Miklos Degré

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Verified

Miklos verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

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• Doctor of Medicine
• Professor emeritus at University of Oslo

Interferon production in mouse and human cells induced by paramyxovirus was inhibited by pretreatment of cells with 7.12 dimethylbenz (α) anthracene. The inhibition was moderate but reproducible. It was most pronounced in mouse fibroblast cells, somewhat less in the mouse L-929 cell line and in human embryo fibroblast cells. Addition of the microso...

The cell multiplication inhibitory effect of SDS-treated mouse interferon separated into antiviral (AV) and cell multiplication inhibitory (CMI) fractions was compared to that of untreated similar interferon on a line of murine osteosarcoma cells. The untreated interferon preparation and the CMI fractions dose-dependently inhibited the multiplicati...

Polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocyte accumulation in different sections of the respiratory tract of mice is a prominent sign after inoculation with parainfluenza 1 virus. Spontaneous invasion of bacteria to the lung, normally present in the upper respiratory tract, was frequently observed from the 2. day after viral inoculation. Penicillin-G, administ...

The effect of infection with parainfluenza 1 virus or Haemophilus influenzae b on the mucosa of respiratory tract of mice was studied. A section of trachea just above the bifurcation was examined histologically for the presence of destructive changes and leukocyte accumulation in the epithelium and lamina propria. Polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocyte...

Small, globular, eosinophilic bodies, similar in appearance to the hyaline microthrombi (HMT) previously reported in man, were found regularly in the mouse liver. The occurrence of HMT in the mouse liver was subjected to quantitative analysis. In man, HMT are a frequent finding in bronchopneumonic patients. Intranasal inoculation of pneumococci gav...

: A new malignant human T-cell line-labelled PFI-285-has been isolated from a boy with malignant lymphoma. Morphologically, the cells had characteristics of malignant lymphoid cells. The cells presented surface antigens as early cortical lymphocytes and proliferated non-adherently as single cells, independent of T-cell growth factor (IL-2), in liqu...

The influence of prior virus infection on the antibacterial activity of mouse alveolar macrophagehibition of phagocytosis in the total reduction of host defence after virus infection.

The effect of rubella virus (RV) on the expression of the p63 isoforms was investigated in Vero cells. The levels of all the TAp63 isoforms were elevated, while the expression of a approximately 73 kDa isoform corresponding to DeltaNp63alpha was downregulated in Vero cells infected with the To-336 strain of RV. A approximately 66 kDa isoform corres...

The impact of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and disease on long-term outcome after kidney transplantation is still unsettled. Between 1994 and 1997, 397 consecutive first kidney graft recipients and 74 retransplants were included in the study and followed prospectively until December 31, 2001. CMV infection (CMV pp65 antigenemia) and CMV disease...

Cytokine production has been implicated in the pathogenic mechanisms of infections caused by the staphylococci, since these bacteria may act as strong cytokine inducers. To gain deeper insight into the Th1 immune response activated by these bacteria, we have analyzed the interferon (IFN), interleukin-12 (IL-12) and IL-18-inducing activities of diff...

Earlier findings have suggested that the balance between interleukin-10 and tumor necrosis factor alpha levels in serum may influence the outcome of cytomegalovirus infection in renal transplant recipients. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether human cytomegalovirus induces interleukin-10 production in macrophages. Expe...

About one-quarter of renal transplant patients will suffer from symptomatic cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease if no preventive therapeutic measures are taken. In this prospective, randomized single-centre study pre-emptive therapy with oral ganciclovir is compared with conventional deferred treatment. Renal transplant recipients (n= 455) over 18 years...

The present study was designed to investigate how two chronically replicating viruses, TT virus (TTV) and TTV-like mini virus (TLMV), interact with host defence systems. Successive serum samples from three groups of subjects, undergoing modifications of their antiviral defence, were tested by real-time PCR to measure changes in viral titers, and by...

