The Hematopoietic System–specific Minor Histocompatibility Antigen HA-1 Shows Aberrant Expression in Epithelial Cancer Cells

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT) can induce curative graft-versus-tumor reactions in patients with hematological malignancies and solid tumors. The graft-versus-tumor reaction after human histocompatibility leukocyte antigen (HLA)-identical SCT is mediated by alloimmune donor T cells specific for polymorphic minor histocompatibility antigens (mHags). Among these, the mHag HA-1 was found to be restricted to the hematopoietic system. Here, we report on the HA-1 ribonucleic acid expression by microdissected carcinoma tissues and by single disseminated tumor cells isolated from patients with various epithelial tumors. The HA-1 peptide is molecularly defined, as it forms an immunogenic peptide ligand with HLA-A2 on the cell membrane of carcinoma cell lines. HA-1–specific cytotoxic T cells lyse epithelial tumor cell lines in vitro, whereas normal epithelial cells are not recognized. Thus, HA-1–specific immunotherapy combined with HLA-identical allogeneic SCT may now be feasible for patients with HA-1+ carcinomas

Clinicopathological Characterization and Genomic Aberrations in Subcutaneous Panniculitis-Like T-Cell Lymphoma

Subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphomas (SPTLs) represent a rare, difficult-to-diagnose, and poorly characterized subtype of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCLs) affecting younger people more than the other CTCL forms. We performed a thorough clinical, immunohistological, and molecular analysis of nine Finnish SPTL patients. Specifically, we performed single-cell comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) from laser microdissected, morphologically malignant SPTL cells, as well as loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis for the NAV3 (neuron navigator 3) gene. CGH revealed large numbers of DNA copy number changes, the most common of which were losses of chromosomes 1pter, 2pter, 10qter, 11qter, 12qter, 16, 19, 20, and 22 and gains of chromosomes 2q and 4q. Some of the DNA copy number aberrations in SPTL, such as loss of 10q, 17p, and chromosome 19, overlap with those characteristic of common forms of CTCL (mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sezary syndrome (SS)), whereas 5q and 13q gains characterize SPTL. Allelic NAV3 aberrations (LOH or deletion by FISH), previously found in MF and SS, were identified in 44% of the SPTL samples. This study demonstrates that SPTL is also moleculocytogenetically a uniform entity of CTCL and supports the current World Health Organization–European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (WHO–EORTC) classification defining SPTL as a subgroup of its own

Impact of COVID-19 infection on lung function and nutritional status amongst individuals with cystic fibrosis: A global cohort study

International audienceBackground: Factors associated with severe COVID-19 infection have been identified; however, the impact of infection on longer-term outcomes is unclear. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 infection on the trajectory of lung function and nutritional status in people with cystic fibrosis (pwCF).Methods: This is a retrospective global cohort study of pwCF who had confirmed COVID-19 infection diagnosed between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021. Forced expiratory volume in one second percent predicted (ppFEV 1 ) and body mass index (BMI) twelve months prior to and following a diagnosis of COVID-19 were recorded. Change in mean ppFEV 1 and BMI were compared using a t-test. A linear mixed-effects model was used to estimate change over time and to compare the rate of change before and after infection.Results: A total of 6,500 cases of COVID-19 in pwCF from 33 countries were included for analysis. The mean difference in ppFEV 1 pre-and post-infection was 1.4 %, (95 % CI 1.1, 1.7). In those not on modulators, the difference in rate of change pre-and post-infection was 1.34 %, (95 % CI -0.88, 3.56) per year (p = 0.24) and -0.74 % (-1.89, 0.41) per year (p = 0.21) for those on elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor. No clinically significant change was noted in BMI or BMI percentile before and after COVID-19 infection.Conclusions: No clinically meaningful impact on lung function and BMI trajectory in the year following infection with COVID-19 was identified. This work highlights the ability of the global CF community to unify and address critical issues facing pwCF