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Ever since its discovery, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection has remained a significant public health concern. The number of HIV-1 seropositive individuals currently stands at 40.1 million, yet definitive treatment for the virus is still unavailable on the market. Vaccination has proven to be a potent tool in combating infectious diseases, as evidenced by its success against other pathogens. However, despite ongoing efforts and research, the unique viral characteristics have prevented the development of an effective anti-HIV-1 vaccine. In this review, we aim to provide an historical overview of the various approaches attempted to create an effective anti-HIV-1 vaccine. Our objective is to explore the reasons why specific methods have failed to induce a protective immune response and to analyze the different modalities of immunogen presentation. This trial is registered with NCT05414786, NCT05471076, NCT04224701, and NCT01937455., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Martina Libera et al.)

Staphylococcus pseudintermedius is an emergent zoonotic agent associated with multidrug resistance (MDR). This work aimed to describe the antibacterial activity of four essential oils (EOs) and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) against 15 S. pseudintermedius strains isolated from pyoderma. The four EOs, namely Rosmarinus officinalis (RO), Juniperus communis (GI), Citrus sinensis (AR), and Abies alba (AB), and AgNPs were used alone and in combination to determine the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC). All strains were MDR and methicillin-resistant. Among the antibiotic cohort, only rifampicin, doxycycline, and amikacin were effective. EOs' chemical analysis revealed 124 compounds belonging to various chemical classes. Of them, 35 were found in AR, 75 in AB, 77 in GI, and 57 in RO. The monoterpenic fraction prevailed over the sesquiterpenic in all EOs. When EOs were tested alone, AB showed the lowest MIC followed by GI, AR, and RO (with values ranging from 1:128 to 1:2048). MBC increased in the following order: AB, AR, GI, and RO (with values ranging from 1:512 to 1:2048). MIC and MBC values for AgNPs were 10.74 mg/L ± 4.23 and 261.05 mg/L ± 172.74. In conclusion, EOs and AgNPs could limit the use of antibiotics or improve the efficacy of conventional therapies.

Contagious pathogens are very costly to dairy herds, and they may have zoonotic and reverse-zoonotic potentials and may contribute to the spread of antimicrobial resistance. One of the most important risk factors for spreading these infections is milking, when liner contamination may transfer the pathogens from infected to healthy cows. There is no effective protocol to prevent the transmission of infection without the segregation of infected cows. Recently, the availability of elastomers with patented antimicrobial components in their formulations has allowed the exploration of alternative methods to reduce the risk of infection. Two different types of elastomers (rubber and silicone) and nine different formulations were challenged with three major mastitis pathogens ( S. aureus , S. agalactiae , and E. coli ). The results that were obtained in this study were interesting and unexpected. Indeed, to our knowledge, this is the first study to show that basic rubber materials have intrinsic antimicrobial activity. Silicone elastomers did not exhibit the same levels of bactericidal activity, although they did exhibit some antibacterial capacity. A significant decrease in bacterial survival curves was observed for all the formulations tested when antimicrobial components were added. The different results observed for the various products are likely due to the different formulations and diverse manufacturing processes. The availability of these new materials that significantly reduce the bacterial load on the liner surface may reduce the risk of spreading intramammary infections during milking. This would be an important step forward in achieving global sustainability of dairy herds, consistent with the objectives of One Health, by reducing the risks of zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial treatments., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. This study was partially funded by Scudo Technologies PRP, Italy, but the funders had no role in the design of this study, the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, the writing of the manuscript, or the decision to publish the results.

Staphylococcus aureus are commensal bacteria that are found in food, water, and a variety of settings in addition to being present on the skin and mucosae of both humans and animals. They are regarded as a significant pathogen as well, with a high morbidity that can cause a variety of illnesses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has listed them among the most virulent and resistant to antibiotics bacterial pathogens, along with Escherichia coli , Staphylococcus , Klebsiella pneumoniae , Acinetobacter baumannii , Pseudomonas aeruginosa , Enterococcus faecalis , and Enterococcus faecium . Additionally, S. aureus is a part of the global threat posed by the existence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Using 26,430 S. aureus isolates from a global public database (NPDIB; NCBI Pathogen Detection Isolate Browser), epidemiological research was conducted. The results corroborate the evidence of notable variations in isolate distribution and ARG (Antimicrobial Resistance Gene) clusters between isolate sources and geographic origins. Furthermore, a link between the isolates from human and animal populations is suggested by the ARG cluster patterns. This result and the widespread dissemination of the pathogens among animal and human populations highlight how crucial it is to learn more about the epidemiology of these antibiotic-resistance-related infections using a One Health approach.

