Evaluation of an inactivated Ross River virus vaccine in active and passive mouse immunization models and establishment of a correlate of protection

Ross River Virus has caused reported outbreaks of epidemic polyarthritis, a chronic debilitating disease associated with significant long-term morbidity in Australia and the Pacific region since the 1920s. To address this public health concern, a formalin- and UV-inactivated whole virus vaccine grown in animal protein-free cell culture was developed and tested in preclinical studies to evaluate immunogenicity and efficacy in animal models. After active immunizations, the vaccine dose-dependently induced antibodies and protected adult mice from viremia and interferon α/β receptor knock-out (IFN-α/βR(-/-)) mice from death and disease. In passive transfer studies, administration of human vaccinee sera followed by RRV challenge protected adult mice from viremia and young mice from development of arthritic signs similar to human RRV-induced disease. Based on the good correlation between antibody titers in human sera and protection of animals, a correlate of protection was defined. This is of particular importance for the evaluation of the vaccine because of the comparatively low annual incidence of RRV disease, which renders a classical efficacy trial impractical. Antibody-dependent enhancement of infection, did not occur in mice even at low to undetectable concentrations of vaccine-induced antibodies. Also, RRV vaccine-induced antibodies were partially cross-protective against infection with a related alphavirus, Chikungunya virus, and did not enhance infection. Based on these findings, the inactivated RRV vaccine is expected to be efficacious and protect humans from RRV disease

Mastering the canonical loop of serine protease inhibitors : enhancing potency by optimising the internal hydrogen bond network

Background Canonical serine protease inhibitors commonly bind to their targets through a rigid loop stabilised by an internal hydrogen bond network and disulfide bond(s). The smallest of these is sunflower trypsin inhibitor (SFTI-1), a potent and broad-range protease inhibitor. Recently, we re-engineered the contact β-sheet of SFTI-1 to produce a selective inhibitor of kallikrein-related peptidase 4 (KLK4), a protease associated with prostate cancer progression. However, modifications in the binding loop to achieve specificity may compromise structural rigidity and prevent re-engineered inhibitors from reaching optimal binding affinity. Methodology/Principal Findings In this study, the effect of amino acid substitutions on the internal hydrogen bonding network of SFTI were investigated using an in silico screen of inhibitor variants in complex with KLK4 or trypsin. Substitutions favouring internal hydrogen bond formation directly correlated with increased potency of inhibition in vitro. This produced a second generation inhibitor (SFTI-FCQR Asn14) which displayed both a 125-fold increased capacity to inhibit KLK4 (Ki = 0.0386±0.0060 nM) and enhanced selectivity over off-target serine proteases. Further, SFTI-FCQR Asn14 was stable in cell culture and bioavailable in mice when administered by intraperitoneal perfusion. Conclusion/Significance These findings highlight the importance of conserving structural rigidity of the binding loop in addition to optimising protease/inhibitor contacts when re-engineering canonical serine protease inhibitors.

Development and feasibility of a smartphone, ECG and GPS based system for remotely monitoring exercise in cardiac rehabilitation

Background Despite its efficacy and cost-effectiveness, exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation is undertaken by less than one-third of clinically eligible cardiac patients in every country for which data is available. Reasons for non-participation include the unavailability of hospital-based rehabilitation programs, or excessive travel time and distance. For this reason, there have been calls for the development of more flexible alternatives. Methodology and Principal Findings We developed a system to enable walking-based cardiac rehabilitation in which the patient's single-lead ECG, heart rate, GPS-based speed and location are transmitted by a programmed smartphone to a secure server for real-time monitoring by a qualified exercise scientist. The feasibility of this approach was evaluated in 134 remotely-monitored exercise assessment and exercise sessions in cardiac patients unable to undertake hospital-based rehabilitation. Completion rates, rates of technical problems, detection of ECG changes, pre- and post-intervention six minute walk test (6 MWT), cardiac depression and Quality of Life (QOL) were key measures. The system was rated as easy and quick to use. It allowed participants to complete six weeks of exercise-based rehabilitation near their homes, worksites, or when travelling. The majority of sessions were completed without any technical problems, although periodic signal loss in areas of poor coverage was an occasional limitation. Several exercise and post-exercise ECG changes were detected. Participants showed improvements comparable to those reported for hospital-based programs, walking significantly further on the post-intervention 6 MWT, 637 m (95% CI: 565–726), than on the pre-test, 524 m (95% CI: 420–655), and reporting significantly reduced levels of cardiac depression and significantly improved physical health-related QOL. Conclusions and Significance The system provided a feasible and very flexible alternative form of supervised cardiac rehabilitation for those unable to access hospital-based programs, with the potential to address a well-recognised deficiency in health care provision in many countries. Future research should assess its longer-term efficacy, cost-effectiveness and safety in larger samples representing the spectrum of cardiac morbidity and severity.

