Publications

emerging vector-borne zoonoses: eco-epidemiology and public health implications in india.	the diseases originating from animals or associated with man and animals are remerging and have resulted in considerable morbidity and mortality. the present review highlights the re-emergence of emerging mainly zoonotic diseases like chikungunya, scrub typhus, and extension of spatial distribution of cutaneous leishmaniasis from western rajasthan to himachal pradesh, kerala, and haryana states; west nile virus to assam, and non-endemic areas of japanese encephalitis (je) like maharashtra and je ...	2014	25325052
predicting the mosquito species and vertebrate species involved in the theoretical transmission of rift valley fever virus in the united states.	rift valley fever virus (rvfv) is a mosquito-borne virus in the family bunyaviridiae that has spread throughout continental africa to madagascar and the arabian peninsula. the establishment of rvfv in north america would have serious consequences for human and animal health in addition to a significant economic impact on the livestock industry. published and unpublished data on rvfv vector competence, vertebrate host competence, and mosquito feeding patterns from the united states were combined ...	2014	25211133
a model for a chikungunya outbreak in a rural cambodian setting: implications for disease control in uninfected areas.	following almost 30 years of relative silence, chikungunya fever reemerged in kenya in 2004. it subsequently spread to the islands of the indian ocean, reaching southeast asia in 2006. the virus was first detected in cambodia in 2011 and a large outbreak occurred in the village of trapeang roka kampong speu province in march 2012, in which 44% of the villagers had a recent infection biologically confirmed. the epidemic curve was constructed from the number of biologically-confirmed chikv cases p ...	2014	25210729
ovicidal and oviposition deterrent activities of medicinal plant extracts against aedes aegypti l. and culex quinquefasciatus say mosquitoes (diptera: culicidae).	to evaluate the ovicidal and oviposition deterrent activities of five medicinal plant extracts namely aegle marmelos (linn.), limonia acidissima (linn.), sphaeranthus indicus (linn.), sphaeranthus amaranthoides (burm.f), and chromolaena odorata (linn.) against culex quinquefasciatus and aedes aegypti mosquitoes. three solvents, namely hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol, were used for the preparation of extracts from each plant.	2014	25737834
dengue transmission model by means of viremic adult immuno-competent mouse.	dengue virus infection manifests in three distinct forms in humans: dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever, and dengue shock syndrome. infection with the virus is a fatal disease; no vaccine is available and prevention depends on interruption of the chain of transmission. the study of dengue viral transmission by mosquitoes is hindered due to the lack of an affordable animal model. in general, immuno-competent mice are used as a simple and inexpensive animal model, but mice are not susceptible t ...	2014	24685121
west nile virus-induced activation of mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 supports viral growth and viral protein expression.	since its introduction in new york city, ny, in 1999, west nile virus (wnv) has spread to all 48 contiguous states of the united states and is now the leading cause of epidemic encephalitis in north america. as a member of the family flaviviridae, wnv is part of a group of clinically important human pathogens, including dengue virus and japanese encephalitis virus. the members of this family of positive-sense, single-stranded rna viruses have limited coding capacity and are therefore obligated t ...	2014	24920798
expression of mosquito microrna aae-mir-2940-5p is downregulated in response to west nile virus infection to restrict viral replication.	west nile virus (wnv) is an enveloped virus with a single-stranded positive-sense rna genome from the flaviviridae family. wnv is spread by mosquitoes and able to infect humans, causing encephalitis and meningitis that can be fatal; it therefore presents a significant risk for human health. in insects, innate response to rna virus infection mostly relies on rna interference and jak/sat pathways; however, some evidence indicates that it can also involve micrornas (mirnas). mirnas are small noncod ...	2014	24829359
cloning and characterization of a mannose binding c-type lectin gene from salivary gland of aedes albopictus.	the studies on sialomes have shown that hematophagous mosquito saliva consists of a lot of pharmacologically active proteins, in which c-type lectins have been identified and regarded as an important component of saliva. the previous studies showed that c-type lectins play crucial roles not only in innate immunity but also in promoting disease transmission in mammals. however, the function and mechanism of c-type lectins from the mosquito sialome is still elusive.	2014	25051984
evidence of an 'invitation' effect in feeding sylvatic stegomyia albopicta from cambodia.	orientation of haematophagous insects towards a potential host is largely mediated by kairomones that, in some groups or species may include chemicals produced during feeding by the insects themselves, the so called 'invitation' effect.	2014	25015104
insect-specific viruses detected in laboratory mosquito colonies and their potential implications for experiments evaluating arbovirus vector competence.	recently, there has been a dramatic increase in the detection and characterization of insect-specific viruses in field-collected mosquitoes. evidence suggests that these viruses are ubiquitous in nature and that many are maintained by vertical transmission in mosquito populations. some studies suggest that the presence of insect-specific viruses may inhibit replication of a super-infecting arbovirus, thus altering vector competence of the mosquito host. accordingly, we screened our laboratory mo ...	2014	25510714
surveillance for dengue and dengue-associated neurologic syndromes in the united states.	autochthonous dengue virus transmission has occurred in the continental united states with increased frequency during the last decade; the principal vector, aedes aegypti, has expanded its geographic distribution in the southern united states. dengue, a potentially fatal arboviral disease, is underreported, and us clinicians encountering patients with acute febrile illness consistent with dengue are likely to not be fully familiar with dengue diagnosis and management. recently, investigators sug ...	2014	25371183
evaluation of halogenated coumarins for antimosquito properties.	mosquitoes are the major vectors of parasites and pathogens affecting humans and domestic animals. the widespread development of insecticide resistance and negative environmental effects of most synthetic compounds support an interest in finding and developing alternative products against mosquitoes. natural coumarins and synthetic coumarin analogues are known for their several pharmacological properties, including being insecticidal. in the present study halogenated coumarins (3-mono/dibromo ac ...	2014	25610898
