Pneumonia caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection emerged in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China in December 2019. By Feb. 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially named the disease resulting from infection with SARS-CoV-2 as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). COVID-19 represents a spectrum of clinical manifestations that typically include fever, dry cough, and fatigue, often with pulmonary involvement. SARS-CoV-2 is highly contagious and most individuals within the population at large are susceptible to infection. Wild animal hosts and infected patients are currently the main sources of disease which is transmitted via respiratory droplets and direct contact. Since the outbreak, the Chinese government and scientific community have acted rapidly to identify the causative agent and promptly shared the viral gene sequence, and have carried out measures to contain the epidemic. Meanwhile, recent research has revealed critical aspects of SARS-CoV-2 biology and disease pathogenesis; other studies have focused on epidemiology, clinical features, diagnosis, management, as well as drug and vaccine development. This review aims to summarize the latest research findings and to provide expert consensus. We will also share ongoing efforts and experience in China, which may provide insight on how to contain the epidemic and improve our understanding of this emerging infectious disease, together with updated guidance for prevention, control, and critical management of this pandemic.
Amino Acid Motifs ; Animals ; Antiviral Agents ; Betacoronavirus ; genetics ; China ; epidemiology ; Communicable Disease Control ; methods ; Coronavirus Infections ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Humans ; Immunization, Passive ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Protein Domains ; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus ; chemistry ; Viral Vaccines

Rotavirus is the leading causal agent of severe acute gastroenteritis in children aged <5 years. A specific pharmacologic agent for the treatment of rotavirus-infected children is lacking. In China, only the Luo Tewei oral vaccine (Lanzhou Institute of Biological Products, Shanghai, China), which is produced from Lanzhou lamb rotavirus vaccine (LLR), is available. Studies have hypothesized that the genotype of LLR is G10P[12], To identify the genotype of LLR by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, we showed that the VP7 and VP4 genotypes of LLR were G10 and P[15], respectively, based on sequencing, alignment and phylogenetic analyses. In conclusion, we identified the genotype of rotavirus strain LLR to be G10P[15].
China ; Genotype ; Humans ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Rotavirus ; chemistry ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Rotavirus Infections ; virology ; Rotavirus Vaccines ; chemistry ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid ; Viral Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics

To evaluate the immunities of biodegradable microsphere as a release delivery system for DNA vaccine against Infectious Bursal Disease Virus, in our study, silk fibroin/chitosan microsphere adjuvant was prepared with a precipitation/coacervation method. Both glutaraldehyde and Na2SO4 solution were used in cross-linking. No immune chicken were intramuscularly inoculated at 14 day-old and boosted 2 weeks later. The results show that glutaraldehyde destroyed the DNA activity of the vaccine whereas Na2SO4 solution did not. Factors of the chitosan concentration 0.5% (pH 5.0), silk fibroin concentration 0.6%, plasmid DNA (500 microg/mL) dissolved in 2% Na2SO4 solution were optimized to produce microsphere, with a loading capacity of 89.14%. The average particle size of SF-CS/pCI-VP2/4/3 microsphere is 1.98 microm, and it can protect the loading DNA vaccine from DNase I digestion. Data from anti IBDV ELISA antibodies in the serum show that immunization activity of the microsphere groups were generally higher than plasmid vaccine group (P < 0.05), and the SF/CS compound microspheres group was better than that of sole CS microsphere group. The developed SF/CS microspheres are a very promising vaccine delivery system.
Adjuvants, Immunologic ; chemistry ; Animals ; Birnaviridae Infections ; prevention & control ; veterinary ; Chickens ; Chitosan ; chemistry ; Fibroins ; chemistry ; Infectious bursal disease virus ; Microspheres ; Plasmids ; Poultry Diseases ; prevention & control ; Vaccines, DNA ; chemistry ; Viral Vaccines ; chemistry

Dengue virus (DENV) is a re-emerging disease transmitted by the Aedes mosquitoes and has become a major public health problem in southern China. Currently, no antiviral drug or effective vaccine exist to control this disease. The chimeric DENV structural protein vaccine cannot elicit balanced levels of protective immunity to each of the four viral serotypes; therefore, non-structural protein components may be required to construct an effective DENV vaccine. The Dengue virus non-structural 1 (DENV NS1) protein plays a critical role in viral pathogenesis and protective immunity. Therefore, immunity to Dengue 1-4 NS1 subtypes may be crucial for the prevention of severe disease. This review attempts to provide an overview about the structure and function of DENV NS1.
Animals ; Dengue ; immunology ; prevention & control ; virology ; Dengue Vaccines ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Dengue Virus ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Humans ; Viral Nonstructural Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology

Antibodies, Monoclonal ; chemistry ; immunology ; Antigens, Viral ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Binding Sites ; Capsid Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Epitopes ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Escherichia coli ; genetics ; metabolism ; Gene Expression ; Hepatitis E ; immunology ; prevention & control ; virology ; Hepatitis E virus ; chemistry ; immunology ; Humans ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Mutagenesis, Site-Directed ; Peptide Mapping ; Protein Binding ; Recombinant Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Viral Hepatitis Vaccines ; administration & dosage ; biosynthesis

Codon ; Computational Biology ; methods ; Evolution, Molecular ; Influenza A virus ; classification ; genetics ; Influenza Vaccines ; immunology ; Molecular Biology ; Phylogeny ; RNA, Viral ; chemistry ; Viral Proteins ; chemistry

Animals ; Humans ; Influenza A virus ; immunology ; Influenza Vaccines ; immunology ; Protein Engineering ; Viral Matrix Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effect of the aluminum hydroxide (Al-OH) adjuvant on the 2009 pandemic influenza A/H1N1 (pH1N1) vaccine.

