Machine Learning to Predict Outcomes of Fetal Cardiac Disease: A Pilot Study.

Prediction of outcomes following a prenatal diagnosis of congenital heart disease (CHD) is challenging. Machine learning (ML) algorithms may be used to reduce clinical uncertainty and improve prognostic accuracy. We performed a pilot study to train ML algorithms to predict postnatal outcomes based on clinical data.

Cardioprotective response and senescence in aged sEH null female mice exposed to LPS.

Deterioration of physiological systems, like the cardiovascular system, occurs progressively with age impacting an individual's health and increasing susceptibility to injury and disease. Cellular senescence has an underlying role in age-related alterations and can be triggered by natural aging or prematurely by stressors such as the bacterial toxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids by CYP450 enzymes produces numerous bioactive lipid mediators that can be further metabolized by soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) into diol metabolites, often with reduced biological effects.

Evolution and expression of the duck TRIM gene repertoire.

Tripartite motif (TRIM) proteins are involved in development, innate immunity, and viral restriction. TRIM gene repertoires vary between species, likely due to diversification caused by selective pressures from pathogens; however, this has not been explored in birds. We mined a assembled transcriptome for the TRIM gene repertoire of the domestic mallard duck (), a reservoir host of influenza A viruses.

Avian Influenza NS1 Proteins Inhibit Human, but Not Duck, RIG-I Ubiquitination and Interferon Signaling.

The nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of influenza A viruses is an important virulence factor that controls host cell immune responses. In human cells, NS1 proteins inhibit the induction of type I interferon by several mechanisms, including potentially, by preventing the activation of the retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) receptor by the ubiquitin ligase tripartite motif-containing protein 25 (TRIM25). It is unclear whether the inhibition of human TRIM25 is a universal function of all influenza A NS1 proteins or is strain dependent.

Comparative Genomics of the Waterfowl Innate Immune System.

Animal species differ considerably in their ability to fight off infections. Finding the genetic basis of these differences is not easy, as the immune response is comprised of a complex network of proteins that interact with one another to defend the body against infection. Here, we used population- and comparative genomics to study the evolutionary forces acting on the innate immune system in natural hosts of the avian influenza virus (AIV).

Flavivirus Capsid Proteins Inhibit the Interferon Response.

Zika virus (ZIKV) establishes persistent infections in multiple human tissues, a phenomenon that likely plays a role in its ability to cause congenital birth defects and neurological disease. Multiple nonstructural proteins encoded by ZIKV, in particular NS5, are known to suppress the interferon (IFN) response by attacking different steps in this critical antiviral pathway. Less well known are the potential roles of structural proteins in affecting the host immune response during ZIKV infection.

Evolution of RNA sensing receptors in birds.

Birds are important hosts for many RNA viruses, including influenza A virus, Newcastle disease virus, West Nile virus and coronaviruses. Innate defense against RNA viruses in birds involves detection of viral RNA by pattern recognition receptors. Several receptors of different classes are involved, such as endosomal toll-like receptors and cytoplasmic retinoic acid-inducible gene I-like receptors, and their downstream adaptor proteins.

Tissue Specific Transcriptome Changes Upon Influenza A Virus Replication in the Duck.

Ducks are the natural host and reservoir of influenza A virus (IAV), and as such are permissive to viral replication while being unharmed by most strains. It is not known which mechanisms of viral control are globally regulated during infection, and which are specific to tissues during infection. Here we compare transcript expression from tissues from Pekin ducks infected with a recombinant H5N1 strain A/Vietnam 1203/04 (VN1203) or an H5N2 strain A/British Columbia 500/05 using RNA-sequencing analysis and aligning reads to the NCBI assembly ZJU1.

Performance and impact of an airway management team launched during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Purpose: To determine the performance and impact of an airway management team (AMT) assembled during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort review of all adult patients who had received airway management services from the AMT (n = 269) and administered a survey questionnaire targeting physicians who had the option to activate the AMT (n = 77). The retrospective review determined the performance of the AMT, and the physicians' survey evaluated the impact of the AMT.

