Diseases Commons^™

Immune- And Nonimmune-Compartment-Specific Interferon Responses Are Critical Determinants Of Herpes Simplex Virus-Induced Generalized Infections And Acute Liver Failure, Zachary M. Parker, Tracy Jo Pasieka, George A. Parker, David A. Leib

Dartmouth Scholarship

The interferon (IFN) response to viral pathogens is critical for host survival. In humans and mouse models, defects in IFN responses can result in lethal herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infections, usually from encephalitis. Although rare, HSV-1 can also cause fulminant hepatic failure, which is often fatal. Although herpes simplex encephalitis has been extensively studied, HSV-1 generalized infections and subsequent acute liver failure are less well understood. We previously demonstrated that IFN-αβγR-/- mice are exquisitely susceptible to liver infection following corneal infection with HSV-1. In this study, we used bone marrow chimeras of IFN-αβγR-/- (AG129) and wild-type (WT; 129SvEv) mice …

Expression Of Complement And Toll-Like Receptor Pathway Genes Is Associated With Malaria Severity In Mali: A Pilot Case Control Study, Rafal S. Sobota, Antoine Dara, Jessica E. Manning, Amadou Niangaly

Dartmouth Scholarship

Background: The host response to infection by Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite most often responsible for severe malaria, ranges from asymptomatic parasitaemia to death. The clinical trajectory of malaria is influenced by host genetics and parasite load, but the factors determining why some infections produce uncomplicated malaria and some proceed to severe disease remain incompletely understood.

Methods: To identify molecular markers of severe falciparum malaria, human gene expression patterns were compared between children aged 6 months to 5 years with severe and uncomplicated malaria who were enrolled in a case–control study in Bandiagara, Mali. Microarrays were used to obtain expression …