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Since the 1980s, the volunteers of the ornithological group of the Nature Midi-Pyrénées association have been monitoring the Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) population in the Ariège Pyrenees and in the Toulouse agglomeration. The data collected over the last 30 years show stability of the Ariège population: little variation has been observed in brood size, occupation rate of the sites or reproductive success. Only the increasing number of known nesting sites is significant, due to better knowledge of the territory by observers over time. In 2017, the breeding population was estimated to be 24 pairs. Urban monitoring proved the presence of individuals in passage, wintering or resident in Toulouse. Since 2002, downtown Toulouse has been visited by several individuals of both sexes and interactions between males and females have been observed since 2005. Despite the multiplicity of possible eyries or nesting sites in Toulouse, and the massive presence of Peregrine Falcons and dedicated bird watchers, no case of breeding has been reported. In addition to monitoring, measures to protect and support the presence of the species have been put in place. In the Pyrenees, in the light of the growth of human activities near nesting sites, some sites are now subject to official protective measures, coupled with constant vigilance and awareness. In Toulouse, to encourage the breeding of the individuals present, two nesting boxes were installed in 2016, on two buildings frequented by a female and a male. In 2017, a first attempt to reproduce in one of these installations confirmed the value of such developments in urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enable serodiscordant couples to reproduce while minimizing the risk of infecting the female partner and to demonstrate the feasibility of including these couples in an insemination program.Prospective follow-up study.Ambulatory IUIs.Fifty-six HIV-1–serodiscordant couples with a male infected partner.Sperm cell separation by the gradient density method followed by the swim-up method, virological detection, and IUI after ovarian stimulation.Pregnancy rate, HIV-1 test, and p24 antigenemia in women.Two hundred thirteen IUIs were performed, and 37 pregnancies occurred, resulting in 33 births and 2 ongoing pregnancies. Fifty percent of couples have a child. No women were infected.Our study demonstrates the efficiency of an IUI program with prepared and virologically tested spermatozoa in serodiscordant couples with an HIV-1–infected male partner, allowing the couples to have children without transmission of the virus to the female partner. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Examines the molecular characteristics of HIV-1 subtypes in Tunisia. Implications of the genetic diversity of HIV-1; Information on the geographic distribution of various HIV-1 subtypes; Details on the predominance of subtype B HIV.

In this paper, the near-state pulse width modulation (NSPWM), adapted to be used in dual-voltage source inverter (VSI) fed open-end load, is introduced primarily aiming to appreciably minimize the voltage total harmonic distortion (THD). Within the framework of the proposed method, the active time of pulses at the second inverter is relatively adjusted within switching interval (compared to the first VSI). The phase voltage harmonics are formulated for dual-inverter modulated by NSPWM; then, optimal adjustment is identified via a three-dimensional curve of phase voltage THD versus modulation index (MI) and phase angle displacement (PAD). Due to the limitation of MI in NSPWM, the desired output voltage is synthesized with modifying not only MI but also PAD between references of two VSIs. Furthermore, NSPWM inherently takes advantage of better efficiency compared to conventional space vector modulation due to switching only two phases within an interval (by clamping one phase to positive/negative dc-rail). The dual-VSI supplied by two isolated dc sources is assembled in the laboratory to experimentally evaluate the THD reduction feature of the proposed method; also, the simulation results obtained by means of a MATLAB/Simulink environment show close agreement with experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, the near-state pulsewidth modulation (NSPWM), adapted to be implemented in dual-voltage-source inverter (VSI) fed open-end motor, is proposed with the aim of mitigating low-order harmonics (which lead to current total harmonic distortion (THD) minimization). The following two proposed methods are studied in detail: 1) fixing phase angle displacement (PAD) between two VSIs to 120° while adjusting the modulation index (MI); and 2) fixing MI to the predetermined value (wherein low-order harmonics are highly mitigated) while adjusting PAD. Furthermore, the proposed approaches enhance efficiency by limiting the number of commutations within the switching interval. The paper also presents the mathematical approaches to accurately determine low-order harmonic components and switching losses for dual-VSI structure. The experimental setup, including dual-VSI and open-end induction motor, is assembled in the laboratory to evaluate performance of the proposed method. Finally, the simulation results, carried out in the MATLAB/Simulink environment, are found to be in close agreement with experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, angular modulation index (AMI) implemented through a modified space vector modulation for the dual voltage source inverters (VSI) is proposed with the primarily aiming to reduce switching losses. The desired voltage across the load is synthesized by applying appropriate phase-angle displacement