PLoS neglected tropical diseases
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Marburg virus (MARV) is an Ebola-like virus in the family Filovirdae that causes sporadic outbreaks of severe hemorrhagic fever with a case fatality rate as high as 90%. AVI-7288, a positively charged antisense phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomer (PMOplus) targeting the viral nucleoprotein gene, was evaluated as a potential therapeutic intervention for MARV infection following delayed treatment of 1, 24, 48, and 96 h post-infection (PI) in a nonhuman primate lethal challenge model. A total of 30 cynomolgus macaques were divided into 5 groups of 6 and infected with 1,830 plaque forming units of MARV subcutaneously. ⋯ The antisense treatment also reduced serum viremia and inflammatory cytokines in all treatment groups compared to vehicle controls. The antibody immune response to virus was preserved and tissue viral antigen was cleared in AVI-7288 treated animals. These data show that AVI-7288 protects NHPs against an otherwise lethal MARV infection when treatment is initiated up to 96 h PI.
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Dengue in Venezuela is a major public health problem with an increasing incidence of severe cases. Early diagnosis and timely treatment influences the outcome of dengue illness, as delay in care-seeking is significantly associated with complications leading to severe dengue. We aimed to understand patterns of health seeking behaviour (HSB) in individuals exposed to high dengue incidence in order to improve early attendance to health centres. ⋯ Knowledge of HSB related to dengue is scarce in the Americas, our study attempts to contribute to a better understanding of HSB in this region. Improving early dengue disease recognition and awareness may enhance prompt attendance to medical care in affected populations and thereby reduce mortality and severity of dengue. Especially for those with a previous dengue infection, efforts have to be made to promote prompt health centre attendance.
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Research on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) has increased in recent decades, and significant need-gaps in diagnostic and treatment tools remain. Analysing bibliometric data from published research is a powerful method for revealing research efforts, partnerships and expertise. We aim to identify and map NTD research networks in Germany and their partners abroad to enable an informed and transparent evaluation of German contributions to NTD research. ⋯ The share of NTD publications with German affiliations is approximately half of its share in other fields of medical research. This finding underlines the need to identify barriers and expand Germany's otherwise strong research activities towards NTDs. A geospatial analysis of research collaborations with partners abroad can support decisions to strengthen research capacity, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, which were less involved in collaborations than high-income countries. Identifying knowledge hubs within individual researcher networks complements traditional scientometric indicators that are used to identify opportunities for collaboration. Using free tools to analyse research processes and output could facilitate data-driven health policies. Our findings contribute to the prioritisation of efforts in German NTD research at a time of impending local and global policy decisions.
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Sporotrichosis is a chronic (sub)cutaneous infection caused by thermodimorphic fungi in the order, Ophiostomatales. These fungi are characterized by major differences in routes of transmission, host predilections, species virulence, and susceptibilities to antifungals. Sporothrix species emerge in the form of outbreaks. Large zoonoses and sapronoses are ongoing in Brazil and China, respectively. Current diagnostic methods based on morphology and physiology are inaccurate due to closely related phenotypes with overlapping components between pathogenic and non-pathogenic Sporothrix. There is a critical need for new diagnostic tools that are specific, sensitive, and cost-effective. ⋯ This PCR-based method could successfully detect and identify a single species in samples from cultures and from clinical specimens. The method proved to be simple, high throughput, sensitive, and accurate for diagnosing sporotrichosis.