Changes in the Seroprevalence of Tick-Borne Rickettsia and Ehrlichia Among Soldiers-Fort Liberty, North Carolina, 1991-2019.

We obtained samples from the Department of Defense Serum Repository from soldiers who were stationed at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, between 1991 and 2019 to assess temporal trends in tick-borne rickettsiosis and ehrlichiosis. Serological evidence of infection was common, with nearly 1 in 5 (18.9%) demonstrating antibodies.

A semi-quantitative, rapid, point of care SARS-CoV-2 serologic assay predicts neutralizing antibody levels.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused millions of deaths and the continued emergence of new variants suggests continued circulation in the human population. In the current time of vaccine availability and new therapeutic development, including antibody-based therapies, many questions about long-term immunity and protection remain uncertain. Identification of protective antibodies in individuals is often done using highly specialized and challenging assays such as functional neutralizing assays, which are not available in the clinical setting.

Seroepidemiology and risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection among household members of food processing and farm workers in North Carolina.

Background: Racial and ethnic minorities have borne a disproportionate burden from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Certain essential occupations, including food processing and farm work, employ large numbers of Hispanic migrant workers and have been shown to carry an especially high risk of infection.

Methods: This observational cohort study measured the seroprevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and assessed the risk factors for seropositivity among food processing and farm workers, and members of their households, in North Carolina, USA.

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and risk factors among meat packing, produce processing, and farm workers.

Meat packing, produce processing, and farm workers are known to have an elevated risk of COVID-19, but occupational risk factors in this population are unclear. We performed an observational cohort study of meat packing, produce processing, and farm workers in North Carolina in fall 2020. Blood, saliva, and nasal turbinate samples were collected to assess for SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity.

Structure and neutralization mechanism of a human antibody targeting a complex Epitope on Zika virus.

We currently have an incomplete understanding of why only a fraction of human antibodies that bind to flaviviruses block infection of cells. Here we define the footprint of a strongly neutralizing human monoclonal antibody (mAb G9E) with Zika virus (ZIKV) by both X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy. Flavivirus envelope (E) glycoproteins are present as homodimers on the virion surface, and G9E bound to a quaternary structure epitope spanning both E protomers forming a homodimer.

Outcomes of Convalescent Plasma with Defined High versus Lower Neutralizing Antibody Titers against SARS-CoV-2 among Hospitalized Patients: CoronaVirus Inactivating Plasma (CoVIP) Study.

COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) was an early and widely adopted putative therapy for severe COVID-19. Results from randomized control trials and observational studies have failed to demonstrate a clear therapeutic role for CCP for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Underlying these inconclusive findings is a broad heterogeneity in the concentrations of neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) between different CCP donors.

Ethnoracial Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in a Large Cohort of Individuals in Central North Carolina from April to December 2020.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused millions of deaths around the world within the past 2 years. Transmission within the United States has been heterogeneously distributed by geography and social factors with little data from North Carolina. Here, we describe results from a weekly cross-sectional study of 12,471 unique hospital remnant samples from 19 April to 26 December 2020 collected by four clinical sites within the University of North Carolina Health system, with a majority of samples from urban, outpatient populations in central North Carolina.

Sex Disparities and Neutralizing-Antibody Durability to SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Convalescent Individuals.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has now caused over 2 million deaths worldwide and continues to expand. Currently, much is unknown about functionally neutralizing human antibody responses and durability to SARS-CoV-2 months after infection or the reason for the discrepancy in COVID-19 disease and sex. Using convalescent-phase sera collected from 101 COVID-19-recovered individuals 21 to 212 days after symptom onset with 48 additional longitudinal samples, we measured functionality and durability of serum antibodies.

Sex disparities and neutralizing antibody durability to SARS-CoV-2 infection in convalescent individuals.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has now caused over 2 million deaths worldwide and continues to expand. Currently, much is unknown about functionally neutralizing human antibody responses and durability to SARS-CoV-2. Using convalescent sera collected from 101 COVID-19 recovered individuals 21-212 days after symptom onset with forty-eight additional longitudinal samples, we measured functionality and durability of serum antibodies.

Epidemiology and outcomes of hyphema: a single tertiary centre experience of 180 cases.

Purpose: To characterize the epidemiology and outcomes of hyphema.

Methods: Retrospective case series. Medical records from patients with traumatic and spontaneous hyphema seen at the Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins, from 2011 through 2017 were evaluated.