The association of ABO and Rhesus blood type with the risks of developing SARS-CoV-2 infection: A meta-analysis.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading like a wildfire everywhere in the globe. It has been challenging the global health care system ever since the end of 2019, with its virulence and pathogenicity. Recent studies have shown the association between ABO blood group, Rhesus blood type and susceptibility to COVID-19 infection. Various studies and few meta-analyses have been done and some might be inconsistent; therefore, this meta-analysis was done to assess the relationship between different ABO and Rhesus blood types on the susceptibility to COVID-19 infections. This meta-analysis assessed the odds ratio of COVID-19 infection of different ABO and Rhesus blood types. Subgroup analyses according to (1) age and gender matched; (2) different blood group antigens; (3) Rhesus positive and negative of each blood group were carried out. Publication bias and Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2) were also done to assess the risk of bias in these publications. It was found that blood group A showed significant difference in odds ratio of COVID-19 infection (OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.08-1.24). Blood group AB showed significant difference in odds ratio when studies with lower QUADAS-2 score were removed. This means that populations with blood group A and AB are more likely to be infected with COVID-19. As there is a higher tendency that blood group A and AB to be infected with COVID- 19, precautious care should be taken by these populations.

The association of ABO and Rhesus blood type with the risks of developing SARS-CoV-2 infection: A meta-analysis

@#Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading like a wildfire everywhere in the globe. It has been challenging the global health care system ever since the end of 2019, with its virulence and pathogenicity. Recent studies have shown the association between ABO blood group, Rhesus blood type and susceptibility to COVID-19 infection. Various studies and few meta-analyses have been done and some might be inconsistent; therefore, this meta-analysis was done to assess the relationship between different ABO and Rhesus blood types on the susceptibility to COVID-19 infections. This meta-analysis assessed the odds ratio of COVID-19 infection of different ABO and Rhesus blood types. Subgroup analyses according to (1) age and gender matched; (2) different blood group antigens; (3) Rhesus positive and negative of each blood group were carried out. Publication bias and Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2) were also done to assess the risk of bias in these publications. It was found that blood group A showed significant difference in odds ratio of COVID-19 infection (OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.08-1.24). Blood group AB showed significant difference in odds ratio when studies with lower QUADAS-2 score were removed. This means that populations with blood group A and AB are more likely to be infected with COVID-19. As there is a higher tendency that blood group A and AB to be infected with COVID19, precautious care should be taken by these populations.

Distribution of pathogenic Leptospira in environmental water and soils of selected recreational forests in Perak, Malaysia.

Leptospirosis is an emerging zoonotic disease endemic in tropical regions. Aiming at assessing the potential infection risks via recreational exposure, the molecular prevalence of pathogenic Leptospira in 14 amenity forests in five selected districts of the state of Perak was determined. Water and soil samples along streams and waterfalls were subjected to culture of leptospires and the pathogenic Leptospira spp. was detected by lipL32-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Twenty out of 154 samples (13%) that tested positive for leptospires were mostly soils and still water recorded with tolerable temperatures (22.2- 26.5°C) and pHs (5.73-6.70). The localised prevalence was highly varied among eight positive forests (6.7-41.7%), particularly higher in Kampar and Kinta districts which are the more populated urban areas. The importance of public health surveillance should not be underrated given the high prevalence of Leptospira spp. in forests in close proximity to indigenous settlements, even where the places are clean. Overall, this study discovered a wide distribution of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in recreational areas.

