HPV genotyping and risk factors for anal high-risk HPV infection in men who have sex with men from Toronto, Canada.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately affected by anal cancer, predominantly caused by high-risk (HR) human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Currently, the nonavalent HPV vaccine provides coverage against nine HPV genotypes, including seven HR-HPV genotypes. Here, we characterize anal HR-HPV genotype distribution and associated risk factors in MSM from Toronto, Canada recruited between September 2010 and June 2012. Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test was used for continuous variables, Chi-square test was performed for categorical variables, and a multivariable model using logistic regression was created to assess for correlates of anal HR-HPV infection. A total of 442 MSM were recruited, with a median age of 45 (IQR 38-50) and an overall HPV prevalence of 82%. The prevalence of any HR-HPV infection was 65.3% and 50.7% in the HIV-positive and HIV-negative MSM, respectively. No participant tested positive for all genotypes covered by the nonavalent vaccine. HIV status (aOR 1.806; 95% CI 1.159-2.816), smoking (aOR 2.176; 95% CI 1.285-3.685) and the number of lifetime sexual partners (aOR 2.466; 95% CI 1.092-5.567) were independent risk factors for anal HR-HPV infection. Our findings will be useful to inform HPV vaccine rollout and HPV prevention strategies in Canadian MSM.

Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Viral and Bacterial Infections in HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative Men Who Have Sex with Men in Toronto.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been associated with HIV transmission risk and disease progression among gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM), but the frequency and distribution of STIs in this community in Canada has not been extensively studied. METHODS: We recruited MSM living with and without HIV from a large primary care clinic in Toronto. Participants completed a detailed socio-behavioural questionnaire using ACASI and provided blood for syphilis, HIV, HBV and HCV, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2), and human cytomegalovirus (CMV) serology, urine for chlamydia and gonorrhea, and a self-collected anal swab for human papillomavirus (HPV) molecular diagnostics. Prevalences were expressed as a proportion and compared using chi-square. RESULTS: 442 MSM were recruited, 294 living with HIV and 148 without. Active syphilis (11.0% vs. 3.4%), ever HBV (49.4% vs. 19.1%), HCV (10.4% vs. 3.4%), HSV-2 (55.9% vs. 38.2%), CMV (98.3% vs. 80.3%) and high-risk (HR) anal HPV (67.6% vs. 51.7%) infections were significantly more common in men living with HIV. Chlamydia and gonorrhea were infrequent in both groups. Regardless of HIV infection status, age and number of lifetime male sexual partners were associated with HBV infection and lifetime injection drug use with HCV infection. CONCLUSIONS: Syphilis and viral infections, including HBV, HCV, HSV-2, CMV, and HR-HPV, were common in this clinic-based population of MSM in Toronto and more frequent among MSM living with HIV. This argues for the implementation of routine screening, vaccine-based prevention, and education programs in this high-risk population.

The epidemiology of sexually transmitted co-infections in HIV-positive and HIV-negative African-Caribbean women in Toronto.

BACKGROUND: HIV disproportionately affects African-Caribbean women in Canada but the frequency and distribution of sexually transmitted infections in this community have not been previously studied. METHODS: We recruited women based on HIV status through a Toronto community health centre. Participants completed a socio-behavioural questionnaire using Audio Computer Assisted Self-Interview (ACASI) and provided blood for syphilis, HIV, hepatitis B and C, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), and human cytomegalovirus (CMV) serology, urine for chlamydia and gonorrhea molecular testing and vaginal secretions for bacterial vaginosis (BV) and human papillomavirus (HPV). Differences in prevalence were assessed for statistical significance using chi-square. RESULTS: We recruited 126 HIV-positive and 291 HIV-negative women, with a median age of 40 and 31 years, respectively (p < 0.001). Active HBV infection and lifetime exposure to HBV infection were more common in HIV-positive women (4.8% vs. 0.34%, p = 0.004; and 47.6% vs. 21.2%, p < 0.0001), as was a self-reported history of HBV vaccination (66.1% vs. 44.0%, p = 0.0001). Classical STIs were rare in both groups; BV prevalence was low and did not vary by HIV status. HSV-2 infection was markedly more frequent in HIV-positive (86.3%) than HIV-negative (46.6%) women (p < 0.0001). Vaginal HPV infection was also more common in HIV-positive than in HIV-negative women (50.8% vs. 22.6%, p < 0.0001) as was infection with high-risk oncogenic HPV types (48.4% vs. 17.3%, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Classical STIs were infrequent in this clinic-based population of African-Caribbean women in Toronto. However, HSV-2 prevalence was higher than that reported in previous studies in the general Canadian population and was strongly associated with HIV infection, as was infection with hepatitis B and HPV.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae treatment failure and susceptibility to cefixime in Toronto, Canada.

