Detection of Serum Antibodies to Ovine Progressive Pneumonia Virus in Sheep by Using a Caprine Arthritis-Encephalitis Virus Competitive-Inhibition Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay

A competitive-inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) for detection of antibodies to the surface envelope (SU) of caprine arthritis-encephalitis virus (CAEV) was recently reported (L. M. Herrmann, W. P. Cheevers, T. C. McGuire, D. Scott Adams, M. M. Hutton, W. G. Gavin, and D. P. Knowles, Clin. Diagn. Lab. Immunol. 10:267-271, 2003). The cELISA utilizes CAEV-63 SU captured on microtiter plates using the monoclonal antibody (MAb) F7-299 and measures competitive displacement of binding of the anti-CAEV MAb GPB 74A by goat serum. The present study evaluated the CAEV cELISA for detection of antibodies to ovine progressive pneumonia virus (OPPV) in sheep. Three hundred thirty-two sera were randomly selected from 21,373 sheep sera collected throughout the United States to determine the sensitivity and specificity of cELISA and agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) based on immunoprecipitation (IP) of [³⁵S]methionine-labeled OPPV antigens as a standard of comparison. A positive cELISA test was defined as >20.9 percent inhibition (% I) of MAb 74A binding based on two standard deviations above the mean % I of 191 IP-negative sheep sera. At this cutoff, there were 2 of 141 false-negative sera (98.6% sensitivity) and 6 of 191 false-positive sera (96.9% specificity). Sensitivity and specificity values for IP-monitored AGID were comparable to those for cELISA for 314 of 332 sera with unambiguous AGID results. Concordant results by cELISA and IP resolved 16 of the 18 sera that were indeterminate by AGID. Additional studies evaluated cELISA by using 539 sera from a single OPPV-positive flock. Based on IP of 36 of these sera, there was one false-negative by cELISA among 21 IP-positive sera (95.5% sensitivity) and 0 of 15 false-positives (100% specificity). We conclude that the CAEV cELISA can be applied to detection of OPPV antibodies in sheep with high sensitivity and specificity.     

Infection of Tick Cells and Bovine Erythrocytes with One Genotype of the Intracellular Ehrlichia Anaplasma marginale Excludes Infection with Other Genotypes

Anaplasma marginale, a tick-borne rickettsial pathogen of cattle, is endemic in several areas of the United States. Many geographic isolates of A. marginale that occur in the United States are characterized by the major surface protein 1a, which varies in sequence and molecular weight due to different numbers of tandem repeats of 28 or 29 amino acids. Recent studies (G. H. Palmer, F. R. Rurangirwa, and T. F. McElwain, J. Clin. Microbiol. 39:631-635, 2001) of an A. marginale-infected herd of cattle in an area of endemicity demonstrated that multiple msp1α genotypes were present but that only one genotype was found per individual bovine. These findings suggested that infection of cattle with other genotypes was excluded. The present study was undertaken to confirm the phenomenon of infection exclusion of A. marginale genotypes in infected bovine erythrocytes and cultured tick cells. Two tick-transmissible isolates of A. marginale, one from Virginia and one from Oklahoma, were used for these studies. In two separate trials, cattle inoculated with equal doses of the two isolates developed infection with only one genotype. Tick cell cultures inoculated with equal doses of the two isolates became infected with only the Virginia isolate of A. marginale. When cultures were inoculated with different ratios of the Oklahoma and Virginia isolates of A. marginale, the isolate inoculated in the higher ratio became established and excluded infection with the other. When cultures with established infections of one isolate were subsequently infected with the other, only the established isolate was detected. We documented infection exclusion during initial infection in cell culture by labeling each isolate with a different fluorescent dye. After 2 days in culture, only a single isolate was detected per cell by fluorescence microscopy. Finally, when Anaplasma ovis infections were established in cultures that were subsequently inoculated with the Virginia or Oklahoma isolate of A. marginale, A. marginale infection was excluded. These studies confirm that infection exclusion occurs with A. marginale in bovine erythrocytes and tick cells, resulting in the establishment of only one genotype, and appears to be the first report of infection exclusion for Anaplasma and Ehrlichia species.     

Active maintenance of sentence meaning in working memory: evidence from EEG coherences.

