Publications related to Inactivation of influenza A virus in expiratory droplets and aerosol particles and the associated physicochemical drivers

Stability of influenza A virus in droplets and aerosols is heightened by the presence of commensal respiratory bacteria

Tamar Kohn, Htet Kyi Wynn, Céline Terrettaz, Aline Laetitia Schaub, Athanasios Nenes, Kalliopi Violaki, Marta Augugliaro, Shannon Christa David, Ghislain Gilles Jean-Michel Motos, Walter Hugentobler, Laura José Costa Henriques, Daniel Scott Nolan

Aerosol transmission remains a major challenge for control of respiratory viruses, particularly those causing recurrent epidemics, like influenza A virus (IAV). These viruses are rarely expelled alone, but instead are embedded in a consortium of microorgan ...

American Society for Microbiology2024

Peptide-based virucidal drugs

Francesca Olgiati

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, viruses were not a major priority for the scientific community. Today, many events have changed the world and the importance of studying viruses, vaccines, and antiviral drugs is fully appreciated. The development of effective ...

EPFL2024

Virucidal compounds and use thereof

Francesco Stellacci, Bruno Emanuel Ferreira De Sousa Correia, Pablo Gainza Cirauqui, Corey Alfred Stevens, Lukasz Richter, Francesca Olgiati, Chiara Medaglia

Disclosed herein are peptide-grafted compounds that irreversibly deactivate bacteriophages or influenza virus depending on the peptide and remain safe for bacteria and mammalian cells. The active compounds comprise a core (cyclodextrin or gold nanoparticle ...

2024

Microfluidic systems for infectious disease diagnostics

Thomas Lehnert, Martinus Gijs

Microorganisms, encompassing both uni- and multicellular entities, exhibit remarkable diversity as omnipresent life forms in nature. They play a pivotal role by supplying essential components for sustaining biological processes across diverse ecosystems, i ...

Royal Soc Chemistry2024

Human alveolar lining fl uid from the elderly promotes Mycobacterium tuberculosis intracellular growth and translocation into the cytosol of alveolar epithelial cells

Vivek Vijay Thacker, Richa Mishra

The elderly population is highly susceptible to developing respiratory diseases, including tuberculosis, a devastating disease caused by the airborne pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( M.tb ) that kills one person every 18 seconds. Once M.tb reaches the ...

Elsevier Science Inc2024

Convalescent human plasma candidate reference materials protect against Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) challenge in an A129 mouse model

Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV) is spread by infected ticks or direct contact with blood, tissues and fluids from infected patients or livestock. Infection with CCHFV causes severe haemorrhagic fever in humans which is fatal in up to 83 % of ...

Elsevier2024

A common NFKB1 variant detected through antibody analysis in UK Biobank predicts risk of infection and allergy

Jacques Fellay, Flavia Aurelia Shoko Hodel

Infectious agents contribute significantly to the global burden of diseases through both acute infection and their chronic sequelae. We leveraged the UK Biobank to identify genetic loci that influence humoral immune response to multiple infections. From 45 ...

2024

Stimulus-responsive assembly of nonviral nucleocapsids

Angela Steinauer

Controlled assembly of a protein shell around a viral genome is a key step in the life cycle of many viruses. Here we report a strategy for regulating the co-assembly of nonviral proteins and nucleic acids into highly ordered nucleocapsids in vitro. By fus ...

Nature Portfolio2024

Comparison of Three Viral Nucleic Acid Preamplification Pipelines for Sewage Viral Metagenomics

Tamar Kohn, Xavier Fernandez Cassi

Viral metagenomics is a useful tool for detecting multiple human viruses in urban sewage. However, more refined protocols are required for its effective use in disease surveillance. In this study, we investigated the performance of three different preampli ...

2024

Expiratory Aerosol pH is a Driver of the Persistence of Airborne Influenza A Virus

Aline Laetitia Schaub

To mitigate the spread of a viral disease, it is crucial to understand the factors that influence airborne virus transmission. However, the micro-environment to which the virus is exposed in expiratory aerosol particles is highly complex. The relative humi ...

