BACKGROUND Human herpesvirus-8 (HHV-8) is the etiological agent of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) and of some lymphoproliferative disorders of B cells. Most malignancies develop after long-lasting viral dormancy, and a preventing role for both humoral and cellular immune control is suggested by the high frequency of these pathologies in immunosuppressed patients. B cells, macrophages and dendritic cells...

Chemokines play a pivotal role in regulating the immune response through a tightly controlled expression. Elevated levels of inflammatory chemokines commonly occur with aging but the mechanism underlying this age-associated change is not fully understood. Here, we report the role of microRNA-125b (miR-125b) in regulating inflammatory CC chemokine 4 (CCL4) expression in human immune cells and it...

BACKGROUND The use of ultraviolet (UV)-B irradiation after alloantigen immunization is unknown because previous studies focused on UV-B irradiation before immunization. Here, we investigated immunosuppressive effects induced by UV-B irradiation after immunization, and examined the phenotype of induced regulatory T cells and the possible mechanism of induction. MATERIAL AND METHODS B6 mice (H-...

The factors that govern T cell activation control the initiation and progression of adaptive immune responses. T cells recognize their cognate antigen on the surface of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) through the T cell receptor, which results in the formation of a contact region (immune synapse) between the two cells and the activation of the T cells. Activated T cells proliferate and differen...

Systemic sclerosis with pulmonary arterial hypertension (SSc-PAH) is a debilitating and frequently lethal disease of unknown cause lacking effective treatment options. Lymphocyte anomalies and autoantibodies observed in systemic sclerosis have suggested an autoimmune character. Here we study the clonal structure of the B-cell repertoire in SSc-PAH using immunoglobulin heavy-chain sequencing bef...

INTRODUCTION Insulin degludec (degludec) is a basal insulin with an ultra-long, stable action profile and reduced pharmacodynamic variability. Seven phase 3a trials compared degludec with insulin glargine (glargine). Patient-level meta-analyses were performed to obtain a comprehensive overview of differences between the insulin preparations, possible because consistent outcome definitions were ...