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Soluble CD40 Ligand (soluble + cd40_ligand)
Selected AbstractsClinical Implications of Elevated Serum Interleukin-6, Soluble CD40 Ligand, Metalloproteinase-9, and Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1 in Patients with Acute ST-segment Elevation Myocardial InfarctionCLINICAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue 5 2009Alberto Dominguez-Rodriguez MD, FESC No abstract is available for this article. [source] Increased inflammatory markers in children with familial hypercholesterolaemiaEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION, Issue 3 2006T. Ueland Abstract Background, While data are abundant on increased levels of inflammatory markers in adult patients with hypercholesterolaemia, such data in children are limited. Therefore, we sought to investigate the degree and character of inflammation in children with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) by measuring levels of neopterin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), and soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L). Materials and methods, In the present study, we compared the concentration of inflammatory markers in children suffering from heterozygous FH (n = 207) with those in unaffected siblings (n = 84). Furthermore, we investigated the effect of 2-year treatment with pravastatin (20,40 mg qd) or placebo on plasma levels of those markers. Results, Our main finding was that serum levels of neopterin and hsCRP were significantly higher in FH children compared with healthy siblings, whereas sCD40L was not. Body mass index and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were significant independent predictors of hsCRP and neopterin. Furthermore, pravastatin therapy decreased neopterin, but not hsCRP and sCD40L, in the FH children, but these changes were not different from the placebo group. Conclusion, These findings indicate low-grade monocyte/macrophage hyperactivity in the early stages of atherogenesis, but our findings also suggest that inflammation as well as anti-inflammatory effects of statins are less prominent features of atherosclerosis in FH children than in FH adults. [source] Thromboxane and prostacyclin biosynthesis in heart failure of ischemic origin: effects of disease severity and aspirin treatmentJOURNAL OF THROMBOSIS AND HAEMOSTASIS, Issue 5 2010F. SANTILLI Summary.,Background: Thromboembolism is a relatively common complication of chronic heart failure (HF) and the place of antiplatelet therapy is uncertain. Objectives: We characterized the rate of thromboxane and prostacyclin biosynthesis in chronic HF of ischemic origin, with the aim of separating the influence of HF on platelet activation from that of the underlying ischemic heart disease (IHD). Patients and Methods: We compared urinary 11-dehydro-thromboxane (TX)B2, 2,3 dinor 6-keto-PGF1,, 8-iso-prostaglandin (PG)F2,, and plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP), asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), and soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), in 84 patients with HF secondary to IHD, 61 patients with IHD without HF and 42 healthy subjects. Results: HF patients not on aspirin had significantly higher urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 as compared with healthy subjects (P < 0.0001) and IHD patients not on aspirin (P = 0.028). They also showed significantly higher 8-iso-PGF2, (P =,0.018), NT-pro-BNP (P = 0.021) and ADMA (P < 0.0001) than IHD patients not on aspirin. HF patients on low-dose aspirin had significantly lower 11-dehydro-TXB2 (P < 0.0001), sCD40L (P = 0.007) and 2,3-dinor-6-keto-PGF1, (P = 0.005) than HF patients not treated with aspirin. HF patients in NYHA classes III and IV had significantly higher urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 than patients in classes I and II, independently of aspirin treatment (P < 0.05). On multiple linear regression analysis, higher NT-pro-BNP levels, lack of aspirin therapy and sCD40L, predicted 11-dehydro-TXB2 excretion rate in HF patients (R2 = 0.771). Conclusions: Persistent platelet activation characterizes HF patients. This phenomenon is related to disease severity and is largely suppressable by low-dose aspirin. The homeostatic increase in prostacyclin biosynthesis is impaired, possibly contributing to enhanced thrombotic risk in this setting. [source] Platelet turnover, coagulation factors, and soluble markers of platelet and endothelial activation in essential thrombocythemia: Relationship with thrombosis occurrence and JAK2 V617F allele burden,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2009Eduardo Arellano-Rodrigo Patients with essential thrombocythemia (ET) have an increased frequency of thrombosis, but the relationship of both thrombosis and JAK2 V617F allele burden with platelet turnover, acquired activated protein C resistance (aAPCR), and levels of coagulation factors and soluble markers of platelet, and endothelial activation is not well known. In 53 ET patients (26 with a history of thrombosis), reticulated platelets (RP) percentage, aAPCR, platelet tissue factor (TF) expression, and plasma levels of TF, coagulation factors, soluble P-selectin (sP-selectin), soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), von Willebrand factor antigen (VWF:Ag), soluble thrombomodulin (sTM), D -dimer and prothrombin fragment 1 + 2 were compared with those in matched healthy individuals and correlated with thrombosis occurrence and JAK2 mutational load. ET patients with thrombosis had significantly higher values for RP percentage, aAPCR, and levels of factors V and VIII, VWF:Ag, sP-selectin, and sCD40L than patients without thrombosis and controls. At multivariate study, RP percentage, factor V levels, and aAPCR were independently associated with an increased risk of thrombosis. Patients with JAK2 mutation had significantly lower levels of free protein S (PS) and higher levels of TF, sP-selectin, sCD40L, VWF:Ag, and sTM than those with wild-type allele. A mutant allele dosage effect (, 12%) was observed for TF, sP-selectin, sCD40L, VWF:Ag, and PS levels. These results support a role for platelet turnover, factor V, and aAPCR in the thrombosis of ET as well as the association between JAK2 V617F allele burden and either decreased free PS or increased TF and soluble markers of platelet and endothelial activation. Am. J. Hematol., 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Generation of functionally mature dendritic cells from elutriated monocytes using polyinosinic : polycytidylic acid and soluble CD40 ligand for clinical applicationCLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 3 2008S. Kim Summary Despite the increasing use of dendritic cell (DC) vaccination in clinical trials, optimal conditions for the generation of functionally mature DCs remain to be established. The current standard DC maturation protocol for clinical trials has been used as an inflammatory cytokine cocktail [tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-,, interleukin (IL)-1,, IL-6 and prostaglandin E2], but this cocktail induced insufficient maturation of DCs derived from elutriated monocytes when cultured in X-VIVO 15. The aim of this study was to define effective combinations of stimulators for generating functionally mature DCs from elutriated monocytes under current good manufacturing practice conditions. We compared the functional capacity of DCs in response to all possible pairwise combinations of four different classes of stimuli: TNF-,, peptidoglycan, polyinosinic : polycytidylic acid [poly(I:C)] and soluble CD40 ligand (CD40L). Maturation status of DCs stimulated with combination of four stimuli was similar to that of the cytokine cocktail as assessed by the cell surface phenotype. However, only the combination of poly(I:C) + CD40L induced complete functional activation of the whole DC population, assessing IL-12p70 production, allostimulatory activity, migratory response to CCL19 and T helper 1-polarizing capacity. Thus, the protocol based on the combination of poly(I:C) and CD40L is more effective for the induction of clinical-grade DCs from elutriated monocytes than the standard cytokine cocktail. [source] |