1. The Viral Hepatitis Prevention Board (VHPB) supports the continuedrecommendation for universal hepatitis B vaccination of all newbornswithin 24 hours of birthPierre van Damme, Greet Hendrickx, Sakshi Jindal, Sara Valckx, Alex Vorsters, Silvia Bino, Paolo Bonanni, Mojca Matičič, 2025, other scientific articles Keywords: hepatitis, viral, HBV
Published in DiRROS: 12.01.2026; Views: 99; Downloads: 72
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2. Functionality of potato virus Y coat protein in cell-to-cell movement dynamics is defined by its N-terminal regionAnže Vozelj, Tjaša Mahkovec Povalej, Katja Stare, Magda Tušek-Žnidarič, Katarina Bačnik, Valentina Levak, Ion Gutiérrez-Aguirre, Marjetka Podobnik, Kristina Gruden, Anna Coll Rius, Tjaša Lukan, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Potato virus Y (PVY) is one of the top 10 economically most important plant viruses and responsible for major yield losses. We previously suggested the involvement of the N-terminal region of PVY coat protein (CP) in PVY spread. By constructing different N-terminal deletion mutants of the PVY N605 strain, we here show that deletions of 40 or more amino acid residues from the N-terminal region of the CP resulted in the PVY multiplication limited to primary infected cells in Nicotiana clevelandii plants. Deletion of 26 residues profoundly impaired PVY cell-to-cell movement and prevented systemic PVY spread, while deletions of 19-23 residues allowed delayed systemic PVY spread. Introduced point mutations in the identified region prevent (S21G) or delay (G20P) PVY movement. In summary, this work shows the significance of the CP N-terminus for movement of the PVY.
Keywords: potato virus Y, potato, coat proteins, viral movement, point mutations
Published in DiRROS: 18.12.2025; Views: 815; Downloads: 221
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3. Paediatric invasive group A streptococcal infections and associations with viral infections in 15 European countries after lifting non-pharmaceutical interventions against SARS-CoV-2 : an interrupted time-series analysisLéa Lenglart, Izel Özmen, David Aguilera-Alonso, Daniel Blazquez-Gamero, Navin P. Boeddha, Emilie Pauline Buddingh, Danilo Buonsenso, Tina Plankar Srovin, Katarina Vincek, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Background: After lifting non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) against the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, various countries experienced an increase in invasive Group A Streptococcal (iGAS) infections. We aimed to characterise the paediatric outbreak across Europe and to analyse the influence of viral infections. Methods: We conducted an interrupted time-series analysis based on data from 15 European countries from the PEGASUS consortium. We assessed the evolution of the number of iGAS cases aged 1 month to 18 years between 01/01/2018 and 03/31/2024, comparing the post-NPIs period (01-04-2022 until 31-03-2024) to the baseline period (01-01-2018 until 31-03-2020). Further analyses were performed by country, clinical phenotype, age and severity, including sensitivity analyses. We then explored whether certain iGAS phenotypes correlated with trends in RSV, influenza and VZV across countries over time using Google Trends data. Findings: We included 2091 iGAS cases over the study period; 79 children (3.6%) died and 580 (27.7%) required PICU admission. We estimated an overall increase of +229.8% (95% CI (141.9-341.6)) among iGAS cases from October 2022 to March 2024, compared to the baseline period. The observed increases varied across clinical phenotypes, ranging from +62.7% (95% CI (8.3-157.9)) for osteo-articular infections to +238.7% (95% CI 75.8-464.8) for pneumonia. We observed a strong correlation between the incidence of iGAS pneumonia and RSV (Rho: 0.57, 95% CI [0.11-0.79]) and influenza (Rho 0.69, 95% CI 0.35-0.87); and between skin and soft tissue infections and VZV (Rho: 0.73, 95% CI [0.42-0.89]). Interpretation: The patterns observed across Europe during this outbreak demonstrate an association between respiratory viruses as well as VZV, and iGAS.
