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Am J Infect Control 2021 Jun 8. Epub 2021 Jun 8.

Department of Paediatric Infectious Diseases, University of Health Sciences Dr. Behçet Uz Children's Hospital, İzmir, Turkey.

Background: The study aimed to evaluate the distribution of circulating respiratory viral pathogens other than SARS-CoV-2 during the first year of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with especially focusing on the effects of the national-based mitigation strategies.

Methods: This single-center study was conducted between March 11, 2020-March 11, 2021. All children who were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) on nasopharyngeal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 and other common respiratory viral pathogens were included in the study. Read More

J Asthma 2021 Jun 10:1-9. Epub 2021 Jun 10.

Department of Critical Care, New York-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital.

Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) is sometimes used in refractory pediatric status asthmaticus for its potential benefits of stenting airways and dispersing albuterol. However, its effectiveness in pediatric asthma remains unproven. The usage pattern, outcomes, and safety of NIV in pediatric status asthmaticus are described. Read More

ERJ Open Res 2021 Apr 7;7(2). Epub 2021 Jun 7.

Division of Paediatric Pneumology and Allergology, University Medical Centre Schleswig-Holstein, Airway Research Centre North, member of the German Centre for Lung Research (DZL), Lübeck, Germany.

Background: Reduction of COL4A3, one of the six isoforms of collagen 4, in asthmatic airways results in increased inflammation and angiogenesis, implicating it as a central part of asthma pathogenesis. However, to date, the path underlying these diminished COL4A3 levels has been elusive. This study investigated a possible mechanism underlying the reduction of COL4A3 expression. Read More

J Infect Dev Ctries 2021 May 31;15(5):726-735. Epub 2021 May 31.

Laboratory of Microbiology of Bechir Hamza Children's Hospital, Tunis, Bab Saadoun Square, Tunisia.

Introduction: Rhinoviruses (HRV) are among the leading causes of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI). Their burden and genetic diversity vary from one region to another and little is known in Northern African regions. This study describes epidemiological patterns and genotypic diversity of HRV in SARI cases during a two and half year's study, in Northern Tunisia. Read More

Travel Med Infect Dis 2021 Jun 4;43:102104. Epub 2021 Jun 4.

Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, SSA, VITROME, Marseille, France; IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France. Electronic address:

Background: The Grand Magal of Touba (GMT) is a large event gathering around 4-5 million participants every year. A pilot study conducted in 2017 among GMT pilgrims showed that 41.8% of participants reported respiratory symptoms, mostly due to rhinovirus (13. Read More

Appl Environ Microbiol 2021 Jun 4:AEM0049721. Epub 2021 Jun 4.

Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Faculty of Science, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Brisbane 4001, Australia.

Laboratory-generated bioaerosols are widely used in aerobiology studies of viruses, however few comparisons of alternative nebulizers exist. We compared aerosol production and virus survival for a Collison nebulizer, vibrating mesh nebulizer (VMN), and hydraulic spray atomizer (HAS). We also measured the dry size distribution of the aerosols produced, calculated the droplet sizes before evaporation and the dry size distribution from normal saline solution. Read More

Bioorg Med Chem 2021 May 19;42:116219. Epub 2021 May 19.

School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, 132 East Outer Ring Road, Guangzhou 510006, China. Electronic address:

Covalent target modulation with small molecules has been emerging as a promising strategy for drug discovery. However, covalent inhibitory antibody remains unexplored due to the lack of efficient strategies to engineer antibody with desired bioactivity. Herein, we developed an intracellular selection method to generate covalent inhibitory antibody against human rhinovirus 14 (HRV14) 3C protease through unnatural amino acid mutagenesis along the heavy chain complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR-H3). Read More

Int Forum Allergy Rhinol 2021 Jun 2. Epub 2021 Jun 2.

Department of Otolaryngology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA.

