Marko Kolenc - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Marko Kolenc
New England Journal of Medicine, 2016
A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central Am... more A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central America and the Caribbean. A major concern associated with this infection is the apparent increased incidence of microcephaly in fetuses born to mothers infected with ZIKV. In this report, we describe the case of an expectant mother who had a febrile illness with rash at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy while she was living in Brazil. Ultrasonography performed at 29 weeks of gestation revealed microcephaly with calcifications in the fetal brain and placenta. After the mother requested termination of the pregnancy, a fetal autopsy was performed. Micrencephaly (an abnormally small brain) was observed, with almost complete agyria, hydrocephalus, and multifocal dystrophic calcifications in the cortex and subcortical white matter, with associated cortical displacement and mild focal inflammation. ZIKV was found in the fetal brain tissue on reversetranscriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) assay, with consistent findings on electron microscopy. The complete genome of ZIKV was recovered from the fetal brain. Z IKV, an emerging mosquito-borne flavivirus, was initially isolated from a rhesus monkey in the Zika forest in Uganda in 1947. 1 It is transmitted by various species of aedes mosquitoes. After the first human ZIKV infection, sporadic cases were reported in Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. 2 ZIKV was responsible for the outbreak in Yap Island of Micronesia in 2007 and for major epidemics in French Polynesia, New Caledonia, the Cook Islands, and Easter Island in 2013 and 2014. 3,4 In 2015, there was a dramatic increase in reports of ZIKV infection in the Americas. Brazil is the most affected country, with preliminary estimates of 440,000 to 1.3 million cases of autochthonous ZIKV infection reported through December 2015. 5 The classic clinical picture of ZIKV infection resembles that of dengue fever and chikungunya and is manifested by fever, headache, arthralgia, myalgia, and maculopapular rash, a complex of symptoms that hampers differential diagnosis. Although the disease is self-limiting, cases of neurologic manifestations and the Guillain-Barré syndrome were described in French Polynesia and in Brazil during ZIKV epidemics. 5,6 Recent reports from the Ministry of Health of Brazil suggest that cases of microcephaly have increased by a factor of approximately 20 among newborns in the northeast region of the country, which indicates a possible association between ZIKV infection in pregnancy and fetal malformations. 5 We present a case of vertical transmission of ZIKV in a woman who was prob
COVID
Viruses are the most common causative agents of inflammation in the oral cavity and throat region... more Viruses are the most common causative agents of inflammation in the oral cavity and throat region. Most respiratory tract infections are self-limiting and require no specific treatment. However, patients often use different self-medication therapies that can treat both the symptoms and the cause. Throat lozenges with a fixed combination of benzydamine hydrochloride and cetypiridinium chloride (BH/CPC) have been shown to provide effective symptomatic relief for sore throat, but their effect on viruses has not been investigated to date. The antiseptic, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), has already been described as a successful bactericide. In addition, there are some studies suggesting its efficacy against certain enveloped viruses. Thus, the aim of our study was to examine the virucidal activity of CPC and a combination of BH/CPC as a free active substance or as lozenge on SARS-CoV-2 in vitro. Under in-laboratory simulated conditions of lozenge administration, we incubated SARS-CoV-2 ...
New England Journal of Medicine, 2016
A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central Am... more A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central America and the Caribbean. A major concern associated with this infection is the apparent increased incidence of microcephaly in fetuses born to mothers infected with ZIKV. In this report, we describe the case of an expectant mother who had a febrile illness with rash at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy while she was living in Brazil. Ultrasonography performed at 29 weeks of gestation revealed microcephaly with calcifications in the fetal brain and placenta. After the mother requested termination of the pregnancy, a fetal autopsy was performed. Micrencephaly (an abnormally small brain) was observed, with almost complete agyria, hydrocephalus, and multifocal dystrophic calcifications in the cortex and subcortical white matter, with associated cortical displacement and mild focal inflammation. ZIKV was found in the fetal brain tissue on reverse-transcriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) assay, with consistent findings on electron microscopy. The complete genome of ZIKV was recovered from the fetal brain.