between space vector references. The proposed approach avoids the use of a dc/dc boost converter (which imposes loss and weight/price penalty to duplicate the dc-link voltage) and results to be particularly suitable for electrical/hybrid vehicle applications. Namely, the application of saving energy to keep driving has been identified as major concern. Hence, this work focuses on the strategy to enhance efficiency. The principles of the proposed controlling method and switching loss, which is reduced at least by 50%, are theoretically evaluated. This paper proposes a pioneering mathematical approach to correctly determine total harmonic distortion (THD) value of the voltage/current for the dual-VSI structure. Furthermore, simulation and experimental results prove that the proposed method insures benefits in terms of common-mode voltage, THD of the voltage, and switching loss reduction. The dual-VSI prototype supplying 1.5-kW induction motor is assembled in the laboratory to experimentally evaluate performance of the proposed method. Also, the simulation results carried out through MATLAB/Simulink environment are given to confirm performance of this easy-to-implement and high-efficient method. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We investigated the effects of dengue virus (DENV) on semen using samples collected 7, 15, 30, 60, and 90 days after symptom onset from 10 infected volunteers on Réunion Island. We assessed characteristics of semen and reproductive hormones and isolated motile spermatozoa from semen. We assayed semen for DENV using reverse transcription PCR and searched for DENV RNA by virus isolation in Vero E6 cell cultures. Four volunteers had >1 DENV RNA-positive semen samples; 2 volunteers had DENV RNA-positive semen at day 15 and 1 at day 30. No motile sperm were DENV positive. After exposure to positive semen, few Vero E6 cells stained positive for DENV antigens, indicating low levels of replicative virus. We found DENV had shorter duration in semen than in blood. These findings support the possibilities that DENV is sexually transmissible for a short period after acute dengue illness and that acute dengue induces reversible alterations in sperm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We tested whole-blood and plasma samples from immunocompetent patients who had had benign Zika virus infections and found that Zika virus RNA persisted in whole blood substantially longer than in plasma. This finding may have implications for diagnosis of acute symptomatic and asymptomatic infections and for testing of blood donations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Severe and protracted monkeypox virus infection can occur in a patient with AIDS. • In this setting, tecovirimat might improve symptoms and decrease viral replication. • Randomized controlled trials in humans are underway. • Patients who are diagnosed with monkeypox should be routinely tested for HIV. A patient aged 28 years who is immunocompromised and living with HIV/AIDS became infected with the monkeypox virus (MPXV). His clinical condition deteriorated for 37 days, with fever, skin lesions, and diarrhea before going to the infectious diseases department, where his severe, protracted infection was treated with tecovirimat for 14 days. His condition rapidly improved, and the skin lesions decreased, as did the MPXV loads, with no adverse events. This case indicates that tecovirimat might be effective for treating patients who are immunocompromised and are infected with MPXV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blood samples from patients with plasma HIV-1 RNA <20 copies/ml for more than 2 years were studied. Significant decreases in total and integrated HIV-1 DNA were observed during the first 15 months of suppressive therapy before the concentrations became stable. Clonal analysis of HIV-1 pol demonstrated that the proportions of resistance mutations in DNA sequences after 2 years were lower than those in baseline DNA and RNA sequences. The changes in the clonal composition of HIV-1 env populations in three patients with evidence of changes in HIV-1 pol populations indicated a shift from predominantly R5-like viruses to predominantly X4-like viruses in two patients and the persistence of predominantly X4-like viruses in the third. Our analyses indicate the reemergence of ancestral sequences from long-lived cells or the residual production of wild-type virus from anatomic sites with limited access to antiretroviral drugs and the preferential infection of cells expressing CXCR4. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

HIV-1 was mainly CCR5 tropic in recent seroconverters. We analyzed the coreceptor use in 239 primary HIV-1 infections (PHIs) between 1996 and 2014 using a validated recombinant virus phenotypic entry assay. CXCR4-using viruses were detected in 8.3%, 3.8%, and 6.1% of PHIs from 1996 to 2004, 2005 to 2009, and 2010 to 2014, respectively. The presence of CXCR4-using viruses was associated with the virological failure of antiretroviral treatment initiated during PHI (odds ratio, 7.9; 95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 56.5). The phenotypic tropism assay data show that the prevalence of X4 tropic transmitted viruses was stable in this French cohort of PHIs between 1996 and 2014. