A vaccine targeting mutant IDH1 in newly diagnosed glioma Nature, 2021
The availability of anti-IDH1 R132H antibody clone H09 (DNA-DIA-H09, Dianova, Germany) developed by the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg has triggered fundamental advances for the 2016 WHO classification of CNS tumors ( ). IDH1 R132H IHC has been introduced as a backbone for differential diagnosis of glioma. Now, early in 2021 in the Journal Natur...
Zika virus NS3 protease induces bone morphogenetic protein-dependent b... Nature Microbiology, 2021
Abstract The most frequent fetal birth defect associated with prenatal Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is brain calcification, which in turn may potentially affect neurological development in infants. Understanding the mechanism could inform the development of potential therapies against prenatal ZIKV brain calcification. In perivascular cells, bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) is an osteogenic factor that undergoes maturation to activate osteogenesis and calcification. Here, we show that ZIKV infection of cultivated primary human brain pericyt...
Turning Cold Tumors Hot: The RANK Pathway as an Immune Modulator in Br... Nature Communications, 2021
Although immune checkpoint inhibitors have changed the treatment landscape for some cancers such as melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer, other tumor types often described as immunologically “cold” do not respond well to immunotherapy. Many breast tumors are cold with low immune infiltration and poor response to immune checkpoint blockade. Using Bio X Cell’s Anti-mouse RANKL (clone IK22/5) antibody, researc...
A new ketogenic formulation improves functional outcome and reduces ti... Theranostics, 2021
Abstract Rationale: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) leads to neurological impairment, with no satisfactory treatments available. Classical ketogenic diets (KD), which reduce reliance on carbohydrates and provide ketones as fuel, have neuroprotective potential, but their high fat content reduces compliance, and experimental evidence suggests they protect juvenile brain against TBI, but not adult brain, which would strongly limit their applicability in TBI. Methods: We designed a new-KD with a fat to...
SARS-CoV-2 D614G spike mutation increases entry efficiency with enhanc... Nature Communications, 2021
Abstract The causative agent of the COVID-19 pandemic, SARS-CoV-2, is steadily mutating during continuous transmission among humans. Such mutations can occur in the spike (S) protein that binds to the ACE2 receptor and is cleaved by TMPRSS2. However, whether S mutations affect SARS-CoV-2 cell entry remains unknown. Here, we show that naturally occurring S mutations can reduce or enhance cell entry via ACE2 and TMPRSS2. A SARS-CoV-2 S-pseudotyped lentivirus exhibits substantially lower entry than that of SARS-CoV S. Among S variants, the...
Human Papillomavirus Type 16 E5 Protein Induces Expression of Beta Int... Journal of Virology, 2011
Abstract Crucial steps in high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV)-related carcinogenesis are the integration of HR-HPV into the host genome and loss of viral episomes. The mechanisms that promote cervical neoplastic progression are, however, not clearly understood. During HR-HPV infection, the HPV E5 protein is expressed in precancerous stages but not after viral integration. Given that it has been reported that loss of HPV16 episomes and cervical tumor progression are associated with increased expression of antiviral genes that are induci...
Neuroinvasion of SARS-CoV-2 in human and mouse brain Journal of Experimental Medicine, 2021
A new study by Song et al. elegantly demonstrates that SARS-CoV-2 can infect the human brain. Their findings establish a basis for the development of potential interventions to ameliorate or prevent persistent CNS-related sequelae reported in a significant number of patients who have recovered from acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Two of GeneTex’s SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (GTX635679 and GTX632604
Predictive value of cytokine/chemokine responses for the disease sever... Journal of Medical Virology, 2020
Abstract The disease course of children with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) seems milder as compared with adults, however, actual reason of the pathogenesis still remains unclear. There is a growing interest on possible relationship between pathogenicity or disease severity and biomarkers including cytokines or chemokines. We wondered whether these biomarkers could be used for the prediction of the prognosis of COVID‐19 and improving our understanding on the variations between pediatric and adult cases with COVID‐19. The acute phase s...
RTP4 Is a Potent IFN-Inducible Anti-flavivirus Effector Engaged in a H... Cell Host & Microbe, 2020
Abstract Among mammals, bats are particularly rich in zoonotic viruses, including flaviviruses. Certain bat species can be productively yet asymptomatically infected with viruses that cause overt disease in other species. However, little is known about the antiviral effector repertoire in bats relative to other mammals. Here, we report the black flying fox receptor transporter protein 4 (RTP4) as a potent interferon (IFN)-inducible inhibitor of human pathogens in the Flaviviridae family, including Zika, West Nile, and hepatitis C...
Wnt Signaling in Chronic Rhinosinusitis with Nasal Polyps American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, 2017
Abstract The signaling pathways that sustain the disease process of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) remain poorly understood. We sought to determine the expression levels of Wnt signaling genes in CRSwNP and to study the role of the Wnt pathway in inflammation and epithelial remodeling in the nasal mucosa. Microarrays and real time-quantitative polymerase chain reaction comparing gene expression in matched NPs and inferior turbinates revealed that WNT2B, WNT3A, WNT4, WNT7A, WNT7B, and FZD2 were up-regulated and that FZD1,...