Varicella in the neonatal ICU due to the Varicella vaccine Oka strain.

BACKGROUND: Varicella vaccination of non-immune post-partum women is recommended to reduce the risk of chickenpox in mothers and their infants. Though rare, transmission of the varicella vaccine strain vOka can occur from recent vaccinees to non-immune contacts who usually develop mild chickenpox. METHODS/RESULTS: Here we describe an infant hospitalized in the neonatal ICU with vaccine-strain varicella due to transmission from their mother who received the varicella vaccine post-partum. We describe the infection prevention and control strategies implemented to prevent further transmission. CONCLUSION: Vaccine-strain varicella transmission from mother to infant is a rare event and its occurrence in the neonatal ICU setting can be challenging. Anticipatory guidance for mothers vaccinated in the postpartum period and support of parents of an infected infant are recommended.

Structural elucidation of the binding and inhibitory properties of lanthanide (III) ions at the 3'-5' exonucleolytic active site of the Klenow fragment.

BACKGROUND: Biochemical and biophysical experiments have shown that two catalytically essential divalent metal ions (termed 'A' and 'B') bind to the 3'-5' exonuclease active site of the Klenow fragment (KF) of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I. X-ray crystallographic studies have established the normal positions in the KF 3'-5' exonuclease (KF exo) active site of the two cations and the single-stranded DNA substrate. Lanthanide (III) luminescence studies have demonstrated, however, that only a single europium (III) ion (Eu3+) binds to the KF exo active site. Furthermore, Eu3+ does not support catalysis by KF exo or several other two-metal-ion phosphoryl-transfer enzymes. RESULTS: A crystal structure of KF complexed with both Eu3+ and substrate single-stranded oligodeoxynucleotide shows that a lone Eu3+ is bound near to metal-ion site A. Comparison of this structure to a relevant native structure reveals that the bound Eu3+ causes a number of changes to the KF exo active site. The scissile phosphate of the substrate is displaced from its normal position by about 1 A when Eu3+ is bound and the presence of Eu3+ in the active site precludes the binding of the essential metal ion B. CONCLUSIONS: The substantial, lanthanide-induced differences in metal-ion and substrate binding to KF exo account for the inhibition of this enzyme by Eu3+. These changes also explain the inability of KF exo to bind more than one cation in the presence of lanthanides. The mechanistic similarity between KF exo and other two-metal-ion phosphoryl-transfer enzymes suggests that the principles of lanthanide (III) ion binding and inhibition ascertained from this study will probably apply to most members of this class of enzymes.

Structural models of the bovine papillomavirus E5 protein.

The bovine papillomavirus E5 protein is thought to be a type II integral membrane protein that exists as a disulfide-linked homodimer in transformed cells. Polarized-infrared measurements show that the E5 dimer in membrane bilayers is largely alpha-helical and has a transmembrane orientation. Computational searches of helix-helix conformations reveal two possible low-energy dimer structures. Correlation of these results with previous mutagenesis studies on the E5 protein suggests how the E5 dimer may serve as a molecular scaffold for dimerization and ligand-independent activation of the PDGF-beta receptor. We propose that on each face of the E5 dimer a PDGF-beta receptor molecule interacts directly with Gln17 from one E5 monomer and with Asp33 from the other E5 monomer. This model accounts for the requirement of Gln17 and Asp33 for complex formation and explains genetic results that dimerization of the E5 protein is essential for cell transformation.