field evaluation of picaridin repellents reveals differences in repellent sensitivity between southeast asian vectors of malaria and arboviruses.	scaling up of insecticide treated nets has contributed to a substantial malaria decline. however, some malaria vectors, and most arbovirus vectors, bite outdoors and in the early evening. therefore, topically applied insect repellents may provide crucial additional protection against mosquito-borne pathogens. among topical repellents, deet is the most commonly used, followed by others such as picaridin. the protective efficacy of two formulated picaridin repellents against mosquito bites, includ ...	2014	25522134
a database of circadian and diel rhythmic gene expression in the yellow fever mosquito aedes aegypti.	the mosquito species aedes aegypti is the primary vector of many arboviral diseases, including dengue and yellow fevers, that are responsible for a large worldwide health burden. the biological rhythms of mosquitoes regulate many of the physiological processes and behaviors that influence the transmission of these diseases. for insight into the molecular basis of biological rhythms, diel and circadian gene expression profiling has been carried out for many species. to bring these resources to ae ...	2014	25516260
seroprevalence screening for the west nile virus in malaysia's orang asli population.	west nile virus (wnv) infection is an emerging zoonotic disease caused by an rna virus of the genus flavivirus. wnv is preserved in the environment through cyclic transmission, with mosquitoes, particularly culex species, serving as a vector, birds as an amplifying host and humans and other mammals as dead-end hosts. to date, no studies have been carried out to determine the prevalence of the wnv antibody in malaysia. the aim of this study was to screen for the seroprevalence of the wnv in malay ...	2014	25515627
increased replicative fitness of a dengue virus 2 clade in native mosquitoes: potential contribution to a clade replacement event in nicaragua.	the four dengue virus (denv) serotypes (denv serotype 1 [denv-1] to denv-4) are transmitted by aedes aegypti and a. albopictus mosquitoes, causing up to 390 million denv infections worldwide each year. we previously reported a clade replacement of the denv-2 asian-american genotype ni-1 clade by the ni-2b clade in managua, nicaragua. here, we describe our studies of the replicative ability of ni-1 and ni-2b viruses in an a. aegypti cell line (aag2) and a. aegypti mosquitoes reared from eggs coll ...	2014	25187539
dengue virus infections among haitian and expatriate non-governmental organization workers--léogane and port-au-prince, haiti, 2012.	in october 2012, the haitian ministry of health and the us cdc were notified of 25 recent dengue cases, confirmed by rapid diagnostic tests (rdts), among non-governmental organization (ngo) workers. we conducted a serosurvey among ngo workers in léogane and port-au-prince to determine the extent of and risk factors for dengue virus infection. of the total 776 staff from targeted ngos in léogane and port-au-prince, 173 (22%; 52 expatriates and 121 haitians) participated. anti-dengue virus (denv) ...	2014	25356592
live virus vaccines based on a yellow fever vaccine backbone: standardized template with key considerations for a risk/benefit assessment.	the brighton collaboration viral vector vaccines safety working group (v3swg) was formed to evaluate the safety of live, recombinant viral vaccines incorporating genes from heterologous viruses inserted into the backbone of another virus (so-called "chimeric virus vaccines"). many viral vector vaccines are in advanced clinical trials. the first such vaccine to be approved for marketing (to date in australia, thailand, malaysia, and the philippines) is a vaccine against the flavivirus, japanese e ...	2014	25446819
zika virus emergence in mosquitoes in southeastern senegal, 2011.	zika virus (zikv; genus flavivirus, family flaviviridae) is maintained in a zoonotic cycle between arboreal aedes spp. mosquitoes and nonhuman primates in african and asian forests. spillover into humans has been documented in both regions and the virus is currently responsible for a large outbreak in french polynesia. zikv amplifications are frequent in southeastern senegal but little is known about their seasonal and spatial dynamics. the aim of this paper is to describe the spatio-temporal pa ...	2014	25310102
benefit of insecticide-treated nets, curtains and screening on vector borne diseases, excluding malaria: a systematic review and meta-analysis.	insecticide-treated nets (itns) are one of the main interventions used for malaria control. however, these nets may also be effective against other vector borne diseases (vbds). we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the efficacy of itns, insecticide-treated curtains (itcs) and insecticide-treated house screening (its) against chagas disease, cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis, dengue, human african trypanosomiasis, japanese encephalitis, lymphatic filariasis and onchoc ...	2014	25299481
flaviviruses, an expanding threat in public health: focus on dengue, west nile, and japanese encephalitis virus.	the flaviviruses dengue, west nile, and japanese encephalitis represent three major mosquito-borne viruses worldwide. these pathogens impact the lives of millions of individuals and potentially could affect non-endemic areas already colonized by mosquito vectors. unintentional transport of infected vectors (aedes and culex spp.), traveling within endemic areas, rapid adaptation of the insects into new geographic locations, climate change, and lack of medical surveillance have greatly contributed ...	2014	25287260
dengue fever: a wikipedia clinical review.	dengue fever, also known as breakbone fever, is a mosquito-borne infectious tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash that is similar to measles. in a small proportion of cases, the disease develops into life-threatening dengue hemorrhagic fever, which results in bleeding, thrombocytopenia, and leakage of blood plasma, or into dengue shock syndrome, in which dangerously low blood pressure occurs. treatmen ...	2014	25426178
molecular epidemiology of japanese encephalitis virus in mosquitoes in taiwan during 2005-2012.	japanese encephalitis (je) is a mosquito-borne zoonotic disease caused by the japanese encephalitis virus (jev). pigs and water birds are the main amplifying and maintenance hosts of the virus. in this study, we conducted a jev survey in mosquitoes captured in pig farms and water bird wetland habitats in taiwan during 2005 to 2012. a total of 102,633 mosquitoes were collected. culex tritaeniorhynchus was the most common mosquito species found in the pig farms and wetlands. among the 26 mosquito ...	2014	25275652
the contribution of non-human primate models to the development of human vaccines.	the non-human primates (nhps) model in biomedical research has contributed to the study of human infectious, autoimmune, oncogenic, and neurological diseases. this review focuses on the importance of nhp models in vaccine development for tuberculosis, pertussis, dengue, group a streptococcus (streptococcus pyogenes) infection, hiv infection, and certain diseases in the elderly (influenza, for example). from understanding disease pathogenesis and mechanisms of protection, to assessing vaccine saf ...	2014	25549702