Distribution of pathogenic Leptospira in environmental water and soils of selected recreational forests in Perak, Malaysia

@#Leptospirosis is an emerging zoonotic disease endemic in tropical regions. Aiming at assessing the potential infection risks via recreational exposure, the molecular prevalence of pathogenic Leptospira in 14 amenity forests in five selected districts of the state of Perak was determined. Water and soil samples along streams and waterfalls were subjected to culture of leptospires and the pathogenic Leptospira spp. was detected by lipL32-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Twenty out of 154 samples (13%) that tested positive for leptospires were mostly soils and still water recorded with tolerable temperatures (22.226.5°C) and pHs (5.73-6.70). The localised prevalence was highly varied among eight positive forests (6.7-41.7%), particularly higher in Kampar and Kinta districts which are the more populated urban areas. The importance of public health surveillance should not be underrated given the high prevalence of Leptospira spp. in forests in close proximity to indigenous settlements, even where the places are clean. Overall, this study discovered a wide distribution of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in recreational areas.

Viability of dengue virus in culture stocks is efficiently preserved by storage in diluted forms.

Storage of dengue virus (DENV) culture stocks in -80°C is a common laboratory practice to maintain the viability of the virus for long-term usage. However, the efficiency of this method could still be hindered by multiple factors. In our laboratory, we observed a constant and substantial deterioration in the titer of DENV in Vero culture supernatant stored in -80°C. Such incident had badly hampered the laboratory work and prompted an investigation to determine the cause. DENV isolates representing all four serotypes were propagated and the culture supernatants were harvested and stored in aliquots of original stock and 10 fold dilutions (10-1 -10-4). DENV titer in these stocks was determined prior to storage and reassessed on the third and sixth month of storage by focus forming unit assay (FFUA). The result demonstrated a constant preservation of titer ranging from 104 ffu/ml to 105 ffu/ml in the diluted DENV virus culture stocks of 10-1, and 10-2 of DENV1-4, a minor reduction of titer from 103 ffu/ml to 102 ffu/ml at dilution 10-3 for DENV4 only and complete deterioration in undiluted culture stock and lower dilution (10-4) within 6 months of storage in -80°C for all serotypes. It is recommended that propagated DENV in Vero cells are stored in 10 fold dilutions as compared to the original form to preserve the titer for long-term usage.

Viability of dengue virus in culture stocks is efficiently preserved by storage in diluted forms

@#Storage of dengue virus (DENV) culture stocks in -80°C is a common laboratory practice to maintain the viability of the virus for long-term usage. However, the efficiency of this method could still be hindered by multiple factors. In our laboratory, we observed a constant and substantial deterioration in the titer of DENV in Vero culture supernatant stored in -80°C. Such incident had badly hampered the laboratory work and prompted an investigation to determine the cause. DENV isolates representing all four serotypes were propagated and the culture supernatants were harvested and stored in aliquots of original stock and 10 fold dilutions (10-1 -10-4). DENV titer in these stocks was determined prior to storage and reassessed on the third and sixth month of storage by focus forming unit assay (FFUA). The result demonstrated a constant preservation of titer ranging from 104 ffu/ml to 105 ffu/ml in the diluted DENV virus culture stocks of 10-1, and 10-2 of DENV1-4, a minor reduction of titer from 103 ffu/ml to 102 ffu/ml at dilution 10-3 for DENV4 only and complete deterioration in undiluted culture stock and lower dilution (10-4) within 6 months of storage in -80°C for all serotypes. It is recommended that propagated DENV in Vero cells are stored in 10 fold dilutions as compared to the original form to preserve the titer for long-term usage.

Ultrastructural aspects of sylvatic dengue virus infection in Vero cell.

INTRODUCTION: Dengue virus (DENV), the causative agent of dengue disease exists in sylvatic and endemic ecotypes. The cell morphological changes and viral morphogenesis of two dengue ecotypes were examined at the ultrastructural level to identify potential similarities and differences in the surrogate model of enzootic host. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Vero cells were inoculated with virus at a multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 0.1. Cell cultures were harvested over a time course and processed for transmission electron microscopic imaging. RESULTS: The filopodia protrusions on cell periphery preceded virus entry. Additionally, sylvatic DENV infection was found spreading slower than the endemic DENV. Morphogenesis of both dengue ecotypes was alike but at different level of efficiency in the permissive cells. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first ultrastructural study on sylvatic DENV and this comparative study revealed the similarities and differences of cellular responses and morphogenesis of two dengue ecotypes in vitro. The study revealed the weaker infectivity of sylvatic DENV in the surrogate model of enzootic host, which supposed to support better replication of enzootic DENV than endemic DENV.