Background: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a multifactorial disease with a high co-occurrence with asthma. In this multicohort study, we tested whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with childhood asthma and rhinovirus (RV)-associated disease are related to an increased susceptibility to adult CRS in a multicohort retrospective case-control study.

Methods: Participants at two tertiary academic rhinology centers, University of Arizona (UofA) and University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) were recruited. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2021 May 27;22(11). Epub 2021 May 27.

Experimental Pneumonology, Department of Pneumonology, University Hospital Magdeburg, Health Campus Immunology, Infectiology and Inflammation (GC-I³), Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany.

Chronic obstructive airway diseases are characterized by airflow obstruction and airflow limitation as well as chronic airway inflammation. Especially bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) cause considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide, can be difficult to treat, and ultimately lack cures. While there are substantial knowledge gaps with respect to disease pathophysiology, our awareness of the role of neurological and neuro-immunological processes in the development of symptoms, the progression, and the outcome of these chronic obstructive respiratory diseases, is growing. Read More

Int J Environ Res Public Health 2021 05 30;18(11). Epub 2021 May 30.

FSEC Energy Research Center, University of Central Florida, Cocoa, FL 32922, USA.

Historically, reducing aerosol-based transmission of respired viruses in indoor environments has been of importance for controlling influenza viruses and common-cold rhinoviruses. The present public health emergency associated with SARS-CoV-2 makes this topic critically important. Yet to be tested is the potential effectiveness of simple interventions that create an isolation zone (IZ) for a suspected/confirmed sick or sensitive person requiring quarantine. Read More

Viruses 2021 05 14;13(5). Epub 2021 May 14.

Centre for Immunology and Infection Control, School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD 4000, Australia.

IFN treatment may be a viable option for treating COPD exacerbations based on evidence of IFN deficiency in COPD. However, in vitro studies have used primarily influenza and rhinoviruses to investigate IFN responses. This study aims to investigate the susceptibility to infection and IFN response of primary bronchial epithelial cells (BECs) from COPD donors to infection with RSV and hMPV. Read More

Viruses 2021 May 9;13(5). Epub 2021 May 9.

Department of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, La Paz University Hospital, 28046 Madrid, Spain.

Background: The impact of respiratory virus infection in patients diagnosed with ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) has not been well studied.

Methods: A prospective case control study was performed at a National Reference Unit for Primary Immunodeficiency in Spain (from November 2018 to July 2019), including patients younger than 20 years. Symptom questionnaires and nasopharyngeal swabs from multiple respiratory viruses' polymerase chain reaction were collected monthly, and between visits in case of symptoms. Read More

Viruses 2021 May 15;13(5). Epub 2021 May 15.

Division of Immunopathology, Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center of Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria.

Allergen exposure and rhinovirus (RV) infections are common triggers of acute wheezing exacerbations in early childhood. The identification of such trigger factors is difficult but may have therapeutic implications. Increases of IgE and IgG in sera, were shown against allergens and the N-terminal portion of the VP1 proteins of RV species, respectively, several weeks after allergen exposure or RV infection. Read More

Clin Exp Allergy 2021 Jun 1. Epub 2021 Jun 1.

Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.

Background: Acute rhinovirus-induced wheezing is common in young children and may respond to systemic corticosteroid. There are no trials on the efficacy of inhaled beta -agonist in this clinical scenario.

Objective: To study post hoc the short-term (up to 2 months) efficacy of inhaled beta -agonist with and without oral corticosteroid in the first acute rhinovirus-induced severe wheezing episode in young hospitalized children. Read More

Can J Infect Dis Med Microbiol 2021 12;2021:6651045. Epub 2021 May 12.

Clinical Research Institute/Molecular Diagnosis Center, Seegene Medical Foundation, Seoul 04805, Republic of Korea.

The detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in upper and lower respiratory specimens and coinfection with other respiratory pathogens in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was investigated. Study subjects ( = 342) were retrospectively enrolled after being confirmed as SARS-CoV-2 positive, and their nasopharyngeal swab (NPS), oropharyngeal swab (OPS), and sputum specimens were restored for SARS-CoV-2 retesting and respiratory pathogen detection. The majority of the subjects (96. Read More

J Med Virol 2021 May 29. Epub 2021 May 29.

Department of Ophthalmology, Otorhinolaryngology, and Head and Neck Surgery, Ribeirão Preto School of Medicine, University of São Paulo (USP), Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil.

Cholesteatomas are frequent middle ear benign tumors of unknown etiology. Infectious agents have been considered as possible contributing factors in the pathogenesis of cholesteatomas. Aiming to investigate the presence of respiratory viruses in primary cholesteatoma tissues, 26 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded primary cholesteatoma tissues obtained from patients seen at the of the Clinical Hospital of the University of São Paulo School of Medicine, in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil were tested by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Read More

ERJ Open Res 2021 Apr 24;7(2). Epub 2021 May 24.

Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health, St Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Canada.

Background: The importance of age, sex and respiratory virus prevalence in emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalisations for respiratory tract infections (RTIs), asthma and COPD in a whole population over time is not well established.

Methods: This study retrospectively analysed data for daily ED visits and hospitalisations from 2003 to 2013 in Ontario, Canada and the daily number of virus positive tests. Daily numbers of ED visits and hospitalisations with RTIs, asthma and COPD listed as a primary diagnosis were collected from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Read More

Front Pediatr 2021 11;9:620598. Epub 2021 May 11.

Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.

In December 2019, a novel coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2 started circulating in China and this led to a major epidemic in Northern Italy between February and May 2020. Young children (aged <5 years) seem to be less affected by this coronavirus disease (COVID-19) compared to adults, although there is very little information on the circulation of this new virus among children in Italy. We retrospectively tested nasopharyngeal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 in samples collected in young children between November, 2019 and March, 2020 in the context of the RSV ComNet study. Read More

Sci Rep 2021 May 26;11(1):10948. Epub 2021 May 26.

Multifactorial Disease and Complex Phenotype Research Area, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital (IRCCS), Piazza S. Onofrio, 4, 00165, Rome, Italy.

Mechanisms of interaction between Bordetella pertussis and other viral agents are yet to be fully explored. We studied the inflammatory cytokine expression patterns among children with both viral-bacterial infections. Nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) samples were taken from children, aged < 1 year, positive for Rhinovirus, Bordetella pertussis and for Rhinovirus and Bordetella pertussis. Read More

Can Commun Dis Rep 2021 May 7;47(4):202-209. Epub 2021 May 7.

Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON.

Background: Public health measures, such as physical distancing and closure of schools and non-essential services, were rapidly implemented in Canada to interrupt the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We sought to investigate the impact of mitigation measures during the spring wave of COVID-19 on the incidence of other laboratory-confirmed respiratory viruses in Hamilton, Ontario.

Methods: All nasopharyngeal swab specimens (n=57,503) submitted for routine respiratory virus testing at a regional laboratory serving all acute-care hospitals in Hamilton between January 2010 and June 2020 were reviewed. Read More

Nat Commun 2021 05 25;12(1):3132. Epub 2021 May 25.

Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Science (IMBA), Vienna BioCenter (VBC), Vienna, Austria.

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the need for massively-parallel, cost-effective tests monitoring viral spread. Here we present SARSeq, saliva analysis by RNA sequencing, a method to detect SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses on tens of thousands of samples in parallel. SARSeq relies on next generation sequencing of multiple amplicons generated in a multiplexed RT-PCR reaction. Read More

Clin Nutr ESPEN 2021 06 24;43:9-15. Epub 2021 Apr 24.

Arak University of Medical Science, Arak, Iran.

