A selection and optimization strategy for single-domain antibodies targeting the PHF6 linear peptide within the tau intrinsically disordered protein.

The use of variable domain of the heavy-chain of the heavy-chain-only antibodies (VHHs) as disease-modifying biomolecules in neurodegenerative disorders holds promises, including targeting of aggregation-sensitive proteins. Exploitation of their clinical values depends however on the capacity to deliver VHHs with optimal physico-chemical properties for their specific context of use. We described previously a VHH with high therapeutic potential in a family of neurodegenerative diseases called tauopathies.

Circulation, viral diversity and genomic rearrangement in mpox virus in the Netherlands during the 2022 outbreak and beyond.

Mpox is an emerging zoonotic disease which has now spread to over 113 countries as of August 2023, with over 89,500 confirmed human cases. The Netherlands had one of the highest incidence rates in Europe during the peak of the outbreak. In this study, we generated 158 near-complete mpox virus (MPXV) genomes (12.

Internet Addiction, Sleep Habits and Family Communication: The Perspectives of a Sample of Adolescents.

Background: With the increase in communication technologies, the internet has become an indispensable tool in the life of the individual. Several studies report on the advantages of this resource; however, there is still a group of individuals who use the internet excessively. The aim of this study was to explore the relationships between internet addiction, daytime sleepiness, and family communication in adolescents.

Evaluating the contribution of antimicrobial use in farmed animals to global antimicrobial resistance in humans.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is currently regarded by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the most significant risks to global public health. The most critical causes of AMR infections in humans are the misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans and farmed animals. The rising global demand for food of animal origin encourages the increase of animal production worldwide, especially in developing countries.

Towards the Generation of an ASFV-pA104R DISC Mutant and a Complementary Cell Line-A Potential Methodology for the Production of a Vaccine Candidate.

African swine fever (ASF) is a fatal viral disease of domestic swine and wild boar, considered one of the main threats for global pig husbandry. Despite enormous efforts, to date, neither the classical vaccine formulations nor the use of protein subunits proved to be efficient to prevent this disease. Under this scenario, new strategies have been proposed including the development of disabled infectious single cycle (DISC) or replication-defective mutants as potential immunizing agents against the ASF virus (ASFV).

African swine fever virus replication events and cell nucleus: New insights and perspectives.

African swine fever (ASF) is currently matter for major concerns in global swine industry as it is highly contagious and causes acute fatal haemorrhagic fever in domestic pigs and wild boar. The absence of effective vaccines and treatments pushes ASF control to relay on strict sanitary and stamping out measures with costly socio-economic impacts. The current epidemic scenario of fast spreading throughout Asiatic countries impels further studies on prevention and combat strategies against ASF.

Low-frequency noise effects on the rat parotid gland: A transmission electron microscopy study.

Introduction: Low-frequency noise (LFN) is a ubiquitous physical stressor known to cause degenerative cellular changes and organ alterations with functional repercussions both in humans and animals.

Materials And Methods: After acceptance of the study protocol by a local ethics committee, 20 Wistar rats were randomly divided into two equal groups. One group was kept in silence and the other continuously exposed to LFN during 13 weeks.

International note: Confirmatory factor analysis and psychometric properties of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory in a sample of Portuguese adolescents.

The aim of this paper was to test the factorial structure and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI). The YPI is composed of 10 dimensions that further represent three hypothesized facets of the classical description of psychopathy: callousness, interpersonal manipulation and impulsiveness. A sample of 500 adolescents aged 12 to 18 (M = 14.

Alterations of Nuclear Architecture and Epigenetic Signatures during African Swine Fever Virus Infection.

Viral interactions with host nucleus have been thoroughly studied, clarifying molecular mechanisms and providing new antiviral targets. Considering that African swine fever virus (ASFV) intranuclear phase of infection is poorly understood, viral interplay with subnuclear domains and chromatin architecture were addressed. Nuclear speckles, Cajal bodies, and promyelocytic leukaemia nuclear bodies (PML-NBs) were evaluated by immunofluorescence microscopy and Western blot.

Early intranuclear replication of African swine fever virus genome modifies the landscape of the host cell nucleus.

Although African swine fever virus (ASFV) replicates in viral cytoplasmic factories, the presence of viral DNA within the host cell nucleus has been previously reported to be essential for productive infection. Herein, we described, for the first time, the intranuclear distribution patterns of viral DNA replication events, preceding those that occur in the cytoplasmic compartment. Using BrdU pulse-labelling experiments, newly synthesized ASFV genomes were exclusively detected inside the host cell nucleus at the early phase of infection, both in swine monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) and Vero cells.

First report of Anaplasma platys infection in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and molecular detection of Ehrlichia canis and Leishmania infantum in foxes from Portugal.

Background: The bacteria Anaplasma platys and Ehrlichia canis and the protozoan Leishmania infantum are vector-borne agents that cause canine vector-borne diseases, some of which are zoonotic. The present survey investigated the prevalence of Anaplasma, Ehrlichia and Leishmania in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from Portugal by molecular analysis, in order to evaluate the epidemiological role of these canids as reservoirs of infection.

Methods: Blood and/or bone marrow samples were collected from 78 red foxes obtained in eight districts of northern, central and southern Portugal.

[European Portuguese EARS test battery adaptation].

Introduction: The use of adequate assessment tools in health care is crucial for the management of care. The lack of specific tools in Portugal for assessing the performance of children who use cochlear implants motivated the translation and adaptation of the EARS (Evaluation of Auditory Responses to Speech) test battery into European Portuguese. This test battery is today one of the most commonly used by (re)habilitation teams of deaf children who use cochlear implants worldwide.

Feline HER2 protein expression levels and gene status in feline mammary carcinoma: optimization of immunohistochemistry (IHC) and in situ hybridization (ISH) techniques.

Human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER2) is a tumor biomarker that when overexpressed and/or amplified is associated with a poor prognosis for women with breast cancer. This specific tumor subtype is eligible for a specific immunotherapy that increases survival period. However, in feline oncology, only a few studies have been performed on molecular characterization of feline (fHER2) in feline mammary carcinoma (FMC), and the available data are inconsistent.

In vitro antiviral activity of fluoroquinolones against African swine fever virus.

African swine fever (ASF) is a viral swine disease against which neither an effective vaccine nor a treatment is available. The antiviral effect of thirty fluoroquinolones on the infectivity of African swine fever virus (ASFV) was screened in vitro. There was a severe reduction of the cytopathic effect in ASFV-infected Vero cells when exposed to six independent fluoroquinolones, or to some of their combinations, from an early phase of infection.

Host DNA damage response facilitates African swine fever virus infection.

Studies with different viral infection models on virus interactions with the host cell nucleus have opened new perspectives on our understanding of the molecular basis of these interactions in African swine fever virus (ASFV) infection. The present study aims to characterize the host DNA damage response (DDR) occurring upon in vitro infection with the ASFV-Ba71V isolate. We evaluated protein levels during ASFV time-course infection, of several signalling cascade factors belonging to DDR pathways involved in double strand break repair - Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated (ATM), ATM-Rad 3 related (ATR) and DNA dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs).