Single Cell Analysis of Blood Mononuclear Cells Stimulated Through Either LPS or Anti-CD3 and Anti-CD28.

Immune cell activation assays have been widely used for immune monitoring and for understanding disease mechanisms. However, these assays are typically limited in scope. A holistic study of circulating immune cell responses to different activators is lacking. Here we developed a cost-effective high-throughput multiplexed single-cell RNA-seq combined with epitope tagging (CITE-seq) to determine how classic activators of T cells (anti-CD3 coupled with anti-CD28) or monocytes (LPS) alter the cell composition and transcriptional profiles of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy human donors. Anti-CD3/CD28 treatment activated all classes of lymphocytes either directly (T cells) or indirectly (B and NK cells) but reduced monocyte numbers. Activated T and NK cells expressed senescence and effector molecules, whereas activated B cells transcriptionally resembled autoimmune disease- or age-associated B cells (e.g., CD11c, T-bet). In contrast, LPS specifically targeted monocytes and induced two main states: early activation characterized by the expression of chemoattractants and a later pro-inflammatory state characterized by expression of effector molecules. These data provide a foundation for future immune activation studies with single cell technologies (https://czi-pbmc-cite-seq.jax.org/)

Sestrins induce natural killer function in senescent-like CD8(+) T cells

Aging is associated with remodeling of the immune system to enable the maintenance of life-long immunity. In the CD8⁺ T cell compartment, aging results in the expansion of highly differentiated cells that exhibit characteristics of cellular senescence. Here we found that CD27⁻CD28⁻CD8⁺ T cells lost the signaling activity of the T cell antigen receptor (TCR) and expressed a protein complex containing the agonistic natural killer (NK) receptor NKG2D and the NK adaptor molecule DAP12, which promoted cytotoxicity against cells that expressed NKG2D ligands. Immunoprecipitation and imaging cytometry indicated that the NKG2D-DAP12 complex was associated with sestrin 2. The genetic inhibition of sestrin 2 resulted in decreased expression of NKG2D and DAP12 and restored TCR signaling in senescent-like CD27⁻CD28⁻CD8⁺ T cells. Therefore, during aging, sestrins induce the reprogramming of non-proliferative senescent-like CD27⁻CD28⁻CD8⁺ T cells to acquire a broad-spectrum, innate-like killing activity

Adrenal incidentaloma diagnosed as pheochromocytoma by plasma chromogranin A and plasma metanephrines.

Item does not contain fulltex

Not Available

Not AvailableTwo outbreaks of Swinepox in pig population of north-east India were investigated. The disease was diagnosed based on clinical signs, lesions, electron microscopy and by molecular techniques. The virus was identified by PCR amplification targeting the viral late transcription factor-3 (VLTF-3) gene of swinepox virus. The VLTF-3 gene was cloned and sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis based on VLTF-3 gene sequence showed that the Swinepox viruses identified in these outbreaks were clustered along with the other Swinepox isolates reported across the globe and were distinctly separated from the other members of the poxviridae family. The north-eastern states of India, being a hub for pig husbandry, are the home for over a quarter of all India’s pig population. Till now swinepox was not reported from this part of India. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report on detection and characterization of swinepox from the north-eastern part of IndiaNot Availabl

Longitudinal profiling of human blood transcriptome in healthy and lupus pregnancy.

Systemic lupus erythematosus carries an increased risk of pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia and fetal adverse outcomes. To identify the underlying molecular mechanisms, we longitudinally profiled the blood transcriptome of 92 lupus patients and 43 healthy women during pregnancy and postpartum and performed multicolor flow cytometry in a subset of them. We also profiled 25 healthy women undergoing assisted reproductive technology to monitor transcriptional changes around embryo implantation. Sustained down-regulation of multiple immune signatures, including interferon and plasma cells, was observed during healthy pregnancy. These changes appeared early after embryo implantation and were mirrored in uncomplicated lupus pregnancies. Patients with preeclampsia displayed early up-regulation of neutrophil signatures that correlated with expansion of immature neutrophils. Lupus pregnancies with fetal complications carried the highest interferon and plasma cell signatures as well as activated CD