Zoledronic acid preserves bone structure and increases survival but does not limit tumour incidence in a prostate cancer bone metastasis model

Background The bisphosphonate, zoledronic acid (ZOL), can inhibit osteoclasts leading to decreased osteoclastogenesis and osteoclast activity in bone. Here, we used a mixed osteolytic/osteoblastic murine model of bone-metastatic prostate cancer, RM1(BM), to determine how inhibiting osteolysis with ZOL affects the ability of these cells to establish metastases in bone, the integrity of the tumour-bearing bones and the survival of the tumour-bearing mice. Methods The model involves intracardiac injection for arterial dissemination of the RM1(BM) cells in C57BL/6 mice. ZOL treatment was given via subcutaneous injections on days 0, 4, 8 and 12, at 20 and 100 µg/kg doses. Bone integrity was assessed by micro-computed tomography and histology with comparison to untreated mice. The osteoclast and osteoblast activity was determined by measuring serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRAP 5b) and osteocalcin, respectively. Mice were euthanased according to predetermined criteria and survival was assessed using Kaplan Meier plots. Findings Micro-CT and histological analysis showed that treatment of mice with ZOL from the day of intracardiac injection of RM1(BM) cells inhibited tumour-induced bone lysis, maintained bone volume and reduced the calcification of tumour-induced endochondral osteoid material. ZOL treatment also led to a decreased serum osteocalcin and TRAP 5b levels. Additionally, treated mice showed increased survival compared to vehicle treated controls. However, ZOL treatment did not inhibit the cells ability to metastasise to bone as the number of bone-metastases was similar in both treated and untreated mice. Conclusions ZOL treatment provided significant benefits for maintaining the integrity of tumour-bearing bones and increased the survival of tumour bearing mice, though it did not prevent establishment of bone-metastases in this model. From the mechanistic view, these observations confirm that tumour-induced bone lysis is not a requirement for establishment of these bone tumours.

Persistence of multiple genetic lineages within intra-host populations of Ross River virus

We examined the structure and extent of genetic diversity in intrahost populations of Ross River virus (RRV) in samples from six human patients, focusing on the nonstructural (nsP3) and structural (E2) protein genes. Strikingly, although the samples were collected from contrasting ecological settings 3,000 kilometers apart in Australia, we observed multiple viral lineages in four of the six individuals, which is indicative of widespread mixed infections. In addition, a comparison with previously published RRV sequences revealed that these distinct lineages have been in circulation for at least 5 years, and we were able to document their long-term persistence over extensive geographical distances

The obesity-associated polymorphisms FTO rs9939609 and MC4R rs17782313 and endometrial cancer risk in non-Hispanic white women

Overweight and obesity are strongly associated with endometrial cancer. Several independent genome-wide association studies recently identified two common polymorphisms, FTO rs9939609 and MC4R rs17782313, that are linked to increased body weight and obesity. We examined the association of FTO rs9939609 and MC4R rs17782313 with endometrial cancer risk in a pooled analysis of nine case-control studies within the Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium (E2C2). This analysis included 3601 non-Hispanic white women with histologically-confirmed endometrial carcinoma and 5275 frequency-matched controls. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to assess the relation of FTO rs9939609 and MC4R rs17782313 genotypes to the risk of endometrial cancer. Among control women, both the FTO rs9939609 A and MC4R rs17782313 C alleles were associated with a 16% increased risk of being overweight (p = 0.001 and p = 0.004, respectively). In case-control analyses, carriers of the FTO rs9939609 AA genotype were at increased risk of endometrial carcinoma compared to women with the TT genotype [odds ratio (OR) = 1.17; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03–1.32, p = 0.01]. However, this association was no longer apparent after adjusting for body mass index (BMI), suggesting mediation of the gene-disease effect through body weight. The MC4R rs17782313 polymorphism was not related to endometrial cancer risk (per allele OR = 0.98; 95% CI: 0.91–1.06; p = 0.68). FTO rs9939609 is a susceptibility marker for white non-Hispanic women at higher risk of endometrial cancer. Although FTO rs9939609 alone might have limited clinical or public health significance for identifying women at high risk for endometrial cancer beyond that of excess body weight, further investigation of obesity-related genetic markers might help to identify the pathways that influence endometrial carcinogenesis.

