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Viruses Jan 2022Almost two decades after the isolation of the first amoebal giant viruses, indubitably the discovery of these entities has deeply affected the current scientific... (Review)
Review
Almost two decades after the isolation of the first amoebal giant viruses, indubitably the discovery of these entities has deeply affected the current scientific knowledge on the virosphere. Much has been uncovered since then: viruses can now acknowledge complex genomes and huge particle sizes, integrating remarkable evolutionary relationships that date as early as the emergence of life on the planet. This year, a decade has passed since the first studies on giant viruses in the Brazilian territory, and since then biomes of rare beauty and biodiversity (Amazon, Atlantic forest, Pantanal wetlands, Cerrado savannas) have been explored in the search for giant viruses. From those unique biomes, novel viral entities were found, revealing never before seen genomes and virion structures. To celebrate this, here we bring together the context, inspirations, and the major contributions of independent Brazilian research groups to summarize the accumulated knowledge about the diversity and the exceptionality of some of the giant viruses found in Brazil.
Topics: Amoeba; Biodiversity; Brazil; Ecosystem; Genome, Viral; Giant Viruses; History, 21st Century; Phylogeny; Virology
PubMed: 35215784
DOI: 10.3390/v14020191 -
Viruses Nov 2014Twenty years ago, Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) was the oncologic counterpart to Winston Churchill's Russia: a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. First described by... (Review)
Review
Twenty years ago, Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) was the oncologic counterpart to Winston Churchill's Russia: a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. First described by Moritz Kaposi in 1872, who reported it to be an aggressive skin tumor, KS became known over the next century as a slow-growing tumor of elderly men-in fact, most KS patients were expected to die with the tumor rather than from it. Nevertheless, the course and manifestations of the disease varied widely in different clinical contexts. The puzzle of KS came to the forefront as a harbinger of the AIDS epidemic. The articles in this issue of Viruses recount progress made in understanding Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) since its initial description in 1994.
Topics: Herpesviridae Infections; Herpesvirus 8, Human; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Humans; Virology
PubMed: 25386844
DOI: 10.3390/v6114258 -
MSphere Feb 2023
Topics: Science; Virology
PubMed: 36519923
DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00607-22 -
MBio Feb 2023
Topics: Science; Virology
PubMed: 36519848
DOI: 10.1128/mbio.03339-22 -
Scientific Reports Jan 2021The relationship between viral infection and obesity has been known for several decades but epidemiological data is limited to only a few viral pathogens. The...
The relationship between viral infection and obesity has been known for several decades but epidemiological data is limited to only a few viral pathogens. The association between obesity and a wide range of viruses was assessed using VirScan, a pan-viral serological profiling tool. Serum specimens from 457 Qatari adults (lean = 184; obese = 273) and 231 Qatari children (lean = 111; obese = 120) were analyzed by VirScan. Associations with obesity were determined by odds ratio (OR) and Fisher's test (p values), and by multivariate regression analysis to adjust for age and gender. Although there was no association of viral infections with obesity in the pediatric population, a nominal association of obesity with seropositivity to members of the Herpesviridae family is observed for the adult population (OR = 1.5-3.3; p < 0.05). After adjusting p values for multiple comparisons (Bonferroni correction) the odds of being obese is significantly higher in herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) seropositive Qatari adults (OR = 3.3; 95% CI 2.15-4.99; p = 2.787E - 08). By VirScan, the sero-prevalence of HSV1 is 81.3% and 57.1% among Qatari obese and lean adult populations, respectively. Higher prevalence of antibodies against several peptide epitopes of HSV-1/2 is positively associated with obesity (OR = 2.35-3.82; p ≤ 3.981E - 05). By multivariate regression analysis, HSV-1 was independently associated with obesity irrespective of age and gender. Our results suggest that obesity among Qataris may be associated with a higher prevalence of herpesvirus infections, in particular HSV-1. Furthermore, the high prevalence of antibodies against peptide antigens specific to HSV-1 and -2 in the obese population suggests that these viral peptides may play a role in adipogenesis. Further studies with these candidate peptides in cell culture or animal models may confirm their adipogenic roles.