Symptoms and SignsClinical CourseComplicationsThe VirusEpidemiologyTherapy and ProphylaxisLaboratory Diagnosis

Symptoms and SignsClinical CourseComplicationsThe VirusEpidemiologyTherapy and ProphylaxisLaboratory Diagnosis

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and disease are potential risk factors for acute allograft rejection in renal transplant recipients. The present study specifically addresses this issue. From October 1994 to July 1997, 477 consecutive renal allograft recipients (397 first transplants and 80 retransplants) were included in the study. CMV infection (c...

In light of the important role of cytokines in the pathogenesis of bacterial infections, we analyzed the cytokine production induced by different Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), S. epidermidis and S. saprophyticus strains in human mononuclear cells (MNCs). MNCs secreted high amounts of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and IL-6 proteins in responses...

The clinical significance of cytomegalovirus (CMV) DNA detection in post-kidney transplantation infection surveillance was examined by comparing the performance of three assays for detection of CMV in blood: the test for CMV-pp65-antigen in leukocytes, which is routinely employed in our laboratory, the quantitative plasma CMV-DNA-polymerase chain r...

An interesting aspect of infection with several infectious agents is the possible association with some diseases apparently not associated with infections. One of the most exciting examples of this is the association of cardiovascular diseases with infection involving several different infectious agents. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is one of the chief ca...

The possibility that human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) may infect porcine endothelial cells (ECs) was investigated. This may be relevant during xenotransplantation of porcine cells or organs into human recipients. HCMV was inoculated into low-passage porcine ECs. Replication of virus was detected by development of characteristic cytopathogenic effect. A...

Objective To evaluate the performance of the recently introduced method based on detection of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) pp67 mRNA in blood by the nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NucliSens), in comparison to semiquantitative detection of pp65 HCMV antigen in white blood cells, in relation to development of clinical HCMV disease. Method...

Cytomegalovirus infection is a major cause of morbidity in immunocompromised patients. The major immediate early promoter/enhancer (MIEP) of the human cytomegalovirus controls the expression of the immediate early genes 1 and 2 which play a central role both in primary and reactivated human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-infections. Our previous studies ha...

The aim of the study was to detect the prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis A, B, C, and E viruses in flying airline personnel, and to determine the necessity of hepatitis A vaccination to prevent such infections related to occupational exposure. Antibodies against hepatitis A (HAV), B (HBV), C (HVC), and E (HEV) were tested for using standar...

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is the single most frequent infectious complication in renal transplant recipients. Because no CMV-prophylaxis is given and ganciclovir is used only as deferred therapy for CMV disease at our center, we have been able to study the natural course of CMV infections. The aim was to assess risk factors for CMV infection...

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) causes gastro intestinal disease with ulcerations, apparently as a consequence of cytopathic damage to endothelial cells (EC) and subsequent microvascular obliteration. In this study we showed that cultured human intestinal microvascular endothelial cells (HIMEC) are much more susceptible to HCMV infection than human um...

Several studies have shown that human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces growth suppression of hematopoietic progenitors. In vitro studies have demonstrated that the HCMV-induced suppression is independent of viral protein production. Previous studies have indicated a link between HCMV infection and apoptosis in human cells. The purpose of our study wa...

Transplantation shows good results for patients with end-stage disease, but there is an increasing lack of organs. Xenotransplantation, the transfer of live animal cells, tissues, or organs to another species, offers a potential solution to this shortfall. Pig is regarded as the animal of choice for this purpose. Meanwhile demonstration of pig endo...

Bone marrow suppression with leukopenia is frequently observed during human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection, and in vitro the cell colony formation of bone marrow progenitors is directly inhibited by HCMV. To better understand the mechanisms of HCMV's ability to directly inhibit the cell colony formation of hematopoietic cells, we examined the eff...

