Central European Journal of Immunology最新文献

Introduction: The study aimed to investigate the complicating thyroid dysfunction situation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to analyze the related risk factors of thyroid dysfunction in RA patients.

Material and methods: The retrospective analysis of the clinical data and laboratory examinations of 290 cases of RA and 200 healthy individuals undergoing the physical examination was carried out. The thyroid function, anti-thyroid antibodies, and routine laboratory test items were measured. The RA disease activity score (DAS28) was determined in RA patients. Logistic analysis was used to identify risk factors associated with thyroid dysfunction in RA patients.

Results: The detection rate of RA combined with thyroid dysfunction was 30.0%, which was higher than in the control group (7%, 14 cases). In the thyroid function test, levels of total triiodothyronine (T3) and free triiodothyronine (FT3) were lower, while thyrotropin (TSH), antithyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), and antithyroglobulin antibody (TgAb) were higher in the RA group. There was a difference in hemoglobin (HGB) and total cholesterol (TC) in RA patients with and without abnormal thyroid function.

Conclusions: Rheumatoid arthritis patients are more prone to develop thyroid dysfunction than healthy individuals, especially hypothyroidism. HGB and TC were correlated with thyroid hormones and antibodies and were risk factors correlated with thyroid dysfunction in RA patients. Clinical work should pay full attention to changes in thyroid function in patients with RA.

Fever is an adaptive host-defense response to infection and nowadays is rightly considered to be an expression of a healthy body and a well-functioning immune system. The condition is that it must be tightly regulated. Therefore, in individual cases, fever may be detrimental and should be treated. Specific excessive febrile reaction to pathogens which occurs after aseptic injuries is one among such cases. We previously found that among necrotic products, high mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) released from the site of aseptic injury affects immune effectors (cells) to mediate higher fever in response to further contact with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Here we observed that intraperitoneal (i.p.) pre-injection of recombinant HMGB1 (5 µg/rat i.p.) provoked an increase in plasma levels of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in rats and augmented release of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6 after LPS administration at a dose of 50 µg/kg i.p. compared to rats pre-injected with saline or heat-denatured HMGB1. Furthermore, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from rats injected with HMGB1 were more sensitized to produce enhanced levels of IL-1β and PGE2 when stimulated with LPS in vitro (1 µg/ml/10⁶ cells for 4 h) compared to control animals injected with saline or heat-denatured HMGB1. We also noted a significant increase in activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) in cells isolated from rats injected with HMGB1. Altogether, the obtained results suggest that HMGB1 participates in priming of immune cells to further contact with pathogens.

Introduction: Pyroptosis can aggravate lung injury in sepsis. It has been reported that lncRNA SNHG16 can regulate the inflammatory response. However, the role and underlying mechanism of SNHG16 in sepsis-induced pyroptosis and lung injury remain unclear.

Material and methods: To mimic septic lung injury in vitro, cells were treated with 1 µg/ml LPS. The Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was performed to test cell viability. The lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level was detected using a commercial kit. Interleukin (IL)-18 and IL-1 β secretion was tested using ELISA. Pyroptosis was investigated via flow cytometry. The relationship among SNHG16, miR-339-5p, and NLR family pyrin domain containing 1 (NLRP1) was explored using the dual luciferase assay.

Results: LPS significantly upregulated the levels of SNHG16 and NLRP1 in BEAS-2B cells. In addition, LPS significantly induced pyroptosis in BEAS2B cells, while this phenomenon was reversed by SNHG16 silencing. SNHG16 could bind with miR-339-5p, and NLRP1 was found to be the downstream mRNA of miR-339-5p. SNHG16 silencing significantly abolished the LPS-induced upregulation of NLRP1 through miR-339-5p downregulation. The upregulation of miR-339-5p inhibited the pro-apoptotic effect of LPS on BEAS-2B cells, which was abolished by NLRP1 overexpression. Furthermore, the anti-pyroptotic effect of SNHG16 siRNA was abolished by NLRP1 upregulation.

Conclusions: SNHG16 silencing reversed LPS-induced pyroptosis in BEAS-2B cells via miR-339-5p/NLRP1 axis mediation. Our study might shed new light on exploring therapeutic strategies for the treatment of septic lung injury.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which are multipotent adult cells with many therapeutic effects, can be derived from stromal tissues. MSCs also exert immunoregulatory effects through extracellular vesicles (EVs), cell membrane structures that carry paracrine factors. It is thought that the mediators (cytokines, growth factors, etc.) secreted by stem cells change under inflammatory conditions, and the therapeutic activity of MSCs increases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible effects of stimulated human Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cell extracellular vesicles, obtained with or without stimulation with inflammatory cytokines, on inflammation. The study aimed to determine the effects of pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin 1 β (IL-1 β), interferon γ (IFN-γ), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) stimulated extracellular vesicles (sEVs) on the inflammation model U937 macrophages induced by phorbol-12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment. Experimental studies were designed to investigate the effects of EVs obtained without stimulation with inflammatory cytokines and those obtained after stimulation with inflammatory cytokines in the macrophage cell line U937. Flow cytometry, gene expression, and immunofluorescence analyses were performed to investigate the apoptotic and antiproliferative effects of EVs and sEVs in the U937 macrophage inflammation model. WJ-MSC EVs obtained after culture with inflammatory cytokines had a greater apoptotic effect on U937 cells and reduced inflammatory cytokine release than EVs cultured in standard medium.

