Search results for "Immunologic"
showing 10 items of 1115 documents
Rituximab in primary Sjögren's syndrome: a ten-year journey
2014
Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is an autoimmune disorder affecting exocrine glands and characterized in most cases by a rather mild clinical picture. However, a subgroup of pSS patients experience systemic extraglandular involvement leading to a worsening of disease prognosis. Current therapeutic options for the treatment of pSS are mainly empirical, often translated by other autoimmune diseases, and recent systematic reviews have highlighted the lack of evidence-based recommendations for most of the drugs commonly employed in the spectrum of extraglandular involvement. Because of the well-established role of B-lymphocytes in the pathogenesis of pSS, a B-cell targeting therapy may repres…
Post-transplant consolidation based on combination of lenalidomide and proteasome inhibitors in multiple myeloma
2021
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a hematological malignancy due to uncontrolled proliferation of neoplastic plasma cells in the bone marrow, associated to chromosomal instability and cytogenetic abnormalities, which could have an impact on prognosis. Response to treatment and survival of newly diagnosed myeloma patients is heterogeneous, with median overall survival ranging from two to more than ten years, due to clinical and biological factors. To warrant long-term control of disease, several strategies have been proposed in the last years, including short-term high-dose of treatment, named as consolidation, before maintenance. This review will discuss the role of consolidation in the current myel…
Rituximab in AChR subtype of myasthenia gravis: systematic review
2020
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a chronic autoimmune disorder of the neuromuscular junction characterised by an autoantibody against acetylcholine receptor (AChR-Ab), autoantibody against muscle-specific kinase (MuSK-Ab), lipoprotein-related protein 4 or agrin in the postsynaptic membrane at the neuromuscular junction. Many patients are resistant to conventional treatment and effective therapies are needed. Rituximab (RTX) is a monoclonal antibody directed against CD20 antigen on B cells which has been successfully employed in anti-MuSK-Ab+MG, but the efficacy in anti-AChR-Ab+MG is still debated. The purpose of this systematic review was to describe the best evidence for RTX in the acetylcholine …
A hantavirus nucleocapsid protein segment exposed on hepatitis B virus core particles is highly immunogenic in mice when applied without adjuvants or…
2005
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) core particles carrying the amino-terminal 120 amino acids (aa) of the nucleocapsid (N) protein of the hantaviruses Dobrava, Hantaan or Puumala have been demonstrated to be highly immunogenic in mice when complexed with adjuvants. Here we demonstrate that even without adjuvant, these chimeric particles induced high-titered, and strongly cross-reactive N-specific antibody responses in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice. The induced N-specific antibodies represented all IgG subclasses. Pre-existing core-specific antibodies did not abrogate the induction of an N-specific immune response by a hantavirus N insert presented on core particles. Therefore, chimeric core particles should…
Dynamic regulation of CD8 T cell tolerance induction by liver sinusoidal endothelial cells.
2010
Abstract Cross-presentation of soluble Ag on MHC class I molecules to naive CD8 T cells by liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) leads to induction of T cell tolerance that requires interaction between coinhibitory B7-H1 on LSECs and programmed cell death-1 on CD8 T cells. In this study, we investigate whether cross-presentation of high as well as low Ag concentrations allowed for LSEC-induced tolerance. Ag concentration directly correlated with the cross-presentation capacity of murine LSECs and thus strength of TCR stimulation. Although LSEC cross-presentation at low-Ag concentrations resulted in tolerance, they induced differentiation into effector T cells (CTL) at high-Ag concentra…
The Wnt/beta-Catenin Pathway Attenuates Experimental Allergic Airway Disease
2014
Abstract Signaling via the Wnt/β-catenin pathway plays crucial roles in embryogenesis and homeostasis of adult tissues. In the lung, the canonical Wnt/β-catenin pathway has been implicated in remodeling processes, development of emphysema, and fibrosis. However, its relevance for the modulation of allergic responses in the lung remains unclear. Using genetically modified mice with lung-specific inducible (doxycycline) Wnt-1 expression (CCSP-rtTA × tetO-Wnt1), the impact of Wnt on the development of allergic airway disease was analyzed. Overexpression of Wnt during the allergen challenge phase attenuated the development of airway inflammation in an acute model, as well as in a more therapeut…
French Endocrine Society Guidance on endocrine side effects of immunotherapy.
2018
The management of cancer patients has changed due to the considerably more frequent use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs). However, the use of ICPI has a risk of side effects, particularly endocrine toxicity. Since the indications for ICPI are constantly expanding due to their efficacy, it is important that endocrinologists and oncologists know how to look for this type of toxicity and how to treat it when it arises. In view of this, the French Endocrine Society initiated the formulation of a consensus document on ICPI-related endocrine toxicity. In this paper, we will introduce data on the general pathophysiology of endocrine toxicity, and we will then outline expert opinion focusing…
An siRNA-based functional genomics screen for the identification of regulators of ciliogenesis and ciliopathy genes
2015
Item does not contain fulltext Defects in primary cilium biogenesis underlie the ciliopathies, a growing group of genetic disorders. We describe a whole-genome siRNA-based reverse genetics screen for defects in biogenesis and/or maintenance of the primary cilium, obtaining a global resource. We identify 112 candidate ciliogenesis and ciliopathy genes, including 44 components of the ubiquitin-proteasome system, 12 G-protein-coupled receptors, and 3 pre-mRNA processing factors (PRPF6, PRPF8 and PRPF31) mutated in autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. The PRPFs localize to the connecting cilium, and PRPF8- and PRPF31-mutated cells have ciliary defects. Combining the screen with exome sequen…
Increased Vascularity in Cervicovaginal Mucosa with Schistosoma haematobium Infection
2011
Background Close to 800 million people in the world are at risk of schistosomiasis, 85 per cent of whom live in Africa. Recent studies have indicated that female genital schistosomiasis might increase the risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. The aim of this study is to quantify and analyse the characteristics of the vasculature surrounding Schistosoma haematobium ova in the female genital mucosa. Methodology/Principal Findings Cervicovaginal biopsies with S. haematobium ova (n = 20) and control biopsies (n = 69) were stained with immunohistochemical blood vessel markers CD31 and von Willebrand Factor (vWF), which stain endothelial cells in capillary buds and established blo…
Lung myofibroblasts are characterized by down-regulated cyclooxygenase-2 and its main metabolite, prostaglandin E2.
2013
Background: Prostaglandin E2 (PGE(2)), the main metabolite of cyclooxygenase (COX), is a well-known anti-fibrotic agent. Moreover, myofibroblasts expressing alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA), fibroblast expansion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) are critical to the pathogenesis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Our aim was to investigate the expression of COX-2 and PGE(2) in human lung myofibroblasts and establish whether fibroblast-myofibroblast transition (FMT) and EMT are associated with COX-2 and PGE(2) down-regulation. Methods: Fibroblasts obtained from IPF patients (n = 6) and patients undergoing spontaneous pneumothorax (control, n = 6) and alveolar epithelial ce…