Biology subjects

Bercovici, S.

Publications and source records attributed to Bercovici, S..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

IL1 blockade attenuates E. coli induced intrauterine inflammation and preterm labor in Rhesus macaques

Intrauterine infection and inflammation are major causes of preterm labor, yet antibiotics alone often fail to prevent preterm birth despite achieving microbial clearance. Interleukin1 (IL1) is a key mediator of intra-amniotic inflammation and functional progesterone withdrawal, processes linked to labor initiation. We tested whether IL1 blockade with the clinically approved IL1 receptor antagonist, anakinra, could reduce inflammation and preterm labor in a Rhesus macaque model of intra-amniotic Escherichia coli infection followed by delayed antibiotic treatment. Here we show that anakinra reduced the incidence of preterm labor by 40% (p=0.07), attenuated inflammation in the fetal membranes and cervix, and preserved progesterone receptor-B abundance in the fetal membranes. These effects were most pronounced in animals protected from preterm labor. Our findings in a relevant model support the translational potential of combining IL1 blockade with antibiotics for infection-associated preterm labor. One sentence summaryRecombinant human IL1 receptor antagonist (anakinra) decreased E. coli infection induced preterm labor and partially decreased intrauterine inflammation in a non-human primate model of inflammation mediated preterm labor.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2024

Photochemical processes drive thermal responses of dissolved organic matter in the dark ocean

How dissolved organic matter (DOM) responds to climate warming is critical for understanding its role in future ocean carbon cycling. Here, we use a highly resolved dataset of over 800 DOM samples covering the surface waters to the deep Atlantic, Southern, and Pacific oceans to examine the changes in DOM molecular composition in response to warming water temperatures, referred to as DOM thermal responses. Towards the deep waters, the strength (i.e., overall magnitude) and diversity (i.e., variation among molecules) of these thermal responses both decline. However, these responses show opposite trends with the concentration of more recalcitrant molecules, decreasing and increasing, respectively. These contrasting trends concur with the observation that, compared to the strength of thermal responses, their diversity is more strongly explained by photochemical processes of DOM. By projecting global ocean thermal responses from 1950 to 2020 using environmental temperature, salinity and radiation, we predict that increases in the diversity of thermal responses are unexpectedly largest at deeper depths (> 1,000 m). Such increases could elevate the recalcitrant deep-ocean carbon sink by approximately 10 Tg C yr-1, which accounts for > 5% of the carbon flux reaching and persisting in the deep ocean. Our findings highlight the role of photochemical processes in imprinting DOM thermal responses, offering new insights into the future capacity of the oceanic carbon sink under global climate change.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2018

Liquid biopsy for infectious diseases: Sequencing of cell-free plasma to detect pathogen DNA in patients with invasive fungal disease

Diagnosis of life-threatening deep-seated infections currently requires invasive sampling of the infected tissue to provide a microbiologic diagnosis. These procedures can lead to high morbidity in patients and add to healthcare costs. Here we describe a novel next-generation sequencing assay that was used to detect pathogen-derived cell-free DNA in peripheral blood of patients with biopsy-proven invasive fungal infections. The non-invasive nature of this approach could provide rapid, actionable treatment information for invasive fungal infections when a biopsy is not possible.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2016

Large-scale Population Genotyping from Low-coverage Sequencing Data using a Reference Panel

In recent years, several large-scale whole-genome projects sequencing tens of thousands of individuals were completed, with larger studies are underway. These projects aim to provide high-quality genotypes for a large number of whole genomes in a cost-efficient manner, by sequencing each genome at low coverage and subsequently identifying alleles jointly in the entire cohort. Here we present Ref-Reveel, a novel method for large-scale population genotyping. We show that Ref-Reveel provides genotyping at a higher accuracy and higher efficiency in comparison to existing methods by applying our method to one of the largest whole-genome sequencing datasets presently available to the public. We further show that utilizing the resulting genotype panel as references, through the Ref-Reveel framework, greatly improves the ability to call genotypes accurately on newly sequenced genomes. In addition, we present a Ref-Reveel pipeline that is applicable for genotyping of very small datasets. In summary, Ref-Reveel is an accurate, scalable and applicable method for a wide range of genotyping scenarios, and will greatly improves the quality of calling genomic alterations in current and future large-scale sequencing projects.

bioinformatics↗