New England Journal of Medicine, 2016
A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central Am... more A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central America and the Caribbean. A major concern associated with this infection is the apparent increased incidence of microcephaly in fetuses born to mothers infected with ZIKV. In this report, we describe the case of an expectant mother who had a febrile illness with rash at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy while she was living in Brazil. Ultrasonography performed at 29 weeks of gestation revealed microcephaly with calcifications in the fetal brain and placenta. After the mother requested termination of the pregnancy, a fetal autopsy was performed. Micrencephaly (an abnormally small brain) was observed, with almost complete agyria, hydrocephalus, and multifocal dystrophic calcifications in the cortex and subcortical white matter, with associated cortical displacement and mild focal inflammation. ZIKV was found in the fetal brain tissue on reversetranscriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) assay, with consistent findings on electron microscopy. The complete genome of ZIKV was recovered from the fetal brain. Z IKV, an emerging mosquito-borne flavivirus, was initially isolated from a rhesus monkey in the Zika forest in Uganda in 1947. 1 It is transmitted by various species of aedes mosquitoes. After the first human ZIKV infection, sporadic cases were reported in Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. 2 ZIKV was responsible for the outbreak in Yap Island of Micronesia in 2007 and for major epidemics in French Polynesia, New Caledonia, the Cook Islands, and Easter Island in 2013 and 2014. 3,4 In 2015, there was a dramatic increase in reports of ZIKV infection in the Americas. Brazil is the most affected country, with preliminary estimates of 440,000 to 1.3 million cases of autochthonous ZIKV infection reported through December 2015. 5 The classic clinical picture of ZIKV infection resembles that of dengue fever and chikungunya and is manifested by fever, headache, arthralgia, myalgia, and maculopapular rash, a complex of symptoms that hampers differential diagnosis. Although the disease is self-limiting, cases of neurologic manifestations and the Guillain-Barré syndrome were described in French Polynesia and in Brazil during ZIKV epidemics. 5,6 Recent reports from the Ministry of Health of Brazil suggest that cases of microcephaly have increased by a factor of approximately 20 among newborns in the northeast region of the country, which indicates a possible association between ZIKV infection in pregnancy and fetal malformations. 5 We present a case of vertical transmission of ZIKV in a woman who was prob
COVID
Viruses are the most common causative agents of inflammation in the oral cavity and throat region... more Viruses are the most common causative agents of inflammation in the oral cavity and throat region. Most respiratory tract infections are self-limiting and require no specific treatment. However, patients often use different self-medication therapies that can treat both the symptoms and the cause. Throat lozenges with a fixed combination of benzydamine hydrochloride and cetypiridinium chloride (BH/CPC) have been shown to provide effective symptomatic relief for sore throat, but their effect on viruses has not been investigated to date. The antiseptic, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), has already been described as a successful bactericide. In addition, there are some studies suggesting its efficacy against certain enveloped viruses. Thus, the aim of our study was to examine the virucidal activity of CPC and a combination of BH/CPC as a free active substance or as lozenge on SARS-CoV-2 in vitro. Under in-laboratory simulated conditions of lozenge administration, we incubated SARS-CoV-2 ...
New England Journal of Medicine, 2016
A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central Am... more A widespread epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection was reported in 2015 in South and Central America and the Caribbean. A major concern associated with this infection is the apparent increased incidence of microcephaly in fetuses born to mothers infected with ZIKV. In this report, we describe the case of an expectant mother who had a febrile illness with rash at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy while she was living in Brazil. Ultrasonography performed at 29 weeks of gestation revealed microcephaly with calcifications in the fetal brain and placenta. After the mother requested termination of the pregnancy, a fetal autopsy was performed. Micrencephaly (an abnormally small brain) was observed, with almost complete agyria, hydrocephalus, and multifocal dystrophic calcifications in the cortex and subcortical white matter, with associated cortical displacement and mild focal inflammation. ZIKV was found in the fetal brain tissue on reverse-transcriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) assay, with consistent findings on electron microscopy. The complete genome of ZIKV was recovered from the fetal brain.