Topics: Adult; Endocrine System; Female; Herpesviridae; Humans; Male; Metabolic Diseases; Middle Aged; Obesity; Virology; Virome
PubMed: 33510449
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-82213-4 -
Journal of Infection in Developing... Jul 2015The diagnostic approaches to viral gastroenteritis have evolved substantially over the past decades because of the advances in detection methods, the emergence of new... (Review)
Review
The diagnostic approaches to viral gastroenteritis have evolved substantially over the past decades because of the advances in detection methods, the emergence of new pathogens, and the increase in diarrhea hospitalizations attributed to viruses, especially in young children in non-industrialized countries. Overall, these factors have lead to a relevant improvement of types and operating characteristics of diagnostic methods (including sensitivity and specificity), as well as turnaround time. In this review, clinical and laboratory approaches to the diagnosis of viruses causing gastroenteritis are presented; in particular, specimen collection and detection methods are reviewed and discussed, taking into account performance and limitations.
Topics: Clinical Laboratory Techniques; Diagnostic Tests, Routine; Gastroenteritis; Humans; Sensitivity and Specificity; Specimen Handling; Time Factors; Virology; Virus Diseases
PubMed: 26142663
DOI: 10.3855/jidc.7051 -
International Journal of Molecular... Mar 2018The 3rd Workshop on Paediatric Virology, which took place on October 7th, 2017 in Athens, Greece, highlighted the role of breast feeding in the prevention of viral... (Review)
Review
The 3rd Workshop on Paediatric Virology, which took place on October 7th, 2017 in Athens, Greece, highlighted the role of breast feeding in the prevention of viral infections during the first years of life. Moreover, it focused on the long-term outcomes of respiratory syncytial virus and rhinovirus infections in prematurely born infants and emphasised the necessity for the development of relevant preventative strategies. Other topics that were covered included the vaccination policy in relation to the migration crisis, mother‑to‑child transmission of hepatitis B and C viruses, vaccination against human papilloma viruses in boys and advances on intranasal live‑attenuated vaccination against influenza. Emphasis was also given to the role of probiotics in the management of viral infections in childhood, the potential association between viral infections and the pathogenesis of asthma, fetal and neonatal brain imaging and the paediatric intensive care of children with central nervous system viral infections. Moreover, an interesting overview of the viral causes of perinatal mortality in ancient Greece was given, where recent archaeological findings from the Athenian Agora's bone well were presented. Finally, different continuing medical educational options in Paediatric Virology were analysed and evaluated. The present review provides an update of the key topics discussed during the workshop.
Topics: Child; Humans; Pediatrics; Practice Patterns, Physicians'; Virology; Virus Diseases
PubMed: 29328393
DOI: 10.3892/ijmm.2018.3364 -
Journal of Neurovirology Oct 2016
Topics: History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans; Neurology; United States; Virology
PubMed: 27683234
DOI: 10.1007/s13365-016-0479-7 -
Chest Nov 2018Viral pathogens are a common cause of severe lower respiratory tract infection in adults. Our ability to rapidly and accurately identify viral infections has... (Review)
Review
Viral pathogens are a common cause of severe lower respiratory tract infection in adults. Our ability to rapidly and accurately identify viral infections has dramatically improved as slow culture-based techniques have been largely replaced by multiplex high-throughput systems. Given these advances, reevaluation of the role of respiratory viral testing in adults presenting with lower respiratory tract infection is important. This article reviews the potential benefits of testing, provides an overview of the most commonly used diagnostic techniques, and considers whether current evidence supports routine testing.
Topics: High-Throughput Screening Assays; Humans; Respiratory Tract Infections; Severity of Illness Index; Virology; Virus Diseases
PubMed: 29908153
DOI: 10.1016/j.chest.2018.06.003 -
Current Opinion in Virology Feb 2022
Topics: Viral Structures; Virology
PubMed: 34875575
DOI: 10.1016/j.coviro.2021.11.008