Virus Diseases Commons^™

How Nutrition Can Help To Fight Against Covid-19 Pandemic, Faseeha Aman, Sadia Masood

Section of Internal Medicine

Currently Covid-19 pandemic is a leading challenge across the globe. It is mandatory to attain and maintain good nutritional status to fight against virus. Nutritional status of individual is affected by several factors such as age, sex, health status, life style and medications. Nutritional status of individuals has been used as resilience towards destabilization during this COVID-19 pandemic. Optimal nutrition and dietary nutrient intake impact the immune system, therefore the only sustainable way to survive in current context is to strengthen the immune system. There is no evidence found that supplement can cure the immune system except Vit C, which …

Investigating The Interactions Between Individual Calmodulin And Hiv-1 Protein Domains, Riley K. Kendall, Jerry Larue

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The World Health Organization found that 37.9 million people were living with HIV by the end of 2018. HIV is a virus that weakens the immune system through viral replication and the destruction of CD4⁺ T-cells, which are white blood cells that detect infection and make antibodies. A cure for HIV has not yet been discovered. HIV-1 contains a Gag polyprotein which regulates the stages of viral replication. Previous studies suggest that the myristoyl group of a matrix protein peptide found on the Gag polyprotein, MA, forms a complex with a calcium-binding, multifunctional regulatory protein called Calmodulin (CaM). CaM …

Has Covid-19 Impacted Price-Weight Relationships And Value Of Gain?, Elliott James Dennis

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

First paragraph:

In the beginning of COVID-19, much of the attention was focused on managing the redirection of meat product from food service to retail stores. This past month has keenly focused on packing plant closures due to COVID-19 cases among workers and how to manage the supply of fat cattle already ready for slaughter. Fat cattle available for slaughter either cannot get bids or bids are significantly below breakeven prices leaving feedlots with decisions to be made about marketing and placements. The April 2020 Cattle on Feed report (https://usda.library.cornell.edu/concern/publications/m326m174z) revealed March placement decisions. Placements were down about …

Fact Or Myth: The Flu Can Be Caused By The Flu Vaccine, Arleigh Wood

Virtual 2020 Spring Student Showcase for Research and Creative Inquiry

To many, the flu vaccine seems like a threat to an otherwise healthy individual. People often get the flu after receiving the flu shot, which does not promote confidence in the general public. These and other reasonings have created a myth that the flu vaccine can cause the flu. Understanding how the vaccination is created and how it interacts with the immune system helps to realize why the flu vaccine cannot cause the virus. For the vaccine to work, adaptive immunity must be activated by the introduction of the viral particles in a safe manner. An effective immune response from …

The Case For Face Shields: Improving The Covid-19 Public Health Policy Toolkit, Timothy L. Wiemken, Ana Santos Rutschman, Robert Gatter

All Faculty Scholarship

As the United States battles the later stages of the first wave of COVID-19 and faces the prospect of future waves, it is time to consider the practical utility of face shields as an alternative or complement to face masks in the policy guidance. Without face shields specifically noted in national guidance, many areas may be reluctant to allow their use as an alternative to cloth face masks, even with sufficient modification.

In this piece, we discuss the benefits of face shields as a substitute to face masks in the context of public health policy. We further discuss the implications …

Why The Government Shouldn't Pay People To Get Vaccinated Against Covid-19, Ana Santos Rutschman

All Faculty Scholarship

As several pharmaceutical companies approach the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking authorization to bring COVID-19 vaccines to market, concerns about vaccine mistrust cloud the prospects of imminent vaccination efforts across the globe. These concerns have prompted some commentators to suggest that governments may nudge vaccine uptake by paying people to get vaccinated against COVID-19. This post argues that, even if potentially viable, this idea is undesirable against the backdrop of a pandemic marked by the intertwined phenomena of health misinformation and mistrust in public health authorities. Even beyond the context of COVID-19, paying for vaccination is likely to remain …

Comments On The Preliminary Framework For Equitable Allocation Of Covid-19 Vaccine, Ana Santos Rutschman, Julia Barnes-Weise, Robert Gatter, Timothy L. Wiemken

All Faculty Scholarship

On September 1, 2020 the National Academies released a draft framework for Equitable Allocation of a COVID-19 Vaccine. In this response, we analyze the proposed framework and highlight several areas.