We have studied the effect of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) infection on in vitro differentiation of blood-derived human monocytes into macrophages using morphological, functional and biochemical parameters that alter during macrophage differentiation. Purified preparations of HSV modified the monocyte-macrophage differentiation, in spite of t...

The clinical value of a new RNA-DNA hybridization assay for quantification of cytomegalovirus (CMV) DNA in leukocytes [Hybrid Capture CMV DNA Assay (HCA); Murex Biotech, UK] was evaluated. The HCA was compared with an assay for CMV pp65 antigen in leukocytes and an in-house CMV polymerase chain reaction PCR (CMV-PCR) on parallel blood samples. The...

The interaction of herpes simplex virus (HSV) with mononuclear phagocytes (MP), i.e. monocytes and macrophages, is of importance for the pathogenesis of HSV infections. MP are known to play a significant role in the cellular defence against infections with HSV, but it has also been shown that HSV-1 affects MP. The infection of these cells at differ...

Co-infections or co-habitations of cells by two or more viruses may occur in the human organism. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and the human polyomavirus BK (BKV) have common host cells and may both establish lifelong latency/persistence following primary infection. Both viruses may become reactivated by immunosuppression or other conditions which u...

We have investigated the effect of adenovirus 2 (Ad2) infection on human monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages with regard to expression of TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta. In monocytes, the virus was bound to the surface without being internalized. On the other hand, Ad2 was internalized by macrophages. No virus replication and no transcription of th...

The effect of in vitro infection of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) on various monocyte functions relevant to antimicrobial defence mechanisms has been investigated: the phagocytic activity of monocytes, the release of lysozyme and intracellular concentration of acid phosphatase, and the release of the cytokines interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-6, and tumour...

Complement biosynthesis in monocytes is stimulated by different microorganisms including Gram negative bacteria and yeasts. We have tested the effect of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) on complement factor 3 (C3) production by cultured human monocytes. The monocytes were challenged with either a crude or a purified HCMV preparation obtained from the s...

Bone marrow cells (BMC) are involved in the pathogenesis of human cytomegalovirus++ (HCMV) infections, and the hematopoietic cells are probable sites of HCMV latency in healthy donors. In vitro studies have indicated both a direct inhibitory effect of HCMV on proliferation and differentiation of myeloid bone marrow progenitors and an impairment of...

Recently, considerable interest has arisen as to use cord blood (CB) as a source of hematopoietic stem cells for allogenic transplantation when bone marrow (BM) from a familial HLA-matched donor is not available. Because human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has been shown to inhibit the proliferation of BM progenitors in vitro, it was important to examine...

The effect of interferon (IFN) on herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-induced glycoproteins gC and gE was investigated in a heterologous IFN/cell model. In this model, the effect on surface expression of the glycoproteins could be studied separately from the effect on virus multiplication. Pretreatment of baby hamster kidney cells (BHK) with hetero...

The active metabolite of vitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25D), has been shown to induce monocyte-to-macrophage maturation in vitro as well as monocytic differentiation of bone marrow precursors and monocytic leukaemic cell lines. In this study we assessed whether 1,25D could improve the maturation defect we have previously demonstrated in mo...

During the recent 10-15 years a growing amount of knowledge has been accumulated on the role of cytokines in the pathogenesis and resistance to infections caused by nonviral agents, including a wide range of bacteria. Cytokines can be major mediators of the pathogenic effect in some diseases, and represent important defense mechanisms in others. De...

The clinical appearance, pathogenesis and epidemiology of the most important human and animal spongiform encephalopathies is reviewed. These comprise a heterogenous group of diseases with both transmissible and hereditary elements in their etiology. They are characterized by neurodegenerative changes in complete absence of inflammatory and immunolo...

Coxsackie B1 virus infection enhances the susceptibility of in vitro cultured HEp-2 cells to invasiveness by Shigella flexneri. We have studied the effect of viral infection on two phases of the invasiveness. Only a minor part was mediated by enhanced bacterial adherence to the cells, and the intracellular multiplication was unaffected by the virus...

