Validation of IgG, IgM multiplex plasmonic gold platform in French clinical cohorts for the serodiagnosis and follow-up of Toxoplasma gondii infection.

We report the use of the multiplexed T. gondii IgG, IgM test on plasmonic gold (pGOLD) platform in the setting of T. gondii infection by analyzing 244 sera from Nice, France (seroconversion, chronically infected, non-infected and newborns serum samples).

Cytokine profiles in patients with toxoplasmic lymphadenitis in the setting of pregnancy.

Introduction: Majority of Toxoplasma gondii infections are benign and asymptomatic; however, some patients experience toxoplasmic lymphadenitis (TL). Factors associated as to whether infection will be symptomatic or not are unknown.

Methods: Dye test titers of patients with acute toxoplasmosis (pregnant and not pregnant) with TL (TL+) were compared with those in patients with asymptomatic acute infection (TL-).

Accuracies of fecal calprotectin, lactoferrin, M2-pyruvate kinase, neopterin and zonulin to predict the response to infliximab in ulcerative colitis.

Background: Fecal markers might predict the response to anti-TNFα in ulcerative colitis (UC).

Aims: To compare the performance of fecal calprotectin (fCal), lactoferrin (fLact), M2-PK (fM2-PK), neopterin (fNeo), and zonulin (fZon) to predict the response to therapy in active UC patients.

Methods: Disease activity from 31 consecutive patients with an active UC, treated with infliximab (IFX) was assessed by the Mayo score at baseline and at week 14 and by the partial Mayo score at W52 and stool samples collected for fecal marker measurements at W0, W2, and W14.

Performance assessment of two lysis methods for direct identification of yeasts from clinical blood cultures using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry.

In cases of fungal infection of the bloodstream, rapid species identification is crucial to provide adapted therapy and thereby ameliorate patient outcome. Currently, the commercial Sepsityper kit and the sodium-dodecyl sulfate (SDS) method coupled with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry are the most commonly reported lysis protocols for direct identification of fungi from positive blood culture vials. However, the performance of these two protocols has never been compared on clinical samples.

Central nervous system involvement in AIDS-related lymphomas.

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement is reportedly more common in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related lymphomas (ARL). We describe factors and outcomes associated with CNS involvement at baseline (CNS(B) ) and relapse (CNS(R) ) in 886 patients with newly diagnosed ARL. Of 886 patients, 800 received either intrathecal (IT) therapy for CNS(B) or IT prophylaxis.

Multiplexed Anti-Toxoplasma IgG, IgM, and IgA Assay on Plasmonic Gold Chips: towards Making Mass Screening Possible with Dye Test Precision.

Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii that can lead to severe sequelae in the fetus during pregnancy. Definitive serologic diagnosis of the infection during gestation is made mostly by detecting T. gondii-specific antibodies, including IgG and IgM, individually in a single serum sample by using commercially available kits.

Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Leishmania infantum from Southeastern France: Evaluation Using Multi-Locus Microsatellite Typing.

In the south of France, Leishmania infantum is responsible for numerous cases of canine leishmaniasis (CanL), sporadic cases of human visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and rare cases of cutaneous and muco-cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL and MCL, respectively). Several endemic areas have been clearly identified in the south of France including the Pyrénées-Orientales, Cévennes (CE), Provence (P), Alpes-Maritimes (AM) and Corsica (CO). Within these endemic areas, the two cities of Nice (AM) and Marseille (P), which are located 150 km apart, and their surroundings, concentrate the greatest number of French autochthonous leishmaniasis cases.

Multilocus microsatellite typing of Leishmania and clinical applications: a review.

Microsatellite markers have been used for Leishmania genetic studies worldwide, giving useful insight into leishmaniasis epidemiology. Understanding the geographic distribution, dynamics of Leishmania populations, and disease epidemiology improved markedly with this tool. In endemic foci, the origins of antimony-resistant strains and multidrug treatment failures were explored with multilocus microsatellite typing (MLMT).

RET gene mutations are not involved in the origin of human testicular seminoma.

Testicular germ cell cancers are the most common solid malignancies in young men, but their pathogenesis remains undetermined although some epidemiological data have implicated both environmental and genetic factors. Glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is secreted by Sertoli cells, and promotes germ stem cell proliferation by activating RET, a tyrosine kinase receptor. Over-expression of GDNF in adult transgenic mice induces the development of testicular tumours that mimic human seminoma, the most frequent testicular germ cell tumour.

[Leishmaniases in France: an update].

Leishmaniases are parasitic diseases due to a flagellate protozoan of the genus Leishmania. They are transmitted from mammal to mammal by the bite of an arthropod vector: a female sandfly. Among the different clinical presentations, the zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) is due to Leishmania infantum.

Atypical aetiology of a conjugal fever: autochthonous airport malaria between Paris and French Riviera: a case report.

Endemic malaria has been eradicated from France, but some falciparum malaria cases have been described in patients who have never travelled outside the country. Ms. V.