IMPORTANCE: Although cephalosporins are the cornerstone of treatment of Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections, cefixime is the only oral antimicrobial option. Increased minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) to cefixime have been identified worldwide and have been associated with reports of clinical failure. OBJECTIVE: To assess the risk of clinical treatment failure of N. gonorrhoeae infections associated with the use of cefixime. DESIGN, SETTING, AND POPULATION: A retrospective cohort study of culture-positive N. gonorrhoeae infections at a single sexual health clinic in Toronto, Canada, that routinely performs test of cure. The cohort comprised N. gonorrhoeae culture-positive individuals identified between May 1, 2010, and April 30, 2011, treated with cefixime as recommended by Public Health Agency of Canada guidelines. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Cefixime treatment failure, defined as the repeat isolation of N. gonorrhoeae at the test-of-cure visit identical to the pretreatment isolate by molecular typing and explicit denial of reexposure. RESULTS: There were 291 N. gonorrhoeae culture-positive individuals identified. Of 133 who returned for test of cure, 13 were culture positive; 9 patients were determined to have experienced cefixime treatment failure, involving urethral (n = 4), pharyngeal (n = 2), and rectal (n = 3) sites. The overall rate of clinical treatment failure among those who had a test of cure was 6.77% (95% CI, 3.14%-12.45%; 9/133). The rate of clinical failure associated with a cefixime MIC of 0.12 µg/mL or greater was 25.0% (95% CI, 10.69%-44.87%; 7/28) compared with 1.90% (95% CI, 0.23%-6.71%; 2/105) of infections with cefixime MICs less than 0.12 µg/mL, with a relative risk of 13.13 (95% CI, 2.88-59.72; P < .001). CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: The rate of clinical failure following treatment of N. gonorrhoeae infections with cefixime was relatively high at a Toronto clinic and was associated with elevated MICs.

Measurement of mucosal biomarkers in a phase 1 trial of intravaginal 3% StarPharma LTD 7013 gel (VivaGel) to assess expanded safety.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of the 3% StarPharma LTD 7013 gel (VivaGel) on mucosal immune markers hypothesized to be associated with HIV-1 acquisition. DESIGN: Phase 1, placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind clinical trial was performed in 54 young women in the United States and Kenya. Participants used carbopol gel with and without (placebo) StarPharma LTD 7013 twice daily over 14 days. Cervical specimens were collected for cytokines, chemokines, T cells, and dendritic cells at days 0, 7, 14, and 21. A negative binomial regression model was used to assess differences between study arms. RESULTS: Several mucosal immune parameters were increased in the VivaGel arm compared with placebo. For cytokines D7, IL-6 (P = 0.05); D 14, interferon gamma (P = 0.03), IL-2 (P = 0.04), IL-5 (P = 0.003), and IL-10 (P = 0.001) were increased. On D7, CD8+/CD69+ T cells tended to be increased (P < 0.08); limiting analysis to visits without blood or bacterial vaginosis, these findings were stronger as follows: at D7, CD8+/CD69+ T cells were increased in the VivaGel arm (P < 0.005), as were CD4+/CD69+ cells (P = 0.001) and CD4+/CCR5+ T cells (P = 0.01). The changes described for D7 and 14 were no longer seen at D21. CONCLUSIONS: Markers associated with inflammation and epithelial damage were reversibly elevated in the VivaGel arm compared with the placebo arm after 7-14 days of twice daily product use.

Molecular analysis of antimicrobial resistance mechanisms in Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates from Ontario, Canada.

