831 resultados para NK-KappaB
Resumo:
The recognition of microbial pathogens by the innate immune system involves Toll-like receptors (TLRs), which recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns. Different TLRs recognize different pathogen-associated molecular patterns, with TLR-4 mediating the response to lipopolysaccharide from Gram-negative bacteria. All TLRs have a Toll/IL-1 receptor (TIR) domain, which is responsible for signal transduction. MyD88 is one such protein that contains a TIR domain. It acts as an adapter, being involved in TLR-2, TLR-4 and TLR-9 signalling; however, our understanding of how TLR-4 signals is incomplete. Here we describe a protein, Mal (MyD88-adapter-like), which joins MyD88 as a cytoplasmic TIR-domain-containing protein in the human genome. Mal activates NF-kappaB, Jun amino-terminal kinase and extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1 and -2. Mal can form homodimers and can also form heterodimers with MyD88. Activation of NF-kappaB by Mal requires IRAK-2, but not IRAK, whereas MyD88 requires both IRAKs. Mal associates with IRAK-2 by means of its TIR domain. A dominant negative form of Mal inhibits NF-kappaB, which is activated by TLR-4 or lipopolysaccharide, but it does not inhibit NF-kappaB activation by IL-1RI or IL-18R. Mal associates with TLR-4. Mal is therefore an adapter in TLR-4 signal transduction.
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Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), which inhibits apoptosis and promotes angiogenesis, is expressed in cancers suppressing immune surveillance. Its biological role in human glioblastoma is, however, only poorly understood. We examined in-vivo expression of MIF in 166 gliomas and 23 normal control brains by immunohistochemistry. MIF immunoreactivity was enhanced in neoplastic astrocytes in WHO grade II glioma and increased significantly in higher tumour grades (III-IV). MIF expression was further assessed in 12 glioma cell lines in vitro. Quantitative RT-PCR showed that MIF mRNA expression was elevated up to 800-fold in malignant glioma cells compared with normal brain. This translated into high protein levels as assessed by immunoblotting of total cell lysates and by ELISA-based measurement of secreted MIF. Wild-type p53-retaining glioma cell lines expressed higher levels of MIF, which may be connected with the previously described role of MIF as a negative regulator of wild-type p53 signalling in tumour cells. Stable knockdown of MIF by shRNA in glioma cells significantly increased tumour cell susceptibility towards NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity. Furthermore, supernatant from mock-transfected cells, but not from MIF knockdown cells, induced downregulation of the activating immune receptor NKG2D on NK and CD8+ T cells. We thus propose that human glioma cell-derived MIF contributes to the immune escape of malignant gliomas by counteracting NK and cytotoxic T-cell-mediated tumour immune surveillance. Considering its further cell-intrinsic and extrinsic tumour-promoting effects and the availability of small molecule inhibitors, MIF seems to be a promising candidate for future glioma therapy.
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Although trastuzumab (Herceptin) has substantially improved the overall survival of patients with mammary carcinomas, even initially well-responding tumors often become resistant. Because natural killer (NK) cell-mediated antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) is thought to contribute to the therapeutic effects of trastuzumab, we have established a cell culture system to select for ADCC-resistant SK-OV-3 ovarian cancer and MCF7 mammary carcinoma cells. Ovarian cancer cells down-regulated HER2 expression, resulting in a more resistant phenotype. MCF7 breast cancer cells, however, failed to develop resistance in vitro. Instead, treatment with trastuzumab and polyclonal NK cells resulted in the preferential survival of individual sphere-forming cells that displayed a CD44(high)CD24(low) "cancer stem cell-like" phenotype and expressed significantly less HER2 compared with non-stem cells. Likewise, the CD44(high)CD24(low) population was also found to be more immunoresistant in SK-BR3, MDA-MB231, and BT474 breast cancer cell lines. When immunoselected MCF7 cells were then re-expanded, they mostly lost the observed phenotype to regenerate a tumor cell culture that displayed the initial HER2 surface expression and ADCC-susceptibility, but was enriched in CD44(high)CD24(low) cancer stem cells. This translated into increased clonogenicity in vitro and tumorigenicity in vivo. Thus, we provide evidence that the induction of ADCC by trastuzumab and NK cells may spare the actual tumor-initiating cells, which could explain clinical relapse and progress. Moreover, our observation that the "relapsed" in vitro cultures show practically identical HER2 surface expression and susceptibility toward ADCC suggests that the administration of trastuzumab beyond relapse might be considered, especially when combined with an immune-stimulatory treatment that targets the escape variants.