Molecular Evolution of the Influenza A Virus Non-structural Protein 1 in Interspecies Transmission and Adaptation.

The non-structural protein 1 (NS1) of influenza A viruses plays important roles in viral fitness and in the process of interspecies adaptation. It is one of the most polymorphic and mutation-tolerant proteins of the influenza A genome, but its evolutionary patterns in different host species and the selective pressures that underlie them are hard to define. In this review, we highlight some of the species-specific molecular signatures apparent in different NS1 proteins and discuss two functions of NS1 in the process of viral adaptation to new host species.

SARS-CoV-2 Nonstructural Protein 1 Inhibits the Interferon Response by Causing Depletion of Key Host Signaling Factors.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. While previous studies have shown that several SARS-CoV-2 proteins can antagonize the interferon (IFN) response, some of the mechanisms by which they do so are not well understood. In this study, we describe two novel mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 blocks the IFN pathway.

Health monitoring in birds using bio-loggers and whole blood transcriptomics.

Monitoring and early detection of emerging infectious diseases in wild animals is of crucial global importance, yet reliable ways to measure immune status and responses are lacking for animals in the wild. Here we assess the usefulness of bio-loggers for detecting disease outbreaks in free-living birds and confirm detailed responses using leukocyte composition and large-scale transcriptomics. We simulated natural infections by viral and bacterial pathogens in captive mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), an important natural vector for avian influenza virus.

Microbiome Composition and Detection in Ticks at the Northwestern Edge of Their Range.

Lyme disease-causing has been reported in 10-19% of ticks from Alberta, Canada, where the tick vector is at the northwestern edge of its range. However, the presence of has not been verified independently, and the bacterial microbiome of these ticks has not been described. We performed 16S rRNA bacterial surveys on female from Alberta that were previously qPCR-tested in a Lyme disease surveillance program.

Dissemination and implementation of national physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and/or sleep guidelines among community-dwelling adults aged 18 years and older: a systematic scoping review and suggestions for future reporting and research.

Strategies for dissemination (purposive distribution of a guideline to specific audiences) and implementation (actions to support the general public in meeting guideline recommendations/behavioural benchmarks) of national movement guidelines (physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviour, and sleep) have yet to be synthesized. The purpose of this systematic scoping review was to identify strategies for dissemination and implementation of national PA, sedentary behaviour, and/or sleep guidelines among community-dwelling adults (aged >18 years) and/or stakeholders in Canada and analogous countries. Five search approaches (e.

Within-population diversity of bacterial microbiomes in winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus).

The bacterial microbiome of ticks is notoriously diverse, but the factors leading to this diversity are poorly understood. We sequenced bacterial 16S rRNA amplicons from individual winter ticks, Dermacentor albipictus, to assess whether their one-host life cycle is associated with reduced bacterial diversity. On average, about 100 bacterial genera were found for individual ticks.

Pattern Recognition Receptor Signaling and Innate Responses to Influenza A Viruses in the Mallard Duck, Compared to Humans and Chickens.

Mallard ducks are a natural host and reservoir of avian Influenza A viruses. While most influenza strains can replicate in mallards, the virus typically does not cause substantial disease in this host. Mallards are often resistant to disease caused by highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses, while the same strains can cause severe infection in humans, chickens, and even other species of ducks, resulting in systemic spread of the virus and even death.

Influenza PB1-F2 Inhibits Avian MAVS Signaling.

RIG-I plays an essential role in the duck innate immune response to influenza infection. RIG-I engages the critical adaptor protein mitochondrial antiviral signaling (MAVS) to activate the downstream signaling pathway. The influenza A virus non-structural protein PB1-F2 interacts with MAVS in human cells to inhibit interferon production.

Innate Immune Responses to Avian Influenza Viruses in Ducks and Chickens.

Mallard ducks are important natural hosts of low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) viruses and many strains circulate in this reservoir and cause little harm. Some strains can be transmitted to other hosts, including chickens, and cause respiratory and systemic disease. Rarely, these highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses cause disease in mallards, while chickens are highly susceptible.

