Heat shock protein 70 and anti-heat shock protein 70 antibodies in nasal secretions of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis.

Background: The issue of heat shock protein (HSP) 70 and anti-HSP70 antibodies in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) has never been explored.

Objective: To determine the nasal secretion (NS) levels of HSP70 and anti-HSP70 antibodies in patients with CRS with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) and patients with CRS without nasal polyps (CRSsNP), and to evaluate their associations with CRS clinical severity and correlation with NS interleukin (IL), IL-5 and interferon λ.

Methods: CRS severity was determined by Lund-Mackay scores.

Neuron-specific enolase in nasal secretions as a novel biomarker of olfactory dysfunction in chronic rhinosinusitis.

Background: Olfactory dysfunction is a diagnostic criterion for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). During chronic inflammation and olfactory neuronal damage in CRS, it is likely that neuron-specific enolase (NSE) can leak into nasal secretions (NS) and serum. Therefore, we postulated that NSE levels in NS and in circulation may be indicative of olfactory dysfunction in CRS.

Biomarker assessment in chronic rhinitis and chronic rhinosinusitis: Endothelin-1, TARC/CCL17, neopterin, and α-defensins.

Background: Chronic rhinitis (CR) is characteristically divided into several major clinical phenotypes: allergic rhinitis (AR); nonallergic, noninfectious rhinopathy (NAR); and chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). CRS has two phenotypic variants: CRS with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) and CRS without nasal polyps (CRSsNP). An area of growing interest is to identify biologic markers that could assess different aspects of CR phenotypes.

Anticytokine autoantibodies in chronic rhinosinusitis.

Background: Anticytokine autoantibodies (AAbs) involve a great panel of cytokines both in healthy subjects and in patients with various diseases, but their incidence and pathophysiologic role are widely debated. The issue of AAbs in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) has never been explored.

Objective: The aim of the study was to check AAbs in patients with CRS and with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) and patients with CRS and without nasal polyps (CRSsNP).

Expression of TLR2 and TLR4 on peripheral blood monocytes during exacerbation of atopic dermatitis.

Background: In atopic dermatitis (AD), monocytes, which accumulate in the inflamed skin, are characterized by a significantly impaired Toll-like receptors (TLR) expression and TLR2-mediated cytokine secretion. However, data on expression of TLR on monocytes of peripheral blood (PB) in AD are not available.

Objective: To investigate TLR2 and TLR4 expression on PB monocytes during AD exacerbation and to assess the relationships between TLR expressions with AD clinical severity and with serum interleukin (IL) 4, IL-10, and IL-17a levels.

Plasma endothelin-1 levels during exacerbation of atopic dermatitis.

Background: Endothelin (ET) -1 was found to participate in the pathogenesis of bronchial asthma. At present, there is no information regarding the role of ET-1 in the pathophysiology of atopic dermatitis (AD).

Objective: We assessed blood ET-1 levels during the exacerbation of AD and during the 4 months postexacerbation period, to assess the relationships between blood ET-1 levels and clinical severity of AD and pruritus.

Lymphocyte-platelet crosstalk in Graves' disease.

Objective: Platelets can modulate lymphocytes' role in the pathophysiology of thyroid autoimmune diseases. The present study was performed to clarify the status of platelet-lymphocyte subpopulations aggregation in circulating blood in patients with Graves' disease (GD).

Methods: One hundred and fifty patients with GD (GD group) and 45 hyperthyroid patients with toxic multinodular goiter (TMG group) were recruited in the study.

New noninvasive index for evaluation of the vascular age of healthy and sick people.

We conducted a study on 861 healthy and sick subjects and demonstrated that some calculated parameters based on measurement of the dynamic light scattering (DLS) signal from the finger correlate highly with chronological age ranging from 1.5 to 85 years old. Measurements of DLS signals were obtained during both occlusion and nonocclusion of blood flow in the finger.