IL-8 as a potential in-vitro severity biomarker for dengue disease.

Dengue is a common infection, caused by dengue virus. There are four different dengue serotypes, with different capacity to cause severe dengue infections. Besides, secondary infections with heterologous serotypes, concurrent infections of multiple dengue serotypes may alter the severity of dengue infection. This study aims to compare the severity of single infection and concurrent infections of different combinations of dengue serotypes in-vitro. Human mast cells (HMC)-1.1 were infected with single and concurrent infections of multiple dengue serotypes. The infected HMC-1.1 supernatant was then added to human umbilical cord vascular endothelial cells (HUVEC) and severity of dengue infections was measured by the percentage of transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER). Levels of IL10, CXCL10 and sTRAIL in HMC-1.1 and IL-8, IL-10 and CXCL10 in HUVEC culture supernatants were measured by the ELISA assays. The result showed that the percentage of TEER values were significantly lower in single infections (p< 0.05), compared to concurrent infections on day 2 and 3, indicating that single infection increase endothelial permeability greater than concurrent infections. IL-8 showed moderate correlation with endothelial permeability (r > 0.4), indicating that IL-8 may be suitable as an in-vitro severity biomarker. In conclusion, this in-vitro model presented few similarities with regards to the conditions in dengue patients, suggesting that it could serve as a severity model to test for severity and levels of severity biomarkers upon different dengue virus infections.

IL-8 as a potential in-vitro severity biomarker for dengue disease

@#Dengue is a common infection, caused by dengue virus. There are four different dengue serotypes, with different capacity to cause severe dengue infections. Besides, secondary infections with heterologous serotypes, concurrent infections of multiple dengue serotypes may alter the severity of dengue infection. This study aims to compare the severity of single infection and concurrent infections of different combinations of dengue serotypes in-vitro. Human mast cells (HMC)-1.1 were infected with single and concurrent infections of multiple dengue serotypes. The infected HMC-1.1 supernatant was then added to human umbilical cord vascular endothelial cells (HUVEC) and severity of dengue infections was measured by the percentage of transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER). Levels of IL- 10, CXCL10 and sTRAIL in HMC-1.1 and IL-8, IL-10 and CXCL10 in HUVEC culture supernatants were measured by the ELISA assays. The result showed that the percentage of TEER values were significantly lower in single infections (p< 0.05), compared to concurrent infections on day 2 and 3, indicating that single infection increase endothelial permeability greater than concurrent infections. IL-8 showed moderate correlation with endothelial permeability (r > 0.4), indicating that IL-8 may be suitable as an in-vitro severity biomarker. In conclusion, this in-vitro model presented few similarities with regards to the conditions in dengue patients, suggesting that it could serve as a severity model to test for severity and levels of severity biomarkers upon different dengue virus infections.

Ultrastructural changes of cell morphology and viral morphogenesis of two ecotypes of dengue virus infection in human monocytic U-937 cell.

Dengue virus (DENV) is maintained and circulated in both sylvatic/enzootic and endemic/human cycles and spill over infection of sylvatic DENV into human populations has been reported. Extensive deforestation and increase human activities in forest may increase the risk of human exposure to sylvatic dengue infection and this may become a threat to human. Present study investigated the changes in cell morphology and viral morphogenesis upon infection with sylvatic and endemic ecotypes in human monocytic U-937 cells using transmission electron microscopy. Autophagy, a process that is either pro-viral or anti-viral, was observed in U-937 cells of both infections, however only the replication of endemic DENV was evidenced. An insight into the infection responses of sylvatic progenitors of DENV in susceptible host cells may provide better understanding on dengue emergence in human populations.

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP): a versatile technique for detection of micro-organisms.

