Search results for "ANTIGEN"

Pathophysiology of polymorphonuclear leukocyte in arterial hypertension

2009

This review shows how polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) play a pivotal role in the development of the organ injury that is associated with arterial hypertension. Elevated white blood cell count and higher levels of PMNs activation are risk factors for arterial hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Spontaneously activated PMNs release proinflammatory factors and reactive oxygen species, which have negative effects on vascular tone and on their adhesion to the endothelium. The oxidative stress in hypertensive PMNs is revealed by increased NADPH-oxidase production and lipid peroxidation and by decreased cytosolic and mitochondrial superoxide dismutase concentrations. The overexpression of…

Harnessing dendritic cells in cancer.

2011

Dendritic cells (DCs) are central to the initiation of tumor-specific immune responses. However, the tumor microenvironment generates immunosuppressive cells and soluble mediators that compromise DC functions and limit the success of DC-based therapies. Progress in understanding DC metabolism in cancer is uncovering novel therapeutic targets that could restore DC capacity to prime T cells and trigger effective anticancer responses. Accumulating evidence also indicates that conventional chemo- and radiotherapy protocols can cause DC activation, enhance antigen cross-presentation, selectively eliminate immunosuppressive cells and revert the immunosuppression state caused by cancer, suggesting…

Impact of thymus on the generation of immunocompetence and diversity of antigen-specific MHC-restricted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte precursors.

1981

Specificity of H-2-linked Ir gene control in mice: recognition of the core structure A--L in defined sequence analogues of (T,G,)-A--L.

1979

For further characterization of the processes involved in Ir gene control, the specificity of antibodies and the cross-reaction on the level of helper T cells was studied for a series of polypeptide antigens related to poly-L(Tyr,Glu)-poly-DL-Ala–poly-LLys[(T,G)-A–L] but carrying more defined side chains. Helper cell specificity was assayed in an in vitro secondary anti-dinitrophenyl (DNP) response by cross-stimulation of primed T cells with the various polypeptide carriers. It was established that these polypeptides, although showing the same response pattern, were recognized as distinct entities in the immune response by B and T cells. If this common pattern is due to the effect of the sa…

Subdominant CD8 T-Cell Epitopes Account for Protection against Cytomegalovirus Independent of Immunodomination▿ †

2008

ABSTRACTCytomegalovirus (CMV) infection continues to be a complication in recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Preexisting donor immunity is recognized as a favorable prognostic factor for the reconstitution of protective antiviral immunity mediated primarily by CD8 T cells. Furthermore, adoptive transfer of CMV-specific memory CD8 T (CD8-TM) cells is a therapeutic option for preventing CMV disease in HSCT recipients. Given the different CMV infection histories of donor and recipient, a problem may arise from an antigenic mismatch between the CMV variant that has primed donor immunity and the CMV variant acquired by the recipient. Here, we have used the BALB/c mouse…

Association between urticaria and nematode infections

2018

Background The association between parasites and urticaria was first suggested in the last century. A wide range, 0-75.4%, of the prevalence of parasitic infection has been reported with chronic urticaria (CU). Moreover, urticaria may be detected in patients with parasitosis. Nematodes are a type of helminth that infect hundreds of millions of people throughout the world. Objective The aim of this work was to collect and review the published studies and cases of urticaria associated with nematode infections. Methods A search of scientific literature data bases from January 1960 until May 2017 was carried out. Results Numerous nematode infections have been associated with urticaria and/or an…

TAP off - tumors on

1997

Abstract The molecular characterization of T-cell-defined tumor-associated antigens has provided targets for cell-mediated immunotherapy for malignant diseases. The success of this strategy is negatively influenced by structural and functional abnormalities of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules, which provide tumor cells with resistance to T-cell-mediated immune recognition. This article reviews the physiology of the MHC class I processing machinery and describes the deficiencies of this pathway in malignant cells.

Expression of serologically identified tumor antigens in acute leukemias.

2003

Cancer/testis antigens (CTA) are an expanding family of immunogenic proteins selectively expressed in human neoplasms. As little is known about the expression of serologically identified CTA in leukemias so far, we investigated the expression of 5 CT genes (SSX-1, HOM-MEL-40/SSX-2, HOM-TES-14/SCP-1, SCP-3 and NY-ESO-1) in leukemic blood samples obtained from patients with either acute lymphatic leukemias (ALL) or myelocytic leukemia (AML). RT-PCR-analyses showed no expression of any of the CT-genes in the leukemia samples of 19 patients with AML, whereas frequent expression was found in ALL. In the 17 ALL cases studied, SCP3a, SSX-1, HOM-MEL-40/SXX-2 and HOM-TES-14/SCP-1 were expressed in 4…

Cladribine exerts an immunomodulatory effect on human and murine dendritic cells

2014

Cladribine is a purine nucleoside analog developed to treat lymphoid malignancies. Reported therapeutic benefits for the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis indicate additional immunomodulatory effects beyond the well-characterized cytotoxic activity causing lymphopenia. Here, we demonstrate that cladribine reduces the secretion of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines by murine and human dendritic cells, the most potent antigen-presenting cells. This compound also modulates the expression of the activation markers CD86 and MHC II. Furthermore, cladribine affects the T cell priming capacity of dendritic cells, resulting in reduced induction of interferon-γ- and tumor necrosis factor-α-pro…

Presence of potentially pathogenic free-living amoebae strains from well water samples in Guinea-Bissau

2014

Free-living amoebae (FLA) include opportunistic pathogens such as Naegleria fowleri, Balamuthia mandrillaris, and the genera Sappinia and Acanthamoeba. In this study, a survey was conducted in order to evaluate the presence of potentially pathogenic amoebic strains in water samples collected from wells located in the western part of Guinea-Bissau. The samples were left to precipitate for 48 hours and then the sediments were seeded on non-nutrient agar plates containing Escherichia coli spread and cultures were checked daily for the presence of FLA. Identification of FLA strains was based on the morphological and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the 18S rDNA or 16S mitochondrial rDNA ge…