Search results for "ddc:61"
showing 10 items of 588 documents
A specific CD4 epitope bound by tregalizumab mediates activation of regulatory T cells by a unique signaling pathway
2014
CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) represent a specialized subpopulation of T cells, which are essential for maintaining peripheral tolerance and preventing autoimmunity. The immunomodulatory effects of Tregs depend on their activation status. Here we show that, in contrast to conventional anti-CD4 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), the humanized CD4-specific monoclonal antibody tregalizumab (BT-061) is able to selectively activate the suppressive properties of Tregs in vitro. BT-061 activates Tregs by binding to CD4 and activation of signaling downstream pathways. The specific functionality of BT-061 may be explained by the recognition of a unique, conformational epitope on domain 2 of th…
Gray Matter NG2 Cells Display Multiple Ca2+-Signaling Pathways and Highly Motile Processes
2011
NG2 cells, the fourth type of glia in the mammalian CNS, receive synaptic input from neurons. The function of this innervation is unknown yet. Postsynaptic changes in intracellular Ca(2+)-concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) might be a possible consequence. We employed transgenic mice with fluorescently labeled NG2 cells to address this issue. To identify Ca(2+)-signaling pathways we combined patch-clamp recordings, Ca(2+)-imaging, mRNA-transcript analysis and focal pressure-application of various substances to identified NG2-cells in acute hippocampal slices. We show that activation of voltage-gated Ca(2+)-channels, Ca(2+)-permeable AMPA-receptors, and group I metabotropic glutamate-receptors provo…
IkappaB kinase 2 determines oligodendrocyte loss by non-cell-autonomous activation of NF-kappaB in the central nervous system
2011
The IκB kinase complex induces nuclear factor kappa B activation and has recently been recognized as a key player of autoimmunity in the central nervous system. Notably, IκB kinase/nuclear factor kappa B signalling regulates peripheral myelin formation by Schwann cells, however, its role in myelin formation in the central nervous system during health and disease is largely unknown. Surprisingly, we found that brain-specific IκB kinase 2 expression is dispensable for proper myelin assembly and repair in the central nervous system, but instead plays a fundamental role for the loss of myelin in the cuprizone model. During toxic demyelination, inhibition of nuclear factor kappa B activation by …
The Relationship between Gray Matter Quantitative MRI and Disability in Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis
2016
Purpose: In secondary progressive Multiple Sclerosis (SPMS), global neurodegeneration as a driver of disability gains importance in comparison to focal inflammatory processes. However, clinical MRI does not visualize changes of tissue composition outside MS lesions. This quantitative MRI (qMRI) study investigated cortical and deep gray matter (GM) proton density (PD) values and T1 relaxation times to explore their potential to assess neuronal damage and its relationship to clinical disability in SPMS. Materials and Methods: 11 SPMS patients underwent quantitative T1 and PD mapping. Parameter values across the cerebral cortex and deep GM structures were compared with 11 healthy controls, and…
Immunotherapy With Human Gamma Delta T Cells—Synergistic Potential of Epigenetic Drugs?
2018
Epigenetics has emerged as one of the fastest growing concepts, adding more than 45 new publications every day, spreading through various fields ( 1). Conrad Waddington coined the term “epigenetics” in 1942; however, a multitude of definitions has been endorsed by different researchers. In essence, Waddington’s definition of “epigenetics” and its redefinition by Holiday is at the heart of cellular function. Hence, it is obvious that epigenetic regulation plays a central role also in the specification, differentiation, and functional plasticity of T lymphocytes ( 2). T-cell fate decision in progenitor cells, functional CD4 T-cell plasticity, CD8 T-cell differentiation, but also T-cell memory…
Extended pancreas donor program – the EXPAND study rationale and study protocol
2013
Background Simultaneous pancreas kidney transplantation (SPK), pancreas transplantation alone (PTA) or pancreas transplantation after kidney (PAK) are the only curative treatment options for patients with type 1 (juvenile) diabetes mellitus with or without impaired renal function. Unfortunately, transplant waiting lists for this indication are increasing because the current organ acceptability criteria are restrictive; morbidity and mortality significantly increase with time on the waitlist. Currently, only pancreas organs from donors younger than 50 years of age and with a body mass index (BMI) less than 30 are allocated for transplantation in the Eurotransplant (ET) area. To address this …
Multicenter stability of diffusion tensor imaging measures: a European clinical and physical phantom study.
2011
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) detects white matter damage in neuro-psychiatric disorders, but data on reliability of DTI measures across more than two scanners are still missing. In this study we assessed multicenter reproducibility of DTI acquisitions based on a physical phantom as well as brain scans across 16 scanners. In addition, we performed DTI scans in a group of 26 patients with clinically probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 12 healthy elderly controls at one single center. We determined the variability of fractional anisotropy (FA) measures using manually placed regions of interest as well as automated tract based spatial statistics and deformation based analysis. The coefficie…
Alternative and complementary therapies in osteoarthritis and cartilage repair
2020
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint condition and, with a burgeoning ageing population, is due to increase in prevalence. Beyond conventional medical and surgical interventions, there are an increasing number of ‘alternative’ therapies. These alternative therapies may have a limited evidence base and, for this reason, are often only afforded brief reference (or completely excluded) from current OA guidelines. Thus, the aim of this review was to synthesize the current evidence regarding autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI), mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), vitamin D and other alternative therapies. The majority of studies were in knee OA or chond…
Structure‐Activity Relationships of Benzamides and Isoindolines Designed as SARS‐CoV Protease Inhibitors Effective against SARS‐CoV‐2
2020
Abstract Inhibition of coronavirus (CoV)‐encoded papain‐like cysteine proteases (PLpro) represents an attractive strategy to treat infections by these important human pathogens. Herein we report on structure‐activity relationships (SAR) of the noncovalent active‐site directed inhibitor (R)‐5‐amino‐2‐methyl‐N‐(1‐(naphthalen‐1‐yl)ethyl) benzamide (2 b), which is known to bind into the S3 and S4 pockets of the SARS‐CoV PLpro. Moreover, we report the discovery of isoindolines as a new class of potent PLpro inhibitors. The studies also provide a deeper understanding of the binding modes of this inhibitor class. Importantly, the inhibitors were also confirmed to inhibit SARS‐CoV‐2 replication in …
Particle identification algorithms for the PANDA Barrel DIRC
2020
The International Conference Instrumentation for Colliding Beam Physics , INSTR2020, Novosibirsk, Russia, 24 Feb 2020 - 28 Feb 2020; Journal of Instrumentation 15(09), C09057 (2020). doi:10.1088/1748-0221/15/09/C09057