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Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are strongly expressed in lesional skin in psoriasis and play an important role as proinflammatory "alarmins" in this chronic skin disease. Vitamin D analogs like calcipotriol have antipsoriatic effects and might mediate this effect by changing AMP expression. In this study, keratinocytes in lesional psoriatic plaques showed decreased expression of the AMPs beta-defensin (HBD) 2 and HBD3 after topical treatment with calcipotriol. At the same time, calcipotriol normalized the proinflammatory cytokine milieu and decreased interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-17F and IL-8 transcript abundance in lesional psoriatic skin. In contrast, cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide expression was increased by calcipotriol while psoriasin expression remained unchanged. In cultured human epidermal keratinocytes the effect of different vitamin D analogs on the expression of AMPs was further analyzed. All vitamin D analogs tested blocked IL-17A induced HBD2 expression by increasing IkappaB-alpha protein and inhibition of NF-kappaB signaling. At the same time vitamin D analogs induced cathelicidin through activation of the vitamin D receptor and MEK/ERK signaling. These studies suggest that vitamin D analogs differentially alter AMP expression in lesional psoriatic skin and cultured keratinocytes. Balancing AMP "alarmin" expression might be a novel goal in treatment of chronic inflammatory skin diseases.
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The proinflammatory cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) stimulates tumor cell proliferation, migration, and metastasis; promotes tumor angiogenesis; suppresses p53-mediated apoptosis; and inhibits antitumor immunity by largely unknown mechanisms. We here describe an overexpression of MIF in ovarian cancer that correlates with malignancy and the presence of ascites. Functionally, we find that MIF may contribute to the immune escape of ovarian carcinoma by transcriptionally down-regulating NKG2D in vitro and in vivo which impairs NK cell cytotoxicity toward tumor cells. Together with the additional tumorigenic properties of MIF, this finding provides a rationale for novel small-molecule inhibitors of MIF to be used for the treatment of MIF-secreting cancers.
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Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) therapy is commonly used in the treatment of neoplastic and autoimmune diseases, including cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL). However, the IFN-alpha response is unpredictable, and the IFN-alpha cell targets and pathways are only partially understood. To delineate the molecular mechanisms of IFN-alpha activity, gene expression profiling was performed in a time-course experiment of both IFN-alpha sensitive and IFN-alpha-resistant variants of a CTCL cell line. These experiments revealed that IFN-alpha is responsible for the regulation of hundreds of genes in both variants and predominantly involves genes implicated in signal transduction, cell cycle control, apoptosis, and transcription regulation. Specifically, the IFN-alpha response of tumoral T cells is due to a combination of induction of apoptosis in which TNFSF10 and HSXIAPAF1 may play an important role and cell cycle arrest achieved by downregulation of CDK4 and CCNG2 and upregulation of CDKN2C and tumor suppressor genes (TSGs). Resistance to IFN-alpha appears to be associated with failure to induce IRF1 and IRF7 and deregulation of the apoptotic signals of HSXIAPAF1, TRADD, BAD, and BNIP3. Additionally, cell cycle progression is heralded by upregulation of CDC25A and CDC42. A critical role of NF-kappaB in promoting cell survival in IFN-alpha-resistant cells is indicated by the upregulation of RELB and LTB.
