Current Medicinal Chemistry - Anti-Inflammatory & Anti-Allergy Agents - Volume 4, Issue 2, 2005

Human natural killer (NK) cells are effectors of innate immunity, capable of killing transformed or virusinfected cells and producing pro-inflammatory cytokines, once activated in a non-HLA-dependent fashion. NK cells express receptors for HLA-I molecules, including CD8, or members of the Inhibitory Receptor Superfamily (IRS), such as the Killer Ig-like receptor (KIR) or C-Lectin type Inhibitory Receptor (CLIR). Read More

Interferon g (IFN-γ) is a regulatory cytokine with a broad spectrum of biologic activities and considerable clinical importance. It is considered to be a master regulator of the immune system. Many human diseases, including infections, cancer and autoimmunity, are associated with aberrant production of IFN-γ. Detection and regulation of IFN-γ production is an important clinical objective. Today, levels of IFN-γ in body fluids a Read More

Intercellular communications are fundamental for a correct progression of immuno inflammatory responses. Major messengers in this network of information are cytokines, secretory proteins produced by immune and inflammatory cells. Blocking the function of pro-inflammatory cytokines has entered the clinical arena of treating autoimmune diseases. However, many cytokines including Interleukin (IL)-1, IL-18, HMGB1, belong Read More

The novel “induced self” recognition mode mediated by the immunoreceptor NKG2D allows NK cells to eliminate dangerous and dysfunctional cells. Long-puzzling, complex NK cell reactivity patterns can now be explained - at least in part - by the combined action of the molecular players of the “missing self” and “induced self” hypotheses. Accordingly, MHC class I down-regulation in concert with an upregulated expression of self Read More

A minority of peripheral blood T lymphocytes used heterodimeric T cell receptor (TCR) composed of a Vγ9 chain associated with Vδ2. These circulating Vγ9Vδ2 γδ T cells mainly recognize low-molecular-mass non-peptide antigens derived from microbes and plants in a MHC-unrestricted manner. Furthermore, they produce rapidly after antigen contact cytotoxic molecules and cytokines, thereby activating innate immune Read More

Human Vγ9 / Vδ2 are a subset of γδ T cells present only in non human primates and humans that have potent in vitro activities both on mycobacteria infected cells and on different cancer cell types. Their hallmark is that they are selectively activated by non peptidic ligands that are in most instances phosphorylated. These phosphorylated compounds (also referred to as phosphoantigens) directly trigger Vγ9 / Vδ2 T c Read More

Dendritic cells (DC) represent a sentinel-like system with the capacity to capture and process antigens, to migrate into secondary lymphoid organs, and to activate naive T lymphocytes. DCs are considered as important elements in the induction of specific immune responses. The potency of DCs for induction of immune responses can be affected by a number of aspects related to their maturation stage and state of activation. For Read More

The innate immune system represents the fastest defense to microbial invasion although many pathogens can modulate the host response either in favor of or against their survival and propagation. In this regard, some bacterial toxins possess immunostimulating properties that have been exploited in terms of vaccine adjuvancy and induction of specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Among these, Bordetella pertussis toxin (PTX) Read More

The review covers basic recent discoveries on the mechanism of action of adjuvants, which have been developed in the last decade. In particular, it focuses on the activation of TOLL like receptors and subsequent release of pro-inflammatory lymphokines (innate immunity), which, in turn, are thought to activate antigen specific responses (adaptive immunity). Given the number of novel adjuvants available to researchers, we li Read More

We developed new immunotherapies (peptide and DNA vaccines) for treatment of Japanese cedar pollinosis. In the first place, oral administration of a dominant T cell epitope of a major Japanese cedar allergen (Cry j 2) in mice induced immunologic tolerance in both T-helper (Th) 1 and Th2 cell responses against the whole protein allergen. We found that peptide-based oral immunotherapy has a potential efficacy for treatment o Read More

Hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and liver cancer are major liver diseases particularly in Asia. Liver cancer is also one of the leading cancers causing death in the world. Cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) is a highly inducible and key rate-limiting enzyme involved in the production of prostaglandins (PGs), prostacyclin, and thromboxanes. COX-2 is expressed in response to a variety of proinflammatory agents and cytokines. COX-2 is associa Read More