Duck innate immune responses to high and low pathogenicity H5 avian influenza viruses.

Ducks are the reservoir host of influenza A viruses, and are permissive for replication of most strains, yet can elicit robust innate immune responses to highly pathogenic strains. Tissue tropism and viral amino acid differences affect virulence, but we have limited knowledge about how viral differences influence the host innate immune response. Here we compare the innate immune response in Pekin ducks to a recombinant highly-pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus and a naturally arising attenuated variant of this strain that differs at one amino acid in polymerase A (T515A), as well as ducks infected with two different H5 strains of low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI).

The core promoter controls basal and inducible expression of duck retinoic acid inducible gene-I (RIG-I).

Retinoic acid inducible gene-I (RIG-I) is a cytoplasmic RNA sensor for detecting a variety of RNA viruses including influenza A viruses. Detection ultimately produces Type I interferon (IFN), which stimulates expression of interferon stimulated genes (ISGs), including RIG-I itself in a positive feedback loop. The structure and function of RIG-I is conserved across phylogeny, despite significant protein sequence divergence, however, the promoter sequences do not show the expected phylogenetic relationships and it is not known whether they are similarly regulated.

IFN and cytokine responses in ducks to genetically similar H5N1 influenza A viruses of varying pathogenicity.

Ducks, the reservoir host, are generally permissive to influenza A virus infection without disease symptoms. This natural ecology was upset by the emergence of H5N1 strains, which can kill ducks. To better understand host-virus interactions in the reservoir host, and influenza strain-specific molecular contributions to virulence, we infected White Pekin ducks with three similar H5N1 viruses, with known differences in pathogenicity and replication rate.

Comparison of bacterial 16S rRNA variable regions for microbiome surveys of ticks.

Ticks vector diverse pathogenic bacteria that are important to identify in public health and veterinary contexts. Technological advances in high throughput sequencing have given an unprecedented opportunity to comprehensively characterize bacterial associates of ticks, but recent studies have used different 16S rRNA variable regions and sequence read lengths with little consideration of whether they reveal the same bacterial diversity. We compare the effectiveness of bacterial surveys using three library preparations across nine 16S variable regions and a set of 12 tick specimens (Acari: Ixodidae).

The Minor MHC Class I Gene UDA of Ducks Is Regulated by Let-7 MicroRNA.

In many nonmammalian vertebrates, the genomic organization of the MHC class I region leads to biased expression of a single classical MHC class I gene coevolving with TAP transporters, whereas class I genes are poorly expressed. This contrasts to the three codominantly expressed classical MHC class I genes in humans and mice. In a sequenced haplotype from White Pekin duck, Anas platyrhynchos, there is one predominantly expressed MHC class I, UAA, although they have five MHC class I genes in the complex, arranged TAP1-TAP2-UAA-UBA-UCA-UDA-UEA The UAA gene, situated proximal to the TAP2 gene, is expressed at levels 10-fold greater than that of another expressed gene, UDA.

Extensive Allelic Diversity of MHC Class I in Wild Mallard Ducks.

MHC class I is critically involved in defense against viruses, and diversity from polygeny and polymorphism contributes to the breadth of the immune response and health of the population. In this article, we examine MHC class I diversity in wild mallard ducks, the natural host and reservoir of influenza A viruses. We previously showed domestic ducks predominantly use UAA, one of five MHC class I genes, but whether biased expression is also true for wild mallards is unknown.

Duck Interferon-Inducible Transmembrane Protein 3 Mediates Restriction of Influenza Viruses.

Unlabelled: Interferon-inducible transmembrane proteins (IFITMs) can restrict the entry of a wide range of viruses. IFITM3 localizes to endosomes and can potently restrict the replication of influenza A viruses (IAV) and several other viruses that also enter host cells through the endocytic pathway. Here, we investigate whether IFITMs are involved in protection in ducks, the natural host of influenza virus.