Surveillance of gonococcal antimicrobial resistance and the molecular characterization of the mechanisms underlying these resistance phenotypes are essential in order to establish correct empirical therapies, as well as to describe the emergence of new mechanisms in local bacterial populations. To address these goals, 149 isolates were collected over a 1-month period (October-November 2008) at the Ontario Public Health Laboratory, Toronto, Canada, and susceptibility profiles (8 antibiotics) were examined. Mutations in previously identified targets or the presence of some enzymes related to resistance (r), nonsusceptibility (ns) (resistant plus intermediate categories), or reduced susceptibility (rs) to the antibiotics tested were also studied. A significant proportion of nonsusceptibility to penicillin (PEN) (89.2%), tetracycline (TET) (72.3%), ciprofloxacin (CIP) (29%), and macrolides (erythromycin [ERY] and azithromycin; 22.3%) was found in these strains. Multidrug resistance was observed in 18.8% of the collection. Although all the strains were susceptible to spectinomycin and extended-spectrum cephalosporins (ESC) (ceftriaxone and cefixime), 9.4% of them displayed reduced susceptibility to extended-spectrum cephalosporins. PBP 2 mosaic structures were found in all of these ESC(rs) isolates. Alterations in the mtrR promoter, MtrR repressor (TET(r), PEN(ns), ESC(rs), and ERY(ns)), porin PIB (TET(r) and PEN(ns)), and ribosomal protein S10 (TET(r)) and double mutations in gyrA and parC quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDRs) (CIP(r)) were associated with and presumably responsible for the resistance phenotypes observed. This is the first description of ESC(rs) in Canada. The detection of this phenotype indicates a change in the epidemiology of this resistance and highlights the importance of continued surveillance to preserve the last antimicrobial options available.

Evaluation of a quantitative real-time PCR assay to measure HIV-specific mucosal CD8+ T cell responses in the cervix.

Several candidate HIV vaccines aim to induce virus-specific cellular immunity particularly in the genital tract, typically the initial site of HIV acquisition. However, standardized and sensitive methods for evaluating HIV-specific immune responses at the genital level are lacking. Therefore we evaluated real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) as a potential platform to measure these responses. ß-Actin and GAPDH were identified as the most stable housekeeping reference genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and cervical mononuclear cells (CMCs) respectively and were used for normalizing transcript mRNA expression. HIV-specific cellular T cell immune responses to a pool of optimized CD8+ HIV epitopes (HIV epitope pool) and Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) superantigen control were assayed in HIV infected PBMC by qPCR, with parallel assessment of cytokine protein production. Peak HIV-specific mRNA expression of IFNγ, IL-2 and TNFα occurred after 3, 5 and 12 hours respectively. PBMCs were titrated to cervical appropriate cell numbers to determine minimum required assay input cell numbers; qPCR retained sensitivity with input of at least 2.5×10(4) PBMCs. This optimized qPCR assay was then used to assess HIV-specific cellular T cell responses in cytobrush-derived cervical T cells from HIV positive individuals. SEB induced IFNγ mRNA transcription was detected in CMCs and correlated positively with IFNγ protein production. However, qPCR was unable to detect HIV-induced cytokine mRNA production in the cervix of HIV-infected women despite robust detection of gene induction in PBMCs. In conclusion, although qPCR can be used to measure ex vivo cellular immune responses to HIV in blood, HIV-specific responses in the cervix may fall below the threshold of qPCR detection. Nonetheless, this platform may have a potential role in measuring mitogen-induced immune responses in the genital tract.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae effectively blocks HIV-1 replication by eliciting a potent TLR9-dependent interferon-α response from plasmacytoid dendritic cells.

Clinical and epidemiological research provides evidence for a positive correlation between Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection and HIV transmission; however, mechanistic studies examining this relationship have yielded conflicting results. To explore this interaction, we exposed ex vivo cultured peripheral blood cells from acute HIV(+) individuals to N. gonorrhoeae. Unexpectedly, we observed a profound inhibition in HIV-1 replication in the ex vivo cultures, and this was recapitulated when peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors were co-infected with HIV-1 and N. gonorrhoeae. Next, we established that gonococcal-infected PBMCs liberated a soluble factor that effectively blocked HIV-1 replication. Cytokine analyses and antibody blocking experiments revealed that the type I interferon, interferon-α (IFNα), was expressed upon exposure to N. gonorrhoeae and was responsible for the inhibition of HIV-1. Intracellular staining, TLR9-blocking and cell depletion-based studies demonstrated that the IFNα was elicited by plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) in a TLR9-dependent manner. The pDC response to N. gonorrhoeae was unexpected given pDCs more established role in innate defence against intracellular pathogens, suggesting this may be a bacterial immune evasion strategy. In the context of HIV, this overcomes the virus's otherwise effective avoidance of the interferon response and represents a previously unrecognized intersection between these two sexually transmitted pathogens.

