Our findings suggest that slaughterhouse workers in Kerman area have a higher risk of infection and should consider potential infection with Coxiella burnetii.

Background:Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by blood-borne pathogen, hepatitis C virus (HCV).Objectives:The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of HCV infection and associated risk factors among addicts in drug treatment centers in Lorestan Province, Iran.Patients and Methods:A cross-sectional sero-behavioral survey was given to drug addicts in the drug treatment centers of Khorramabad, Lorestan Province, Iran during June 2012 - March 2013. Drug addicts were interviewed using a standard questionnaire including demographic, imprisonment history, and HCV-related risk behavior items. Thereafter, the sera drawn from the participants were tested for anti-HCV antibody (Ab), anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) Ab, and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg).Results:The mean age of the cohorts was 31.7. Up to 60.2% of drug users had educational levels less than high school, 67.5% were self-employed, and 32.5% were office workers. The mean duration of drug injection was 6.8 years. Statistical analyses indicated that the prevalence of HCV among drug addicts was positively associated with age, past incarceration, drug injection history, the duration of drug use, and tattooing. In addition, 16.23% of volunteers were HCV-positive. Of those infected with HCV, 1.10% was co-infected with HBV, 2.95% were positive for HIV, and 0.36% of HCV-positive cases were infected with all three viruses.Conclusions:The high prevalence of HCV infection among this group implies a high rate of transmission and exposure to the risk of serious diseases. It is important that the high prevalence of HCV infection be taken into consideration to control further transmission of this infection.

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Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is one of the major threats to the poultry industry, with significant economic consequences. Despite strict measures, the disease is difficult to control worldwide. Experimental evidence demonstrates that the severity of IBV is affected by the genetic background of the chicken, and the selection of appropriate breeds can increase production efficiency. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to assess the strength of the immune response to IBV in tracheal tissues of Ross 308 and Cobb 500 broiler chickens by evaluating transcriptome changes, focusing on immune responses and the viral load in tracheal tissues two days after IBV infection. We identified 899 and 1350 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the Cobb 500 and Ross 308 experimental groups compared to their respective control groups. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis indicated the involvement of signaling pathways (Toll-like receptor [TLR], NOD-like receptor [NLR], and RIG-I-like receptor [RLR] signaling pathways). Interestingly, the RLR signaling pathway appears to be affected only in the Cobb hybrid. Furthermore, the viral loads in tracheal samples obtained from the Ross challenged group were significantly higher than those of the Cobb challenged group. The results of this study indicated that the host transcriptional response to IBV infection as well as the viral load can differ by hybrid. Furthermore, genes such as TLR-3 , ChIFN-α , MDA5 , LGP2 , IRF-7 , NF-κB , and TRIM25 may interfere with IBV proliferation. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00705-021-05322-5.