Search results for " Autoimmune"

The role of NFATc2 in chronic autoimmune neuroinflammation

2014

Dimethyl fumarate (DMF), a fumaric acid ester with potential immunomodulatory and neuroprotective effect, was recently approved as treatment for relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). DMF ameliorates the clinical course of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), the murine model of MS, where it exerts a neuroprotective action, reducing demyelination and axonal loss. We hypothesized that these effects are mediated, at least in part, through its action on microglia. We used a microglial cell line (N9) activated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to analyze the effect of monomethyl fumarate (MMF), a bioactive metabolite of DMF, in vitro. We show that MMF reverts the molecular phenoty…

Tyrphostin AG126 exerts neuroprotection in CNS inflammation by a dual mechanism

2015

The putative protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) inhibitor tyrphostin AG126 has proven beneficial in various models of inflammatory disease. Yet molecular targets and cellular mechanisms remained enigmatic. We demonstrate here that AG126 treatment has beneficial effects in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a model for multiple sclerosis. AG126 alleviates the clinical symptoms, diminishes encephalitogenic Th17 differentiation, reduces inflammatory CNS infiltration as well as microglia activation and attenuates myelin damage. We show that AG126 directly inhibits Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK), a PTK associated with B cell receptor and Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling. However, BTK …

A bioinformatical approach suggests the function of the autoimmune hepatitis target antigen soluble liver antigen/liver pancreas

2001

Antibodies to a soluble liver antigen/liver pancreas (SLA/LP) appear to be highly specific for the diagnosis of autoimmune hepatitis. The SLA/LP target antigen was recently identified as a hitherto unknown gene encoding 474 amino acid residues. The function of this antigen remains unclear, because it does not share sequence homology with proteins of known function stored in any of the publicly accessible databases. Therefore we used a new theoretical method called fold recognition and could show that the SLA/LP sequence is compatible with the architecture of the superfamily of pyridoxal phosphate (PLP; vitamin B6)-dependent transferases. Its function is likely to be that of a serine hydroxy…

Gain-of-function mutations in IFIH1 cause a spectrum of human disease phenotypes associated with upregulated type I interferon signaling.

2014

The type I interferon system is integral to human antiviral immunity. However, inappropriate stimulation or defective negative regulation of this system can lead to inflammatory disease. We sought to determine the molecular basis of genetically uncharacterized cases of the type I interferonopathy Aicardi-Goutières syndrome, and of other patients with undefined neurological and immunological phenotypes also demonstrating an upregulated type I interferon response. We found that heterozygous mutations in the cytosolic double-stranded RNA receptor gene IFIH1 (MDA5) cause a spectrum of neuro-immunological features consistently associated with an enhanced interferon state. Cellular and biochemica…

Unraveling the T-B tangle in anti-CD20 multiple sclerosis therapy.

2019

Significance Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. CD8+ T cells have been strongly implicated in MS pathogenesis, but it is unclear whether myelin is a CD8+ T cell autoantigenic target in MS. This study demonstrated that while myelin-specific CD8+ T cells are present at similar frequencies in untreated MS patients and healthy subjects, the proportion of memory and CD20-expressing myelin-specific CD8+ T cells was increased in MS patients, suggesting prior antigen encounter. This activated phenotype was reversible as the memory and CD20-expressing populations of certain myelin-specific CD8+ T cells were reduced following anti-CD20 trea…

Role of apoptosis in autoimmunity.

2004

Autoimmune diseases are characterized by the activity of autoreactive lymphocytes that produce antibodies targeting self tissue or organ for destruction. Although the pathogenesis of these diseases is poorly understood, during the past two decades basic research has indicated apoptosis as the pivotal molecular mechanism leading to autoimmunity. Recently cytokines have been invoked in the regulation of the apoptosis-related factors and death receptors in autoimmune target destruction. These research advances have contributed to the identification of mechanisms controlling autoimmunity for defining novel therapeutic strategies.

Modeling a complex disease: Multiple sclerosis—Update 2020

2021

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a complex inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (CNS) with an unknown etiology. Thereby, MS is not a uniform disease but rather represents a spectrum of disorders, where each aspect needs to be modeled with specific requirements-for a systematic overview see our previous issue of this review (Kurschus, Wortge, & Waisman, 2011). However, there is broad consensus about the critical involvement of the immune system in the disease pathogenesis. To better understand how the immune system contributes to CNS autoimmunity, the model of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) was developed. EAE can be induced in susceptible animals in many different wa…

ID: 186

2015

In the past years, and clear pathogenic role was shown for Th17 cells in the development of autoimmune diseases. In particular, these cells were shown to play a critical roIn the past years, and clear pathogenic role was shown for Th17 cells in the development of autoimmune diseases. In particular, these cells were shown to play a critical role in the development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model for multiple sclerosis. One of the major cytokines Th17 cells produce is IL-17A, a cytokine of the IL-17 family. IL-17A, as well as it homologue IL-17F bind and trigger cells via the IL-17 receptor A/C complex. We have used a series of mice with deficiencies in the…

NEUROFIBROMATOSI DI TIPO 1 ED IPOTIROIDISMO SUB-CLINICO DA TIROIDITE AUTOIMMUNE: DESCRIZIONE DI UN CASO IN ETA’ PEDIATRICA

2011

FRET based ratiometric Ca(2+) imaging to investigate immune-mediated neuronal and axonal damage processes in experimental autoimmune encephalomyeliti…

2015

Abstract Background Irreversible axonal and neuronal damage are the correlate of disability in patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS). A sustained increase of cytoplasmic free [Ca2+] is a common upstream event of many neuronal and axonal damage processes and could represent an early and potentially reversible step. New method We propose a method to specifically analyze the neurodegenerative aspects of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by Forster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) imaging of neuronal and axonal Ca2+ dynamics by two-photon laser scanning microscopy (TPLSM). Results Using the genetically encoded Ca2+ sensor TN-XXL expressed in neurons and their corresponding axo…