Focal epithelial hyperplasia caused by human papillomavirus 13.

Focal epithelial hyperplasia is a benign, papulo-nodular disease of the oral cavity. It is rare, affecting primarily Native American populations during childhood. It is closely associated with human papillomavirus 13 and 32. This report describes the diagnosis of 2 cases of focal epithelial hyperplasia in children from southern Guyana. The diagnosis was made using clinical criteria, polymerase chain reaction, and DNA sequencing.

Association between the 2008-09 seasonal influenza vaccine and pandemic H1N1 illness during Spring-Summer 2009: four observational studies from Canada.

BACKGROUND: In late spring 2009, concern was raised in Canada that prior vaccination with the 2008-09 trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV) was associated with increased risk of pandemic influenza A (H1N1) (pH1N1) illness. Several epidemiologic investigations were conducted through the summer to assess this putative association. STUDIES INCLUDED: (1) test-negative case-control design based on Canada's sentinel vaccine effectiveness monitoring system in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec; (2) conventional case-control design using population controls in Quebec; (3) test-negative case-control design in Ontario; and (4) prospective household transmission (cohort) study in Quebec. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios for TIV effect on community- or hospital-based laboratory-confirmed seasonal or pH1N1 influenza cases compared to controls with restriction, stratification, and adjustment for covariates including combinations of age, sex, comorbidity, timeliness of medical visit, prior physician visits, and/or health care worker (HCW) status. For the prospective study risk ratios were computed. Based on the sentinel study of 672 cases and 857 controls, 2008-09 TIV was associated with statistically significant protection against seasonal influenza (odds ratio 0.44, 95% CI 0.33-0.59). In contrast, estimates from the sentinel and three other observational studies, involving a total of 1,226 laboratory-confirmed pH1N1 cases and 1,505 controls, indicated that prior receipt of 2008-09 TIV was associated with increased risk of medically attended pH1N1 illness during the spring-summer 2009, with estimated risk or odds ratios ranging from 1.4 to 2.5. Risk of pH1N1 hospitalization was not further increased among vaccinated people when comparing hospitalized to community cases. CONCLUSIONS: Prior receipt of 2008-09 TIV was associated with increased risk of medically attended pH1N1 illness during the spring-summer 2009 in Canada. The occurrence of bias (selection, information) or confounding cannot be ruled out. Further experimental and epidemiological assessment is warranted. Possible biological mechanisms and immunoepidemiologic implications are considered.

Relative HIV resistance in kenyan sex workers is not due to an altered prevalence or mucosal immune impact of herpes simplex virus type 2 infection.

Chronic infection by herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) increases HIV susceptibility, perhaps due to HSV-2-associated increases in activated mucosal immune cells. A small number of Kenyan female sex workers (FSWs) exhibit relative HIV resistance. We examined whether relative HIV resistance was related to differences in the prevalence or mucosal immune impact of HSV-2. Participants were recruited from an open cohort of HIV-uninfected FSWs in Nairobi, Kenya. Women who had been practicing sex work in the cohort for >or=3 years without acquiring HIV were defined as relatively HIV resistant. HSV-2 diagnostics were performed, and cervical immune cell subsets were examined by flow cytometry in a subset of participants. The study population comprised 139 HIV-uninfected FSWs. HSV-2 seroprevalence was actually higher in FSWs meeting criteria for relative HIV resistance than in non-resistant FSWs (75/80, 94% vs 46/59, 78%; LR = 7.5; P = 0.006), likely due to the increased age and longer duration of sex work in the resistant subgroup. Late HIV acquisition was not associated with recent HSV-2 infection, and HSV-2 associated increases in HIV-susceptible cervical immune cell populations were similar in both groups. Relative HIV resistance in Kenyan FSWs was not due to a reduced prevalence or mucosal immune impact of HSV-2 infection.

