Development of allergy in children. I. Association with virus infections.

Children born into allergic families, with two allergic parents, are at high risk of developing allergy within the first 5 years of life. In order to observe possible external factors in the sensitization process, a prospective study of 13 such children was done, in which serial clinical and immunologic observations were made at 3- to 6-month intervals over a period of 1 to 4 yr. Eleven of these children are now clinically allergic; 5 have asthma. Immunologic evidence for allergic sensitization was observed in these 11 children by RAST, antigen-induced leukocyte histamine release, lymphoblastogenesis, and rise in serum IgE. Upper respiratory infections (URI) occurred in these 11 allergic children 1 to 2 months prior to the onset of allergic sensitization. In 10 of these 11 URI children, complement-fixing antibodies to viruses (parainfluenza, RSV, CMV) increased in the same blood samples in which immunologic allergic sensitization was first evidenced. This coincidence suggests that certain viruses may contribute to the allergic sensitization process

Diagnostic and Therapeutic Immunology of Renal Cell Cancer

There is evidence that renal cell carcinoma can alter the host immunologic system in several modalities. Diagnostic immunologic monitoring techniques reviewed in this report include delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity reaction (DCHR), absolute peripheral lymphocyte count (APLC), lymphocyte mitogen response (LMR), T-lymphocyte population (erythrocyte rosette), microcytotoxicity assay, in vitro monocyte chemotaxis, and serum blocking factors. Therapeutic immunologic modalities include xenogeneic immune ribonucleic acid (RNA), intradermal BCG, preoperative transcatheter renal artery embolization, immune plasma transfusion, transfer factor, and polymerized autologous tumor

Decreased plasma postheparin lipolytic activity in systemic lupus erythematosus

Plasma postheparin lipolytic activity (PHLA) was measured on 50 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Plasma PHLA was significantly decreased in SLE patients. This decrease was most striking in the acute phase of the disease. There was a close relationship between decreased PHLA and immunologic factors indicative of the acute phase of SLE. These immunologic factors included shaggy antinuclear antibody pattern, low serum complement titer, high DNA antibody titer, mixed cryoglobulin and lumpy glomerular pattern by immunofluorescent staining.</p

Time to First-Line ART Failure and Time to Second-Line ART Switch in the IeDEA Pediatric Cohort

BACKGROUND: Globally, 49% of the estimated 1.8 million children living with HIV are accessing antiretroviral therapy (ART). There are limited data concerning long-term durability of first-line ART regimens and time to transition to second-line. METHODS: Children initiating their first ART regimen between 2 and 14 years of age and enrolled in one of 208 sites in 30 Asia-Pacific and African countries participating in the Pediatric International Epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS consortium were included in this analysis. Outcomes of interest were: first-line ART failure (clinical, immunologic, or virologic), change to second-line, and attrition (death or loss to program ). Cumulative incidence was computed for first-line failure and second-line initiation, with attrition as a competing event. RESULTS: In 27,031 children, median age at ART initiation was 6.7 years. Median baseline CD4% for children ≤5 years of age was 13.2% and CD4 count for those >5 years was 258 cells per microliter. Almost all (94.4%) initiated a nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor; 5.3% a protease inhibitor, and 0.3% a triple nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based regimen. At 1 year, 7.7% had failed and 14.4% had experienced attrition; by 5 years, the cumulative incidence was 25.9% and 29.4%, respectively. At 1 year after ART failure, 13.7% had transitioned to second-line and 11.2% had experienced attrition; by 5 years, the cumulative incidence was 31.6% and 25.9%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: High rates of first-line failure and attrition were identified in children within 5 years after ART initiation. Of children meeting failure criteria, only one-third were transitioned to second-line ART within 5 years

On the crossroad between tolerance and posttransplant lymphoma.

The role of the Epstein-Barr virus in the development of post-transplant lymphomas is well established. However, not all lymphomas that arise in these patients contain Epstein-Barr virus, suggesting that other cofactors are involved in tumor pathogenesis. We propose that immunologic interactions that result from the introduction of immunocompetent donor cells during transplantation contribute to a lymphomagenic environment in the host. Murine models of lymphoma that arises following transfer of allogeneic hematopoietic cells are discussed and are related to the transplant setting. One contemporary viewpoint of transplantation immunology holds that interactions between the host and donor components of the immune system determine the ultimate degree of tolerance or reciprocal immunoreactivity (eg, rejection, graft-versus-host disease) within the transplant patient. We conclude that host-donor immunologic microchimerism may also be an over-looked factor in the development of posttransplant lymphomas

Long-term calorie restriction in humans is not associated with indices of delayed immunologic aging: A descriptive study.

BACKGROUND: Delayed immunologic aging is purported to be a major mechanism through which calorie restriction (CR) exerts its anti-aging effects in non-human species. However, in non-obese humans, the effect of CR on the immune system has been understudied relative to its effects on the cardiometabolic system. OBJECTIVE: To examine whether CR is associated with delayed immunologic aging in non-obese humans. METHODS: We tested whether long-term CR practitioners (average 10.03 years of CR) evidenced decreased expression of T cell immunosenescence markers and longer immune cell telomeres compared to gender-, race/ethnicity-, age-, and education-matched "healthy" Body Mass Index (BMI) and "overweight"/"obese" BMI groups. RESULTS: Long-term human CR practitioners had lower BMI (p &lt;  0.001) and fasting glucose (p &lt;  0.001), as expected. They showed similar frequencies of pre-senescent cells (CD8+CD28- T cells and CD57 and PD-1 expressing T cells) to the comparison groups. Even after adjusting for covariates, including cytomegalovirus status, we observed shorter peripheral blood mononuclear cell telomeres in the CR group (p = 0.012) and no difference in granulocyte telomeres between groups (p = 0.42). CONCLUSIONS: We observed no clear evidence that CR as it is currently practiced in humans delays immune aging related to telomere length or T cell immunosenescent markers

Gender differences in survival among adult patients starting antiretroviral therapy in South Africa: a multicentre cohort study.

Increased mortality among men on antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been documented but remains poorly understood. We examined the magnitude of and risk factors for gender differences in mortality on ART

Investigations by Cell-Mediated Immunologic Tests and Therapeutic Trials With Thymopentin in Vaginal Mycoses

Objective: According to unsatisfactory therapeutic results in patients with chronically recurrent vaginal candidosis, we investigated if immunologic patient factors could be found and treated