Visualization of HIV-1 Interactions with Penile and Foreskin Epithelia: Clues for Female-to-Male HIV Transmission

To gain insight into female-to-male HIV sexual transmission and how male circumcision protects against this mode of transmission, we visualized HIV-1 interactions with foreskin and penile tissues in ex vivo tissue culture and in vivo rhesus macaque models utilizing epifluorescent microscopy. 12 foreskin and 14 cadaveric penile specimens were cultured with R5-tropic photoactivatable (PA)-GFP HIV-1 for 4 or 24 hours. Tissue cryosections were immunofluorescently imaged for epithelial and immune cell markers. Images were analyzed for total virions, proportion of penetrators, depth of virion penetration, as well as immune cell counts and depths in the tissue. We visualized individual PA virions breaching penile epithelial surfaces in the explant and macaque model. Using kernel density estimated probabilities of localizing a virion or immune cell at certain tissue depths revealed that interactions between virions and cells were more likely to occur in the inner foreskin or glans penis (from local or cadaveric donors, respectively). Using statistical models to account for repeated measures and zero-inflated datasets, we found no difference in total virions visualized at 4 hours between inner and outer foreskins from local donors. At 24 hours, there were more virions in inner as compared to outer foreskin (0.0495 +/− 0.0154 and 0.0171 +/− 0.0038 virions/image, p = 0.001). In the cadaveric specimens, we observed more virions in inner foreskin (0.0507 +/− 0.0079 virions/image) than glans tissue (0.0167 +/− 0.0033 virions/image, p<0.001), but a greater proportion was seen penetrating uncircumcised glans tissue (0.0458 +/− 0.0188 vs. 0.0151 +/− 0.0100 virions/image, p = 0.099) and to significantly greater mean depths (29.162 +/− 3.908 vs. 12.466 +/− 2.985 μm). Our in vivo macaque model confirmed that virions can breach penile squamous epithelia in a living model. In summary, these results suggest that the inner foreskin and glans epithelia may be important sites for HIV transmission in uncircumcised men.     

Fleshing Out Vulnerability

In the literature on medical ethics, it is generally admitted that vulnerable persons or groups deserve special attention, care or protection. One can define vulnerable persons as those having a greater likelihood of being wronged – that is, of being denied adequate satisfaction of certain legitimate claims. The conjunction of these two points entails what we call the Special Protection Thesis. It asserts that persons with a greater likelihood of being denied adequate satisfaction of their legitimate claims deserve special attention, care or protection. Such a thesis remains vague, however, as long as we do not know what legitimate claims are. This article aims at dispelling this vagueness by exploring what claims we have in relation to health care – thus fleshing out a claim‐based conception of vulnerability. We argue that the Special Protection Thesis must be enriched as follows: If individual or group X has a greater likelihood of being denied adequate satisfaction of some of their legitimate claims to (i) physical integrity, (ii) autonomy, (iii) freedom, (iv) social provision, (v) impartial quality of government, (vi) social bases of self‐respect or (vii) communal belonging, then X deserves special attention, care or protection. With this improved understanding of vulnerability, vulnerability talk in healthcare ethics can escape vagueness and serve as an adequate basis for practice.     

Brain Transcriptional and Epigenetic Associations with Autism

BackgroundAutism is a common neurodevelopmental syndrome. Numerous rare genetic etiologies are reported; most cases are idiopathic.Conclusions/SignificanceThis work highlights two largely unrecognized molecular pathophysiological themes in autism and suggests differing molecular bases for autism behavioral endophenotypes.     

Alterations of Dermal Connective Tissue Collagen in Diabetes: Molecular Basis of Aged-Appearing Skin

Alterations of the collagen, the major structural protein in skin, contribute significantly to human skin connective tissue aging. As aged-appearing skin is more common in diabetes, here we investigated the molecular basis of aged-appearing skin in diabetes. Among all known human matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), diabetic skin shows elevated levels of MMP-1 and MMP-2. Laser capture microdissection (LCM) coupled real-time PCR indicated that elevated MMPs in diabetic skin were primarily expressed in the dermis. Furthermore, diabetic skin shows increased lysyl oxidase (LOX) expression and higher cross-linked collagens. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) further indicated that collagen fibrils were fragmented/disorganized, and key mechanical properties of traction force and tensile strength were increased in diabetic skin, compared to intact/well-organized collagen fibrils in non-diabetic skin. In in vitro tissue culture system, multiple MMPs including MMP-1 and MM-2 were induced by high glucose (25 mM) exposure to isolated primary human skin dermal fibroblasts, the major cells responsible for collagen homeostasis in skin. The elevation of MMPs and LOX over the years is thought to result in the accumulation of fragmented and cross-linked collagen, and thus impairs dermal collagen structural integrity and mechanical properties in diabetes. Our data partially explain why old-looking skin is more common in diabetic patients.     

Transcontinental Phylogeography of the Daphnia pulex Species Complex

Daphnia pulex is quickly becoming an attractive model species in the field of ecological genomics due to the recent release of its complete genome sequence, a wide variety of new genomic resources, and a rich history of ecological data. Sequences of the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 genes were used to assess the global phylogeography of this species, and to further elucidate its phylogenetic relationship to other members of the Daphnia pulex species complex. Using both newly acquired and previously published data, we analyzed 398 individuals from collections spanning five continents. Eleven strongly supported lineages were found within the D. pulex complex, and one lineage in particular, panarctic D. pulex, has very little phylogeographical structure and a near worldwide distribution. Mismatch distribution, haplotype network, and population genetic analyses are compatible with a North American origin for this lineage and subsequent spatial expansion in the Late Pleistocene. In addition, our analyses suggest that dispersal between North and South America of this and other species in the D. pulex complex has occurred multiple times, and is predominantly from north to south. Our results provide additional support for the evolutionary relationships of the eleven main mitochondrial lineages of the D. pulex complex. We found that the well-studied panarctic D. pulex is present on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Despite being geographically very widespread, there is a lack of strong regionalism in the mitochondrial genomes of panarctic D. pulex – a pattern that differs from that of most studied cladocerans. Moreover, our analyses suggest recent expansion of the panarctic D. pulex lineage, with some continents sharing haplotypes. The hypothesis that hybrid asexuality has contributed to the recent and unusual geographic success of the panarctic D. pulex lineage warrants further study.