ABSTRACT
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is an important global public health issue. HEV infections are recognized as a zoonotic disease. Swine are believed to be the main reservoir of HEV. Recently, yaks, cows, and yellow cattle have been reported as new reservoirs of HEV. However, whether other species of cattle and buffaloes are sensitive to HEV infection is unknown. To investigate the prevalence of HEV infection in buffaloes, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and reverse transcription-nested polymerase chain reaction (RT-nPCR) were performed. Only one buffalo was positive to anti-HEV IgM antibody (1/106, 0.94%), and none were positive for anti-HEV IgG antibody. To our surprise, five serum (5/106, 4.72%) and three milk samples (3/40, 7.50%) from buffaloes were positive to HEV RNA. All strains of HEV isolated from buffaloes belong to genotype 4. Results indicate that buffaloes may be a new reservoir of HEV.(AU)
Infecção com o vírus Hepatite E (HEV) é uma importante questão de saúde pública global. Infecções HEV são reconhecidas como doença zoológica. Acredita-se que suínos são o principal reservatório de HEV. Recentemente iaques, vacas, e gado amarelo foram reportados como novos reservatórios do HEV. Porém, não se sabe se outras espécies de gado e búfalo são sensíveis a infecção HEV. Para investigar a prevalência de infecção HEV em búfalos, foram realizados prova de imunoabsorção enzimática e polimerização em cadeia inversa ancorada em transcrição. Apenas um búfalo foi positivo para o anticorpo anti-HEV IgM (1/106, 0,94%), e nenhum foi positivo para o anticorpo anti-HEV IgG. Para nossa surpresa cinco (5/106, 4,72%) e três amostras de leite (3/40, 7,50%) de búfalos foram positivos para HEV RNA. Todas as estirpes de HEV isoladas de búfalos pertencem ao genótipo 4. Resultados indicam que búfalos podem ser um reservatório de HEV.(AU)
Subject(s)
Animals , Buffaloes , Hepatitis E virus , Hepatitis E , Zoonoses , ChinaABSTRACT
Alveolar epithelia play an essential role in maintaining the integrity and homeostasis of lungs, in which alveolar epithelial type II cells (AECII) are a cell type with stem cell potential for epithelial injury repair and regeneration. However, mechanisms behind the physiological and pathological roles of alveolar epithelia in human lungs remain largely unknown, partially owing to the difficulty of isolation and culture of primary human AECII cells. In the present study, we aimed to characterize alveolar epithelia generated from A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells that were cultured in an air-liquid interface (ALI) state. Morphological analysis demonstrated that A549 cells could reconstitute epithelial layers in ALI cultures as evaluated by histochemistry staining and electronic microscopy. Immunofluorescent staining further revealed an expression of alveolar epithelial type I cell (AECI) markers aquaporin-5 protein (AQP-5), and AECII cell marker surfactant protein C (SPC) in subpopulations of ALI cultured cells. Importantly, molecular analysis further revealed the expression of AQP-5, SPC, thyroid transcription factor-1, zonula occludens-1 and Mucin 5B in A549 ALI cultures as determined by both immunoblotting and quantitative RT-PCR assay. These results suggest that the ALI culture of A549 cells can partially mimic the property of alveolar epithelia, which may be a feasible and alternative model for investigating roles and mechanisms of alveolar epithelia in vitro.