The innate immune system is the only defense weapon that invertebrates have, and it is the fundamental defense mechanism for fish. The innate immune response is important in newly hatched flounders because it is closely involved in the initial feeding phase, which is why it is essential for survival during the juvenile period. The expression analysis of genes involved in the innate immune respo...

The aim of this cohort study was to investigate immunophenotypic characteristics of natural killer (NK) cells by assessing specific molecules expressed in the decidua of sporadic miscarriages and induced abortions. The deciduae were obtained from 29 consecutively seen women whose pregnancies ended in first trimester miscarriages (MS), and the fetal chromosome karyotype of these MS was analysed....

Established EG7 tumors expressing OVA and growing at an intradermal site become rapidly reduced in size following adoptive therapy with in vitro-generated type I CD8 T cell (Tc1) effectors generated from naive CD8 T cells from transgenic TCR OVA-specific mice. Tc1 effectors kill EG7 target cells in vitro by a perforin-dependent mechanism. However, we show that there is no quantitative diminutio...

The pore-forming protein perforin is a key component of mammalian cell-mediated immunity and essential to the pathway that allows elimination of virus-infected and transformed cells. Perforin activity has also been implicated in certain auto-immune conditions and therapy-induced conditions such as allograft rejection and graft versus host disease. An inhibitor of perforin activity could be used...

CD134, a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, plays a crucial role in T cell survival. In this study, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA, 50 microg/ml) were treated by CD134 mAb (1 microg/ml, 5 microg/ml, 10 microg/ml) for 6 h, 12 h, 24 h and 48 h. The level of perforin mRNA was measured by reverse transcription-polymerase cha...

OBJECTIVE Systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is associated with high levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the serum and synovial fluid, and impairment of natural killer (NK) cell function is often observed. This study was undertaken to evaluate a possible link between these 2 biologic findings and whether they may be associated with the development of macrophage activation syndrome, a co...

Perforin was purified to homogeneity from the murine cytotoxic T-lymphocyte cell line, CTLL-2 B 1 /6, by minor modifications of published methods [3]. In order to identify the maximum dose of perforin causing no lysis of KS62 cells (non-lethal dose), cells were incubated in Krebs-Hepes buffer with various doses o f perforin for 1 0 min at 37°C. Cell lysis was estimated by Trypan Blue uptake. Si...

Familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis is a rare but invariably fatal disease without haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Genetic defect identification is useful for confirming a clinical diagnosis, predicting the risk of future recurrence, and defining haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis predisposition in asymptomatic family members. Notably, familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocy...

Lack of perforin renders the relatively resistant mouse strain C57BL/6 highly susceptible to the natural mouse pathogen ectromelia virus, a cytopathic orthopoxvirus. This is indicated by increased mortality, elevated virus titers and pathology in liver and spleen, and increased levels of liver enzymes in blood. Cowpox virus on the other hand is more virulent in the presence of perforin than in ...