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Human T-lymphotropic Virus 2
A virus closely related to HTLV-I, human T-lymphotropic virus 2 (HTLV-II) shares approximately 70% genomic homology (structural similarity) with HTLV-I. It was discovered by Robert Gallo and colleagues. HTLV-2 is prevalent in Africa and among Indigenous peoples in Central and South America, as well as among drug users in Europe and North America. It can be passed down from mother to child through breast milk, and even genetically from either parent. HTLV-II entry in target cells is mediated by the glucose transporter GLUT1. Virology HTLV-1 and HTLV-2 share broad similarities in their overall genetic organization and expression pattern, but they differ substantially in their pathogenic properties. The virus utilizes the GLUT-1 and NRP1 cellular receptors for their entry, although HTLV-1, but not HTLV-2, is dependent on heparan sulfate proteoglycans. Cell-to-cell transmission is essential for the virus replication and occurs through the formation of a virological s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Virus
A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living Cell (biology), cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Viruses are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth and are the most numerous type of biological entity. Since Dmitri Ivanovsky's 1892 article describing a non-bacterial pathogen infecting tobacco plants and the discovery of the tobacco mosaic virus by Martinus Beijerinck in 1898, more than 16,000 of the millions of List of virus species, virus species have been described in detail. The study of viruses is known as virology, a subspeciality of microbiology. When infected, a host cell is often forced to rapidly produce thousands of copies of the original virus. When not inside an infected cell or in the process of infecting a cell, viruses exist in the form of independent viral particles, or ''virions'', consisting of (i) genetic material, i.e., long ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neuropilin 1
Neuropilin-1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''NRP1'' gene. In humans, the neuropilin 1 gene is located at 10p11.22. This is one of two human neuropilins. Function NRP1 is a membrane-bound coreceptor to a tyrosine kinase receptor for both vascular endothelial growth factor (for example, VEGFA) and semaphorin (for example, SEMA3A) family members. NRP1 plays versatile roles in angiogenesis, axon guidance, cell survival, migration, and invasion. upplied by OMIMref name="entrez"/> Interactions Neuropilin 1 has been shown to interact with Vascular endothelial growth factor A. Role in COVID-19 Research has shown that neuropilin 1 facilitates entry of SARS-CoV-2 into cells, making it a possible target for future antiviral drugs. Implication in cancer Neuropilin 1 has been implicated in the vascularization and progression of cancers. NRP1 expression has been shown to be elevated in a number of human patient tumor samples, including brain, prostate, breas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blood Donation
A 'blood donation'' occurs when a person voluntarily has blood drawn and used for transfusions and/or made into biopharmaceutical medications by a process called fractionation (separation of whole blood components). A donation may be of whole blood, or of specific components directly ( apheresis). Blood banks often participate in the collection process as well as the procedures that follow it. In the developed world, most blood donors are unpaid volunteers who donate blood for a community supply. In some countries, established supplies are limited and donors usually give blood when family or friends need a transfusion (directed donation). Many donors donate for several reasons, such as a form of charity, general awareness regarding the demand for blood, increased confidence in oneself, helping a personal friend or relative, and social pressure. Despite the many reasons that people donate, not enough potential donors actively donate. However, this is reversed during dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous states border Canada to the north and Mexico to the south, with the semi-exclave of Alaska in the northwest and the archipelago of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The United States asserts sovereignty over five Territories of the United States, major island territories and United States Minor Outlying Islands, various uninhabited islands in Oceania and the Caribbean. It is a megadiverse country, with the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, third-largest land area and List of countries and dependencies by population, third-largest population, exceeding 340 million. Its three Metropolitan statistical areas by population, largest metropolitan areas are New York metropolitan area, New York, Greater Los Angeles, Los Angel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epidemic
An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of hosts in a given population within a short period of time. For example, in meningococcal infections, an attack rate in excess of 15 cases per 100,000 people for two consecutive weeks is considered an epidemic. Epidemics of infectious disease are generally caused by several factors including a change in the ecology of the host population (e.g., increased stress or increase in the density of a vector species), a genetic change in the pathogen reservoir or the introduction of an emerging pathogen to a host population (by movement of pathogen or host). Generally, an epidemic occurs when host immunity to either an established pathogen or newly emerging novel pathogen is suddenly reduced below that found in the endemic equilibrium and the transmission threshold is exceeded. An epidemic may be restricted to one location; however, if it sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blood-borne Disease
