Immunology of Infectious Disease News Volume 4.44 | Nov 9 2016

TOP STORY

New Therapeutic Vaccine Approach Holds Promise for HIV Remission

Researchers have demonstrated that combining an experimental vaccine with an innate immune stimulant may help lead to viral remission in people living with HIV. [Press release from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center discussing online prepublication in Nature] Press Release | Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

Molecular-Level Analysis of the Serum Antibody Repertoire in Young Adults before and after Seasonal Influenza Vaccination

Scientists used high-resolution proteomics analysis of immunoglobulin coupled with high-throughput sequencing of transcripts encoding B cell receptors to quantitatively determine the antibody repertoire at the individual clonotype level in the sera of young adults before and after vaccination with trivalent seasonal influenza vaccine. [Nat Med] Abstract

PTPN22 Contributes to Exhaustion of T Lymphocytes during Chronic Viral Infection

The authors showed that mice deficient in PTPN22 resist chronic viral infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus clone 13. The numbers and function of viral-specific CD4 T lymphocytes is greatly enhanced, whereas expression of the IFNβ-induced IL-2 repressor, cAMP-responsive element modulator is reduced. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract | Press Release

Acute Malaria Induces PD1⁺CTLA4⁺ Effector T Cells with Cell-Extrinsic Suppressor Function

To test whether coinhibitory receptors modulate CD4⁺ T cell functions in malaria, blood samples were obtained from patients with acute Plasmodium falciparum malaria treated in Germany. Flow cytometric analysis showed a more frequent expression of CTLA4 and PD1 on CD4⁺ T cells of malaria patients than of healthy control subjects. [PLoS Pathog] Full Article

CD169⁺ Macrophages Regulate PD-L1 Expression via Type I Interferon and Thereby Prevent Severe Immunopathology after LCMV Infection

Using the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus, scientists showed that a subset of CD169⁺ macrophages in murine spleen and lymph nodes produced high amounts of type I interferon upon infection. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

IL-21 Signaling Is Essential for Optimal Host Resistance against Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection

Researchers showed that IL-21 signaling plays a crucial role in T cell responses during Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection by augmenting CD8⁺ T cell priming, promoting T cell accumulation in the lungs, and enhancing T cell cytokine production. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Inhibition of MHC-I by Brucella abortus Is an Early Event during Infection and Involves EGFR Pathway

The authors demonstrated that the B. abortus mutant strains RB51 and virB10⁻ are able to inhibit MHC-I expression in the same manner as wild type B. abortus, even though they are unable to persist inside human monocytes for a long period of time. [Immunol Cell Biol] Abstract

HIV

Predominance of Weakly Cytotoxic, T-bet^LowEomes^Neg CD8⁺ T-Cells in Human Gastrointestinal Mucosa: Implications for HIV Infection

Investigators sought to elucidate the cytotoxic features of rectal mucosal CD8⁺ T-cells in HIV infected and uninfected subjects. Perforin expression and lytic capacity were significantly reduced in rectal CD8⁺ T-cells compared with their blood counterparts, regardless of HIV clinical status; granzyme B was reduced to a lesser extent. [Mucosal Immunol] Full Article

Mucosal and Systemic γδ⁺ T Cells Associated with Control of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Investigators evaluated the frequency, phenotype, and functionality of Vδ1 and Vδ2 T cells from blood, rectum, and the female reproductive tract of rhesus macaques to determine whether these cells contribute to control of SIV infection. [J Immunol] Abstract

Antibody-Dependent CD56⁺ T Cell Responses Are Functionally Impaired in Long-Term HIV-1 Infection

The authors showed evidence that, in addition to natural killer cells, CD56⁺ T cells could generate degranulation upon CD16 cross-linking. An ex vivo study showed that FcγRIII-mediated CD56⁺ T cell responses were distinctly induced by IgG antibody-bound P815 cells. [Retrovirology] Full Article

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Phospholipases: At the Crossroads of the Immune System and the Pathogenesis of HIV-1 Infection

The authors discuss the principal aspects of the complex interaction between phospholipases, HIV-1, and the immune system. A thorough understanding of the signaling networks that involve phospholipases in both HIV-1–infected cells and individuals is essential to determine whether therapeutic targeting of these enzymes may represent a novel approach to control viral replication, as well as the associated inflammation and comorbidities. [J Leukoc Biol] Abstract

Strategies to Limit Immune-Activation in HIV Patients

The authors review alternative, possible strategies to reduce immune activation in HIV infection including timing of antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation and ART intensification to reduce HIV residual viremia; switch of ART to newer molecules with reduced toxicity; use of anti inflammatory/immunomodulatory agents and, finally, interventions aimed at modifying the composition of the microbiota. [Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther] Abstract

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the immunology of infectious disease research field.

TaiGen Biotechnology to Establish a New Company with HEC Pharmaceutical in China for Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis C

TaiGen Biotechnology Co., Ltd. announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, TaiGen Biopharmaceuticals Co. (Beijing), Ltd. has signed an agreement with YiChang HEC ChangJiang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd to establish a new company in mainland China for the joint development, manufacturing, and commercialization of direct-acting antiviral agents for all-oral interferon-free treatments of chronic hepatitis C virus infection in the Greater China region. [TaiGen Biotechnology Co., Ltd.] Press Release

IDRI Receives $15 Million Commitment from Eli Lilly for TB Drug Discovery

IDRI’s (Infectious Disease Research Institute) drug discovery efforts continue to grow with a recently awarded $7.5 million in additional funding, plus an additional $7.5 million of in-kind services, for a total commitment of $15 million over the next five years from Eli Lilly and Company. [IDRI] Press Release

Donald Trump’s US Election Win Stuns Scientists

Republican businessman and reality-television star Donald Trump will be the United States’ next president. Although science played only a bit part in this year’s dramatic, hard-fought campaign, many researchers expressed fear and disbelief as Trump defeated former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. [Nature News] Press Release

The Quiet Rise of the NIH’s Hot New Metric

Biomedical funders worldwide are adopting the US agency’s free Relative Citation Ratio to analyze grant outcomes. [Nature News] Press Release

NEW Keystone Symposium: Modeling Viral Infections and Immunity
May 1-4, 2017
Estes Park, United States

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW Postdoctoral Fellow – Immunology of Chronic HBV Infection (F. Hoffmann-La Roche)

Research Technologist – Cell Separation (STEMCELL Technologies Inc.)

Project Research Scientist – Malaria Research (The Francis Crick Institute)

Postdoctoral Researcher – Infection and Immunity (University of Oxford)

Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/Reader – Immunology/Bacteriology (University of Bristol)

Research Specialist – Stem Cell Biology (University of Pittsburgh)

PhD Prize Studentships (University of Oxford)

Postdoctoral Position – Immunology (Klinikum der Universität München)

Faculty Positions – Immunology (Ohio State University)

Postdoctoral Positions – Mucosal, Innate and Adaptive Immunity (UT Southwestern Medical Center)

Faculty Position – Senior Immunologist (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center)

Research Position – Immunotherapy Approach to Treat HIV Infection (California Institute of Technology)

Postdoctoral Research Fellow – Quantitative Infectious Disease Methods (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center)

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