Immunostimulatory effects of plasmid DNA and synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides

Nucleic acid immunization is a new vaccination technology. DNA vaccines do not only carry the genetic information for the antigen of interest but also deliver an adjuvant effect due to the presence of immunostimulatory sequences within the plasmid backbone. It is generally assumed that the adjuvant properties of plasmid DNA are equal to those described for oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN) containing immunostimulatory CpG motifs. To challenge this hypothesis we have carried out a series of experiments comparing the ability of single- and double-stranded ODN containing CpG motifs to induce the activation of mouse spleen cells. Moreover, we compared the immunostimulatory properties of plasmids that were modified by the addition of two to four CpG motifs. Our results establish that plasmid DNA express their adjuvanticity as either double or single strands, and no differences were observed between modified and unmodified plasmids. On the other hand, the strongest stimulatory ODN sequences lost their adjuvant properties when administered as double-strand DNA. Furthermore, the profile of cytokines induced on spleen cells by plasmid DNA and ODN is different. Strikingly, plasmid DNA induces a moderate synthesis of IL-6 and a strong synthesis of IFN-gamma, whereas stimulation with ODN showed an inverse profile with a higher increase in the synthesis of IL-6 but a moderate increase in IFN-gamma. Finally, in vivo studies were consistent with the results obtained in vitro. Mice immunized with modified or unmodified plasmids encoding the glycoprotein D of HSV showed similar levels of cellular and humoral immune responses.     

The characterization of equine herpes virus-1-infected cell polypeptides recognized by equine lymphocytes.

Ponies, without evidence of previous exposure to Equine herpes virus-1 (EHV-1), were experimentally infected with EHV-1 subtype 2 and investigated for lymphocyte transformation to virus-infected cell polypeptides, as shown by separation with gel electrophoresis. Animals made significant responses to Western blot fractions that corresponded to molecular weights of approximately 30,000, 40,000-45,000, 60,000-65,000, 80,000-95,000 and 100,000-140,000 MW. These molecular weight ranges correlated with the positions of major EHV-1 subtype 2 glycoproteins that were found at migration distances approximating to 137,000, 111,000, 90,000, 65,000 and 47,000 MW. Responses were also made to a subset of similar points on the subtype 1 profile. Hyperimmune equine serum precipitated numerous infected-cell proteins of both subtypes; in particular the recognition of polypeptides with MW of 142,000, 132,000, 114,000, and 46,000 was in agreement with the mitogenic responses. Labelling with 125I indicated that immunoprecipitated greater than 250,000, 182,000, 142,000, 132,000, 75,000, 46,000 and 32,000/34,000 MW products were exposed on the surface of infected cells.     

紫杉醇对小鼠T细胞的影响

为研究抗癌药紫杉醇(PTX)对T细胞行为的影响及其分子机制,利用流式细胞术分析多克隆刺激剂ConA刺激下T细胞行为:羧基荧光素乙酰乙酸琥珀酰亚胺酯(CFSE)标记技术分析T细胞增殖相关指数;碘化丙锭染色分析细胞周期分布;AnnexinV-PI染色检测T细胞凋亡;荧光标记的单克隆抗体染色检测T细胞活化表达CD25的百分率。结果显示.PTX对ConA刺激下小鼠T细胞增殖具有明显的抑制作用,且呈剂量依赖性。该浓度范围PTX阻滞T细胞于G2/M期,诱导凋亡及抑制CD25表达。25nmol/L的PTX与10nmol/L的环孢素A(CsA)具有明显的协同抑制效应。以上结果表明PTX可明显抑制多克隆刺激剂ConA诱导的T细胞体外增殖,是G2/M期阻滞、凋亡诱导和CD25表达抑制等多种机制共同作用的结果。     

Immunostimulatory potential of beta-lactoglobulin preparations: effects caused by endotoxin contamination

