Efficacy, Safety, and Immunogenicity of the MATISSE (Maternal Immunization Study for Safety and Efficacy) Maternal Respiratory Syncytial Virus Prefusion F Protein Vaccine Trial.

Objective: To evaluate descriptive efficacy data, exploratory immunogenicity data, and safety follow-up through study completion from the global, phase 3 MATISSE (Maternal Immunization Study for Safety and Efficacy) maternal vaccination trial of bivalent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) prefusion F protein vaccine (RSVpreF).

Methods: MATISSE was a phase 3, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial. Healthy pregnant participants aged 49 years or younger at 24-36 weeks of gestation were randomized (1:1) to receive a single RSVpreF 120 micrograms or placebo dose.

Immigration and C-sections incidence: Maternal care and perinatal outcomes in the context of the pandemic in Chile.

Introduction: Immigration has increased significantly in Chile. Despite that all pregnant women, regardless of nationality and immigration status, have the right to access to all healthcare services during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, inequities in health care outcomes and health provision have been reported. During COVID-19 pandemic, these inequities are completely unknown.

Exacerbates Inflammation and Mucus Hypersecretion in a Murine, Elastase-Induced-COPD Model.

Inflammation and mucus hypersecretion are frequent pathology features of chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and COPD. Selected bacteria, viruses and fungi may synergize as co-factors in aggravating disease by activating pathways that are able to induce airway pathology. infection induces inflammation and mucus hypersecretion in immune competent and compromised humans and animals.

Bivalent Prefusion F Vaccine in Pregnancy to Prevent RSV Illness in Infants.

Background: Whether vaccination during pregnancy could reduce the burden of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated lower respiratory tract illness in newborns and infants is uncertain.

Methods: In this phase 3, double-blind trial conducted in 18 countries, we randomly assigned, in a 1:1 ratio, pregnant women at 24 through 36 weeks' gestation to receive a single intramuscular injection of 120 μg of a bivalent RSV prefusion F protein-based (RSVpreF) vaccine or placebo. The two primary efficacy end points were medically attended severe RSV-associated lower respiratory tract illness and medically attended RSV-associated lower respiratory tract illness in infants within 90, 120, 150, and 180 days after birth.

Influence of mental health medication on microbiota in the elderly population in the Valencian region.

Spain has an aging population; 19.93% of the Spanish population is over 65. Aging is accompanied by several health issues, including mental health disorders and changes in the gut microbiota.

Sero-Epidemiology of Infection among Infants, Children, and Adults in Chile.

Previous serologic surveys show >80% of infants in Chile have anti- antibodies by 2 years of age, but the seroepidemiology of infection beyond infancy is unknown. We describe the sero-epidemiology in infants, children, and adults at different locations in Chile. Serum samples were prospectively obtained from 681 healthy adults (age ≥ 17 years) and 690 non-immunocompromised infants/children attending eight blood banks or outpatient clinics (2 in Santiago) in Chile.

A Real-Time PCR Assay for Detection of Low Levels.

Here we report a new real-time PCR assay using SYBR Green which provides higher sensitivity for the specific detection of low levels of . To do so, two primer sets were designed, targeting the family of genes that code for the most abundant surface protein of spp., namely the major surface glycoproteins (Msg), and the mitochondrial large subunit rRNA (mtLSUrRNA) multicopy gene, simultaneously detecting two regions.

Pneumocystis primary infection in non-immunosuppressed infants in Lima, Peru.

Objectives: To provide original data on Pneumocystis primary infection in non-immunosuppressed infants from Peru.

Methods: A cross sectional study was performed. Infants less than seven months old, without any underlying medical conditions attending the "well baby" outpatient clinic at one hospital in Lima, Peru were prospectively enrolled during a 15-month period from November 2016 to February 2018.

Phase 3 Safety and Efficacy of AZD1222 (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) Covid-19 Vaccine.

Background: The safety and efficacy of the AZD1222 (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) vaccine in a large, diverse population at increased risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the United States, Chile, and Peru has not been known.

Methods: In this ongoing, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 3 clinical trial, we investigated the safety, vaccine efficacy, and immunogenicity of two doses of AZD1222 as compared with placebo in preventing the onset of symptomatic and severe coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) 15 days or more after the second dose in adults, including older adults, in the United States, Chile, and Peru.

Results: A total of 32,451 participants underwent randomization, in a 2:1 ratio, to receive AZD1222 (21,635 participants) or placebo (10,816 participants).

Pneumocystis jirovecii Colonization in Preterm Newborns With Respiratory Distress Syndrome.

We describe the prevalence of Pneumocystis jirovecii in mother-infant pairs of very low birth weight newborns <32 weeks gestation. Molecular and microscopic methods were used for detection of P. jirovecii in patients' specimens.

Consensus Multilocus Sequence Typing Scheme for .

is an opportunistic human pathogenic fungus causing severe pneumonia mainly in immunocompromised hosts. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) remains the gold standard for genotyping of this unculturable fungus. However, the lack of a consensus scheme impedes a global comparison, large scale population studies and the development of a global MLST database.

Optimized DNA extraction and purification method for characterization of bacterial and fungal communities in lung tissue samples.

Human lungs harbor a scarce microbial community, requiring to develop methods to enhance the recovery of nucleic acids from bacteria and fungi, leading to a more efficient analysis of the lung tissue microbiota. Here we describe five extraction protocols including pre-treatment, bead-beating and/or Phenol:Chloroform:Isoamyl alcohol steps, applied to lung tissue samples from autopsied individuals. The resulting total DNA yield and quality, bacterial and fungal DNA amount and the microbial community structure were analyzed by qPCR and Illumina sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA and fungal ITS genes.

[Pneumocystis jirovecii colonisation in pregnant women and newborns in Lima, Peru].