Introduction: Hyperforin (HYP) has been reported to alleviate the inflammatory response. The purpose of this study was to examine the pharmacological effects of HYP on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation and acute kidney injury (AKI).

Material and methods: In vitro and in vivo septic models were created using LPS-stimulated mice podocytes and LPS-injected mice. HYP (20 mg/kg/day) or antagomiR-21 (20 nM/0.1 ml; twice/week) was administered to mitigate LPS-induced AKI and podocyte apoptosis.

Results: HYP demonstrated potential as an NF-κB inhibitor, leading to enhanced survival rates in septic mice. Moreover, HYP directly hindered LPS-induced podocyte apoptosis and AKI. The underlying mechanism involves the modulation of LPS-induced transactivation of miR-21 by NF-κB. It was observed that excessive activation of the NF-κB/miR-21 signaling axis contributed to LPS-induced podocyte apoptosis and AKI. Additionally, the absence of miR-21 expression resulted in decreased LPS-induced podocyte apoptosis and amelioration of LPS-induced renal tubular injury.

Conclusions: The renoprotective effects of HYP were observed in septic mice through the inhibition of NF-κB/p65-mediated transactivation of miR-21. These findings suggest that targeting the NF-κB-miR-21 axis could be a potential therapeutic strategy for HYP in the prevention of AKI.

The flow cytometry method could support physicians' decisions in the diagnosis and treatment monitoring of immunodeficient patients. Most clinical recommendations are focused on the search for alterations in T- and B-lymphocyte subsets, less commonly natural killer (NK) cells and granulocytes. While reference values for clinically meaningful lymphocyte subsets have been published ubiquitously among numerous countries, we have not found significant data for a population of adult Polish habitats; thus we determined reference values for T, B, and NK subsets according to sex and age. The female group showed a higher percentage of lymphocytes (CD45⁺⁺), T helper lymphocytes with a higher absolute count, as well as CD4/CD8 ratio, marginal zone-like B cells, class-switched B cells, and CD21^low B cells than the male group. The male group was found to have elevated percentages of naïve B lymphocytes, transitional B cells, and plasmablasts. A weak positive correlation with age was found among double positive T lymphocytes, natural killer T cells (NKT) lymphocytes, and CD21^low B cells. A negative correlation with age for double negative T lymphocytes, marginal zone-like B cells, and plasmablasts was noted. The results indicated the importance of creating distinct reference ranges regarding sex and age concerning immunophenotype.

Introduction: To explore the effects of anaerobic glycolysis on Jurkat T cell proliferation and clarify the possible mechanism via transcriptomic analysis.

Material and methods: The monocarboxylate transporter 1 inhibitor AZD3965 was used to target and block the transmembrane transport of lactate, thereby inhibiting anaerobic glycolysis in Jurkat T cells. Then, genes with differential expression between treated and untreated cells were detected by transcriptomic analysis, and constructs were generated. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses as well as protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis were performed to explore the potential mechanism.

Results: Inhibition of anaerobic glycolysis reduced Jurkat T-cell proliferation. RNA sequencing identified 1723 transcripts that were differentially expressed, including 1460 upregulated genes and 263 downregulated genes. GO functional enrichment analysis showed that the differentially expressed genes were mainly involved in the biological processes of response to unfolded protein, response to topologically incorrect protein, and protein folding. KEGG pathway analysis of differentially expressed genes or hub genes from the PPI network analysis revealed enrichment in the estrogen signaling and PI3K-Akt pathways.

Conclusions: Anaerobic glycolysis contributes to the regulation of Jurkat T-cell proliferation. The underlying mechanism may involve the estrogen signaling pathway or PI3K-Akt signaling pathway as well as protein metabolism.

Eosinophilia is a feature of multiple conditions, both hematologic and non-hematologic, and may be associated with organ damage. The pathogenesis of eosinophilia can follow two distinct pathways. Primary eosinophilia is caused by a cell-intrinsic mechanism originating from clonal expansion of eosinophils through acquisition of a somatic mutation, such as FIP1L1-PDGFRA. In recent years, great progress has been made in the field of pathogenesis and molecularly targeted therapy of neoplastic eosinophilia. The diagnostic procedure should include, among other things, morphologic analysis of blood and bone marrow samples, cytogenetics and fluorescence in situ-hybridization tests to detect evidence of an acute or chronic myeloid or lymphoid disorder. Secondary eosinophilia follows a cell-extrinsic mechanism as a response to exogenous cytokines. In most clinical cases, peripheral blood eosinophilia is reactive and typically associated with non-hematological disorders such as infections, allergic conditions, connective tissue disorders, vasculitis, malignancy, or endocrinopathies. Nonetheless, the cause of most cases of hypereosinophilic syndrome remains unknown. In this article, we present a short review focused on differential diagnosis of eosinophilia and eosinophilic disorders. The diagnosis of eosinophilia is a challenge for physicians; thus this review may be useful in clinical practice.