Evaluation of cobas Influenza A/B & RSV Test for Diagnosis of Equine Influenza
JOURNAL OF EQUINE VETERINARY SCIENCE
Authors: Nemoto, Manabu; Okita, Noriyuki; Kitahata, Masayoshi; Bannai, Hiroshi; Tsujimura, Koji; Kinoshita, Yuta; Kambayashi, Yoshinori; Cullinane, Ann; Yamanaka, Takashi; Ohta, Minoru
Abstract
A rapid and sensitive diagnostic method is needed to help prevent the spread of equine influenza virus. The cobas Influenza A/B & RSV test for the cobas Liat system (Roche Diagnostics) is based on real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and is designed to broadly detect influenza A virus RNA within 20 minutes. It detected a broad range of equine influenza virus strains, and detected equine influenza virus RNA from nasal swabs of infected horses at the same level as real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, although it returned some invalid results (7.7%). This suggests that cobas Influenza A/B & RSV test is highly sensitive to equine influenza virus, but should be improved to reduce the rate of invalid results. (C) 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Coronavirus: a shift in focus away from IFN response and towards other inflammatory targets
JOURNAL OF CELL COMMUNICATION AND SIGNALING
Authors: Thoutam, Akshaya; Breitzig, Mason; Lockey, Richard; Kolliputi, Narasaiah
Abstract
In the past two decades, two beta-coronaviruses, severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus (SARS-CoV-1) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus (MERS-CoV), have infected approximately 8000 and 2500 across the globe, respectively (de Wit et al.2016; Amanat and Krammer2020). The current viral pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, has already affected 4.23 M in less than a year. Of greater concern, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, still has a rapidly increasing global burden (Wu et al.2020; Zhu et al.2020). To better understand the biology of COVID-19, an initial barrage of studies compared SARS-CoV-2 to other respiratory viruses: MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-1, human parainfluenza virus 3 (HPIV3), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and Influenza A Virus (IAV). These studies indicate that SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals have a consistent chemokine signature comprising cytokines and monocyte-associated chemokines (CCL2 and CCL8). Therefore, it appears that monocyte cytokine production, particularly in those with a diminished innate immunity, is a driving feature of COVID-19 infection.