BackgroundHepatitis E Virus (HEV) infection is globally increasing. The present study was performed to investigate the HEV seroprevalence, exposure risks as well as occupational risks for military personnel in Austria, a Central European country.Methods and FindingsA nationwide cross-sectional seroprevalence study was performed in 997 healthy Austrian adults, professional soldiers and civilians. Routine laboratory and HEV specific antibodies were determined. In addition, epidemiological information on possible risk factors for exposure to HEV was obtained. The overall seropositivity for HEV antibodies was 14.3% and significantly increased with age. Seroprevalence was significantly higher among individuals with previous military employments abroad (21.4% vs. 9.9%) and among professional soldiers aged 30–39 years (20.2% vs. 7.3%). No association was found for private travel, occupational or private animal contact or regular outdoor activities. Individuals who tested positive for antibodies against HEV had significantly higher laboratory values regarding liver enzymes, lipid levels and blood fasting glucose.ConclusionsExposure to HEV is common in Austria. Military employment abroad could be a potential risk factor for HEV infection. Further studies are required to investigate the significance of pathological laboratory results found among asymptomatic individuals previously exposed to HEV.

No abstract

CD3+ T cells are important sources of both pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines during Plasmodium falciparum malaria. We studied the frequency of interleukin-2 (IL-2), gamma interferon (IFN-gamma), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and IL-10 expressing CD3+ cells in 10 non-immune malaria patients with uncomplicated malaria and in one patient with cerebral malaria after P. falciparum-specific and non-specific mitogenic stimulation. Analysis by fluorescence-activated cell sorting was performed after drug-induced clearance of parasites to allow previously sequestered T cells to be detected in peripheral blood. CD3+ cells of patients responded to P. falciparum infected erythrocytes with significant increases in the percentage of IL-2, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha, but also IL-10, positive cells. CD3+ cells from malaria-naïve donors were also responsive to specific stimulation albeit to a much lesser extent. Mitogenic stimulation of PBMC revealed no significant differences between cells of patients and controls. CD3+ cells of the patient with cerebral malaria were hyporesponsive both to the infecting parasite isolate as well as to our laboratory-adapted P. falciparum isolate, whereas two patients with uncomplicated disease were more responsive to their infecting parasites than to the laboratory-adapted isolate. The results indicate that the increased responsiveness of in vivo primed compared to malaria-naïve CD3+ cells is Plasmodium-specific and biased towards production of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha.

No abstract