Point-of-Care Tenofovir Urine Testing for the Prediction of Treatment Failure and Drug Resistance During Initial Treatment for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) Infection.

Background: Viral rebound during antiretroviral treatment (ART) is most often driven by suboptimal adherence in the absence of drug resistance. We assessed the diagnostic performance of point-of-care (POC) tenofovir (TFV) detection in urine for the prediction of viral rebound and drug resistance during ART.

Methods: We performed a nested case-control study within the ADVANCE randomized clinical trial (NCT03122262) in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Brief Report: Discrepancies Between Self-Reported Adherence and a Biomarker of Adherence in Real-World Settings.

Background: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is only effective in preventing new HIV infections when taken consistently. In clinical practice, asking a patient about their adherence (self-report) is the predominant method of assessing adherence to PrEP. Although inexpensive and noninvasive, self-report is subject to social desirability and recall biases.

Zinc chelation decreases IFN-β-induced STAT1 upregulation and iNOS expression in RAW 264.7 macrophages.

One consequence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced stimulation of macrophages is the release of Interferon (IFN)-β, and subsequently the activation of the JAK-STAT1 pathway, resulting in the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Free intracellular zinc ions (Zn) have a profound impact as a second messenger in LPS-dependent gene expression. Previous work had indicated a Zn-dependent upregulation of STAT1 mRNA in response to LPS and IFN-β, potentially affecting STAT1-dependent downstream signaling upon pre-incubation with these agents.

Association between cagA, vacAi, and dupA genes of Helicobacter pylori and gastroduodenal pathologies in Chilean patients.

In addition to the already known cagA gene, novel genetic markers have been associated with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) virulence: the dupA and vacAi genes. These genes might play an important role as specific markers to determine the clinical outcome of the disease, especially the vacAi gene, which has been expected to be a good marker of severe pathologies like gastric adenocarcinoma.

Ethylmercury and Hg2+ induce the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) by human neutrophil granulocytes.

Humans are exposed to different mercurial compounds from various sources, most frequently from dental fillings, preservatives in vaccines, or consumption of fish. Among other toxic effects, these substances interact with the immune system. In high doses, mercurials are immunosuppressive.