Search results for "immunosuppression"
showing 10 items of 240 documents
Rodent Animal Research in UTx
2019
The rodents, mouse, and rat represent well-characterized animal sources for basic research in any field of biological sciences. The animals are cheap compared to other type of animals, easy to husbandry, and are extremely well characterized from genetic and physiology point of views, especially when it comes to immunological and reproductive aspects. Availability of gene-modified strains, easy embryo transfer, and the accessibility of specific recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies are further advantages. Hence, the first experiments done in the modern era of uterus transplantation used mouse and rat as the main animal models. In this chapter, we describe important key steps of the …
Osteopontin shapes immunosuppression in the metastatic niche.
2014
Abstract The matricellular protein osteopontin (OPN, Spp-1) is widely associated with cancer aggressiveness when produced by tumor cells, but its impact is uncertain when produced by leukocytes in the context of the tumor stroma. In a broad study using Spp1−/− mice along with gene silencing in tumor cells, we obtained evidence of distinct and common activities of OPN when produced by tumor or host cells in a spontaneously metastatic model of breast cancer. Different cellular localization of OPN is associated with its distinct activities, being mainly secreted in tumor cells while intracellular in myeloid cells. OPN produced by tumor cells supported their survival in the blood stream, wherea…
Systematic review: macrophage activation syndrome in inflammatory bowel disease.
2013
Summary Background Recently, there have been increasingly frequent reports on the occurrence of macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Clinically, MAS is characterized mainly by fever, hepatosplenomegaly, cytopenia, and elevated circulating ferritin and CD25. Mortality, even if diagnosed rapidly, is high. Aim To identify all reports on MAS in IBD and to establish data on triggering agents, immunosuppression leading to MAS, and mortality. Methods A language unrestricted search on Pubmed and Scopus relating to the past 30 years was carried out by matching the following search-terms: h(a)emophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis OR h(a)emophagocytic lym…
Recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after liver transplantation: an update.
2015
Liver transplantation is the only curative alternative for selected patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are not eligible for resection and/or with decompensated cirrhosis. According to Milan criteria the 5-year survival rate is 70–85%, with a recurrence-free survival of 75%. However, HCC recurrence rate after liver transplantation remains a significant problem in the clinical practice. The prognosis in patients with HCC recurrence is poor. The treatment of choice for HCC recurrence is surgery, but it seems that a systemic treatment based on combination of an mTOR inhibitor with sorafenib can be used. Data on safety and efficacy are limited, clinical monitoring is necessary. Th…
GARP: A Key Target to Evaluate Tumor Immunosuppressive Microenvironment
2021
Simple Summary Tumors are not only composed of cancer cells but also of various infiltrating cells constituting the tumor microenvironment (TME); all these cells produce growth factors which contribute to tumor progression and invasiveness. Among them, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) has been shown to be a potent immunosuppressive cytokine favoring cell proliferation and invasion and to be associated with resistance to anticancer treatments. Glycoprotein-A repetition predominant (GARP) plays a critical role in the activation of TGF-β1 and has been shown to be expressed at the membrane of cancer cells and also of regulatory T cells and platelets in the TME. An increased GARP expressio…
A critical evaluation of caplacizumab for the treatment of acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura
2020
Introduction: Acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (aTTP) is a thrombotic microangiopathy caused by inhibitory autoantibodies against ADAMTS13 protein. Until recently, the combination of plasma exchange (PEX) and immunosuppression has been the standard front-line treatment in this disorder. However, aTTP-related mortality, refractoriness, and relapse are still a matter of concern. Areas covered: The better understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of aTTP has allowed substantial improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease. Recently, the novel anti-VWF nanobody caplacizumab has been approved for acute episodes of aTTP. Caplacizumab is capable to block the adh…
Human genetic polymorphisms and risk of viral infection after solid organ transplantation.
2021
The immune system plays a key role in the host defense against viral pathogens. A signaling cascade is activated upon infection involving a variety of molecules such as pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs), interleukins or antiviral interferons. Long-term immunosuppression after solid organ transplantation (SOT) mainly abrogates adaptive T-cell-mediated responses, thus highlighting the relative contribution of innate immunity. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within genes coding for PRRs or soluble mediators have been associated with differential susceptibility to viral infections among SOT recipients. A protective effect against cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection or disease has been att…
Anemia is not predictive of sustained virological response in liver transplant recipients with hepatitis C virus who are treated with pegylated inter…
2011
In the immunocompetent setting, antiviral therapy–related anemia has recently been shown to be associated with a sustained virological response (SVR). Our goal was to assess whether this is also true for liver transplantation (LT). We included 160 LT patients with recurrent hepatitis C virus (HCV) who were treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin (RBV) between 2002 and 2010; 76% of the patients were men, the median age of the patients was 56 years (range = 33-75 years), 63% had advanced fibrosis, and 86% were infected with HCV genotype 1a or 1b. The baseline immunosuppression was tacrolimus in 56% of the patients. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) was used in 15%. Anemia was defined as a h…
Quasispecies dynamics and molecular evolution of human norovirus capsid P region during chronic infection.
2009
In this novel study, we have for the first time identified evolutionarily conserved capsid residues in an individual chronically infected with norovirus (GGII.3). From 2000 to 2003, a total of 147 P1-1 and P2 capsid sequences were sequenced and investigated for evolutionarily conserved and functionally important residues by the evolutionary trace (ET) algorithm. The ET algorithm revealed more absolutely conserved residues (ACR) in the P1-1 domain (47/53, 88 %) as compared with the P2 domain (86/133, 64 %). The capsid P1-1 and P2 domains evolved in time-dependent manner, with a distinct break point observed between autumn/winter of year 2000 (isolates P1, P3 and P5) and spring to autumn of y…
Circulating Histones and Nucleosomes as Biomarkers in Sepsis and Septic Shock
2016
Sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock are among the leading causes of death worldwide and their incidence is constantly increasing. Despite early intervention in intensive care units (ICUs) mortality remains high. There is great interest in understanding the genetics and epigenetics of the host in response to infection because of two reasons: the peculiarities of each patient, and the unclear associations identified between genetic polymorphisms and susceptibility to sepsis. In addition, chromatin remodeling and epigenetic changes occur in crucial genes involved in the inflammatory response and also in the immunosuppression found in sepsis. The early and accurate diagnosis of sepsis is a …