The Kynurenine Pathway Is a Double-Edged Sword in Immune-Privileged Sites and in Cancer: Implications for Immunotherapy.

The term "immune privilege" was originally coined to describe the suppression of inflammatory responses within organs protected by anatomic barriers, ie, the eyes, brain, placenta, and testes. However, cellular and metabolic processes, which orchestrate immune responses, also control inflammation within these sites. Our current understanding of tolerogenic mechanisms has extended the definition of immune privilege to include hair follicles, the colon, and cancer.

HIV-1 Immunogen: an overview of almost 30 years of clinical testing of a candidate therapeutic vaccine.

Introduction: Although current antiretroviral therapy (ART) has transformed HIV infection into a chronic, manageable disease, ART does not cure HIV infection. Furthermore, the majority of the world's infected individuals live in resource-limited countries in which access to ART is limited. Thus, the development of an effective therapeutic HIV vaccine would be an invaluable treatment alternative.

Evaluating the efficacy of therapeutic HIV vaccines through analytical treatment interruptions.

Introduction: The development of an effective therapeutic HIV vaccine that induces immunologic control of viral replication, thereby eliminating or reducing the need for antiretroviral therapy (ART), would be of great value. Besides the obvious challenges of developing a therapeutic vaccine that would generate effective, sustained anti-HIV immunity in infected individuals is the issue of how to best assess the efficacy of vaccine candidates.

Discussion: This review discusses the various outcome measures assessed in therapeutic HIV vaccine clinical trials involving individuals receiving suppressive ART, with a particular focus on the role of analytical treatment interruption (ATI) as a way to assess the virologic control induced by an immunotherapy.

The Effect of Therapeutic HIV Vaccination With ALVAC-HIV With or Without Remune on the Size of the Viral Reservoir (A CTN 173 Substudy).

Objectives: To assess whether therapeutic vaccination with ALVAC-HIV ± Remune affects viral reservoir size in antiretroviral therapy-treated individuals.

Methods: Participants in CTN 173, a multicentre, randomized, 3-arm, placebo-controlled, double-blind study, were vaccinated with ALVAC-HIV ± Remune (groups 1 and 2, respectively) or with placebos (group 3) over 20 weeks and assessed for changes in the size of their viral reservoirs from weeks 0 to 24.

Results: Sixteen participants completed the viral reservoir substudy.

The role of extended-release niacin on immune activation and neurocognition in HIV-infected patients treated with antiretroviral therapy - CTN PT006: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Approximately 30% of HIV-1-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy who achieve virologic control have unsatisfactory immune reconstitution, with CD4+ T-cell counts persistently below 350 cells/μL. These patients are at elevated risk for clinical progression to AIDS and non-AIDS events. CD4+ T-cell depletion following infection and persistent immune activation can partially explain this low CD4+ T-cell recovery.

E-selectin mediated adhesion and migration of endothelial colony forming cells is enhanced by SDF-1α/CXCR4.

Objective: Endothelial-colony forming cells (ECFCs) can be readily expanded from human umbilical cord blood and can facilitate repair of endothelial injury. E-selectin and SDF-1α are produced following endothelial injury and can regulate endothelial progenitor homing. Mechanisms of vascular repair specific to the mode of injury have not been well described in homogenous cell populations such as ECFCs and are needed for development of more effective vascular repair strategies.