Among the proposed changes, we highlight the need for the following interventions. The final framework for distribution of COVID-19 vaccines should give a higher priority to populations made most vulnerable by the social determinants of health. It should incorporate more geography-based approaches in at least some of the four proposed phases of vaccine distribution. It should address the possibility of a vaccine being made available through an emergency use authorization …

Theranostics For Antiretroviral Biodistribution And Pharmacokinetics, Brendan M. Ottemann

Theses & Dissertations

RATIONALE: Our laboratories birthed the field of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) theranostics. The new field allows simultaneous detection (diagnostics) and treatment (therapeutic) for the identification, treatment and inevitable elimination of virus in cell and tissue compartments. By employing theranostics, antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) can be tracked in lymph nodes, gut, spleen and liver. Cellular viral reservoirs including CD4+ T cell populations and mononuclear phagocytes (MP; monocytes, macrophages, microglia and dendritic cells) along with subcellular endosomal structures can now be targeted for drug delivery bringing therapeutics to areas where virus replicates. The overarching idea rests in improving precision targeted ARV delivery. …

An Analysis Of The Rajasthan Public Health System’S Response To The 2019 Dengue Insurgence, Luke Bryan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Dengue virus is in a pandemic status and is a major public health issue in the modern world. The mosquito-borne disease is largely prevalent in Asia and specifically India, where more than half of the states are considered to have complete presence of the dengue virus. The intricate infrastructure of the Indian public health system looks for dengue cases at all levels and reports to the integrated disease surveillance programme (IDSP).

Analyses of the IDSP and trends of dengue cases was done in response to dengue outbreaks throughout the state. Geographic information system (GIS) maps were created to evaluate a …

Elucidating Immune Signaling Of Influenza A Virus And Aspergillus Fumigatus Co-Infections Through Pioneered Model Development, Meagan Danyelle Rippee-Brooks

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Bacterial co-infections with influenza A virus (IAV) are extremely serious and life-threatening. However, there exists limited understanding about the importance of fungal infections with IAV. Clinical case reports indicate that fungal co-infections do occur and suggest the IAV pandemic of 2009 had a propensity to predispose patients to secondary fungal infections more than previous IAV strains. IAV-fungal co-infections are marked by high mortality rates of 47 to 61% in previously healthy individuals between the ages of 20 and 60. Yet, the variables involved in this co-infection remain undetermined. I achieved effective recapitulation of this co-infection using a C57Bl/6 murine (mouse) …

Environmental Sampling Techniques For Herd-Level Surveillance Of Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus, Jaden Carlson

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Control of Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (BVDV) relies on resource-intensive individual animal sampling to detect and remove persistently infected (PI) cattle. Herd-level surveillance tools would be useful for herds with unknown BVDV status and for monitoring herds with BVDV-free status. The overall objective of this thesis is to explore the viability of BVDV surveillance at a herd-level using samples collected without handling individual animals. The first objective was to determine the feasibility of using stable flies as a sampling tool to detect BVDV. The second objective was to determine the feasibility of using drinking water to detect BVDV. To accomplish …

Development Of Novel Zika And Anthrax Viral Nanoparticle Vaccines, Elizabeth Henderson

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Vaccines protect against numerous infectious diseases and prevent millions of deaths annually, but there are still many infectious diseases for which no licensed vaccine exists. Developing a new vaccine requires balancing safety and efficacy, and viral nanoparticle (VNP) vaccines possess both of these characteristics. The work herein demonstrates how tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) nanoparticles can serve as a platform to create candidate vaccines for Zika virus (ZIKV) and anthrax. In the first study, a ZIKV-specific epitope was genetically fused to TMV to create a safe and inexpensive vaccine that proved highly immunogenic in mice and led to the discovery of …

Arachidin 3 Modulation Of Lipid Metabolism In Rotavirus Infections, Stormey Wisdom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rotavirus (RV) can cause severe and deadly gastroenteritis in young children, infants, and immunocompromised individuals. Previous studies have shown that arachidin 3 (A3) inhibits RV replication, and that RV replication is dependent on the presence of lipids. This study investigated the alteration of lipid metabolism by A3 in RV infected HT29.f8 cells. A decrease in the RV regulation of lipid biosynthesis genes was observed with the addition of A3 using qRT-PCR. Also, immunofluorescent and histochemical staining for neutral fats, a major component of cellular lipid droplets, revealed an increased accumulation with both RV and RV+A3 when compared to no virus …

