A plant-based oligomeric CD2v extracellular domain antigen exhibits equivalent immunogenicity to the live attenuated vaccine ASFV-G-∆I177L.

African swine fever (ASF), caused by the African swine fever virus (ASFV), is a deadly, highly contagious disease in both domestic pigs and wild boar. With mortality up to 100%, the disease has been making a serious impact on the swine industry worldwide. Because no effective antiviral treatment has been observed, proactive prevention such as vaccination remains the key to controlling the outbreak.

Occurrence of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 in northern Viet Nam in early 2022.

The Omicron variant caused a surge of infections with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in Viet Nam in early 2022, signalling community transmission. We report on active whole-genome sequencing surveillance of positive SARS-CoV-2 samples collected at that time in northern Viet Nam from international arrivals and community clusters. We used an amplicon protocol developed with 14 polymerase chain reaction products and the Illumina iSeq 100 platform.

Virological characteristics of cases of COVID-19 in northern Viet Nam, January-May 2020.

Background: Viet Nam confirmed its first case of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection on 23 January 2020 among travellers from Wuhan, China, and experienced several clusters of community transmission until September. Viet Nam implemented an aggressive testing, isolation, contact tracing and quarantine strategy in response to all laboratory-confirmed cases. We report the results of SARS-CoV-2 testing during the first half of 2020 in northern Viet Nam.

Lipid composition and molecular species of phospholipid in oyster (Sowerby, 1871) from Lang Co Beach, Hue Province, Vietnam.

Oysters are widely distributed worldwide, but are mainly concentrated in tropics and subtropics. Total lipid (TL), fatty acid (FA) composition of TL and polar lipid (PoL) fractions, phospholipid (PL) class, and molecular species composition in soft tissues of Crassostrea lugubris were investigated for the first time from Vietnam. Phosphatidylglycolic acid (PGA) is the new phospholipid class first identified in marine species in general and Crassostrea lugubris in particular.

Reconstitution of human CMG helicase ubiquitylation by CUL2LRR1 and multiple E2 enzymes.

Cullin ubiquitin ligases drive replisome disassembly during DNA replication termination. In worm, frog and mouse cells, CUL2LRR1 is required to ubiquitylate the MCM7 subunit of the CMG helicase. Here, we show that cullin ligases also drive CMG-MCM7 ubiquitylation in human cells, thereby making the helicase into a substrate for the p97 unfoldase.

Social and behavioral determinants of attitudes towards and practices of hepatitis B vaccine birth dose in Vietnam.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a significant public health issue in Vietnam. Our goal was to understand the determinants of attitudes towards and practices of hepatitis B vaccine birth dose (HepB-BD) in certain regions of Vietnam.

Method: A rapid qualitative assessment was conducted in three geographically diverse provinces that reported low coverage (<50%) of HepB-BD.

Antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli isolated from urban rodents in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health concern for both clinical and veterinary medicine. Rodent feces are one of the major infectious sources of zoonotic pathogens including AMR bacteria. So far, there are limited studies reported focused on Escherichia coli isolated in rodent feces from rural and suburban areas in Vietnam.

Molecular epidemiology of Leptospira interrogans in Rattus norvegicus in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease that is caused by pathogenic spirochaetes of Leptospira spp. and it has become a public health concern in urban localities in the tropics. Rats are important reservoir animals for the transmission of leptospirosis in urban areas.

Multiple polymerase gene mutations for human adaptation occurring in Asian H5N1 influenza virus clinical isolates.

The role of the influenza virus polymerase complex in host range restriction has been well-studied and several host range determinants, such as the polymerase PB2-E627K and PB2-D701N mutations, have been identified. However, there may be additional, currently unknown, human adaptation polymerase mutations. Here, we used a database search of influenza virus H5N1 clade 1.

Collision with duplex DNA renders Escherichia coli DNA polymerase III holoenzyme susceptible to DNA polymerase IV-mediated polymerase switching on the sliding clamp.

Organisms possess multiple DNA polymerases (Pols) and use each for a different purpose. One of the five Pols in Escherichia coli, DNA polymerase IV (Pol IV), encoded by the dinB gene, is known to participate in lesion bypass at certain DNA adducts. To understand how cells choose Pols when the replication fork encounters an obstacle on template DNA, the process of polymerase exchange from the primary replicative enzyme DNA polymerase III (Pol III) to Pol IV was studied in vitro.

Surveillance of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) for Hospitalized Patients in Northern Vietnam, 2011-2014.

Severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) are leading causes of hospitalization, morbidity, and mortality in children worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify viral pathogens responsible for SARI in northern Vietnam in the period from 2011 to 2014. Throat swabs and tracheal aspirates were collected from SARI patients according to WHO guidelines.

Viral co-infections among children with confirmed measles at hospitals in Hanoi, Vietnam, 2014.

Objective: To characterize viral co-infections among representative hospitalized measles cases during the 2014 Hanoi outbreak.

Methods: Throat swabs were collected from 54 pediatric patients with confirmed measles, and molecular diagnostics performed for 10 additional viral respiratory pathogens (Influenza A/H1N1pdm09; A/H3N2 and influenza B; Parainfluenza 1, 2, 3; Respiratory Synctial Virus, RSV; human Metapneumovirus, hMPV; Adenovirus and Picornavirus).

Results: Twenty-one cases (38.