Activiteit

To investigate the fine epitope(s) of anti-C1q A08 antibodies and their roles in complement activation in lupus nephritis, C1q A08 and related peptides with various amino acid sequences around A08 were synthesized. Anti-C1q A08 antibodies from 10 lupus nephritis patients were purified from plasmapheresis samples, and four monoclonal antibodies against C1q A08 were screened and identified from mouse hybridoma cells, to study the fine epitope(s) of C1q A08 using ELISA and Biolayer Interferometry (BLI). The biofunction of anti-C1q A08 antibodies for complement classical pathway activation was investigated by C3 activation assay. Anti-C1q A08 antibodies and anti-C1q antibodies were also detected in the sera of female BALB/C mice immunized by C1q A08 peptides. None of the anti-C1q A08 antibodies, which were affinity purified from the 10 lupus nephritis patients, could bind intact C1q coated on microtitre plates, neither could the anti-C1q antibodies bind to C1q A08 peptides coupled on resin, indicating that the huvation of a complement classical pathway, and some anti-C1q A08 antibodies were able to prevent this process. Epitope spreading of C1q occurred in the mice immunized with C1q A08 peptides.Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 2 (IDO2) is an analog of the tryptophan degrading and immunomodulating enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1). Although the role of IDO1 is largely understood, the function of IDO2 is not yet well-elucidated. IDO2 overexpression was documented in some human tumors, but the linkage between IDO2 expression and cancer progression is still unclear, in particular in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Immunohistochemical expression and cellular localization of IDO2 was evaluated on 191 formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded resected NSCLC. Correlations between IDO2 expression, clinical-pathological data, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), immunosuppressive tumor molecules (IDO1 and programmed cell death ligand-1 – PD-L1 -) and patients’ prognosis were evaluated. IDO2 high expression is strictly related to high PD-L1 level among squamous cell carcinomas group (p = 0.012), to either intratumoral or mixed localization of TILs (p less then 0.001) and to adenocarcinoma histotype (p less then 0.001). Furthermore, a significant correlation between IDO2 high expression and poor non-small cell lung cancer prognosis was detected (p = 0.011). The current study reaches interesting knowledge about IDO2 in non-small cell lung cancer. The close relationship between IDO2 expression, PD-L1 increased levels, TILs localization and NSCLC poor prognosis, assumed IDO2 as a potential prognostic biomarker to be exploited for optimizing innovative combined therapies with immune checkpoint inhibitors.The momentous discovery of phagocytic activity in teleost B cells has caused a dramatic paradigm shift from the belief that phagocytosis is performed mainly by professional phagocytes derived from common myeloid progenitor cells, such as macrophages/monocytes, neutrophils, and dendritic cells. Recent advances on phagocytic B cells and their microbicidal ability in teleost fish position B cells at the crossroads, bridging innate with adaptive immunity. Most importantly, an increasing body of experimental evidence demonstrates that, in both teleosts and mammals, phagocytic B cells can recognize, take up, and destroy particulate antigens and then present those processed antigens to CD4+ T cells to elicit adaptive immune responses and that the phagocytosis is mediated by pattern recognition receptors and involves multiple cytokines. Thus, current findings collectively indicate that teleost phagocytic B cells, as well as their counterpart mammalian B1-B cells, can be considered one kind of professional phagocyte. The aim of this review is to summarize recent advances regarding teleost phagocytic B cells, with a particular focus on the recognizing receptors and modulating mechanisms of phagocytic B cells and the process of antigen presentation for T-cell activation. We also attempt to provide new insights into the adaptive evolution of the teleost fish phagocytic B cell on the basis of its innate and adaptive roles.Post-weaning diarrhea caused by enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) causes significant economic losses for pig producers. This study was to test the hypotheses that an ETEC challenge disrupts intestinal microbial homeostasis and the inclusion of dietary soluble (10% sugar beet pulp) or insoluble fiber (15% corn distillers dried grains with solubles) with or without exogenous carbohydrases will protect or restore the gut microbial homeostasis in weaned pigs. Sixty crossbred piglets (6.9 ± 0.1 kg) were blocked by body weight and randomly assigned to one of six treatments (n = 10), including a non-challenged control (NC), ETEC F18-challenged positive control (PC), ETEC-challenged soluble fiber without (SF-) or with carbohydrases (SF+), and ETEC-challenged insoluble fiber without (IF-) or with carbohydrases (IF+). Pigs were housed individually and orally received either ETEC inoculum or PBS-sham inoculum on day 7 post-weaning. PS341 Intestinal contents were collected on day 14 or 15. The V4 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA A) compared with NC (P less then 0.05). The SF+ tended to increase (P less then 0.10) and SF- significantly increased (P less then 0.05) colonic total VFA compared with PC. Collectively, ETEC challenge disrupted gut microbial homeostasis and impaired microbial fermentation capacity. Soluble fiber improved VFA production. Dietary fiber and carbohydrases altered microbiota composition to maintain or restore microbial homeostasis.Lentinula edodes (shiitake mushroom) is one of the most important edible mushrooms worldwide. The L. edodes cultivation cycle includes a unique developing stage called brown film formation that directly affects the development of primordium and the quality of fruiting body. Brown film formation is induced by light, especially blue light. To promote our understanding of the role of blue light in brown film formation mechanisms of L. edodes, we used RNA-seq and compared the transcriptomes of L. edodes grown under blue light and in dark, and validated the expression profiles using qRT-PCR. Blue light stimulated the formation of brown film and increased the content of polysaccharides in L. edodes. Blue light also promoted L. edodes to absorb more polysaccharides by enhancing the activities of enzymes. Among the 730 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), 433 genes were up-regulated and 297 were down-regulated. Most of the DEGs were in the oxidoreductase activity group. Pentose and glucuronic acid conversion and starch and sucrose metabolism were the most important pathways in the formation of brown film.