Nucleocapsid Antibodies as an Optimal Serological Marker of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Longitudinal Study at the Thomayer University Hospital.

Background: The longitudinal study was conducted over the initial 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic, spanning from June 2020 to December 2022, in healthcare workers (HCWs) of the Thomayer University Hospital. A total of 3892 blood samples were collected and analyzed for total nucleocapsid (N) antibodies. The aim of the study was to evaluate the dynamics of N antibodies, their relationship to the PCR test, spike (S) antibodies, interferon-gamma, and prediction of reinfection with SARS-CoV-2.

Th17 lymphocytes and Interleukin-17A during the course of severe community acquired pneumonia, comparison with etiology and outcome.

Objective: Observational study of patients diagnosed with severe community acquired pneumonia (sCAP) carried out to evaluate levels of interleukin 17A (IL-17A) and T helper 17 (Th17) lymphocyte count in peripheral circulation and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in the early course of sCAP of different etiology and to compare them with patient's characteristics and outcome.

Material And Methods: Cohort of 74 patients with sCAP was analyzed and respective microbial etiology established. According to pathogens, 3 subgroups of patients were created: bacterial, viral and mixed etiology.

Evaluation of microstructural brain changes in post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients with neurological symptoms: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Changes in both the vascular system and brain tissues can occur after a prior episode of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), detectable through modifications in diffusion parameters using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. These changes in diffusion parameters may be particularly prominent in highly organized structures such as the corpus callosum (CC), including its major components, which have not been adequately studied following COVID-19 infection. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate microstructural changes in whole-brain (WB) diffusion, with a specific focus on the CC.

Metabolic changes assessed by 1H MR spectroscopy in the corpus callosum of post-COVID patients.

Objective: Many patients with long COVID experience neurological and psychological symptoms. Signal abnormalities on MR images in the corpus callosum have been reported. Knowledge about the metabolic profile in the splenium of the corpus callosum (CCS) may contribute to a better understanding of the pathophysiology of long COVID.

Flow cytometry-based method using diversity of cytokine production differentiates between Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and disease.

Authors present a pilot study of the development of innovative flow cytometry-based assay with a potential for use in tuberculosis diagnostics. Currently available tests do not provide robust discrimination between latent tuberculosis infection (TBI) and tuberculosis disease (TB). The desired application is to distinguish between the two conditions by evaluating the production of a combination of three cytokines: IL-2 (interleukin-2), IFNɣ (interferon gamma) and TNFɑ (tumor necrosis factor alpha) in CD4 and CD8 T cells.

Prevalence of SARS-COV-2 antibodies in the Thomayer University Hospital staff after the first wave of COVID-19.

Objectives: To map the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the staff of the Thomayer University Hospital in Prague following the first wave of COVID-19. The main reason was the large number of COVID-19 patients admitted to the Thomayer University Hospital with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Material And Methods: A volunteer study based on a questionnaire survey and determination of total antibodies (ECLIA, Roche) and individual classes of immunoglobulins (ELISA IgG and IgA, Euroimmun).

Searching for COVID-19 Antibodies in Czech Children-A Needle in the Haystack.

During the COVID-19 pandemics of 2020, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), both adults and children were shown to mount a specific antibody response to the virus. As infected children often exhibit mild symptoms or even remain asymptomatic, they are likely to be under tested for the direct presence of the virus. Mapping the SARS-CoV-2 antibodies frequency informs more accurately on the disease prevalence and helps guide the protective and therapeutic strategies.

Polymer conjugates of the highly potent cytostatic drug 2-pyrrolinodoxorubicin.

This paper describes the synthesis and biological evaluation of a conjugate of the highly cytotoxic drug 2-pyrrolinodoxorubicin (p-DOX) with an N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide copolymer (PHPMA) as a water-soluble biocompatible polymer carrier, utilizing the advantageous concept of polymer-drug conjugates. The conjugate of p-DOX with HPMA copolymer (PHPMA/p-DOX) was prepared by reacting the PHPMA/DOX conjugate, where the DOX was bound via a hydrazone bond, with 4-iodobutyraldehyde. The hydrazone bond between the polymer and drug is susceptible to pH-controlled hydrolysis, enabling prolonged stability in circulation and fast p-DOX release under conditions mimicking the intracellular environment.

Preclinical evaluation of linear HPMA-doxorubicin conjugates with pH-sensitive drug release: efficacy, safety, and immunomodulating activity in murine model.

Purpose: In vivo efficacy and safety of HPMA-based copolymers armed with doxorubicin via a spacer containing pH-sensitive linkage that can be prepared within a broad range of attached drug contents (1) was tested in murine tumor models.

Methods: Mice bearing T cell lymphoma EL4 or B cell lymphoma 38C13 were treated with a single dose of the conjugate (15, 25, and 75 mg Dox eq./kg i.