Development Of A Long-Acting Nanoformulation Of Dolutegravir For Prevention And Treatment Of Hiv-1 Infection, Brady Sillman

Theses & Dissertations

Dolutegravir (DTG) is a potent human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) integrase strand-transfer inhibitor (INSTI) with a high barrier to viral drug resistance. However, opportunities to improve its profile abound. These include extending the drug’s apparent half-life, increasing penetrance to “putative” viral reservoirs, and reducing inherent toxicities. These highlight, in part, the need for long-acting, slow effective release antiretroviral therapy (LASER ART) delivery schemes. A long-acting (LA) DTG was made by synthesizing a hydrophobic and lipophilic prodrug encased with poloxamer (P407) surfactant. This modified DTG (MDTG) reduced systemic metabolism and polarity, increased lipophilicity and membrane permeability, improved encapsulation, and formed …

How Do Teachers Use Comics To Promote Engagement, Equity, And Diversity In Science Classrooms?, Camilla Matuk, Talia Hurwich, Amy Spiegel, Judy Diamond

World of Viruses

Equitable learning opportunities are critical to the goals of science education. However, major curriculum standards are vague on how to achieve equity goals, and educators must often develop their own resources and strategies to achieve equity goals. This study examines how educators used a comic book series designed to interest youth in virology as a way to make science more broadly appealing to their diverse students. We begin with the notion of Pedagogical Design Capacity, which describes a dynamic relationship between teachers and their tools and the ability for teachers to perceive and leverage affordances of artifacts as tools in …

Congenital Zika Virus Infection In Immunocompetent Mice Causes Postnatal Growth Impediment And Neurobehavioral Deficits, Amber M. Paul, Dhiraj Acharya, Biswas Neupane, E. Ashley Thompson, Gabriel Gonzalez-Fernandez, Katherine M. Copeland

Publications

A small percentage of babies born to Zika virus (ZIKV)-infected mothers' manifest severe defects at birth, including microcephaly. Among those who appeared healthy at birth, there are increasing reports of postnatal growth or developmental defects. However, the impact of congenital ZIKV infection in postnatal development is poorly understood. Here, we report that a mild congenital ZIKV-infection in pups born to immunocompetent pregnant mice did not display apparent defects at birth, but manifested postnatal growth impediments and neurobehavioral deficits, which include reduced locomotor and cognitive deficits that persisted into adulthood. We found that the brains of these pups were smaller, had …

The Comparison Of Effects Of Synthetic And Natural Arachidin-3 On Rotavirus Infected Cells, Rebekah Napier-Jameson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rotavirus (RV) causes severe, life-threatening diarrhea, in infants, young children and immunocompromised adults. There are several effective vaccines for young children, however they are strain specific and are not protective against many RV strains in developing countries. Therefore, it is important to investigate anti-RV therapeutic agents. Our laboratory has shown arachidin-1 (A1) and arachadin-3 (A3) significantly inhibit RV replication in two cell lines, however the molecular mechanism(s) of action are not known. A synthetic molecule of A3 (sA3) has been produced, but its’ antiviral effects have not been examined. Our hypothesis is that sA3 produces the same effects on RV-infected …

Evaluation Of Oncolytic And Immunomodulatory Potential Of The Hsv-1 Live-Attenuated Vaccine Strain Vc2 In An Immunocompetent Murine Melanoma Model, Natalie Wall Fowlkes

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Melanoma accounts for 90% of skin cancer-related deaths in humans. Treatment options for metastatic melanoma in people is very limited. Melanoma is considered to be an immunogenic tumor, spurring interest in development of immunotherapies for the treatment of metastatic melanoma. Oncolytic virotherapy has been widely investigated. The first ever oncolytic virotherapy to receive FDA-approval is an HSV-1-based virus (Talimogene Laherperavec (T-Vec) or Imlygic) containing a transgene for human GM-CSF to enhance anti-tumor immune responses after injection. Durable response rate in human patients was only 16% despite impressive efficacy in anti-tumor effects in vitro and in murine tumor models. Novel viruses …

