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Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV) transmission mostly occurs through the genital and intestinal mucosae. Although HIV-1 transmission has been extensively investigated, gaps remain in understanding the initial steps of HIV entry through the colonic mucosa. We previously showed that HIV can selectively trigger mononuclear phagocytes (MNP) to migrate within colonic epithelial cells to sample virions. Mucosal exposure to human seminal plasma (HSP), rich in pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines and growth factors, may as well induce alterations of the colonic mucosa and recruit immune cells, hence, affecting pathogen sampling and transmission., Methods: Here, we studied the role of HSP on the paracellular intestinal permeability by analyzing the distribution of two proteins known to play a key role in controlling the intestinal barrier integrity, namely the tight junctions-associated junctional adhesion molecule (JAM-A) and the adherents junction associated protein E-cadherin (E-CAD), by immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy. Also, we evaluated if HSP promotes the recruitment of MNP cells, specifically, the CD11c and CD64 positive MNPs, to the apical side of the human colonic mucosa. At this scope, HSP of HIV-infected and uninfected individuals with known fertility status was tested for cytokines, chemokines and growth factors concentration and used in an ex vivo polarized colonic tissue culture system to mimic as closely as possible the physiological process., Results: HSP showed statistically significant differences in cytokines and chemokines concentrations between the three groups of donors, i.e. HIV infected, or uninfected fertile or randomly identified. Nevertheless, we showed that in the ex vivo tissue culture HSP in general, neither affected the morphological structure of the colonic mucosa nor modulated the paracellular intestinal permeability. Interestingly, CD11c+ MNP cells migrated to the apical surface of the colonic epithelium regardless, if incubated with HIV-infected or -uninfected HSPs, while CD64+ MNP cells, did not change their distribution within the colonic mucosa., Discussion: In conclusion, even if HSP did not perturb the integrity of the human colonic mucosa, it affected the migration of a specific subset of MNPs that express CD11c towards the apical side of the colonic mucosa, which in turn may be involved in pathogen sampling., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Baratella, Iannone, Cavarelli, Foglieni, Viganò, Moog, Elmore, Nozza, Alfano, Salonia, Dispinseri and Scarlatti.)

Understanding how antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 evolve during infection may provide important insight into therapeutic approaches and vaccination for COVID-19. Here we profile the antibody responses of 162 COVID-19 symptomatic patients in the COVID-BioB cohort followed longitudinally for up to eight months from symptom onset to find SARS-CoV-2 neutralization, as well as antibodies either recognizing SARS-CoV-2 spike antigens and nucleoprotein, or specific for S2 antigen of seasonal beta-coronaviruses and hemagglutinin of the H1N1 flu virus. The presence of neutralizing antibodies within the first weeks from symptoms onset correlates with time to a negative swab result (p = 0.002), while the lack of neutralizing capacity correlates with an increased risk of a fatal outcome (p = 0.008). Neutralizing antibody titers progressively drop after 5-8 weeks but are still detectable up to 8 months in the majority of recovered patients regardless of age or co-morbidities, with IgG to spike antigens providing the best correlate of neutralization. Antibody responses to seasonal coronaviruses are temporarily boosted, and parallel those to SARS-CoV-2 without dampening the specific response or worsening disease progression. Our results thus suggest compromised immune responses to the SARS-CoV-2 spike to be a major trait of COVID-19 patients with critical conditions, and thereby inform on the planning of COVID-19 patient care and therapy prioritization.

Human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is the causative agent of adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) and HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) in a subset of infected subjects. Two viral proteins, Tax-1 and HTLV-1 basic leucine zipper factor (HBZ), play important roles in the pathogenesis of both diseases. We recently demonstrated that HBZ, previously considered a nuclear protein, is exclusively localized in the cytoplasm of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of HAM/TSP patients. Here, the analysis of a larger panel of HAM/TSP cases confirmed that HBZ is a cytoplasmic protein, while Tax-1 preferentially localized in the cytoplasm with fewer speckle-like dots in the nucleus. More importantly, here we report for the first time that HBZ, when expressed in asymptomatic carriers (AC), is also confined in the cytoplasm. Similarly, Tax-1 was preferentially expressed in the cytoplasm in a significant proportion of AC. Interestingly, in both HAM/TSP and AC patients, the expression of HBZ and Tax-1 was rarely found in the same cell. We observed only few cases coexpressing the two oncoprotein in a very limited number of cells. In representative AC and HAM/TSP patients, cells expressing cytoplasmic HBZ were almost exclusively found in the CD4+ T cell compartment and very rarely in CD8+ T cells. Interestingly, at least in the cases analyzed, the expression of thymocite-expressed molecule involved in selection (THEMIS) is dispensable for the cytoplasmic localization of HBZ in both AC and HAM/TSP. The study of an HTLV-1-immortalized cell line established from an HAM/TSP patient confirmed HBZ as a resident cytoplasmic protein not shuttling between the cytoplasm and nucleus. These results extend our previous observation on the dichotomy of HBZ localization between HAM/TSP and ATL, pointing to the exclusive either cytoplasmic or nuclear localization in the two diseased states, respectively. Moreover, they show a rather selective expression in distinct cells of either HBZ or Tax-1. The unprecedented observation that HBZ is expressed only in the cytoplasm in AC strongly suggests a progressive modification of HBZ localization during the disease states associated to HTLV-1 infection. Future studies will clarify whether the distinct HBZ intracellular localization is a marker or a causative event of disease evolution.

