Therapeutics and Prevention
Editor's Pick Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionMutations in TAC1B: a Novel Genetic Determinant of Clinical Fluconazole Resistance in Candida aurisCandida auris is an emerging multidrug-resistant pathogen of global concern, known to be responsible for outbreaks on six continents and to be commonly resistant to antifungals. While the vast majority of clinical C. auris isolates are highly resistant to fluconazole, an essential part of the...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionGlycerol Monolaurate, an Analogue to a Factor Secreted by Lactobacillus, Is Virucidal against Enveloped Viruses, Including HIV-1A total of 340 million sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are acquired each year. Antimicrobial agents that target multiple infectious pathogens are ideal candidates to reduce the number of newly acquired STIs. The antimicrobial and immunoregulatory properties of GML make it an excellent candidate to fit this critical need. Previous studies established the safety profile and antibacterial activity of GML against both Gram-positive...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionOptimization of an Experimental Vaccine To Prevent Escherichia coli Urinary Tract InfectionUrinary tract infections (UTI) are among the most common bacterial infection in humans, affecting half of all women at least once during their lifetimes. The rise in antibiotic resistance and health care costs emphasizes the need to develop a vaccine against the most common UTI pathogen, Escherichia coli. Vaccinating mice intranasally with a detoxified heat-labile...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionTargeting Hidden Pathogens: Cell-Penetrating Enzybiotics Eradicate Intracellular Drug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureusThe increasing prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is one of the most urgent problems of our time. Staphylococcus aureus is an important human pathogen that has acquired several mechanisms to evade antibiotic treatment. In addition, S. aureus is able to invade and persist within human cells...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionBurkholderia ubonensis Meropenem Resistance: Insights into Distinct Properties of Class A β-Lactamases in Burkholderia cepacia Complex and Burkholderia pseudomallei Complex BacteriaBurkholderia pseudomallei causes melioidosis, a tropical disease that is highly fatal if not properly treated. Our data show that, in contrast to B. pseudomallei, B. ubonensis β-lactam resistance is fundamentally different because...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionA Chimeric Japanese Encephalitis Vaccine Protects against Lethal Yellow Fever Virus Infection without Inducing Neutralizing AntibodiesEfficient and safe vaccines against yellow fever (e.g., YFV-17D) that provide long-lasting protection by rapidly inducing neutralizing antibody responses exist. However, the vaccine supply cannot cope with an increasing demand posed by urban outbreaks in recent years. Here we report that JE-CVax/Imojev, a YFV-17D-based chimeric Japanese encephalitis vaccine, also efficiently protects against YFV infection in mice. In case of shortage of...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionSingle-Dose, Intranasal Immunization with Recombinant Parainfluenza Virus 5 Expressing Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) Spike Protein Protects Mice from Fatal MERS-CoV InfectionMERS-CoV causes lethal infection in humans, and there is no vaccine. Our work demonstrates that PIV5 is a promising vector for developing a MERS vaccine. Furthermore, success of PIV5-based MERS vaccine can be employed to develop a vaccine for emerging CoVs such as SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19.
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionA Lassa Virus Live-Attenuated Vaccine Candidate Based on Rearrangement of the Intergenic RegionLassa virus (LASV), the causative agent of Lassa fever, infects several hundred thousand people in Western Africa, resulting in many lethal Lassa fever cases. No U.S. Food and Drug Administration-licensed countermeasures are available to prevent or treat LASV infection. We describe the generation of a novel LASV live-attenuated vaccine candidate rLASV(IGR/S-S), which is based on the replacement of the large genomic segment noncoding...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionNeutralizing Monoclonal Antibodies against the Gn and the Gc of the Andes Virus Glycoprotein Spike Complex Protect from Virus Challenge in a Preclinical Hamster ModelInfections with New World hantaviruses are associated with high case fatality rates, and no specific vaccine or treatment options exist. Furthermore, the biology of the hantaviral GnGc complex, its antigenicity, and its fusion machinery are poorly understood. Protective monoclonal antibodies against GnGc have the potential to be developed into therapeutics against hantaviral disease and are also great tools to elucidate the biology of...
Commentary | Therapeutics and PreventionHiding in Plain Sight: an Approach to Treating Patients with Severe COVID-19 InfectionPatients with COVID-19 infection are at risk of acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS) and death. The tissue receptor for COVID-19 is ACE2, and higher levels of ACE2 can protect against ARDS. Angiotensin receptor blockers and statins upregulate ACE2. Clinical trials are needed to determine whether this drug combination might be used to treat patients with severe COVID-19 infection.