Maternal Influenza and Offspring Neurodevelopment.

This review examines the complex interactions between maternal influenza infection, the immune system, and the neurodevelopment of the offspring. It highlights the importance of high-quality studies to clarify the association between maternal exposure to the virus and neuropsychiatric disorders in the offspring. Additionally, it emphasizes that the development of accurate animal models is vital for studying the impact of infectious diseases during pregnancy and identifying potential therapeutic targets. By drawing attention to the complex nature of these interactions, this review underscores the need for ongoing research to improve the understanding and outcomes for pregnant women and their offspring.

Cell-penetrating peptide and cationic liposomes mediated siRNA delivery to arrest growth of chronic myeloid leukemia cells in vitro.

Gene silencing through RNA interference (RNAi) is a promising therapeutic approach for a wide range of disorders, including cancer. Non-viral gene therapy, using specific siRNAs against BCR-ABL1, can be a supportive or alternative measure to traditional chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKIs) therapies, given the prevalence of clinical TKI resistance. The main challenge for such approaches remains the development of the effective delivery system for siRNA tailored to the specific disease model. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the efficiency of endosomolytic cell penetrating peptide (CPP) EB1 and PEG2000-decorated cationic liposomes composed of polycationic lipid 1,26-bis(cholest-5-en-3-yloxycarbonylamino)-7,11,16,20-tetraazahexacosane tetrahydrochloride (2Ð¥3) and helper lipid 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DOPE) for anti-bcr-abl siRNA delivery into the K562 human CML cell line. We show that both EB1 and 2Ð¥3-DOPE-DSPE-PEG2000 (0.62 % mol.) liposomes effectively deliver siRNA into K562 cells by endocytic mechanisms, and the use of liposomes leads to more effective inhibition of expression of the targeted gene (BCR-ABL1) and cancer cell proliferation. Taken together, these findings suggest that PEG-decorated cationic liposomes mediated siRNA delivery allows an effective antisense suppression of certain oncogenes, and represents a promising new class of therapies for CML.

Simultaneous Detection of RIG-1, MDA5, and IFIT-1 Expression Is a Convenient Tool for Evaluation of the Interferon-Mediated Response.

In this study, we developed a novel, multiplex qPCR assay for simultaneous detection of RIG-1, MDA5, and IFIT-1 at the mRNA level. The assay was validated in A549 cells transfected with in vitro transcribed RNAs. Both exogenous RNA-GFP and self-amplifying (saRNA-GFP) induced significant expression of RIG-1, MDA5, IFIT-1, as well as type I and III interferons. In contrast, native RNA from intact A549 cells did not upregulate expression of these genes. Next, we evaluated RIG-1, MDA5, and IFIT-1 mRNA levels in the white blood cells of patients with influenza A virus (H3N2) or SARS-CoV-2. In acute phase (about 4 days after disease onset) both viruses induced these genes expression. Clinical observations of SARS-CoV-2 typically describe a two-step disease progression, starting with a mild-to-moderate presentation followed by a secondary respiratory worsening 9 to 12 days after the first onset of symptoms. It revealed that the expression of RIG-1, MDA5, and MxA was not increased after 2 and 3 weeks from the onset the disease, while for IFIT-1 it was observed the second peak at 21 day post infection. It is well known that RIG-1, MDA5, and IFIT-1 expression is induced by the action of interferons. Due to the ability of SOCS-1 to inhibit interferon-dependent signaling, and the distinct antagonism of SARS-CoV-2 in relation to interferon-stimulated genes expression, we assessed SOCS-1 mRNA levels in white blood cells. SARS-CoV-2 patients had increased SOCS-1 expression, while the influenza-infected group did not differ from heathy donors. Moreover, SOCS-1 mRNA expression remained stably elevated during the course of the disease. It can be assumed that augmented SOCS-1 expression is one of multiple mechanisms that allow SARS-CoV-2 to escape from the interferon-mediated immune response. Our results implicate SOCS-1 involvement in the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2.

Reclassification of 'Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans subsp. thermotolerans' strain K1 as Alicyclobacillus tolerans sp. nov. and Sulfobacillus disulfidooxidans Dufresne et al. 1996 as Alicyclobacillus disulfidooxidans comb. nov., and emended description of the genus Alicyclobacillus.

Comparative analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences, DNA-DNA hybridization data and phenotypic properties revealed that 'Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans subsp. thermotolerans' strain K1 is not a member of the genus Sulfobacillus. Phylogenetically, strain K1 is closely related to unclassified strains of the genus Alicyclobacillus: the 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain K1 is similar to that of Alicyclobacillus sp. AGC-2 (99.6 %), Alicyclobacillus sp. 5C (98.9 %) and Alicyclobacillus sp. CLG (98.6 %) and bacterium GSM (99.1 %). The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values for strain K1 and species of the genus Alicyclobacillus with validly published names were in the range 92.1-94.6 %, and for S. thermosulfidooxidans VKM B-1269(T) the value was 87.7 %. Sulfobacillus disulfidooxidans SD-11(T) was also phylogenetically related to strain K1 (92.6 % sequence similarity) and thus belonged to the genus Alicyclobacillus. Chemotaxonomic data, such as the major cell-membrane lipid components of strains K1 and SD-11(T) (omega-alicyclic fatty acids) and the major isoprenoid quinone (menaquinone MK-7) of strain K1, supported the affiliation of strains K1 and SD-11(T) to the genus Alicyclobacillus. Physiological and molecular biological tests allowed genotypic and phenotypic differentiation of strains K1 and SD-11(T) from the nine Alicyclobacillus species with validly published names. The G+C content of the DNA of strain K1 was 48.7+/-0.6 mol%; that of strain SD-11(T) was 53+/-1 mol%. DNA-DNA reassociation studies showed low relatedness (22 %) between strains K1 and SD-11(T), and even lower relatedness (3-5 %) between these strains and Alicyclobacillus acidocaldarius subsp. acidocaldarius ATCC 27009(T), DSM 446(T). DNA reassociation of strains K1 and SD-11(T) with Alicyclobacillus cycloheptanicus DSM 4006(T) gave values of 15 and 21, respectively. Based on the phenotypic and phylogenetic characteristics of strains K1 and SD-11(T), Alicyclobacillus tolerans sp. nov. (type strain, K1(T)=VKM B-2304(T)=DSM 16297(T)) and Alicyclobacillus disulfidooxidans comb. nov. (type strain, SD-11(T)=ATCC 51911(T)=DSM 12064(T)) are proposed.