identification and characterization of the insecticidal toxin "makes caterpillars floppy" in photorhabdus temperata m1021 using a cosmid library.	photorhabdus temperata is an entomopathogenic enterobacterium; it is a nematode symbiont that possesses pathogenicity islands involved in insect virulence. herein, we constructed a p. temperata m1021 cosmid library in escherichia coli xl1-blue mrf` and obtained 7.14 × 105 clones. however, only 1020 physiologically active clones were screened for insect virulence factors by injection of each e. coli cosmid clone into galleria mellonella and tenebrio molitor larvae. a single cosmid clone, ptc1015, ...	2014	25014195
chikungunya fever: atypical and lethal cases in the western hemisphere: a venezuelan experience.	a large epidemic of chikungunya fever currently affects the caribbean, central and south america. despite a high number of reported cases, little is known on the occurrence of severe clinical complications. we describe four venezuelan patients with a severe and/or lethal course who exhibit unusual manifestations of the disease. case 1 describes a 75 year-old man with rapid onset of septic shock and multi-organ failure. cases 2 and 3 describe two patients with rapid aggressive clinical course who ...	2014	26793440
population based cohort study for pediatric infectious diseases research in vietnam.	a population-based cohort study on pediatric infectious diseases was established at khanh hoa province, central vietnam in 2006, to determine the etiology and risk factors for severe pediatric infectious diseases (spid) such as acute respiratory infection (ari), diarrhea and dengue which are the major causes of under 5 mortality. a population census survey was conducted in nha-trang and ninh-hoa to collect demographic, social-behavioral data and disease burden on spid. the study site covered a p ...	2014	25425951
wolbachia transcription elongation factor "wol grea" interacts with α2ββ'σ subunits of rna polymerase through its dimeric c-terminal domain.	wolbachia, an endosymbiont of filarial nematode, is considered a promising target for therapy against lymphatic filariasis. transcription elongation factor grea is an essential factor that mediates transcriptional transition from abortive initiation to productive elongation by stimulating the escape of rna polymerase (rnap) from native prokaryotic promoters. upon screening of 6257 essential bacterial genes, 57 were suggested as potential future drug targets, and grea is among these. the current ...	2014	24945631
presence of extensive wolbachia symbiont insertions discovered in the genome of its host glossina morsitans morsitans.	tsetse flies (glossina spp.) are the cyclical vectors of trypanosoma spp., which are unicellular parasites responsible for multiple diseases, including nagana in livestock and sleeping sickness in humans in africa. glossina species, including glossina morsitans morsitans (gmm), for which the whole genome sequence (wgs) is now available, have established symbiotic associations with three endosymbionts: wigglesworthia glossinidia, sodalis glossinidius and wolbachia pipientis (wolbachia). the prese ...	2014	24763283
combined proteomic and transcriptomic interrogation of the venom gland of conus geographus uncovers novel components and functional compartmentalization.	cone snails are highly successful marine predators that use complex venoms to capture prey. at any given time, hundreds of toxins (conotoxins) are synthesized in the secretory epithelial cells of the venom gland, a long and convoluted organ that can measure 4 times the length of the snail's body. in recent years a number of studies have begun to unveil the transcriptomic, proteomic and peptidomic complexity of the venom and venom glands of a number of cone snail species. by using a combination o ...	2014	24478445
antimicrobial peptides: a new class of antimalarial drugs?	a range of antimicrobial peptides (amp) exhibit activity on malaria parasites, plasmodium spp., in their blood or mosquito stages, or both. these peptides include a diverse array of both natural and synthetic molecules varying greatly in size, charge, hydrophobicity, and secondary structure features. along with an overview of relevant literature reports regarding amp that display antiplasmodial activity, this review makes a few considerations about those molecules as a potential new class of ant ...	2014	25566072
metagenomics, paratransgenesis and the anopheles microbiome: a portrait of the geographical distribution of the anopheline microbiota based on a meta-analysis of reported taxa.	anophelines harbour a diverse microbial consortium that may represent an extended gene pool for the host. the proposed effects of the insect microbiota span physiological, metabolic and immune processes. here we synthesise how current metagenomic tools combined with classical culture-dependent techniques provide new insights in the elucidation of the role of the anopheles-associated microbiota. many proposed malaria control strategies have been based upon the immunomodulating effects that the ba ...	2014	25185007
multiple pathways for plasmodium ookinete invasion of the mosquito midgut.	plasmodium ookinete invasion of the mosquito midgut is a crucial step of the parasite life cycle but little is known about the molecular mechanisms involved. previously, a phage display peptide library screen identified sm1, a peptide that binds to the mosquito midgut epithelium and inhibits ookinete invasion. sm1 was characterized as a mimotope of an ookinete surface enolase and sm1 presumably competes with enolase, the presumed ligand, for binding to a putative midgut receptor. here we identif ...	2014	24474798
habitat discrimination by gravid anopheles gambiae sensu lato--a push-pull system.	the non-random distribution of anopheline larvae in natural habitats suggests that gravid females discriminate between habitats of different quality. whilst physical and chemical cues used by culex and aedes vector mosquitoes for selecting an oviposition site have been extensively studied, those for anopheles remain poorly explored. here the habitat selection by anopheles gambiae sensu lato (s.l.), the principal african malaria vector, was investigated when presented with a choice of two infusio ...	2014	24693951
the insect microbiome modulates vector competence for arboviruses.	diseases caused by arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), such as dengue, west nile, and chikungunya, constitute a major global health burden and are increasing in incidence and geographic range. the natural microbiota of insect vectors influences various aspects of host biology, such as nutrition, reproduction, metabolism, and immunity, and recent studies have highlighted the ability of insect-associated bacteria to reduce vector competence for arboviruses and other pathogens. this reduction ca ...	2014	25393895
ethnopharmacological significance of eclipta alba (l.) hassk. (asteraceae).	eclipta alba can be found growing wild in fallow lands of bangladesh where it is considered as a weed by farmers. traditional medicinal systems of the indian subcontinent countries as well as tribal practitioners consider the plant to have diverse medicinal values and use it commonly for treatment of gastrointestinal disorders, respiratory tract disorders (including asthma), fever, hair loss and graying of hair, liver disorders (including jaundice), skin disorders, spleen enlargement, and cuts a ...	2014	27355071