Keywords: Streptococcus pyogenes, group A streptococcus, invasive streptococcal disease, outbreak, paediatrics, viral infections, viruses, influenza, flu, RSV, respiratory syncytial virus, VZV, varicella, immunity debt, non pharmaceutical interventions
Published in DiRROS: 12.12.2025; Views: 216; Downloads: 109
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4. Phylodynamic inference suggests introductions as main driver of Mpox Clade II outbreak in 2022 in SloveniaBastiaan Van der Roest, Egil A. J. Fischer, Don Klinkenberg, Martin C. J. Bootsma, Mojca Matičič, Katarina Resman Rus, Miša Korva, Tatjana Avšič-Županc, Mirjam Kretzschmar, 2025, original scientific article Keywords: global outbreak, Mpox, viral disease, Mpox Clade II
Published in DiRROS: 05.12.2025; Views: 260; Downloads: 145
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5. Relationship between molecular pathogen detection and clinical disease in febrile children across Europe : a multicentre, prospective observational studyPriyen Shah, Marie Voice, Leonides Calvo-Bado, Irene Rivero Calle, Sophie Morris, Ruud Nijman, Claire Broderick, Tisham De, Mojca Kolnik, Katarina Vincek, Marko Pokorn, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: Background: The PERFORM study aimed to understand causes of febrile childhood illness by comparing molecular pathogen detection with current clinical practice. Methods: Febrile children and controls were recruited on presentation to hospital in 9 European countries 2016–2020. Each child was assigned a standardized diagnostic category based on retrospective review of local clinical and microbiological data. Subsequently, centralised molecular tests (CMTs) for 19 respiratory and 27 blood pathogens were performed. Findings: Of 4611 febrile children, 643 (14%) were classified as definite bacterial infection (DB), 491 (11%) as definite viral infection (DV), and 3477 (75%) had uncertain aetiology. 1061 controls without infection were recruited. CMTs detected blood bacteria more frequently in DB than DV cases for N. meningitidis (OR: 3.37, 95% CI: 1.92–5.99), S. pneumoniae (OR: 3.89, 95% CI: 2.07–7.59), Group A streptococcus (OR 2.73, 95% CI 1.13–6.09) and E. coli (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.02–6.71). Respiratory viruses were more common in febrile children than controls, but only influenza A (OR 0.24, 95% CI 0.11–0.46), influenza B (OR 0.12, 95% CI 0.02–0.37) and RSV (OR 0.16, 95% CI: 0.06–0.36) were less common in DB than DV cases. Of 16 blood viruses, enterovirus (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.23–0.72) and EBV (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.56–0.90) were detected less often in DB than DV cases. Combined local diagnostics and CMTs respectively detected blood viruses and respiratory viruses in 360 (56%) and 161 (25%) of DB cases, and virus detection ruled-out bacterial infection poorly, with predictive values of 0.64 and 0.68 respectively. Interpretation: Most febrile children cannot be conclusively defined as having bacterial or viral infection when molecular tests supplement conventional approaches. Viruses are detected in most patients with bacterial infections, and the clinical value of individual pathogen detection in determining treatment is low. New approaches are needed to help determine which febrile children require antibiotics.
Keywords: molecular diagnostics, diagnostic, febrile illness, infectious disease, bacterial infection, viral infection, respiratory infection
Published in DiRROS: 17.11.2025; Views: 316; Downloads: 128
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6. Analysis of glioblastoma patients' plasma revealed the presence of microRNAs with a prognostic impact on survival and those of viral originKlemen Zupančič, Helena Motaln, Miomir Knežević, Urška Verbovšek, Marjan Koršič, Tamara Lah Turnšek, Primož Rožman, Matjaž Jeras, Matjaž Hren, Kristina Gruden, Andrej Blejec, Matija Veber, Ana Herman, Andrej Porčnik, Vid Podpečan, 2015, original scientific article Abstract: Background
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is among the most aggressive cancers with a poor prognosis in spite of a plethora of established diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers and treatment modalities. Therefore, the current goal is the detection of novel biomarkers, possibly detectable in the blood of GBM patients that may enable an early diagnosis and are potential therapeutic targets, leading to more efficient interventions.
Experimental Procedures
MicroRNA profiling of 734 human and human-associated viral miRNAs was performed on blood plasma samples from 16 healthy individuals and 16 patients with GBM, using the nCounter miRNA Expression Assay Kits.
Results
We identified 19 miRNAs with significantly different plasma levels in GBM patients, compared to the healthy individuals group with the difference limited by a factor of 2. Additionally, 11 viral miRNAs were found differentially expressed in plasma of GBM patients and 24 miRNA levels significantly correlated with the patients’ survival. Moreover, the overlap between the group of candidate miRNAs for diagnostic biomarkers and the group of miRNAs associated with survival, consisted of ten miRNAs, showing both diagnostic and prognostic potential. Among them, hsa miR 592 and hsa miR 514a 3p have not been previously described in GBM and represent novel candidates for selective biomarkers. The possible signalling, induced by the revealed miRNAs is discussed, including those of viral origin, and in particular those related to the impaired immune response in the progression of GBM.
Conclusion
The GBM burden is reflected in the alteration of the plasma miRNAs pattern, including viral miRNAs, representing the potential for future clinical application. Therefore proposed biomarker candidate miRNAs should be validated in a larger study of an independent cohort of patients
Keywords: microRNAs, glioblastoma multiforme, biomarkers, RNA extraction, viral disease diagnosis
Published in DiRROS: 26.07.2024; Views: 1261; Downloads: 724
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7. Structural basis for the multitasking nature of the potato virus Y coat proteinAndreja Kežar, Luka Kavčič, Martin Pólak, Jiři Nováček, Ion Gutiérrez-Aguirre, Magda Tušek-Žnidarič, Anna Coll Rius, Katja Stare, Kristina Gruden, Maja Ravnikar, David Pahovnik, Ema Žagar, Franci Merzel, Gregor Anderluh, Marjetka Podobnik, 2019, original scientific article Abstract: Potato virus Y (PVY) is among the most economically important plant pathogens. Using cryoelectron microscopy, we determined the near-atomic structure of PVY’s flexuous virions, revealing a previously unknown lumenal interplay between extended carboxyl-terminal regions of the coat protein units and viral RNA. RNA–coat protein interactions are crucial for the helical configuration and stability of the virion, as revealed by the unique near-atomic structure of RNA-free virus-like particles. The structures offer the first evidence for plasticity of the coat protein’s amino- and carboxyl-terminal regions. Together with mutational analysis and in planta experiments, we show their crucial role in PVY infectivity and explain the ability of the coat protein to perform multiple biological tasks. Moreover, the high modularity of PVY virus-like particles suggests their potential as a new molecular scaffold for nanobiotechnological applications.
Keywords: plant pathogens, potato virus Y, viral RNA
Published in DiRROS: 23.07.2024; Views: 1224; Downloads: 723
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