Pathogenic potential and growth kinetics of Muko virus in mice and human-derived cells.

Background: Ticks have been long known as vectors of various pathogens, some of which can cause high fatality rates among infected individuals. Our enhanced tick surveillance around Nagasaki, Japan, led to the isolation and identification of a new strain of a recently identified , Muko virus (MUV). The orbiviruses have a wide host range, including humans, and is related to a spectrum of clinical outcomes.

Pattern transitions in spatial epidemics: Mechanisms and emergent properties.

Infectious diseases are a threat to human health and a hindrance to societal development. Consequently, the spread of diseases in both time and space has been widely studied, revealing the different types of spatial patterns. Transitions between patterns are an emergent property in spatial epidemics that can serve as a potential trend indicator of disease spread.

A loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for rapid and sensitive detection of bovine papular stomatitis virus.

Bovine papular stomatitis virus (BPSV) causes pustular cutaneous disease in cattle worldwide. This paper describes the development of a specific loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay to detect BPSV which did not cross-react with other parapoxviruses. To assess analytical sensitivity of this LAMP assay, DNA was extracted from serially diluted BPSV from which the infectious titer was determined by a novel assay based on calf kidney epithelial cells.

Entamoeba Encystation: New Targets to Prevent the Transmission of Amebiasis.

Amebiasis is caused by Entamoeba histolytica infection and can produce a broad range of clinical signs, from asymptomatic cases to patients with obvious symptoms. The current epidemiological and clinical statuses of amebiasis make it a serious public health problem worldwide. The Entamoeba life cycle consists of the trophozoite, the causative agent for amebiasis, and the cyst, the form responsible for transmission.

Plasmodium knowlesi Skeleton-Binding Protein 1 Localizes to the 'Sinton and Mulligan' Stipplings in the Cytoplasm of Monkey and Human Erythrocytes.

The malaria parasite, Plasmodium, exports protein products to the infected erythrocyte to introduce modifications necessary for the establishment of nutrient acquisition and surface display of host interaction ligands. Erythrocyte remodeling impacts parasite virulence and disease pathology and is well documented for the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, but has been less described for other Plasmodium species. For P.

Post-Kala-Azar Dermal Leishmaniasis Without Previous History of Visceral Leishmaniasis.

Post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) without previous visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a rare dermatological manifestation of Leishmania infection. To date, most of the reported cases neither showed parasitological confirmation nor explained the outcome of treatment. Herein, we report three confirmed cases that were were successfully cured after miltefosine treatment.

The rediscovery of malaria parasites of ungulates.

Over a hundred years since their first description in 1913, the sparsely described malaria parasites (genus Plasmodium) of ungulates have been rediscovered using molecular typing techniques. In the span of weeks, three studies have appeared describing the genetic characterization and phylogenetic analyses of malaria parasites from African antelope (Cephalophus spp.) and goat (Capra aegagrus hircus), Asian water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis), and North American white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus).

Criteria of "persistent vomiting" in the WHO 2009 warning signs for dengue case classification.

Introduction: Dengue is a viral disease that spreads rapidly in the tropic and subtropic regions of the world and causes 22,000 deaths annually. In 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a new classification of dengue infections, which divided them into three categories: dengue without warning sign (D), dengue with warning sign (DWS), and severe dengue (SD). However, researchers have been using different criteria to define persistent vomiting; therefore, we aimed to evaluate the ability of the number of vomiting times in early prediction of SD development among D/DWS patients.

Seroepidemiological evidence of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus infections in wild boars in Nagasaki, Japan.

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging disease in East Asia. It is thought that the SFTS virus (SFTSV) circulates between ticks and animals in nature and that the virus is transmitted to humans by tick bites. SFTS is endemic to Nagasaki in western Japan; however, epidemiological information regarding SFTSV in Nagasaki is not known.

Genome-scale comparison of expanded gene families in Plasmodium ovale wallikeri and Plasmodium ovale curtisi with Plasmodium malariae and with other Plasmodium species.

Malaria in humans is caused by six species of Plasmodium parasites, of which the nuclear genome sequences for the two Plasmodium ovale spp., P. ovale curtisi and P.

Therapeutic efficacy and safety of Botulinum Toxin A Therapy in Trigeminal Neuralgia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Several different interventions have been examined to alleviate pain and reduce frequency of trigeminal neuralgia (TN) paroxysms. However, some patients continue to have persistent or recurrent painful attacks. Using a systematic review and meta-analysis approach, we aimed to synthesize evidence from published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding safety and efficacy of botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) as a possible emerging choice of treatment for TN.

Plasmodium Rab5b is secreted to the cytoplasmic face of the tubovesicular network in infected red blood cells together with N-acylated adenylate kinase 2.

Background: Rab5 GTPase regulates membrane trafficking between the plasma membrane and endosomes and harbours a conserved C-terminal isoprenyl modification that is necessary for membrane recruitment. Plasmodium falciparum encodes three Rab5 isotypes, and one of these, Rab5b (PfRab5b), lacks the C-terminal modification but possesses the N-terminal myristoylation motif. PfRab5b was reported to localize to the parasite periphery.

Translational repression of the cpw-wpc gene family in the malaria parasite Plasmodium.