BACKGROUND: The immunomodulating potential residing in cow's milk proteins is currently receiving increasing attention because of growing interest in functional foods and the complex problem of cow's milk allergy. One of the major cow's milk allergens, whey protein beta-lactoglobulin, has previously been shown to mediate cellular activation in both human and murine immune cells. OBJECTIVE: We examined the response to different beta-lactoglobulin preparations in naive immune cells. METHODS: Splenocytes and cells from mesenteric lymph nodes derived from BALB/c mice bred and maintained on a milk-free diet were cultured in vitro with different beta-lactoglobulin preparations. Cell proliferation, cytokine production, and increases in intracellular glutathione were used as cellular activation markers. Moreover, the effect of beta-lactoglobulin on cytokine production in murine bone-marrow-derived dendritic cells was examined. RESULTS: We observed that some commercial beta-lactoglobulin preparations induced pronounced proliferation of both spleen cells and cells from mesenteric lymph nodes; production of TNF-alpha, IL-6, IL-1beta, and IL-10; and an increased level of intracellular glutathione in spleen cell cultures. Furthermore, TNF-alpha, IL-6, IL-1beta, and IL-10 production was induced in murine bone-marrow-derived dendritic cells. Purification of beta-lactoglobulin from raw milk using nondenaturating conditions, however, revealed that the beta-lactoglobulin per se did not possess the immunomodulatory activity. Eventually, the immunostimulatory effect was found to be caused by endotoxin contamination. CONCLUSION: These results identify endotoxin as the main immunostimulatory component present in some commercial beta-lactoglobulin preparations. Moreover, the present study makes it evident that immunomodulatory effects attributed to beta-lactoglobulin need to be reassessed.     

Electrostatic effects on the polymerization of vinyl acetate in three-component anionic microemulsions

The polymerization of vinyl acetate (VA) in three-component microemulsions stabilized with Aerosol OT is examined as a function of pH. To investigate the role of electrostatic effects on the polymerization kinetics, two initiators (potassium peroxodisulfate and V-50) that decompose into negatively-charged and positively-charged free radicals, respectively, were used. The pH of the reacting medium influences the efficiency of potassium peroxodisulfate (KPS) to initiate the reaction but it has no effect on V-50 efficiency. At neutral pH, faster reaction rates and higher conversions (after 90 min) are achieved with KPS. At equal free radical fluxes and pH's, KPS gives faster reaction rates and larger conversions than V-50 because of the different electrostatic interactions of KPS and V-50 free radicals with the negatively-charged microemulsion droplets and the reacting particles. Final latices contain nanosize polymer particles with particle size of ca. 30 nm in reactions initiated with KPS and between 26 and 40 nm in polymerizations initiated with V-50. In all cases, linear poly(vinyl acetate) is obtained because chain transfer to monomer is the controlling mechanism of chain growth, even at high conversions. This appears to be due to the small particle size that allows the fast desorption rate of the monomeric free radicals from the particles.     

The ELY-1 locus controls a di-allelic alloantigenic system on equine lymphocytes

The ELY-1 locus controls the expression of a polymorphic cell surface antigen of equine lymphocytes which was detected using antibodies generated by alloimmunization with peripheral blood lymphocytes. The ELY-1 antigens were not detected on erythrocytes or platelets by absorption experiments. The two alleles, which have been designated ELY-1.1 and ELY-1.2, are expressed codominantly and appear to constitute a closed system at the population level. In family studies, the ELY-1 antigens segregated as products of an autosomal locus not linked to the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) of the horse. In the complement mediated lymphocyte microcytotoxicity test, antisera to the ELY-1 antigens selectively killed peripheral blood lymphocytes which did not express surface immunoglobulin. The ELY-1 antigens may be useful markers for equine T cells when assayed in this fashion. Three alloantisera were used in immune precipitation of iodinated and solubilized cell surface proteins from peripheral blood lymphocytes. Electrophoresis of the precipitates in sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gels demonstrated strong bands in the Mr 180-190K range that were shared in the three different preparations. These results suggest that the ELY-1 allospecificities are expressed on an equine equivalent of the murine T200 molecule.     

通痹灵总碱对活化的小鼠T淋巴细胞CD69表达的影响

目的：研究通痹灵（TBL）总碱对活化的小鼠T淋巴细胞表达CD69的影响及其可能的免疫调控机制。方法：培养小鼠淋巴细胞，加入不同浓度的TBL总碱预孵1h后，再加佛波醇酯（PDB）或刀豆蛋白（ConA).24h后，用流式细胞术检测T淋巴细胞CD69的表达率。结果；不同质量浓度的TBL总碱对PDB或ConA激活的T淋巴细胞表达CD69，均有明显的下调作用（对ConA激活的T淋巴细胞表达CD69。均有明显的下调作用（对ConA激活的T淋巴细胞的作用要强于PDB激活的T淋巴细胞）。呈明显的量效关系。结论：TBL总碱可明显抑制活化的小鼠T淋巴细胞CD69的表达，为其用于类风湿性关节炎的治疗提供了实验依据。     

