Multiplex array analysis of circulating cytokines and chemokines in COVID-19 patients during the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Milan, Italy.

Background: The systemic inflammatory syndrome called "cytokine storm" has been described in COVID-19 pathogenesis, contributing to disease severity. The analysis of cytokine and chemokine levels in the blood of 21 SARS-CoV-2 positive patients throughout the phases of the pandemic has been studied to understand immune response dysregulation and identify potential disease biomarkers for new treatments. The present work reports the cytokine and chemokine levels in sera from a small cohort of individuals primarily infected with SARS-CoV-2 during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Milan (Italy).

Dextran-shelled oxygen-loaded nanodroplets modulate macrophages killing and inflammatory response to Enterococcus faecalis.

Chronic wounds are associated with inflammation, infections, and hypoxic environment. Macrophages play a crucial role in wound healing removing bacteria and secreting signal molecules to coordinate tissue repair. Recently, dextran-shelled Oxygen-Loaded NanoDroplets (OLNDs) have been proposed as new tools to counteract hypoxia in chronic wounds.

Antiparasitic Drugs against SARS-CoV-2: A Comprehensive Literature Survey.

More than two years have passed since the viral outbreak that led to the novel infectious respiratory disease COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Since then, the urgency for effective treatments resulted in unprecedented efforts to develop new vaccines and to accelerate the drug discovery pipeline, mainly through the repurposing of well-known compounds with broad antiviral effects. In particular, antiparasitic drugs historically used against human infections due to protozoa or helminth parasites have entered the main stage as a miracle cure in the fight against SARS-CoV-2.

In Vitro SARS-CoV-2 Infection of Microvascular Endothelial Cells: Effect on Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine and Chemokine Release.

In the novel pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019, high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines lead to endothelial activation and dysfunction, promoting a pro-coagulative state, thrombotic events, and microvasculature injuries. The aim of the present work was to investigate the effect of SARS-CoV-2 on pro-inflammatory cytokines, tissue factor, and chemokine release, with Human Microvascular Endothelial Cells (HMEC-1). ACE2 receptor expression was evaluated by western blot analysis.

Viral Agents and Systemic Levels of Inflammatory Cytokines in Vulnerable and Stable Atherosclerotic Carotid Plaques.

Background: To investigate the presence of genetic material of viral agents and the serum level of inflammatory cytokines in patients submitted to carotid endarterectomy having vulnerable versus stable atherosclerotic plaques.

Methods: Data of patients consecutively submitted to carotid endarterectomy for a significant stenosis from July 2019 to December 2019 were prospectively collected. The genetic material of Epstein-Barr (EBV), CitoMegalo (CMV), Herpes Simplex (HSV), Varicella-Zoster (VZV) and Influenza (IV) Viruses was searched in the patient's plaques, both in the "mid" of the plaque and in an adjacent lateral portion of no-plaque area.

Phagocytosis and activation of bone marrow-derived macrophages by Plasmodium falciparum gametocytes.

Background: The innate immune response against various life cycle stages of the malaria parasite plays an important role in protection against the disease and regulation of its severity. Phagocytosis of asexual erythrocytic stages is well documented, but little and contrasting results are available about phagocytic clearance of sexual stages, the gametocytes, which are responsible for the transmission of the parasites from humans to mosquitoes. Similarly, activation of host macrophages by gametocytes has not yet been carefully addressed.

Leishmania infantum infection reduces the amyloid β-stimulated NLRP3 inflammasome activation.

Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome has been shown to play a major role in the neuroinflammation that accompanies Alzheimer's disease (AD); interventions that down regulate the NLRP3 inflammasome could thus be beneficial in AD. Parasite infections were recently shown to be associated with improved cognitive functions in Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4)-expressing members of an Amazonian tribe. We verified in an in vitro model whether Leishmania infantum infection could reduce NLRP3.

The Use of Antimalarial Drugs against Viral Infection.

In recent decades, drugs used to treat malaria infection have been shown to be beneficial for many other diseases, including viral infections. In particular, they have received special attention due to the lack of effective antiviral drugs against new emerging viruses (i.e.

Effect of Hypoxia on Gene Expression in Cell Populations Involved in Wound Healing.

Wound healing is a complex process regulated by multiple signals and consisting of several phases known as haemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodelling. Keratinocytes, endothelial cells, macrophages, and fibroblasts are the major cell populations involved in wound healing process. Hypoxia plays a critical role in this process since cells sense and respond to hypoxic conditions by changing gene expression.