The prognosis of patients with high-risk neuroblastoma remains poor, partly due to inadequate immune recognition of the tumor. Neuroblastomas display extremely low surface MHC-I, preventing recognition by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and contributing to an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK-3β) is involved in pathways that may affect the MHC-I antigen processing and presentation pathway.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells act at the interface between lipid metabolism and immunity because of their restriction to lipid antigens presented on CD1d by antigen-presenting cells (APCs). How foreign lipid antigens are delivered to APCs remains elusive. Since lipoproteins routinely bind glycosylceramides structurally similar to lipid antigens, we hypothesized that circulating lipoproteins form complexes with foreign lipid antigens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe complex direct and indirect interplay between adipocytes and various adipose tissue (AT)-resident immune cells plays an important role in maintaining local and whole-body insulin sensitivity. Adipocytes can directly interact with and activate AT-resident invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells through CD1d-dependent presentation of lipid antigens, which is associated with anti-inflammatory cytokine production in lean AT (IL-4, IL-10). Whether alterations in the microenvironment, i.
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