Type 2 Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus NPro Suppresses Type I Interferon Pathway Signaling In Bovine Cells And Augments Bovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus Replication, Abdulrahman Abdulaziz A. Alkheraif

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) infections contribute to the bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC), which is a multi-factorial disorder involving co-infections of viruses and bacteria including mycoplasma. BRDC causes great economic losses to the United States feedlot industry. BVDV infection induces immunosuppression in infected animals. BVDV N^pro binds and degrades the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor-3 (IRF-3) and effectively blocks type I interferon (type I IFN) expression in host cells. BRSV nonstructural proteins, NS1 and NS2, block activation of IRF-3. In calves, concurrent infection with BVDV and BRSV resulted in more severe clinical …

Enhanced Production Of Pro-Il-1Βeta Contributes To Immunopathology During The Coinfection Of Influenza A Virus And Streptococcus Pneumoniae, Angeline E. Rodriguez

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Viral bacterial coinfections are known to cause severe pneumonia, especially in the elderly and in pediatric patients. Antibiotics like β-Lactams kill the bacteria but fail to improve symptoms suggesting a faulty immune system may play an important role in the disease. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is an important immune signaling cytokine responsible for inflammation. It exists as an inactive precursor that can be activated by caspase-1 containing inflammasomes (multi-protein complex). Influenza A virus (IAV) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) activate the inflammasome through the NOD-like receptor protein NLRP3 and/or AIM2. Previous reports in mice indicate that IL-1β levels are dramatically …

Herpes Zoster Patient Education: A Coloring Book Approach, Sophia Charuhas

Senior Honors Theses

Shingles, the disease caused by the herpes zoster virus, is a widespread and widely misunderstood illness in the United States. It is preventable, but many at-risk patients do not know what measures they may take to prevent it. Clear communication from physician to patient is crucial for patient understanding of diseases. Many patient education materials on herpes zoster currently available are often unused. It is therefore beneficial to public health to disseminate new mediums of medical communication, and one way of accomplishing this is through adult coloring books. The pathophysiology of herpes zoster virus is here explored and the idea …

Paclitaxel Enhances Oncolytic Potential Of Herpes Simplex Virus Type-1 In Cancer Cells, Misagh Naderi

LSU Master's Theses

Taxanes are spindle poisons that bind to and stabilize microtubules resulting in mitotic arrest. Herpes simplex Typ-1 (HSV-1) virions utilize the microtubular network for intracellular transport during both virus entry and virus egress from infected cells. It has been reported previously that taxanes may synergize with oncolytic herpes simplex viruses in the treatment of experimental prostate and breast tumors in mice. Other reports have indicated that taxanes may inhibit viral replication in infected cells. In this study the previously characterized Oncolytic Herpes Simplex Virus type 1 (OSVP), which was constructed in Kousoulas lab was used in conjugation with paclitaxel (taxol) …

Sequence Analysis Of The Potato Aphid Macrosiphum Euphorbiae Transcriptome Identified Two New Viruses, Marcella A. Texeira, Noa Sela, Hagop S. Atamian, Ergude Bao, Rita Chaudhury, Jacob Macwilliams, Jiangman He, Sophie Mantelin, Thomas Girke, Isgouhi Kaloshian

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

The potato aphid, Macrosiphum euphorbiae, is an important agricultural pest that causes economic losses to potato and tomato production. To establish the transcriptome for this aphid, RNA-Seq libraries constructed from aphids maintained on tomato plants were used in Illumina sequencing generating 52.6 million 75±105 bp paired-end reads. The reads were assembled using Velvet/Oases software with SEED preprocessing resulting in 22,137 contigs with an N50 value of 2,003bp. After removal of contigs from tomato host origin, 20,254 contigs were annotated using BLASTx searches against the non-redundant protein database from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) as well as IntereProScan. …