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) amplifies DNA with high specificity, efficiency and rapidity under isothermal conditions by using a DNA polymerase with high displacement strand activity and a set of specifically designed primers to amplify targeted DNA strands. Following its first discovery by Notomi et al. ( Nucleic Acids Res 28: E63), LAMP was further developed over the years which involved the combination of this technique with other molecular approaches, such as reverse transcription and multiplex amplification for the detection of infectious diseases caused by micro-organisms in humans, livestock and plants. In this review, available types of LAMP techniques will be discussed together with their applications in detection of various micro-organisms. Up to date, there are varieties of LAMP detection methods available including colorimetric and fluorescent detection, real-time monitoring using turbidity metre and detection using lateral flow device which will also be highlighted in this review. Apart from that, commercialization of LAMP technique had also been reported such as lyophilized form of LAMP reagents kit and LAMP primer sets for detection of pathogenic micro-organisms. On top of that, advantages and limitations of this molecular detection method are also described together with its future potential as a diagnostic method for infectious disease.

Ultrastructural changes of cell morphology and viral morphogenesis of two ecotypes of dengue virus infection in human monocytic U-937 cell

@#Dengue virus (DENV) is maintained and circulated in both sylvatic/enzootic and endemic/human cycles and spill over infection of sylvatic DENV into human populations has been reported. Extensive deforestation and increase human activities in forest may increase the risk of human exposure to sylvatic dengue infection and this may become a threat to human. Present study investigated the changes in cell morphology and viral morphogenesis upon infection with sylvatic and endemic ecotypes in human monocytic U-937 cells using transmission electron microscopy. Autophagy, a process that is either pro-viral or anti-viral, was observed in U-937 cells of both infections, however only the replication of endemic DENV was evidenced. An insight into the infection responses of sylvatic progenitors of DENV in susceptible host cells may provide better understanding on dengue emergence in human populations.

Betanodavirus: Dissection of the viral life cycle.

Progressive research has been recently made in dissecting the molecular biology of Betanodavirus life cycle, the causative pathogen of viral encephalopathy and retinopathy in economic important marine fish species. Establishment of betanodavirus infectious clone allows the manipulation of virus genome for functional genomic study, which elucidates the biological event of the viral life cycle at molecular level. The betanodavirus strategizes its replication by expressing anti-apoptosis/antinecrotic proteins to maintain the cell viability during early infection. Subsequently utilizes and controls the biological machinery of the infected cells for viral genome replication. Towards the late phase of infection, mass production of capsid protein for virion assembly induces the activation of host apoptosis pathway. It eventually leads to the cell lysis and death, which the lysis of cell contributes to the accomplishment of viral shedding that completes a viral life cycle. The recent efforts to dissect the entire betanodavirus life cycle are currently reviewed.

Experimental infection of brown-marbled grouper, Epinephelus fuscoguttatus (Forskal), with Vibrio parahaemolyticus identifies parvalbumin beta-2 subunit I, alpha-2-macroglobulin, nattectin and immunoglobulin light chain, differentially expressed in resistant grouper.

The mechanisms through which brown-marbled grouper accomplishes resistance to infection, particularly against Vibrios, are not yet fully understood. In this study, brown-marbled grouper fingerlings were experimentally infected with Vibrio parahaemolyticus, to identify disease resistance grouper, and the serum proteome profiles were compared between resistant and susceptible candidates, via two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE). The results showed that putative parvalbumin beta-2 subunit I, alpha-2-macroglobulin, nattectin and immunoglobulin light chain proteins were among proteins that significantly overexpressed in the resistant fish as compared to the susceptible group of fish, whereas apolipoprotein E and immunoglobulin light chain proteins were observed to be differentially overexpressed in the susceptible fish. Further analysis by peptide sequencing revealed that the immunoglobulin light chain proteins identified in the resistant and susceptible groups differed in amino acid composition. Taken together, the results demonstrated for the first time that putative parvalbumin beta-2 subunit I, alpha-2-macroglobulin, nattectin and immunoglobulin light chain are among important proteins participating to effect disease resistance mechanism in fish and were overexpressed to function collectively to resist V. parahaemolyticus infection. Most of these molecules are mediators of immune response.

