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The film of sIgA lining the intestinal epithelium plays a role in the regulation of the commensal microflora and prevention of pathogen invasion. We show that, in the absence of intentional immunization, all sIgA in the gut is produced by B-1a B cells. We also show that B-1a B cells and sIgA derive from lineage-negative precursors found in the fetal liver and located in the spleen after birth. The
This review examines evidence that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) depends on autoimmunity to articular collagen, and mechanisms whereby autoantibodies to type II collagen contribute to disease development. Three major autoantigenic reactants have been identified in RA; the corresponding autoantibodies are rheumatoid factor (RF), antibodies to citrullinated peptide antigens (ACPA), citrullinated peptide
Growth hormone (GH) has been used as anabolic therapy to treat catabolic patients. In a recent study, however, administration of high doses of GH to critically ill adults was associated with an increase in morbidity and mortality. Preponderance of septic shock and uncontrolled infections as causes of death in these patients suggests an immuno-modulatory effect of GH. Our hypothesis was that GH tre
The driving force behind oncoproteomics is to identify protein signatures that are associated with a particular malignancy. Here, we have used a recombinant scFv antibody microarray in an attempt to classify sera derived from pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients versus healthy subjects. Based on analysis of nonfractionated, directly labeled, whole human serum proteomes we have identified a protein s
Previously, we found that emergence of the X4 viral phenotype in HIV-1-infected children was related to the presence of X4 in their mothers (C. H. Casper et al., J Infect Dis 2002; 186: 914-921). Here, we investigated the origin of the X4 phenotype in the child, analyzing two mother-child pairs (Ma-Ca, Mb-Cb) where the mothers carried X4 and their children developed X4 after an initial presence of
Neuropathic pain is a common consequence of damage to the nervous system. We here report a genetic analysis of development of neuropathic pain-like behaviors after unilateral photochemically-induced ischemic sciatic nerve injury in a panel of inbred rat strains known to display different susceptibility to autoimmune neuroinflammation. Pain behavior was initially characterized in Dark-Agouti (DA; R
Apoptotic cells have been reported to down- regulate membrane-bound complement regulatory proteins ( m- C- Reg) and to activate complement. Nonetheless, most apoptotic cells do not undergo complement- mediated lysis. Therefore, we hypothesized that fluid phase complement inhibitors would bind to apoptotic cells and compensate functionally for the loss of m- C- Reg. We observed that m- C- Reg are d
The anaphylatoxic peptide C3a is a pro-inflammatory mediator generated during complement activation, whose specific G protein coupled receptor is expressed on granulocytes, monocytes, mast cells, activated lymphocytes, and in the nervous tissue. We have generated RBL-2H3 cell clones stably expressing mutants of the human C3a-receptor (C3aR) with combined alanine (Ala) substitutions of ten C-termin
Organisers of external quality assurance programmes may, for various reasons, also manufacture in vitro diagnostic medical devices, or provide calibration services. This paper describes measures taken by a Swedish organiser to meet the requirements of the European Commission's directive 98/79/EC for a national calibration of prothrombin time. Quality management system requirements and interactions
Objective Skewed gender distribution and falsely assigned gestational age lead to unnecessary or late obstetric intervention in prolonged pregnancy. The aim of this study was to examine the consequences of a fetal gender-dependent systematic 1.5-day dating error at ultrasound fetometry. Material and methods A total of 82484 singleton deliveries greater than or equal to 37 weeks at 11 hospitals in
The antibody response to the envelope proteins of hepatitis C virus (HCV) may play an important role in controlling the infection. To allow molecular analyses of protective antibodies, we isolated human monoclonal antibodies to the E2 envelope glycoprotein of HCV from a combinatorial Fab library established from bone marrow of a chronically HCV-infected patient. Anti-E2 reactive clones were select
Objective To describe the gray-scale and color Doppler ultrasound findings of metastatic tumors in the ovary according to the origin of the primary tumor. Methods Information was retrieved retrospectively from 67 patients who had undergone preoperative transvaginal gray-scale and color Doppler ultrasound examination and who were found subsequently to have metastatic tumors in their ovaries. In all
This review discusses recent observations, in health and disease, on the release and distribution of plasma-derived molecules in the airway mucosa. Briefly, the new data on airway mucosal exudation mechanisms suggest that the protein systems of plasma contribute significantly to the mucosal biology, not only in injured airways but also in such mildly inflamed airways that lack oedema and exhibit n
Two novel human papillomaviruses (HPVs), HPV93 and HPV96, with genomes of 7450 and 7438 bp, respectively, are described. The Ll open reading frame of HPV93 showed highest identity to HPV24 (79%) and that of HPV96 had highest identity to HPV92 (71 %). Real-time PCR for HPV92, 93 and 96 on stripped biopsies from tumours and healthy skin from 269 immunocompetent patients found HPV DNA in 2.6 % of tum
ProDaC (Proteomics Data Collection), a Coordination Action within the 6th EU framework programme, was created to support the collection, distribution and public availability of data from proteomics experiments. Within the consortium standards are created and maintained enabling an extensive data collection within the proteomics community. Important elements of ProDaC are workshops held twice a yea
Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease of the supporting structures of the teeth caused by, among other pathogens, Prevotella intermedia. Many strains of P. intermedia are resistant to killing by the human complement system, which is present at up to 70% of serum concentration in gingival crevicular fluid. Incubation of human serum with recombinant cysteine protease of P. intermedia (interpain A
Computed tomography (CT) segmentation models are frequently used within radiotherapy treatment planning, but similar models are not available to the related imaging modality cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) due to the scarcity of labeled data from this domain. Such models could have multiple clinical applications whereby it is of interest to study whether the CT segmentation models can be adap
A convolutional neural network for automatic myocardial segmentation of MR images is described and implemented, based on the readily available architecture SegNet. A general network trained on both end-systolic and end-diastolic images is determined to be superior to the networks trained on the separate data. The evaluation of myocardial segmentation is discussed, as well as the importance of manu