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In addition to hematopoietic progenitors, human bone marrow contains mature T/NK lymphocytes. Valpha24Vbeta11 NKT-cells, a subset of NK receptor+ (NKR+) T-cells in humans, are rare in bone marrow, suggesting the presence of other NKR+ T-cells which may contribute to tumor surveillance. NKR+/- T-cells were examined in blood (PB), and bone marrow from donors (DM) and patients with active hematopoietic malignancy (PM), or in remission (PR). T-cells in PR & PM were enriched for CD56+ and CD57+ subsets, compared to DM. All marrow NKR+/- T-cell subsets were more activated than PB. PM and, surprisingly, PR marrow contained more activated cells than DM. CD8+ cells were significantly increased in all patient marrows and there was evidence of the formation of an effector/memory pool in malignant marrow. These data suggest that NKR+ T-cell enrichment in human bone marrow that has been exposed to neoplastic transformation is compatible with a role in localized tumor surveillance/eradication.
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Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), a tubular epithelial cell (TEC) malignancy, frequently secretes tumor necrosis factor (TNF). TNF signals via two distinct receptors (TNFRs). TNFR1, expressed in normal kidney primarily on endothelial cells, activates apoptotic signaling kinase 1 and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) and induces cell death, whereas TNFR2, inducibly expressed on endothelial cells and on TECs by injury, activates endothelial/epithelial tyrosine kinase (Etk), which trans-activates vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) to promote cell proliferation. We investigated TNFR expression in clinical samples and function in short-term organ cultures of ccRCC tissue treated with wild-type TNF or specific muteins selective for TNFR1 (R1-TNF) or TNFR2 (R2-TNF). There is a significant increase in TNFR2 but not TNFR1 expression on malignant TECs that correlates with increasing malignant grade. In ccRCC organ cultures, R1-TNF increases TNFR1, activates apoptotic signaling kinase and NF-kappaB, and promotes apoptosis in malignant TECs. R2-TNF increases TNFR2, activates NF-kappaB, Etk, and VEGFR2 and increases entry into the cell cycle. Wild-type TNF induces both sets of responses. R2-TNF actions are blocked by pretreatment with a VEGFR2 kinase inhibitor. We conclude that TNF, acting through TNFR2, is an autocrine growth factor for ccRCC acting via Etk-VEGFR2 cross-talk, insights that may provide a more effective therapeutic approach to this disease.
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LYRIC/AEG-1 and its altered expression have been linked to carcinogenesis in prostate, brain and melanoma as well as promoting chemoresistance and metastasis in breast cancer. LYRIC/AEG-1 function remains unclear, although LYRIC/AEG-1 is activated by oncogenic HA-RAS, through binding of c-myc to its promoter, which in turn regulates the key components of the PI3-kinase and nuclear factor-kappaB pathways. We have identified the transcriptional repressor PLZF as an interacting protein of LYRIC/AEG through a yeast two-hybrid screen. PLZF regulates the expression of genes involved in cell growth and apoptosis including c-myc. Coexpression of LYRIC/AEG-1 with PLZF leads to a reduction in PLZF-mediated repression by reducing PLZF binding to promoters. We have confirmed that nuclear LYRIC/AEG-1 and PLZF interact in mammalian cells via the N- and C termini of LYRIC/AEG-1 and a region C terminal to the RD2 domain of PLZF. Both proteins colocalize to nuclear bodies containing histone deacetylases, which are known to promote PLZF-mediated repression. Our data suggest one mechanism for cells with altered LYRIC/AEG-1 expression to evade apoptosis and increase cell growth during tumourigenesis through the regulation of PLZF repression.
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Background: Around 10-15% of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) undergo a pathologically complete response (TRG4) to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy; the rest of patients exhibit a spectrum of tumour regression (TRG1-3). Understanding therapy-related genomic alterations may help us to identify underlying biology or novel targets associated with response that could increase the efficacy of therapy in patients that do not benefit from the current standard of care.