Human T cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is an oncogenic human retrovirus that has infected 10-15 million people worldwide. After a long latency, 3-5% of infected individuals will develop either a severe malignancy of CD4+ T cells, known as Adult T-cell Leukemia (ATL) or a chronic and progressive inflammatory disease of the nervous system designated Tropical Spastic Paraparesis/HTLV-1-Associated Myelopathy (HAM/TSP). The precise mechanism behind HTLV-1 pathogenesis still remains elusive. Two viral regulatory proteins, Tax-1 and HTLV-1 bZIP factor (HBZ) are thought to play a critical role in HTLV-1-associated diseases. Tax-1 is mainly involved in the onset of neoplastic transformation and in elicitation of the host's inflammatory responses; its expression may be lost during cell clonal proliferation and oncogenesis. Conversely, HBZ remains constantly expressed in all patients with ATL, playing a role in the proliferation and maintenance of leukemic cells. Recent studies have shown that the subcellular distribution of HBZ protein differs in the two pathologies: it is nuclear with a speckled-like pattern in leukemic cells and is cytoplasmic in cells from HAM/TSP patients. Thus, HBZ expression and distribution could be critical in the progression of HTLV-1 infection versus the leukemic state or the inflammatory disease. Here, we reviewed recent findings on the role of HBZ in HTLV-1 related diseases, highlighting the new perspectives open by the possibility of studying the physiologic expression of endogenous protein in primary infected cells.

HTLV-1 is the causative agent of a severe form of adult T cell leukemia/Lymphoma (ATL), and of a chronic progressive neuromyelopathy designated HTLV-1 associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). Two important HTLV-1-encoded proteins, Tax-1 and HBZ, play crucial roles in the generation and maintenance of the oncogenic process. Less information is instead available on the molecular and cellular mechanisms leading to HAM/TSP. More importantly, no single specific biomarker has been described that unambiguously define the status of HAM/TSP. Here we report for the first time the finding that HBZ, described until now as an exclusive nuclear protein both in chronically infected and in ATL cells, is instead exclusively localized in the cytoplasm of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients suffering of HAM/TSP. Interestingly, at the single cell level, HBZ and Tax-1 proteins are never found co-expressed in the same cell, suggesting the existence of mechanisms of expression uncoupling of these two important HTLV-1 viral products in HAM/TSP patients. Cells expressing cytoplasmic HBZ were almost exclusively found in the CD4+ T cell compartment that was not, at least in a representative HAM/TSP patient, expressing the CD25 marker. Less than 1 percent CD8+ T cells were fond positive for HBZ, while B cells and NK cells were found negative for HBZ in HAM/TSP patients. Our results identify the cytoplasmic localization of HBZ in HAM/TSP patient as a possible biomarker of this rather neglected tropical disease, and raise important hypotheses on the role of HBZ in the pathogenesis of the neuromyelopathy associated to HTLV-1 infection., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist

Climbing fibers (CFs) originating in the inferior olive (IO) constitute one of the main inputs to the cerebellum. In the mammalian cerebellar cortex each of them climbs into the dendritic tree of up to 10 Purkinje cells (PCs) where they make hundreds of synaptic contacts and elicit the so-called all-or-none complex spikes controlling the output. While it has been proven that CFs contact molecular layer interneurons (MLIs) via spillover mechanisms, it remains to be elucidated to what extent CFs contact the main type of interneuron in the granular layer, i.e., the Golgi cells (GoCs). This issue is particularly relevant, because direct contacts would imply that CFs can also control computations at the input stage of the cerebellar cortical network. Here, we performed a systematic morphological investigation of labeled CFs and GoCs at the light microscopic level following their path and localization through the neuropil in both the granular and molecular layer. Whereas in the molecular layer the appositions of CFs to PCs and MLIs were prominent and numerous, those to cell-bodies and dendrites of GoCs in both the granular layer and molecular layer were virtually absent. Our results argue against the functional significance of direct synaptic contacts between CFs and interneurons at the input stage, but support those at the output stage.