Molecular epidemiology suggests Venezuela as the origin of the dengue outbreak in Madeira, Portugal in 2012-2013.

An explosive epidemic occurred in Madeira Island (Portugal) from October 2012 to February 2013. Published data showed that dengue virus type 1 introduced from South America was the incriminated virus. We aim to determine the origin of the strain introduced to Madeira by travellers returning to Europe. Using phylogeographic analysis and complete envelope sequences we have demonstrated that the most probable origin of the strain is Venezuela.

Landscape heterogeneity shapes host-parasite interactions and results in apparent plant-virus codivergence.

Knowledge on how landscape heterogeneity shapes host-parasite interactions is central to understand the emergence, dynamics and evolution of infectious diseases. However, this is an underexplored subject, particularly for plant-virus systems. Here, we analyse how landscape heterogeneity influences the prevalence, spatial genetic structure, and temporal dynamics of Pepper golden mosaic and Pepper huasteco yellow vein begomoviruses infecting populations of the wild pepper Capsicum annuum glabriusculum (chiltepin) in Mexico. Environmental heterogeneity occurred at different nested spatial scales (host populations within biogeographical provinces), with levels of human management varying among host population within a province. Results indicate that landscape heterogeneity affects the epidemiology and genetic structure of chiltepin-infecting begomoviruses in a scale-specific manner, probably related to conditions favouring the viruses' whitefly vector and its dispersion. Increased levels of human management of the host populations were associated with higher virus prevalence and erased the spatial genetic structure of the virus populations. Also, environmental heterogeneity similarly shaped the spatial genetic structures of host and viruses. This resulted in the congruence between host and virus phylogenies, which does not seem to be due to host-virus co-evolution. Thus, results provide evidence of the key role of landscape heterogeneity in determining plant-virus interactions.

Deep sequencing reveals persistence of intra- and inter-host genetic diversity in natural and greenhouse populations of zucchini yellow mosaic virus.

The genetic diversity present in populations of RNA viruses is likely to be strongly modulated by aspects of their life history, including mode of transmission. However, how transmission mode shapes patterns of intra- and inter-host genetic diversity, particularly when acting in combination with de novo mutation, population bottlenecks and the selection of advantageous mutations, is poorly understood. To address these issues, this study performed ultradeep sequencing of zucchini yellow mosaic virus in a wild gourd, Cucurbita pepo ssp. texana, under two infection conditions: aphid vectored and mechanically inoculated, achieving a mean coverage of approximately 10 ,000×. It was shown that mutations persisted during inter-host transmission events in both the aphid vectored and mechanically inoculated populations, suggesting that the vector-imposed transmission bottleneck is not as extreme as previously supposed. Similarly, mutations were found to persist within individual hosts, arguing against strong systemic bottlenecks. Strikingly, mutations were seen to go to fixation in the aphid-vectored plants, suggestive of a major fitness advantage, but remained at low frequency in the mechanically inoculated plants. Overall, this study highlights the utility of ultradeep sequencing in providing high-resolution data capable of revealing the nature of virus evolution, particularly as the full spectrum of genetic diversity within a population may not be uncovered without sequence coverage of at least 2500-fold.

TGF-beta1 and fibroblast growth factor-1 modify fibroblast growth factor-2 production in type II cells.

Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2, which stimulates DNA synthesis by type II cells in the lung, has been shown to be regulated by transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1, an important inflammatory cytokine, in vascular epithelium. The goal of this study was to determine if FGF-2 production by alveolar type II cells is modulated by TGF-beta1 or FGF-1, which also stimulates DNA synthesis by type II cells. Isolated rat type II cells were exposed to 0-40 ng/ml of TGF-beta1 or 0-500 ng/ml of FGF-1 in serum-free medium for 1-5 days. With a specific immunoassay, significant increases of FGF-2 protein in type II cell lysates to levels above those in control cells were achieved after 1 day of exposure to 100 ng/ml of FGF-1 and after 3 days of treatment with 8 ng/ml of TGF-beta1. Similarly, transcripts for FGF-2 were dramatically increased above those in control cells with TGF-beta1 or FGF-1, as were those for FGF receptor-1. These results demonstrate important regulatory links between FGF-2 and both TGF-beta1 and FGF-1 in the alveolar epithelium that could contribute to the regulation of normal cell turnover, development, and the repair processes after injury in the lung.