Bacterial vaginosis in HIV-infected women induces reversible alterations in the cervical immune environment.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) has been associated with increased HIV cervicovaginal shedding. We hypothesized that this might relate to BV-associated increases in mucosal activated CD4 T cells, which could enhance local HIV replication. METHODS: Vaginal flora, cytokine/chemokine levels, and mucosal immune cell populations collected by cervical cytobrush were analyzed in 15 HIV-infected Kenyan female sex workers, before and after BV therapy with oral metronidazole. RESULTS: Therapy reduced the Nugent score in all but 1 participant, and BV elimination was associated with reduced genital levels of interleukin 1beta(IL1beta), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and Regulated Upon Activation Normal T-cell Expressed and Secreted (RANTES). In addition, BV elimination reduced the total number of cervical CD4 T cells, including those expressing the HIV coreceptor CCR5 and the activation marker CD69. CONCLUSIONS: BV induces significant and reversible alterations in cervical immune cell populations and local inflammatory cytokines that would be expected to enhance local HIV replication.

Coinfection with herpes simplex virus type 2 is associated with reduced HIV-specific T cell responses and systemic immune activation.

BACKGROUND: Chronic coinfection with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has been associated with an increased HIV viral load and more rapid disease progression, perhaps related to HSV-2-associated alterations in host immunity. METHODS: Studies were nested within (1) a cross-sectional study of men coinfected with HIV and HSV-2 and (2) women not infected with HIV, both before and after HSV-2 acquisition. HSV-2 infection status was determined by ELISA. HIV-specific CD8(+) T cell epitopes were mapped, and proliferation of HIV-specific cells was also assessed. Systemic inflammatory and regulatory T cell populations were assayed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The breadth of both the HIV-specific CD8(+) T cell interferon-gamma and proliferative responses was reduced in participants coinfected with HIV and HSV-2, independent of the HIV plasma viral load and CD4(+) T cell count, and the magnitude of the responses was also reduced. HSV-2 infection in this group was associated with increased T cell CD38 expression but not with differences in the proportion of CD4(+) FoxP3(+) regulatory T cells. However, in women not infected with HIV, acquisition of HSV-2 was associated with an increase in the proportion of regulatory T cells. CONCLUSIONS: HSV-2 coinfection was associated with reduced HIV-specific T cell responses and systemic inflammation. The immune effects of HSV-2 may underlie the negative impact that this coinfection has on the clinical course of HIV infection.

Negative mucosal synergy between Herpes simplex type 2 and HIV in the female genital tract.

OBJECTIVE: There is substantial epidemiological evidence that infection by Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV2) enhances both HIV susceptibility and subsequent sexual transmission. Both infections are extremely common in female sex workers (FSWs) in sub-Saharan Africa, and up to 80% of new HIV infections in urban men in the region are acquired via transactional sex. The present study aimed to elucidate the mucosal immune interactions between HIV and HSV2 in the genital tract. METHODS: Endocervical immune cell populations, cytokine/chemokine protein levels in cervico-vaginal secretions and cervical immune gene expression profiles were measured in a well-defined cohort of HIV-infected and uninfected Kenyan FSWs. Associations between the genital immune milieu and infection by and/or shedding of common genital co-pathogens were examined. RESULTS: HIV-infected FSWs were much more likely to be infected by HSV2, and to shed HSV2 DNA in the genital tract. There was also a profound negative 'mucosal synergy' between these viruses. In HIV uninfected FSWs, HSV2 infection was associated with a ten-fold increase in cervical immature dendritic cells (iDC) expressing DC-SIGN, and a three-fold increase in cervical CD4+ T cells expressing CCR5. HIV infection was associated with iDC depletion in the cervix, and with increased HSV2 genital reactivation, which in turn was associated with HIV shedding levels. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest a mucosal vicious circle in which HSV2 infection increases HIV target cells in the genital mucosa, subsequent HIV infection impairs HSV2 mucosal immune control, and local HSV2 reactivation enhances both HSV2 and HIV transmission.

Disproportionately high semen shedding of HIV is associated with compartmentalized cytomegalovirus reactivation.

Semen transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) drives the global pandemic. HIV loads are generally lower in semen than in blood, but semen loads may be disproportionately high in a subgroup of men. HIV loads in semen exceeded those in blood in 9 (35%) of 26 of antiretroviral therapy-naive men, and disproportionately high shedding was strongly associated with compartmentalized semen cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation (odds ratio [OR], 10.5; P<.01). Overall, 17 of 26 participants were shedding CMV in semen. Semen levels of HIV and CMV were closely correlated (r=0.5; P<.01), independently of blood HIV load and CD4(+) T cell count. Prevention of CMV reactivation warrants further study as a possible strategy to reduce semen shedding of HIV.

