搜索结果: 'megacult cytokines cfu'

BACKGROUND Several miRNAs are now known to have clear connections to the pathogenesis of asthma. The present study focused on the potential role of miR-3934 during asthma development. METHODS miR-3934 was detected as a down-regulated miRNA in basophils by sequencing analysis. Next,the expression levels of miR-3934 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 50 asthma patients and 50 healthy volunteers were examined by RT-qPCR methods. The basophils were then treated with AGEs and transfected with miR-3934 mimics. The apoptosis levels were examined by flow cytometry assay; and the expression levels of cytokines were detected using the ELISA kits. Finally,the Western blot was performed to examined the expression of key molecules in the TGF-$\beta$/Smad signaling pathway. RESULTS miR-3934 was down-regulated in the basophils of asthmatic patients. The expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6,IL-8 and IL-33 was enhanced in basophils from asthmatic patients,and this effect was partially reversed by transfection of miR-3934 mimics. Furthermore,receiver operating characteristics analysis showed that miR-3934 levels can be used to distinguish asthma patients from healthy individuals. miR-3934 partially inhibited advanced glycation end products-induced increases in basophil apoptosis by suppressing expression of RAGE. CONCLUSION Our results indicate that miR-3934 acts to mitigate the pathogenesis of asthma by targeting RAGE and suppressing TGF-$\beta$/Smad signaling. View Publication

BACKGROUND miR-155-5p is associated with autoimmune diseases. T helper 17 (Th17) cells,interleukin (IL)-17,and suppressor of cytokines signaling 1 (SOCS1) have important roles in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc). The purpose of this study was to explore the role of miR-155-5p in the regulation of IL-17 and SOCS1 expression in Th17 cells and the subsequent effect on SSc disease progression. METHODS Th17 cells were isolated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of SSc patients and healthy controls (HCs). RT-qPCR and western blotting were used to examine the expression patterns of miR-155-5p,IL-17,and SOCS1. Luciferase reporter assays were performed to confirm SOCS1 as a target of miR-155-5p. RNA pull-down assays were performed to detect the interaction of IL-17 and SOCS1 with miR-155-5p. In situ hybridization was performed to analyze the co-expression pattern of miR-155-5p and IL17A in Th17 cells. RESULTS The levels of Th17 cell-derived miR-155-5p were significantly up-regulated in SSc patients compared with HCs,and its levels were negatively correlated with SOCS1 levels. Meanwhile,miR-155-5p positively regulated IL-17 expression levels in Th17 cells isolated from SSc patients as the disease progressed. Using pmirGLO vectors,SOCS1 was confirmed as a target of miR-155-5p. The binding status of IL-17 and SOCS1 to miR-155-5p was related to SSc progression. An increase in the co-localization of miR-155-5p and IL-17 was associated with greater SSc progression. CONCLUSIONS IL-17 and SOCS1 expression modulated by Th17 cell-derived miR-155-5p are critical for SSc progression,which may provide novel insights into the pathogenesis of SSc. View Publication

In response to inflammatory stimuli,monocytes/macrophages secrete greater quantities of the proinflammatory cytokines tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha),interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and IL-6. The inflammatory process and the innate immune response are related to the activation of several transcription factors,such as nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) and activator protein 1 (AP-1). The proteasome is a multimeric protease complex,which plays a vital role in several cellular functions,including the regulation of transcription factors like NF-kappaB. In this study,we used the human monocyte cell line U937 stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) as a model to investigate the in vitro effects of MG132,a proteasome inhibitor,on the release of TNF-alpha,IL-1beta and IL-6 and on the expression of their membrane and soluble receptors TNF-R1,IL-1R1 and IL-6R. We also analysed the effects of MG132 on the activation of NF-kappaB and AP-1 and on the IkappaB molecule. MG132 significantly inhibited the secretion of those proinflammatory cytokines. MG132 increased the release of the soluble receptors TNF-R1 and IL-1R1 from U937 cells and decreased their cell-surface expression. MG132 also increased IL-6R cell-surface expression and decreased its release. Proteasome inhibition also led to an increase in LPS+PMA-induced AP-1 activation and the attenuation of LPS+PMA-induced IkappaB degradation,resulting in the abolition of NF-kappaB activation. Our experiments strongly suggest that the proteasome is an important factor in the regulation of proinflammatory cytokines and their receptors. View Publication