Sulfation of extracellular matrices modifies growth factor effects on type II cells on laminin substrata.

The alveolar basement membrane contains a variety of extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules, including laminin and sulfated glycosaminoglycans of proteoglycans. These mixtures exist within microdomains of differing levels of sulfate, which may specifically interact to be key determinants of the known capacity of the type II cell to respond to certain growth factors. Isolated type II cells were exposed to either acidic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-1), basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-2), or keratinocyte growth factor (KGF; FGF-7) on culture wells precoated with laminin alone or in combination with chondroitin sulfate (CS), high-molecular-weight heparin, or their desulfated forms. Desulfated heparin significantly elevated FGF-1- and FGF-2-stimulated DNA synthesis, whereas desulfated CS and N-desulfated heparin elevated FGF-7-stimulated DNA synthesis by type II cells on laminin substrata. When FGF-1 was mixed into the various test matrix substrata, DNA synthesis was significantly increased in all cases. These results demonstrated that decreased levels of sulfate in ECM substrata act to upregulate responses to heparin-binding growth factors by alveolar epithelial cells on laminin substrata.

Interleukin-1 beta increases prostaglandin E2-stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production in rabbit pigmented ciliary epithelium.

This study was designed to determine the effects of interleukin-1 on basal and prostaglandin E2-stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production by primary and first passage cultures of non-transformed rabbit pigmented and non-pigmented ciliary epithelial cells. Confluent cultures of rabbit pigmented and non-pigmented ciliary epithelial cells were incubated for varying periods of time in serum-free medium with or without interleukin-1 beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, bacterial lipopolysaccharide, transforming growth factor-beta 2, cycloheximide, indomethacin and combinations of these agents. Cells were then preincubated for 10 min with serum-free medium plus the phosphodiesterase inhibitor, 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (for basal adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production) or serum-free medium containing several concentrations of prostaglandin E2 and 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine. In certain experiments isoproterenol, vasoactive intestinal peptide, or forskolin was substituted for prostaglandin E2. Adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate was then extracted into ice-cold absolute ethanol and measured by radioimmunoassay. Prostaglandin E2 stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production in pigmented and non-pigmented ciliary epithelial cells in a dose-dependent manner. Incubation with interleukin-1 beta (150 U ml-1) increased prostaglandin E2-stimulated, but not basal adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production in pigmented ciliary epithelial cells. This interleukin-1 beta-induced enhancement of prostaglandin E2-stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production, called the interleukin-1 effect, was not seen with non-pigmented ciliary epithelial cells. The interleukin-1 effect was dependent upon interleukin-1 beta concentration, time and de novo protein synthesis. The interleukin 1 effect could not be reproduced by replacing interleukin-1 beta with tumor necrosis factor-alpha or bacterial lipopolysaccharide and was specific for prostaglandin E2, since interleukin-1 beta did not enhance isoproterenol-, vasoactive intestinal peptide-, or forskolin-induced adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production. Chronic exposure to prostaglandin E2 (during the 3 hr incubation period), with or without interleukin-1 beta in the incubation medium, reduced subsequent prostaglandin E2-stimulated adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production. Inhibition of de novo prostaglandin synthesis with indomethacin increased the interleukin-1 effect. The interleukin-1 effect was inhibited by the immunosuppressive cytokine, transforming growth factor-beta 2, in a dose-dependent manner. This is the first report of prostaglandin E2-induced stimulation of adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production by pigmented ciliary epithelial cells and of the unique ability of interleukin-1 to increase this effect. The results are consistent with interleukin-1-induced upregulation of prostaglandin E receptors. Since transforming growth factor-beta 2 inhibited this interleukin-1 effect, this immunosuppressive cytokine may exert negative feedback and thus regulate the physiological consequences of the interleukin-1 effect.