Pathogens

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Emerging and Re-emerging Viral Infections: Towards Better Surveillance, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Control

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jasper Fuk-Woo Chan

1. State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China
2. Department of Clinical Microbiology and Infection Control, The University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen 518000, China
Interests: animal models; pathogenesis; treatment; coronaviruses; arboviruses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Siddharth Sridhar

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China
Interests: viral hepatitis; clinical virology; zoonosis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Shuofeng Yuan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China
Interests: antivirals; host-targeting; broad-spectrum; respiratory viruses

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Emerging and re-emerging viruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), pandemic and avian influenza A viruses, Zika virus, Ebola virus, and monkeypox virus have caused outbreaks of various scales associated with significant morbidity, mortality, and socioeconomic disruptions in the past two decades. Optimal surveillance systems, diagnostics, treatments, vaccines, and non-pharmaceutical public health measures are essential for limiting the detrimental impact of these viral diseases. In this Special Issue of Pathogens, we invite investigators to submit original research and review articles on the following aspects of emerging and re-emerging viral infections:

(i) Discovery of viruses with clear evidence of relevance to human and/or animal health;
(ii) New diagnostics;
(iii) Novel antiviral treatments;
(iv) Vaccines;
(v) Non-pharmaceutical control measures.

We look forward to your contributions.

Dr. Jasper Fuk-Woo Chan
Dr. Siddharth Sridhar
Dr. Shuofeng Yuan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pathogens is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

emerging viruses
surveillance
transmission
pathogenesis
diagnostics
treamtents
vaccines

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 3174 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Oral Supplementation with AHCC^®, a Standardized Extract of Cultured Lentinula edodes Mycelia, Enhances Host Resistance against SARS-CoV-2 Infection

by Ankita Singh, Awadalkareem Adam, Leslie Rodriguez, Bi-Hung Peng, Binbin Wang, Xuping Xie, Pei-Yong Shi, Kohei Homma and Tian Wang

Pathogens 2023, 12(4), 554; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens12040554 - 03 Apr 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3744

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted global public health safety and the economy. Multiple antiviral drugs have been developed, and some have received regulatory approval and/or authorization. The use of nutraceuticals can be beneficial for preventing and treating COVID-19 complications. AHCC is a standardized, cultured extract of an edible mushroom Lentinula edodes of the Basidiomycete family of fungi that is enriched in acylated α-1,4-glucans. Here, we evaluated the effects of the oral administration of AHCC on the host response to SARS-CoV-2 infection in two murine models, K18-hACE2 transgenic mice and immunocompetent BALB/c mice. Oral administration of AHCC every other day for one week before and one day post SARS-CoV-2 infection in both strains of mice decreased the viral load and attenuated inflammation in the lungs. AHCC treatment also significantly reduced SARS-CoV-2-induced lethality in the K18-hACE2 mice. AHCC administration enhanced the expansion of γδ T cells in the spleen and lungs before and after viral infection and promoted T helper 1-prone mucosal and systemic T cell responses in both models. In AHCC-fed BALB/c mice, SARS-CoV-2 specific IgG responses were also enhanced. In summary, AHCC supplementation enhances host resistance against mild and severe COVID-19 infection primarily via the promotion of innate and adaptive T cell immune responses in mice. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging and Re-emerging Viral Infections: Towards Better Surveillance, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Control)

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Review

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15 pages, 1206 KiB

Open AccessReview

Phase Separation: The Robust Modulator of Innate Antiviral Signaling and SARS-CoV-2 Infection

by Yi Zheng and Chengjiang Gao

Pathogens 2023, 12(2), 243; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens12020243 - 03 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2067

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 has been a pandemic threat to human health and the worldwide economy, but efficient treatments are still lacking. Type I and III interferons are essential for controlling viral infection, indicating that antiviral innate immune signaling is critical for defense against viral infection. Phase separation, one of the basic molecular processes, governs multiple cellular activities, such as cancer progression, microbial infection, and signaling transduction. Notably, recent studies suggest that phase separation regulates antiviral signaling such as the RLR and cGAS–STING pathways. Moreover, proper phase separation of viral proteins is essential for viral replication and pathogenesis. These observations indicate that phase separation is a critical checkpoint for virus and host interaction. In this study, we summarize the recent advances concerning the regulation of antiviral innate immune signaling and SARS-CoV-2 infection by phase separation. Our review highlights the emerging notion that phase separation is the robust modulator of innate antiviral signaling and viral infection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging and Re-emerging Viral Infections: Towards Better Surveillance, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Control)

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