Methods: 48 FFPE rectal cancer biopsies and matched resections were analysed using the WG-DASL HumanHT-12_v4 Beadchip array on the illumina iScan. Bioinformatic analysis was conducted in Partek genomics suite and R studio. Limma and glmnet packages were used to identify genes differentially expressed between tumour regression grades. Validation of microarray results will be carried out using IHC, RNAscope and RT-PCR.
Results: Immune response genes were observed from supervised analysis of the biopsies which may have predictive value. Differential gene expression from the resections as well as pre and post therapy analysis revealed induction of genes in a tumour regression dependent manner. Pathway mapping and Gene Ontology analysis of these genes suggested antigen processing and natural killer mediated cytotoxicity respectively. The natural killer-like gene signature was switched off in non-responders and on in the responders. IHC has confirmed the presence of Natural killer cells through CD56+ staining.
Conclusion: Identification of NK cell genes and CD56+ cells in patients responding to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy warrants further investigation into their association with tumour regression grade in LARC. NK cells are known to lyse malignant cells and determining whether their presence is a cause or consequence of response is crucial. Interrogation of the cytokines upregulated in our NK-like signature will help guide future in vitro models.
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The inflammatory response to pulpal injury or infection has major clinical significance. Neurogenic inflammation describes the local release of neuropeptides, notably substance P (SP), from afferent neurones, and may play a role in the pathogenesis of pulpal disease. The fibroblast is the most numerous cell type in the dental pulp and recent work has suggested that it is involved in the inflammatory response. Objectives: The aims of the study were to determine whether pulp fibroblasts could produce SP, and to investigate the expression of the SP receptor, NK-1, by these cells. Methods: Primary pulp fibroblast cell populations were isolated by enzymatic digestion from non-carious teeth extracted for orthodontic reasons. Whole pulp tissue was obtained from freshly extracted sound (n=35) and carious (n=39) teeth. Expression of SP and NK-1 mRNA was determined by RT-PCR. The effects of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) on SP and NK-1 expression were also determined. The presence of NK-1 on fibroblast cell membranes was established by western blotting. The effects of the cytokines on each parameter were analysed by ANOVA. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) was carried out to quantify SP expression by pulp fibroblasts and in whole pulp tissue. Results: SP was expressed by pulpal fibroblasts both at the mRNA level and the protein level. In addition, NK-1 was detected in fibroblast cultures at the mRNA level and appeared as a double band on western blots of membrane extracts. IL-1β and TGF-β1 significantly stimulated the expression of SP and NK-1. SP levels were significantly greater (p<0.05) in carious compared to sound teeth. Conclusion: Pulp fibroblasts are capable of synthesising and secreting SP, as well as expressing the SP receptor, NK-1. These findings suggest that pulp fibroblasts play a role in neurogenic inflammation in pulpal disease. (Supported by the European Society of Endodontology.)
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Objectives: Receptor Activator of NF-kappaB ligand (RANKL), through binding to its receptor (RANK), plays an important role in osteoclast differentiation and activation. Conversely, osteoprotegerin (OPG), a decoy receptor for RANKL, inhibits osteoclastogenesis and subsequent bone turnover. Little is known about the role of resident periodontal ligament fibroblasts in regulating bone turnover. The aim of this study was to determine (i) if periodontal ligament fibroblasts produced OPG in vitro and (ii) the effects of IL-1b and TGF-b1 on OPG expression. Methods: Three human periodontal ligament fibroblast populations, developed by explant culture, were grown to confluence in 6-well plates in DMEM supplemented with 10% FCS. Cells were washed in HBSS and then cultured for an additional 48 hours in serum-free media supplemented with IL-1b or TGF-b1 at 10ng/ml. OPG expression levels in the conditioned medium were determined by ELISA (R&D Systems, UK) and confirmed by Western blot. Results: All three fibroblast strains produced quantifiable levels of OPG. Both IL-1b and, to a lesser extent, TGF-b1 significantly stimulated OPG expression in all fibroblast strains (p<0.05). Pre-incubation of samples with N-glycosidase F prior to Western blots indicated glycosylation of expressed OPG. Conclusions: These data indicate that periodontal ligament fibroblasts can regulate osteoclast activation via the RANK/RANKL signalling pathway. These fibroblasts may play an important role in regulating bone turnover both in periodontal disease and orthodontic tooth movement.
