The immune system has a known role in the aetiology, progression and final treatment outcome of oral squamous cell cancers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of radical surgery and ...radiotherapy on advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma blood counts, lymphocyte subsets and levels of acute inflammatory response markers.
Blood samples were obtained from 56 patients 5 days before and 10 days after surgery, 30 days and 1 year after radiotherapy. The whole blood count, lymphocyte subsets and inflammatory response markers (C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, leukocyte count, expression of index CD64 and index CD163 on neutrophils and monocytes) were measured, statistically analysed and correlated with clinical treatment outcomes.
The post-operative period was characterised by the onset of anaemia, thrombocytosis, lymphopenia with reduced B lymphocyte, T helper cell and NK cell counts, and a rise in acute phase reactants. Immediately after radiotherapy, the anaemia improved, the lymphopenia worsened, and thrombocyte levels returned to pre-treatment values. There was a drop in counts across the T and B cell lines, including a reduction in B lymphocytes, naïve and memory T cells with reduced CD4+ and CD8+ counts and a decreased CD4/CD8 ratio. One year after radiotherapy all the lymphocyte subsets remained depressed, the only exception being NK cells, whose levels returned to pre-treatment values.
We concluded that surgery resulted in a stronger acute phase response than radiotherapy, while radiotherapy caused a long-lasting reduction in lymphocyte counts. There was no correlation between any of the pre-treatment parameters and the clinical outcome.
Summary
Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease. Epidemiological and treatment studies suggest that fungi play a part in the pathogenesis. The aim of this work was to study the effect of fungal cell ...wall agents (FCWA) on the in vitro secretion of cytokines from peripheral blood monocytes from subjects with sarcoidosis and relate the results to fungal exposure at home and clinical findings. Subjects with sarcoidosis (n = 22) and controls (n = 20) participated. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stimulated with soluble or particulate β‐glucan (S‐glucan, P‐glucan), chitin or lipopolysaccharide (LPS), whereafter tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, interleukin (IL)‐6, IL‐10 and IL‐12 were measured. The severity of sarcoidosis was determined using a chest X‐ray‐based score. Serum cytokines (IL‐2R, IL‐6, IL‐10 and IL‐12) were determined. To measure domestic fungal exposure, air in the bedrooms was sampled on filters. N‐acetylhexosaminidase (NAHA) on the filters was measured as a marker of fungal cell biomass. The induced secretion of cytokines was higher from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from subjects with sarcoidosis. P‐glucan was more potent than S‐glucan inducing a secretion. Chitin had a small effect. Among subjects with sarcoidosis there was a significant relation between the spontaneous PBMC production of IL‐6, IL‐10 and IL‐12 and the NAHA levels at home. The P‐glucan induced secretion of IL‐12 was related to the duration of symptoms at the time of diagnosis. Their X‐ray scores were related to an increased secretion of cytokines after stimulation with LPS or P‐glucan. Subjects with sarcoidosis have a higher reactivity to FCWA in vitro and to home exposure. The influence of FCWA on inflammatory cells and their interference with the inflammatory defense mechanisms in terms of cytokine secretion could be important factors for the development of sarcoidosis.
Abstract
Aim:
The etiology of endometriosis remains unknown, but increasing
evidence suggests that immune regulation may be important. Our study aimed
to evaluate peripheral blood lymphocyte ...subpopulations during the menstrual
cycle in women with peritoneal and ovarian endometriosis relative to healthy
women.
Methods:
In this study, 65 women with endometriosis (37 in the
follicular phase and 28 in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle) and 61
healthy women (33 in the follicular phase and 28 in the luteal phase) were
enrolled. Flow cytometric analysis measured peripheral blood lymphocyte
subpopulations. The serum levels of cortisol were also determined.
Results:
In healthy controls, we detected an increased
concentration of cytotoxic (CD8
+
) T cells and activated (HLA-DR)
T cells in the luteal phase compared with the follicular phase of the
menstrual cycle (p = 0.020 and p = 0.045), whereas no such fluctuation was
detected in endometriosis. However, a marked increase in regulatory T-cell
concentration in the luteal phase was detected only in endometriosis
patients (p = 0.005). Women with endometriosis had higher levels of serum
cortisol (p = 0.022), which correlated with the concentration of regulatory
T cells (p = 0.048).
Conclusions:
Women with endometriosis do not
exhibit fluctuations in the concentrations of cytotoxic and activated
peripheral blood lymphocytes during the menstrual cycle. The marked
fluctuation of regulatory T cells detected in endometriosis could be
attributed to altered immune response.
