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Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of acute respiratory infection- related hospitalisations in infants (RSVh). Most of these infants are younger than 6 months old with no known risk factors. An efficient RSVh prevention program should address both mothers and infants, relying on Non-Pharmaceutical (NPI) and Pharmaceutical Interventions (PI). This study aimed at identifying the target population for these two interventions. Methods: Laboratory-confirmed RSV-infected infants hospitalised during the first 6 months of life were enrolled from the Hospices Civils de Lyon birth cohort (2014 to 2018). Clinical variables related to pregnancy and birth (sex, month of birth, birth weight, gestational age, parity) were used for descriptive epidemiology, multivariate logistic regression, and predictive score development. Results: Overall, 616 cases of RSVh in 45,648 infants were identified. Being born before the epidemic season, prematurity, and multiparity were independent predictors of RSVh. Infants born in January or June to August with prematurity and multiparity, and those born in September or December with only one other risk factor (prematurity or multiparity) were identified as moderate-risk, identifying the mothers as candidates for a first-level NPI prevention program. Infants born in September or December with prematurity and multiparity, and those born in October or November were identified as high-risk, identifying the mothers and infants as candidates for a second-level (NPI and PI) intervention. Conclusions: It is possible to determine predictors of RSVh at birth, allowing early enrollment of the target population in a two-level RSV prevention intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the approaches by which the scientific community is seeking to cure HIV is the use of therapeutic vaccination. Previous studies have highlighted the importance of the virus-specific CD8+ T cell cytotoxic responses for the immune control of HIV and have oriented research on vaccine constructs based on CTL epitopes from circulating HIV-1 strains. The clinical trials with therapeutic vaccines to date have had limited success likely due to (i) a discrepancy between archived CTL epitopes in the viral reservoir and those in circulating viruses before antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation and (ii) the lack of strong affinity between the selected CTL epitopes and the HLA grooves for presentation to CD8+ cells. To overcome these limitations, we launched the Provir/Latitude 45 study to identify conserved CTL epitopes in archived HIV-1 DNA according to the HLA class I alleles of aviremic patients, most of whom are under ART. The near full-length genomes or Gag, Pol and Nef regions of proviral DNA were sequenced by Sanger and/or Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). The HLA-A and B alleles were defined by NGS or molecular analysis. The TuTuGenetics software, which moves a sliding window of 8 to 10 amino acids through the amino acid alignment, was combined with the Immune Epitope Data Base (IEDB) to automatically calculate the theoretical binding affinity of identified epitopes to the HLA alleles for each individual. We identified 15 conserved epitopes in Pol (11), Gag (3), and Nef (1) according to their potential presentation by the dominant HLA-A and B alleles and now propose to use the corresponding conserved peptides in a multi-epitopic vaccine (HLA-fitted VAC, HFVAC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since January 16(th) 2010, the French legislation requires that the medical laboratories must be accredited according to ISO 15189 standards. This concerned all the biological medical technics, including molecular biology technics. In this work, we described the validation steps by real time quantitative PCR of L858R mutation in EGFR gene, frequently detected in non-small lung cancers (NSCLC). Epidermal growth factor - tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) are authorized in Europe for the treatment of metastatic NSCLC after failure of, at least one, prior chemotherapy. Thus, in view of accreditation of this analysis, we have used the recommendation of the COFRAC (Comité français d'accréditation) and INCa (Institut national du cancer). Several parameters have been tested, such as the primers, the limit of detection, and the sensitivity and specificity of the method. In addition, a risk study has been evaluated. Although long and fastidious, the method of validation is required to perform analysis in optimal conditions to guaranty optimal results for the patients.