ETIDIOH - NEW

Highlights -- Both NA-specific antibodies and memory B cells are detected in healthy adults -- NA broad-inhibition monoclonal antibodies are derived from classical memory B cells -- Broad inhibition monoclonal antibodies target the NA conserved enzymatic epitopes -- NA broad-inhibition antibodies protect mice against H1N1 and H5N1- clade 2.3.4.4b Summary Identifying broadly reactive B precursor cells and conserved epitopes is crucial for developing a universal flu vaccine . In this study, using influenza neuraminidase (NA) mutant probes , we find that human pre-existing NA-specific memory B cells (MBCs) account for ∼0.25% of total MBCs, which are heterogeneous and dominated by class-unswitched MBCs. In addition, we identify three NA broad-inhibition monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) (BImAbs) that block the activity of NA derived from different influenza strains, including the recent cow H5N1. The cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure shows that the BImAb targets the conserved NA enzym...

Natalia A. Ilyushina {a b}, Nicolai V. Bovin {c}, Robert G. Webster {a d}, Elena A. Govorkova  {a b} a} Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 332 N. Lauderdale, Memphis, TN 38105-2794, USA; b} The D.I. Ivanovsky Institute of Virology, Gamaleya 16, Moscow 123098, Russia; c} Shemyakin Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, 16/10 Miklukho-Maklaya, Moscow 117997, Russia; d} Department of Pathology, University of Tennessee, Memphis, TN 38105, USA Received 21 November 2005, Accepted 26 January 2006, Available online 21 February 2006. Abstract Rapid development of resistant influenza variants after amantadine treatment is one of the main drawbacks of M2 blockers . On the other hand, the emergence of variants with low susceptibility to the neuraminidase (NA) inhibitors is limited. In the present study we examined whether combination therapy with two classes of anti-influenza drugs can affect the emergence of resistant variants in vitro. We observed that viru...

 {Excerpt, edited} What Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza A virus (HPAI H5N1) remains a low risk to the general public , and public health experts in the United States believe that available treatments and vaccines , as well as those in development, are sufficient to prevent severe disease . However, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and its federal partners remain focused on monitoring the virus and evaluating changes , according to leading officials at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the NIH. In a commentary published in the New England Journal of Medicine , NIAID Director Jeanne M. Marrazzo, M.D., M.P.H., and Michael G. Ison, M.D., M.S ., chief of the Respiratory Diseases Branch in NIAID’s Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, say people should find a balance between enhanced vigilance and “business as usual” with respect to HPAI H5N1 . Since 1996, HPAI H5N1 influenza viruses have circulated in at least 23 countri...