An unprecedented epidemic of Ebola virus disease (EVD) unfolded in West Africa in 2014. The epidemic has been well described in the popular press and in regular reports from public health authorities. The medical literature has necessarily been slower in describing the epidemic, but comprehensive reports are now appearing, offering valuable accounts of the clinical features, epidemiology, and p...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that over 2 million infections in the United States each year are caused by antibiotic-resistant pathogens described as urgent, serious, and concerning threats, leading to 23 000 deaths and billions of dollars in excess medical costs [1]. Nearly half of these 18 antibiotic resistant threats are healthcareassociated pathogens and at ...

Macrolide antibiotics are well known for their antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. This article provides an overview of the biological mechanisms through which macrolides exert this ‘double effect’. Their antibacterial effect consists of the inhibition of bacterial protein synthesis, impaired bacterial biofilm synthesis, and the attenuation of other bacterial virulence factors. Apar...

Macrolide antibiotics are well known for their antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. This article provides an overview of the biological mechanisms through which macrolides exert this ‘double effect’. Their antibacterial effect consists of the inhibition of bacterial protein synthesis, impaired bacterial biofilm synthesis, and the attenuation of other bacterial virulence factors. Apar...

Background: Recently, nicotine administration has been shown to be a potent inhibitor of a variety of innate immune responses, including endotoxin-induced sepsis. Objective: It was the aim of this study to evaluate the effect of nicotine on attenuating lung injury and improving the survival in mice with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury (ALI). Methods: ALI was induced in mice b...

The available evidence for long-term, low-dose treatment with 14and 15-membered ring macrolides in non-cystic fibrosis (CF) bronchiectasis, COPD, chronic sinusitis, and asthma is reviewed with special attention to possible adverse effects and the emergence of resistance during long-term macrolide treatment. Macrolide maintenance therapy has been proven to be of benefit in diffuse panbronchiolit...

The available evidence for long-term, low-dose treatment with 14and 15-membered ring macrolides in non-cystic fibrosis (CF) bronchiectasis, COPD, chronic sinusitis, and asthma is reviewed with special attention to possible adverse effects and the emergence of resistance during long-term macrolide treatment. Macrolide maintenance therapy has been proven to be of benefit in diffuse panbronchiolit...

This white paper discusses the challenge of developing a chemically-aware method of representation for large, modified biopolymers that is meaningful for both biologists and chemists, reduces redundant information and enables the electronic searching of structural features. The paper compares the methods used by chemists to represent chemical structures with those used by biologists to depict b...