Publications by authors named "R Clemens"
Article Synopsis
- - Acute lower respiratory tract infection (ALRI) is a leading cause of child mortality globally, particularly affecting children in Papua New Guinea (PNG) due to Streptococcus pneumoniae.
- - Researchers conducted whole-exome sequencing on children in PNG and found a specific genetic variant (a single-nucleotide variant in the COQ6 gene) that is linked to higher morbidity from ALRI, with evidence from both human and mouse studies supporting its role.
- - The COQ6 variant plays a significant role in the biosynthesis of ubiquinone and impacts how the immune system responds to infections, highlighting a new genetic risk factor for pneumonia in PNG and the enzyme's involvement in inflammatory responses.
Objectives: Vaccine stockouts at the national level has been recognized as a critical challenge in ensuring sustained and equitable immunization coverage. These stockouts often arise from inherent issues within countries, including delays in government funding, suboptimal forecasting and stock management practices, and inefficiencies in the procurement process amongst others. Understanding the complexities and barriers within vaccine procurement and financing systems is crucial for developing effective strategies to enhance vaccine availability and strengthen immunization programs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Though observational evidence supports indirect effects of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, randomised experiments are lacking. To address this gap, the double-blinded, prospective follow-up of the household contacts (HHCs) of Philippine participants of the individually-randomised, placebo-controlled trial of the adjuvanted-subunit protein COVID-19 vaccine, SCB-2019, (EudraCT, 2020-004272-17; ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04672395) was analyzed in a cluster-randomised fashion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeutrophils play a crucial role in maintaining lung health by defending against infections and participating in inflammation processes. Here we describe a detailed protocol for evaluating pulmonary neutrophil phenotype using a murine model of sterile inflammation induced by the fungal cell wall particle zymosan. We provide step-by-step instructions for the isolation of single cells from both lung tissues and airspaces, followed by comprehensive staining techniques for both cell surface markers and intracellular components.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The COVID-19 pandemic is over but the highly immunized or naturally exposed global population still requires booster vaccinations against newly emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. We assessed safety and immunogenicity of booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines based on three different platforms in a setting that mimics the current routine practice in Brazil.
Methods: In this phase 3 study from 14 February 2023 to 12 June 2023 we enrolled previously immunized adults to receive an additional booster dose of one of three vaccines.