Bodily Secretions ; virology ; Humans ; Pharynx ; virology ; Pneumonia ; diagnosis ; virology ; Respiratory System ; virology

To investigate the susceptibility of Chukars to duck avian influenza virus H9N2 and explore their role in interspecies transmission of influenza viruses. Chukars were inoculated with duck avian influenza viruses H9N2. The present study demonstrated that inflammatory lesions and virus antigen were present in the trachea, bronchus, and parabronchus, and the viruses could be isolated from throat swabs and lung tissue homogenate supernatants. At 14 d post virus inoculation, anti-H9 influenza virus antibody in the serum was detected. The results indicated that Chukars are susceptible to duck avian influenza virus and serve as an intermediate host, thereby facilitating viral gene evolution and supporting the need for continued surveillance of epidemiology and evolution of the influenza virus in Chukars.
Animals ; Galliformes ; Influenza A Virus, H9N2 Subtype ; pathogenicity ; physiology ; Influenza in Birds ; virology ; Respiratory System ; pathology ; virology ; Virus Replication ; physiology

BACKGROUNDJuvenile onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (JORRP) is a relatively rare disease. It affects the larynx in most cases. Because reports on JORRP to the lower respiratory tract (LRT) are few, we investigated clinical features of patients with a history of JORRP to analyze the risk factors of this disease.

METHODSData from 208 JORRP patients admitted to Beijing Tongren Hospital from January 2008 to December 2010 were reviewed. Gender, age at onset of symptoms, age at first surgery, duration of symptoms before the first surgical procedure, the number of surgical procedures, mean interval between surgical interventions, and the number of tracheotomies in patients with and without LRT spread of JORRP were analyzed. The data from patients with and without tracheotomy were recorded and compared. Two cases of primary tracheal papillomatosis were reviewed.

RESULTSPapillomas extension down to the LRT was observed in 46 children (22.1%). Patients with LRT papillomatosis had a shorter time from the onset of the symptoms until the first surgery, required significantly more surgical procedures, and had a shorter mean surgical interval. Tracheotomy was performed in 13/162 (8.0%) children with laryngeal papillomatosis vs. 36/46 (78.3%) children with LRT papillomatosis. After tracheotomy, 36/49 (73.5%) children developed LRT papillomatosis and 10/157 (6.4%) children who did not have a tracheotomy developed LRT papillomatosis. Patients with tracheotomy required a significantly higher number of surgical procedures. The younger the patient had a tracheotomy, the longer the duration of cannulation was.

CONCLUSIONSJORRP patients with LRT spread are prone to develop more aggressive disease. Tracheotomy resulted in a significant increase of LRT involvement.

Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Larynx ; pathology ; surgery ; virology ; Male ; Papillomavirus Infections ; epidemiology ; Respiratory System ; pathology ; surgery ; virology ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; epidemiology ; Risk Factors ; Software ; Tracheotomy

The ferret is an established animal model of influenza virus infection. Although viral replication in the upper respiratory tract is usually measured with consecutively collected nasal washes, daily evaluation of viral replication in the lung is limited because a large numbers of ferrets need to be sacrificed at consecutive time points. To overcome this limitation, we performed a virus quantification assay using bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid. This non-invasive BAL technique allows consecutive quantification of virus replication in the lungs of living ferrets. Our method can be used for the longitudinal evaluation of virus tropism in the lower respiratory tract.
Animals ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage/*veterinary ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Ferrets/*virology ; Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype/*physiology ; Orthomyxoviridae Infections/*veterinary/virology ; Respiratory System/*virology ; Virus Replication/*physiology

Expression of the natural killer (NK) cell antigen CD56 is uncommon in malignant lymphoma, but when it is, it is almost exclusively of the non-B cell lineage and show a preference for the nasal and nasopharyngeal region. T/NK cell lymphoma is known to be aggressive and refractory to treatment. It is highly associated with the Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), but clinical investigations are rarely reported, that is until recently. We report here, on the clinical features and therapeutic outcomes of patients with T/NK cell lymphomas and its association with EBV. We reviewed fifty-four cases with peripheral T cell lymphomas in the upper aerodigestive tract between Jan. 1987 and Aug. 1998 from the Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine. The diagnosis of T/NK cell lymphoma was made according to the expression of the NK cell markers, CD56 antigen and cytoplasmic CD3 epsilon, in tumor specimens, by immunohistochemistry. Epstein-Barr early region (EBER) RNA was detected using in situ hybridization on paraffin-embedded sections. Among the 54 cases with malignant lymphomas occurring in the upper aerodigestive tract, 20 had T/NK cell lymphoma (37%). The primary sites of T/NK cell lymphomas were the nasal cavity, 12 cases (60%), the tonsils, 4 cases (20%), the nasopharynx, 2 cases (10%), and the oropharynx, 2 case (10%). There were no differences between the features, at diagnosis or therapeutic modalities for patients with T/NK cell lymphoma and non-T/NK cell lymphoma. The complete remission rate of T/NK cell lymphomas was lower than non-T/NK cell lymphomas (65% vs 85%, p=0.02). The overall survival of T/NK cell lymphomas was 13 months (1-74 month), which was significantly lower than non-T/NK cell lymphomas [60.6% with a median follow up of 22 months (1-101 month, p=0.02)]. Disease free survival of T/NK cell lymphomas was 22 months (4-66 month), significantly lower than non-T/NK cell lymphomas [73.8% with a median follow up of 22 months (2-95 month), p=0.04]. The overall survival rates for T/NK cell lymphomas were significantly lower than for EBV positive non-T/NK cell lymphomas (p=0.018). EBER RNA was detected in the paraffin-embedded tissue sections of all T/NK cell lymphomas, compared to only 17.6% (6 of 34 cases) for non- T/NK cell lymphomas. In conclusion, as patients with T/NK cell lymphomas showed poor clinical outcomes, and a high association with EBV positivity, clinical trials with more investigational therapeutic strategies, and further research into the relationship of EBV infection with pathogenesis of T/NK cell lymphoma is warranted.
Adult ; Aged ; Digestive System Neoplasms/*therapy/virology ; Female ; Herpesvirus 4, Human/isolation & purification ; Human ; *Killer Cells, Natural ; Lymphoma/*therapy/virology ; Lymphoma, T-Cell/*therapy/virology ; Male ; Middle Age ; Respiratory Tract Neoplasms/*therapy/virology ; Treatment Outcome

