Background: The golden (Syrian) hamster () is a small rodent that belongs to the family. It has several unique features that are advantageous for the study of reproductive and developmental biology, including a consistent estrous cycle (4 days), high responsiveness to conventional superovulation regimens, and the short gestation period (16 days).
Methods: Based on the published reports, the development in assisted reproductive technology (ART) in the golden hamsters was summarized.
Main Findings: The technical ease of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in this species has contributed to our understanding of the basic mechanisms of mammalian fertilization in the last century. However, a strong developmental block in vitro of hamster embryos and unavailability of gene-modified strains has hampered its broader use in biomedical fields. A recently developed in vivo transfection method has enabled us to generate gene knockout hamsters without any major obstacles. It would be interesting to revisit the genes whose functions could not be identified using mouse models.
Conclusion: The authors expect that gene knockout hamsters might be able to substitute for mice-at least in part-for better understanding of gene functions in mammals including humans.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/rmb2.12241 | DOI Listing |
Cell Immunol
January 2025
Educational and Scientific Centre "Institute of Biology and Medicine", Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, 2, Hlushkov Avenue, Kyiv 03022, Ukraine.
Bacteriophage-derived dsRNA (bp-dsRNA), also known as Larifan, is a poly-functional and wide-spectrum antiviral medication with potent interferonogenic activity. In the lungs of golden Syrian hamsters infected with SARS-CoV-2, Larifan substantially reduces viral load and decreases infection-induced pathological lesion severity. Alveolar macrophages (AM) are key sentinel cells in the lung, which play an important role in antiviral innate immune responses and, at the same time, can trigger infection-associated hyper-inflammatory response.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFViruses
November 2024
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK.
Favipiravir (FVP) and remdesivir (RDV) have demonstrable antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. Here, the efficacy of FVP, RDV, and FVP with RDV (FVP + RDV) in combination was assessed in Syrian golden hamsters challenged with SARS-CoV- 2 (B.1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVaccines (Basel)
December 2024
Prophyl Kft., 7700 Mohács, Hungary.
Background/objectives: The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for alternative prophylactic measures, particularly for populations for whom vaccines may not be effective or accessible. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of intranasally administered IgY antibodies derived from hen egg yolks as a protective agent against SARS-CoV-2 infection in Syrian golden hamsters, a well-established animal model for COVID-19.
Methods: Hens were immunized with the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 to generate IgY antibodies.
Vaccines (Basel)
November 2024
Institute of Experimental Medicine, Saint Petersburg 197022, Russia.
Background/objectives: Influenza viruses and SARS-CoV-2 are currently cocirculating with similar seasonality, and both pathogens are characterized by a high mutational rate which results in reduced vaccine effectiveness and thus requires regular updating of vaccine compositions. Vaccine formulations combining seasonal influenza and SARS-CoV-2 strains can be considered promising and cost-effective tools for protection against both infections.
Methods: We used a licensed seasonal trivalent live attenuated influenza vaccine (3×LAIV) as a basis for the development of a modified 3×LAIV/CoV-2 vaccine, where H1N1 and H3N2 LAIV strains encoded an immunogenic cassette enriched with conserved T-cell epitopes of SARS-CoV-2, whereas a B/Victoria lineage LAIV strain was unmodified.
EBioMedicine
December 2024
Liver Cancer Institute, Zhongshan Hospital, and Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion (Ministry of Education), Fudan University, Shanghai, China. Electronic address:
Background: Liver involvement is a common complication of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially in hospitalized patients. However, the underlying mechanisms involved are not fully understood.
Methods: Immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining of SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) proteins was conducted on liver tissues from six patients with COVID-19.
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