Respiratory Viruses infections (RVI) such as rhinovirus, coronavirus, influenza virus, and adenovirus affect the respiratory and the immune systems. The role of nutrition in the respiratory and immune systems has been studied in some studies, and its importance is undeniable. In addition, one of the key findings in this disease is high inflammation that affects almost all patients. Read More

Sichuan Da Xue Xue Bao Yi Xue Ban 2021 May;52(3):467-471

Department of Public Health Laboratory Sciences, West China School of Public Health and West China Forth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.

Objective: To investigate the status of infections caused by respiratory pathogens and the patterns of infections caused by pathogens in different seasons, age groups and stages of pneumoconiosis so as to explore the pathogen spectrum of respiratory tract infections in pneumoconiosis patients.

Methods: The sputum samples of 376 pneumoconiosis patients admitted to an occupational disease hospital in Chengdu between January, 2017 and October, 2019 were collected. Clinical information of the patients was collected and lab tests were conducted to check for 23 kinds of common respiratory viruses, bacteria and fungi in the sputum. Read More

Emerg Infect Dis 2021 ;27(6):1685-1688

We compared weekly positivity rates of 8 respiratory viruses in South Korea during 2010-2019 and 2020. The overall mean positivity rate for these viruses decreased from 54.7% in 2010-2019 to 39. Read More

medRxiv 2020 Dec 24. Epub 2020 Dec 24.

Background: Public health measures, such as social distancing and closure of schools and non-essential services, were rapidly implemented in Canada to interrupt the spread of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Objective: We sought to investigate the impact of mitigation measures during the spring wave of COVID-19 on the incidence of other laboratory-confirmed respiratory viruses in Hamilton, Ontario.

Methods: All nasopharyngeal swab specimens (n = 57,503) submitted for routine respiratory virus testing at a regional laboratory serving all acute-care hospitals in Hamilton, Ontario between January 2010 and June 2020 were reviewed. Read More

Can Commun Dis Rep 2021 Mar 31;47(3):132-138. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB.

Background: Like endemic coronaviruses, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is believed to have emerged in humans from a zoonotic source and may ultimately develop a seasonal pattern. A seasonal pattern, particularly if combined with other seasonal outbreaks of respiratory virus infections, may have significant impacts on the healthcare system. We evaluated the seasonal pattern of existing endemic coronaviruses and several other common respiratory viruses to determine the potential impacts of added burden of respiratory disease should SARS-CoV-2 establish seasonality. Read More

J Infect Dis 2021 May 1. Epub 2021 May 1.

Department of Pediatrics, Korea University Anam Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Background: We hypothesized that nationwide social distancing and other preventive measures for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) were associated with reduced detection of other respiratory viruses in South Korea.

Methods: We analyzed national surveillance data to compare incidence of respiratory viruses during 2016-2019 vs. 2020. Read More

Mil Med 2021 May 16. Epub 2021 May 16.

Department of Clinical Investigation, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, HI 96859, USA.

Introduction: Acute respiratory diseases account for a substantial number of outpatient visits and hospitalizations among U.S. military personnel, significantly affecting mission readiness and military operations. Read More

BMC Pulm Med 2021 May 17;21(1):167. Epub 2021 May 17.

National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW3 6LY, UK.

Background: Oroscomucoid 3 (ORMDL3) has been linked to susceptibility of childhood asthma and respiratory viral infection. Polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly I:C) is a synthetic analog of viral double-stranded RNA, a toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) ligand and mimic of viral infection.

Methods: To investigate the functional role of ORMDL3 in the poly I:C-induced inflammatory response in airway epithelial cells, ORMDL3 knockdown and over-expression models were established in human A549 epithelial cells and primary normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) cells. Read More

Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis 2021 7;16:1265-1273. Epub 2021 May 7.

Division of Pulmonology and Allergy, Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Yeungnam University and Regional Center for Respiratory Diseases, Yeungnam University Medical Center, Daegu, South Korea.

Purpose: Severe acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) that require hospitalization and emergency department visits are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. Respiratory viral infection is an important cause of severe AECOPD. We evaluated the incidence and prognostic factors of viral infection in severe AECOPD. Read More