Staphylococcus aureus is considered one of the most widespread bacterial pathogens for both animals and humans, being the causative agent of various diseases like food poisoning, respiratory tract infections, nosocomial bacteremia, and surgical site and cardiovascular infections in humans, as well as clinical and subclinical mastitis, dermatitis, and suppurative infections in animals. Thanks to their genetic flexibility, several virulent and drug-resistant strains have evolved mainly due to horizontal gene transfer and insurgence of point mutations. Infections caused by the colonization of such strains are particularly problematic due to frequently occurring antibiotic resistance, particulary methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), and are characterized by increased mortality, morbidity, and hospitalization rates compared to those caused by methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA). S. aureus infections in humans and animals are a prime example of a disease that may be managed by a One Health strategy. In fact, S. aureus is a significant target for control efforts due to its zoonotic potential, the frequency of its illnesses in both humans and animals, and the threat posed by S. aureus antibiotic resistance globally. The results of an epidemiological analysis on a worldwide public database (NCBI Pathogen Detection Isolate Browser; NPDIB) of 35,026 S. aureus isolates were described. We considered the diffusion of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), in both human and animal setting, and the results may be considered alarming. The result of this study allowed us to identify the presence of clusters with specific ARG patterns, and that these clusters are associated with different sources of isolation (e.g., human, non-human).

Mastitis is a major cause of antimicrobial treatments either during lactation or at drying off. From a One Health perspective, there should be a balance between the risk of IMI that may impair cow health and welfare and the reduction of antimicrobial usage to decrease antimicrobial resistance, as may happen when applying selective dry-cow therapy. This reduction may be achieved by an early and accurate diagnosis followed by prudent and rationale therapeutical protocols. This study aims to assess the accuracy of PLCC (neutrophils + lymphocyte count/mL) in identifying cows at risk of having IMI due to major pathogens ( S.aureus , Str.agalactiae , Str.uberis , and Str.dysgalactiae ), and to simulate the impact of this early diagnosis on the potential number of treatments using a decision-tree model. The results of this study showed that PLCC had an overall accuracy of 77.6%. The results of the decision-tree model based on data from the 12 participating herds, with an overall prevalence of major pathogens of 1.5%, showed a potential decrease in the number of treatments of about 30% (from 3.4% to 2.5%) when PLCC in early lactation (days 5-16) was used to identify cows at risk for major pathogens compared with using SCC at the first milk test (days 17-43). The study confirmed that it is possible to improve animal health and reduce the risk of antimicrobial use through early IMI detection based on PLCC and applying a rationale and prudent antimicrobial protocol.

Streptococcus agalactiae is a well-known pathogen in humans and food-producing animals. Therefore, this bacterium is a paradigmatic example of a pathogen to be controlled by a One Health approach. Indeed, the zoonotic and reverse-zoonotic potential of the bacteria, the prevalence of Group B Streptococci (GBS) diseases in both human and animal domains, and the threatening global situation on GBS antibiotic resistance make these bacteria an important target for control programs. An epidemiological analysis using a public database containing sequences of S. agalactiae from all over the world was conducted to evaluate the frequency and evolution of antibiotic resistance genes in those isolates. The database we considered (NCBI pathogen detection isolate browser-NPDIB) is maintained on a voluntary basis. Therefore, it does not follow strict epidemiological criteria. However, it may be considered representative of the bacterial population related to human diseases. The results showed that the number of reported sequences increased largely in the last four years, and about 50% are of European origin. The frequency data and the cluster analysis showed that the AMR genes increased in frequency in recent years and suggest the importance of verifying the application of prudent protocols for antimicrobials in areas with an increasing frequency of GBS infections both in human and veterinary medicine.

NAG-urinary activity was assessed in order to study the renal effects of arterial hypertension in pregnant women. The results obtained showed that there were no significant differences between mean levels of enzymuria in control subjects and normotensive pregnant women. On the contrary, significant differences were found between these two groups and hypertensive pregnant women (above all if arterial hypertension predated pregnancy). The paper stresses the usefulness of this method, which is reliable and non-invasive, for an accurate assessment of the extent of renal damage caused by arterial hypertension during the course of pregnancy.

Various substances can interfere with the urinary activity of N-acetyl-beta-D-glycosaminidase (NAG), particularly certain bacteria that exert inhibitory or enhancing effects on the enzyme. Clearly, all this constitutes a limitation on the use of the technique. For these reasons, in patients suffering from interstitial and glomerular nephropathies and essential arterial hypertension a comparative study was carried out between the activity of urinary and serum NAG to establish if the latter produces more reliable results than the former. The results of urinary NAG activity confirm that there is no significant difference between healthy subjects and those with essential arterial hypertension; on the other hand, nephropathic patients present significantly higher urinary enzyme activity than healthy controls. On the other hand, evaluation of serum NAG does not seem to provide any practical aid as it does not highlight any difference between measurements carried out in healthy subjects and those carried out in hypertensive patients or those suffering from interstitial or glomerular nephropathy.

