Comparative evaluation of APRI, FIB-4, HFS, and NFS: Scoring tools for liver fibrosis in a Mexican population with MASLD.

Introduction And Aim: Liver fibrosis is a complication of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Given the limitations and risks of liver biopsy, examining noninvasive scoring systems that are affordable for the population is necessary. Our aim was to evaluate and compare the diagnostic yield of the APRI, FIB-4, NAFLD score, and Hepamet fibrosis score instruments for detecting liver fibrosis in Mexican subjects with MASLD.

Celiac disease seroprevalence in subjects with dyspeptic symptoms. A study on a Mexican population.

Introduction And Aims: Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune enteropathy that develops in genetically susceptible individuals. The typical gastrointestinal manifestation is diarrhea but symptoms of dyspepsia, such as epigastric pain, nausea, or satiety, can sometimes appear. Previous studies have reported that the prevalence of CD in patients with dyspepsia can be as high as 7%.

Molecular detection of bovine leukosis virus in naturally infected dairy and dual-purpose cattle in Mexico.

The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of bovine leukosis virus (BLV) in specialized and dual-purpose dairy cows located in the central zone of Veracruz state in Mexico, using endpoint polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The study population consisted of 307 specialized dairy cows and 95 dual-purpose cows from 13 municipalities located in the study area. All cows were apparently healthy and ≥ 3 years old.

Celiac disease seroprevalence in patients with infertility. A case-control study.

Background: Although most patients with celiac disease (CD) have digestive manifestations, in some of them they may be of extraintestinal (atypical) nature, such as chronic anemia, ataxia, and fertility disorders.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of CD-related antibodies in Mexican women with fertility disorders.

Material And Methods: Case-control study of women who attended evaluation for fertility disorders in a specialized center.

Potential of ATR-FTIR-Chemometrics in Covid-19: Disease Recognition.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disturbances to human health and economy on a global scale. Although vaccination campaigns and important advances in treatments have been developed, an early diagnosis is still crucial. While PCR is the golden standard for diagnosing SARS-CoV-2 infection, rapid and low-cost techniques such as ATR-FTIR followed by multivariate analyses, where dimensions are reduced for obtaining valuable information from highly complex data sets, have been investigated.

Development of a New Murine Model of Type 2 Autoimmune Hepatitis Using a Human Liver Protein.

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a chronic inflammatory condition of the liver characterized by parenchymal destruction, hypergammaglobulinemia, specific autoantibody production, and hepatic fibrosis and necrosis. Murine models of AIH have been described; however, little is known about the immunologic mechanisms of tissue destruction. In this study, a new murine model of type 2 AIH was developed using recombinant human cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2D6 emulsified with complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA).

Dengue Virus Induces the Expression and Release of Endocan from Endothelial Cells by an NS1-TLR4-Dependent Mechanism.

A common hallmark of dengue infections is the dysfunction of the vascular endothelium induced by different biological mechanisms. In this paper, we studied the role of recombinant NS1 proteins representing the four dengue serotypes, and their role in promoting the expression and release of endocan, which is a highly specific biomarker of endothelial cell activation. We evaluated mRNA expression and the levels of endocan protein in vitro following the stimulation of HUVEC and HMEC-1 cell lines with recombinant NS1 proteins.

The Prevalence of Anti-Zein Antibodies: A Comparative Study between Celiac Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Celiac disease (CD) is a chronic immune-mediated enteropathy triggered by exposure to dietary gluten in genetically predisposed individuals. In contrast, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional gastrointestinal disorder affecting the large intestine, without an autoimmune component. Here, we evaluated the prevalence of IgA and IgG antibodies to maize zeins (AZA) in patients with CD and IBS.

A unique immune signature of serum cytokine and chemokine dynamics in patients with Zika virus infection from a tropical region in Southern Mexico.

Objectives: To describe the kinetics of circulating cytokines and chemokines in humans with ZIKAV infection.

Methods: Serum levels of different immune mediators in patients with ZIKAV infection were measured at distinct stages of the disease, as well as in culture supernatants from human monocytes infected with a clinical ZIKAV isolate. We also looked for clinical features associated with specific immune signatures among symptomatic patients.

Cross-Reaction, Enhancement, and Neutralization Activity of Dengue Virus Antibodies against Zika Virus: A Study in the Mexican Population.

Zika virus (ZIKV), an emerging mosquito-borne flavivirus, has quickly spread in many regions around the world where dengue virus (DENV) is endemic. This represents a major health concern, given the high homology between these two viruses, which can result in cross-reactivity. The aim of this study was to determine the cross-reacting antibody response of the IgM and IgG classes against the recombinant envelope protein of ZIKV (rE-ZIKV) in sera from patients with acute-phase infection of different clinical forms of dengue, i.

Development of an E2 ELISA Methodology to Assess Chikungunya Seroprevalence in Patients from an Endemic Region of Mexico.

