Published Ahead of Print 2 July 2007. 2007, 75(11):5085. DOI: 10.1128/IAI.00278-07. Infect. Immun. Francesco Bistoni, Antonio Cassone and Anna Vecchiarelli Torosantucci, Paola Chiani, Carla Bromuro, Carla Proietti, Anna Rachini, Donatella Pietrella, Patrizia Lupo, Antonella Activity In Vivo Exerts Therapeutic, Anticryptococcal In Vitro and Cryptococcus neoformans Inhibits Growth and Capsule For...

A new member of the polyene family, N-dimethylaminoacetyl-partricin A 2-dimethylaminoethylamide diaspartate (SPA), was investigated and was found to be more effective than amphotericin B (i) in vivo by enhancing mouse resistance to cryptococcal meningoencephalitis and (ii) in vitro by potentiating the anticryptococcal activity of murine microglial cells.

NK cells, in addition to possessing antitumor and antiviral activity, exhibit perforin-dependent microbicidal activity against the opportunistic pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. However, the factors controlling this response, particularly whether the pathogen itself provides an activation or rearming signal, are largely unknown. The current studies were performed to determine whether exposure ...

Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that the subcutaneous pretreatment of rats with heat-killed cells (HKC) of Cryptococcus neoformans emulsified in complete Freund adjuvant (CFA) promotes protective immunity against an intraperitoneal challenge with C. neoformans. In contrast, subcutaneous treatment with the capsular polysaccharide (PSC) emulsified in CFA exacerbates the cryptococcal...

Cell-mediated immunity is the major protective mechanism against Cryptococcus neoformans. Delayed swelling reactions, i.e., delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH), in response to an intradermal injection of specific antigen are used as a means of detecting a cell-mediated immune (CMI) response to the antigen. We have found previously that the presence of an anticryptococcal DTH response in mice is...

Electrophoresis of urine to evaluate different urinary proteins has been used in recent years veterinary medicine, as it can be a useful laboratory tool the early detection kidney damage. However, capillary electrophoresis (UCE) not reported healthy cats. In dogs, reference intervals have established and compared with pathological samples these provide an easily interpretable pattern. The elect...

An important mechanism of host defense to Cryptococcus neoformans involves the direct microbicidal activity of lymphocytes. The importance of CD4+ T cells is illustrated by the incidence of this infection in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients; however, the relative activity of microbicidal CD4+ T cells compared with CD8+ T cells and natural killer (NK) cells has not been est...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the efficacy of pH-sensitive liposomes of nystatin against Cryptococcus neoformans infection in a murine model. METHODS In the present study, we investigated the antifungal activity of nystatin entrapped in pH-sensitive liposomes in a murine model. Mice infected with C. neoformans were treated with nystatin in neutral egg phosphatidylcholine (egg-PC) liposomes, as well ...