Immunogenicity of the mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine in adult patients with inborn errors of immunity.

Background: Patients with inborn errors of immunity (IEI) are at increased risk of severe coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Effective vaccination against COVID-19 is therefore of great importance in this group, but little is known about the immunogenicity of COVID-19 vaccines in these patients.

Objectives: We sought to study humoral and cellular immune responses after mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccination in adult patients with IEI.

Biomarkers to identify infection among borderline QuantiFERON results.

Background: Screening for tuberculosis (TB) infection often includes QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT) testing. Previous studies showed that two-thirds of patients with negative QFT results just below the cut-off, so-called borderline test results, nevertheless had other evidence of TB infection. This study aimed to identify a biomarker profile by which borderline QFT results due to TB infection can be distinguished from random test variation.

Activated PI3Kδ syndrome, an immunodeficiency disorder, leads to sensorimotor deficits recapitulated in a murine model.

The phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K) family plays a major role in cell signaling and is predominant in leukocytes. Gain-of-function (GOF) mutations in the gene lead to the development of activated PI3Kδ syndrome (APDS), a rare primary immunodeficiency disorder. A subset of APDS patients also displays neurodevelopmental delay symptoms, suggesting a potential role of in cognitive and behavioural function.

Convalescent Plasma in a Patient with Protracted COVID-19 and Secondary Hypogammaglobulinemia Due to Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Buying Time to Develop Immunity?

It is not exactly clear yet which type of immune response prevails to accomplish viral clearance in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Studying a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and hypogammaglobulinemia who suffered from COVID-19 provided insight in the immunological responses after treatment with COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP). Treatment consisted of oxygen, repeated glucocorticosteroids and multiple dosages of CCP guided by antibody levels.

Towards Fixed Dosing of Tocilizumab in ICU-Admitted COVID-19 Patients: Results of an Observational Population Pharmacokinetic and Descriptive Pharmacodynamic Study.

Background And Objective: In the randomized controlled trial REMAP-CAP, it was shown that next to dexamethasone, the interleukin (IL)-6 receptor antagonist tocilizumab improves outcome, including survival in intensive care unit (ICU)-admitted coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID)-19 patients. Therefore tocilizumab has been added to many COVID-19 treatment guidelines. Because obesity is a risk factor for the development of severe COVID-19, concerns have been raised about overtreatment, as well as undertreatment, through weight-based dosing of tocilizumab.

Making a Lecture Stick: the Effect of Spaced Instruction on Knowledge Retention in Medical Education.

Introduction: Poor knowledge retention is a persistent problem among medical students. This challenging issue may be addressed by optimizing frequently used instructional designs, such as lectures. Guided by neuroscientific literature, we designed a spaced learning lecture in which the educator repeats the to-be-learned information using short temporal intervals.

Trends in diagnostic methods and treatment of latent tuberculosis infection in a tertiary care center from 2000 to 2017.

Screening for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) is indicated before immunosuppressive therapies but is complicated by lack of a gold standard and limited by, e.g., immunosuppression.

Abnormalities suggestive of latent tuberculosis infection on chest radiography; how specific are they?

Background: Several radiological features have been reported in association with latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) but it has not been studied which are specific. The aim of this study was to evaluate allegedly characteristic abnormalities on chest radiography (CXR) in patients with LTBI compared to uninfected controls.

Methods: From 236 patients tested with QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT), the CXR was re-evaluated in a blinded fashion for fibrotic scarring, (non-)calcified nodules and pleural thickening.

Radiological Signs of Latent Tuberculosis on Chest Radiography: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: Current guidelines recommend screening for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) with a tuberculin skin test (TST) or interferon gamma release assay (IGRA), or both. Many also recommend chest radiography (CXR), although its added value is uncertain. This systematic review assessed the prevalence of abnormalities suggestive of LTBI on CXR (LTBI-CXR lesions) and evaluated the strength of the association.

Borderline QuantiFERON results and the distinction between specific responses and test variability.

Background: QuantiFERON (QFT) results near the cut-off are subject to debate. We aimed to investigate which borderline QFT results were due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb)-specific responses or to test variability.

Methods: In a contact investigation, tuberculin skin test (TST), QFT and T-SPOT.

A novel view on the pathogenesis of complications after intravesical BCG for bladder cancer.

Intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is widely used for high-risk, non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. This report describes four cases that illustrate the spectrum of BCG-induced complications, varying from granulomatous prostatitis to sepsis. There is considerable debate regarding whether inflammation or infection is the predominant mechanism in the pathogenesis of BCG disease.

Mycobacterial growth inhibition is associated with trained innate immunity.

The lack of defined correlates of protection hampers development of vaccines against tuberculosis (TB). In vitro mycobacterial outgrowth assays are thought to better capture the complexity of the human host/Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) interaction. Here, we used a mycobacterial growth inhibition assay (MGIA) based on peripheral blood mononuclear cells to investigate the capacity to control outgrowth of bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG).

Tenosynovitis caused by Mycobacterium malmoense in two kidney transplant recipients and review of the literature.

We report two unrelated cases of tenosynovitis caused by Mycobacterium malmoense in kidney transplant recipients. Both patients received immunosuppression and were referred to our tertiary hospital because of persisting complaints lasting >6 months not responding to corticosteroids or surgery. The mycobacterial cultures were positive for the slow-growing M.

Immunological characterization of latent tuberculosis infection in a low endemic country.

The diagnosis of a latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) is based on detection of immunity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). The tuberculin skin test (TST), the Quantiferon (QFT) and a prolonged lymphocyte stimulation test using either ESAT-6/CFP-10 (LST-EC) or PPD (LST-PPD) were evaluated in a cohort of 495 individuals, suspected to have LTBI, in a low endemic country. While the TST and LST-PPD were both positive in the majority (75%) of individuals, only one third responded in the LST-EC and in the QFT.

[Helicobacter pylori-induced thrombocytopenia].

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is a multicausal disease. In the majority of cases, autoimmune antibodies against thrombocytes and other autoimmune processes play a role. However, in about 20% of cases an underlying cause can be identified.

Role of the QuantiFERON(R)-TB Gold In-Tube assay in screening new immigrants for tuberculosis infection.

This study aimed to estimate the risk of progression to active tuberculosis (TB) within 2 yrs after entry in newly arriving immigrants who were screened with the QuantiFERON®-TB Gold In-Tube assay (QFT-GIT; Cellestis, Carnegie, Australia). In a case-base design, we determined the prevalence QFT-GIT-positive subjects among a representative sample of immigrants aged ≥ 18 yrs who arrived between April 2009 and March 2011 (the base cohort). Active TB patients (cases) within 2 yrs post-arrival in 2005, 2006 or 2007 were extracted from the Netherlands Tuberculosis Register.