Association of dynamics of anellovirus loads with hospital-acquired pneumonia in brain-injured patients during the intensive care unit stay.

BACKGROUND: Critical illness induces immune disorders associated with an increased risk of hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Torque Teno Virus (TTV), from the Anelloviridae family, are proposed as a biomarker to measure the level of immunosuppression. Our objective was to describe the kinetics of TTV DNA loads and their association with critical-illness related complications. METHODS: We performed a longitudinal study in 115 brain-injured patients from a prospective cohort, collected endotracheal and blood samples at three time points (T1, T2, T3) during the two weeks post-admission in intensive care unit, and measured viral DNA loads using the TTV R-gene® kit (Biomerieux) and a pan-Anelloviridae in house qRT-PCR. RESULTS: TTV DNA was detected in the blood of 69, 71, and 64% of brain-injured patients at T1, T2 and T3 respectively. Time-associated variations of TTV and Anellovirus (AV) DNA loads were observed. Using a linear mixed-effects model, we found that HAP and ARDS were associated with lower blood AV DNA loads. CONCLUSION: Our results show that HAP or ARDS in critically ill patients are associated to changes in AV DNA loads, and should be evaluated further as a biomarker of immune disorders leading to these complications.

A COVID-19 superspreading event involving two variants during sociotherapy activities in a French mental health centre.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Investigation of a COVID-19 super-spreading event involving both beta and delta variants of SARS-CoV-2, following a choir in a mental health centre. METHODS: An epidemiological and biological (RT-PCR, mutations screening and sequencing) investigation was carried out to identify the chains of transmission. A morbidity and mortality review was performed using ALARM root causes analysis to understand how this superspreading event could have taken place. RESULTS: On May 25 and 26, 2021, all 13 choir participants were screened. Of these, eight were positive. None of them was vaccinated. Biological results suggested seven cases of delta variants (three confirmed by sequencing) and one case of beta variant. The screening of 141 contact individuals identified 21 subsequent cases with a suspected delta variant and two cases of suspected beta variant. Since the two index cases had similar Ct during the choir, this suggests different spreading abilities. The contributing factors were multiple, including underestimation of infectious risks by the social therapy team in relation to low individual and collective perceived vulnerability CONCLUSION: HCPs involved in sociotherapy must be aware of, and trained to mitigate, the risk of superspreading event. Conventional distancing and good natural ventilation appear to not be enough to prevent spread of more transmissible variants of SARS-CoV-2.

Plis de passage in the superior temporal sulcus: Morphology and local connectivity.

While there is a profusion of functional investigations involving the superior temporal sulcus (STS), our knowledge of the anatomy of this sulcus is still limited by a large individual variability. In particular, an accurate characterization of the "plis de passage" (PPs), annectant gyri inside the fold, is lacking to explain this variability. Performed on 90 subjects of the HCP database, our study revealed that PPs constitute landmarks that can be identified from the geometry of the STS walls. They were found associated with a specific U-shape white-matter connectivity between the two banks of the sulcus, the amount of connectivity being related to the depth of the PPs. These findings raise new hypotheses regarding the spatial organization of PPs, the relation between cortical anatomy and structural connectivity, as well as the possible role of PPs in the regional functional organization.

Biredox ionic liquids: new opportunities toward high performance supercapacitors.

Nowadays commercial supercapacitors are based on purely capacitive storage at the porous carbons that are used for the electrodes. However, the limits that capacitive storage imposes on energy density calls to investigate new materials to improve the capacitance of the device. This new type of electrodes (e.g., RuO2, MnO2…) involves pseudo-capacitive faradaic redox processes with the solid material. Ion exchange with solid materials is, however, much slower than the adsorption process in capacitive storage and inevitably leads to significant loss of power. Faradaic process in the liquid state, in contrast can be similarly fast as capacitive processes due to the fast ion transport. Designing new devices with liquid like dynamics and improved specific capacitance is challenging. We present a new approach to increase the specific capacitance using biredox ionic liquids, where redox moieties are tethered to the electrolyte ions, allowing high redox concentrations and significant pseudo-capacitive storage in the liquid state. Anions and cations are functionalized with anthraquinone (AQ) and 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl (TEMPO) moieties, respectively. Glassy carbon, carbon-onion, and commercial activated carbon electrodes that exhibit different double layer structures and thus different diffusion dynamics were used to simultaneously study the electrochemical response of biredox ionic liquids at the positive and negative electrode.