METHODSIn a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, participants received two doses of split-virion formulation containing 15 μg hemagglutinin antigen, with or without aluminum hydroxide (Al-OH). We classified the participants into six age categories (>61 years, 41-60 years, 19-40 years, 13-18 years, 8-12 years, and 3-7 years) and obtained four blood samples from each participant on days 0, 21, 35, and 42 following the first dose of immunization. We assessed vaccine immunogenicity by measuring the geometric mean titer (GMT) of hemagglutination inhibiting antibody. We used a two-level model to evaluate the fixed effect of aluminum Al-OH and other factors, accounting for repeated measures.

RESULTSThe predictions of repeated measurement on GMTs of formulations with or without Al-OH, were 80.35 and 112.72, respectively. Al-OH significantly reduced immunogenicity after controlling for time post immunization, age-group and gender.

CONCLUSIONThe Al-OH adjuvant does not increase but actually reduces the immunogenicity of the split-virion pH1N1 vaccine.

Adjuvants, Pharmaceutic ; chemistry ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Aluminum Hydroxide ; chemistry ; Antibodies, Viral ; blood ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; Data Interpretation, Statistical ; Double-Blind Method ; Female ; Hemagglutination Inhibition Tests ; Humans ; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype ; immunology ; Influenza Vaccines ; adverse effects ; chemistry ; immunology ; Influenza, Human ; epidemiology ; immunology ; prevention & control ; virology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Models, Statistical ; Pandemics ; Young Adult

To understand the effect of various gene structures of HIV B'/C subtype on the gene expression and immunity in DNA vaccine, replicating DNA vector pSCK2 was used to construct seven DNA vaccines carrying one or more of HIV B'/C subtype genes: gagpol, gp160 and rtn (rev, tat and nef fusion gene). Immunofluorescence staining indicated that Gag, Gp160, Rev, Tat and Nef could be expressed from the seven DNA vaccines. Stronger expression was observed with the gene in single-gene expression plasmid or with the gene located at upper-IRES in double- or multi-gene expression plasmid. ELISA test showed that Gag induced higher antibody response, but the antibody titers stimulated by Gp160, Pol, or RTN were very low. Both Gag single-gene expression plasmid and Gag-RTN double-gene expression plasmid separately inoculating induced stronger antibody response against Gag than Gag-Gp160 double-gene expression plasmid and Gagpol-Gp160-RTN multi-gene expression plasmid or combined inoculation of Gag and Gp160 single-gene expression plasmids did. ELISPOT detection showed that all the seven DNA vaccines could stimulate cellular immune response against Gag, Pol, Gp160, Tat, and Nef, respectively. Gagpol or Gp160 single-gene expression plasmid separately inoculating stimulated the strongest cellular immune response. Tat and Nef expressed in all the plasmids induced similar immune response. These results indicated that HIV B'/C subtype genes gagpol, gp160 and rtn could be efficiently expressed in the replicating DNA vaccine vector, single-gene expression plasmid had the higher gene expression level and induced stronger immune response; combined immunization of Gagpol and Gp160 had dramatically lower immunity than Gagpol or Gp160 separated immunization did. Immunity of RTN had no difference between combined and separated immunizations. Therefore, in case of immunization with DNA vaccines containing different HIV genes, it is necessary to optimize the combined immunization procedure, especially for the combination of Gag and Gp160-containing vaccines.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Antigens, Viral ; immunology ; Cell Line ; DNA Replication ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Epitopes ; chemistry ; immunology ; Female ; Gene Expression ; Genes, Viral ; genetics ; Genetic Vectors ; genetics ; HIV ; classification ; genetics ; immunology ; physiology ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Vaccines, DNA ; genetics ; immunology ; Virus Replication

In order to control the H9N2 subtype low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI), an inactivated vaccine has been used in Korea since 2007. The Korean veterinary authority permitted the use of a single H9N2 LPAI vaccine strain to simplify the evolution of the circulating virus due to the immune pressure caused by the vaccine use. It is therefore important to determine the suitability of the vaccine strain in the final inactivated oil emulsion LPAI vaccine. In this study, we applied molecular rather than biological methods to verify the suitability of the vaccine strain used in commercial vaccines and successfully identified the strain by comparing the nucleotide sequences of the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase genes with that of the permitted Korean LPAI vaccine strain. It is thought that the method used in this study might be successfully applied to other viral genes of the LPAI vaccine strain and perhaps to other veterinary oil emulsion vaccines.
Animals ; Base Sequence ; Birds ; DNA, Viral/chemistry/genetics ; Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus/chemistry/genetics ; Influenza A Virus, H9N2 Subtype/genetics/*immunology ; Influenza Vaccines/genetics/*immunology ; Influenza in Birds/*immunology/prevention & control/virology ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Neuraminidase/chemistry/genetics ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/veterinary ; Republic of Korea ; Sequence Alignment ; Vaccines, Inactivated/genetics/immunology