Long-term Elevation of Complement Factors in Cerebrospinal Fluid of Patients With Borna Disease Virus 1 Encephalitis.

Background: Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) causes rare but severe zoonotic infections in humans, presenting as encephalitis. The case-fatality risk is very high and no effective countermeasures have been established so far. An immunopathology is presumed, while data on immune responses in humans are limited.

One Health in action: Investigation of the first detected local cluster of fatal borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) encephalitis, Germany 2022.

Background: Zoonotic Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) causes fatal encephalitis in humans and animals. Subsequent to the detection of two paediatric cases in a Bavarian municipality in Germany within three years, we conducted an interdisciplinary One Health investigation. We aimed to explore seroprevalence in a local human population with a risk for BoDV-1 exposure as well as viral presence in environmental samples from local sites and BoDV-1 prevalence within the local small mammal population and its natural reservoir, the bicoloured white-toothed shrew (Crocidura leucodon).

Population-based study of the durability of humoral immunity after SARS-CoV-2 infection.

SARS-CoV-2 antibody quantity and quality are key markers of humoral immunity. However, there is substantial uncertainty about their durability. We investigated levels and temporal change of SARS-CoV-2 antibody quantity and quality.

Cerebrospinal fluid in Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) encephalitis.

Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) has been recognized as a rare cause of very severe encephalitis with rapid onset in central Europe. Data on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis have not yet been analyzed in detail. Here, we present the first study on CSF changes in BoDV-1 encephalitis.

IFN-γ-Based ELISpot as a New Tool to Detect Human Infections with Borna Disease Virus 1 (BoDV-1): A Pilot Study.

More than 40 human infections with the zoonotic Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) have been reported to German health authorities from endemic regions in southern and eastern Germany. Diagnosis of a confirmed case is based on the detection of BoDV-1 RNA or BoDV-1 antigen. In parallel, serological assays such as ELISA, immunoblots, and indirect immunofluorescence are in use to detect the seroconversion of Borna virus-reactive IgG in serum or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

Higher Infection Risk among Health Care Workers and Lower Risk among Smokers Persistent across SARS-CoV-2 Waves-Longitudinal Results from the Population-Based TiKoCo Seroprevalence Study.

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was reported as substantially increased in medical personnel and decreased in smokers after the first wave in spring 2020, including in our population-based Tirschenreuth Study (TiKoCo). However, it is unclear whether these associations were limited to the early pandemic and whether the decrease in smokers was due to reduced infection or antibody response. We evaluated the association of occupation and smoking with period-specific seropositivity: for the first wave until July 2020 (baseline, BL), the low infection period in summer (follow-up 1, FU1, November 2020), and the second/third wave (FU2, April 2021).

Antibodies against viral nucleo-, phospho-, and X protein contribute to serological diagnosis of fatal Borna disease virus 1 infections.

Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) causes rare but often fatal encephalitis in humans. Late diagnosis prohibits an experimental therapeutic approach. Here, we report a recent case of fatal BoDV-1 infection diagnosed on day 12 after hospitalization by detection of BoDV-1 RNA in the cerebrospinal fluid.

Spectrum Bias and Individual Strengths of SARS-CoV-2 Serological Tests-A Population-Based Evaluation.

Antibody testing for determining the SARS-CoV-2 serostatus was rapidly introduced in early 2020 and since then has been gaining special emphasis regarding correlates of protection. With limited access to representative samples with known SARS-CoV-2 infection status during the initial period of test development and validation, spectrum bias has to be considered when moving from a "test establishment setting" to population-based settings, in which antibody testing is currently implemented. To provide insights into the presence and magnitude of spectrum bias and to estimate performance measures of antibody testing in a population-based environment, we compared SARS-CoV-2 neutralization to a battery of serological tests and latent class analyses (LCA) in a subgroup ( = 856) of the larger population based TiKoCo-19 cohort ( = 4185).

Estimates and Determinants of SARS-Cov-2 Seroprevalence and Infection Fatality Ratio Using Latent Class Analysis: The Population-Based Tirschenreuth Study in the Hardest-Hit German County in Spring 2020.

SARS-CoV-2 infection fatality ratios (IFR) remain controversially discussed with implications for political measures. The German county of Tirschenreuth suffered a severe SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in spring 2020, with particularly high case fatality ratio (CFR). To estimate seroprevalence, underreported infections, and IFR for the Tirschenreuth population aged ≥14 years in June/July 2020, we conducted a population-based study including home visits for the elderly, and analyzed 4203 participants for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies via three antibody tests.

Zoonotic spillover infections with Borna disease virus 1 leading to fatal human encephalitis, 1999-2019: an epidemiological investigation.