Chikungunya fever is a debilitating disease caused by Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) that can result in long-lasting arthralgias. The early diagnosis of CHIKV relies on PCR during the acute infection phase to allow differential diagnosis with other co-circulating arboviruses such as dengue and Zika. Alternatively, serology can support diagnosis and provide epidemiological information on current and past outbreaks.

Optimization of Zika virus envelope protein production for ELISA and correlation of antibody titers with virus neutralization in Mexican patients from an arbovirus endemic region.

Background: Zika virus (ZIKV) has become a global threat with immediate need for accurate diagnostics, efficacious vaccines and therapeutics. Several ZIKV envelope (Env)-based vaccines have been developed recently. However, many commercially available ZIKV Env are based on the African lineage and produced in insect cells.

First Insights into the Gut Microbiota of Mexican Patients with Celiac Disease and Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity.

Gluten-related disorders (GRDs) are common chronic enteropathies and increasing evidence suggests an involvement of the gut microbiota. We examined the gut microbiota in Mexican people afflicted with GRDs. Ultra-high-throughput 16S marker sequencing was used to deeply describe the duodenal and fecal microbiota of patients with celiac disease (CD, = 6), non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS, = 12), and healthy subjects ( = 12) from our local area.

Frequency of human papillomavirus infection in patients with gastrointestinal cancer.

Introduction And Aim: Cancer is the result of the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. It has recently been related to viral infections, one of which is human papillomavirus. The aim of the present study was to describe the frequency of human papillomavirus infection in patients with digestive system cancers.

Association of Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Immune-Related Genes with Development of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever in a Mexican Population.

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) occurring in immune-related genes have been associated with risk or protection for development of dengue, depending on ethnicity. Here, we genotyped seven SNPs located in immune response-related genes to identify their association with severe forms of dengue in patients from an endemic region in Mexico. One hundred and thirty-eight patients with dengue fever (DF), thirty-one dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) patients, as well as 304 healthy donors were genotyped by using a TaqMan-based approach.

Construct and expression of recombinant domains I/II of dengue virus- 2 and its efficacy to evaluate immune response in endemic area: Possible use in prognosis.

The envelope (E) protein from DENV, contain three functional and structural domains (DI, DII and DIII). Some studies suggest that neutralizing antibodies during natural DENV infection are predominantly against DI and DII, in contrast, low proportion of the antibodies were against DIII. Thus it is necessary to establish the proportion of human antibodies against DENV E protein that bind to DI and DII during the normal course of infection; as an indicator of the quality of the antibody response and to further design new vaccine candidates for DENV.

Non-Conjugated Chitosan-Based Nanoparticles to Proteic Antigens Elicit Similar Humoral Immune Responses to Those Obtained with Alum.

Biodegradables Chitosan-based Nanoparticles (CS NPs) have been extensively studied as delivery system for therapeutic molecules and as efficient carriers or adjuvants in experimental vaccination. Physicochemical association between CS NPs and antigens is a key step for the biological function as carrier devices. However, for the adjuvant CS NPs property, it is not well known if coupling with vaccine antigens is required or not to potentiate the immune response.

Evaluation of the safety and adjuvant effect of a detoxified listeriolysin O mutant on the humoral response to dengue virus antigens.

Listeriolysin O (LLO) has been proposed as a potential carrier or adjuvant molecule in the vaccination field. However, the cytotoxic and pro-apoptotic effects of LLO are the major limitations for this purpose. Here, we have performed a preclinical safety evaluation and characterized a new potential adjuvant application for a non-cytolytic LLO mutant (dtLLO) to enhance and modulate the immune response against the envelope (E) protein from dengue virus.

Elevated circulating levels of IL-21 and IL-22 define a cytokine signature profile in type 2 autoimmune hepatitis patients.

Unlabelled:  Background and aims. Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a chronic inflammatory condition of the liver in which the immunological mechanisms involved in tissue destruction and/or repair are still unclear. Different pro-inflammatory cytokines have been shown to play a determinant role in AIH pathogenesis.

Lower IgG somatic hypermutation rates during acute dengue virus infection is compatible with a germinal center-independent B cell response.

Background: The study of human B cell response to dengue virus (DENV) infection is critical to understand serotype-specific protection and the cross-reactive sub-neutralizing response. Whereas the first is beneficial and thus represents the ultimate goal of vaccination, the latter has been implicated in the development of severe disease, which occurs in a small, albeit significant, fraction of secondary DENV infections. Both primary and secondary infections are associated with the production of poly-reactive and cross-reactive IgG antibodies.

Prevalence of celiac disease and related antibodies in patients diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome according to the Rome III criteria. A case-control study.

Background: The cost-effectiveness for screening for celiac disease (CD) in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), specifically in the diarrhea (IBS-D) subtype, is beneficial if the prevalence is >1%. However, recent studies have shown controversial results. In this large case-control study, our aim was to determine the prevalence of CD and a panel of related antibodies in patients diagnosed with IBS.