AIMS: As the immune cells underlying the intestinal barrier sense luminal microbial signals, blood cell transcriptomics may identify subclinical changes triggered by gut bacteria that may otherwise ...not be detected. We have therefore investigated how Lactobacillus gasseri K7 and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 modulate the blood cell transcriptome of mice possessing an intact microbiota. METHODS AND RESULTS: We have analysed the transcriptome of five groups of C57BL/6J mice: (i) control, (ii) inoculated with a single dose of E. coli, (iii) inoculated during 2 weeks with Lact. gasseri, (iv) co‐inoculated with E. coli and Lact. gasseri, (v) inoculated with Lact. gasseri prior to E. coli infection. The transcriptome could distinguish between the five treatment groups. Gene characteristics of bacterial infection, in particular inflammation, were upregulated in the mice inoculated with E. coli. Lact. gasseri had only mild effects on the transcriptome but modified the gene expression induced by E. coli. CONCLUSIONS: The transcriptome differentiates mice inoculated orally with E. coli, Lact. gasseri and combinations of these two strains. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: These results suggest that the blood cell transcriptome can be used as a source of biomarkers to monitor the impact of probiotics in subclinical models of infectious disease.
Abstract Introduction Radicular cysts (RCs) are periapical lesions resulting in jaw bone destruction. The inflammatory dental periapical granuloma (PG) is considered to be the origin of RC formation; ...however the mechanism of RC development remains unclear. Methods Cell suspension from the surgically extirpated tissue of 27 RCs and 25 PGs was obtained. Bacteriological analysis of the PG tissue samples was performed in order to define two major groups of PG according to the prevailing causative bacterial infection: the streptococcal PG (PG-S, n = 10) and the anaerobe PG (PG-A, n = 9) group. The inflammatory response of tissue infiltrating lymphocytes was assessed by following T lymphocyte activation (HLA-DR expression) as well as interferon γ (IFN-γ) and interleukin 4 (IL-4) production which were evaluated by the flow cytometry. Results In comparison to RC both types of PG contained a higher proportion of activated T cells (HLA-DR) and lower proportion of IL-4 producing cells. PG-A tissue contained increased percentage of CD3 cells and increased percentage of T helper 1 (Th1) cells in comparison with PG-S. In RC the IFN-γ production is higher than in streptococcal PG-S but similar as in PG-A. Discussion Tissue infiltration by Th2 cells and IL-4 production is likely to play an etiopathogenic role in RC formation.
Abstract To elucidate the effects of inflammation on sperm quality, this study analysed classical sperm characteristics, leukocytes and elastase in neat semen, and sperm apoptotic markers, i.e. ...changes in plasma membrane phospholipid asymmetry, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), DNA integrity and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), in semen prepared by density gradient using flow cytometry from 348 men of infertile couples. Increased leukocytes (⩾0.1 × 106 /ml) were associated with a decreased sperm concentration, motility and normal morphology ( P ⩽ 0.001). Sperm necrosis and DNA denaturation were increased (31.3 versus 26.6%, P = 0.020; 15.5 versus 11.5%, P = 0.011, respectively), whereas spermatozoa with normal MMP were decreased (64.1 versus 70.0%, P = 0.004). High leukocyte levels (⩾1 × 106 /ml) were not associated with any of the observed sperm parameters. At low elastase concentration (100–290 μg/l), DNA denaturation was higher (16.1 versus 10.5%, P = 0.024) compared with very low elastase concentration (<100 μg/l). A high elastase concentration (290–1000 μg/l) was associated with higher ROS index compared with low elastase concentration (1.28 versus 1.01, P = 0.016). Slightly increased leukocytes and elastase are associated with slightly poorer sperm characteristics and/or increased sperm necrosis, DNA denaturation and intracellular ROS and decreased MMP.
Early identification of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) carriers is a major component of an MRSA control programme. The cost and laboratory workload could be markedly reduced by ...processing multiple swabs from one person in one culture broth (specimen pooling). We evaluated the sensitivity for MRSA detection and the growth rate of pooled swabs compared with individual processing. In total, 1254 swabs from 423 subjects (two to five swabs per subject) were submitted for detection of MRSA. Swabs were suspended in 2-mL volumes of sterile Todd–Hewitt Broth and divided into two 1-mL aliquots. One aliquot of the suspension was processed as a single specimen, and the other aliquot was mixed (pooled) with other suspensions in which swabs from the same patient were suspended. Forty-four (10%) pooled samples were positive for MRSA. Specimens from seven additional patients that were negative when pooled were positive when processed separately. There was no case where the pooled specimen was positive but the separate specimens were negative. The diagnostic sensitivity of pooled surveillance cultures compared with single cultures, when only subjects colonized by MRSA were considered, was 86% and the false-negative rate was 14%. Eighty percent of the pooled positive cultures were detected by the third day and all were detected by the fourth day. Fifty-four percent of the specimens processed separately were detected by the second day and all were detected by the fourth day. Pooling of specimens decreases the sensitivity of MRSA detection compared with processing each swab separately, particularly in swabs with a low number of colony-forming units. In all subjects whose pooled samples were negative but whose swabs examined separately were positive, the swabs examined separately were negative on primary plates and positive only after culturing in enrichment broth.
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