C1q Levels: A Reliable Biomarker for Differentiating Active and Latent Tuberculosis Infection.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) poses a significant public health challenge, particularly because it can exist in an asymptomatic latent phase. Latent TB infection indicates the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis without clinical symptoms. Effectively distinguishing between active and latent TB is essential, especially in regions with high TB prevalence, as it may help reduce transmission rates.

Down-regulation of key regulatory factors in sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) pathway in human lung fibroblasts transfected with selected microRNAs.

Sphingosine 1 phosphate (S1P) is involved in the pathogenesis of asthma by stimulation of the alpha-smooth muscle actin (SMA) expression and remodeling of fibroblasts. This study was designed to determine the effects of selected micro RNAs in regulation of S1P and related metabolic pathways in a human lung fibroblast cell line. The fibroblast cell line (CIRC-HLF, C580) was cultured and transfected with individual viral vectors carrying miR124, mi125b, mi133b or mi130a.

A synbiotic mixture of M16-V, oligosaccharides and pectin, enhances Short Chain Fatty Acid production and improves lung health in a preclinical model for pulmonary neutrophilia.

Introduction: Pulmonary neutrophilia is a hallmark of numerous airway diseases including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Neutrophilic asthma, Acute Lung Injury (ALI), Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and COVID-19. The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of dietary interventions on lung health in context of pulmonary neutrophilia.

Methods: Male BALB/cByJ mice received 7 intra-nasal doses of either a vehicle or lipopolysaccharides (LPS).

Immune checkpoint inhibitors and SARS-CoV2 infection.

Infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) triggers coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which predominantly targets the respiratory tract. SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially severe COVID-19, is associated with dysregulated immune responses against the virus, including exaggerated inflammatory responses known as the cytokine storm, together with lymphocyte and NK cell dysfunction known as immune cell exhaustion. Overexpression of negative immune checkpoints such as PD-1 and CTLA-4 plays a considerable role in the dysfunction of immune cells upon SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Effects of toll-like receptor agonists and SARS-CoV-2 antigens on interferon (IFN) expression by peripheral blood CD3 T cells from COVID-19 patients.

Background: Signaling by toll-like receptors (TLRs) initiates important immune responses against viral infection. The role of TLRs in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is not well elucidated. Thus, we investigated the interaction of TLRs agonists and SARS-COV-2 antigens with immune cells in vitro.

Beneficial effects of the combination of BCc1 and Hep-S nanochelating-based medicines on IL-6 in hospitalized moderate COVID-19 adult patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Background: In the severe forms of COVID-19 and many other infectious diseases, the patients develop a cytokine storm syndrome (CSS) where pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-6 and TNF-α play a key role in the development of this serious process. Selenium and iron are two important trace minerals, and their metabolism is tightly connected to immune system function. Numerous studies highlight the role of selenium and iron metabolism changes in the procedure of COVID-19 inflammation.

Possible cancer-causing capacity of COVID-19: Is SARS-CoV-2 an oncogenic agent?

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has shown diverse life-threatening effects, most of which are considered short-term. In addition to its short-term effects, which has claimed many millions of lives since 2019, the long-term complications of this virus are still under investigation. Similar to many oncogenic viruses, it has been hypothesized that SARS-CoV-2 employs various strategies to cause cancer in different organs.

Evaluation of Lymphocyte Subtypes in COVID-19 Patients.

Background: Although many aspects of the COVID-19 disease have not yet been clarified, dysregulation of the immune system may play a crucial role in the progression of the disease. In this study, the lymphocyte subsets were evaluated in patients with different severities of COVID-19.

Materials And Methods: In this prospective study, the frequencies of peripheral lymphocyte subsets (CD3, CD4, and CD8 T cells; CD19 and CD20 B cells; CD16/CD56 NK cells, and CD4/CD25/FOXP3 regulatory T cells) were evaluated in 67 patients with confirmed COVID-19 on the first day of their admission.

Changes in PD-1- and CTLA-4-bearing blood lymphocytes in ICU COVID-19 patients treated with Favipiravir/Kaletra or Dexamethasone/Remdesivir: a pilot study.

COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, requires new approaches to control the disease. Programmed cell death protein (PD-1) and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) play important roles in T-cell exhaustion in severe COVID-19. This study evaluated the frequency of whole blood lymphocytes expressing PD-1 and CTLA-4 in COVID-19 patients upon admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) (i.

Dysregulation of Immunity in Pulmonary Fibrosis is Associated with Increased Myeloid-specific Triggering Receptor-1 and Transforming Growth Factor-beta1 Expression.

Fibrosing pneumonia (FP) is classified into usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) and nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP), each having its own etiology and prognosis. Both types of FP are progressive and chronic conditions with distinct etiologies. Cytokines and inflammatory mediators play critical roles in the pathogenesis of FP.

Analysis of CD4, CD8, CD19, CD56-16, CD64, QuantiFERON biomarkers in exudative lymphocyte-dominant pleural effusion.