A blood-borne disease is a disease that can be spread through contamination by blood and other body fluids. Blood can contain pathogens of various types, chief among which are microorganisms, like bacteria and parasites, and non-living infectious agents such as viruses. Three blood-borne pathogens in particular, all viruses, are cited as of primary concern to health workers by the CDC-NIOSH: human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. Diseases that are not usually transmitted directly by blood contact, but rather by insect or other vector, are more usefully classified as vector-borne disease, even though the causative agent can be found in blood. Vector-borne diseases include West Nile virus, zika fever and malaria. Many blood-borne diseases can also be contracted by other means, including high-risk sexual behavior or intravenous drug use. These diseases have also been identified in sports medicine. Since it is difficult to determine what pathogens any given sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polymerase Chain Reaction
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method widely used to make millions to billions of copies of a specific DNA sample rapidly, allowing scientists to amplify a very small sample of DNA (or a part of it) sufficiently to enable detailed study. PCR was invented in 1983 by American biochemist Kary Mullis at Cetus Corporation. Mullis and biochemist Michael Smith (chemist), Michael Smith, who had developed other essential ways of manipulating DNA, were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993. PCR is fundamental to many of the procedures used in genetic testing and research, including analysis of Ancient DNA, ancient samples of DNA and identification of infectious agents. Using PCR, copies of very small amounts of DNA sequences are exponentially amplified in a series of cycles of temperature changes. PCR is now a common and often indispensable technique used in medical laboratory research for a broad variety of applications including biomedical research and forensic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mycosis Fungoides
Mycosis fungoides, also known as Alibert-Bazin syndrome or granuloma fungoides, is the most common form of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. It generally affects the skin, but may progress internally over time. Symptoms include rash, tumors, skin lesions, and itchy skin. While the cause remains unclear, most cases are not hereditary. Most cases are in people over 20 years of age, and it is more common in men than women. Treatment options include sunlight exposure, ultraviolet light, topical corticosteroids, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Signs and symptoms The symptoms of mycosis fungoides are categorized into three clinical stages: the patch stage, the plaque stage, and the tumour stage. The patch stage is defined by flat, reddish patches of varying sizes that may have a wrinkled appearance. They can also look yellowish in people with darker skin. The plaque stage follows the patch stage of mycosis fungoides. It is characterized by the presence of raised lesions that appear reddis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cutaneous T Cell Lymphoma
Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) is a class of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which is a type of cancer of the immune system. Unlike most non-Hodgkin lymphomas (which are generally B-cell-related), CTCL is caused by a mutation of T cells. The cancerous T cells in the body initially migrate to the skin, causing various lesions to appear. These lesions change shape as the disease progresses, typically beginning as what appears to be a rash which can be very itchy and eventually forming plaques and tumors before spreading to other parts of the body. Signs and symptoms The presentation depends if it is mycosis fungoides or Sézary syndrome, the most common, though not the only types. Among the symptoms for the aforementioned types are: enlarged lymph nodes, an enlarged liver and spleen, and non-specific dermatitis. Cause The cause of CTCL remains largely unknown, but several external risk factors have been proposed as potential triggers and promoters of the disease. These include the u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retrovirus
A retrovirus is a type of virus that inserts a DNA copy of its RNA genome into the DNA of a host cell that it invades, thus changing the genome of that cell. After invading a host cell's cytoplasm, the virus uses its own reverse transcriptase enzyme to produce DNA from its RNA genome, the reverse of the usual pattern, thus ''retro'' (backward). The new DNA is then retroviral integration, incorporated into the host cell genome by an integrase enzyme, at which point the retroviral DNA is referred to as a provirus. The host cell then treats the viral DNA as part of its own genome, transcribing and translating the viral genes along with the cell's own genes, producing the proteins required to assemble new copies of the virus. Many retroviruses cause serious diseases in humans, other mammals, and birds. Retroviruses have many subfamilies in three basic groups. * Oncovirus, Oncoretroviruses (cancer-causing retroviruses) include human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) causing a type of leuk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viral Synapse
Viral synapse (or virological synapse) is a molecularly organized cellular junction that is similar in some aspects to immunological synapses. Many viruses including herpes simplex virus (HSV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) have been shown to instigate the formation of these junctions between the infected ("donor") and uninfected ("target") cell to allow cell-to-cell transmission. As viral synapses allow the virus to spread directly from cell to cell, they also provide a means by which the virus can escape neutralising antibody. Formation and function Formation of these synapses has been shown to involve reorientation of the cytoskeleton, which is triggered by engagement of ICAM-1 on the infected cell's surface and expression of several viral proteins. Viruses use the microtubule cytoskeleton to migrate to the viral synapse. By recruiting the receptors and viral particles at the point of contact, these synaptic structures significantly enh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