Anatomo-functional correspondence in the superior temporal sulcus.

The superior temporal sulcus (STS) is an intriguing region both for its complex anatomy and for the multiple functions that it hosts. Unfortunately, most studies explored either the functional organization or the anatomy of the STS only. Here, we link these two aspects by investigating anatomo-functional correspondences between the voice-sensitive cortex (Temporal Voice Areas) and the STS depth. To do so, anatomical and functional scans of 116 subjects were processed such as to generate individual surface maps on which both depth and functional voice activity can be analyzed. Individual depth profiles of manually drawn STS and functional profiles from a voice localizer (voice > non-voice) maps were extracted and compared to assess anatomo-functional correspondences. Three major results were obtained: first, the STS exhibits a highly significant rightward depth asymmetry in its middle part. Second, there is an anatomo-functional correspondence between the location of the voice-sensitive peak and the deepest point inside this asymmetrical region bilaterally. Finally, we showed that this correspondence was independent of the gender and, using a machine learning approach, that it existed at the individual level. These findings offer new perspectives for the understanding of anatomo-functional correspondences in this complex cortical region.

Sacral anterior root stimulation improves bowel function in subjects with spinal cord injury.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the long-term effect of the sacral anterior root stimulator (SARS) on neurogenic bowel dysfunction in a large, well defined spinal cord injury (SCI) cohort. SETTING: Department of Neuro-Urology, Bad Wildungen, Germany. METHODS: Subjects undergone surgery at for SARS-SDAF (sacral deafferentation) between September 1986 and July 2011 (n=587) answered a questionnaire. In total, 277 SARS subjects were available for the baseline (recall) and follow-up comparison. RESULTS: Median age was 49 years (range: 19-80), time from SCI to surgery was 10 years (range: 0-49) and from surgery to follow-up 13 (range: 1-25). Of the responders 73% used SARS for bowel emptying. On visual analog scale (VAS) ranging from 0-10 (best), satisfaction with SARS was 10. Baseline and follow-up comparison showed a decline in the median VAS score 0-10 (worst) for bowel symptoms from 6 (range: 4-8) to 4 (range: 2-6), P<0.0001; median neurogenic bowel dysfunction score from 17 (range: 11-2) to 11 (range: 9-15), P<0.0001; median St Marks score from 4 (range: 0-7) to 4 (range: 0-5), P=0.01; and median Cleveland constipation score from 7 (range: 6-10) to 6 (range: 4-8), P<0.0001. Use of suppositories, digital evacuation and mini enema and subjects totally dependent on assistance during defecation were significantly lower after SARS. CONCLUSIONS: The SARS has the potential to be one of the few treatment methods targeting multiple organ dysfunctions following SCI.

Crystal structure of the native plasminogen reveals an activation-resistant compact conformation.

BACKGROUND: Plasminogen is the zymogen form of plasmin and the precursor of angiostatin. It has been implicated in a variety of disease states, including thrombosis, bleeding and cancers. The native plasminogen, known as Glu-plasminogen, contains seven domains comprising the N-terminal peptide domain (NTP), five kringle domains (K1-K5) and the C-terminal serine protease domain (SP). Previous studies have established that the lysine binding site (LBS) of the conserved kringle domains plays a crucial role in mediating the regulation of plasminogen function. However, details of the related conformational mechanism are unknown. OBJECTIVES: We aim to understand in more detail the conformational mechanism of plasminogen activation involving the kringles. METHODS: We crystallized the native plasminogen under physiologically relevant conditions and determined the structure at 3.5 Å resolution. We performed structural analyses and related these to the literature data to gain critical understanding of the plasminogen activation. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The structure reveals the precise architecture of the quaternary complex. It shows that the Glu-plasminogen renders its compact form as an activation-resistant conformation for the proteolytic activation. The LBSs of all kringles, except K1, are engaged in intra-molecular interactions while only K1-LBS is readily available for ligand binding or receptor anchorage. The structure also provides insights into the interactions between plasminogen and α2-antiplasmin, the primary physiological inhibitor of plasmin. Furthermore, the data presented explain why a conformational transition to the open form is necessary for plasminogen activation as well as angiostatin generation, and provide a rationale for the functional hierarchy of the different kringles.