Background: Pneumocystisjirovecii primary infection occurs asymptomatically before 6 months of age, suggesting that the infection is acquired very early in life. Furthermore, Pneumocystis pneumonia has been described in newborns, which emphasizes the importance of studying Pneumocystis colonization in mother-infant pairs.

Aims: To evaluate the prevalence of Pneumocystis colonization among pregnant women and to determine the potential transplacental transmission.

Niflumic Acid Reverses Airway Mucus Excess and Improves Survival in the Rat Model of Steroid-Induced Pneumonia.

Although the role of adaptive immunity in fighting infection is well known, the role of the innate, airway epithelium, responses remains largely unexplored. The concerted interaction of innate and adaptive responses is essential to successfully eradicate infection. Increased expression of goblet-cell-derived CLCA1 protein plus excess mucus in infant autopsy lungs and in murine models of primary infection alert of innate immune system immunopathology associated to infection.

Primary infection by Pneumocystis induces Notch-independent Clara cell mucin production in rat distal airways.

Clara cells are the main airway secretory cells able to regenerate epithelium in the distal airways through transdifferentiating into goblet cells, a process under negative regulation of the Notch pathway. Pneumocystis is a highly prevalent fungus in humans occurring between 2 and 5 months of age, a period when airways are still developing and respiratory morbidity typically increases. Pneumocystis induces mucus hyperproduction in immunocompetent host airways and whether it can stimulate Clara cells is unknown.

Pneumocystis primary infection in infancy: Additional French data and review of the literature.

Data on features of Pneumocystis primary infection in infancy are still fragmented. To study Pneumocystis primary infection, 192 infants who were monitored for acute pulmonary disease or fever over a 40-month period were retrospectively investigated. P.

Increase in secreted airway mucins and partial Muc5b STAT6/FoxA2 regulation during Pneumocystis primary infection.

Airway mucus responses to subclinical infections may explain variations in progression of chronic lung diseases and differences in clinical expression of respiratory infections across individuals. Pneumocystis associates to more severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), asthma, respiratory distress of premature newborns, and is a consistent subclinical infection between 2 and 5 months of age when hospitalizations for respiratory cause and infant mortality are higher. This atypical fungus associates to increased mucin 5AC (MUC5AC), a central effector of Th2-type allergic inflammation, in infant lungs.

Progression of Type 2 Helper T Cell-Type Inflammation and Airway Remodeling in a Rodent Model of Naturally Acquired Subclinical Primary Pneumocystis Infection.

Subclinical primary Pneumocystis infection is the most common pulmonary infection in early infancy, making it important to determine whether it damages the lung. Pneumocystis peaks at 2 to 5 months of age, when respiratory morbidity coincidently increases. We have documented that Pneumocystis increases mucus production in infant lungs, and animal models reveal lung lesions that warrant characterization.

Early Acquisition of Pneumocystis jirovecii Colonization and Potential Association With Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Preterm Newborn Infants.

Background: Pneumocystis pneumonia is a well-recognized lung disease of premature and malnourished babies. Even though serologic studies have shown that children are exposed to Pneumocystis jirovecii early in life, the epidemiology of human P. jirovecii infection and the host-microorganism relationship in infancy remain poorly understood.

High Prevalence of Pneumocystis jirovecii Dihydropteroate Synthase Gene Mutations in Patients with a First Episode of Pneumocystis Pneumonia in Santiago, Chile, and Clinical Response to Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole Therapy.

Mutations in the dihydropteroate synthase (DHPS) gene of Pneumocystis jirovecii are associated with the failure of sulfa prophylaxis. They can develop by selection in patients receiving sulfa drugs or be acquired via person-to-person transmission. DHPS mutations raise concern about the decreasing efficacy of sulfa drugs, the main available therapeutic tool for Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP).

Fungal colonization with Pneumocystis correlates to increasing chloride channel accessory 1 (hCLCA1) suggesting a pathway for up-regulation of airway mucus responses, in infant lungs.

Fungal colonization with Pneumocystis is associated with increased airway mucus in infants during their primary Pneumocystis infection, and to severity of COPD in adults. The pathogenic mechanisms are under investigation. Interestingly, increased levels of hCLCA1 - a member of the calcium-sensitive chloride conductance family of proteins that drives mucus hypersecretion - have been associated with increased mucus production in patients diagnosed with COPD and in immunocompetent rodents with Pneumocystis infection.

Diagnosis of the primary infection by pneumocystis in autopsy specimens from two infants using lung impression smears (touch preps).

The primary infection by Pneumocystis of normal, healthy infants is asymptomatic and goes undiagnosed. Microscopy diagnosis of Pneumocystis was sought in lung impression smears (LIS) from two ~3-month-old infants dying unexpectedly in the community. Pneumocystis nuclei and cysts were identified using Hema-Gurr with subsequent Gomori-Grocott staining in the same spot documenting that these stains may be complementary.

Near-universal prevalence of Pneumocystis and associated increase in mucus in the lungs of infants with sudden unexpected death.

Background: Pneumocystis without obvious accompanying pathology is occasionally reported in autopsied infant lungs. Its prevalence and significance are unknown. Interestingly, this mild infection induces a strong activation of mucus secretion-related genes in young immunocompetent rodents that has not been explored in infants.

Seroepidemiological study of Pneumocystis jirovecii infection in healthy infants in Chile using recombinant fragments of the P. jirovecii major surface glycoprotein.

Objectives: To characterize the seroepidemiological features of Pneumocystis jirovecii infection in healthy Chilean children using overlapping fragments (A, B, C) of the P. jirovecii major surface glycoprotein (Msg).

Methods: Serum antibodies to MsgA, MsgB, and MsgC were measured every 2 months by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 45 Chilean infants from about age 2 months to 2 years.