HIV-specific CD8+ lymphocytes in semen are not associated with reduced HIV shedding.

Sexual contact with HIV-infected semen is a major driving force behind the global HIV pandemic. Little is known regarding the immune correlates of virus shedding in this compartment, although HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells are present in semen. We collected blood and semen from 27 chronically HIV-infected, therapy-naive men without common sexually transmitted infections or urethral inflammation and measured HIV-1 RNA viral load and cytokine/chemokine levels in both compartments. HIV-1 RNA levels were 10-fold higher in blood than semen, but discordantly high semen shedding was associated with higher semen levels of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-6, IL-8, IL-12, and IFN-gamma. Virus-specific CD8+ T cell epitopes were mapped in blood by IFN-gamma ELISPOT, using an overlapping HIV-1 clade B peptide matrix, and blood and semen CD8+ T cell responses were then assayed ex vivo using intracellular IFN-gamma staining. HIV-specific CD8+ responses were detected in 70% of semen samples, and their frequency was similar to or higher than blood. There was no correlation between the presence of virus-specific CD8+ T cells in semen and levels of HIV-1 RNA shedding. Among participants with detectable CD8+ IFN-gamma semen responses, their relative frequency was not associated with reduced HIV-1 RNA shedding, and their absolute number was correlated with higher levels of HIV-1 RNA semen shedding (r = 0.6; p = 0.03) and of several proinflammatory cytokines. Neither the presence nor the frequency of semen HIV-specific CD8+ T cell IFN-gamma responses in semen correlated with reduced levels of HIV RNA in semen.

DRAGON, a bone morphogenetic protein co-receptor.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are members of the transforming growth factor (TGF)beta superfamily of ligands that regulate many crucial aspects of embryonic development and organogenesis. Unlike other TGFbeta ligands, co-receptors for BMP ligands have not been described. Here we show that DRAGON, a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored member of the repulsive guidance molecule family, which is expressed early in the developing nervous system, enhances BMP but not TGFbeta signaling. DRAGON binds directly to BMP2 and BMP4 but not to BMP7 or other TGFbeta ligands. The enhancing action of DRAGON on BMP signaling is also reduced by administration of Noggin, a soluble BMP antagonist, indicating that the action of DRAGON is ligand-dependent. DRAGON associates directly with BMP type I (ALK2, ALK3, and ALK6) and type II (ActRII and ActRIIB) receptors, and its signaling is reduced by dominant negative Smad1 and ALK3 or -6 receptors. In the Xenopus embryo, DRAGON both reduces the threshold of the ability of Smad1 to induce mesodermal and endodermal markers and alters neuronal and neural crest patterning. The direct interaction of DRAGON with BMP ligands and receptors indicates that it is a BMP co-receptor that potentiates BMP signaling.

Lindane stimulates neutrophils by selectively activating phospholipase C and phosphoinositide-kinase activity.

The organochlorine insecticide lindane is a known activator of neutrophil responses. In this work we delineated the biochemical pathways by which lindane stimulates neutrophil oxidant production. Plasma membrane GTPase activity was not stimulated by lindane, ruling out a role for lindane-induced activation of G-proteins or G-protein coupled receptors, whereas inhibition of phospholipase C inhibited lindane-induced oxidant production. Together these data pointed to phospholipase C as the direct target of lindane activation. Type I phosphoinositide 3-kinase was not significantly activated by lindane and an inhibitor of phosphoinositide 3-kinases inhibited oxidant production by only 40%. Thus, Type I phosphoinositide 3-kinase played a minor role, if any, in lindane-induced oxidant production. Lindane stimulated an increase in phosphatidylinositol phosphate suggesting a Type II or III phosphotidylinositol 3-kinase or phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase activity was also stimulated.

HIV viral shedding in semen: lack of correlation with systemic virus-specific CD8 responses.

Semen is a major transmission vector for HIV. Virus-specific CD8 T cells are critical in HIV control, but their relationship with semen viral load is unknown. We therefore examined the association between systemic HIV-specific IFN-gamma CD8 responses and viral load in the semen and blood of HIV-infected men. No correlation was observed between viral load in either semen or blood and systemic CD8 T-cell responses. Further studies of immune correlates of semen HIV shedding are needed.