Volume effects on yield strength of equine cortical bone

Volume effects are a fundamental determinant of structural failure. A material exhibits a volume effect if its failure properties are dependent on the specimen volume. Many brittle ceramics exhibit volume effects due to loading a structure in the presence of “critical” flaws. The number of flaws, their locations, and the effect of stress field within the stressed volume play a role in determining the structure’s failure properties. Since real materials are imperfect, structures composed of large volumes of material have higher probabilities of containing a flaw than do small volumes. Consequently, large material volumes tend to fail at lower stresses compared to smaller volumes when tested under similar conditions. Volume effects documented in brittle ceramic and composite structures have been proposed to affect the mechanical properties of bone. We hypothesized that for cortical bone material, (1) small volumes have greater yield strengths than large volumes and (2) that compared to microstructural features, specimen volume was able to account for comparable amounts of variability in yield strength. In this investigation, waisted rectangular, equine third metacarpal diaphyseal specimens (n=24) with nominal cross sections of 3×4 mm and gage lengths of either 10.5, 21, or 42 mm, were tested monotonically in tension to determine the effect of specimen volume on their yield strength. Yield strength was greatest in the smallest volume group compared to the largest volume group. Within each group of specimens the logarithm of yield strength was positively correlated with the cumulative failure probability, indicating that the data follow the two-parameter Weibull distribution. Additionally, log yield strength was negatively correlated with log volume, supporting the hypothesis that small stressed volumes of cortical bone possess greater yield strength than similarly tested large stressed volumes.     

Polymorphisms of the equine major histocompatibility complex class II DRA locus

The full extent of the polymorphism of ELA-DRA in Equidae is not yet known. Given the apparent differences in DRA polymorphisms between Equidae and other species, the aims of this study were to more fully characterize ELA-DRA, determine the extent of gene polymorphism and establish the allele-frequency distribution. An allele reference panel for the second exon of ELA-DRA was established by sequence-based typing of 69 equine DNA samples consisting of various breeds of domestic horse (Equus caballus), together with donkeys (Equus asinus), Grant's zebras (Equus boehmi) and one onager (Equus hemionus). Five of the six previously reported alleles detected using single-strand conformation polymorphism were found: ELA-DRA*0101, ELA-DRA*0201, ELA-DRA*0301, ELA-DRA*0501 (Albright-Fraser DG et al. Polymorphism of DRA among equids. Immunogenetics 1996: 43: 315-7) and ELA-DRA*0601 (GenBank accession number AF5419361). In addition to the previously reported alleles, five novel ELA-DRA alleles were detected within the ELA-DRA allele reference panel. One of these was identified in E. caballus (ELA-DRA*JBH11), one in E. boehmi and E. hemionus (ELA-DRA*JBZ185) and three in E. asinus (ELA-DRA*JBD3, ELA-DRA*JBD17 and ELA-DRA*JBH45). A total of 565 equine DNA samples were screened using reference-strand-mediated conformation analysis, a double-stranded conformation-based mutation detection system that can be used to type existing ELA-DRA alleles and identify new variants. Based on our findings, at least 11 ELA-DRA alleles are now known to exist, and this level of polymorphism at the DRA locus appears to be unique to the genus Equus. Both the previously reported alleles and the new alleles displayed a species-specific distribution.     

The antigen receptor complex on cord B lymphocytes.

The neonatal immune system responds to a restricted range of antigens, producing largely IgM antibody of low affinity. Comparison of the components of the B-cell antigen receptor complex shows significantly elevated membrane levels of IgM in neonatal B cells, compared with adult cells. CD79, which acts as the signal transducer for membrane immunoglobulin, is elevated in parallel with IgM, while IgD is elevated to a lesser degree. CD19, CD21, CD22 and CD81, which are all involved in transmitting activation signals when immunoglobulin is engaged, are not elevated. CD32, which is involved in negative regulation of activation, is present at reduced levels on cord B cells. The elevation of B-cell membrane IgM persists during infancy. Neonatal B cells respond in vitro to interleukin-4 (IL-4) by further elevation of membrane IgM levels. The elevated level of membrane IgM may make neonatal B cells easier to trigger by low concentrations of antigen, but in vitro activation and immunoglobulin modulation experiments did not show significant differences between cord and adult B-cell responses to anti-IgM.     

Muscarinic receptors on rat lymphocytes; internalization of receptor-ligand complex

In the light of the data presented, the previously described explanation of the unusual shape of the kinetic curve of the muscarinic antagonist 3H-QNB binding to rat lymphocytes, with apparent maximum of bound radioactivity after 5 min of incubation, followed by decrease of specific binding, is not satisfactory. The kinetics of this binding carried out at 4 degrees C, 20 degrees C and 37 degrees C, or in the presence of the metabolic poison sodium azide, suggests involvement of an energy-consuming mechanism in this process. The surface receptors, sensitive to bacterial protease degradation before 3H-QNB binding, become somehow resistant to this protease action after 5 min of incubation of the cells with 3H-QNB. A possible explanation for this phenomenon, based on internalization in cell endosomes, is presented.     