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) establishes latency in sensory ganglia following primary infection (chickenpox) and may reactivate decades later to produce zoster (shingles). The presence of VZV DNA in latently infected ganglia has been demonstrated by Southern blot hybridization as well as by polymerase chain reaction of DNA extracted from latently i...

Intragastrically inoculated Salmonella typhimurium produces a systemic infection in mice with high mortality. We have examined the effect of interferon (IFN)-gamma and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha on the development of the disease. IFN-gamma reduced penetration of bacteria into the gut epithelial cells, reduced the development of bacteremia, r...

Coxsackie B1 virus infection enhances the susceptibility of in vitro cultured HEp-2 cells to invasiveness by Shigella flexneri. We have studied the effect of viral infection on two phases of the invasiveness. Only a minor part was mediated by enhanced bacterial adherence to the cells, and the intracellular multiplication was unaffected by the virus...

The effect of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection on adhesiveness and invasiveness of Salmonella typhimurium was examined in cells permissive (human embryo fibroblasts (HE)), semipermissive (A549) and nonpermissive (HEp-2) for the virus. Preinfection of the cells with HCMV induced enhanced adhesiveness and invasiveness of bacteria in the permiss...

Several routinely employed diagnostic methods were analysed for their usefulness in aiding an early and rapid diagnosis of human cytomegalo-virus infection in immunocompromised patients. Clinical samples obtained during an 18-month period were examined by conventional culture, the shell vial method, detection of pp65 antigen and the polymerase chai...

Blood-derived macrophages were acutely infected with HIV and treated with a combination of leucocyte interferon (IFN) and five anti-HIV drugs. HIV growth was assayed by quantitation of p24 antigen in the supernatant and in some experiments by determination of reverse transcriptase activity. Both IFN and all drugs, with the exception of fusidic acid...

Sera from 52 patients with psoriasis and 106 controls were tested for IFN-tau, IFN-alpha 2 and TNF-alpha in ELISA and for total IFN activity using an infectivity inhibition micromethod. Psoriasis patients had lower serum levels of IFN-tau than had the controls: median 0.10 ng/ml vs. 0.16 ng/ml (p = 0.01). The highest median serum IFN-tau levels wer...

Coxsackie B1 virus induces increased susceptibility to invasion by Shigella flexneri when HEp-2 cells are inoculated with the complete virus. When RNA from the same virus was microinjected into cells, virus RNA was synthesized and new virus particles were formed, but the transfected RNA had no effect on bacterial invasiveness. However, when the cel...

The effect of acyclovir (ACV) treatment on selected functions of human blood-derived macrophages was examined. ACV was not cytotoxic when applied in a wide range of concentrations. Only minor effects on macrophage functions were observed when cells were treated with therapeutic concentrations of ACV:phagocytosis and the production of interferon and...

HIV multiplication in blood-derived macrophages was slightly inhibited by pretreatment of cells with interferon-gamma or by preincubation of virus with serum containing antibodies against HIV. When these pretreatments were combined, the HIV titres observed a short time after infection were enhanced. This effect was blocked by antibodies against Fc...

The effect of interferon treatment on interaction of Shigella flexneri with in vitro cultured cells was investigated. Pretreatment of HEp-2 cells with human interferons had no effect on the susceptibility of cells to S. flexneri, measured by invasiveness and adhesiveness. Human leukocyte interferon and human recombinant interferon-alpha-A reduced a...

Coxsackie B1 virus infection enhances the susceptibility of cultured HEp-2 cells to Shigella flexneri invasiveness. This can be reproduced partially with UV-inactivated virus, particularly the effect observed shortly after viral inoculation. The following phases of viral multiplication were correlated with the enhancing effect: uncoating of viral p...

