), resulted in the reactivation of latent HIV proviruses. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays using latently infected primary T cells and Jurkat T-cell lines demonstrated that CBF-1 induces the establishment and maintenance of HIV latency by recruiting polycomb group (PcG/PRC) corepressor complexes or polycomb repressive complexes 1 and 2 (PRC1 and PRC2).

Use of BioFire FilmArray gastrointestinal PCR panel associated with reductions in antibiotic use, time to optimal antibiotics, and length of stay.

Background: Rapid and accurate diagnostic tools are needed for appropriate management of infectious diarrhea.

Methods: We evaluated the impact of the introduction of rapid multiplex PCR testing using the FilmArray gastrointestinal (GI) panel (BioFire Diagnostics, LLC, Salt Lake City, UT) at our institution, and compared the results to those of standard stool cultures.

Results: The most common pathogens detected by the FilmArray GI panel were Clostridium difficile (55.

Persistent chikungunya arthritis in Roraima, Brazil.

Background: The Amazon region of Brazil experienced a large epidemic of East Central South African (ECSA) chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in 2017 and continuous transmission of CHIKV persists. The impact of chronic arthritis caused by ECSA CHIKV is unknown.

Objective: The study aim was to describe the duration, severity, and characteristics of CHIKV arthritis in Roraima, Brazil, in comparison with local controls to further understand the long-term rheumatologic impact of ECSA CHIKV infection.

DNA dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) enhances HIV transcription by promoting RNA polymerase II activity and recruitment of transcription machinery at HIV LTR.

Despite reductions in mortality from the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the presence of latent or transcriptionally silent proviruses prevents HIV cure/eradication. We have previously reported that DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) facilitates HIV transcription by interacting with the RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) complex recruited at HIV LTR. In this study, using different cell lines and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of HIV-infected patients, we found that DNA-PK stimulates HIV transcription at several stages, including initiation, pause-release and elongation.

HIV-Specific T Cells Can Be Generated against Non-escaped T Cell Epitopes with a GMP-Compliant Manufacturing Platform.

Although anti-retroviral therapy (ART) is successful in suppressing HIV-1 replication, HIV latently infected reservoirs are not eliminated, representing a major hurdle in efforts to eradicate the virus. Current strategies to eradicate HIV involve two steps: (1) the reactivation of latently infected cells with latency reversing agents (LRAs) to expose persisting HIV, and (2) the elimination of these cells with immune effectors while continuing ART to prevent reinfection. HIV-specific T cells (HSTs) can kill reactivated HIV-infected cells and are currently being evaluated in early-stage immunotherapy trials.

A Dengue Vaccine: Will It be Accepted and Is It Feasible? Lessons from Barranquilla, Colombia, and Merida, Venezuela.

With one vaccine on the market and others in clinical trials, policy makers in dengue endemic regions face the decision of whether to introduce a dengue vaccine in their communities. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that individualized assessments be conducted before any vaccine introduction to evaluate disease burden and the strength of current vaccination programs. This study seeks to aid in that decision-making process by examining the acceptability and feasibility of dengue vaccine introduction in Barranquilla, Colombia, and Merida, Venezuela.

Chronic Joint Pain 3 Years after Chikungunya Virus Infection Largely Characterized by Relapsing-remitting Symptoms.

Objective: To determine the frequency of chronic joint pain and stiffness 3 years after infection with chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in a Latin American cohort.

Methods: A cross-sectional followup of 120 patients from an initial cohort of 500 patients who reported joint pain 2 years after infection from the Atlántico Department, Colombia. Patients were clinically diagnosed as having CHIKV during the 2014-2015 epidemic, and baseline and followup symptoms at 40 months were evaluated in serologically confirmed cases.

HIV disease, metabolic dysfunction and atherosclerosis: A three year prospective study.

HIV infection is known to be associated with cardiometabolic abnormalities; here we investigated the progression and causes of these abnormalities. Three groups of participants were recruited: HIV-negative subjects and two groups of treatment-naïve HIV-positive subjects, one group initiating antiretroviral treatment, the other remaining untreated. Intima-media thickness (cIMT) increased in HIV-positive untreated group compared to HIV-negative group, but treatment mitigated the difference.