Search results for "IMMUNOLOGY"

Sequence analysis of the DRB1 promoter reveals limited polymorphism with no influence on gene expression.

2001

HLA-class II promoters contain a set of conserved regulatory regions necessary for constitutive and induced gene expression. For the HLA-DQB as well as for the DRB1 promoter sequence, polymorphisms with influence on gene expression have been reported. In contrast to these data we could show that there is very limited allele-specific polymorphism among the HLA-DRB1 promoter alleles. In a long range PCR we amplified a DNA sequence containing the promoter and the second exon of the DRB1 gene in one fragment. Nested PCR products of this PCR fragment for the promoter and for the second exon were analysed by DNA sequencing to allow the linkage of a promoter to its DR allele. Most investigated DRB…

Bio-silica and bio-polyphosphate: applications in biomedicine (bone formation)

2012

Bio-silica represents the main mineral component of the sponge skeletal elements (siliceous spicules), while bio-polyphosphate (bio-polyP), a multifunctional polymer existing in microorganisms and animals acts, among others, as reinforcement for pores in cell membranes. These natural inorganic bio-polymers, which can be readily prepared, either by recombinant enzymes (bio-silica and bio-polyP) or chemically (polyP), are promising materials/substances for the amelioration and/or treatment of human bone diseases and dysfunctions. It has been demonstrated that bio-silica causes in vitro a differential effect on the expression of the genes OPG and RANKL, encoding two mediators that control the …

PATHOGENESIS OF HUMAN LEUKOCYTE ANTIGEN B27–POSITIVE ARTHRITIS

1998

Acute reactive arthritis, spondyloarthropathy (SpA) in association with chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS), although differing in individual presentation and in the natural course of disease, have in common a strong association with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 and a possible involvement of other genetic and also environmental factors. This group of related diseases belonging to the seronegative SpAs represents the clearest example of HLA class 1–linked disease in humans. Several newly emerging animal models of the SpAs, which have been reviewed in this issue of the Rheumatic Disease Clinics of North America , have permitted us to investigate the i…

Type V collagen counteracts osteo-differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells

2014

In search of novel gene signatures for osteo-differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), we submitted cDNA preparations from undifferentiated and differentiating MSCs to differential display- and semiquantitative-PCR and found down-regulation of COL5A1 in osteo-induced cultures at days 21 and 28, when the mineralized matrix accumulates. We also cultured osteo-differentiating MSCs onto type V collagen substrates and found a decrease in the accumulation of extracellular calcium compared to those grown in uncoated flasks. To our knowledge, this is first evidence that type V collagen might represent a stromal component that impairs osteogenesis.

An update on the relationships between rheumatoid arthritis and atherosclerosis

2010

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease. Cardiovascular events are the most important cause of mortality and morbidity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Beyond the traditional cardiovascular risk factors, chronic systemic inflammation has been shown to be a crucial factor in atherosclerosis development and progression from endothelial dysfunction to plaque rupture and thrombosis. Many studies have shown that atherosclerosis is not a passive event like accumulation of lipids in the vessel walls; by contrast, it represents an active inflammation of the vessels. Inflammatory cells such as macrophages, monocytes and T cells play important roles in the development of both rhe…

297: Establishment of a chimeric NOD-scid/IL2RγcNull transplantation-model to evaluate graft-vs-host and graft-vs-leukemia immune responses of ex viv…

2007

Non-conventional forms of HLA-B27 are expressed in spondyloarthritis joints and gut tissue

2016

Objectives Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 (B27) is the strongest genetic factor associated with development of Ankylosing Spondylitis and other spondyloarthropathies (SpA), yet the role it plays in disease pathogenesis remains unclear. We investigated the expression of potentially pathogenic non-conventional heavy chain forms (NC) of B27 in synovial and intestinal tissues obtained from SpA patients. We also determined the presence of NC-B27 in joints, lymphoid and gastrointestinal tissue from B27 transgenic (TG1) rats with M.tuberculosis-induced SpA. Methods Expression of NC-B27 in human SpA joints and gut and in (21-3 × 283-2)F1 HLA-B27/Huβ2m rat tissue was determined by immunohistochem…

Persistence ofYersinia antigens in peripheral blood cells from patients withYersinia enterocolitica O:3 infection with or without reactive arthritis

1998

Objective To assess the persistence of bacterial antigens in peripheral blood cells from patients with Yersinia enterocolitica O:3-triggered reactive arthritis (ReA). Methods Peripheral blood samples were obtained from 20 patients with Y enterocolitica O:3 infection (11 with ReA and 9 without). These samples were studied by immunochemical techniques for the presence of Yersinia antigens at the beginning of infection and up to 4 years thereafter. Synovial fluid samples from 6 of the 11 ReA patients were also studied. Results The Yersinia antigens lipopolysaccharide and heat-shock protein (HSP) were detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and polymorphonuclear phagocytes from all patie…

AB1057 risk factors associated with different lumbopelvic patterns of movement

2016

Background Rapid flexion movement increases the loading on the spine and it increases the risk of injuries 1 . In asymptomatic subjects lumbar-dominant and pelvis-dominant patterns of movement during trunk flexion have been observed 2,3 . However, little information about lumbar spine kinematics has been provided. Objectives To find out whether exhibiting different lumbopelvic patterns of movement during trunk flexion affects the kinematics of the lumbar spine in terms of velocity of motion. Methods Differential lumbar spine and pelvis angular displacement during the time course of a standardised sagittal trunk flexion from an upright position was recorded with an electromagnetic tracking d…

Interleukin 1 Gene Polymorphisms Presumably Participate in the Pathogenesis of Chronic Spontaneous Autocreative Urticaria

2020

Recent studies underline a potential role of autoimmune and genetic disturbances in this disorder pathogenesis. Variants in genes related to inflammatory processes may possibly predispose to chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) occurrence. The objective of this study was to search for an association of Il1 genes polymorphisms with the pathogenesis of CSU. The examined group consisted of 153 unrelated chronic spontaneous autoreactive urticaria patients. The control group consisted of 104 unrelated healthy volunteers. In all studied subjects, IL1 rs1304037 and rs180058 polymorphisms were examined. The Urticaria Activity Score was used to assess disease intensity. The age of disease onset was a…