prophenoloxidase activation is required for survival to microbial infections in drosophila.	the melanization reaction is a major immune response in arthropods and involves the rapid synthesis of melanin at the site of infection and injury. a key enzyme in the melanization process is phenoloxidase (po), which catalyzes the oxidation of phenols to quinones, which subsequently polymerize into melanin. the drosophila genome encodes three pos, which are primarily produced as zymogens or prophenoloxidases (ppo). two of them, ppo1 and ppo2, are produced by crystal cells. here we have generate ...	2014	24788090
mosquito cell lines: history, isolation, availability and application to assess the threat of arboviral transmission in the united kingdom.	mosquitoes are highly effective vectors for transmission of human and animal pathogens. understanding the relationship between pathogen and vector is vital in developing strategies to predict and prevent transmission. cell lines derived from appropriate mosquito hosts provide a relatively simple tool for investigating the interaction between the host and viruses transmitted by mosquitoes. this review provides a brief overview of the development of mosquito cell lines, methods of isolation, their ...	2014	25141888
out of the bush: the asian bush mosquito aedes japonicus japonicus (theobald, 1901) (diptera, culicidae) becomes invasive.	the asian bush or rock pool mosquito aedes japonicus japonicus is one of the most expansive culicid species of the world. being native to east asia, this species was detected out of its original distribution range for the first time in the early 1990s in new zealand where it could not establish, though. in 1998, established populations were reported from the eastern us, most likely as a result of introductions several years earlier. after a massive spread the mosquito is now widely distributed i ...	2014	24495418
chikungunya fever in canada: fever and polyarthritis in a returned traveller.		2014	24566646
spatial and temporal patterns of locally-acquired dengue transmission in northern queensland, australia, 1993-2012.	dengue has been a major public health concern in australia since it re-emerged in queensland in 1992-1993. we explored spatio-temporal characteristics of locally-acquired dengue cases in northern tropical queensland, australia during the period 1993-2012.	2014	24691549
exposure of epitope residues on the outer face of the chikungunya virus envelope trimer determines antibody neutralizing efficacy.	chikungunya virus (chikv) is a reemerging alphavirus that causes a debilitating arthritic disease and infects millions of people and for which no specific treatment is available. like many alphaviruses, the structural targets on chikv that elicit a protective humoral immune response in humans are poorly defined. here we used phage display against virus-like particles (vlps) to isolate seven human monoclonal antibodies (mabs) against the chikv envelope glycoproteins e2 and e1. one mab, im-ckv063, ...	2014	25275138
chikungunya virus-vector interactions.	chikungunya virus (chikv) is a mosquito-borne alphavirus that causes chikungunya fever, a severe, debilitating disease that often produces chronic arthralgia. since 2004, chikv has emerged in africa, indian ocean islands, asia, europe, and the americas, causing millions of human infections. central to understanding chikv emergence is knowledge of the natural ecology of transmission and vector infection dynamics. this review presents current understanding of chikv infection dynamics in mosquito v ...	2014	25421891
reemergence of chikungunya virus.	chikungunya virus (chikv) is a mosquito-transmitted alphavirus that causes acute fever and acute and chronic musculoskeletal pain in humans. since 2004, chikv has caused millions of cases of disease in the indian ocean region and has emerged in new areas, including europe, the middle east, and the pacific region. the mosquito vectors for this virus are globally distributed in tropical and temperate zones, providing the opportunity for chikv to continue to expand into new geographic regions. in o ...	2014	25078691
biological differences between brackish and fresh water-derived aedes aegypti from two locations in the jaffna peninsula of sri lanka and the implications for arboviral disease transmission.	the mainly fresh water arboviral vector aedes aegypti l. (diptera: culicidae) can also undergo pre-imaginal development in brackish water of up to 15 ppt (parts per thousand) salt in coastal areas. we investigated differences in salinity tolerance, egg laying preference, egg hatching and larval development times and resistance to common insecticides in ae. aegypti collected from brackish and fresh water habitats in jaffna, sri lanka. brackish water-derived ae. aegypti were more tolerant of salin ...	2014	25170879
evidence of experimental vertical transmission of emerging novel ecsa genotype of chikungunya virus in aedes aegypti.	chikungunya virus (chikv) has emerged as one of the most important arboviruses of public health significance in the past decade. the virus is mainly maintained through human-mosquito-human cycle. other routes of transmission and the mechanism of maintenance of the virus in nature are not clearly known. vertical transmission may be a mechanism of sustaining the virus during inter-epidemic periods. laboratory experiments were conducted to determine whether aedes aegypti, a principal vector, is cap ...	2014	25080107
antiviral perspectives for chikungunya virus.	chikungunya virus (chikv) is a mosquito-borne pathogen that has a major health impact in humans and causes acute febrile illness in humans accompanied by joint pains and, in many cases, persistent arthralgia lasting for weeks to years. chikv reemerged in 2005-2006 in several parts of the indian ocean islands and india after a gap of 32 years, causing millions of cases. the re-emergence of chikv has also resulted in numerous outbreaks in several countries in the eastern hemisphere, with a threat ...	2014	24955364
heparan sulfate proteoglycan: an arbovirus attachment factor integral to mosquito salivary gland ducts.	variants of the prototype alphavirus, sindbis (sinv), were used in per os infections of adult female mosquitoes to investigate arbovirus interaction with the salivary gland (sg). infection of aedine mosquitoes with ar339, a heparan sulfate proteoglycan (hspg)-dependent variant, resulted in gross pathology in the sg lateral lobes while infection with tr339, a hspg-independent variant, resulted in minimal sg pathology. hspg was detected in the internal ducts of the sg lateral lobes by immunolabeli ...	2014	25533661
ph-dependent entry of chikungunya virus fusion into mosquito cells.	millions of human infections caused by arthropod-borne pathogens are initiated by the feeding of an infected mosquito on a vertebrate. however, interactions between the viruses and the mosquito vector, which facilitates successful infection and transmission of virus to a subsequent vertebrate host, are still not fully understood.	2014	25476236
host control of insect endogenous retroviruses: small rna silencing and immune response.	endogenous retroviruses are relics of ancient infections from retroviruses that managed to integrate into the genome of germline cells and remained vertically transmitted from parent to progeny. subsequent to the endogenization process, these sequences can move and multiply in the host genome, which can have deleterious consequences and disturb genomic stability. natural selection favored the establishment of silencing pathways that protect host genomes from the activity of endogenous retrovirus ...	2014	25412365