Human herpes virus 6 infection is a hallmark of cord blood transplant in adults and may participate to delayed engraftment: a comparison with matched unrelated donors as stem cell source.

Occurrence of CMV, EBV and human herpes virus 6 (HHV6) infections and immune reconstitution were compared in 15 adult patients receiving a cord blood transplantation (CBT) and 40 patients who received an allogeneic transplantation from a matched unrelated donor (MUD). Herpes virus DNA quantifications in the blood (459 samples) were performed before and then monthly up to 9 months after transplant and the main lymphocytes populations were counted at 3, 6 and 9 months. Incidence of HHV6 infection was significantly higher in the CBT group (80 vs 42.5%; P<0.0001), with higher viral load (P<0.0001). In multivariate analysis, the use of a CBT and a myeloablative conditioning regimen were found to increase the risk of HHV6 infection (odds ratio (OR)=5.4, P=0.02 and OR=3.5, P=0.04, respectively). Incidences of CMV were similar between the two groups whereas MUD increased the risk of EBV infection, in univariate analysis only. HHV6 reactivation translated toward delayed neutrophils and plts engraftment in the two groups. MUD and CBT do not share the same immune reconstitution patterns, notably for B and CD8 lymphocytes and NK cells. There is a strong and specific relationship between HHV6 infection and the use of cord blood cells.

Motional enhancement of exciton magnetic moments in zinc-blende semiconductors.

We report a remarkable enhancement of the magnetic moments of excitons as a result of their motion. This surprising result, which we have observed in magneto-optical studies of three distinct zinc-blende semiconductors, GaAs, CdTe, and ZnSe, becomes significant as the kinetic energy of the exciton becomes comparable with its Rydberg energy and is attributed to motionally induced changes in the internal structure of the exciton. The enhancement of the magnetic moment as a function of the exciton translational wave vector can be represented by a universal equation.

Incisor and mandibular movement during retrusion.

Human mastication, respiration, speech, swallowing and suckling are directed by the jaw muscle activites, the temporo-mandibular joints, the ligaments and by the occlusal dental contacts. Mastication is usually assessed by border movements of the mandibular incisors. While the border movements of opening, protrusion and lateratrusion are often used to determine the mandibular functions, the movement of retrusion is rarely considered in the study of the human oro-facial functions. Our purpose was to evaluate the mandibular movement of retrusion in a population that did not present any symptoms nor clinical signs of temporo-mandibular disorders. The study was performed on 117 males and 121 females (age range: 17.7-65.2 years; mean age: 31.1 years) using electrognathographic registrations (Sirognatograph(*), Siemens, Benshein, Germany). Every patient was instructed and trained before recording. The measurements were calculated on the sagittal plane registrations. The results showed that the mandibular movement of retrusion was present in 233 out of the 238 studied subjects (97.9%) whatever was the dental class, the age or the sex. The width range was between 0.3 and 5.4 mm and the mean value was 1.75+/-0.91 mm. The inferential analysis performed by a 3-way ANOVA model demonstrated no significant difference in retrusion value by dental class, gender or age. The most frequent numerical value was 1.5 mm, observed in 16 subjects (6.7% of the studied population). These results suggest that, in order to respect the physiological characteristics, more attention is needed in performing dental treatments.

A multiparametric flow cytometry method for detection of modifications of antigen expression in polymorphonuclear cells infected by human cytomegalovirus.

Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) has been shown to alter adhesion molecule expression on permissive cells such as endothelial cells. The aim of the present study was to investigate expression of receptors for these molecules on CMV infected polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNLs). CMV-induced variations on cellular integrin expression were examined using an in vitro system to obtain infected PMNLs. A triparametric flow cytometry approach was developed, which allows combined detection, in a single experiment, of both viral intranuclear antigen in the selected PMNLs and cellular CD11/CD18 expression. Comparison of infected PMNLs with uninfected cells showed a decrease of up to 50% in the expression of CD11b, CD11c, and CD18. This study thus demonstrates that the presence of CMV in PMNLs, which characterizes active infection, modifies the expression of integrins and may thus affect cell-to-cell interactions and immune functions.

A prospective longitudinal study of BK virus infection in 104 renal transplant recipients.

