Enhanced Mucosal Antibody Production and Protection against Respiratory Infections Following an Orally Administered Bacterial Extract.

Secondary bacterial infections following influenza infection are a pressing problem facing respiratory medicine. Although antibiotic treatment has been highly successful over recent decades, fatalities due to secondary bacterial infections remain one of the leading causes of death associated with influenza. We have assessed whether administration of a bacterial extract alone is sufficient to potentiate immune responses and protect against primary infection with influenza, and secondary infections with either Streptococcus pneumoniae or Klebsiella pneumoniae in mice. We show that oral administration with the bacterial extract, OM-85, leads to a maturation of dendritic cells and B-cells characterized by increases in MHC II, CD86, and CD40, and a reduction in ICOSL. Improved immune responsiveness against influenza virus reduced the threshold of susceptibility to secondary bacterial infections, and thus protected the mice. The protection was associated with enhanced polyclonal B-cell activation and release of antibodies that were effective at neutralizing the virus. Taken together, these data show that oral administration of bacterial extracts provides sufficient mucosal immune stimulation to protect mice against a respiratory tract viral infection and associated sequelae.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Tat modulates proliferation and differentiation of human neural precursor cells: implication in NeuroAIDS.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and viral proteins affect neuronal survival and neuron-glial cell interactions, which culminate in neurological disorders. HIV-1 infects regions of neurogenesis in human adult and pediatric brain. However, little is known about the effect of HIV-1 or viral proteins on the properties of human neural precursor cells (hNPCs), particularly neurogenesis, hence a detailed investigation on these lines is warranted. Human neural precursor cells were cultured in presence and absence of HIV-1B transactivating protein Tat to investigate if HIV-1 viral protein alters the properties of human neural precursor cells. Cellular and molecular approaches were adopted to study the effect of HIV-1B transactivating protein Tat on proliferation and differentiation potential of human fetal brain-derived NPCs. Cell proliferation assays such as BrdU and Ki67 staining and pathway-specific cDNA and protein arrays were used in the study. Data reveal that HIV-1B Tat protein severely affects proliferation of hNPCs, as evident by lower incorporation of BrdU and Ki67 staining as well as neurosphere assay. HIV-1 Tat substantially attenuated neurogenesis, as evident by the smaller numbers of Tuj-1- and doublecortin-positive cells differentiated from hNPCs, without affecting their viability. These data suggest that HIV-1 Tat alters the properties of human neural precursor cells via attenuation of the cell cycle regulatory unit cyclin D1 and the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, particularly extracellular signal-related kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2). The study provides new insights into cellular and molecular mechanisms that may modulate human neural precursor cell properties in HIV/AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) individuals. Validation with autopsy brain samples is necessary to further substantiate these important observations.