The active maintenance of sentence meaning in working memory was investigated using event-related electroencephalogram (EEG) coherences. Participants read a sentence, retained it for 2.5 s, and then verified a statement about its meaning. The sentences contained either three semantically related nouns or unrelated nouns and started either with a what phrase (WH sentences) or not (non-WH sentences), imposing either a high or low demand on verbal working memory. Comprehension accuracy showed an interaction of semantic relatedness and sentence type due to the presence of a relatedness effect (lower accuracy in the unrelated condition) in WH sentences but not in non-WH sentences. During the post-sentence retention interval, EEG coherences also displayed this interaction of relatedness and sentence type. A semantic relatedness effect was obtained in the WH sentences (high demand) but not in the non-WH sentences (low demand). In addition, compared to a pre-sentence baseline and sentence presentation, coherences increased in the 10-14 Hz band during retention and decreased in the 4-6 Hz band. These coherence changes spanned prefrontal and posterior brain regions, possibly reflecting increased synchronization in projection loops between attention control systems in prefrontal cortex and activated meaning representations in semantic memory in posterior cortex. These findings suggest that short-term retention of the meaning of a sentence involves active maintenance in a capacity-limited working memory, accompanied by a heightened inner direction of attention after sentence presentation.     

Effect of estradiol on mouse uterine epithelial cell transepithelial resistance (TER)

PROBLEM: The effects of estradiol on epithelial cell function in the uterus may either be direct or indirect through the paracrine effects of underlying stromal cells. The aim of this study was to test whether estradiol-17beta (E(2)) acts directly to regulate uterine epithelial cell monolayer integrity. METHODS OF STUDY: Mouse uterine epithelial cells were isolated and grown on cell culture inserts to form confluent, polarized monolayers, as indicated by the development of high transepithelial resistance (TER). RESULTS: When polarized epithelial cells were treated with E(2), TER was significantly decreased within 24 hr of exposure. Epithelial cells remained hormonally responsive in culture for at least 10 days. In contrast to estradiol, incubation with progesterone, cortisol, aldosterone, and DHT had no effect on uterine epithelial cell TER. The ability of E(2) to decrease TER was inhibited following co-incubation with ICI 182,780, a pure estrogen receptor antagonist. To further investigate the mechanism involved in estradiol-induced decreases in TER, we tested the effect of TAPI-0, an inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinases. Our findings indicate that TAPI-0 reversed the inhibitory effect of E(2) on TER. CONCLUSIONS: These studies demonstrate that epithelial monolayer integrity is directly influenced by E(2) and ER mediated. Further, it suggests that the mechanism through which estradiol decreases TER is mediated by matrix metalloproteinases.     

Ontogeny of the transition from killer to caregiver in dwarf hamsters (Phodopus campbelli) with biparental care

Biparental Phodopus campbelli and uniparental P. sungorus juvenile litters (2 males, 2 females) both consumed amniotic fluid and placenta during the birth of younger siblings. Three days later, P. campbelli juveniles were most responsive to a displaced younger sibling. Thus, P. campbelli are responsive to pups as juvenile alloparents and as new parents; however, at intervening ages, infanticidal attack (bite) was seen. At 5, 7, 9, 11, or 13 weeks of age, male and female P. campbelli were given a 5-min test with an unrelated, 3-day-old, anesthetized pup. Females attacked more often than males, yet pup-retrieval rates did not differ. Female aggression increased with age and was replaced by retrieval behavior 3 days after parturition. Male attack ceased after a birth, but parental behavior did not increase, remaining below the rate for new fathers tested with their own awake pup. Over repeated testing, behavior in one test did not predict behavior in another. Transitions from caregiving alloparent to infanticidal adult and back to parental care were clear in females, but less discrete with this stimulus paradigm in these highly paternal males.     

IgA hybridomas: A method for generation in high numbers

An immunization regimen has been developed which yields a high frequency of hybridomas producing IgA isotype, antigen-specific antibody when spleen cells from immunized mice are fused with non-immunoglobulin secreting murine myeloma cells. Germfree BALB/c mice were carrier-primed with sheep erythrocytes (SRBC) by gastric intubation (GI) for 2 consecutive days followed 1 week later by GI with trinitrophenyl (TNP)-haptenated SRBC. After 7 days, spleen cells were fused with non-immunoglobulin secreting myeloma cells (X63-Ag8.653), and 2–3 weeks later, culture wells were scored for hybrid clones. Of 240 culture wells plated, 157 wells (65.4%) exhibited clones producing anti-TNP antibodies as determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A total of 50 specific cell lines were established, of which 27 clones (54%) produced IgA isotype anti-TNP antibodies, while the anti-TNP antibodies produced by the remaining 23 clones were approximately equally distributed between the IgM and IgG isotypes. The IgA and IgM monoclonal antibodies were more effective in hemagglutinating TNP-SRBC than were IgG isotype antibodies. This study describes a method for production of a high number of antigen-specific IgA hybridomas which will allow production of IgA monoclonal antibodies to important antigens on mucosally-associated pathogens, and thus allow elucidation of functions of IgA antibody at mucosal surfaces.     

