2023-12-20 19:29:31
The cause has been identified in a virus (echo11), which has so far been little studied because it is considered “of little interest”, which is “at the origin of infantile and neonatal hepatitis”. Last year there was an increase in cases of acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology in children in the UK. This is one of the results achieved, in a year of activity, by the Inf-Act, the ‘One Healh basic and translational research actions addressing unmet needs on emerging infectious diseases (Inf-Act)’ Foundation, which coordinates a project extended partnership of the Ministry of University and Research, presented today in Rome at the Higher Institute of Health. Another result is “the risk maps of the onset of cases of transmission of vector-borne viruses”, “the construction of a genomic database of multi-resistant organisms”, “the development of bioactive materials, capable of counteracting the spread of viruses”, and ” molecules as very interesting potential broad-spectrum antivirals”.
The Inf-Act project was designed to cover the entire ‘chain’ of healthcare research dedicated to possible emerging epidemics and brings together 5 thematic areas, or research nodes: emerging viral pathologies, arthropod vectors and vector-borne pathologies, antimicrobial resistance, epidemiology, surveillance and mathematical models, innovation and new therapeutic strategies. For the first thematic area, ‘Emerging viral diseases’, “in recent months we have managed to create predictive models to identify which epidemic outbreaks could have developed. We have managed to predict, for example, cases of monkeypox (500 cases in Lombardy) and we anticipated – the scientists recall – the ability to transform: it was a pure zoonosis (from animal to man), today it can be transmitted from man to man. Similarly, we analyzed the cases of avian flu, also involving the network of zooprophylactic institutes , studying the case of Lombardy in which there was a jump in species, moving from birds to dogs and cats, fortunately without managing to infect humans”.
“The predictive capacity – underlines Inf-Act in a note – was possible and effective, however, only by integrating the many skills, knowledge and different specializations distributed across the territory. If we were not to continue on this path, the risk would be high that we miss many situations that can become a formidable tool for action. This transversal and multidisciplinary action has allowed us, for example, to find the cause of infantile and neonatal hepatitis: we have identified the cause in a virus (echo11), so far little studied because it is considered of little interest, which is at the origin of this pathology. We have verified that this organism makes hepatitis transmissible through the air: an unimaginable behavior, discovered because the less obvious paths were taken.”
Towards virus risk maps from vectors such as mosquitoes
For the topic ‘Vector arthropods and vector-borne pathologies’, the note continues, the various research groups “have worked hard to improve knowledge of the biology of vector arthropods, such as mosquitoes, and of the pathogens transmitted by them. Research that It also aims to expand the possibilities for diagnosis, treatment and control of these emerging pathogens, with innovative and standardized approaches at a national level, to avoid wasted efforts, increase synergies and allow their application on a large scale”.
“This year of work – the scientists highlight – has also seen major efforts linked to the creation of infrastructures to improve the possibilities of studying these issues, information sharing models, technologies and working methods which must represent a resource for the country also at the end of the Inf-Act project. For example, the creation of the first centralized national database of all the data collected at a local level on the presence and distribution of the main arthropod species of health interest is being finalised, with the aim of overcome the current fragmentation and make this information available in an accessible and centralized way. This will allow the development of risk maps of the onset of cases of transmission of vector-borne viruses in collaboration with node 4 of this project. In parallel, with the same sharing approach, we are creating a centralized database of arthropod samples collected by various groups, which will become a resource accessible not only to Inf-Act researchers, significantly increasing the possibilities of study and research”.
Constructed a genomic database of multidrug-resistant organisms
For the ‘Antimicrobial resistance’ area, “those who deal with antimicrobial resistance know that they are studying one of the most serious and ubiquitous risks that we will face in the event of a pandemic – warn the experts – since it risks making the weapons available blunt Sharing knowledge and good practices was the guideline of the 5 subthemes of this research area, which in a few months managed to build a genomic database of multidrug-resistant organisms, with the aim of identifying those capable of being transferable from humans to animals and vice versa, including the environmental reservoir, therefore with a One Health perspective. This allows the creation of predictive models that have already demonstrated their effectiveness by predicting various possible epidemic outbreaks. In parallel, in addition to the study group on new diagnostics, capable of reducing the identification time of a pathogenic microorganism, some research groups have focused on alternative strategies, capable of reducing the use of antibiotics and, consequently, the development of resistance”.
“Among the many promising research – continues the note – of particular interest is the use of viruses that infect bacteria (bacteriophages), to be used as adjuvants of even obsolete antibiotics, thus giving them ‘clinical life’ back. Other groups, using bacteriophages , but also other photo-sensitization strategies, are delving into the field of biosensors, tools that are simple and quick to use for making diagnoses (by analogy, similar to the rapid tests used in the Covid era). A research group is developing pre-clinical models of infection that use organs or cell lines to help the development of new methods of studying microorganism/host interactions. Finally, the fifth line of action concerns the involvement of clinical networks to develop tailor-made therapies, thus completing an approach that starts from omics sciences, up to the diagnostic and preclinical and clinical phases, all for the best use of antibiotics”, specifies the Inf-Act.
The promises of bioactive materials capable of combating the spread of viruses
The fourth area is dedicated to ‘Epidemiology, surveillance and mathematical models’. “This node is creating a network between different centers and experts with the aim of collecting and integrating epidemiological surveillance data with microbiological, genomic and clinical data with a One Health approach that involves the human-animal-environmental sector. This network – explain the researchers – will allow the identification of models for the early detection of emerging infections, the development of warning mechanisms and predictive mathematical models in order to provide information and indications to decision makers and improve prevention and response systems to any infectious emergencies”.
In the fifth theme, ‘Innovation and new therapeutic strategies’, “the results of this year’s work have been numerous – reports the note – and have affected all the working subgroups. We have already made scientific publications linked to new targets for therapies antivirals, focusing on broad-spectrum ones, i.e. capable of attacking multiple viruses or even entire families at the same time. To date we have identified molecules as very interesting potential broad-spectrum antivirals that can help us combat possible epidemics of Zika, West Nile and some coronaviruses We have also obtained promising results on tools that can modulate the immune response, which was one of the critical issues that emerged forcefully during the Covid-19 emergency. We are working on the ability to reduce inflammation, on the ability to make individuals more resistant to infection and we are also studying diet, to understand how particular types of diet can help strengthen the body under attack.”
“Finally, an area in which we place great expectations concerns the development of bioactive materials, capable of combating the spread of viruses. We are studying hybrid materials with antiviral properties to reduce contact infections on various surfaces in the healthcare sector. A success in these research would allow us to raise the level of safety in hospitals and other critical situations, but applications could potentially be found in many other situations: in bus furnishings, handles, etc. A year later we are halfway there. Starting from these promising results and with those that we expect to achieve by the end of the project, we will certainly have new weapons in our arsenal to counter potential viral epidemics”, concludes the Inf-Act Foundation.
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