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New findings in the pathogenesis of otitis mediaThis study was the first to concurrently identify middle ear pathogens in both bacterial biofilm and intracellularly in the middle ear mucosa of children and to identify extensive DNA stranding in the MEF from children with AOM
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Zika Virus Changes Methylation of Genes Involved in Immune Response and Neural Development in Brazilian Babies Born With Congenital MicrocephalyThe recent increase in babies born with brain and eye malformations in Brazil is associated with Zika virus (ZIKV) infection in utero. ZIKV alters host DNA methylation in vitro. Using genome-wide DNA methylation profiling we compared 18 babies born with congenital ZIKV microcephaly with 20 controls. We found ZIKV-associated alteration of host methylation patterns, notably at RABGAP1L which is important in brain development, at viral host immunity genes MX1 and ISG15, and in an epigenetic module containing the causal microcephaly gene MCPH1. Our data support the hypothesis that clinical signs of congenital ZIKV are associated with changes in DNA methylation.
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Linking the westernised oropharyngeal microbiome to the immune response in Chinese immigrantsHuman microbiota plays a fundamental role in modulating the immune response. Western environment and lifestyle are envisaged to alter the human microbiota with a new microbiome profile established in Chinese immigrants, which fails to prime the immune system. Here, we investigated how differences in composition of oropharyngeal microbiome may contribute to patterns of interaction between the microbiome and immune system in Chinese immigrants living in Australia.
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Common and Rare Genetic Variants That Could Contribute to Severe Otitis Media in an Australian Aboriginal PopulationOur goal was to identify genetic risk factors for severe otitis media (OM) in Aboriginal Australians.
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Burkholderia pseudomallei evades Nramp1 (Slc11a1)- and NADPH oxidase-mediated killing in macrophages and exhibits Nramp1-dependent virulence gene expressionHere we show that transfected macrophages stably expressing wild-type Nramp1 (Nramp1+) control the net replication of B. thailandensis, but not B. pseudomallei.
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Genetic and functional evaluation of the role of CXCR1 and CXCR2 in susceptibility to visceral leishmaniasis in north-east IndiaIL8RA and IL8RB, encoded by CXCR1 and CXCR2, are receptors for interleukin (IL)-8 and other CXC chemokines involved in chemotaxis and activation of...
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Unraveling the genetics of otitis media: From mouse to human and back againOtitis media (OM) is among the most common illnesses of early childhood, characterised by the presence of inflammation in the middle ear cavity...
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Host and parasite genomics, an Australasian perspectiveThe last decade has seen rapid advances in the genetic technology that is allowing researchers to examine host-pathogen interactions at a whole organism level.
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CXCR1 and SLC11A1 polymorphisms affect susceptibility to cutaneous leishmaniasis in Brazil: a case-control and family-based studyTo look at the interplay between PMN and macrophages in disease progression in humans we asked whether polymorphisms at genes that regulate their infiltration..
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Defining the microbes in the middle ear and upper respiratory tract that lead to recurrent ear infections – a metagenomic studyUsing the latest sequencing technology to examine the microbial composition of the middle ear & nasopharyngeal region, the site of initial colonization of OM