Immunoregulatory effects of morphine on human lymphocytes.

It is now well established that parenteral drug abuse is a significant risk factor for contracting human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection and subsequently developing AIDS. Earlier studies have shown that morphine can modulate various immune responses and therefore support the premise that morphine is a cofactor in susceptibility to and progression of HIV infection. Dysregulation of interferon (IFN) production, nonspecific apoptosis of T cells, and the immune response to soluble HIV gene products have been associated with potential mechanisms of pathogenesis in HIV disease. The present study was undertaken to examine the immunomodulatory role of morphine on HIV protein-induced lymphocyte proliferative responses, Sendai and Newcastle disease virus-induced alpha IFN (IFN-alpha) and IFN-beta production by lymphocytes and fibroblast cells, respectively, and induction of apoptosis of normal lymphocytes in vitro. Our results demonstrate that HIV protein-induced human lymphocyte proliferative responses were significantly inhibited by morphine in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, morphine significantly inhibited both IFN-alpha and IFN-beta production by normal lymphocytes and fibroblasts but induced apoptosis of normal lymphocytes. Inhibition of IFN-alpha production by morphine could be reversed by the opiate receptor antagonist naloxone. This suggests that the immunomodulatory effects of morphine are mediated through the opioid receptor. These studies support a role of morphine as a cofactor in the pathogenesis of HIV infection and describe some of the possible pathologic mechanisms which underlie the immunoregulatory effects of morphine.     

电离辐射对淋巴细胞影响的研究进展

电离辐射导致的免疫系统功能低下是日常生活和临床治疗中的棘手问题.随着辐射免疫学的飞速发展,电离辐射对免疫系统尤其是对淋巴系统的影响,越来越受到重视.本文综述了近年来有关淋巴细胞及其各功能亚群辐射效应的研究进展.     

Sequencing of prototype viruses in the Venezuelan equine encephalitis antigenic complex.

The 5' nontranslated region (5'NTR) and nonstructural region nucleotide sequences of nine enzootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) virus strains were determined, thus completing the genomic RNA sequences of all prototype strains. The full-length genomes, representing VEE virus antigenic subtypes I-VI, range in size from 11.3 to 11.5 kilobases, with 48-53% overall G+C contents. Size disparities result from subtype-related differences in the number and length of direct repeats in the C-terminal nonstructural protein 3 (nsP3) domain coding sequence and the 3'NTR, while G+C content disparities are attributable to strain-specific variations in base composition at the wobble position of the polyprotein codons. Highly-conserved protein components and one nonconserved protein domain constitute the VEE virus replicase polyproteins. Approximately 80% of deduced nsP1 and nsP4 amino acid residues are invariant, compared to less than 20% of C-terminal nsP3 domain residues. In two enzootic strains, C-terminal nsP3 domain sequences degenerate into little more than repetitive serine-rich blocks. Nonstructural region sequence information drawn from a cross-section of VEE virus subtypes clarifies features of alphavirus conserved sequence elements and proteinase recognition signals. As well, whole-genome comparative analysis supports the reclassification of VEE subtype-variety IF and subtype II viruses.     

Immunostimulatory properties of the emerging pathogen Stenotrophomonas maltophilia

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a multiple-antibiotic-resistant opportunistic pathogen that is being isolated with increasing frequency from patients with health-care-associated infections and especially from patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). While clinicians feel compelled to treat infections involving this organism, its potential for virulence is not well established. We evaluated the immunostimulatory properties and overall virulence of clinical isolates of S. maltophilia using the well-characterized opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 as a control. The properties of CF isolates were examined specifically to see if they have a common phenotype. The immunostimulatory properties of S. maltophilia were studied in vitro by stimulating airway epithelial and macrophage cell lines. A neonatal mouse model of pneumonia was used to determine the rates of pneumonia, bacteremia, and mortality, as well as the inflammatory response elicited by S. maltophilia infection. Respiratory and nonrespiratory S. maltophilia isolates were highly immunostimulatory and elicited significant interleukin-8 expression by airway epithelial cells, as well as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) expression by macrophages. TNF-alpha signaling appears to be important in the pathogenesis of S. maltophilia infection as less than 20% of TNFR1 null mice (compared with 100% of wild-type mice) developed pneumonia and bacteremia following intranasal inoculation. The S. maltophilia isolates were weakly invasive, and low-level bacteremia with no mortality was observed. Despite the lack of invasiveness of S. maltophilia, the immunostimulatory properties of this organism and its induction of TNF-alpha expression specifically indicate that it is likely to contribute significantly to airway inflammation.