The envelope protein of Zika virus interacts with apolipoprotein E early in the infectious cycle and this interaction is conserved on the secreted viral particles.

Background: Zika virus (ZIKV), a member of the Flaviviridae family, has caused massive outbreaks of infection in tropical areas over the last decade and has now begun spreading to temperate countries. Little is currently known about the specific host factors involved in the intracellular life cycle of ZIKV. Flaviviridae viruses interact closely with host-cell lipid metabolism and associated secretory pathways.

Hypoxia and HIF-1 Trigger Marek's Disease Virus Reactivation in Lymphoma-Derived Latently Infected T Lymphocytes.

Latency is a hallmark of herpesviruses, allowing them to persist in their host without virion production. Acute exposure to hypoxia (below 3% O) was identified as a trigger of latent-to-lytic switch (reactivation) for human oncogenic gammaherpesviruses (Kaposi's sarcoma-associated virus [KSHV] and Epstein-Barr virus [EBV]). Therefore, we hypothesized that hypoxia could also induce reactivation of Marek's disease virus (MDV), which shares biological properties with EBV and KSHV (notably oncogenic properties), in lymphocytes.

Differentiated Cells in Prolonged Hypoxia Produce Highly Infectious Native-Like Hepatitis C Virus Particles.

Background And Aims: Standard hepatitis C virus (HCV) cell-culture models present an altered lipid metabolism and thus produce lipid-poor lipoviral particles (LVPs). These models are thereby weakly adapted to explore the complete natural viral life cycle.

Approach And Results: To overcome these limitations, we used an HCV cell-culture model based on both cellular differentiation and sustained hypoxia to better mimic the host-cell environment.

Potentiation of doxorubicin efficacy in hepatocellular carcinoma by the DNA repair inhibitor DT01 in preclinical models.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the antitumour effect of the DNA repair inhibitor, DT01 (the cholesterol conjugated form of Dbait), as an adjunct treatment to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in pre-clinical models of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: A rabbit model bearing liver tumours was either left untreated or treated with TACE or with a combination of TACE+DT01. Tumour growth was monitored by ultrasound.

Human hepatic stellate cells are not permissive for hepatitis C virus entry and replication.

Background: Chronic HCV infection is associated with the development of hepatic fibrosis. The direct role of HCV in the fibrogenic process is unknown. Specifically, whether HCV is able to infect hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is debated.

'Liver let die': oxidative DNA damage and hepatotropic viruses.

Chronic infections by the hepatotropic viruses hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are major risk factors for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). It is estimated that more than 700,000 individuals per year die from HCC, and around 80 % of HCC is attributable to HBV or HCV infection. Despite the clear clinical importance of virus-associated HCC, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely elusive.

Local extinction in the bird assemblage in the greater Beijing area from 1877 to 2006.

Recent growth in industrialization and the modernization of agricultural activities, combined with human population growth, has greatly modified China's natural environment, particularly in the vicinity of large cities. We compared avifauna checklists made between 1877 and 1938 with current checklists to determine the extent of local bird extinctions during the last century in the greater Beijing area. Our study shows that of the 411 bird species recorded from 1877-1938, 45 (10.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) protein expression enhances hepatic fibrosis in HCV transgenic mice exposed to a fibrogenic agent.

Background & Aims: During chronic HCV infection, activation of fibrogenesis appears to be principally related to local inflammation. However, the direct role of hepatic HCV protein expression in fibrogenesis remains unknown.

Methods: We used transgenic mice expressing the full length HCV open reading frame exposed to a 'second hit' of the fibrogenic agent carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4)).

Impact of logging on the foraging behaviour of two sympatric species of Couas (Coua coquereli and Coua gigas) in the western dry forest of Madagascar.

Two ground-dwelling couas species, Coquerel's Coua Coua coquereli and Giant Coua Coua gigas, live in sympatry in the dry forest of Madagascar. These birds are typically insectivorous and mainly feed at ground level. The two species differ by size but have the same morphology, suggesting they have the same physical attributes for foraging and prey capture.

Morphological changes in intracellular lipid droplets induced by different hepatitis C virus genotype core sequences and relationship with steatosis.

Unlabelled: Hepatocellular steatosis is common in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Steatosis can be considered as a true cytopathic lesion induced by hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 3, suggesting that one or more viral proteins produced during genotype 3 infection are involved in the steatogenic process, while the same proteins produced during infection by other genotypes are not. We examined in vitro interactions between lipid droplets and full-length core protein isolated from patients with HCV genotype 3a infection, with and without steatosis, and from steatosis-free patients infected by HCV genotype 1b.

The nonstructural 5A protein of hepatitis C virus genotype 1b does not contain an interferon sensitivity-determining region.

Background: The nonstructural (NS) 5A protein of hepatitis C virus (HCV) has been suggested to contain an interferon (IFN) sensitivity-determining region (ISDR).

Methods: We studied whether the degree of viral decline on day 1 is associated with differences in NS5A amino acid sequences among patients receiving IFN- alpha.

Results: Phylogenetic analyses of the full-length protein and of functional domains showed no relationship between the baseline protein sequence and the antiviral response.

Influences of the season and the habitat structure on the foraging ecology of two coua species in the western dry forest of Madagascar.

I studied the foraging ecology of Coquerel's Coua (Coua coquereli) and Giant Coua (Coua gigas), which occur in the dry forest in west Madagascar. This kind of forest is characterised by an alternating of a dry and a rainy season. The foraging behaviour was described in several dimensions: i.

Hepatitis C virus-induced hepatocellular steatosis.

Two distinct forms of hepatocellular steatosis can be seen in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Classical metabolic risk factors for hepatocellular steatosis account for the vast majority of cases of steatosis in patients infected by non-genotype 3 HCV strains. In contrast, in patients infected by HCV genotype 3, steatosis is generally induced by the virus itself through a direct cytopathic effect, the mechanisms of which remain debated.

The impacts of logging on the microhabitats used by two species of couas in the western forest of Madagascar.

Habitat structure is important to consider in all ecological studies considering the relationships between animals and their environment. Habitat structure can be studied at different scales, from landscape to microhabitat. I studied here the response of two endemic terrestrial birds living in the dry forest of Madagascar.

Habitat selection and density of couas in Madagascar: implication for their conservation.

The forests in Madagascar are threatened by logging and burning. Because of their importance for biodiversity conservation, monitoring their animal populations is also important. We worked at two stations in the western dry forest where we studied three species of terrestrial couas in several forest plots, which differed in their degradation state.