Inflammatory cytokines,particularly interferon-γ (IFN-γ),are markedly elevated in the peripheral blood of patients with immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced myocarditis (ICI-M). Endomyocardial biopsies from these patients also show GBP-associated inflammasome overexpression. While both factors are implicated in ICI-M pathophysiology,their interplay and cellular targets remain poorly characterized. Our aim was to elucidate how ICI-M-associated cytokines affect the viability and inflammatory responses of endothelial cells (ECs) and cardiomyocytes (CMs) using human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived models. ECs and CMs were differentiated from the same hiPSC line derived from a healthy donor. Cells were exposed either to IFN-γ alone or to an inflammatory cytokine cocktail (CCL5,GZMB,IL-1β,IL-2,IL-6,IFN-γ,TNF-α). We assessed large-scale transcriptomic changes via microarray and evaluated inflammatory,apoptotic,and cell death pathways at cellular and molecular levels. hiPSC-ECs were highly sensitive to cytokine exposure,displaying significant mortality and marked transcriptomic changes in immunity- and inflammation-related pathways. In contrast,hiPSC-CM showed limited transcriptional changes and reduced susceptibility to cytokine-induced death. In both cell types,cytokine treatment upregulated key components of the inflammasome pathway,including regulators (GBP5,GBP6,P2X7,NLRC5),a core component (AIM2),and the effector GSDMD. Increased GBP5 expression and CASP-1 cleavage mirrored the findings found elsewhere in endomyocardial biopsies from ICI-M patients. This hiPSC-based model reveals a distinct cellular sensitivity to ICI-M-related inflammation,with endothelial cells showing heightened vulnerability. These results reposition endothelial dysfunction,rather than cardiomyocyte injury alone,as a central mechanism in ICI-induced myocarditis. Modulating endothelial inflammasome activation,particularly via AIM2 inhibition,could offer a novel strategy to mitigate cardiac toxicity while preserving antitumor efficacy. View Publication

Accurate characterization of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) products is needed to better anticipate the hematopoietic reconstitution and the outcome in patients. Although CD34+ viable cells enumeration is a key predictor of time to correction of aplasia,it does not fully inform about functionality of cells contained in the graft. CFU assay is the gold standard in vitro potency assay to assess clonogenicity of HSC and consists on the count and identification of colonies several days after culture in a semi solid media. Manual count of colonies with optic microscope is the most commonly used method but its important variability and subjectivity hinders the universal implementation of this potency assay. The aim of this study is to validate a standardized method using the STEMvision™ system,the first semi-automated instrument for imaging and scoring hematopoietic colonies,according to French and European recommendations. Results obtained highlight better performance criteria with STEMvision™ system than the manual method. This semi-automatic device tends to reduce the coefficients of variation of repeatability,inter-operator variability and intermediate precision. This newly available platform could represent an interesting option,significantly improving performances of CFU assays used for the characterization of hematopoietic progenitors. View Publication

Background/Objectives: The SARS-CoV-2’s high mutations and replication rates contribute to its high infectivity and resistance to current vaccinations and treatments. The primary cause of resistance to most current treatments aligns within the coding regions for the spike S protein of SARS-CoV-2 that has mutated. As a potential novel immunotherapy,we generated a novel fusion protein composed of a soluble ACE2 (sACE2) linked to llama-derived anti-CD16 that targets different variants of spike proteins and enhances natural killer cells to target infected cells. Methods: Here,we generated a novel sACE2-AntiCD16VHH fusion protein using a Gly4Ser linker,synthesized and cloned into the pLVX-EF1alpha-IRES-Puro vector,and further expressed in ExpiCHO-S cells and purified using Ni+NTA chromatography. Results: The fusion protein significantly blocked SARS-CoV-2 alpha,beta,delta,gamma,and omicron S-proteins binding and activating angiotensin-converting enzyme receptor-2 (ACE2) on ACE2-expressing RAW-Blue macrophage cells and the secretion of several key inflammatory cytokines,G-CSF,MIP-1A,and MCP-1,implicated in the cytokine release storm (CRS). The sACE2-Anti-CD16VHH fusion protein also bridged NK cells to ACE2-expressing human lung carcinoma A549 cells and significantly activated NK-dependent cytotoxicity. Conclusions: The findings show that a VHH directed against CD16 could be an excellent candidate to be linked to soluble ACE2 to generate a bi-specific molecule (sACE2-AntiCD16VHH) suitable for bridging effector cells and infected target cells to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 variant spike proteins binding to the ACE2 receptor in the RAW-Blue cell line and pro-inflammatory cytokines and to activate natural killer cell cytotoxicity. View Publication

