Biology subjects

Belli, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Belli, A..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Differential serum binding patterns predicting healthy subjects and cancer patients

A viral exposure signature (VES) has been previously described predicting the development of Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in at-risk patients. This has been achieved by a serological profiling of the viral infection history using a synthetic human virome including >100k epitopes (VirScan). In the present study we applied the same VirScan strategy to identify a differential serum binding pattern (DSBP) for classifying patients of different cancer types from healthy individuals. In particular, the healthy group included both age-matched (ADULTS) as well as elderly (ELDERS) individuals, the latter counting also nonagenarians and centenarians. The class comparison performed with serological data show DSBPs supporting class predictions, as confirmed by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Antibody responses supporting the class predictions are specific to peptides from persistent herpesviruses, acute-infecting viruses and, consistently in all comparisons, human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV). Strikingly, the DSB of the ELDERS vs. CANCER comparison is characterized by higher titers in the healthy subjects; on the contrary, the DSB of the ADULTS vs. CANCER comparison is characterized by lower titers in the healthy subjects. Overall, the results show a differential serological binding pattern predicting healthy individuals (ADULTS or ELDERS) from patients with different types of cancer. Such results provide the first evidence suggesting a close link between anti-microbial immunity and cancer development. They may be of the highest relevance in terms of predictive, diagnostic and/or prognostic impact in oncology.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2025

Testing the redox theory of aging under parasitism

The redox theory of aging proposes that an oxidative imbalance, possibly amplified by infection, drives senescence. We experimentally evolved mosquitoes under early or late reproduction with or without parasite exposure, and quantified longevity, fecundity, and redox markers. Although selection generated the expected life-history divergence, there was only a poor non-linear association between a redox gradient and longevity. Thus, oxidative stress contributed to, but did not determine, the evolution of aging.

evolutionary biology↗

bioRxiv2021

Borrelia infection in rodent host has dramatic effects on the microbiome of ticks

BackgroundVector-borne diseases remain major causes of human morbidity and mortality. It is increasingly recognized that the community of microbes inhabiting arthropods can strongly affect their vector competence, but the role of the tick microbiome in Borrelia transmission - the cause of Lyme disease - remains unclear. ResultsHere, we use a large-scale experiment to clarify the reciprocal interactions between Borrelia afzelii and the microbiome of Ixodes ricinus, its primary vector. In contrast to other reports, we find that depletion of the bacterial microbiome in larval ticks has no effect on their subsequent acquisition of B. afzelii during blood feeding on infected mice. Rather, exposure to B. afzelii-infected hosts drives pervasive changes to the tick microbiome, decreasing overall bacterial abundance, shifting bacterial community composition, and increasing bacterial diversity. These effects appear to be independent of the acquisition of B. afzelii by ticks, suggesting they are mediated by physiological or immunological aspects of B. afzelii infection in the rodent host. ConclusionsManipulation of the microbiome of I. ricinus larvae had no effect on their ability to acquire B. afzelii. In contrast, B. afzelii infection in the mouse had dramatic effects on the composition of the gut microbiome in I. ricinus nymphs. Our study demonstrates that vector-borne infections in the vertebrate host shape the microbiome of the arthropod vector.

microbiology↗