Resumo:
Objectives: The inflammatory response to pulpal injury or infection has major clinical significance. The aim of the study is to investigate the presence and regulation of expression of neuropeptide receptors on human pulp fibroblasts and whole pulp tissue. This study will investigate the expression of Substance P (NK-1) and Neuropeptide Y (NPY-Y1) receptors on pulp fibroblasts, determine the effects of Transforming Growth Factor Beta-1 (TGF-b1) and Interleukin 1-Beta (IL-1b) on the expression of NK-1 and NPY-Y1 receptors on pulp fibroblasts and examine the levels of receptor expression in whole pulp samples. Methods: Primary pulp fibroblast cell lines were obtained from patients undergoing extractions for orthodontic reasons. The cells were grown to confluence and stimulated for 5 days with IL-1b or TGF-b1. Pulp tissue fragments were obtained from freshly extracted sound and carious teeth, snap frozen in liquid nitrogen and cracked open using a vice. The monolayer was removed with cell scrapers and pelleted. The cell membranes of the cultured cells and the whole tissue were isolated using a Mem-PER® Eukaryotic Membrane Protein Extraction Reagent Kit (Pierce, UK). The membrane proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting was used to detect the presence of NK-1 and NPY-Y1. Results: Initial results demonstrated the presence of NK-1 and NPY-Y1 in cultured pulp fibroblasts. Following the 5 day incubation with TGF-b1, the cells appeared not to express NK-1. IL-1b had a slight stimulatory effect on NK-1 expression. The NPY-Y1 expression was not affected by either TGF-b1 or IL-1b. In whole pulp samples, levels of NK-1 were increased in carious teeth compared to caries-free teeth. The NPY-Y1 levels were similar in carious and non-carious teeth. Conclusion: These findings give an insight into how pulp cells react to inflammatory stimuli with regards to neuropeptide receptor expression and their roles in health and disease
Resumo:
Os riscos dos resíduos provenientes da extração do urânio estão associados ao seu conteúdo em metais e radionuclídeos, o que levanta preocupações às autoridades governamentais e à população em geral. As populações humanas e outras espécies animais que vivem em zonas de exploração de urânio poderão estar expostas à radiação através de resíduos e poeiras radioactivase também através de água e alimentos contaminados. A determinação dos riscos deste tipo de contaminantes é feita, principalmente, através da análise química de amostras ambientais, dando-se menos importância à determinação de efeitos biológicos. A determinação de efeitos biológicos causados pela exposição a poluentes, tem-se revelado muito importante para uma avaliação da qualidade ambiental, de modo a providenciar indicações acerca dos efeitos negativos nos seres vivos e também para complementar a informação dada pelas análises químicas de amostras ambientais. Este facto levou ao estabelecimento de biomarcadores, que consistem em respostas biológicas adversas que são específicas de uma exposição a toxinas ambientais, para serem usadas como ferramentas de avaliação da qualidade ambiental. Neste trabalho foram analisadas respostas a nível molecular e celular, em minhocas, ratinhos do campo e humanos, a fim de determinar o risco químico e radiológico dos resíduos provenientes da mina de urânio da Cunha Baixa. Este trabalho teve também como objectivo a clarificação das respostas subjacentes à exposição a metais e radionuclídeos, a fim de permitir o desenvolvimento de potenciais novos biomarcadores moleculares. Durante este trabalho foram efectuados ensaios com minhocas, em que estas foram expostas durante 56 dias a solo contaminado proveniente da mina de urânio da Cunha Baixa, em laboratório e in situ. Durante a exposição foram analisados vários parâmetros, como o crescimento, reprodução, bioacumulação de metais e radionuclídeos, histopatologia, danos no DNA, citotoxicidade e perfil de expressão genética. Para além disso, foram amostrados ratinhos do campo na mina de urânio da Cunha Baixa e numa área de referência para determinação