Prevalence and Factors Associated With Depression among School Going Adolescents in Bengaluru: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction:The period of adolescence involves a lot of emotional changes as it is a period of transition to adulthood demanding independence.Adolescents with depression are more likely to have anxiety, disruptive behavior disorder and substance abuse when compared to those who are not depressed. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of depression among school going adolescents.and to assess the factors associated with depression among them. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among school going adolescents aged 13-16 years in the urban field practice area of a Medical College. Depression was assessed using Beck’s depression inventory (BDI). Total 896 adolescents were included in this study. Single stage cluster sampling method was done in which schools were considered as clusters and students constituted the sampling units. Schools were selected by simple random sampling technique using lottery method. Results: In this study about 45.2% of the adolescents had depressive disorder, out of which mild depression was reported among 22.2% students, 12.4% moderately depressed and 10.6% severe depression. Factors like mother’s education, lack of communication by father and mother with their children, lack of needs satisfied by the fathers of the adolescents (61.9%), father’s role in adolescents’ life (62%) and domestic violence in family (69.7%) were some of the important reasons for developing depression among adolescents. Adolescent whose parents were having conflict (69.2%) were found be depressed when compared to those adolescents whose parents had no conflicts this difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of depression was found to be 45.2%. Finding of the study emphasizes the need for creating awareness about the early identification of behavioral changes leading to depression among adolescents by the parents and teachers. It is also important to emphasize to the parents on how their relationship and behavior towards the family affects the mental wellbeing of the adolescents

Intratumoral IL-12 and TNF-α–Loaded Microspheres Lead To Regression of Breast Cancer and Systemic Antitumor Immunity

Background: Local, sustained delivery of cytokines at a tumor can enhance induction of antitumor immunity and may be a feasible neoadjuvant immunotherapy for breast cancer. We evaluated the ability of intratumoral poly-lactic-acid-encapsulated microspheres (PLAM) containing interleukin 12 (IL-12), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in a murine model of breast cancer to generate a specific antitumor response.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/41401/1/10434_2004_Article_147.pd

IL-12 initiates tumor rejection via lymphoid tissue-inducer cells bearing the natural cytotoxicity receptor NKp46

The potent tumoricidal activity of interleukin 12 (IL-12) is thought to be mediated by the activation and polarization of natural killer (NK) cells and T helper type 1 (T(H)1) cells, respectively. By systematic analysis of the IL-12-induced immune response to subcutaneous melanoma (B16), we found that tumor suppression was mediated independently of T lymphocytes or NK cells. IL-12 initiated local antitumor immunity by stimulating a subset of NKp46(+) lymphoid tissue-inducer (LTi) cells dependent on the transcription factor RORγt. The presence of these NKp46(+) LTi cells induced upregulation of adhesion molecules in the tumor vasculature and resulted in more leukocyte invasion. Thus, this innate cell type is responsive to IL-12 and is a powerful mediator of tumor suppression

New insights into IL-12-mediated tumor suppression

During the past two decades, interleukin-12 (IL-12) has emerged as one of the most potent cytokines in mediating antitumor activity in a variety of preclinical models. Through pleiotropic effects on different immune cells that form the tumor microenvironment, IL-12 establishes a link between innate and adaptive immunity that involves different immune effector cells and cytokines depending on the type of tumor or the affected tissue. The robust antitumor response exerted by IL-12, however, has not yet been successfully translated into the clinics. The majority of clinical trials involving treatment with IL-12 failed to show sustained antitumor responses and were associated to toxic side effects. Here we discuss the therapeutic effects of IL-12 from preclinical to clinical studies, and will highlight promising strategies to take advantage of the antitumor activity of IL-12 while limiting adverse effects