79 research outputs found

    Retinoic acid as a modulator of T cell immunity

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    Indexación: Scopus. DOAJ.Vitamin A, a generic designation for an array of organic molecules that includes retinal, retinol and retinoic acid, is an essential nutrient needed in a wide array of aspects including the proper functioning of the visual system, maintenance of cell function and differentiation, epithelial surface integrity, erythrocyte production, reproduction, and normal immune function. Vitamin A deficiency is one of the most common micronutrient deficiencies worldwide and is associated with defects in adaptive immunity. Reports from epidemiological studies, clinical trials and experimental studies have clearly demonstrated that vitamin A plays a central role in immunity and that its deficiency is the cause of broad immune alterations including decreased humoral and cellular responses, inadequate immune regulation, weak response to vaccines and poor lymphoid organ development. In this review, we will examine the role of vitamin A in immunity and focus on several aspects of T cell biology such as T helper cell differentiation, function and homing, as well as lymphoid organ development. Further, we will provide an overview of the effects of vitamin A deficiency in the adaptive immune responses and how retinoic acid, through its effect on T cells can fine-tune the balance between tolerance and immunity.http://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/8/6/34

    In vitro-generated Tc17 cells present a memory phenotype and serve as a reservoir of Tc1 cells in vivo

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    Indexación: Scopus.Memory CD8+ T cells are ideal candidates for cancer immunotherapy because they can mediate long-term protection against tumors. However, the therapeutic potential of different in vitro-generated CD8+ T cell effector subsets to persist and become memory cells has not been fully characterized. Type 1 CD8+ T (Tc1) cells produce interferon-γ and are endowed with high cytotoxic capacity, whereas IL-17-producing CD8+ T (Tc17) cells are less cytotoxic but display enhanced self-renewal capacity. We sought to evaluate the functional properties of in vitro-generated Tc17 cells and elucidate their potential to become long lasting memory cells. Our results show that in vitro-generated Tc17 cells display a greater in vivo persistence and expansion in response to secondary antigen stimulation compared to Tc1 cells. When transferred into recipient mice, Tc17 cells persist in secondary lymphoid organs, present a recirculation behavior consistent with central memory T cells, and can shift to a Tc1 phenotype. Accordingly, Tc17 cells are endowed with a higher mitochondrial spare respiratory capacity than Tc1 cells and express higher levels of memory-related molecules than Tc1 cells. Together, these results demonstrate that in vitro-generated Tc17 cells acquire a central memory program and provide a lasting reservoir of Tc1 cells in vivo, thus supporting the use of Tc17 lymphocytes in the design of novel and more effective therapies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.00209/ful

    Lymphoid B cells induce NF-κB activation in high endothelial cells from human tonsils

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    Indexación: Scopus.Immune surveillance depends on still poorly understood lymphocyte-endothelium interactions required for lymphocyte transendothelial migration into secondary lymphoid organs. The nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) regulatory system and its inhibitory IκB proteins control the inducible expression of adhesion molecules, cytokines and chemokines involved in endothelial activation and lymphocyte transmigration. Here we present results showing the activation of this system in response to the interaction of high endothelial cells from human tonsils (HUTEC) with human B and T lymphoid cell lines and primary tonsillar lymphocytes. Western blot and electrophoretic mobility shift assays show that adhesion of different lymphoid cells induce varying levels of NF-κB activation in HUTEC, with Daudi cells, tonsil-derived B cell line 10 (TBCL-10) and primary tonsillar B lymphocytes causing the strongest activation. The main NF-κB protein complexes translocated to the nucleus were p65/p50 and p50/p50. Results from reverse transcription-PCR and flow cytometry analysis of HUTEC indicate that the interaction with Daudi cells induce an increased expression of IL-6 and IL-8 mRNA and cell-surface expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1, all of which were prevented by sodium salicylate, an inhibitor of NF-κB activation. Transwell experiments show that NF-κB activation and the response of HUTEC to the interaction of Daudi cells does not depend on direct cell-cell contact but rather on the production of soluble factors that require the presence of both cell types. These results suggest that lymphocytes and high endothelium establish a cross talk leading to NF-κB-mediated expression of cytokines and adhesion molecules, inducing endothelial cell activation.https://academic.oup.com/intimm/article/18/2/259/66453

    Retinoic Acid Generates Regulatory T Cells in Experimental Transplantation

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    ABSTRACT Regulatory T cells play a key role to inhibit effector lymphocytes, avoid, autoimmunity, and restrain allogeneic immunity. Retinoic acid is an important cofactor that stimulates the generation and expansion of regulatory T cells. Naive T cells, coincubated with allogeneic antigen-presenting cells and retinoic acid, in conjunction with transforming growth factor (TGF) ␤ and interleukin (IL) 2, generated allogeneic regulatory T cells de novo. These cells were able to inhibit skin rejection in adoptive transfer experiments. The generation of regulatory T cells ex vivo with retinoic acid, TGF-␤, and IL-2 represents a new step toward specific regulation of allogeneic immune responses

    Charging Effects and Quantum Crossover in Granular Superconductors

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    The effects of the charging energy in the superconducting transition of granular materials or Josephson junction arrays is investigated using a pseudospin one model. Within a mean-field renormalization-group approach, we obtain the phase diagram as a function of temperature and charging energy. In contrast to early treatments, we find no sign of a reentrant transition in agreement with more recent studies. A crossover line is identified in the non-superconducting side of the phase diagram and along which we expect to observe anomalies in the transport and thermodynamic properties. We also study a charge ordering phase, which can appear for large nearest neighbor Coulomb interaction, and show that it leads to first-order transitions at low temperatures. We argue that, in the presence of charge ordering, a non monotonic behavior with decreasing temperature is possible with a maximum in the resistance just before entering the superconducting phase.Comment: 15 pages plus 4 fig. appended, Revtex, INPE/LAS-00

    The demethylase inhibitor GSK-J4 limits inflammatory colitis by promoting de novo synthesis of retinoic acid in dendritic cells

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    Indexación ScopusDendritic cells (DCs) promote T-cell mediated tolerance to self-antigens and induce inflammation to innocuous-antigens. This dual potential makes DCs fundamental players in inflammatory disorders. Evidence from inflammatory colitis mouse models and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) patients indicated that gut inflammation in IBD is driven mainly by T-helper-1 (Th1) and Th17 cells, suggesting an essential role for DCs in the development of IBD. Here we show that GSK-J4, a selective inhibitor of the histone demethylase JMJD3/UTX, attenuated inflammatory colitis by reducing the inflammatory potential and increasing the tolerogenic features of DCs. Mechanistic analyses revealed that GSK-J4 increased activating epigenetic signals while reducing repressive marks in the promoter of retinaldehyde dehydrogenase isoforms 1 and 3 in DCs, enhancing the production of retinoic acid. This, in turn, has an impact on regulatory T cells (Treg) increasing their lineage stability and gut tropism as well as potentiating their suppressive activity. Our results open new avenues for the treatment of IBD patients. © 2021, The Author(s).https://www-nature-com.recursosbiblioteca.unab.cl/articles/s41598-020-79122-

    Myocyte membrane and microdomain modifications in diabetes: determinants of ischemic tolerance and cardioprotection

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