Advances in Etiopathological Role and Control of HPV in Cervical Cancer Oncogenesis.

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a well-known oncovirus whose causal link in the occurrence and development of several cancers, such as cervical cancer (CC), has been well established. Indeed, numerous researches depicted the etiological role of HPV in CC pathogenesis in such a way as to develop efficient strategies, including early diagnoses and HPV vaccination, to mitigate HPV infection and CC occurrence. Despite the effectiveness of these strategies in preventing HPV infection, its persistence, and the progression to precancerous lesions and cancers, extensive work that could give a better understanding of other unknown factors favoring oncogenesis is much more needed. In this last decade, scarce or few but crucial and strategic studies have been carried out to improve and deepen our understanding of the etiopathological role of HPV in the progression towards the development of CC. In this review, we highlighted the recent findings on the pathological role of HPV in CC occurrence and the advances in novel adopted strategies to reduce HPV infection and prevent CC occurrence more effectively.

A Low Viral Dose in COVID-19 Patient: A Case Report.

SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has attracted global attention. Verifying the presence of viral RNA is the gold standard for the diagnosis of COVID-19. However, RT-qPCR diagnosis often fails to catch infected patients, because of inconsistent swab sample collection. Here we report a case that showed 5 consecutive negative and 1 low-viral- dose RT-qPCR results during illness spanning over 20 days. Clinical symptoms suggest SARS-CoV-2 infection with typical ground glass like a lung in computed tomography. SARS-CoV-2 infection was serologically confirmed by the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies in patients' serum. Finally, a high level of protective IgG was produced after the patient recovered. Surprisingly, as a barber and a housewife staying at home for the first 2 weeks after the onset of illness, none of the close contacts were infected, showing a case of low viral load and low infectivity in this patient.

Pharmacological Inhibitors of the NLRP3 Inflammasome.

Inflammasomes play a crucial role in innate immunity by serving as signaling platforms which deal with a plethora of pathogenic products and cellular products associated with stress and damage. By far, the best studied and most characterized inflammasome is NLRP3 inflammasome, which consists of NLRP3 (nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat (NLR) and pyrin domain containing receptor 3), ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain), and procaspase-1. Activation of NLRP3 inflammasome is mediated by highly diverse stimuli. Upon activation, NLRP3 protein recruits the adapter ASC protein, which recruits the procaspase-1 resulting in its cleavage and activation, inducing the maturation, and secretion of inflammatory cytokines and pyroptosis. However, aberrant activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is implicated in various diseases including diabetes, atherosclerosis, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases; raising a tremendous clinical interest in exploring the potential inhibitors of NLRP3 inflammasome. Recent investigations have disclosed various inhibitors of the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway which were validated through in vitro studies and in vivo experiments in animal models of NLRP3-associated disorders. Some of these inhibitors directly target the NLRP3 protein whereas some are aimed at other components and products of the inflammasome. Direct targeting of NLRP3 protein can be a better choice because it can prevent off target immunosuppressive effects, thus restrain tissue destruction. This paper will review the various pharmacological inhibitors of the NLRP3 inflammasome and will also discuss their mechanism of action.