Role Of Mucin 19 In The Respiratory Tract, Kaitlin Mcbride

LSU Master's Theses

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a negative sense, single stranded RNA virus belonging to the Pneumoviridae family, and represents an important pathogen that causes severe respiratory disease worldwide. There is currently no vaccine against HMPV, so it is important to study the aspects of the immune response induced by HMPV. Because infiltration of mucus is a hallmark of HMPV infection, it is warranted to study the role of mucus in the disease process. Mucin proteins make up the major component of mucus and can be found within the airway and lungs. Previous work from our laboratory demonstrated a high upregulation of …

Mozambique: Hiv/Aids, Camila Davila

Global Public Health

Mozambique is a country located in Southeastern Africa near the Mozambique Channel and the Indian Ocean. The president of this nation is Filipe Jacinto Nyusi. The total population is 26, 573, 706 which is composed of mostly 99.68% Africans and other minorities. Its national language is Portuguese although most of the population speaks Emarkhuwa. Most of the population is Catholic and a few others include Muslims and Zionist Christians. Mozambique faces several challenges with malaria, poverty, malnutrition, HIV/AIDS, and illicit drugs. HIV/AIDS is a common health problem that targets the immune system and is transmitted through bodily fluids such as …

Surveillance Of South Dakota Mosquito Abundance, Infection Rate, And Insecticide Susceptibility, Geoffrey P. Vincent

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this dissertation was to survey and evaluate the abundance, infection rate, and insecticide susceptibility of mosquito fauna present in South Dakota. Mosquito surveillance has been conducted across South Dakota to record and track potential West Nile virus (WNV) vectors from 2004 to 2017. The nuisance mosquito Aedes vexans was found to be the most abundant species overall in the state and most abundant in many of the regions. The WNV vector, Culex tarsalis, was found to be the second most abundant mosquito and the most abundant vector mosquito across the state. However, geospatial variation did exist between …

Improving Hpv Vaccination Series Initiation Rates And Compliance Among Indigent Women In South Texas, Ages 19-26, Through Provider Recommendation And Additional Clinic Funding: A Quality Improvement Project, Lacey Cudd

Doctor of Nursing Practice

The purpose of this quality improvement project was to increase human papillomavirus vaccination series initiation rates among indigent women, ages 19-26, at a clinic in South Texas. The human papillomavirus is a sexually transmitted infection that has been associated with multiple types of cancers. Each year, approximately 6.2 million cases of the human papillomavirus infection are diagnosed; as many as 75% of all new infections occur among females 18-26 years of age. The human papillomavirus vaccination has a high efficacy in regards to cancer prevention, preventing as many as 76% of cancers with only one dose. The project included educating …

The Kinetics Of Type I Interferons During Influenza A Virus Infection, Margaret A. Myers

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Gender Differences In Virologic Response After Antiretroviral Therapy In Treatment-Naïve Hiv-Infected Individuals: Results From The 550 Clinic Hiv Cohort Study., Andrea Reyes-Vega, Alejandra Loban, Kavitha Srinivasan, Stephen P. Furmanek, Conner English, Mary Bishop, Cathy Spencer, Daniel Truelove, Julio A. Ramirez, Anupama Raghuram, Paula Peyrani

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Background

Controversy still exists regarding gender differences in virologic response between treatment-na•ve HIV-infected individuals. The objective of this study was to evaluate gender difference in virologic and immunologic response to antiretroviral therapy in treatment-na•ve HIV-infected individuals. Methods

This was a retrospective, observational study of treatment-na•ve HIV-infected individuals managed at the 550 clinic who started antiretroviral therapy (ART) between January 1st, 2010 and December 31, 2015. Patients with available viral load and CD4 counts before and one year after initiating ART were included in this study. Virologic suppression was defined as < 48 HIV-1 RNA copies/mL, and mmunologic recovery was defined as a CD4 count increase of at least 150 cells/mm3. Dichotomous variables were reported in number and percentages and analyzed using Chi-squared tests and Fisher’s exact (whichever was appropriate). Continuous variables were reported as median and interquartile range (IQR) and analyzed using Wilcox rank-sum tests. Multivariate analyses performed were logistic regressions with adjustment for other covariates. P value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. R version 3.3.2 was used for the statistical analysis. Results

A total of 70 women and 90 men were included …

Modeling Hiv Dynamics Following 3bnc117 Antibody Infusion, Samantha Erwin

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.