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assessed Zika virus RNA and select cytokine levels in semen, blood, and plasma samples from an infected patient in South America. Viral RNA was detected in semen >2 months after viremia clearance; cytokine profiles differed in semen and plasma. After viremia, Zika virus appears to become compartmentalized in the male reproductive tract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL), a T-cell neoplasm caused by human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1), develops in the majority of cases in individuals who were infected with HTLV-1 as young children, by their mother during prolonged breastfeeding. We report the case of a Caucasian French man, whose parents were HTLV-1-seronegative and who developed ATLL after HTLV-1 sexual transmission by a Cameroonian woman. This hypothesis was corroborated by genotyping of the patient's virus, which revealed an HTLV-1B strain, found only in Central Africa, especially in Cameroon. Thus, ATLL may develop after HTLV-1 infection during adulthood, outside breastfeeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depletion of CD4+ T cells from the gut occurs rapidly during acute HIV-1 infection. This has been linked to systemic inflammation and disease progression as a result of translocation of microbial products from the gut lumen into the bloodstream. Combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) substantially restores CD4+ T cell numbers in peripheral blood, but the gut compartment remains largely depleted of such cells for poorly understood reasons. Here, we show that a lack of recruitment of CD4+ T cells to the gut could be involved in the incomplete mucosal immune reconstitution of cART-treated HIV-infected individuals. We investigated the trafficking of CD4+ T cells expressing the gut-homing receptors CCR9 and integrin α4β7 and found that many of these T cells remained in the circulation rather than repopulating the mucosa of the small intestine. This is likely because expression of the CCR9 ligand CCL25 was lower in the small intestine of HIV-infected individuals. The defective gut homing of CCR9+β7+ CD4+ T cells -- a population that we found included most gut-homing Th17 cells, which have a critical role in mucosal immune defense -- correlated with high plasma concentrations of markers of mucosal damage, microbial translocation, and systemic T cell activation. Our results thus describe alterations in CD4+ T cell homing to the gut that could prevent efficient mucosal immune reconstitution in HIV-infected individuals despite effective cART. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To study sperm parameters in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 and to analyze mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in sperm according to the HIV treatment. Design: Observational study. Setting: University-affiliated teaching hospital. Patient(s): Thirty-two patients infected with HIV-1 and 31 noninfected healthy men provided semen samples. Intervention(s): None. Main Outcome Measure(s): After DNA extraction, mtDNA level was assessed using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (LightCycler) in whole semen and in selected spermatozoa from 90% density centrifugation gradients. For each sample, mtDNA and β-globin gene sequences were amplified and PCR products were quantified. The mtDNA-to-β-globin ratio expressed the number of mtDNA copies per cell. Result(s): Compared with the control group, several sperm parameters were altered in patients with HIV. The number of mtDNA copies per cell in whole semen was increased in HIV-infected patients (6.3 ± 6.3 vs. 3.5 ± 3.2). However, there was no statistically significant difference in mtDNA copy number in the spermatozoa obtained after density gradient centrifugation. The number of nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTI) taken by patients during treatment significantly influenced the mtDNA level in sperm (1 NRTI 7.6 ± 8.1, 2 NRTIs 7.0 ± 5.1, 3 NRTIs 3.2 ± 2.1). Conclusion(s): Using a specific method to measure sperm mtDNA, we demonstrated a decrease of mtDNA copies in spermatozoa after use of NRTIs with known mitochondrial toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Persistence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in patients who cleared HCV is still debated. Occult HCV infection is described as the presence of detectable HCV RNA in liver or peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with undetectable plasma HCV-RNA by conventional PCR assays. We have assessed the persistence of HCV in 26 kidney-transplant patients, followed up for 10.5 years (range 2–16), after HCV elimination while on hemodialysis. If HCV really did persist, arising out of the loss of immune control caused by institution of the regimen of immunosuppressive drugs after kidney transplantation, HCV reactivation would have taken place. Their immunosuppression relied on calcineurin inhibitors (100%), and/or steroids (62%), and/or antimetabolites (94%). An induction therapy, given to 22 patients, relied on rabbit antithymocyte globulin (59%) or anti-IL2-receptor blockers (32%). All patients had undetectable HCV RNA as ascertained by several conventional tests. At the last follow-up, no residual HCV RNA was detected in the five liver biopsies, the 26 plasma, and in the 37 nonstimulated and 24 stimulated PBMCs tested with an ultrasensitive RT-PCR assay (detection limit, 2 IU/ml). No biochemical or virologic relapse was seen during follow-up. The absence of HCV relapse in formerly HCV-infected immunocompromised patients suggests the complete eradication of HCV after its elimination while on dialysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which examines the HIV type 1 coreceptor usage by genotypic algorithms that is built from the subtype B virus. The study performed a recombinant virus phenotypic entry assay to 52 patients infected with HIV-1 subtype C virus that were recruited in Malawi and another 21 patients recruited in France. It shows that the patient's virological and clinical characteristics were not significantly different according to CCR5 or CXCR4 virus coreceptor usage.