The therapeutic potential of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) gene therapy can be fully exploited only by reaching efficient gene transfer into HSCs without compromising their biologic properties. Although HSCs can be transduced by HIV-derived lentiviral vectors (LVs) in short ex vivo culture,they display low permissivity to the vector,requiring cytokine stimulation to reach high-frequency transduction. Using stringent assays of competitive xenograft repopulation,we show that early-acting cytokines synergistically enhanced human HSC gene transfer by LVs without impairing engraftment and repopulation capacity. Using S-phase suicide assays,we show that transduction enhancement by cytokines was not dependent on cell cycle progression and that LVs can transduce quiescent HSCs. Pharmacologic inhibition of the proteasome during transduction dramatically enhanced HSC gene transfer,allowing the reach of very high levels of vector integration in their progeny in vivo. Thus,LVs are effectively restricted at a postentry step by the activity of this proteolytic complex. Unexpectedly,cytokine stimulation rapidly and substantially down-regulated proteasome activity in hematopoietic progenitors,highlighting one mechanism by which cytokines may enhance permissiveness to LV gene transfer. These findings demonstrate that antiviral responses ultimately mediated by proteasomes strongly limit the efficiency of HSC transduction by LVs and establish improved conditions for HSC-based gene therapy. View Publication

OBJECTIVE To analyze the combination therapy of Sinomenine (SIN) and Methotrexate (MTX) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA),we herein demonstrated the combination effect of SIN and MTX on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in rats through their modulation on osteoclast-related cytokines. METHODS CIA was induced by the immunization of type II collagen (CII) in SD rats. SIN and MTX were administrated alone or in combination after the onset of arthritis. Arthritis index and histological analysis were used to evaluate the effect of treatments. Effects of SIN and MTX on expression of receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL) and osteopontin (OPN) in synovial tissues were assayed by immunohistochemistry. RANKL,osteoprotegerin (OPG),IL-6,IL-17 and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in rat serum were measured by ELISA. The expression of osteoclast-related cytokines in fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) from RA patients was assayed by RT-PCR. RESULTS SIN and MTX combination additively reduced the inflammatory symptoms and joint damage in CIA. Combination of SIN and MTX significantly repressed synovial RANKL and OPN production. SIN and MTX exhibited complementary and synergistic effect upon down-regulating RANKL,IL-6,IL-17 and MMPs in rat serum. SIN and MTX also modulated the expression of RANKL and OPG in RA-FLS. CONCLUSION SIN and MTX have additive effects,decreasing inflammation and joint damage in CIA rats by modulating osteoclast-related cytokines. These results are indicative of the combined effect of SIN and MTX for anti-arthritic treatment in RA. View Publication

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) occurs when HIV depletes CD4+ helper T cells. Some patients develop AIDS slowly or not at all,and are termed long-term non-progressors (LTNP),and while mutations in the HIV-1 Viral Protein R (vpr) gene such as R77Q are associated with LTNP,mechanisms for this correlation are unclear. This study examines the induction of apoptosis,cell cycle arrest,and pro-inflammatory cytokine release in the HUT78 T cell line following infection with replication-competent wild-type strain NL4-3,the R77Q mutant,or a vpr Null mutant. Our results show a significant enhancement of apoptosis and G2 cell cycle arrest in HUT78 cells infected with R77Q,but not with WT NL4-3 or the vpr Null strain. Conversely,HUT78 cells infected with the WT virus show higher levels of necrosis. We also detected lower TNF and IL-6 release after infection with R77Q vs. WT. The apoptotic phenotype was also seen in the CEM cell line and in primary CD4+ T cells. Protein expression of the R77Q vpr variant was low compared to WT vpr,but expression levels alone cannot explain these phenotypes because the Null virus did not show apoptosis or G2 arrest. These results suggest that R77Q triggers a non-inflammatory apoptotic pathway that attenuates inflammation,possibly contributing to LTNP. View Publication

Analysis of the mitogenic activity of interleukin-3 (IL-3),Steel factor (SF),and flt-3 ligand (FL) on acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) blasts using the short-term endpoints of proliferation in 3H-thymidine (3H-Tdr) incorporation assays or methylcellulose cultures (colony assays) showed that greater than 90% of samples contained cells that were responsive to one or more of these cytokines. With this information,culture conditions that were known to support normal long-term culture-initiating cells (LTC-IC) were tested,with or without supplements of one or more of these three growth factors,for their ability to support primitive progenitors from 10 cell samples from patients with AML. In all cases cytogenetically abnormal colony forming cells (CFC) were detected after 5 weeks when AML peripheral blood or marrow cells were cocultured on preestablished,normal human marrow feeders (HMF) and/or SI/SI mouse fibroblast feeders and the number of CFC detected in these 5-week-old LTC maintained a linear relationship to the number of input AML cells. Limiting dilution analysis,performed on 6 of the 10 samples,showed the frequency of AML cells initiating LTC (AML LTC-IC) to be 5- to 300-fold lower than the frequency of AML-CFC in the same cell sample,whereas the average number of CFC produced per LTC-IC varied from 1 to 13. Surprisingly,in each case the concentration of cytogenetically normal LTC-IC detected in AML patient blood was at least 10-fold higher than that previously observed in the blood of normal individuals. Mixed" mouse fibroblast feeders engineered to produce human G-CSF� View Publication