BACKGROUND This study aimed to determine the association of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) (Lp-PLA(2)) activity in circulation and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with inflammatory and oxidative stress markers in nonobese women and according to menopausal status. Lp-PLA(2) activity, a marker for cardiovascular risk is associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. ME...

BACKGROUND Previous in vivo studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation significantly improves the condition of a number of autoimmune diseases including autoimmune cerebrospinal meningitis, multiple sclerosis, glomerulonephritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. METHODS To investigate the immunoregulatory effect of stem cell transplantation, human umbilical cord MSCs ...

BACKGROUND Many studies have suggested that the immune response may play a crucial role in the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Therefore, our aim was to establish a (i) functional culture of primary human tumor hepatocytes and non-tumor from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and (ii) a co-culture system of HCC and non-HCC hepatocytes with autologous peripheral blood mo...

Increased levels of IFN-alpha have been found in patients with type 1 diabetes who have detectable levels of coxsackievirus B4 (CVB4) RNA in their blood. The IFN-alpha-inducing activity of CVB4 in vitro is weak but can be enhanced by human IgGs. Therefore, it was investigated in vitro whether a preferential IFN-alpha response of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to CVB4 exists in patie...

Recent studies have shown that human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA can be found in circulating blood, including peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), sera, plasma, and arterial cord blood. In light of these findings, DNA extracted from PBMCs from healthy blood donors were examined in order to determine how common HPV DNA is in blood of healthy individuals. Blood samples were collected from 180...

PURPOSE Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease is a systemic autoimmune disease that can lead to blindness. This study was designed to investigate whether interleukin (IL)-9 plays a role in the development of VKH disease. METHODS IL-9, IL-17, and interferon (IFN)-γ levels, present in the supernatants of cultured peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and CD4+T cells, were assessed with enzyme...

The major risk factor for Klebsiella liver abscess (KLA) is type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), but the immunological mechanisms involved in the increased susceptibility are poorly defined. We investigated the responses of neutrophils and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP), the causative agent of KLA. DNA and myeloperoxidase levels were elevated ...

BACKGROUND There is a long history of research suggesting that Chlamydophila pneumoniae is associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). C. pneumoniae in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) could serve as a risk factor for CAD if respiratory infection with C. pneumoniae spreads to atherosclerotic plaques through PBMCs or if infected plaques shed C. pneumoniae-laden PBMCs into the circul...

MicroRNAs regulate the expression of many genes and subsequently control various cellular processes, such as the immune response to viral infections mediated by type I interferon (IFN). In this study, the expression pattern of two interferon-related microRNAs, miR-146a and miR-155, was examined in healthy and HCV-genotype-4-infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) using qRT-PCR. In c...

Recent findings indicate that microglia in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is senescent whereas peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) could infiltrate the brain to phagocyte amyloid deposits. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in the amyloid peptide clearance remain unknown. Autophagy is a physiological degradation of proteins and organelles and can be controlled by pro-inflammatory cytok...