Background: The clinical significance and cellular sources of residual human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) production despite suppressive combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) remain unclear and the effect of low-level viremia on T-cell homeostasis is still debated. Methodology/Principal Findings: We characterized the recently produced residual viruses in the plasma and short-lived blood monocytes of 23 patients with various immunological responses to sustained suppressive cART. We quantified the residual HIV-1 in the plasma below 50 copies/ml, and in the CD14high CD16- and CD16+ monocyte subsets sorted by flow cytometry, and predicted coreceptor usage by genotyping V3 env sequences. We detected residual viremia in the plasma of 8 of 10 patients with poor CD4+ T-cell reconstitution in response to cART and in only 5 of 13 patients with good CD4+ Tcell reconstitution. CXCR4-using viruses were frequent among the recently produced viruses in the plasma and in the main CD14high CD162 monocyte subset. Finally, the residual viremia was correlated with persistent CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell activation in patients with poor immune reconstitution. Conclusions: Low-level viremia could result from the release of archived viruses from cellular reservoirs and/or from ongoing virus replication in some patients. The compartmentalization of the viruses between the plasma and the blood monocytes suggests at least two origins of residual virus production during effective cART. CXCR4-using viruses might be produced preferentially in patients on cART. Our results also suggest that low-level HIV-1 production in some patients may contribute to persistent immune dysfunction despite cART. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: To date, assisted reproductive technology (ART) with sperm washing is offered to serodiscordant couples with an human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) infected male partner in order to have a child while reducing the risk of transmission to the woman. However, ART programmes are not possible if the man is azoospermic. We report here the first birth following intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) using frozen epididymal spermatozoa obtained after surgical sperm retrieval in a HIV-1 infected man with obstructive azoospermia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Comments on a study concerning the desire of HIV-positive men and women to have children. Demographic characteristics of HIV-positive persons; Artificial insemination of HIV-infected person and an uninfected partner.

Investigates the potential of HIV-1 genetic evolution to lead to changes in virus coreceptor usage during highly active antiretroviral therapy. Role of HIV-1 coreceptor usage in virus tropism and pathogenesis; Variations in the clinical course of HIV-1 infection among patients; Impetus to the gradual emergence of CXCR4 variants in cellular reservoirs.

The double-stranded RNA-activated protein kinase-binding domain (PKRbd) of the NS5A gene of hepatitis C virus (HCV) was studied by the cloning and sequencing method, in HCV-infected patients who had a primary resistance to treatment with interferon (IFN)-α (early nonresponders). Patients whose virus load decreased by 0.5 log (early responders) were similarly analyzed. In the 2 groups, the PKRbd evolved similarly over the first 24 h. Selection of resistant HCV variants is unlikely to explain primary re- sistance to IFN-α. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the conventional genotyping of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 from a drug-resistant genotype. Use of an ultrasensitive real-time polymerase chain reaction; Detection of minority resistant populations in the plasma of patients; Combination of nucleoside and nonnucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors.

Studies hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication and liver fibrosis progression in renal transplant recipients. Serum HCV RNA concentration; HCV genotype; Relationship between liver fibrosis progression and HCV quasi-species development.