role of micrornas in arbovirus/vector interactions.	the role of micrornas (mirnas) as small non-coding rnas in regulation of gene expression has been recognized. they appear to be involved in regulation of a wide range of cellular pathways that affect several biological processes such as development, the immune system, survival, metabolism and host-pathogen interactions. arthropod-borne viruses impose great economic and health risks around the world. recent advances in mirna biology have shed some light on the role of these small rnas in vector-v ...	2014	25251636
functions of armigeres subalbatus c-type lectins in innate immunity.	c-type lectins (ctls) are a superfamily of calcium-dependent carbohydrate binding proteins containing at least one carbohydrate-recognition domain (crd) and they are present in almost all metazoans. insect ctls may function as pattern-recognition receptors and play important roles in innate immunity. in this study, we selected five asctls from the mosquito armigeres subalbatus, a natural vector of filarial nematodes, and performed both in vitro and in vivo studies to elucidate their functions in ...	2014	25014898
wolbachia infection modifies the profile, shuttling and structure of micrornas in a mosquito cell line.	micrornas (mirnas) are small non-coding rnas that play important roles in many biological processes such as development, cell signaling and immune response. small rna deep sequencing technology provided an opportunity for a thorough survey of the mirna profile of a mosquito cell line from aedes aegypti. we characterized the mirna composition of the nucleus and the cytoplasm of uninfected cells and compared it with the one of cells infected with the endosymbiotic bacterium wolbachia strain wmelpo ...	2014	24759922
enhanced production of chikungunya virus-like particles using a high-ph adapted spodoptera frugiperda insect cell line.	chikungunya virus-like particles (vlps) have potential to be used as a prophylactic vaccine based on testing in multiple animal models and are currently being evaluated for human use in a phase i clinical trial. the current method for producing these enveloped alphavirus vlps by transient gene expression in mammalian cells presents challenges for scalable and robust industrial manufacturing, so the insect cell baculovirus expression vector system was evaluated as an alternative expression techno ...	2014	24713807
antiviral responses of arthropod vectors: an update on recent advances.	arthropod vectors, such as mosquitoes, ticks, biting midges and sand flies, transmit many viruses that can cause outbreaks of disease in humans and animals around the world. arthropod vector species are invading new areas due to globalisation and environmental changes, and contact between exotic animal species, humans and arthropod vectors is increasing, bringing with it the regular emergence of new arboviruses. for future strategies to control arbovirus transmission, it is important to improve ...	2014	25674592
a novel mva vectored chikungunya virus vaccine elicits protective immunity in mice.	chikungunya virus (chikv) is a re-emerging arbovirus associated with febrile illness often accompanied by rash and arthralgia that may persist for several years. outbreaks are associated with high morbidity and create a public health challenge for countries affected. recent outbreaks have occurred in both europe and the americas, suggesting chikv may continue to spread. despite the sustained threat of the virus, there is no approved vaccine or antiviral therapy against chikv. therefore, it is cr ...	2014	25058320
characterization of aedes aegypti innate-immune pathways that limit chikungunya virus replication.	replication of arboviruses in their arthropod vectors is controlled by innate immune responses. the rna sequence-specific break down mechanism, rna interference (rnai), has been shown to be an important innate antiviral response in mosquitoes. in addition, immune signaling pathways have been reported to mediate arbovirus infections in mosquitoes; namely the jak/stat, immune deficiency (imd) and toll pathways. very little is known about these pathways in response to chikungunya virus (chikv) infe ...	2014	25058001
induction and suppression of tick cell antiviral rnai responses by tick-borne flaviviruses.	arboviruses are transmitted by distantly related arthropod vectors such as mosquitoes (class insecta) and ticks (class arachnida). rna interference (rnai) is the major antiviral mechanism in arthropods against arboviruses. unlike in mosquitoes, tick antiviral rnai is not understood, although this information is important to compare arbovirus/host interactions in different classes of arbovirus vectos. using an ixodes scapularis-derived cell line, key argonaute proteins involved in rnai and the re ...	2014	25053841
antiviral immunity of anopheles gambiae is highly compartmentalized, with distinct roles for rna interference and gut microbiota.	arboviruses are transmitted by mosquitoes and other arthropods to humans and animals. the risk associated with these viruses is increasing worldwide, including new emergence in europe and the americas. anopheline mosquitoes are vectors of human malaria but are believed to transmit one known arbovirus, o'nyong-nyong virus, whereas aedes mosquitoes transmit many. anopheles interactions with viruses have been little studied, and the initial antiviral response in the midgut has not been examined. he ...	2014	25548172
capacity of mosquitoes to transmit malaria depends on larval environment.	adult traits of holometabolous insects such as reproduction and survival can be shaped by conditions experienced during larval development. these "carry-over" effects influence not only individual life history and fitness, but can also impact interactions between insect hosts and parasites. despite this, the implications of larval conditions for the transmission of human, wildlife and plant diseases that are vectored by insects remain poorly understood.	2014	25496502
the toll-dorsal pathway is required for resistance to viral oral infection in drosophila.	pathogen entry route can have a strong impact on the result of microbial infections in different hosts, including insects. drosophila melanogaster has been a successful model system to study the immune response to systemic viral infection. here we investigate the role of the toll pathway in resistance to oral viral infection in d. melanogaster. we show that several toll pathway components, including spätzle, toll, pelle and the nf-kb-like transcription factor dorsal, are required to resist oral ...	2014	25473839
mosquito immunity against arboviruses.	arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) pose a significant threat to global health, causing human disease with increasing geographic range and severity. the recent availability of the genome sequences of medically important mosquito species has kick-started investigations into the molecular basis of how mosquito vectors control arbovirus infection. here, we discuss recent findings concerning the role of the mosquito immune system in antiviral defense, interactions between arboviruses and fundament ...	2014	25415198