BK virus (BKV) infection during the first year after renal transplantation was studied prospectively in 104 unselected consecutive patients. Viral DNA in urine (DNAuria) and plasma (DNAemia) samples was detected and quantified by real-time PCR. The noncoding control region (NCCR) of BKV isolates was sequenced. DNAuria and DNAemia occurred in 57% and 29% of patients, respectively. Three groups were defined, uninfected patients (group 1, n=45), patients with DNAuria (group 2, n=29) and patients with positive DNAemia (group 3, n=30). Active infection started within the first 3 months in 80% of patients. Cold ischemia duration over 24 h and the administration of tacrolimus were identified as significant risks factors for DNAuria, whereas it remains more frequently negative in patients receiving cyclosporine A. The risk for positive DNAemia was higher in patients with DNAuria (notably for viral load (VL)>4 log/mL) or treated with tacrolimus. No relationship was found with genetic variability in the NCCR sequence. Our data highlight the high frequency of active BKV infection after renal transplantation. Although high VL was detected in some patients, none developed a BKV nephropathy. A prospective follow-up of the whole population during the first year post renal transplantation is thus not useful to predict BKV disease.

Temporo-mandibular joint kinetics and chewing cycles in children. A 3-year follow-up.

OBJECTIVES: To report the temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ) kinetics and masticatory function in healthy children. DESIGN: Temporo-mandibular joint palpation and electrognathographic registrations of chewing cycles were repeated for 3 years in order to evaluate changes. SETTING: Healthy children without systemic pathologies, decayed cavities and previous dental treatment. SAMPLE AND METHODS: Electrognathographic (EGN) registration of masticatory cycles and TMJ palpation were carried out on 52 patients (mean age: 5 years 8 months, range: 5 years 1 month, 6 years 8 months), by two university researchers, once a year for 3 consecutive years. TMJ palpation, differentiated TMJ synchronism (simultaneous bilateral opening movement) and TMJ asynchronism (not simultaneous bilateral opening movement), TMJ subluxation and click were observed. Electrognathographic registrations differentiated normal and abnormal jaw chewing cycles, and narrow and large cycles. RESULTS: Temporo-mandibular joint asynchronism was evident in 34 of 52 patients in the primary dentition, in 42 of 52 patients after the eruption of the first permanent molar, and in 31 of 52 patients after the eruption of the permanent incisors. TMJ subluxation increased during the full period of observation. Three temporomandibular clicks appeared after the eruption of the permanent incisors. Altered mastication was not always associated with TMJ disorders. CONCLUSIONS: In children, normal chewing cycles can coexist with occlusal discrepancies, cranio-facial growth and TMJ alterations.

[Lateral condylar movement: recording and transfer from the physiologic closing path]. / Le mouvement condylien latéral: enregistrement et transfert à partir du chemin de fermeture physiologique.

The lateral condylar movement can be observed through cat scan images. A clinical method based on the muscular disconnection can be done after recording the physiologic arc of closure. The incisal jig and the relined occlusal basis are used to transfer the immediate side shift, the Benett movement the lateral progressive movement and the condylar inclination on a full adjustable DENAR D5A articulator.

[Experimental herpes simplex keratitis in rabbits. Evaluation of pro-infectious effects of topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents]. / La kératite herpétique expérimentale du lapin. Evaluation de l'effet pro-infectieux des anti-inflammatoires non stéroïdiens locaux.

We tested 3 non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in experimental herpes keratitis in order to determine possible pro-infectious consequences. The drugs were Indomethacine, Flurbiprofen and a new non steroidal anti-inflammatory, CBS 113 A, mixed inhibitor of cycloxygenase and lipoxygenase. We studied simultaneously the evolution of the keratitis and viral excretion. We considered that an anti-inflammatory agent had a pro-infectious effect if the keratitis was more serious and/or viral excretion longer in comparison with placebo. We have shown, for the 3 drugs, in comparison with dexamethasone activity, absence of a pro-infectious effect. We compared our results on Flurpiprofen with an other study which gave this anti-inflammatory drug pro-infectious capacities; the concentration used was higher. CBS 113 A, inhibiting the metabolism of arachidonic acid via lipoxygenase and cycloxygenase and thus preventing the formation of metabolitis involved in inflammation (prostaglandins, leukotrienes,...), should have a spectrum of activity wider than that of NSAID. Subject to further studies, these 3 nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory could be used in herpetic kerato-uveitis.