The technical challenges of working with the sexual stages of the malaria parasite Plasmodium have hindered the characterization of sexual stage antigens in the quest for a successful malaria transmission-blocking vaccine. One such predicted and largely uncharacterized group of sexual stage candidate antigens is the CPW-WPC family of proteins. CPW-WPC proteins are named for a characteristic domain that contains two conserved motifs, CPxxW and WPC.

A Drosophila Model for Screening Antiobesity Agents.

Although triacylglycerol, the major component for lipid storage, is essential for normal physiology, its excessive accumulation causes obesity in adipose tissue and is associated with organ dysfunction in nonadipose tissue. Here, we focused on the Drosophila model to develop therapeutics for preventing obesity. The brummer (bmm) gene in Drosophila melanogaster is known to be homologous with human adipocyte triglyceride lipase, which is related to the regulation of lipid storage.

Proteomic profile of circulating immune complexes in chronic Chagas disease.

Immune complexes (ICs) are the direct and real-time products of humoral immune responses. The identification of constituent foreign or autoantigens within ICs might bring new insights into the pathology of infectious diseases. We applied immune complexome analysis of plasma to the study of Chagas disease caused by Trypanosoma cruzi.

Characterization of an epimastigote-stage-specific hemoglobin receptor of Trypanosoma congolense.

Background: Since Trypanosoma spp. lack a complete heme synthesis pathway, the parasites are totally dependent on their host for heme throughout all of the stages of their life-cycle. We herein report the identification and characterization of a T.

Exploratory, Phase II Controlled Trial of Shiunko Ointment Local Application Twice a Day for 4 Weeks in Ethiopian Patients with Localized Cutaneous Leishmaniasis.

The clinical efficacy and safety of Shiunko ointment (phase II clinical trial) was investigated in 40 Ethiopian patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis. Patients were randomized to receive treatment with Shiunko ointment or placebo (n = 20, each), applied on the lesion twice a day for 4 weeks. Clinicoparasitological assessments were performed before treatment, weekly for 4 weeks, and then 4, 8, and 12 weeks after the end of treatment.

Function of Lipid Storage Droplet 1 (Lsd1) in Wing Development of Drosophila melanogaster.

Perilipins are evolutionarily conserved from Drosophila to humans, the lipid storage droplet 1 (Lsd1) is a Drosophila homolog of human perilipin 1. The function of Lsd1 as a regulator of lipolysis in Drosophila has been demonstrated, as the Lsd1 mutant causes an increase of lipid droplet size. However, the functions of this gene during development are still under investigation.

Predicting West Nile Virus Infection Risk From the Synergistic Effects of Rainfall and Temperature.

Mosquito-based surveillance is a practical way to estimate the risk of transmission of West Nile virus (WNV) to people. Variations in temperature and precipitation play a role in driving mosquito infection rates and transmission of WNV, motivating efforts to predict infection rates based on prior weather conditions. Weather conditions and sequential patterns of meteorological events can have particularly important, but regionally distinctive, consequences for WNV transmission, with high temperatures and low precipitation often increasing WNV mosquito infection.

Association between nutritional status and dengue infection: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Dengue infection has various clinical manifestations, often with unpredictable clinical evolutions and outcomes. Several factors including nutritional status have been studied to find the relationship with dengue severity. However, the nutritional status had conflicting effects on the complication of dengue in some previous studies.

Identification and functional analysis of a novel mitochondria-localized 2-Cys peroxiredoxin, BbTPx-2, from Babesia bovis.

Cysteine-based peroxidases, known as peroxiredoxins (Prx) or thioredoxin peroxidases (TPx), are important antioxidant enzymes that prevent oxidative damage caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS). In this study, we identified a novel mitochondrial 2-Cys Prx, BbTPx-2, from a bovine Babesia parasite, B. bovis.

Mouse models of amoebiasis and culture methods of amoeba.

Entamoeba histolytica is the third leading parasitic cause of man mortality in the world. Infection occurs via ingestion of food or water contaminated with cysts of E. histolytica.

Synergism between Pfcrt and Pfmdr1 genes could account for the slow recovery of chloroquine sensitive Plasmodium falciparum strains in Ghana after chloroquine withdrawal.

Unlike other countries, the chloroquine resistant marker Pfcrt T76 mutant has remained fairly stable in Ghana several years after official disuse of chloroquine. Certain mutations in Pfmdr1 may potentiate Pfcrt T76, offering a possible explanation for this observation. To understand the phenomenon, the co-existence of mutations in Pfmdr1 with Pfcrt T76 in Ghanaian Plasmodium falciparum isolates was studied.

The Plasmodium PHIST and RESA-Like Protein Families of Human and Rodent Malaria Parasites.

The phist gene family has members identified across the Plasmodium genus, defined by the presence of a domain of roughly 150 amino acids having conserved aromatic residues and an all alpha-helical structure. The family is highly amplified in P. falciparum, with 65 predicted genes in the genome of the 3D7 isolate.

Establishment of transient and stable transfection systems for Babesia ovata.

Background: Bovine babesiosis is a tick-borne disease caused by several species of Babesia which produce acute and fatal disease in cattle and affect livestock industry worldwide. Babesia ovata is a benign species widespread in east Asian countries and causes anemia, particularly in cattle which are co-infected with Theileria orientalis. The development of genetic manipulation methods is necessary to improve our understanding of the basic biology of protozoan pathogens toward a better control of disease.