906 research outputs found

    CD8+ T Cells in GCA and GPA:Bystanders or Active Contributors?

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    Vasculitis refers to inflammation of blood vessels and can cause a variety of serious complications depending on which vessels are affected. Two different forms of vasculitis are Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA) and Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis (GPA). GCA is the most common form of vasculitis in adults affecting the large arteries and can lead to visual impairment and development of aneurysms. GPA affects small- and medium-sized blood vessels predominantly in the lungs and kidneys resulting in organ failure. Both diseases can potentially be fatal. Although the pathogenesis of GCA and GPA are incompletely understood, a prominent role for CD4+ T cells has been implicated in both diseases. More recently, the role of CD8+ T cells has gained renewed interest. CD8+ T cells are important players in the adaptive immune response against intracellular microorganisms. After a general introduction on the different forms of vasculitis and their association with infections and CD8+ T cells, we review the current knowledge on CD8+ T-cell involvement in the immunopathogenesis of GCA and GPA focusing on phenotypic and functional features of circulating and lesional CD8+ T cells. Furthermore, we discuss to which extent aging is associated with CD8+ T-cell phenotype and function in GCA and GPA

    “Stappen langs het water”:Van schip naar school met het onderwijsleerpakket voor varende kleuters

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    Association of the CXCL9-CXCR3 and CXCL13-CXCR5 axes with B-cell trafficking in giant cell arteritis and polymyalgia rheumatica

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    OBJECTIVE: B-cells are present in the inflamed arteries of giant cell arteritis (GCA) patients and a disturbed B-cell homeostasis is reported in peripheral blood of both GCA and the overlapping disease polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR). In this study, we aimed to investigate chemokine-chemokine receptor axes governing the migration of B-cells in GCA and PMR. METHODS: We performed Luminex screening assay for serum levels of B-cell related chemokines in treatment-naĂŻve GCA (n = 41), PMR (n = 31) and age- and sex matched healthy controls (HC, n = 34). Expression of chemokine receptors on circulating B-cell subsets were investigated by flow cytometry. Immunohistochemistry was performed on GCA temporal artery (n = 14) and aorta (n = 10) and on atherosclerosis aorta (n = 10) tissue. RESULTS: The chemokines CXCL9 and CXCL13 were significantly increased in the circulation of treatment-naĂŻve GCA and PMR patients. CXCL13 increased even further after three months of glucocorticoid treatment. At baseline CXCL13 correlated with disease activity markers. Peripheral CXCR3+ and CXCR5+ switched memory B-cells were significantly reduced in both patient groups and correlated inversely with their complementary chemokines CXCL9 and CXCL13. At the arterial lesions in GCA, CXCR3+ and CXCR5+ B-cells were observed in areas with high CXCL9 and CXCL13 expression. CONCLUSION: Changes in systemic and local chemokine and chemokine receptor pathways related to B-cell migration were observed in GCA and PMR mainly in the CXCL9-CXCR3 and CXCL13-CXCR5 axes. These changes can contribute to homing and organization of B-cells in the vessel wall and provide further evidence for an active involvement of B-cells in GCA and PMR

    Holistic corpus-based dialectology

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    This paper is concerned with sketching future directions for corpus-based dialectology. We advocate a holistic approach to the study of geographically conditioned linguistic variability, and we present a suitable methodology, 'corpusbased dialectometry', in exactly this spirit. Specifically, we argue that in order to live up to the potential of the corpus-based method, practitioners need to (i) abandon their exclusive focus on individual linguistic features in favor of the study of feature aggregates, (ii) draw on computationally advanced multivariate analysis techniques (such as multidimensional scaling, cluster analysis, and principal component analysis), and (iii) aid interpretation of empirical results by marshalling state-of-the-art data visualization techniques. To exemplify this line of analysis, we present a case study which explores joint frequency variability of 57 morphosyntax features in 34 dialects all over Great Britain
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