A comparison of nanoparticullate CpG immunotherapy with and without allergens in spontaneously equine asthma-affected horses, an animal model

Introduction: New therapeutic strategies to modulate the immune response of human and equine allergic asthma are still under extensive investigation. Immunomodulating agents stimulating T-regulatory cells offer new treatment options beyond conventional symptomatic treatment or specific immunotherapy for human and equine allergic airway diseases, with the goal of a homoeostatic T-helper cell balance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a nebulized gelatin nanoparticle-CpG formulation (CpG-GNP) with and without specific allergens for the treatment of spontaneous allergic equine asthma as a model for human asthma. Methods: Twenty equine asthma-affected horses were treated either with CpG-GNP alone or CpG-GNP with allergens. Two specific allergens were selected for each horse based on history and an in-vitro test. Each horse received seven administrations of the respective nebulized composition and was examined before treatment, immediately after and 6 weeks after the treatment course. Results: Clinical parameters such as breathing rate, indirect interpleural measurement, arterial blood gases, amount of tracheal mucus and percentage of neutrophils and cytokines in tracheal washes and serum samples were evaluated. Treatment with CpG-GNP alone as well as in combinations with relevant allergens resulted in clinical improvement of nasal discharge, breathing rate, amount of secretion and viscosity, neutrophil percentage and partial oxygen pressure directly after and 6 weeks after treatment. There were no significant differences between the two treatments in clinical parameters or local cytokine profiles in the tracheal wash fluid (IL-10, IFN-g, and IL-17). IL-4 concentrations decreased significantly in both groups. Conclusion: Nonspecific CpG-GNP-based immunotherapy shows potential as a treatment for equine and possibly also human allergic asthma

Digitales Bildkuratieren als Bereicherung des Museumsbesuchs

Das von der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) geförderte Forschungsprojekt Curating Digital Images: Ethnographic Perspectives on the Affordances of Digital Images in Museum and Heritage Contexts hat sich im Rahmen des Schwerpunktprogramms Das Digitale Bild mit diesen und anderen Fragen beschäftigt. Die Forscher:innen der Universität Tübingen und der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin möchten mit dieser Handreichung einen Beitrag zur Debatte rund um digitale Bildtechnologien im Museums- und Kunstsektor leisten. Das Projekt umfasst zwei Arbeitsbereiche, die sich diesem Thema aus unterschiedlichen Richtungen annähern

Gender Differences in Associations of Glutamate Decarboxylase 1 Gene (GAD1) Variants with Panic Disorder

Background: Panic disorder is common (5% prevalence) and females are twice as likely to be affected as males. The heritable component of panic disorder is estimated at 48%. Glutamic acid dehydrogenase GAD1, the key enzyme for the synthesis of the inhibitory and anxiolytic neurotransmitter GABA, is supposed to influence various mental disorders, including mood and anxiety disorders. In a recent association study in depression, which is highly comorbid with panic disorder, GAD1 risk allele associations were restricted to females. Methodology/Principal Findings: Nineteen single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) tagging the common variation in GAD1 were genotyped in two independent gender and age matched case-control samples (discovery sample n = 478; replication sample n = 584). Thirteen SNPs passed quality control and were examined for gender-specific enrichment of risk alleles associated with panic disorder by using logistic regression including a genotype×gender interaction term. The latter was found to be nominally significant for four SNPs (rs1978340, rs3762555, rs3749034, rs2241165) in the discovery sample; of note, the respective minor/risk alleles were associated with panic disorder only in females. These findings were not confirmed in the replication sample; however, the genotype×gender interaction of rs3749034 remained significant in the combined sample. Furthermore, this polymorphism showed a nominally significant association with the Agoraphobic Cognitions Questionnaire sum score. Conclusions/Significance: The present study represents the first systematic evaluation of gender-specific enrichment of risk alleles of the common SNP variation in the panic disorder candidate gene GAD1. Our tentative results provide a possible explanation for the higher susceptibility of females to panic disorder

Digitales Bildkuratieren

Digitale Bildtechnologien ermöglichen neue Erfahrungen und Umgangsweisen mit musealen Räumen. Besucher*innen nutzen Museumsdatenbanken, (Smartphone-)Kameras und Social Media, um Bilder von musealen Objekten zu sammeln, zu archivieren, zu gestalten, zu inszenieren und kommunikativ zu verhandeln. Diese Praktiken des digitalen Bildkuratierens schaffen neue ästhetische Bedeutungen, fügen verschiedene Wissenskontexte zusammen und konstituieren emotionale Verbindungen. Dadurch bauen digitale Bildtechnologien neue Brücken zwischen musealen Räumen und alltäglichen Lebenswelten