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Immune Markers (immune + marker)
Selected AbstractsPutting flesh and polish on autoimmune hepatitis and moving the disease of exclusion to inclusion,HEPATOLOGY, Issue 4 2010Albert J. Czaja Autoimmune hepatitis emerged during an era when concepts of neonatal immune tolerance, clonal selection of lymphocytes, and "forbidden clones" of activated immune cells were forming. The diagnosis had to be deduced from circumstantial evidence and by exclusion of other conditions. The goals of this review are to demonstrate how a clinician nonscientist can contribute to the maturation of autoimmune hepatitis and to illustrate the principles of clinical investigation that can be applied broadly to other projects. Autoimmune hepatitis initially had to be distinguished from other diseases, and improvements in the tests for viral and immune markers were instrumental in this regard. Diversification of the clinical phenotype to accommodate acute severe, asymptomatic, elderly, and variant forms enhanced the pertinence of the disease, and the formation of the International Autoimmune Hepatitis Group standardized the diagnosis, interconnected investigators, and promoted global acceptance of the condition. Subsequent studies refined current corticosteroid-based therapies, identified prognostic markers, assessed genetic predispositions, explored new pharmacological agents, and forecast the emergence of cellular and molecular interventions. Good fortune, stimulating mentors, career dedication, practical goal selection, protocol compliance, compulsive record keeping, personal resilience, and strong collaborations were the bases for progress. Autoimmune hepatitis exemplifies an evolutionary process in the science of autoimmunity and the people committed to its study. Lessons derived from this experience can be far-reaching. (HEPATOLOGY 2010;52:1177-1184) [source] Acral lentiginous melanoma: an immunohistochemical study of 20 casesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2003You Chan Kim MD Background Though acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is a major type of malignant melanoma, no immunohistochemical study on this type of melanoma has been reported. Objective The purpose of this study is to analysis the immunohistochemical findings of ALM using routinely used immune markers. Methods An immunohistochemical study was performed on paraffin sections of 20 ALMs using S-100 protein, HMB-45, MART-1, vimentin, epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) and CAM 5.2. Results S-100 protein (95%) was found to be a more sensitive marker than either HMB-45 (80%) or MART-1 (70%) for recognizing ALM. Melanin bleaching was useful for recognizing heavily pigmented ALM using both S-100 protein and HMB-45. The intensity of HMB-45 correlated well with the melanin content. However, there was no significant correlation between the intensity of S-100 protein and the melanin content. One and two out of 20 cases stained focally with EMA and CAM5.2, respectively, but these cases stained also with HMB-45 and/or S-100 protein. Conclusions S-100 protein and HMB-45 were relatively sensitive markers for recognizing ALM. Despite the occasional positivity for the epithelial markers in ALM, all epithelial marker-positive cases stained also with HMB-45 and/or S-100 protein. Therefore, we recommend that the panel of antibodies used for recognizing ALM should contain at least S-100 protein and HMB-45. [source] Original article: Predictors of response to bronchial allergen challenge in 5- to 6-year-old atopic childrenALLERGY, Issue 4 2007T. A. Douglas Background:, The relationship between atopy and bronchial allergy in young children is not completely understood. Objective:, To examine the association between response to bronchial allergen challenge, immune markers of atopy and other clinical characteristics in 5- to 6-year-old children. Methods:, Children with positive skin test (SPT) to aeroallergen, together with a proportion of SPT negative children (as controls), were recruited from a birth cohort of 198 children at high risk of developing atopic disease and underwent allergen challenge. Results:, Thirty-seven children (26 atopic and 11 SPT negative), median age 74.5 months, were challenged: 31 with house dust mite and six with grass allergen. Only atopic children responded to challenge: n = 12/26 (46%). Wheal size [odds ratio (OR) 2.5 (1.2,5.3), P = 0.01], allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) [OR 3.4 (1.23,9.61), P = 0.02], total IgE [OR 8.6 (1.1,68.7), P = 0.04], current wheeze [OR 12 (1.7,81.7), P = 0.006] and persistent eczema [OR 11.0 (1.7,68.3), P = 0.006] emerged as the strongest independent predictors of response to allergen challenge. Prediction of response to allergen challenge was significantly improved when immune markers of atopy, and in particular wheal size, were combined with clinical characteristics. Conclusion:, The relationship between atopy and bronchial allergy is quantitative at this age. There may be potential to create more powerful indicators of the presence of respiratory allergy in young children when immunological markers of atopy are considered quantitatively and when combined with clinical history of coexistent allergic disease. [source] Placental p,p,-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene and cord blood immune markersPEDIATRIC ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 7 2007Kevin Brooks Placental p,p,-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p,-DDE) concentration and cord blood atopic markers were determined in 19 neonates. Increased placental p,p,-DDE was associated with a statistically significant increase in cord plasma interleukin (IL)-13. Furthermore, both cord plasma IL-4/interferon (IFN)- , and IL-13/IFN- , ratios were significantly positively associated with placental p,p,-DDE concentration. [source] Diabetic autoimmunity in infants and pre-schoolers with type 1 diabetesPEDIATRIC DIABETES, Issue 3 2000Eba H Hathout The incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing most rapidly in children under 5 yrs of age, a group where the disease appears to be more accelerated than traditional type 1 diabetes. Little is known about demographics, and markers of diabetes autoimmunity, in infants and pre-schoolers with type 1 diabetes. We report an analysis of 47 children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes prior to 5 yrs of age compared with a representative cohort (n=49) diagnosed after 5 yrs of age, and all were followed at Loma Linda University (LLU) Children's Hospital. Ethnic, familial, seasonal, and autoimmune marker characteristics are outlined. To determine the prevalence of diabetes autoimmune markers, ICA512, GAD65 and insulin autoantibodies (IAA) antibodies were measured. Children with early-onset diabetes had a significantly higher incidence of viral illness symptoms (p=0.005) and diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA; p=0.017) at the time of diagnosis. However, hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) levels at diagnosis were significantly higher in the later-onset group (p=0.001). A honeymoon period was reported in 14.8% of children diagnosed before 5 yrs of age compared with 42.1% in those diagnosed over 5 yrs of age (p=0.038). Islet-cell antibodies (ICAs) and glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) antibody titers were significantly different between early- and later-onset groups. ICA titers were positive in 35.29%, and GAD in 41.38% of the early-onset group versus 70.83 and 71.74% in children with later-onset disease, (p=0.001 and 0.009, respectively). IAA titers, drawn after instituting insulin therapy, were not significantly different between the two groups. GAD and ICA512 antibody results suggest a relative lack of diabetes immune markers in infants and toddlers with new-onset diabetes. This finding, and the apparent shorter pre-clinical phase reflected in the lower HbA1c values, may indicate age-related differences in type 1 diabetes autoimmunity or the existence of non-autoimmune diabetogenic mechanisms in younger children. [source] Changes in serum immunity during pregnancyAMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Elizabeth M. Miller Pregnancy requires a host of localized immune factors that allow the mother to tolerate the fetus. Changes in the mother's serum immunity during pregnancy are less well-known. To clarify these changes, 1,351 women from the NHANES 1999,2000 were analyzed with complex survey regression to test the effect of pregnancy on adaptive and innate immune markers. Adjusting for age and BMI, pregnant women had higher C-reactive protein levels and white blood cell counts and lower measles antibody titer and lymphocyte counts than nonpregnant women. This dual pattern of immunological changes supports the hypothesis that mothers will reduce the ability of the adaptive immune system to respond to infection while increasing the activity of innate immunity during pregnancy, maintaining immune function homeostasis. The function of these homeostatic immune responses is unknown. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Systemic Markers of Inflammation Are Associated with Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy and an Increased Intimal Inflammatory ComponentAMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 6 2010S. Arora We evaluated an extensive profile of clinical variables and immune markers to assess the inflammatory milieu associated with cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) assessed by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and virtual histology (VH). In total, 101 heart transplant (HTx) recipients were included and underwent IVUS/VH examination and measurement of plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor-1, interleukin-6, osteoprotegerin, soluble gp130, von Willebrand factor, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and neopterin. Mean Maximal Intimal Thickness (MIT) was 0.61 ± 0.19 mm and mean fibrotic, fibrofatty, dense calcified and necrotic core components were 55 ± 15, 14 ± 10, 15 ± 13 and 17 ± 9%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, CRP > 1.5 mg/L (OR 4.6, p < 0.01), VCAM-1 > 391 ng/mL (adjusted OR 3.2, p = 0.04) and neopterin > 7.7 nmol/L (OR 3.8, p = 0.02) were independently associated with MIT > 0.5 mm. Similarly, CRP > 1.5 mg/L (OR 3.7, p < 0.01) and VCAM-1 > 391 (OR 2.7, p = 0.04) were independently associated with an increased intimal inflammatory component (dense calcified/necrotic core component > 30%). Advanced CAV is associated with elevated CRP, VCAM-1 and neopterin and the two former biomarkers are also associated with an increased intimal inflammatory component. Forthcoming studies should clarify if routine measurements of these markers can accurately identify HTx recipients at risk of developing advanced CAV and vulnerable lesions. [source] Tuberculosis (TB) and HIV infection are independently associated with elevated serum concentrations of tumour necrosis factor receptor type 1 and ,2 -microglobulin, respectivelyCLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 1 2000S. D. Lawn The aim of this study was to identify immune markers that are independently associated with HIV infection or TB in vivo. Using commercially available assays, we measured concentrations of five immune markers in sera from 175 out-patients attending medical clinics in Cote D'Ivoire and Ghana, West Africa. Patients were categorized into groups with TB only (TB+HIV,, n = 55), TB and HIV co-infection (TB+HIV+, n = 50), HIV infection only (TB,HIV+, n = 35), or neither infection (TB,HIV,, n = 35). TB+HIV+ and TB,HIV+ groups were matched for blood CD4+ lymphocyte count. Mean ±,s.d. concentrations of ,2 -microglobulin were similarly increased in both the TB,HIV+ (5·3 ± 2·1 ,g/ml, P < 0·0001) and the TB+HIV+ (5·0 ± 1·5 ,g/ml, P < 0·0001) groups compared with the TB,HIV, group (2·2 ± 1·8 ,g/ml), but were only slightly increased in the TB+HIV, group (3·2 ± 1·8 ,g/ml, P = 0·01). In contrast, mean serum concentrations of soluble tumour necrosis factor receptor type I (sTNF-RI) were similarly elevated in the TB+HIV, (1873 ± 799 pg/ml, P < 0·0001) and TB+HIV+ (1797 ± 571 pg/ml, P < 0·0001) groups compared with uninfected subjects (906 ± 613 pg/ml), but there was only a small increase in sTNF-RI in the TB,HIV+ group (1231 ± 165 pg/ml, P = 0·03). Both TB and HIV infection were associated with substantial elevation of serum concentrations of soluble CD8, soluble CD54, and sTNF-R type II. Analysis of additional samples from groups of TB+HIV, and TB+HIV+ patients receiving anti-TB treatment showed significant and equal reductions in mean serum sTNF-RI concentrations, but no significant change in mean ,2 -microglobulin. Thus, serum ,2 -microglobulin and sTNF-RI serve as relatively independent markers of HIV infection and TB, respectively, in studies of co-infected persons. [source] | ||||||||||