The Effect of Contraception on Genital Cytokines in Women Randomized to Copper Intrauterine Device, Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate, or Levonorgestrel Implant.

BACKGROUND: The ECHO trial randomized women to intramuscular depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-IM), levonorgestrel implant (LNG-implant), or copper intrauterine device (Cu-IUD). In a substudy of the ECHO trial, we tested the hypothesis that contraceptives influence genital inflammation by comparing cervicovaginal cytokine changes following contraception initiation. In addition, we compared cytokine profiles in women who acquired HIV (cases) versus those remaining HIV negative (controls). METHODS: Women (n = 251) from South Africa and Kenya were included. Twenty-seven cervicovaginal cytokines were measured by Luminex at baseline, and 1 and 6 months after contraceptive iTanko et alnitiation. In addition, cytokines were measured preseroconversion in HIV cases (n = 25) and controls (n = 100). RESULTS: At 6 months after contraceptive initiation, women using Cu-IUD had increased concentrations of 25/27 cytokines compared to their respective baseline concentrations. In contrast, women initiating DMPA-IM and LNG-implant did not experience changes in cervicovaginal cytokines. Preseroconversion concentrations of IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α, previously associated with HIV risk, correlated with increased HIV risk in a logistic regression analysis, although not significantly after correcting for multiple comparisons. Adjusting for contraceptive arm did not alter these results. CONCLUSIONS: Although Cu-IUD use broadly increased cervicovaginal cytokine concentrations at 6 months postinsertion, these inflammatory changes were found not to be a significant driver of HIV risk. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: NCT02550067.

Extended clinical sample incubation in the cepheid Xpert MTB/XDR test sample reagent: Enhancing flexibility and workflows in high-volume laboratories.

Cepheid Xpert MTB/RIF ULTRA (ULTRA) and Xpert MTB/XDR are tests for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) and drug resistance. Both tests involve a sample pre-processing step using the test's sample reagent (SR). The manufacturer recommends a four-hour limit for SR-treated samples prior to testing, posing challenges for high-volume laboratories conducting both tests. Implementing the XDR test as a follow-on to ULTRA positive specimen can be challenging in high-volume laboratories due to the time constraints imposed by the manufacturer's recommendations. To address this issue, this study investigated the impact of extended sample incubation in SR for durations longer than four hours at varying temperature conditions. Pre-characterized MTB isolates with diverse drug susceptibility profiles were incubated up to 36 hours at different temperatures including room temperature (RT), 2-8°C, and -20°C and tested using Xpert MTB/XDR. The study results indicate no adverse effects on sample stability or drug susceptibility detection. This suggests extended incubation could offer flexibility for conducting both tests on a single specimen, benefiting high-throughput laboratories.

An IRF1-IRF4 Toggle-Switch Controls Tolerogenic and Immunogenic Transcriptional Programming in Human Langerhans Cells.

Langerhans cells (LCs) reside in the epidermis as a dense network of immune system sentinels, coordinating both immunogenic and tolerogenic immune responses. To determine molecular switches directing induction of LC immune activation, we performed mathematical modelling of gene regulatory networks identified by single cell RNA sequencing of LCs exposed to TNF-alpha, a key pro-inflammatory signal produced by the skin. Our approach delineated three programmes of LC phenotypic activation (immunogenic, tolerogenic or ambivalent), and confirmed that TNF-alpha enhanced LC immunogenic programming. Through regulon analysis followed by mutual information modelling, we identified IRF1 as the key transcription factor for the regulation of immunogenicity in LCs. Application of a mathematical toggle switch model, coupling IRF1 with tolerance-inducing transcription factors, determined the key set of transcription factors regulating the switch between tolerance and immunogenicity, and correctly predicted LC behaviour in LCs derived from different body sites. Our findings provide a mechanistic explanation of how combinatorial interactions between different transcription factors can coordinate specific transcriptional programmes in human LCs, interpreting the microenvironmental context of the local tissue microenvironments.