Unique residues involved in activation of the multitasking protease/chaperone HtrA from Chlamydia trachomatis

DegP, a member of the HtrA family of proteins, conducts critical bacterial protein quality control by both chaperone and proteolysis activities. The regulatory mechanisms controlling these two distinct activities, however, are unknown. DegP activation is known to involve a unique mechanism of allosteric binding, conformational changes and oligomer formation. We have uncovered a novel role for the residues at the PDZ1:protease interface in oligomer formation specifically for chaperone substrates of Chlamydia trachomatis HtrA (DegP homolog). We have demonstrated that CtHtrA proteolysis could be activated by allosteric binding and oligomer formation. The PDZ1 activator cleft was required for the activation and oligomer formation. However, unique to CtHtrA was the critical role for residues at the PDZ1:protease interface in oligomer formation when the activator was an in vitro chaperone substrate. Furthermore, a potential in vivo chaperone substrate, the major outer membrane protein (MOMP) from Chlamydia, was able to activate CtHtrA and induce oligomer formation. Therefore, we have revealed novel residues involved in the activation of CtHtrA which are likely to have important in vivo implications for outer membrane protein assembly.

Isolation and functional characterisation of banana phytoene synthase genes as potential cisgenes

Carotenoids occur in all photosynthetic organisms where they protect photosystems from auto-oxidation, participate in photosynthetic energy-transfer and are secondary metabolites. Of the more than 600 known plant carotenoids, few can be converted into vitamin A by humans and so these pro-vitamin A carotenoids (pVAC) are important in human nutrition. Phytoene synthase (PSY) is a key enzyme in the biosynthetic pathway of pVACs and plays a central role in regulating pVAC accumulation in the edible portion of crop plants. Bananas are a major commercial crop and serve as a staple crop for more than 30 million people. There is natural variation in fruit pVAC content across different banana cultivars, but this is not well understood. Therefore, we isolated PSY genes from banana cultivars with relatively high (cv. Asupina) and low (cv. Cavendish) pVAC content. We provide evidence that PSY in banana is encoded by two paralogs (PSY1 and PSY2), each with a similar gene structure to homologous genes in other monocots. Further, we demonstrate that PSY2 is more highly expressed in fruit pulp compared to leaf. Functional analysis of PSY1 and PSY2 in rice callus and E. coli demonstrate that both genes encode functional enzymes, and that Asupina PSYs have approximately twice the enzymatic activity of the corresponding Cavendish PSYs. These results suggest that differences in PSY enzyme activity contribute significantly to the differences in Asupina and Cavendish fruit pVAC content. Importantly, Asupina PSY genes could potentially be used to generate new cisgenic or intragenic banana cultivars with enhanced pVAC content.

Environmental and economic evaluation of N fertilizer rates in a maize crop in Italy : a spatial and temporal analysis using crop models

Crop simulation models have the potential to assess the risk associated with the selection of a specific N fertilizer rate, by integrating the effects of soil-crop interactions on crop growth under different pedo-climatic and management conditions. The objective of this study was to simulate the environmental and economic impact (nitrate leaching and N2O emissions) of a spatially variable N fertilizer application in an irrigated maize field in Italy. The validated SALUS model was run with 5 nitrogen rates scenarios, 50, 100, 150, 200, and 250 kg N ha−1, with the latter being the N fertilization adopted by the farmer. The long-term (25 years) simulations were performed on two previously identified spatially and temporally stable zones, a high yielding and low yielding zone. The simulation results showed that N fertilizer rate can be reduced without affecting yield and net return. The marginal net return was on average higher for the high yield zone, with values ranging from 1550 to 2650 € ha−1 for the 200 N and 1485 to 2875 € ha−1 for the 250 N. N leaching varied between 16.4 and 19.3 kg N ha−1 for the 200 N and the 250 N in the high yield zone. In the low yield zone, the 250 N had a significantly higher N leaching. N2O emissions varied between 0.28 kg N2O ha−1 for the 50 kg N ha−1 rate to a maximum of 1.41 kg N2O ha−1 for the 250 kg N ha−1 rate.