Treatment Of Infectious Diseases In Humans Research Articles

Using microbial metalo-aminopeptidases as targets in human infectious diseases

Several microbial metalo-aminopeptidases are emerging as novel targets for the treatment of human infectious diseases. Some of them are well validated as targets and some are not; some are essential enzymes and others are important for virulence and pathogenesis. For another group, it is not clear if their enzymatic activity is involved in the critical functions that they mediate. But one aspect has been established: they display relevant roles in bacteria and protozoa that could be targeted for therapeutic purposes. This work aims to describe these biological functions for several microbial metalo-aminopeptidases.

Inorganic and Polymeric Nanoparticles for Human Viral and Bacterial Infections Prevention and Treatment.

Infectious diseases hold third place in the top 10 causes of death worldwide and were responsible for more than 6.7 million deaths in 2016. Nanomedicine is a multidisciplinary field which is based on the application of nanotechnology for medical purposes and can be defined as the use of nanomaterials for diagnosis, monitoring, control, prevention, and treatment of diseases, including infectious diseases. One of the most used nanomaterials in nanomedicine are nanoparticles, particles with a nano-scale size that show highly tunable physical and optical properties, and the capacity to a wide library of compounds. This manuscript is intended to be a comprehensive review of the available recent literature on nanoparticles used for the prevention and treatment of human infectious diseases caused by different viruses, and bacteria from a clinical point of view by basing on original articles which talk about what has been made to date and excluding commercial products, but also by highlighting what has not been still made and some clinical concepts that must be considered for futures nanoparticles-based technologies applications.

Pivotal role of convalescent plasma in managing emerging infectious diseases.

Pivotal role of convalescent plasma in managing emerging infectious diseases.

Plant-Made Antibodies: Properties and Therapeutic Applications.

A cost-effective plant platform for therapeutic monoclonal antibody production is both flexible and scalable. Plant cells have mechanisms for protein synthesis and posttranslational modification, including glycosylation, similar to those in animal cells. However, plants produce less complex and diverse Asn-attached glycans compared to animal cells and contain plant-specific residues. Nevertheless, plant-made antibodies (PMAbs) could be advantageous compared to those produced in animal cells due to the absence of a risk of contamination from nucleic acids or proteins of animal origin. In this review, the various platforms of PMAbs production are described, and the widely used transient expression system based on Agrobacterium-mediated delivery of genetic material into plant cells is discussed in detail. We examined the features of and approaches to humanizing the Asn-linked glycan of PMAbs. The prospects for PMAbs in the prevention and treatment of human infectious diseases have been illustrated by promising results with PMAbs against human immunodeficiency virus, rotavirus infection, human respiratory syncytial virus, rabies, anthrax and Ebola virus. The pre-clinical and clinical trials of PMAbs against different types of cancer, including lymphoma and breast cancer, are addressed. PMAb biosafety assessments in patients suggest that it has no side effects, although this does not completely remove concerns about the potential immunogenicity of some plant glycans in humans. Several PMAbs at various developmental stages have been proposed. Promise for the clinical use of PMAbs is aimed at the treatment of viral and bacterial infections as well as in anti-cancer treatment.

The National Strategy of the Russian Federation for Preventing the Spread of Antimicrobial Resistance: Challenges and Prospects of Controlling One of the Global Biological Threats of the 21st Century

Microorganism resistance to medicinal products and disinfectants reduces the efficacy of prevention and treatment of human infectious diseases, increases the severity and duration of such diseases as well as the mortality rates, and is therefore regarded as a major global health issue. With a view to implementing the Russian National Security Strategy and the Principles of the National Policy in the Sphere of Chemical and Biological Safety of the Russian Federation up to 2025 and beyond, and with due regard to the Concept of the Long-Term Social and Economic Development of the Russian Federation until 2030 — the Government of the Russian Federation issued a resolution (in 2017) that approved the Strategy for Prevention and Combating the Resistance of Microorganisms and Plant Pests to Medicinal Products, Chemical and Biological Agents up to 2030 and beyond (hereinafter — Strategy). The Strategy is a federal document that defines the aim and objectives of controlling the biological threat coming from the spread of microorganism and plant pest resistance to medicines, chemical and biological agents. The article analyses the aim and objectives of the Strategy, dwells upon specific features of the document, summarises the main stages and expected results of measures outlined in the document, and describes some aspects of its implementation.

