Inhibitory NK Receptor Recognition of HLA-G: Regulation by Contact Residues and by Cell Specific Expression at the Fetal-Maternal Interface

The non-classical HLA-G protein is distinguished from the classical MHC class I molecules by its expression pattern, low polymorphism and its ability to form complexes on the cell surface. The special role of HLA-G in the maternal-fetal interface has been attributed to its ability to interact with specific receptors found on maternal immune cells. However this interaction is restricted to a limited number of receptors. In this study we elucidate the reason for this phenomenon by comparing the specific contact residues responsible for MHC-KIR interactions. This alignment revealed a marked difference between the HLA-G molecule and other MHC class I molecules. By mutating these residues to the equivalent classical MHC residues, the HLA-G molecule regained an ability of interacting with KIR inhibitory receptors found on NK cells derived either from peripheral blood or from the decidua. Functional NK killing assays further substantiated the binding results. Furthermore, double immunofluorescent staining of placental sections revealed that while the conformed form of HLA-G was expressed in all extravillous trophoblasts, the free heavy chain form of HLA-G was expressed in more distal cells of the column, the invasion front. Overall we suggest that HLA-G protein evolved to interact with only some of the NK inhibitory receptors thus allowing a control of inhibition, while permitting appropriate NK cell cytokine and growth factor production necessary for a viable maternal fetal interface

Research Trends in Evidence-Based Medicine: A Joinpoint Regression Analysis of More than 50 Years of Publication Data

Background Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has developed as the dominant paradigm of assessment of evidence that is used in clinical practice. Since its development, EBM has been applied to integrate the best available research into diagnosis and treatment with the purpose of improving patient care. In the EBM era, a hierarchy of evidence has been proposed, including various types of research methods, such as meta-analysis (MA), systematic review (SRV), randomized controlled trial (RCT), case report (CR), practice guideline (PGL), and so on. Although there are numerous studies examining the impact and importance of specific cases of EBM in clinical practice, there is a lack of research quantitatively measuring publication trends in the growth and development of EBM. Therefore, a bibliometric analysis was constructed to determine the scientific productivity of EBM research over decades. Methods NCBI PubMed database was used to search, retrieve and classify publications according to research method and year of publication. Joinpoint regression analysis was undertaken to analyze trends in research productivity and the prevalence of individual research methods. Findings Analysis indicates that MA and SRV, which are classified as the highest ranking of evidence in the EBM, accounted for a relatively small but auspicious number of publications. For most research methods, the annual percent change (APC) indicates a consistent increase in publication frequency. MA, SRV and RCT show the highest rate of publication growth in the past twenty years. Only controlled clinical trials (CCT) shows a non-significant reduction in publications over the past ten years. Conclusions Higher quality research methods, such as MA, SRV and RCT, are showing continuous publication growth, which suggests an acknowledgement of the value of these methods. This study provides the first quantitative assessment of research method publication trends in EBM

Règles de conflit, règles d'application immédiate et règles matérielles dans l'arbitrage commercial international

Goldman Berthold. Règles de conflit, règles d'application immédiate et règles matérielles dans l'arbitrage commercial international. In: Travaux du Comité français de droit international privé, 27-30e année, 1966-1969. 1970. pp. 119-148

La lex mercatoria dans les contrats et l'arbitrage internationaux : réalité et perspectives

Goldman Berthold. La lex mercatoria dans les contrats et l'arbitrage internationaux : réalité et perspectives. In: Droit international privé : travaux du Comité français de droit international privé, 2e année, 1977. 1980. pp. 221-270

Droit à la nationalité et nationalité imposée

Goldman Berthold. Droit à la nationalité et nationalité imposée. In: Travaux du Comité français de droit international privé, 14-15e année, 1951-1954. 1955. pp. 43-60

Réflexions sur la réciprocité en droit international

Goldman Berthold. Réflexions sur la réciprocité en droit international . In: Travaux du Comité français de droit international privé, 23-25e année, 1962-1964. 1965. pp. 61-101

La nationalité des sociétés dans la communauté économique européenne

Goldman Berthold. La nationalité des sociétés dans la communauté économique européenne. In: Travaux du Comité français de droit international privé, 27-30e année, 1966-1969. 1970. pp. 215-243