0000000000265778
AUTHOR
Flavia Biamonte
COVID-19: High-JAKing of the Inflammatory “Flight” by Ruxolitinib to Avoid the Cytokine Storm
Since SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in December 2019, world health-system has been severely impacted with increased hospitalization, Intensive-Care-Unit (ICU) access and high mortality rates, mostly due to severe acute respiratory failure and multi-organ failure. Excessive and uncontrolled release of proinflammatory cytokines (cytokine release/storm syndrome, CRS) have been linked to the development of these events. The recent advancements of immunotherapy for the treatment of hematologic and solid tumors shed light on many of the molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon, thus rendering desirable a multidisciplinary approach to improve COVID-19 patients’ outcome. Indeed, currently available th…
Iron-mediated oxidative stress induces PD-L1 expression via activation of c-Myc in lung adenocarcinoma
Introduction: The PD-1/PD-L1 axis is hijacked by lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) cells to escape immune surveillance. PD-L1 expression in LUAD is affected, among others, by the metabolic trafficking between tumor cells and the tumor microenvironment (TME). Methods: Correlation between PD-L1 expression and iron content within the TME was established on FFPE LUAD tissue samples. The effects of an iron rich microenvironment on PD-L1 mRNA and protein levels were assessed in vitro in H460 and A549 LUAD by using qPCR, western blot and flow citometry. c-Myc knockdown was performed to validate the role of this transcription factor on PD-L1 expression. The effects of iron-induced PD-L1 on T cell immune f…
Additional file 1 of Combined lymphocyte/monocyte count, D-dimer and iron status predict COVID-19 course and outcome in a long-term care facility
Additional file 1: Figure S1. Boxplot, correlation plots, density plots and histograms reporting the association between each laboratory variable and Sex. The p values for overall and group-based correlation is reported in the top-right part of each image. Figure S2. Boxplot, correlation plots, density plots and histograms reporting the association between each laboratory variable and Age, respectively. The p values for overall and group-based correlation is reported in the top-right part of each image. Figure S3. Boxplot, correlation plots, density plots and histograms reporting the association between each laboratory variable and risk group, respectively. The p values for overall and grou…
Iron Metabolism in the Tumor Microenvironment-Implications for Anti-Cancer Immune Response
New insights into the field of iron metabolism within the tumor microenvironment have been uncovered in recent years. Iron promotes the production of reactive oxygen species, which may either trigger ferroptosis cell death or contribute to malignant transformation. Once transformed, cancer cells divert tumor-infiltrating immune cells to satisfy their iron demand, thus affecting the tumor immunosurveillance. In this review, we highlight how the bioavailability of this metal shapes complex metabolic pathways within the tumor microenvironment and how this affects both tumor-associated macrophages and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes functions. Furthermore, we discuss the potentials as well as th…
Combined lymphocyte/monocyte count, D-dimer and iron status predict COVID-19 course and outcome in a long-term care facility
Abstract Background The Sars-CoV-2 can cause severe pneumonia with multiorgan disease; thus, the identification of clinical and laboratory predictors of the progression towards severe and fatal forms of this illness is needed. Here, we retrospectively evaluated and integrated laboratory parameters of 45 elderly subjects from a long-term care facility with Sars-CoV-2 outbreak and spread, to identify potential common patterns of systemic response able to better stratify patients’ clinical course and outcome. Methods Baseline white blood cells, granulocytes’, lymphocytes’, and platelets’ counts, hemoglobin, total iron, ferritin, D-dimer, and interleukin-6 concentration were used to generate a …