Search results for " Complement"

Binding to complement factors and activation of the alternative pathway by Acanthamoeba.

2010

Acanthamoeba can cause severe ocular and cerebral diseases in healthy and immunocompromised individuals, respectively. Activation of complement appears to play an important role in host defence against infection. The exact mechanism, however, is still unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of normal human serum (NHS) and normal mouse serum (NMS) on Acanthamoeba trophozoites, the binding of different complement factors to Acanthamoeba and the activation of the complement system. Moreover, we aimed to work out any possible differences between different strains of Acanthamoeba. A virulent T4 strain, a non-virulent T4 strain and a virulent T6 strain were included in…

Modulation of C1q mRNA Expression and Secretion by Interleukin-1,Interleukin-6, and Interferon-g in Resident and Stimulated Murine Peritoneal Macroph…

2002

The complement system plays an important role in the humoral immune response. Activation of the classical complement pathway is mediated by its subcomponent, C1q. Among the main C1q-synthesising tissues, macrophages have been attributed as a source of particular importance. We investigated the effects of cytokines (IL-1, IL-6 and Interferon-gamma) on local C1q mRNA expression and C1q secretion in resident and in thioglycollate-stimulated murine peritoneal macrophages in vitro. The macrophages were isolated from murine peritoneal lavage fluid, maintained in culture and incubated with the cytokines. Among the cytokines, only IL-6 had a stimulatory effect on C1q production (25% increase vs. co…

Functional C1-inhibitor diagnostics in hereditary angioedema: Assay evaluation and recommendations

2008

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is an autosomal dominant disease characterized by recurrent episodes of potentially life-threatening angioedema. The most widespread underlying genetic deficiency is a heterozygous deficiency of the serine protease inhibitor Cl esterase inhibitor (C1-Inh). In addition to low C4 levels, the most important laboratory parameter for correct diagnosis of HAE or angioedema due to acquired C1-Inh deficiency is reduced C1-Inh function (fC1-Inh). No direct recommendations about the assays for fC1-Inh or sample handling conditions are available, although this would prove especially useful when a laboratory first starts to offer assays on fC1-Inh for HAE diagnosis. In the p…

Complement components in relation to macrophage function

1983

Protein Kinase C μ Is Regulated by the Multifunctional Chaperon Protein p32

2000

We identified the multifunctional chaperon protein p32 as a protein kinase C (PKC)-binding protein interacting with PKCalpha, PKCzeta, PKCdelta, and PKC mu. We have analyzed the interaction of PKC mu with p32 in detail, and we show here in vivo association of PKC mu, as revealed from yeast two-hybrid analysis, precipitation assays using glutathione S-transferase fusion proteins, and reciprocal coimmunoprecipitation. In SKW 6.4 cells, PKC mu is constitutively associated with p32 at mitochondrial membranes, evident from colocalization with cytochrome c. p32 interacts with PKC mu in a compartment-specific manner, as it can be coimmunoprecipitated mainly from the particulate and not from the so…

A Protein-Interaction Array Inside a Living Cell

2013

Cell phenotype is determined by protein network states that are maintained by the dynamics of multiple protein interactions.1 Fluorescence microscopy approaches that measure protein interactions in individual cells, such as by Forster resonant energy transfer (FRET), are limited by the spectral separation of fluorophores and thus are most suitable to analyze a single protein interaction in a given cell. However, analysis of correlations between multiple protein interactions is required to uncover the interdependence of protein reactions in dynamic signal networks. Available protein-array technologies enable the parallel analysis of interacting proteins from cell extracts, however, they can …

La storia della Matematica come chiave per l’inclusione interculturale nella pratica d’aula attuale

2017

The research on the intercultural phenomenon in Italy increased with the growing phenomenon of migration, highlighting the problem of cultural diversity and social policies. The school has, in this process, a key role. The goal of a good educational project is to understand that the intercultural requires continual reference to the concrete experiences of the people. Theoretical assumptions of our project are the concepts of “interaction”, “empathy”, “decentralization” and “cognitive transitivity" (Nanni 1998). In this theoretical direction, we present an experimental multidisciplinary mathematical laboratory where students and teachers can understand that a discipline that seems static and…

Diacylglycerols containing Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids bind to RasGRP and modulate MAP kinase activation.

2003

We elucidated the effects of different diacylglycerols (DAGs), i.e. 1-stearoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycerol (SAG), 1-stearoyl-2-docosahexaenoyl-sn-glycerol (SDG), and 1-stearoyl-2-eicosapentaenoyl-sn-glycerol (SEG), on [3H]PDBu binding to RasGRP. The competition studies with these DAGs on [3H]PDBu binding to RasGRP revealed different Ki values for these DAG molecular species. Furthermore, we transfected human Jurkat T cells by a plasmid containing RasGRP and assessed the implication of endogenous DAGs on activation of MAP kinases ERK1/ERK2, induced by phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA). In control cells, GF109203X, a protein kinase C inhibitor, inhibited ERK1/ERK2 activation. However, this…

Exploring a regulatory role for mast cells: 'MCregs'?

2010

Regulatory cells can mould the fate of the immune response by direct suppression of specific subsets of effector cells, or by redirecting effectors against invading pathogens and infected or neoplastic cells. These functions have been classically, although not exclusively, ascribed to different subsets of T cells. Recently, mast cells have been shown to regulate physiological and pathological immune responses, and thus to act at the interface between innate and adaptive immunity assuming different functions and behaviors at discrete stages of the immune response. Here, we focus on these poorly defined, and sometimes apparently conflicting, functions of mast cells.

Inflammatory Response of the Ascidian Ciona intestinalis

2016

Abstract The Ciona intestinalis inflammatory response to several irritants appears to be composed of a complex reaction set. The cellular reactions in the tunic involve hemocyte infiltration, hemocyte and epidermis activities, vacuolization, and cell disruption, while cell products can contribute to form capsule components and/or cause a tunic wound. In this response, the involvement of the pharynx, as the main immune-competent organ, has been disclosed by a lipopolysaccharide challenge that upregulates innate immunity genes and transcription activation genes. The pharynx responds through hemocyte recruitment into the pharynx vessels, enhancement of galectin-like lectins in the serum hemoly…