Hepatitis E virus infection and its associated adverse feto-maternal outcomes among pregnant women in Qinhuangdao, China.

The aim of this study was to investigate the positive rate of hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection and the possible adverse outcomes in pregnant women of Qinhuangdao, China. Serum samples of 946 pregnant women were collected from July 2017 to October 2017 in Qinhuangdao First Hospital. All samples were tested for anti-HEV IgM and IgG antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Transmission of a Novel Genotype of Hepatitis E Virus from Bactrian Camels to Cynomolgus Macaques.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is zoonotic and a major cause of acute viral hepatitis worldwide. Recently, we identified a novel HEV genotype 8 (HEV8) in Bactrian camels in Xinjiang, China. However, the epidemiology, pathogenicity, and zoonotic potential of HEV8 are unclear.

Evaluation of antiviral efficacy of Chinese traditional medicine Babao Dan in rabbits infected with hepatitis E virus.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute viral hepatitis. Patients with chronic hepatitis B superinfected with HEV may progress to liver failure. Babao Dan (BD) is a traditional Chinese medicine widely used as an auxiliary option for the treatment of chronic hepatitis and liver cancer in China.

Different susceptibility and pathogenesis of rabbit genotype 3 hepatitis E virus (HEV-3) and human HEV-3 (JRC-HE3) in SPF rabbits.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an increasingly important zoonotic infection in humans with HEV genotypes 3 and 4 being recognized as zoonotic pathogens. The relatively recently isolated genotype 3 rabbit HEV (rHEV-3) and the more well known genotype 3 isolates from humans and swine (hsHEV-3) have all been confirmed experimentally to be capable of infecting both non-human primates and specific-pathogen free (SPF) pigs. In a previous study rHEV-3 was shown to cause acute hepatitis in experimentally infected rabbits.

Genetic Evolution of Hepatitis E Virus.

Comparative analysis of the genomic sequences of multiple hepatitis E virus (HEV) isolates has revealed extensive genomic diversity among them. Recently, a variety of genetically distinct HEV variants have also been isolated and identified from large numbers of animal species, including birds, rabbits, rats, ferrets, bats, cutthroat trout, and camels, among others. Furthermore, it has been reported that recombination in HEV genomes takes place in animals and in human patients.

Development and validation of a new serum standard for the measurement of anti-HEV antibodies in animals.

Although hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is a zoonosis, there is, currently, no standardized assay for quantitatively measuring anti-HEV antibody levels in HEV animal reservoirs. In this study, anti-HEV antibody positive serum from a rabbit (RS26) was calibrated by dose-response parallel line assay using the World Health Organization (WHO) reference standard for anti-HEV antibodies. After evaluating the stability of the RS26 serum, a quantification assay of anti-HEV antibodies using RS26 as a standard was developed and evaluated for both reproducibility and suitability to field studies.

Hepatitis E Virus in 3 Types of Laboratory Animals, China, 2012-2015.

We found seroprevalences for hepatitis E virus (HEV) of 7.5%, 18.5%, and 83.

Drosophila Dicer-2 has an RNA interference-independent function that modulates Toll immune signaling.

Dicer-2 is the central player for small interfering RNA biogenesis in the Drosophila RNA interference (RNAi) pathway. Intriguingly, we found that Dicer-2 has an unconventional RNAi-independent function that positively modulates Toll immune signaling, which defends against Gram-positive bacteria, fungi, and some viruses, in both cells and adult flies. The loss of Dicer-2 expression makes fruit flies more susceptible to fungal infection.

Efficient Catalytic Activity BiFeO3 Nanoparticles Prepared by Novel Microwave-Assisted Synthesis.

A novel microwave-assisted sol-gel method was applied to the synthesis of the single-phase perovskite bismuth ferrite nanoparticles (BFO NPs) with the mean diameter ca. 73.7 nm.