Background: In 2018-19, Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1), the causative agent of Borna disease in horses, sheep, and other domestic mammals, was reported in five human patients with severe to fatal encephalitis in Germany. However, information on case frequencies, clinical courses, and detailed epidemiological analyses are still lacking. We report the occurrence of BoDV-1-associated encephalitis in cases submitted to the Institute of Clinical Microbiology and Hygiene, Regensburg University Hospital, Regensburg, Germany, and provide a detailed description of newly identified cases of BoDV-1-induced encephalitis.

Truncated oncoproteins of retroviruses and hepatitis B virus: A lesson in contrasts.

Members of the virus families Retroviridae and Hepadnaviridae use reverse transcriptase (RT) to synthesize a DNA copy of their genomic and pregenomic RNA, respectively, during the viral life cycle. A group of viruses belonging to Retroviridae ("acute transforming" retroviruses) as well as human hepatitis B virus (HBV), the prototype member of Hepadnaviridae (hepadnaviruses) are able to cause malignant neoplasms in infected hosts, due to the expression of pleiotropic "transforming proteins" encoded by the genomes of these reverse-transcribing tumor viruses. In this review we wish to compare the common and unique features of replication strategies characteristic of acute transforming retroviruses and HBV and summarize data related to the origin and evolution of their viral oncogenes either via transduction of cellular genes, or by accumulation of mutations in viral sequences that create a new open reading frame (overprinting).

Efficient Delivery of Human Cytomegalovirus T Cell Antigens by Attenuated Sendai Virus Vectors.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) represents a major cause of clinical complications during pregnancy as well as immunosuppression, and the licensing of a protective HCMV vaccine remains an unmet global need. Here, we designed and validated novel Sendai virus (SeV) vectors delivering the T cell immunogens IE-1 and pp65. To enhance vector safety, we used a replication-deficient strain (rdSeV) that infects target cells in a nonproductive manner while retaining viral gene expression.

Pathogenic mechanisms of intracellular bacteria.

Purpose Of Review: We wished to overview recent data on a subset of epigenetic changes elicited by intracellular bacteria in human cells. Reprogramming the gene expression pattern of various host cells may facilitate bacterial growth, survival, and spread.

Recent Findings: DNA-(cytosine C5)-methyltransferases of Mycoplasma hyorhinis targeting cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) dinucleotides and a Mycobacterium tuberculosis methyltransferase targeting non-CpG sites methylated the host cell DNA and altered the pattern of gene expression.

Tick-borne encephalitis virus neutralization by high dose intravenous immunoglobulin.

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a potentially lethal neuroinfection in humans, caused by TBE virus (TBEV). Currently, there are no approved therapeutic agents to treat TBE. Previously, it was suggested that application of high dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) may pose potentially successful treatment for severe cases of TBE.

Current Trends and Alternative Scenarios in EBV Research.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is associated with several distinct hematological and epithelial malignancies, e.g., Burkitt lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, and others.

Patho-epigenetics of Infectious Diseases Caused by Intracellular Bacteria.

In multicellular eukaryotes including plants, animals and humans, epigenetic reprogramming may play a role in the pathogenesis of a wide variety of diseases. Recent studies revealed that in addition to viruses, pathogenic bacteria are also capable to dysregulate the epigenetic machinery of their target cells. In this chapter we focus on epigenetic alterations induced by bacteria infecting humans.

Epigenetic Dysregulation in Virus-Associated Neoplasms.

The oncoproteins of human tumor viruses regularly interact with the cellular epigenetic machinery. Such interactions alter the epigenome of the host cell and reprogram its gene expression pattern. Altered levels or redistribution of (cytosine-5)-DNA methyltransferases and changes in the cellular methylome were observed in Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis D virus (HDV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human papillomavirus (HPV) associated neoplasms and cell lines.

Epigenetic Alterations in Epstein-Barr Virus-Associated Diseases.

Latent Epstein-Bar virus genomes undergo epigenetic modifications which are dependent on the respective tissue type and cellular phenotype. These define distinct viral epigenotypes corresponding with latent viral gene expression profiles. Viral Latent Membrane Proteins 1 and 2A can induce cellular DNA methyltransferases, thereby influencing the methylation status of the viral and cellular genomes.

Epigenetic Regulation.

Some of the key epigenetic regulatory mechanisms appeared early during evolution, and the acquisition of novel epigenetic regulators apparently facilitated certain evolutionary transitions. In this short review we focus mainly on the major epigenetic mechanisms that control chromatin structure and accessibility in mammalian cells. The enzymes methylating CpG dinucleotides and those involved in the active demethylation of 5-metylcytosine (5mC) are outlined together with the members of the methyl binding protein (MBP) family that bind to and "interpret" the 5mC mark.