Putative apolipoprotein A-I, natural killer cell enhancement factor and lysozyme g are involved in the early immune response of brown-marbled grouper, Epinephelus fuscoguttatus, Forskal, to Vibrio alginolyticus.

The gram-negative bacterium, Vibrio alginolyticus, has frequently been identified as the pathogen responsible for the infectious disease called vibriosis. This disease is one of the major challenges facing brown-marbled grouper aquaculture, causing fish farmers globally to suffer substantial economic losses. The objective of this study was to investigate the proteins involved in the immune response of brown-marbled grouper fingerlings during their initial encounter with pathogenic organisms. To achieve this objective, a challenge experiment was performed, in which healthy brown-marbled grouper fingerlings were divided into two groups. Fish in the treated group were subjected to intraperitoneal injection with an infectious dose of V. alginolyticus suspended in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), and those in the control group were injected with an equal volume of PBS. Blood samples were collected from a replicate number of fish from both groups at 4 h post-challenge and analysed for immune response-related serum proteins via two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The results showed that 14 protein spots were altered between the treated and control groups; these protein spots were further analysed to determine the identity of each protein via MALDI-TOF/TOF. Among the altered proteins, three were clearly overexpressed in the treated group compared with the control; these were identified as putative apolipoprotein A-I, natural killer cell enhancement factor and lysozyme g. Based on these results, these three highly expressed proteins participate in immune response-related reactions during the initial exposure (4 h) of brown-marbled grouper fingerling to V. alginolyticus infection.

Molecular detection of enteroviruses from an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease in Malaysia in 1997.

Enterovirus 5'UTR sequences were detected by RT-PCR in 22 out of 47 suspected hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) patients during an outbreak of the disease with incidences of fatal brainstem encephalomyelitis in Malaysia in 1997. Genetic and phylogenetic analyses of the isolates 5'UTR sequences suggest the presence of predominantly enteroviruses with high sequence similarities to Echovirus 1 and Coxsackievirus A9 in the Malaysian peninsula. No fatal cases, however, were associated with these isolates. The remaining isolates, including all (4/4) isolates of the fatal cases from the Malaysian peninsula and Sarawak shared very high sequence identity with enterovirus 71MS (EV71). These findings suggest that several enteroviruses were circulating in Malaysia during the outbreak period, with only EV71 causing fatal infections.

Identification of enterovirus 71 isolates from an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) with fatal cases of encephalomyelitis in Malaysia.

Thirteen enterovirus 71 (EV71) isolates were obtained from both fatal and non-fatal infections of patients seen in Peninsula Malaysia and in Sarawak during an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in Malaysia in 1997, with incidences of fatal brainstem encephalomyelitis. The isolates were identified using immunofluorescence staining, neutralization assays, and partial sequencing of the 5' untranslated regions (UTR). Assessment of the potential genetic relationships of the isolates using the partial 5'UTR sequences suggested clustering of the isolates into at least two main clusters. Isolates from Peninsula Malaysia were found in both clusters whereas Sarawak-derived isolates clustered only in cluster II. Isolates derived from fatal infections, however, occurred in both clusters and no distinctive nucleotide sequences could be attributed to the fatal isolates. Examination of the nucleotide sequences revealed at least 13 nucleotide positions in all the isolates which differ completely from the previously reported EV71 5'UTR sequences. In addition, at least 11 nucleotide position differences within the 5'UTR were noted which differentiated cluster I from cluster II. Predicted secondary RNA structures drawn using the nucleotide sequences also suggested differences between isolates from the two clusters. These findings suggest the presence of at least two potentially virulent EV71 co-circulating in Malaysia during the 1997 HFMD outbreak.