Citrus canker caused by Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri (Xcc) is one of the most devastating diseases in citrus. Meiwa kumquat (Fortunella crassifolia) has shown a durable resistance against Xcc. read more Here, we aimed to characterize the mechanisms responsible for such a durable resistance by characterizing the transcriptional and physiological responses of Meiwa kumquat to Xcc. Inoculation of Meiwa kumquat with Xcc promoted immune responses such as upregulation of PR genes, accumulation of salicylic acid, hypersensitive response (HR)-like cell death and early leaf abscission. Hypertrophy and hyperplasia symptoms, which are known to be caused by Xcc-induction of the canker susceptibility gene LOB1 through the transcription activator-like effector (TALE) PthA4, always appear prior to the development of cell death. Mutation of pthA4 in Xcc abolished the induction of LOB1, canker symptoms, cell death, and leaf abscission and reduced the expression of PR genes in inoculated kumquat leaves without reducing Xcc titers in planta. Transcriptome analysis demonstrated that PthA4 promotes plant biotic and abiotic stress responses and the biosynthesis of abscisic acid. Transcriptional induction of LOB1 homologs in Meiwa kumquat by Xcc pthA4 mutant strains carrying a repertoire of designer TALEs promoted the elicitation of HR-like phenotype and leaf abscission, suggesting that kumquat response to Xcc is associated with upregulation of LOB1. Our study suggests a novel mechanism of plant resistance to Xanthomonas via elicitation of immune responses by upregulation of a host susceptibility gene.

1. To assess the performance of an extended questionnaire in identifying cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection among obstetric patients. 2. To evaluate the rate of infection among healthcare workers involved in women’s care.

A prospective cohort study of obstetric patients admitted to MBBM Foundation and Buzzi Hospital (Lombardy, Northern Italy) from March 16th to May 22nd, 2020. Women were screened on admission by a questionnaire investigating major and minor symptoms of infection and high-risk contacts in the last 14 days. SARS-CoV-2 assessment was performed by RT-PCR on nasopharyngeal swabs. Till April 7th, a targeted SARS-CoV-2 testing triggered by a positive questionnaire was used; from April 8th, a universal testing approach was implemented.

There were 1,177 women screened by the questionnaire, which yielded a positive result in 130 (11.0%) cases. SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR was performed in 865 (73.5%) patients, identifying 51 (5.9%) infections. During the first period, there were 29 infected mothers, 4 (13.8%) oflow risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the context of a targeted and a universal viral testing approach. In 15.7% of infected women, correct classification as a suspected case of infection was due to investigation of olfactory and taste disorders. Extension of the assessed time-frame to 30 days may be worth considering to increase the questionnaire’s performance.

Cytopenias affect the outcomes of highly active anti-retroviral therapy that results in higher morbidity, mortality, and impaired quality of life. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of cytopenia and its associated factors among HIV infected adults on highly active antiretroviral therapy at Mehal Meda Hospital, North Shewa Zone, Ethiopia.

A cross-sectional health facility based study was conducted among 499 consecutively selected adult HIV infected patients taking HAART for at least six months from January to April 2018. The study participant’s socio-demographic and clinical information was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire and reviewing of medical records by trained clinical nurses. Complete blood count and CD4 T cell count were determined by Sysmex KX-21 N and BD FACS count respectively. Bivariate and multivariate analysis was performed to identify the independently associated factors of cytopenia and prevalence ratios and their 95% confidence intervals were estimated using Prevalence increased as the CD4 count decreases. Therefore, these warrant the need for monitoring hematological parameters of HIV infected patients on HAART to reduce morbidity and mortality.The rising public health threat of antimicrobial resistance, the influence of food service companies, as well as the overall lack of positive image of using medical products in intensive farming are major drivers curbing antimicrobial use. In the future, government policies may affect practices of antimicrobial use in beef production in feedlots, a prominent current user of antimicrobials in animal agriculture, but also the agricultural industry generating the highest cash receipt in the U.S. Our objective was to estimate the cost effect from the following policies in feedlots 1) using antimicrobials for disease prevention, control, and treatment; 2) using antimicrobials only for treatment of disease; and 3) not using antimicrobials for any reason. We modelled a typical U.S. feedlot, where high risk cattle may be afflicted by diseases requiring antimicrobial therapy, namely respiratory diseases, liver abscesses and lameness. We calculated the net revenue loss under each policy of antimicrobial use restrictionile simultaneously curbing antimicrobial use.Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus (CCHFV; family Nairoviridae) is an extremely pathogenic member of the Bunyavirales order. Previous studies have shown that the N-terminal domain of the CCHFV polymerase (L) contains an ovarian tumor-type protease (OTU) domain with the capability to remove both ubiquitin and ISG15 molecules from proteins. The approximately 200 amino acids-long OTU domain, if ectopically expressed, can interfere with both the induction of antiviral type I interferons (IFN) as well as the IFN-stimulated signaling. A OTU protease mutant (C40A), by contrast, was inactive in that respect. However, the effect of the OTU protease activity in the context of the full-length L protein (approximately 4000 amino acids) is only poorly characterized, and recombinant CCHFV with the C40A mutation could not be rescued. Here, we employed transcriptionally active virus-like particles (tc-VLPs) to investigate the interaction between the L-embedded OTU protease and the IFN system. Our data show a cis requirement of the OTU protease for optimal CCHFV polymerase activity in human HuH-7 cells.