Impressive progress has been made over the last several years toward understanding how almost every aspect of the immune system contributes to the expression of systemic autoimmunity. In parallel, ...studies have shed light on the mechanisms that contribute to organ inflammation and damage. New approaches that address the complicated interaction between genetic variants, epigenetic processes, sex and the environment promise to enlighten the multitude of pathways that lead to what is clinically defined as systemic lupus erythematosus. It is expected that each patient owns a unique 'interactome', which will dictate specific treatment.
This book examines the basic mathematical properties of solutions to boundary integral equations and details the variational methods for the boundary integral equations arising in elasticity, fluid ...mechanics and acoustic scattering theory.
Studies of whole grain and chronic disease have often included bran-enriched foods and other ingredients that do not meet the current definition of whole grains. Therefore, we assessed the literature ...to test whether whole grains alone had benefits on these diseases.
The objective was to assess the contribution of bran or cereal fiber on the impact of whole grains on the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D), obesity and body weight measures, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in human studies as the basis for establishing an American Society for Nutrition (ASN) position on this subject.
We performed a comprehensive PubMed search of human studies published from 1965 to December 2010.
Most whole-grain studies included mixtures of whole grains and foods with ≥25% bran. Prospective studies consistently showed a reduced risk of T2D with high intakes of cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran. For body weight, a limited number of prospective studies on cereal fiber and whole grains reported small but significant reductions in weight gain. For CVD, studies found reduced risk with high intakes of cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran.
The ASN position, based on the current state of the science, is that consumption of foods rich in cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran is modestly associated with a reduced risk of obesity, T2D, and CVD. The data for whole grains alone are limited primarily because of varying definitions among epidemiologic studies of what, and how much, was included in that food category.
Much of what we know regarding bacterial spore structure and function has been learned from studies of the genetically well-characterized bacterium Bacillus subtilis. Molecular aspects of spore ...structure, assembly, and function are well defined. However, certain bacteria produce spores with an outer spore layer, the exosporium, which is not present on B. subtilis spores. Our understanding of the composition and biological functions of the exosporium layer is much more limited than that of other aspects of the spore. Because the bacterial spore surface is important for the spore's interactions with the environment, as well as being the site of interaction of the spore with the host's innate immune system in the case of spore-forming bacterial pathogens, the exosporium is worthy of continued investigation. Recent exosporium studies have focused largely on members of the Bacillus cereus family, principally Bacillus anthracis and Bacillus cereus. Our understanding of the composition of the exosporium, the pathway of its assembly, and its role in spore biology is now coming into sharper focus. This review expands on a 2007 review of spore surface layers which provided an excellent conceptual framework of exosporium structure and function (A. O. Henriques and C. P. Moran, Jr., Annu Rev Microbiol 61:555-588, 2007, http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.micro.61.080706.093224). That review began a process of considering outer spore layers as an integrated, multilayered structure rather than simply regarding the outer spore components as independent parts.
Viruses that infect bacteria (bacteriophages; also known as phages) were discovered 100 years ago. Since then, phage research has transformed fundamental and translational biosciences. For example, ...phages were crucial in establishing the central dogma of molecular biology - information is sequentially passed from DNA to RNA to proteins - and they have been shown to have major roles in ecosystems, and help drive bacterial evolution and virulence. Furthermore, phage research has provided many techniques and reagents that underpin modern biology - from sequencing and genome engineering to the recent discovery and exploitation of CRISPR-Cas phage resistance systems. In this Timeline, we discuss a century of phage research and its impact on basic and applied biology.
T cell subsets are critically involved in the development of systemic autoimmunity and organ inflammation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Each T cell subset function (such as effector, helper, ...memory or regulatory function) is dictated by distinct metabolic pathways requiring the availability of specific nutrients and intracellular enzymes. The activity of these enzymes or nutrient transporters influences the differentiation and function of T cells in autoimmune responses. Data are increasingly emerging on how metabolic processes control the function of various T cell subsets and how these metabolic processes are altered in SLE. Specifically, aberrant glycolysis, glutaminolysis, fatty acid and glycosphingolipid metabolism, mitochondrial hyperpolarization, oxidative stress and mTOR signalling underwrite the known function of T cell subsets in patients with SLE. A number of medications that are used in the care of patients with SLE affect cell metabolism, and the development of novel therapeutic approaches to control the activity of metabolic enzymes in T cell subsets represents a promising endeavour in the search for effective treatment of systemic autoimmune diseases.
Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) are characterized by excessive and uncontrolled inflammation and thrombosis, both of which are responsible for organ damage, morbidity and death. ...Platelets have long been known for their role in primary haemostasis, but they are now also considered to be components of the immune system and to have a central role in the pathogenesis of IMIDs. In patients with IMIDs, platelets are activated by disease-specific factors, and their activation often reflects disease activity. Here we summarize the evidence showing that activated platelets have an active role in the pathogenesis and the progression of IMIDs. Activated platelets produce soluble factors and directly interact with immune cells, thereby promoting an inflammatory phenotype. Furthermore, platelets participate in tissue injury and promote abnormal tissue healing, leading to fibrosis. Targeting platelet activation and targeting the interaction of platelets with the immune system are novel and promising therapeutic strategies in IMIDs.
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