Lactoferrin, lysozyme, interferon, and neopterin levels were determined in parotid saliva from 44 individuals with different clinical stages of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and 19 HIV-seronegative controls. The secretory output of individual components was calculated according to the fluid flow rate. No parotid interferon activity w...

To analyze the possible mechanisms by which coxsackie B1 virus infection affects the invasiveness of Shigella flexneri, we have studied the influence of intracellular levels of Na+ and K+, ATPase activity, cytoplasmic membrane potential, cAMP level and cell communication through gap junctions. 3h after adsorption of viable or UV-inactivated coxsack...

Coxsackie B1 virus did not replicate when microinjected into HEp-2 cells. Replication was assayed by production of infectious virus particles, synthesis of viral RNA, and lysis of cells. The same virus preparation initiated replication when it was inoculated into HEp-2 cells similarly to that by microinjected purified coxsackie B1 virus RNA.

Rapid detection of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections, especially in immunocompromised patients, is important and sometimes lifesaving. We describe one year's experience of using a combination of several methods: detection of "immediate early" CMV antigen in blood, detection of "early" virus antigen after brief incubation in cell culture, detection o...

The effect of interferon treatment on the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-specific glycoproteins gC and gE in homologous and heterologous cells has been investigated. In human embryonic fibroblastic cells, human leukocyte interferon inhibited virus multiplication and expression of the HSV-1-specific glycoproteins gC and gE on the cell surface i...

The seroprevalence of antibodies against parvovirus B19 in 308 Norwegians with coagulation factor defects of different types and severities was assessed by an IgG antibody capture radioimmunoassay (GACRIA). The overall seroprevalence was 62%. The seroprevalence among subjects with different types of coagulation factor defects was related to the typ...

Human polymorphonuclear leukocytes kill WEHI 164 cells in an 18-hour 51Cr release assay. Antibody to human tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocks the lysis of targets mediated by human granulocytes. Resting granulocytes produce an undetectable amount of TNF, if any. Granulocytes stimulated with Staphylococcus aureus release 250-500 U/ml TNF alpha. The...

Mice, inoculated with Salmonella typhimurium, either intraperitoneally (i.p.) or intragastrically (i.g.), developed a systemic infection with a high death rate within a few days after inoculation. Pretreatment of the mice with moderate concentrations of i.p. administered TNF-alpha 24 h before the administration of bacteria reduced the establishment...

To analyze the effect of coxsackie B1 virus infection on bacterial in vasiveness, phagocytosis and cytoplasma membrane permeability, we have studied invasiveness of Shigella flexneri, unspecific phagocytosis of latex particles and release of the non-metabolizible amino acid, α-aminoisobutyric acid (AIB). Virus infection enhanced invasiveness of S....

The immunogenicity and reactogenicity of two preparations of yeast-derived hepatitis B vaccines were compared in healthy adult populations. The two groups were vaccinated in parallel, but they were not matched for age and sex. All subjects seroconverted, and 9 months after the first vaccine dose, all had anti HBs titres of at least 10 IU/l. The ant...

Previous studies have shown that interferons (IFNs) specifically interact with a number of cells cultured in vitro and reduce the invasiveness of facultatively intracellular bacteria. IFN treatment also reduced the internalization of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) in cell cultures. Here we show that the anti-invasive effect of IFN on bacteria is...

The effect of fusidic acid on the multiplication of human immunodeficiency virus in monocyte-derived macrophages was examined in in vitro cultures. Virus titers, measured by reverse transcriptase and by p24 antigen in the supernatants and in lysed cells, were reduced in some experiments by 50 micrograms/ml or more; in other experiments, 10 microgra...

Human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNLs) kill WEHI 164 clone 13 cells in an 18-hour 51Cr release assay. Antibody to human tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocks the lysis of targets mediated by human granulocytes. PMNLs triggered by sensitive targets not only displayed cytotoxic activity, but also released a soluble factor capable of selectively lysi...