Do Treatment Plans Matter? Moving From Recommendations to Action

We investigated whether a service-planning document outlining recommendations for what providers should address in treatment (i.e., targets) and the associated clinical techniques they should employ (i.e., practices) influenced the targets and practices that providers reported actually implementing during the subsequent treatment episode. Participants included 94 youths ages 4 to 17 (M = 13.57, SD = 3.59) who received community-based mental health services from the Hawai'i Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division. Data on targets and practices were compared across initial Mental Health Treatment Plans and Monthly Treatment and Progress Summaries. Data were analyzed using two-level, generalized mixed effects models with two-way cross-classification or linear mixed effects models. Providers were more likely to report the use of targets and practices in treatment if they were included within the treatment plan. In addition, the more closely targets addressed during treatment followed the recommended targets from the treatment plan, the more closely implemented practices followed the recommended practices listed in the treatment plan. Furthermore, as providers shifted their focus to different targets, a shift in their use of practices was also evident over time. Last, practices for which there is demonstrated efficacy for particular targets were more likely to be used. Service planning documents appear to help organize care; however, results also suggest possible limitations to the current system. These findings highlight potential areas for improvement in planning and care delivery.     

Changes in the infectivity, pyruvate kinase activity, acid phosphatase activity and P-glycoprotein expression in glibenclamide-resistant Leishmania mexicana

We previously demonstrated susceptibility of Leishmania sp. to glibenclamide, a K⁺-ATP transport blocker which interacts with members of the superfamily of adenosine 5′ triphosphate-binding cassette transporters. In order to characterize the molecular differences between a sensitive Leishmania strain, NR(Gs), and an experimentally selected glibenclamide-resistant strain, NR(Gr), specific biochemical and functional parameters have been evaluated both in the wild type and in the resistant strain. Most noteworthy, NR(Gr) exhibit an increased expression of P-glycoprotein and a decreased activity of functional key enzymes such as acid phosphatase, a prominent virulent factor of the parasite, and pyruvate kinase, a key control enzyme for both carbohydrate and protein metabolism. The specific biochemical, metabolic and functional changes observed in the resistant strain correlated with a reduced infectivity of stationary phase NR(Gr) in J774 macrophages and suggested a mechanism to overcome the effect of glibenclamide. Received: 21 January 2000 / Accepted: 1 March 2000     

Advancing RAS/RASopathy therapies: An NCI‐sponsored intramural and extramural collaboration for the study of RASopathies

RASopathies caused by germline pathogenic variants in genes that encode RAS pathway proteins. These disorders include neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), Noonan syndrome (NS), cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome (CFC), and Costello syndrome (CS), and others. RASopathies are characterized by heterogenous manifestations, including congenital heart disease, failure to thrive, and increased risk of cancers. Previous work led by the NCI Pediatric Oncology Branch has altered the natural course of one of the key manifestations of the RASopathy NF1. Through the conduct of a longitudinal cohort study and early phase clinical trials, the MEK inhibitor selumetinib was identified as the first active therapy for the NF1‐related peripheral nerve sheath tumors called plexiform neurofibromas (PNs). As a result, selumetinib was granted breakthrough therapy designation by the FDA for the treatment of PN. Other RASopathy manifestations may also benefit from RAS targeted therapies. The overall goal of Advancing RAS/RASopathy Therapies (ART), a new NCI initiative, is to develop effective therapies and prevention strategies for the clinical manifestations of the non‐NF1 RASopathies and for tumors characterized by somatic RAS mutations. This report reflects discussions from a February 2019 initiation meeting for this project, which had broad international collaboration from basic and clinical researchers and patient advocates.     

Anxiety psychopathology predictive of outcome in patients with panic disorder and depression treated with imipramine, alprazolam and placebo

This study examines clinical predictors of outcome for patients with panic disorder and depression in a 16 week, placebo-controlled trial of alprazolam and imipramine (n = 126). Baseline global severity of illness and phobic avoidance were differentially predictive of acute response to treatment. Patients in the mild to moderate range of global distress experienced smaller degrees of improvement on alprazolam than on imipramine at week 4. At endpoint, the relative effectiveness of the active medication versus placebo was diminished in patients with higher levels of phobic avoidance. This relationship was not evident for completers, suggesting that the adverse effects of avoidance on outcome after sustained treatment was reduced.