SWISS CHEMICAL SOC2023

Inactivation mechanisms of influenza A virus under pH conditions encountered in aerosol particles as revealed by whole-virus HDX-MS

Tamar Kohn, Jonathan Paz Montoya, Aline Laetitia Schaub, Athanasios Nenes, Giovanni D'Angelo, Kalliopi Violaki, Shannon Christa David, Ghislain Gilles Jean-Michel Motos, Walter Hugentobler

Multiple respiratory viruses, including influenza A virus (IAV), can be transmitted via expiratory aerosol particles, and aerosol pH was recently identified as a major factor influencing airborne virus infectivity. Indoors, small exhaled aerosols undergo r ...

2023

Multivalent Virucidal Antivirals: Synthesis, Mechanisms of Action, and Immune-stimulating Effects

Yong Zhu

Viruses initiate invasion by binding to cell surface glycoproteins. Materials mimicking the carbohydrate motifs of these glycoproteins, such as heparan sulfate (HS) and sialic acid (SA) can block viral attachment and inhibit the infection. Multivalent disp ...

EPFL2023

Antiviral Mechanism of Virucidal Sialic Acid Modified Cyclodextrin

Francesco Stellacci, Paulo Henrique Jacob Silva, Marine Batista, Yong Zhu, Andrey Sysoev

We have reported that CD-6'SLN [6-sialyllactosamine (6'SLN)-modified beta-cyclodextrin (CD)] can be a potential anti-influenza drug because it irreversibly deactivates virions. Indeed, in vivo, CD-6'SLN improved mice survival in an H1N1 infection model eve ...

MDPI2023

Viral Genetic Determinants of Prolonged Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection Among Infants in a Healthy Term Birth Cohort

Thomas Junier, Jacques Fellay, Dylan Lawless, Zhi Ming Xu

Background. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is associated with acute respiratory infection. We sought to identify RSV variants associated with prolonged infection. ...

OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC2023

A new chapter of healthy indoor air: antiviral air treatments

Shannon Christa David

Aerosol transmission remains a major challenge for the control of respiratory viruses. To date, prevention strategies include masks, vaccinations, physical distancing, travel restrictions, and lockdowns. Such measures are effective but come with heavy soci ...

Wiley2023

Simultaneous membrane and RNA binding by Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus capsid protein

Sarah Victoria Barrass

Tick-borne encephalitis virus is an enveloped, pathogenic, RNA virus in the family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus. Viral particles are formed when the nucleocapsid, consisting of an RNA genome and multiple copies of the capsid protein, buds through the end ...

PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE2023

DeepBreath-automated detection of respiratory pathology from lung auscultation in 572 pediatric outpatients across 5 countries

Daniel Mueller, Jonathan Dönz, Mary-Anne Hartley, Juliane Dervaux, Tatjana Chavdarova, Julien Niklas Heitmann, Martin Jaggi, Daniel Hinjos García

The interpretation of lung auscultation is highly subjective and relies on non-specific nomenclature. Computer-aided analysis has the potential to better standardize and automate evaluation. We used 35.9 hours of auscultation audio from 572 pediatric outpa ...

NATURE PORTFOLIO2023

Bacterial colonization in realistic environments: how mechanics impact biofilm formation in the wild and during infection

Tamara Rossy

A variety of physical inputs acts onto bacteria in nature. However, these are most often ignored in the studies of their physiology. There is now increasing evidence indicating that bacteria respond to physical stimuli, including mechanical forces. Yet, qu ...

EPFL2023

Stay close, but not too close: aerial image analysis reveals patterns of social distancing in seal colonies

Devis Tuia, Benjamin Alexander Kellenberger

Many species aggregate in dense colonies. Species-specific spatial patterns provide clues about how colonies are shaped by various (a)biotic factors, including predation, temperature regulation or disease transmission. Using aerial imagery, we examined the ...

2023

Ligand concentration determines antiviral efficacy of silica multivalent nanoparticles

Francesco Stellacci, Quy Ong Khac, Paulo Henrique Jacob Silva, Heyun Wang, Xufeng Xu, Rémi Andréa La Polla

We have learned from the recent COVID-19 pandemic that the emergence of a new virus can quickly become a global health burden and kill millions of lives. Antiviral drugs are essential in our fight against viral diseases, but most of them are virus-specific ...

Academic Press Inc Elsevier Science2023