de danos no DNA, níveis de expressão e mutações em genes supressores de tumores e também bioacumulação de metais. Por fim, foram recolhidas amostras de sangue em voluntários saudáveis pertencentes à população da aldeia da Cunha Baixa, para determinação de danos no DNA, imunofenotipagem e quantificação de metais no sangue. Os resultados revelaram que as minhocas assim como os ratinhos do campo foram negativamente afetados pela exposição aos resíduos mineiros em todos os níveis de organização biológica aqui analisados, o que faz destes organismos bons indicadores para a determinação do risco destas áreas contaminadas, evidenciando o potencial risco da exposição a estes contaminantes. Para além disso, o estudo feito à população da Cunha Baixa revelou danos no ADN e diminuição de populações importantes de células imunitárias (nomeadamente linfócitos T e NK), o que poderá resultar da exposição aos resíduos da mina, tornando as pessoas mais susceptíveis ao desenvolvimento de processos de carcinogénese. O presente estudo contribuiu significativamente para a caracterização dos riscos da exposição a resíduos provenientes de minas de urânio abandonadas, evidenciando os seus efeitos negativos a nível molecular e celular, que potencialmente poderão causar instabilidade genómica e aumentar o risco de desenvolvimento de doenças genéticas.
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O estudo do comportamento do consumidor turista é a chave para descodificar todas as atividades de marketing, usadas para desenvolver, comunicar e vender um produto turístico. A maximização destas atividades depende da compreensão da forma como os consumidores tomam as decisões para comprar ou utilizar os produtos turísticos (Swarbrooke e Horner, 1999). Deste modo, torna-se fundamental conhecer e compreender este tipo de turista, identificando as suas necessidades e, desta forma, criar novos pacotes de produtos, escolher os melhores canais de comunicação, estabelecer contactos com os operadores certos, de modo a adequar a oferta à procura. Assim, de forma a dar resposta às questões anteriormente definidas, foi elaborado o presente estudo, o qual tinha como objetivo principal identificar o perfil dos enoturistas, bem como as dimensões das motivações (push e pull) que estão relacionadas com a satisfação e, por conseguinte, com a sua lealdade. Deste modo foi realizada uma extensa revisão da literatura de referência nas áreas da motivação, satisfação, lealdade e dos modelos de decisão de compra, tendo especial atenção à tipologia do turista em causa. Resultante da revisão da literatura, e nela apoiada, foi construído um modelo de investigação que estabelece que as motivações (push e pull) influenciam positivamente a satisfação e, consequentemente, a lealdade ao destino e aos produtos do destino. Com o intuito de validar o modelo de investigação, foi realizado um estudo empírico que incluiu a recolha de dados primários, a partir de um questionário administrado com o apoio de algumas unidades de Turismo do Douro. Assim, a partir de uma amostra de 519 turistas, o estudo chama a atenção para a importância das motivações internas e externas na lealdade ao destino e aos produtos do destino. Deste modo, este estudo indica que os responsáveis das diferentes organizações do destino devem dar especial atenção aos fatores motivacionais internos, Reencontro com a Natureza (REN), Novidade e Conhecimento (NC), Relaxamento (REL) e Socialização (SOC) dado que estes fatores influenciam positivamente as motivações pull, as quais foram medidas através da Oferta de Atividades Enoturísticas (OAE), da Diversidade e Qualidade Gastronómica (DQG) e da Reputação da Região (RR), o que segundo o modelo testado faz aumentar a lealdade aos produtos da região. Por outro lado, os resultados fornecem evidências de que as Motivações Externas deste tipo de turista estão intimamente associadas com a vantagem competitiva da região. Por último, apresentam-se algumas das limitações inerentes ao estudo e sugerem-se pistas para a investigação futura que prossigam e complementem o presente trabalho.