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) detection was performed by a rapid ELISA antigen detection method in a small field trial, and the results were compared to the results of ordinary cell culture isolation. Swabs from 54 patients, suffering from clinically suspected genital HSV infection, were examined by both methods. In 49 samples the results were identic...

Enteroinvasive bacteria, like Salmonella typhimurium, can be internalized in in vitro cultured epithelioidal cells, like HEp-2 cells. This phenomenon is inhibited by pretreatment of cells with human tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The effect was also reproduced in other cell types, including diploid emb...

We have studied the effect of different types of interferons (IFN) on phagocytic activity and protein content when present during in vitro cultivation of human blood monocytes. Recombinant IFN-alpha and partially and highly purified leukocyte IFN preparations blocked the increase in phagocytic activity and protein content that occurs during in vitr...

A synthetic peptide approach has been used to identify the epitopes recognized by clonal and polyclonal human T cells reactive to the recombinant mycobacterial 65-kDa protein Ag. Three of the four epitopes identified were recognized as cross-reactive between Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae, although their amino acid sequence in...

Previous studies have shown that interferons specifically interact with HEp-2 cells and reduce invasiveness by Salmonella and Shigella. In this study an effect of interferons on the adhesiveness of a strictly extracellular bacterium was demonstrated. HEp-2 cells were treated with human leukocyte interferon, recombinant interferon alpha-A or recombi...

When mouse fibroblast L-929 cells were pre-infected with vesicular stomatitis virus, an enhancement of invasiveness by Salmonella typhimurium was observed. The effect was more pronounced when higher virus doses were used. Short-time (5 h) pre-incubation with virus caused a moderate enhancement of invasiveness. When virus pre-incubation time was inc...

We have studied the effect of recombinant murine interferon-gamma (rMuIFN-gamma) on the protein content, phagocytic activity, and cytotoxicity of mouse peritoneal macrophages (MPM). The aim of this study was to see whether rMuIFN-gamma alone could influence these parameters of MPM activity or if an additional stimulus, like elicitation or cultivati...

Nonspecific bacterial vaginosis, defined as the presence of clue cells, was treated in a randomized, double-blind study with (1) tinidazole 2 g as a single dose (82 patients), (2) tinidazole 2 g on 2 consecutive days (84 patients), and (3) with placebo (81 patients). The cure rates, both clue cells and Gardnerella vaginalis absent, were 51, 74 and...

Invasiveness of the epithelial cells in the gut by Salmonella, Shigella, enteroinvasive Escherichia coli and other facultatively intracellular enteropathogenic bacteria, is an important pathogenetic factor in the course of infection. This process is inhibited when cells are pretreated with different types of interferons as demonstrated in animal an...

An infectivity inhibition micro-method was used to detect interferon (IFN) in sera from 20 healthy individuals before and after UVA irradiation, and in sera from 22 healthy individuals before and after UVB irradiation. The serum levels of IFN, immunoglobulins (Ig) and complement components (C) were examined before irradiation, after 10 and 20 expos...

Previous studies have shown that human leukocyte interferon (IFN), IFN-gamma, and recombinant (r) IFN-alpha-A protect cultured human cells against the invasiveness of salmonellae, shigellae, and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli. To differentiate between effect on endocytosis and adhesiveness, HEp-2 cells were pretreated with cytochalasin B to block...

The current study demonstrates that whereas high concentrations of recombinant tumour necrosis factor (rTNF, 0.05 microgram/ml) induced enhanced growth of normal human fibroblasts, supernatants from human monocytes with a similar TNF concentration induced cytostasis. This cytostasis was inhibited by an antiserum against rTNF. The TNF activity, meas...

The current study demonstrates that whereas high concentrations of recombinant tumour necrosis factor (rTNF. 0.05/(g/ml) induced enhanced growth of normal human fibroblasts, supernatants from human monoeytes with u similar TNF concentration induced cytostasis. This cytoslasis was inhibited by an antiserum against rTNF. The TNF activity, measured as...