arboviral bottlenecks and challenges to maintaining diversity and fitness during mosquito transmission.	the term arbovirus denotes viruses that are transmitted by arthropods, such as ticks, mosquitoes, and other biting arthropods. the infection of these vectors produces a certain set of evolutionary pressures on the virus; involving migration from the midgut, where the blood meal containing the virus is processed, to the salivary glands, in order to transmit the virus to the next host. during this process the virus is subject to numerous bottlenecks, stochastic events that significantly reduce the ...	2014	25341663
nup98 promotes antiviral gene expression to restrict rna viral infection in drosophila.	in response to infection, the innate immune system rapidly activates an elaborate and tightly orchestrated gene expression program to induce critical antimicrobial genes. while many key players in this program have been identified in disparate biological systems, it is clear that there are additional uncharacterized mechanisms at play. our previous studies revealed that a rapidly-induced antiviral gene expression program is active against disparate human arthropod-borne viruses in drosophila. mo ...	2014	25197089
suppressing dengue-2 infection by chemical inhibition of aedes aegypti host factors.	dengue virus host factors (denv hfs) that are essential for the completion of the infection cycle in the mosquito vector and vertebrate host represent potent targets for transmission blocking. here we investigated whether known mammalian denv hf inhibitors could influence virus infection in the arthropod vector a. aegypti. we evaluated the potency of bafilomycin (baf; inhibitor of vacuolar h+-atpase (vatpase)), mycophenolic acid (mpa; inhibitor of inosine-5'-monophosphate dehydrogenase (impdh)), ...	2014	25101828
population structure and distribution patterns of the sibling mosquito species culex pipiens and culex torrentium (diptera: culicidae) reveal different evolutionary paths.	nowadays a number of endemic mosquito species are known to possess vector abilities for various diseases, as e.g. the sibling species culex pipiens and culex torrentium. due to their morphological similarity, ecology, distribution and vector abilities, knowledge about these species' population structure is essential. culicidae from 25 different sampling sites were collected from march till october 2012. all analyses were performed with aligned cox1 sequences with a total length of 658 bp. popula ...	2014	25048456
the salivary secretome of the biting midge, culicoides sonorensis.	culicoides biting midges (diptera: ceratopogonidae) are hematophagous insects with over 1400 species distributed throughout the world. many of these species are of particular agricultural importance as primary vectors of bluetongue and schmallenberg viruses, yet little is known about culicoides genomics and proteomics. detailed studies of members from other blood-feeding dipteran families, including those of mosquito (culicidae) and black fly (simuliidae), have shown that protein components with ...	2014	24949243
live attenuated tetravalent dengue virus host range vaccine is immunogenic in african green monkeys following a single vaccination.	the causative agent of dengue fever, dengue virus (denv), is transmitted by mosquitoes, and as distribution of these insects has expanded, so has dengue-related disease. denv is a member of the flaviviridae family and has 4 distinct serotypes (denv-1, -2, -3, and -4). no lasting cross protection is afforded to heterologous serotypes following infection by any one of the individual serotypes. the presence of nonneutralizing antibodies to one serotype can facilitate the occurrence of more-severe d ...	2014	24696467
inhibition of dengue virus replication by a class of small-molecule compounds that antagonize dopamine receptor d4 and downstream mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling.	dengue viruses (denv) are endemic pathogens of tropical and subtropical regions that cause significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. to date, no vaccines or antiviral therapeutics have been approved for combating denv-associated disease. in this paper, we describe a class of tricyclic small-molecule compounds-dihydrodibenzothiepines (dhbts), identified through high-throughput screening-with potent inhibitory activity against denv serotype 2. ski-417616, a highly active representative of thi ...	2014	24599995
dicer-2-dependent activation of culex vago occurs via the traf-rel2 signaling pathway.	despite their importance as vectors of human and livestock diseases, relatively little is known about innate antiviral immune pathways in mosquitoes and other insects. previous work has shown that culex vago (cxvago), which is induced and secreted from west nile virus (wnv)-infected mosquito cells, acts as a functional homolog of interferon, by activating jak-stat pathway and limiting virus replication in neighbouring cells. here we describe the dicer-2-dependent pathway leading to wnv-induced c ...	2014	24762775
complement-related proteins control the flavivirus infection of aedes aegypti by inducing antimicrobial peptides.	the complement system functions during the early phase of infection and directly mediates pathogen elimination. the recent identification of complement-like factors in arthropods indicates that this system shares common ancestry in vertebrates and invertebrates as an immune defense mechanism. thioester (te)-containing proteins (teps), which show high similarity to mammalian complement c3, are thought to play a key role in innate immunity in arthropods. herein, we report that a viral recognition ...	2014	24722701
dynamics of the emergence and establishment of a newly dominant genotype of japanese encephalitis virus throughout asia.	in recent years, genotype i (gi) of japanese encephalitis virus (jev) has displaced genotype iii (giii) as the dominant virus genotype throughout asia. in this study, the largest collection of giii and gi envelope gene-derived viral sequences assembled to date was used to reconstruct the spatiotemporal chronology of genotype displacement throughout asia and to determine the evolutionary and epidemiological dynamics underlying this significant event. gi consists of two clades, gi-a and gi-b, with ...	2014	24501419
genome-wide rnai screen identifies broadly-acting host factors that inhibit arbovirus infection.	vector-borne viruses are an important class of emerging and re-emerging pathogens; thus, an improved understanding of the cellular factors that modulate infection in their respective vertebrate and insect hosts may aid control efforts. in particular, cell-intrinsic antiviral pathways restrict vector-borne viruses including the type i interferon response in vertebrates and the rna interference (rnai) pathway in insects. however, it is likely that additional cell-intrinsic mechanisms exist to limi ...	2014	24550726
microrna-like viral small rna from dengue virus 2 autoregulates its replication in mosquito cells.	micrornas (mirnas) are small regulatory rnas that play significant roles in most cellular processes. in the seemingly endless arms race between hosts and pathogens, viruses also encode mirnas that facilitate successful infection. in search of functional mirnas or viral small rnas (vsrnas) encoded by dengue virus (denv), deep sequencing data of virus-infected aedes aegypti mosquitoes were used. from six vsrnas, with candidate stem-loop structures in the 5' and 3' untranslated regions of the viral ...	2014	24550303
