Search results for "Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay"
showing 10 items of 491 documents
Phosphodiesterase 4 inhibition decreases MUC5AC expression induced by epidermal growth factor in human airway epithelial cells
2005
Background: A common pathological feature of chronic inflammatory airway diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is mucus hypersecretion. MUC5AC is the predominant mucin gene expressed in healthy airways and is increased in asthmatic and COPD patients. Recent clinical trials indicate that phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE4) inhibitors may have therapeutic value for COPD and asthma. However, their direct effects on mucin expression have been scarcely investigated. Methods: MUC5AC mRNA and protein expression were examined in cultured human airway epithelial cells (A549) and in human isolated bronchial tissue stimulated with epidermal growth factor (EGF; 25 ng/ml).…
Role of tetrahydrobiopterin in pulmonary vascular remodelling associated with pulmonary fibrosis
2013
[Background]: Pulmonary hypertension in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is indicative of a poor prognosis. Recent evidence suggests that tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), the cofactor of nitric oxide synthase (NOS), is involved in pulmonary hypertension and that pulmonary artery endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EnMT) may contribute to pulmonary fibrosis. However, the role of BH4 in pulmonary remodelling secondary to pulmonary fibrosis is unknown. This study examined the BH4 system in plasma and pulmonary arteries from patients with IPF as well as the antiremodelling and antifibrotic effects of the BH4 precursor sepiapterin in rat bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis and in vitro EnMT mod…
Demonstration of antibodies to the surface (anti-p41) and core proteins (anti-p24) of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in individuals positive …
1987
Diagnosis of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) relies on the demonstration of antibody to this virus. Occasionally, the combined analysis of sera using ELISA and western blot reveals false-positive results. We have compared a newly developed test to detect antibodies to the core (anti-p24) and surface (anti-p41) proteins of HIV with the established tests described above. Anti-p24 and anti-p41 were negative in three individuals positive for anti-HIV by ELISA and immunoblot; they had a low risk to acquire HIV infection and were clinically and immunologically normal and suspected false positive previously. In 62 individuals at risk, anti-p41 was always positive while anti-p…
Viral proteins VP2, VP6, and NSP2 are strongly precipitated by serum and fecal antibodies from children with rotavirus symptomatic infection
1998
Rotavirus-specific IgA has been correlated with immune protection against rotavirus reinfection and symptomatic disease. Systemic and mucosal antibody responses were determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 11 infants with severe rotavirus gastroenteritis. Geometric mean titers of antirotavirus serum IgG and IgA antibodies were significantly higher during the convalescence of the disease (P < 0.001 vs. acute-phase titers). Rotavirus-specific fecal sIgA antibodies increased 4 times during the convalescence in 9 (81.8%) children (P < 0.001). The serum IgG and IgA antibody and fecal sIgA antibody responses to individual rotavirus polypeptides were characterized by radioimmunopreci…
The Tick Salivary Protein Sialostatin L Inhibits the Th9-Derived Production of the Asthma-Promoting Cytokine IL-9 and Is Effective in the Prevention …
2012
Abstract Ticks developed a multitude of different immune evasion strategies to obtain a blood meal. Sialostatin L is an immunosuppressive cysteine protease inhibitor present in the saliva of the hard tick Ixodes scapularis. In this study, we demonstrate that sialostatin L strongly inhibits the production of IL-9 by Th9 cells. Because we could show recently that Th9-derived IL-9 is essentially involved in the induction of asthma symptoms, sialostatin L was used for the treatment of experimental asthma. Application of sialostatin L in a model of experimental asthma almost completely abrogated airway hyperresponsiveness and eosinophilia. Our data suggest that sialostatin L can prevent experime…
Assessment of humoral and cell-mediated immunity against Bordetella pertussis in adolescent, adult, and senior subjects in Italy
2008
SUMMARYHumoral and cell-mediated immunity (CMI) againstB. pertussiswas assessed in a sample of adolescent, adult and senior subjects distributed in five different geographical areas in Italy. Most (99·1%) subjects had IgG anti-pertussis toxin (PT) antibodies exceeding the minimum detection level [⩾2 ELISA units (EU)/ml]. There were no significant differences between the genders; 6·2% samples recorded titres ⩾100 EU/ml. CMI was positive [stimulation index (SI) ⩾5] against PT in 39·0% of all samples. This study suggests thatB. pertussiscontinues to circulate in age groups that have been previously considered to be uninvolved in the circulation of this pathogen and that adolescent and adult pe…
Diagnostic efficacy of the ELISA test for the detection of deamidated anti-gliadin peptide antibodies in the diagnosis and monitoring of celiac disea…
2009
Background and Aim: We evaluated the diagnostic performance of an ELISA test for anti-gliadin IgA and IgG antibodies, which uses synthetic deamidated gliadin peptides (anti-gliadin antibodies, AGAs) as coating; the results were compared with a test that uses extracted gliadin (AGAe). Methods: The study was conducted on the sera of 144 patients suffering from celiac disease (CD), including 20 patients with IgA deficiency and 9 who were following a gluten-free diet (GFD), and 129 controls. Results: In the 115 CD patients (without IgA deficiency), the sensitivity of AGAe IgA and IgG was 32.2 and 60.9%, whereas that of AGAs IgA and IgG was 59.1 and 72.2%. The specificity for AGAe IgA and IgG, a…
Testosterone/cortisol ratio in response to acute stress: a possible marker of risk for marital violence.
2013
Testosterone to cortisol (T/C) ratios could be associated with feelings and expression of anger as high testosterone and low cortisol levels indicate a predisposition to violence. The basal T/C ratio has recently been proposed as a marker for proneness to social aggression; so far, however, only its value as an indicator of state anger or violence has been investigated. Given this, we aimed to establish whether the T/C ratio response to acute stress was a specific psychobiological feature in individuals with a history of violence, namely, perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV). T/C ratio and anger responses were compared in men jailed for IPV and controls using the Trier Social Str…
The T-box transcription factor eomesodermin controls CD8 T cell activity and lymph node metastasis in human colorectal cancer.
2007
An efficient cytolytic T cell function is essential for immune mediated rejection of colorectal cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms driving T cell mediated cancer rejection are still poorly understood. Here, we assessed the relevance of the T-box transcription factor eomesodermin in colorectal cancer. METHODS/ RESULTS: By analysing tissue probes from 88 different colorectal tumours, a significant (p0.02) inverse correlation between eomesodermin expression in colorectal cancers and the presence of lymph node metastases could be shown, whereas no such correlation was noted for the master transcription factor of regulatory T cells, FoxP3 and CD8 alpha expression. To evaluate whether this…
Kinetics of echinostoma caproni (trematoda: echinostomatidae) antigens in feces and serum of experimentally infected hamsters and rats
2004
This study reports on the kinetics of antibody production to Echinostoma caproni and the dynamics of antigens in feces and sera in 2 experimental hosts (hamsters and rats) that display different degrees of susceptibility with this echinostome. Echinostoma caproniproduced chronic infections in hamsters, whereas rats lost the infection at 49-56 days postinfection (DPI). Hamsters developed higher antibody responses than rats, probably in relation to different intestinal absorptions of worm antigens in each host species. The levels of coproantigens were indicative of the course of infection in each host. Positive coproantigen levels were detected at 1-2 DPI in both hosts, and the values remaine…