SMS2 deficiency impairs PKCδ-regulated B cell tolerance in the germinal center.

B cell tolerance prevents autoimmunity by deleting or deactivating autoreactive B cells that otherwise may cause autoantibody-driven disorders, including systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus). Lupus is characterized by immunoglobulin Gs carrying a double-stranded (ds)-DNA autospecificity derived mainly from somatic hypermutation in the germinal center (GC), pointing to a checkpoint breach of GC B cell tolerance that leads to lupus. However, tolerance mechanisms in the GC remain poorly understood.

Role of regenerating islet-derived proteins in inflammatory bowel disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract that affects millions of patients worldwide. It has a complex and multifactorial etiology leading to excessive exposure of intestinal epithelium to microbial antigens, inappropriate activation of the immune system and ultimately to the damage of intestinal tissues. Although numerous efforts have been made to improve the disease management, IBD remains persistently recurring and beyond cure.

Acinar cell injury induced by inadequate unfolded protein response in acute pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is an inflammatory disorder of pancreatic tissue initiated in injured acinar cells. Severe AP remains a significant challenge due to the lack of effective treatment. The widely-accepted autodigestion theory of AP is now facing challenges, since inhibiting protease activation has negligible effectiveness for AP treatment despite numerous efforts.

Liver serine palmitoyltransferase activity deficiency in early life impairs adherens junctions and promotes tumorigenesis.

Unlabelled: Serine palmitoyltransferase is the key enzyme in sphingolipid biosynthesis. Mice lacking serine palmitoyltransferase are embryonic lethal. We prepared liver-specific mice deficient in the serine palmitoyltransferase long chain base subunit 2 gene using an albumin-cyclization recombination approach and found that the deficient mice have severe jaundice.

Mechanisms of interleukin-22's beneficial effects in acute pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a disorder characterized by parenchymal injury of the pancreas controlled by immune cell-mediated inflammation. AP remains a significant challenge in the clinic due to a lack of specific and effective treatment. Knowledge of the complex mechanisms that regulate the inflammatory response in AP is needed for the development of new approaches to treatment, since immune cell-derived inflammatory cytokines have been recognized to play critical roles in the pathogenesis of the disease.

Acute pancreatitis in aging animals: loss of pancreatitis-associated protein protection?

Aim: To investigate the effect of age on severity of acute pancreatitis (AP) using biochemical markers, histology and expression of the protective pancreatitis-associated proteins (PAPs).

Methods: AP was induced via intraductal injection of 4% sodium taurocholate in young and old rats. Sera and pancreata were assayed at 24 h for the parameters listed above; we also employed a novel molecular technique to assess bacterial infiltration using polymerase chain reaction to measure bacterial genomic ribosomal RNA.

Small-interference RNA gene knockdown of pancreatitis-associated proteins in rat acute pancreatitis.

Objectives: Pancreatitis-associated proteins (PAPs) are induced in acute pancreatitis and antisense-mediated gene knockdown of PAP decreased PAP gene expression and worsened pancreatitis. Here, we investigated the effect of a more stable inhibition of PAP using small-interference RNA gene knockdown in vitro and in an in vivo model of experimental pancreatitis.

Methods: Pancreatitis-associated protein-specific siRNA was administered to AR42J cell cultures or rats induced with pancreatitis.

IgG anti-cardiomyocyte antibodies in giant cell myocarditis.

Giant cell myocarditis, a rare, fatal, and poorly understood cause of myocarditis, requires pathological examination for diagnosis. It is considered to be an autoimmune disease and is frequently associated with other conditions, in particular thymoma and myasthenia gravis. The typical patient with giant cell myocarditis is young and has severe, progressive congestive cardiac failure that is unresponsive to standard medical therapy and ultimately requires cardiac transplantation.

Sophorolipids improve sepsis survival: effects of dosing and derivatives.

Introduction: Sophorolipids, a family of natural and easily chemo-enzymatically modified microbial glycolipids, are promising modulators of the immune response. We have previously demonstrated that sophorolipids mediate anti-inflammatory effects, including decreasing sepsis-related mortality at 36 h in vivo in a rat model of septic peritonitis and in vitro by decreasing nitric oxide and inflammatory cytokine production. Here we assessed the effect of sophorolipids on sepsis-related mortality when administered as a (1) single bolus versus sequential dosing and (2) natural mixture versus individual derivatives compared with vehicle alone.

A metastatic melanoma with an unusual immunophenotypic profile.

The most commonly used melanocytic markers are S100, HMB45, Melan-A, or MART-1 and tyrosinase. Melanoma with complete, concordant loss of these markers has not been reported. We report a case of metastatic melanoma with complete loss of staining for S100, HMB45, Melan-A, and tyrosinase.

False-positive PET scan in a patient with lipoid pneumonia simulating lung cancer.

Purpose: Lipoid pneumonia usually presents with alveolar infiltrates or as a nonresolving process. We report a case of lipoid pneumonia that presented as a solitary pulmonary nodule and had a high standard uptake value on PET scan, thereby mimicking a malignant process. This case highlights the presence of false-positive PET imaging in a patient with lipoid pneumonia and Mycobacterium chelonae infection.

Malignant rhabdoid tumor of the kidney in an adult: a case report and review of the literature.

Malignant rhabdoid tumor of the kidney is an uncommon renal tumor in children. The tumor has aggressive behavior and a poor prognosis and is extremely rare in adults; only 3 cases of renal rhabdoid tumors have been reported in adults. We describe here the microscopic, immunohistochemical, and electron microscopic characteristics of another case in a 38-year-old woman.