Convalescent plasma: new evidence for an old therapeutic tool?

Passive immunisation for the prevention and treatment of human infectious diseases can be traced back to the 20(th) century. The recent Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa has turned the spotlight onto the possible use of convalescent whole blood and convalescent plasma in the treatment of infectious diseases because they are the only therapeutic strategy available in some cases, given the unavailability of vaccines, drugs or other specific treatments. Convalescent blood products could be a valid option in the treatment/prophylaxis of several infectious diseases both in association with other drugs/preventive measures and as the only therapy when a specific treatment is not available. However, there are still some issues to consider in determining the advisability of implementing a large-scale convalescent plasma transfusion programme.

Antimicrobial peptide elicitors: New hope for the post-antibiotic era

Antimicrobial peptides or host defense peptides are fundamental components of human innate immunity. Recent and growing evidence suggests they have a role in a broad range of diseases, including cancer, allergies and susceptibility to infection, including HIV/AIDS. Antimicrobial peptide elicitors (APEs) are physical, biological or chemical agents that boost human antimicrobial peptide expression. The current knowledge of APEs and their potential use in the treatment of human infectious diseases are reviewed, and a classification system for APEs is proposed. The efficient use of APEs in clinical practice could mark the beginning of the urgently needed post-antibiotic era, but further trials assessing their efficacy and safety are required.

Design and Development of a New Diagnostic Microbiology and Epidemiology Track in the General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology

The mission of the General Meeting Program Committee (GMPC) states, “The ASM General Meeting showcases the central role of microbes in the biosphere by reporting today’s best science in the diverse areas influenced by microbes. The breadth of this meeting provides participants opportunities for immersion in fields of specialization as well as forays into different disciplines.” Underscoring the critical role of ASM in fostering knowledge of public health and the diagnosis, detection, epidemiology, and treatment of human infectious diseases, the GMPC enthusiastically announces a new Diagnostic Microbiology and Epidemiology Track. This novel track offers more than 24 sessions to be held within the 111th General ASM Meeting in New Orleans in 2011. The new development of a medical microbiology track parallels the innovative design of a different structure for presenting leading ideas and outstanding speakers in basic microbiology throughout the General ASM Meeting (please refer to the companion editorial [J. F. Miller, M. McFall-Ngai, and A. Casadevall, mBio 1 (5) : e00240-10, 2010]). This new structure of the General Meeting will highlight broadly based topics presented by internationally recognized leaders in the morning sessions. The afternoon symposia are focused on more specific topics, while also including potentially more than 100 openings for presentations of abstracts by trainees and junior faculty. The topics include microbial pathogenesis, molecular genetics, cellular and molecular immunology, molecular biology, environmental microbiology, microbial ecology, evolutionary biology, …

Despite extensive similarity in germline DH and JH sequence, the adult Rhesus macaque CDR-H3 repertoire differs from human

Rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta) and chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes) are frequently used models for the study and treatment of human infectious diseases, including AIDS. Confidence in the equivalence to human of the humoral immune responses of these higher primates has grown as studies of immunoglobulin germline sequences have documented average identities of 90% or greater to human counterparts. The most variable component of the immunoglobulin heavy chain, complementarity determining region 3 (CDR-H3) is the product of somatic (junctional) as well as germline (combinatorial) mechanisms of diversity. Located at the center of the antigen binding site, CDR-H3 often exerts a dominant role in antibody specificity and affinity. To test whether similarity in germline DH and JH sequence would yield similarity in CDR-H3 composition in the expressed repertoire, we compared IgM CDR-H3 transcripts from Rhesus and chimpanzee blood to human. In fetal Rhesus, the range and mean of CDR-H3 lengths was similar to that observed in fetal human. However, the Rhesus repertoire of adult μCDR-H3 transcripts did not contain the longer hypervariable intervals that humans begin to express late in the second trimester of fetal life. Conversely, the adult chimpanzee repertoire included more long CDR-H3 structures than human. The differences between these adult repertoires reflected fine changes in N addition and terminal nucleotide loss. We conclude that the same mechanisms that refine and shape CDR-H3 diversity during ontogeny can also be used to fine tune and individualize species-specific antibody repertoires despite germline immunoglobulin sequence similarity.