alphavirus mutator variants present host-specific defects and attenuation in mammalian and insect models.	arboviruses cycle through both vertebrates and invertebrates, which requires them to adapt to disparate hosts while maintaining genetic integrity during genome replication. to study the genetic mechanisms and determinants of these processes, we use chikungunya virus (chikv), a re-emerging human pathogen transmitted by the aedes mosquito. we previously isolated a high fidelity (or antimutator) polymerase variant, c483y, which had decreased fitness in both mammalian and mosquito hosts, suggesting ...	2014	24453971
phosphoglucomutase gene in aedes aegypti: a fourth allele and preliminary linkage data.		2014	4557515
the plasmodium bottleneck: malaria parasite losses in the mosquito vector.	nearly one million people are killed every year by the malaria parasite plasmodium. although the disease-causing forms of the parasite exist only in the human blood, mosquitoes of the genus anopheles are the obligate vector for transmission. here, we review the parasite life cycle in the vector and highlight the human and mosquito contributions that limit malaria parasite development in the mosquito host. we address parasite killing in its mosquito host and bottlenecks in parasite numbers that m ...	2014	25185005
pathogen inactivation technologies for cellular blood components: an update.	nowadays patients receiving blood components are exposed to much less transfusion-transmitted infectious diseases than three decades before when among others hiv was identified as causative agent for the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and the transmission by blood or coagulation factors became evident. since that time the implementation of measures for risk prevention and safety precaution was socially and politically accepted. currently emerging pathogens like arboviruses and the well-known ...	2014	25254027
cloning, expression and characterization of udp-n-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (mura) from wolbachia endosymbiont of human lymphatic filarial parasite brugia malayi.	wolbachia, an endosymbiont of filarial nematode, is considered a promising target for treatment of lymphatic filariasis. although functional characterization of the wolbachia peptidoglycan assembly has not been fully explored, the wolbachia genome provides evidence for coding all of the genes involved in lipid ii biosynthesis, a part of peptidoglycan biosynthesis pathway. udp-n-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (mura) is one of the lipid ii biosynthesis pathway enzymes and it has inevita ...	2014	24941309
recent advances in developing insect natural products as potential modern day medicines.	except for honey as food, and silk for clothing and pollination of plants, people give little thought to the benefits of insects in their lives. this overview briefly describes significant recent advances in developing insect natural products as potential new medicinal drugs. this is an exciting and rapidly expanding new field since insects are hugely variable and have utilised an enormous range of natural products to survive environmental perturbations for 100s of millions of years. there is th ...	2014	24883072
comparative bioinformatics, temporal and spatial expression analyses of ixodes scapularis organic anion transporting polypeptides.	organic anion-transporting polypeptides (oatps) are an integral part of the detoxification mechanism in vertebrates and invertebrates. these cell surface proteins are involved in mediating the sodium-independent uptake and/or distribution of a broad array of organic amphipathic compounds and xenobiotic drugs. this study describes bioinformatics and biological characterization of 9 oatp sequences in the ixodes scapularis genome. these sequences have been annotated on the basis of 12 transmembrane ...	2014	24582512
transmission-blocking antibodies against mosquito c-type lectins for dengue prevention.	c-type lectins are a family of proteins with carbohydrate-binding activity. several c-type lectins in mammals or arthropods are employed as receptors or attachment factors to facilitate flavivirus invasion. we previously identified a c-type lectin in aedes aegypti, designated as mosquito galactose specific c-type lectin-1 (mosgctl-1), facilitating the attachment of west nile virus (wnv) on the cell membrane. here, we first identified that 9 a. aegypti mosgctl genes were key susceptibility factor ...	2014	24550728
utility of humanized blt mice for analysis of dengue virus infection and antiviral drug testing.	dengue virus (denv) is the cause of a potentially life-threatening disease that affects millions of people worldwide. the lack of a small animal model that mimics the symptoms of denv infection in humans has slowed the understanding of viral pathogenesis and the development of therapies and vaccines. here, we investigated the use of humanized "bone marrow liver thymus" (blt) mice as a model for immunological studies and assayed their applicability for preclinical testing of antiviral compounds. ...	2014	24335303
emerging and reemerging neglected tropical diseases: a review of key characteristics, risk factors, and the policy and innovation environment.	in global health, critical challenges have arisen from infectious diseases, including the emergence and reemergence of old and new infectious diseases. emergence and reemergence are accelerated by rapid human development, including numerous changes in demographics, populations, and the environment. this has also led to zoonoses in the changing human-animal ecosystem, which are impacted by a growing globalized society where pathogens do not recognize geopolitical borders. within this context, neg ...	2014	25278579
abstracts of the hiv drug therapy in the americas 8-10 may 2014, rio de janeiro, brazil.		2014	24815847
cloning, expression, sequence analysis and homology modeling of the prolyl endoprotease from eurygaster integriceps puton.	eurygaster integriceps puton, commonly known as sunn pest, is a major pest of wheat in northern africa, the middle east and eastern europe. this insect injects a prolyl endoprotease into the wheat, destroying the gluten. the purpose of this study was to clone the full length cdna of the sunn pest prolyl endoprotease (sppep) for expression in e. coli and to compare the amino acid sequence of the enzyme to other known peps in both phylogeny and potential tertiary structure. sequence analysis shows ...	2014	26462938
identification of the main venom protein components of aphidius ervi, a parasitoid wasp of the aphid model acyrthosiphon pisum.	endoparasitoid wasps are important natural enemies of the widely distributed aphid pests and are mainly used as biological control agents. however, despite the increased interest on aphid interaction networks, only sparse information is available on the factors used by parasitoids to modulate the aphid physiology. our aim was here to identify the major protein components of the venom injected at oviposition by aphidius ervi to ensure successful development in its aphid host, acyrthosiphon pisum.	2014	24884493
multiorganismal insects: diversity and function of resident microorganisms.	all insects are colonized by microorganisms on the insect exoskeleton, in the gut and hemocoel, and within insect cells. the insect microbiota is generally different from microorganisms in the external environment, including ingested food. specifically, certain microbial taxa are favored by the conditions and resources in the insect habitat, by their tolerance of insect immunity, and by specific mechanisms for their transmission. the resident microorganisms can promote insect fitness by contribu ...	2014	25341109
