Hintonweeks9130

These results provide basic information for developing a virus-based pesticide against the invading pest S. frugiperda.An insect's innate immune system is the front line of defense against many invading microorganisms. One of the important components of this defense system is antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). Papiliocin is a well-studied antimicrobial peptide (AMP) isolated from the swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus, and it was previously reported to be effective against Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria, and fungi, particularly in drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Hence, we aimed to identify novel AMPs from Papilio xuthus using its transcriptome. We immunized the swallowtail butterfly with Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, and the total RNA was isolated. De novo transcriptome assembly and functional annotations were conducted, and AMPs were predicted using an in-silico pipeline. The obtained 344,804,442 raw reads were then pre-processed to retrieve 312,509,806 (90.6%) total clean reads. A total of 38,272 unigenes were assembled with the average length of 1010 bp. Differential gene expression analysis identified 584 and 1409 upregulated and downregulated genes, respectively. The physicochemical, aggregation, and allergen propensity were used as filtration criteria. A total of 248 peptides were predicted using our in-house pipeline and the known AMPs were removed, resulting in 193 novel peptides. Finally, seven peptides were tested in vitro and three peptides (Px 5, 6, and 7) showed stronger antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative bacteria and yeast. All the tested peptides were non-allergens. The identified novel AMPs may serve as potential candidates for future antimicrobial studies.Bacterial keratitis is a corneal infection which may cause visual impairment or even loss of the infected eye. It remains a major cause of blindness in the developing world. Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are common causative agents and these bacterial species are known to colonise the corneal surface as biofilm populations. click here are complex bacterial communities encased in an extracellular polymeric matrix and are notoriously difficult to eradicate once established. Biofilm bacteria exhibit different phenotypic characteristics from their planktonic counterparts, including an increased resistance to antibiotics and the host immune response. Therefore, understanding the role of biofilms will be essential in the development of new ophthalmic antimicrobials. A brief overview of biofilm-specific resistance mechanisms is provided, but this is a highly multifactorial and rapidly expanding field that warrants further research. Progression in this field is dependent on the development of suitable biofilm models that acknowledge the complexity of the ocular environment. Abiotic models of biofilm formation (where biofilms are studied on non-living surfaces) currently dominate the literature, but co-culture infection models are beginning to emerge. In vitro, ex vivo and in vivo corneal infection models have now been reported which use a variety of different experimental techniques and animal models. In this review, we will discuss existing corneal infection models and their application in the study of biofilms and host-pathogen interactions at the corneal surface.Bad breath or halitosis is an oral condition caused by volatile sulfur compounds (VSC) produced by bacteria found in the dental and tongue biofilms. #link# Fusobacterium nucleatum is a Gram-negative anaerobic bacterium that has been strongly associated with halitosis. In this study, essential oils (EO) from three plants, Labrador tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum [Oeder] Kron & Judd), peppermint (Mentha x piperita L.), and winter savory (Satureja montana L.), were investigated for their effects on growth, biofilm formation and killing, and VSC production by F. nucleatum. Moreover, their biocompatibility with oral keratinocytes was investigated. Using a broth microdilution assay, winter savory EO and to a lesser extent Labrador tea and peppermint EO showed antibacterial activity against F. nucleatum. A treatment of pre-formed biofilms of F. nucleatum with EO also significantly decreased bacterial viability as determined by a luminescence assay monitoring adenosine triphosphate production. The EO were found to permeabilize the bacterial cell membrane, suggesting that it represents the target of the tested EO. The three EO under investigation were able to dose-dependently reduce VSC production by F. nucleatum. Lastly, no significant loss of cell viability was observed when oral keratinocytes were treated with the EO at concentrations effective against F. nucleatum. This study supports the potential of Labrador tea, peppermint, and winter savory EO as promising agents to control halitosis and promote oral health.Angiosarcomas comprise less than 3% of all soft tissue sarcomas but have a poor prognosis. Most angiosarcomas occur without obvious risk factors but secondary angiosarcoma could arise after radiotherapy or chronic lymphedema. Surgery remains the standard treatment for localized angiosarcoma but neoadjuvant systemic treatment may improve the curability. For advanced angiosarcoma, anthracyclines and taxanes are the main chemotherapy options. Anti-angiogenic agents have a substantial role but the failure of a randomized phase 3 trial of pazopanib with or without an anti-endoglin antibody brings a challenge to future trials in angiosarcomas. Immune checkpoint inhibitors as single agents or in combination with oncolytic virus may play an important role but the optimal duration remains to be investigated. We also report the current understanding of the molecular pathways involved in angiosarcoma pathogenesis including MYC amplification, activation of angiogenic pathways and different molecular alterations that are associated with angiosarcomas of different aetiology. The success of the patient-partnered Angiosarcoma Project (ASCProject) has provided not only detailed insights into the molecular features of angiosarcomas of different origins but also offers a template for future fruitful collaborations between patients, physicians, and researchers. Lastly, we provide our perspective of future developments in optimizing the clinical management of angiosarcomas.Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is a common disease in the general population with acute or chronic symptoms. LPR is often misdiagnosed in primary care because of the lack of typical gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms and findings on endoscopy. Depending on the physician's specialty and experience, LPR may be over- or under-diagnosed. link2 Management of LPR is potentially entirely feasible in primary care as long as General Practitioners (GPs) are aware of certain "red flags" that will prompt referral to a Gastroenterologist or an Otolaryngologist. The use of patient-reported outcome questionnaires and the consideration of some easy ways to diagnose LPR without special instrumentation oropharyngeal findings may help the GP to diagnose and often manage LPR. In this review, we provide a practical algorithm for LPR management for GPs and other specialists that cannot perform fiberoptic examination. In this algorithm, physicians have to exclude some confounding conditions such as allergy or other causes of pharyngolaryngitis and "red flags". They may prescribe an empirical treatment based on diet and behavioral changes with or without medication, depending on the symptom severity. Proton pump inhibitors and alginates remain a popular choice in order to protect the upper aerodigestive tract mucosa from acid, weakly acid and alkaline pharyngeal reflux events.The distribution of mosquitos and their corresponding hosts is critical in public health to determine the risk of transmission for vector-borne diseases. In this pilot study conducted in the small Mediterranean island of Ventotene, a known stopover site for migratory birds, the spatio-temporal distribution of two major mosquito vectors is analyzed from the natural to urban environment. The results show that Aedes albopictus aggregates mostly near areas with a human presence and the urban landscape, while Culex pipiens is more spatio-temporally spread, as it can also be found in wilder and less anthropized areas where the availability of human hosts is limited. Culex pipiens is also active earlier in the year. From a microgeographical perspective, our results confirm the anthropophilic spatial distribution of Ae. Albopictus, while suggesting that the circulation of bird zoonosis, such as West Nile, could be favored by the Cx. pipiens distribution. link3 The results highlight the different ecology of the vectors and the interplay with their hosts, even at a small scale. The current evidence may help in forecasting the risk of pathogen transmission and surveillance planning.There is considerable interest in the role of probiotics in immune function. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the effects of the consumption of a fermented dairy drink containing Lacticaseibacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei CNCM I-1518 (the previous taxonomic nomenclature was Lactobacillus casei CNCM I-1518, prior to the nomenclature change in April 2020) and the standard yogurt cultures (hereinafter referred to collectively as "FDD") on common infectious diseases (CIDs) in generally healthy children and adults. Nine literature databases were searched, and nine randomized controlled trials from eight publications were eligible for inclusion. Combined effect sizes were determined for three metrics of CID incidence, two metrics of CID duration, and one metric of CID severity. Compared to the control, the consumption of the FDD resulted in (1) a significant reduction in the odds of experiencing ≥1 CID (odds ratio (OR) (with a 95% confidence interval (CI)) 0.81 (0.66, 0.98); p = 0.029); (2) a significant reduction in mean CIDs per subject (-0.09 (-0.15, -0.04); p = 0.001); and (3) a trend towards reduced risk in cumulative CIDs (relative risk (RR) 0.91 (0.82, 1.01); p = 0.082). The consumption of the FDD had no significant effect on CID duration or severity. Based on the studies conducted thus far, these results suggest that the FDD may reduce CID incidence in the general population.The study aimed to assess the prevalence and associated factors of ever suicide attempt and past 12-month suicidal ideation, plans and/or attempts among persons aged 15-69 years in Eswatini. Cross-sectional nationally representative data from 3281 persons (33 years median age, range 15-69) of the 2014 Eswatini STEPS Survey were analysed. Results indicate that 3.6% of participants had attempted suicide, and 10.1% engaged in past 12-month suicidal ideation, plan and/or attempts. In adjusted logistic regression analysis, having family members who died from suicide and childhood sexual abuse were associated with ever suicide attempt. In addition, in unadjusted analysis, female sex, adult sexual abuse, threats and family member attempted suicide were associated with ever suicide attempt. In adjusted logistic regression, female sex, childhood sexual abuse, adult sexual abuse, threats, family alcohol problems and having family members who died from suicide were associated with past 12-month suicidal ideation, plan and/or attempts.