Effetto del virus dell'immunodeficienza felina su cellule dendritiche, derivate da monociti, infettate con spinoculazione

Abstract During HIV-1 infection, dendritic cells (DCs) can not only prime T cells against the virus but can also transfer HIV to T cells. Feline AIDS is caused by feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and it is considereds a model for the human illness because the two diseases have many features in common. Little is known on feline DCs and their interaction with FIV, therefore the present study attempts to shed light on these cells during FIV infection. Infection of monocyte-derived DCs was attempted at ambient gravity and by spinoculation with FIV strains Petaluma and M2. DC infection was particularly evident with FIV Petaluma, which was rapidly released in the supernatants of both DCs and activated PBMCs only after spinoculation. We show that FIV Petaluma was produced by DCs by monitoring viral content in supernatants of infected DCs, by intracellular staining with anti-p25 antibodies, by showing its cytopathic effect. Although activated PBMCs were better substrates for FIV replication, leading to prolonged viral shedding, both immature DCs and DCs matured with lipopolysaccharide supported virus production, mostly during the first two days after infection. At later times, FIV infection induced syncytium formation by DCs. Our results also suggest that i) maturation is not hampered by FIV infection; ii) virus infection per se does not induce DCs to mature. We also show that infected iDCs can efficiently transfer FIV to activated PBMCs. It is concluded that feline DCs can be infected by FIV; however, infection by FIV does not appear to influence feline DC functionality. Durante l’infezione da HIV, le cellule dendritiche (DC) non solo sono capaci di attivare le cellule T, ma possono trasferire l’HIV alle cellule. L’AIDS felino è causato dal virus dell’immunodeficienza felina (FIV) ed è considerato un modello un modello per la malattia umana, perchè i due virus hanno molti punti in comune, sia dal punto di vista patologico che molecolare. Si sa poco sulle DC feline e sulla loro interazione con il FIV, quindi con il presente lavoro abbiamo voluto tentare di mettere in luce il comportamento di queste cellule durante l’infezione con FIV. L’infezione delle DC derivate da monociti prelevati da sangue periferico è stata fatta a gravità ambientale e mediante spinoculazione con due diversi ceppi di FIV: Petaluma e M2. L’infezione è risultata particolarmente evidente con Petaluma, che veniva rapidamente rilasciato nel supernatante dalle DC e dai PBMC attivati con ConA, già dopo 24 ore dall’infezione solo dopo la spinoculazione. Abbiamo dimostrato che il Petaluma veniva prodotto dalle DC sia misurando la quantità di p25 virale nel supernatante sia attraverso lo stain intracellulare con anticorpi anti–p25. Inoltre abbiamo dimostrato la presenza di effetto citopatico di tipo sinciziale nelle colture di DC feline infette. Sia le DC immature (iDC) che quelle maturate con il lipopolisaccaride (mDC), producevano il virus, maggiormente nei primi due giorni dopo l’infezione. A tempi elevati, l’infezione con FIV induceva la formazione di sincizi nelle culture di DC. I nostri risultati inoltre hanno dimostrato che: 1) la maturazione delle cellule dendritiche non viene inibita dall’infezione con FIV; 2) il virus di per sè non porta le DC a maturazione; 3) le iDC possono trasferire il FIV a PBMC attivati con ConA. In conclusione possiamo dire che le DC feline possono essere infettate dal virus dell’immunodeficienza felina, e sembra che quest ’ultimo non ne alteri la funzionalità

Immunotherapy with internally inactivated virus loaded dendritic cells boosts cellular immunity but does not affect feline immunodeficiency virus infection course

Immunotherapy of feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)-infected cats with monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MDCs) loaded with aldrithiol-2 (AT2)-inactivated homologous FIV was performed. Although FIV-specific lymphoproliferative responses were markedly increased, viral loads and CD4+ T cell depletion were unaffected, thus indicating that boosting antiviral cell-mediated immunity may not suffice to modify infection course appreciably

The effects of advertisements on consumer choices and health. A content analysis of health claims in Italian magazines.

The purpose of this research is to trace the evolution of the claims used for advertising food products in Italian magazines, by analysing the content and structure of the claims, the target audiences and the elements that have the greatest influence on the presence of the claims in food advertising

Monitoring the adaptive cell response to hyperosmotic stress by organic devices

Cellular activity upon osmotic stress is related to the occurrence of several disease conditions. The real-time monitoring of the cell response to this kind of stress can give insight into the comprehension of mechanisms involved in cellular shrinkage. Currently the dynamics of the osmotic stress is studied using dedicated and tricky methodologies, not suited to the in vivo testing. We show that a disposable electronic device is very effective for studying the early stage of the osmotic stress induced on human lung adenocarcinoma cells, A549, by a hyperosmotic environment. Our findings corroborate the experimental results obtained by a standard complementary analysis