diversification of mif immune regulators in aphids: link with agonistic and antagonistic interactions.	the widespread use of genome sequencing provided evidences for the high degree of conservation in innate immunity signalling pathways across animal phyla. however, the functioning and evolutionary history of immune-related genes remains unknown for most invertebrate species. a striking observation coming from the analysis of the pea aphid acyrthosiphon pisum genome is the absence of important conserved genes known to be involved in the antimicrobial responses of other insects. this reduction in ...	2014	25193628
depletion of host cell riboflavin reduces wolbachia levels in cultured mosquito cells.	wolbachia is an obligate intracellular alphaproteobacterium that occurs in arthropod and nematode hosts. wolbachia presumably provides a fitness benefit to its hosts, but the basis for its retention and spread in host populations remains unclear. wolbachia genomes retain biosynthetic pathways for some vitamins, and the possibility that these vitamins benefit host cells provides a potential means of selecting for wolbachia-infected cell lines. to explore whether riboflavin produced by wolbachia i ...	2014	24789726
the molecular basis of bacterial-insect symbiosis.	insects provide experimentally tractable and cost-effective model systems to investigate the molecular basis of animal-bacterial interactions. recent research is revealing the central role of the insect innate immune system, especially anti-microbial peptides and reactive oxygen species, in regulating the abundance and composition of the microbiota in various insects, including drosophila and the mosquitoes aedes and anopheles. interactions between the immune system and microbiota are, however, ...	2014	24735869
location of symbionts in the whitefly bemisia tabaci affects their densities during host development and environmental stress.	bacterial symbionts often enhance the physiological capabilities of their arthropod hosts and enable their hosts to expand into formerly unavailable niches, thus leading to biological diversification. many arthropods, including the worldwide invasive whitefly bemisia tabaci, have individuals simultaneously infected with symbionts of multiple genera that occur in different locations in the host. this study examined the population dynamics of symbionts that are located in different areas within b. ...	2014	24632746
insights from the genome annotation of elizabethkingia anophelis from the malaria vector anopheles gambiae.	elizabethkingia anophelis is a dominant bacterial species in the gut ecosystem of the malaria vector mosquito anopheles gambiae. we recently sequenced the genomes of two strains of e. anophelis, r26t and ag1, isolated from different strains of a. gambiae. the two bacterial strains are identical with a few exceptions. phylogenetically, elizabethkingia is closer to chryseobacterium and riemerella than to flavobacterium. in line with other bacteroidetes known to utilize various polymers in their ec ...	2014	24842809
tuning of peroxiredoxin catalysis for various physiological roles.	peroxiredoxins (prxs) make up an ancient family of enzymes that are the predominant peroxidases for nearly all organisms and play essential roles in reducing hydrogen peroxide, organic hydroperoxides, and peroxynitrite. even between distantly related organisms, the core protein fold and key catalytic residues related to its cysteine-based catalytic mechanism have been retained. given that these enzymes appeared early in biology, prxs have experienced more than 1 billion years of optimization for ...	2014	25403613
alphavirus-based vaccines.	alphavirus vectors have demonstrated high levels of transient heterologous gene expression both in vitro and in vivo and, therefore, possess attractive features for vaccine development. the most commonly used delivery vectors are based on three single-stranded encapsulated alphaviruses, namely semliki forest virus, sindbis virus and venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. alphavirus vectors have been applied as replication-deficient recombinant viral particles and, more recently, as replication-pr ...	2014	24937089
molecular characterization of novel pyridoxal-5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes from the human microbiome.	pyridoxal-5'-phosphate or plp, the active form of vitamin b6, is a highly versatile cofactor that participates in a large number of mechanistically diverse enzymatic reactions in basic metabolism. plp-dependent enzymes account for ∼1.5% of most prokaryotic genomes and are estimated to be involved in ∼4% of all catalytic reactions, making this an important class of enzymes. here, we structurally and functionally characterize three novel plp-dependent enzymes from bacteria in the human microbiome: ...	2014	24888348
development of quantitative proteomics using itraq based on the immunological response of galleria mellonella larvae challenged with fusarium oxysporum microconidia.	galleria mellonella has emerged as a potential invertebrate model for scrutinizing innate immunity. larvae are easy to handle in host-pathogen assays. we undertook proteomics research in order to understand immune response in a heterologous host when challenged with microconidia of fusarium oxysporum. the aim of this study was to investigate hemolymph proteins that were differentially expressed between control and immunized larvae sets, tested with f. oxysporum at two temperatures. the itraq app ...	2014	25379782
bioinformatic analyses of male and female amblyomma americanum tick expressed serine protease inhibitors (serpins).	serine protease inhibitors (serpins) are a diverse family of proteins that is conserved across taxa. the diversity of amblyomma americanum serpins (aas) is far more complex than previously thought as revealed by discovery of 57 and 33 aas transcripts that are respectively expressed in male and female a. americanum ticks, with 30 found in both. while distinct reproductively, both male and female metastriate ticks, such as a. americanum, require a blood meal. thus, 30 aas sequences found in both m ...	2014	25238688
using biological networks to improve our understanding of infectious diseases.	infectious diseases are the leading cause of death, particularly in developing countries. although many drugs are available for treating the most common infectious diseases, in many cases the mechanism of action of these drugs or even their targets in the pathogen remain unknown. in addition, the key factors or processes in pathogens that facilitate infection and disease progression are often not well understood. since proteins do not work in isolation, understanding biological systems requires ...	2014	25379138
an odorant-binding protein is abundantly expressed in the nose and in the seminal fluid of the rabbit.	we have purified an abundant lipocalin from the seminal fluid of the rabbit, which shows significant similarity with the sub-class of pheromone carriers "urinary" and "salivary" and presents an n-terminal sequence identical with that of an odorant-binding protein (rabobp3) expressed in the nasal tissue of the same species. this protein is synthesised in the prostate and found in the seminal fluid, but not in sperm cells. the same protein is also expressed in the nasal epithelium of both sexes, b ...	2014	25391153