BACKGROUNDH9N2 avian influenza viruses (AIVs) have repeatedly caused infections in mammals even humans in many countries. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the acute lung injury (ALI) caused by H9N2 viral infection in mice.

METHODSSix- to eight- week-old female SPF C57BL/6 mice were infected intranasally with 1 × 10(4) MID50 of A/HONG KONG/2108/2003 [H9N2 (HK)] virus. Clinical signs, pathological changes, virus titration in tissues of mice, arterial blood gas, and cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and serum were observed at different time points after AIV infection.

RESULTSH9N2-AIV-infected mice exhibited severe respiratory syndrome, with a mortality rate of 50%. Lung histopathological changes in infected mice included diffuse pneumonia, alveolar damage, inflammatory cellular infiltration, interstitial and alveolar edema, and hemorrhage. In addition, H9N2 viral infection resulted in severe progressive hypoxemia, lymphopenia, and a significant increase in interleukin 1, interleukin 6, tumor necrosis factor, and interferon in BALF and serum.

CONCLUSIONSThe results suggest that H9N2 viral infection induces a typical ALI in mice that resembles the common features of ALI. Our data may facilitate the future studies of potential avian H9N2 disease in humans.

Acute Lung Injury ; blood ; etiology ; virology ; Animals ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; chemistry ; Female ; Influenza A Virus, H9N2 Subtype ; pathogenicity ; Interleukin-1 ; blood ; metabolism ; Interleukin-6 ; blood ; metabolism ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Respiratory System ; virology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood ; metabolism

The primary determinant of influenza virus infectivity is the type of linkage between sialic acid and oligosaccharides on the host cells. Hemagglutinin of avian influenza viruses preferentially binds to sialic acids linked to galactose by an alpha-2,3 linkage whereas hemagglutinin of human influenza viruses binds to sialic acids with an alpha-2,6 linkage. The distribution patterns of influenza receptors in the avian respiratory tracts are of particular interest because these are important for initial viral attachment, replication, and transmission to other species. In this study, we examined the distribution patterns of influenza receptors in the respiratory tract of chickens, ducks, pheasants, and quails because these species have been known to act as intermediate hosts in interspecies transmission. Lectin histochemistry was performed to detect receptor-bearing cells. Cell-specific distribution of the receptors was determined and expression densities were compared. We observed species-, site-, and cell-specific variations in receptor expression. In general, receptor expression was the highest in quails and lowest in ducks. Pheasants and quails had abundant expression of both types of receptors throughout the respiratory tract. These results indicate that pheasants and quails may play important roles as intermediate hosts for the generation of influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
Animals ; Cell Membrane/metabolism/virology ; Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus/metabolism ; Host-Pathogen Interactions ; Influenza A virus/*metabolism ; Influenza in Birds/metabolism/transmission ; Lectins/metabolism ; Poultry/metabolism/*virology ; Poultry Diseases/metabolism ; Receptors, Cell Surface/analysis/chemistry/metabolism ; Receptors, Virus/*analysis/metabolism ; Respiratory System/*chemistry ; Sialic Acids/metabolism ; Species Specificity ; Specific Pathogen-Free Organisms

OBJECTIVETo establish a convenient and high-throughput respiratory virus detection method to facilitate epidemiological viral monitoring.

METHODSWe used high-throughput microsphere-based flexible multi-analyte profiling technology (xMAP) coupled with signal amplification molecules to simultaneously detect RNAs of 8 viruses including influenza viruses A and B, parainfluenza viruses type 1, 2 and 3, respiratory syncytial viruses A and B, and metapneumovirus in a 96-well plate format. The sensitivity and specificity of the method for the synthetic viral RNAs were evaluated.

RESULTSThere was no cross-reactivity among the 8 respiratory viral target RNAs. The detection limits for the 8 viral in intro-transcribed RNAs ranged from 1204 to 4695 RNA copies.

CONCLUSIONWe establish a sensitive, specific, convenient, and high-throughput multiplex detection method suitable for detecting multiple respiratory viral RNAs for epidemiological viral monitoring.

High-Throughput Screening Assays ; methods ; Influenza A virus ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Influenza B virus ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Limit of Detection ; Metapneumovirus ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques ; methods ; RNA, Viral ; analysis ; Respiratory Syncytial Viruses ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Respiratory System ; virology ; Respirovirus ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Reverse Transcription ; Sensitivity and Specificity