Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is currently one of the most important viruses affecting the swine industry worldwide. Despite the large number of papers published each year, the participation of non-structural proteins (nsps) in the immune response is not completely clear. nsps have been involved in the host innate immune response, specifically, nsp1α/β, nsp2, nsp4 and nsp11 have been associated with the immunomodulation capability of the virus. To date, only participation by nsp1, nsp2, nsp4 and nsp7 in the humoral immune response has been reported, with the role of other nsps being overlooked. Furthermore, nsp1, nsp2, nsp5, nsp7 nsp9, nsp10, nsp11 have been implicated in the induction of IFN-γ and probably in the development of the cell-mediated immune response. This review discusses recent reports involving the participation of nsps in the modulation of the innate immune response and their role in the induction of both the humoral and cellular immune responses.

Amebiasis is an endemic disease and a public health problem throughout Mexico, although the incidence rates of amebic liver abscess (ALA) vary among the geographic regions of the country. Notably, incidence rates are high in the northwestern states (especially Sonora with a rate of 12.57/100,000 inhabitants) compared with the central region (Mexico City with a rate of 0.69/100,000 inhabitants). These data may be related to host genetic factors that are partially responsible for resistance or susceptibility. Therefore, we studied the association of the HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DQB1 alleles with resistance or susceptibility to ALA in two Mexican populations, one each from Mexico City and Sonora. Ninety ALA patients were clinically diagnosed by serology and sonography. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells. To establish the genetic identity of both populations, 15 short tandem repeats (STRs) were analyzed with multiplexed PCR, and the allelic frequencies of HLA were studied by PCR-SSO using LUMINEX technology. The allele frequencies obtained were compared to an ethnically matched healthy control group (146 individuals). We observed that both affected populations differed genetically from the control group. We also found interesting trends in the population from Mexico City. HLA-DQB1*02 allele frequencies were higher in ALA patients compared to the control group (0.127 vs 0.047; p= 0.01; pc= NS; OR= 2.9, 95% CI= 1.09-8.3). The less frequent alleles in ALA patients were HLA-DRB1*08 (0.118 vs 0.238 in controls; p= 0.01; pc= NS; OR= 0.42, 95% CI= 0.19-0.87) and HLA-DQB1*04 (0.109 vs 0.214; p= 0.02; pc= NS; OR= 0.40, 95% CI= 0.20-0.94). The haplotype HLA-DRB1*08/-DQB1*04 also demonstrated a protective trend against the development of this disease (0.081 vs. 0.178; p=0.02; pc=NS; OR= 0.40, 95% CI= 0.16-0.93). These trends suggest that the prevalent alleles in the population of Mexico City may be associated with protection against the development of ALA.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the humoral and cellular responses of commercial multiparous and hyper-immunized sows against peptides from non-structural (nsp) and structural proteins of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). We selected sows with different numbers of parities from a commercial farm. Management practices on this farm include the use of the MLV commercial vaccine four times per year, plus two vaccinations during the acclimation period. The humoral response was evaluated via the antibody recognition of peptides from nsp and structural proteins, and the cellular response was assessed by measuring the frequency of peptide and PRRSV-specific IFN-gamma-secreting cells (IFNγ-SC). Our results show that sows with six parities have more antibodies against peptides from structural proteins than against peptides from nsp. The analysis of the cellular response revealed that the number of immunizations did not affect the frequency of IFNγ-SC and that the response was stronger against peptides from structural proteins (M protein) than against nsp (nsp2). In summary, these results demonstrate that multiparous, hyper-immunized sows have a stronger immune humoral response to PRRSV structural peptides than nsp, but no differences in IFNγ-SC against the same peptides were observed.

Introducción: El aumento de las infecciones parasitarias intestinales en el mundo, refuerzan su amenaza a la salud pública en México, particularmente entre las poblaciones infantil y marginada, con reportes de altas prevalencias en la mayoría de las regiones del país. Sin embargo, la información sobre el estado actual de este problema en localidades según su nivel de urbanización es aún muy limitada. Objetivo: Determinar y comparar la prevalencia de infecciones parasitarias intestinales entre escolares rurales, suburbanos y urbanos del municipio de Hermosillo, Sonora. Metodología: El universo muestral de este estudio fue de 16 049 escolares inscritos oficialmente en 10 primarias seleccionadas aleatoriamente de un total de 295 primarias públicas. La muestra que aceptó participar voluntariamente fue de 1 344 escolares (8%). Este fue un estudio de corte transversal, en el cual se colectaron de dos a tres muestras de heces fecales por participante, en el periodo de 2010 a 2015, y las cuales fueron procesadas a través de los métodos de Faust, Kato Katz, Kinyoun, y ELISA. Resultados: Participaron un total de 1 344 escolares, con edades entre 5 a 12 años. De ellos, 52.3% eran niñas y 47.6% niños. Se observó una mayor prevalencia de los protozoarios patógenos Cryptosporidium sp. (30%) y Giardia duodenalis (18.8%). Como protozoarios no patógenos, se encontró a Endolimax nana (20.8%) con la mayor prevalencia, mientras que Iodamoeba butschlii (4.2%) presentó la menor prevalencia. Hymenolepis nana (2.4%), fue el único helminto encontrado. Los escolares de las localidades rurales (46.1%) y suburbanas (44.6%)