The behaviour of N-acetyl-B-D-Glucosaminidase (NAG) was studied in the urine of patients with chronic pyelonephritis under pharmacological treatment for renewed attacks of acute renal inflammation. It was noted that by the end of target chemo-antibiotic treatment all patients presented a reduction in the inflammation and hence the tubular distress. Once treatment was suspended several patients showed an increase tendency in the activity of the enzyme followed by the reappearance of significant bacteriuria and/or leukocyturia. The acute attack of renal inflammation would not have been recognised if the enzymuria technique had been used to monitor the patients.

The behaviour of urinary NAG activity was studied in patients during menopause, some of whom were given estrogen therapy due to severe vasomotor symptoms (hot flushes etc.). One group of these patients revealed slightly higher than normal blood pressure. A second group had slight arterial hypertension and pancreatic diabetes. The third group consisted of apparently healthy menopausal women. The significant increase in enzymuria in the first two groups suggests that blood pressure should be carefully checked before starting estrogen therapy. Furthermore this treatment should be given very cautiously and under constant surveillance in the presence of slight hypertension. In patients with diabetes or more severe hypertension, estrogens should never be given.

The urinary activity of 4 enzymes (NAG, GLU, GAL, GRS) was investigated in 105 healthy subjects in order to evaluate the variability of standard levels and establish the degree of such variations in relation to sex, age, weight and height. The results obtained demonstrate that these enzymurias do vary in relation to the parameters examined. Age and sex produced the most pronounced variations though height and body weight also appeared to have some influence. The study of variations in standard levels is of value in the interpretation of pathological enzymurias.

Gas chromatography of a number of amines, alcohols and sulfur derivatives was carried out on chitin and partially deacetylated chitins as well as on chitosan. The retention time of methanol is proportional to the degree of acetylation, and therefore a method is proposed for the gas-chromatographic determination of the degree of acetylation of chitin/chitosan. The analysis of the infrared spectra of chitin/chitosan also permits one to determine the degree of acetylation by using the ratio of the bands 1550 and 2878 cm-1.

The urinary activity of four enzymes (NAG, GLU, GRS and GAL) was studied in two groups of patients suffering respectively from interstitial nephritis and chronic glomerulonephritis with the aim of further investigating enzyme variability through the theory of partial and multiple correlation. This study permitted the effects of two enzymes on the known correlations between the remaining two enzyme types to be studied. It was established that very stable relationships exist between each enzyme and the group composed of the remaining three. In particular, in patients with interstizial nephritis, correlations with GAL were all highly significant even if the effect of the other two enzymes was ignored. Similarly, correlations with GRS were strongly significant in patients with chronic glomerulonephritis. In the two groups studied, each enzyme appears to have a highly stable relationship with the other three. Accurate estimates may probably be achieved for GAL and GRS in both groups and for NAG in the glomerulonephritis sufferers. This is further evidence that the enzyme procedure may be used to differentiate between interstitial and glomerular nephritis.

The behaviour of urinary NAG was monitored in diabetic patients some of whom presented more or less severe vascular alterations. The results showed a relationship between urinary NAG levels and the severity of the vascular condition (in fact the greatest NAG activity was found in patients with overt kidney damage). NAG may therefore reveal the existence of a vascular nephropathy that is still too slight to be identified by the standard non-invasive clinical examinations.

105 healthy subjects were studied in order to verify results obtained on a smaller sample and revealed some correlations between NAG and GLU and age. It was also found that in male subjects, GAL tended to vary in relation to body weight and in females in relation to age.

A simple empirical method based on linear relation-ships between certain types of enzymuria (NAG, LDH, GRS, Isoenzymes I and V of total dehydrogenase lactate) has been used in a series of 80 patients presenting chronic nephropathy [40 interstitial nephropathy (IN) and 40 glomerulonephritis (GN)]. Diagnosis made on the basis of the results obtained in each case was identical to that based on clinical findings (in the absence of enzymuria determinations). This method, if confirmed on a larger number of statistically significant data, might be useful to obtain a differential diagnosis between I.N. and G.N. only assaying these few enzymurias. Prefixed relationships could be employed on a larger group of patients with other diseases studied for comparative purposes. Furthermore, this method appears to be fast and unexpensive.