: ObjectiveTo study seminal excretion of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) during 4 years of follow-up in an HIV-1–infected patient, the relationship between high viral excretion and inflammatory status of semen, and the efficiency of sperm processing methods in obtaining spermatozoa with undetectable RNA and proviral DNA levels.: DesignCase report.: SettingUniversity hospital and research group on human fertility.: Patient(s)One HIV-1–infected patient.: Intervention(s)Paired blood and semen samples were obtained during 4 years of follow-up.: Main outcome measure(s)CD4 cell count; blood and seminal plasma viral load; and HIV-1 RNA and proviral DNA in different cell fractions obtained during sperm processing, as measured by the density gradient method and the swim-up method; sperm parameters; and polymorphonuclear granulocyte count.: Result(s)Shedding of HIV-1 in semen was intermittent. The highest seminal viral loads were associated with a markedly increased polymorphonuclear granulocyte count, which reflects inflammation of the genital tract. Spermatozoa with undetectable levels of HIV-1 RNA or DNA were obtained regardless of the viral load in semen.: Conclusion(s)In an HIV-1–infected man with intermittent seminal viral excretion, sperm processing was effective in obtaining spermatozoa without detectable HIV-1 genomes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: To report the effects of ribavirin plus pegylated interferon on semen parameters and sperm DNA integrity in a man given treatment for hepatitis C.Design: Case report.Setting: University-affiliated teaching hospital.Intervention(s): None.Patient(s): A 37-year-old man given treatment with ribavirin and pegylated interferon for hepatitis C.Main Outcome Measure(s): Semen parameters (sperm count, motility, round cells), sperm protamination state measured by sperm chromatin structure assay, and sperm DNA fragmentation measured by terminal uridine nick-end labeling assay.Result(s): The percentage of progressive spermatozoa and the number of motile sperm per ejaculate decreased during treatment. The round cell/spermatozoa ratio, which reflects spermatogenic abnormality, increased from 2.6% +/- 1.4% to 23.6% +/- 13.0% during treatment and returned to baseline value 4 months later. Moreover, the sperm DNA fragmentation index (as measured by sperm chromatin structure assay) increased very markedly during treatment (from 14.5% before to 69.2% at 7 months of treatment) and remained elevated 8 months later.Conclusion(s): This study reports for the first time not only quantitative but also qualitative alterations of spermatogenesis with DNA packaging abnormalities and emphasizes the need for prospective clinical studies. While the results of other studies are awaited, the alterations that persisted 8 months after treatment argue for a longer contraception period after treatment discontinuation in men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 9.2-kb sequence from a hepatitis C virus (HCV) strain found in southwest France was compared to sequences from reference strains in HCV sequence databases. We found a recombinant virus with genotype 2 at the 5′ end and genotype 5 at the 3′ end. The crossover point was located between genes NS2 and NS3. Recombination between HCV genotypes must now be considered in studies on HCV epidemiology and evolution and in predictions of the virus response to antiviral therapy. Knowing the location of the recombination point may also be useful for constructing infectious chimeric viruses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reasons for poor CD4+ T-cell recovery in some human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected subjects despite effective highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) remain unclear. We recently reported that CXCR4-using (X4) HIV-1 could be gradually selected in cellular reservoirs during sustained HAART. Because of the differential expression of HIV-1 coreceptors CCR5 and CXCR4 on distinct T-cell subsets, the residual replication of R5 and X4 viruses could have different impacts on T-cell homeostasis during immune reconstitution on HAART. We examined this hypothesis and the mechanisms of CD4+ T-cell restoration by comparing the virological and immunological features of 15 poor and 15 good immunological responders to HAART. We found a high frequency of X4 viruses in the poor immunological responders. But the levels of intrathymic proliferation of the two groups were similar regardless of whether they were infected by R5 or X4 virus. The frequency of recent thymic emigrants in the poor immunological responders was also similar to that found in the good immunological responders, despite their reduced numbers of naïve CD4+ T cells. Our data, rather, suggest that the naïve T-cell compartment is drained by a high rate of mature naïve cell loss in the periphery due to bystander apoptosis or activation-induced differentiation. X4 viruses could play a role in the depletion of naïve T cells in poor immunological responders to HAART by triggering persistent T-cell activation and bystander apoptosis via gp120-CXCR4 interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]