Background: There are two main causes of exudative effusion including malignancy-induced effusion and tuberculosis. Considering that in reactive ejections, such as tuberculosis-induced effusion, the role of B lymphocytes and in the malignant effusion, the role of T lymphocytes are more important, in this study we analyzed the frequency of CD4, CD8, CD19, CD56-16, CD64, QuantiFERON in the pleural and serum samples of patients with exudative lymphocytic-dominant effusion.

Methods: In total, 73 patients were enrolled in the study by exudative lymphocyte effusion, and finally, 63 patients had definite diagnoses.

Effectiveness of different vaccine platforms in reducing mortality and length of ICU stay in severe and critical cases of COVID-19 in the Omicron variant era: A national cohort study in Iran.

Various severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 vaccines with different platforms have been administered worldwide; however, their effectiveness in critical cases of COVID-19 has remained a concern. In this national cohort study, 24 016 intensive care unit (ICU) coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) admissions were included from January to April 2022. The mortality and length of ICU stay were compared between the vaccinated and unvaccinated patients.

Immunophenotype and function of circulating myeloid derived suppressor cells in COVID-19 patients.

The pathogenesis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is not fully elucidated. COVID-19 is due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which causes severe illness and death in some people by causing immune dysregulation and blood T cell depletion. Increased numbers of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) play a diverse role in the pathogenesis of many infections and cancers but their function in COVID-19 remains unclear.

Effectiveness of Borage plus syrup on COVID-19 patients in intensive care units.

Introduction: COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) still causes a high rate of death globally with no definite curative treatment described. The traditional plant Borage (Borago officinalis L.) is a good source of gamma-linolenic (GLA).

The miR-196a SNP Rs11614913 but not the miR-499 rs37464444 SNP is a Risk Factor for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer in an Iranian Population.

Background: Globally, lung cancer represents a major cause of cancer-related deaths. The regulation of gene expression is modulated by small noncoding RNAs called miRNAs that can act as both tumor suppressors and oncogenes. The maturation, expression and binding to target mRNAs is affected by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in miRNA genomic regions thereby contributing to cancer susceptibility.

Evaluation of Myeloid-derived Suppressor Cells in the Blood of Iranian COVID-19 Patients.

The cytokine storm and lymphopenia are reported in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Myeloid-derived suppressive cells (MDSCs) exist in two different forms, granulocyte (G-MDSCs) and monocytic (M-MDSCs), that both suppress T-cell function. In COVID-19, the role of chemokines such as interleukin (IL)-8 in recruiting MDSCs is unclear.

Decreased neutrophil-mediated bacterial killing in COVID-19 patients.

The coronavirus disease COVID-19 was first described in December 2019. The peripheral blood of COVID-19 patients have increased numbers of neutrophils which are important in controlling the bacterial infections observed in COVID-19. We sought to evaluate the cytotoxic capacity of neutrophils in COVID-19 patients.

Do Low-Density Granulocytes Induce Lymphopenia in Patients with COVID-19?

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The Role of HLA-DRB1 Alleles in Pulmonary Cystic Fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common lethal autosomal recessive disease in white Caucasians. It affects many organs including the lung, pancreas, and liver. Whilst CF is a monogenic disease, several studies revealed a complex relationship between genotype and clinical phenotype of diseases.

Decreased serum levels of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE)2 and enhanced cytokine levels with severity of COVID-19: normalisation upon disease recovery.

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Circulating soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme (sACE2)2, the main receptor for SARS-CoV-2, together with components of the renin-angiotensin system promote infection and disease severity.

Objective: This pilot study followed the time-course of sACE2 levels in relation to systemic cytokines in severe and moderate COVID-19 patients treated with remdesivir/dexamethasone in combination.

Galactooligosaccharides and 2'-fucosyllactose can directly suppress growth of specific pathogenic microbes and affect phagocytosis of neutrophils.

Objectives: Non-digestible oligosaccharides such as milk oligosaccharides (MOS) can regulate and influence immune function. As an example, galactooligosaccharides (GOS), and 2'-fucosyllactose (2'-FL; a specific human MOS) regulate immune development and functionality. Staphylococcus aureus (SA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), both serious pathogens, can cause severe and life-threatening infections.

Dendritic cell immunotherapy with miR-155 enriched tumor-derived exosome suppressed cancer growth and induced antitumor immune responses in murine model of colorectal cancer induced by CT26 cell line.

Nowadays, various strategies are considered to prime Dendritic cells (DCs) with tumor antigens. The tumor cell-derived exosomes are recognized as one of the most efficient strategies for achieving this purpose. In this regard, MicroRNA 155 (miR-155) is employed as one of the most prominent miRNAs, which play substantial roles in DCs maturation and IL-12 production.

T Helper Cell Subsets in the Pleural Fluid of Tuberculous Patients Differentiate Patients With Non-Tuberculous Pleural Effusions.

Background: Tuberculous pleural effusion (TPE) is one of the most common forms of extrapulmonary tuberculosis (Tb). Patients with TPE or malignant pleural effusions (MPE) frequently have a similar lymphocytic pleural fluid profile. Since the etiology of PE in various diseases is different, identifying the cellular components may provide diagnostic clues for understanding the pathogenesis.