The Activities of the Gelsolin Homology Domains of Flightless-I in Actin Dynamics.

Flightless-I is a unique member of the gelsolin superfamily alloying six gelsolin homology domains and leucine-rich repeats. Flightless-I is an established regulator of the actin cytoskeleton, however, its biochemical activities in actin dynamics are still largely elusive. To better understand the biological functioning of Flightless-I we studied the actin activities of Flightless-I by bulk fluorescence spectroscopy and single filament fluorescence microscopy, as well as genetic approaches.

The activities of the C-terminal regions of the formin protein disheveled-associated activator of morphogenesis (DAAM) in actin dynamics.

Disheveled-associated activator of morphogenesis (DAAM) is a diaphanous-related formin protein essential for the regulation of actin cytoskeleton dynamics in diverse biological processes. The conserved formin homology 1 and 2 (FH1-FH2) domains of DAAM catalyze actin nucleation and processively mediate filament elongation. These activities are indirectly regulated by the N- and C-terminal regions flanking the FH1-FH2 domains.

Serosurvey of pathogenic hantaviruses among forestry workers in Hungary.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to survey the prevalence of human hantavirus infections among forestry workers, who are considered a risk population for contracting the disease. Sera collected from volunteers were tested for antibodies against Dobrava-Belgrade (DOBV) and Puumala (PUUV) viruses.

Material And Methods: For serological analyses, full capsid proteins of DOBV and PUUV viruses were produced in a bacterial expression system, while Ni-resin was used for protein purification.

Molecular detection and phylogenetic analysis of tick-borne encephalitis virus in rodents captured in the transdanubian region of Hungary.

Abstract Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infection is a common zoonotic disease affecting humans in Europe and Asia. To determine whether TBEV is present in small mammalian hosts in Hungary, liver samples of wild rodents were tested for TBEV RNA. Over a period of 7 years, a total of 405 rodents were collected at five different geographic locations of the Transdanubian region.

Identification of tick-borne encephalitis virus in ticks collected in southeastern Hungary.

Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is an arthropod-borne viral pathogen causing infections in Europe and is responsible for most arbovirus central nervous system infections in Hungary. Assessing the TBEV prevalence in ticks through detection of genomic RNA is a broadly accepted approach to estimate the transmission risk from a tick bite. For this purpose, 2731 ticks were collected from the neighboring area of the town of Dévaványa, located in southeastern Hungary, which is considered a low-risk-transmission area for TBEV.