Search results for "spleen"
showing 10 items of 308 documents
Two Antigenic Peptides from Genes m123 and m164 of Murine Cytomegalovirus Quantitatively Dominate CD8 T-Cell Memory in the H-2 d Haplotype
2001
ABSTRACT The importance of CD8 T cells for the control of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection has raised interest in the identification of immunogenic viral proteins as candidates for vaccination and cytoimmunotherapy. The final aim is to determine the viral “immunome” for any major histocompatibility complex class I molecule by antigenicity screening of proteome-derived peptides. For human CMV, there is a limitation to this approach: the T cells used as responder cells for peptide screening are usually memory cells that have undergone in vivo selection. On this basis, pUL83 (pp65) and pUL123 (IE1 or pp68 to -72) were classified as immunodominant proteins. It is an open question whether this li…
The Immune Evasion Paradox: Immunoevasins of Murine Cytomegalovirus Enhance Priming of CD8 T Cells by Preventing Negative Feedback Regulation▿
2008
ABSTRACTCytomegaloviruses express glycoproteins that interfere with antigen presentation to CD8 T cells. Although the molecular modes of action of these “immunoevasins” differ between cytomegalovirus species, the convergent biological outcome is an inhibition of the recognition of infected cells. In murine cytomegalovirus, m152/gp40 retains peptide-loaded major histocompatibility complex class I molecules in acis-Golgi compartment, m06/gp48 mediates their vesicular sorting for lysosomal degradation, and m04/gp34, although not an immunoevasin in its own right, appears to assist in the concerted action of all three molecules. Using the Ld-restricted IE1 epitope YPHFMPTNL in the BALB/c mouse m…
Increased immunosuppressive function of CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+)GITR+ T regulatory cells from NFATc2((-/-)) mice controls allergen-induced experimental …
2012
The expansion of effector T cells is tightly controlled by transcription factors like nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) family members that mediate early intracellular responses to T cell receptor-mediated signals. In this study we show that, after allergen challenge, NFATc2((-/-)) mice had augmented number of functionally intact CD4(+)CD25(++)GITR(++) T regulatory (T regs) cells in the lung. Anti-GITR antibody treatment inhibited T regulatory cell function and enhanced the number of activated lung CD4(+) T cells associated with increased IL-2 and pSTAT-5 in the airways of NFATc2((-/-)) mice in experimental allergic asthma. This agonistic treatment led to increased inflammation in …
Vascular complications following bladder drained, simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation: the University of Miami experience
2000
Vascular complications remain a significant nonimmunologic source of pancreas allograft loss. From February 1993 through January 1998, we performed 98 simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantations (SPK) using pancreatic exocrine bladder drainage in patients with type 1 insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and end-stage renal disease. They originally received quadruple immunosuppression, and since May 1997 triple immunosuppression protocol (tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, and steroids). The patients' mean age was 37 years (range 24-53 years), including 50 women and 48 men with a mean follow-up of 42 months. The overall rate of vascular complications was 6% (5 patients). The vascular compli…
Open Radical Nephrectomy: 35 Years of Experience at the “Luciano Giuliani” Urological Department of the University of Genoa
2006
Objective: Radical nephrectomy remains the gold standard for surgically resectable kidney neoplasms > 4 cm and, in selected cases, also in presence of metastatic disease. We reviewed the records of the patients having surgery at the University of Genoa in the last 35 yr. Methods: We have retrospectively assessed all the radical nephrectomies performed between 1970 and 2005. Among tumours of the kidney subjected to surgical treatment during this period, we found 1105 cases of histologically proven renal cell carcinoma (RCC), 965 of which had records available for the study. The number of cases per year, symptoms at diagnosis, surgical strategy, staging of the tumour, and survival were rev…
p75NTRin the spleen: Age-dependent changes, effect of NGF and 4-methylcatechol treatment, and structural changes in p75NTR-deficient mice
2003
In addition to their well-known actions within the nervous system, neurotrophins and their receptors are involved in immune system functioning, as demonstrated by their wide distribution in lymphoid tissues and their in vitro actions on immunocompetent cells. Nevertheless, the in vivo roles of neurotrophin-receptor systems in lymphoid tissues, as well as the scope of their influence throughout development and adulthood, are yet to be clarified. In the present study, we used combined morphological and immunohistochemical techniques to investigate the presence and cellular localization of p75NTR, the pan-neurotrophin receptor protein, in rat spleen from newborns to aging individuals, and the …
Galactosylated polymeric carriers for liver targeting of sorafenib
2014
In this paper, we describe the preparation of liver-targeted polymeric micelles potentially able to carry sorafenib to hepatocytes for treatment of hepatocarcinoma (HCC), exploiting the presence of carbohydrate receptors, ASGPR. These micelles were prepared starting from a galactosylated polylactide-polyaminoacid conjugate. This latter was obtained by chemical reaction of α,β-poly(N-2-hydroxyethyl) (2-aminoethylcarbamate)-d,l-aspartamide (PHEA-EDA) with polylactic acid (PLA), and subsequent reaction with lactose, leading to PHEA-EDA-PLA-GAL copolymer. Liver-targeted sorafenib-loaded micelles were obtained in aqueous media at low PHEA-EDA-PLA-GAL copolymer concentration value with nanometer …
Preparation of hepatitis C virus structural and non-structural protein fragments and studies of their immunogenicity
2006
Abstract Plasmids pQE-60 and pQE-30 containing 6× His-tag sequence were used for expression of fragments of HCV structural and non-structural proteins in Escherichia coli (E. coli). The following fragments were used: core (1–98 aa), NS3 (202–482 aa), and tetramer of hypervariable region 1 (HVR1) of E2 protein. The constructed plasmids directed high levels of expression of HCV proteins in E. coli JM109. After purification by the metal-affinity chromatography on nickel–nitrilotriacetic acid (Ni–NTA) agarose, the His-tagged HCV proteins were used for immunization of BALB/c mice. All three proteins were able to induce high levels of specific antibodies and, in the case of the NS3 and HVR1 tetra…
Clinical Translation and First In-Human Use of [44Sc]Sc-PSMA-617 for PET Imaging of Metastasized Castrate-Resistant Prostate Cancer
2017
Background: Various trivalent radiometals are well suited for labeling of DOTA-conjugated variants of Glu-ureido-based prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) inhibitors. The DOTA-conjugate PSMA-617 has proven high potential in PSMA radioligand therapy (PSMA-RLT) of prostate cancer as well as PET imaging when labeled with lutetium-177 and gallium-68 respectively. Considering the relatively short physical half-life of gallium-68 this positron emitter precludes prolonged acquisition periods, as required for pre-therapeutic dosimetry or intraoperative applications. In this context, the positron emitter scandium-44 is an attractive alternative for PET imaging. We report the synthesis of [44Sc…
Signals involved in the early TH1/TH2 polarization of an immune response depending on the type of antigen.
1999
Abstract Background: The early production of distinct cytokines by epidermal cells (ECs) in response to antigen exposure may govern the development of T H1 -like immune responses, such as contact sensitivity, or T H2 -like immune responses, such as IgE-dependent allergies of the immediate type, depending on the type of antigen. Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the signals induced by protein allergens with those induced by haptens in ECs and subsequently in local draining lymph node cells (LNCs) or splenocytes. Methods: BALB/c mice were primed in vivo with the protein allergens ovalbumin or birch pollen or the haptens 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene or trinitrochlorbenzene, respectiv…