Sterile iris abscess associated with herpes zoster ophthalmicus.

Purpose: To report a case of a sterile iris abscess associated with herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO).

Observations: A 69-year-old African American female presented to SUNY Downstate Medical Center complaining of left-sided eye pain for two weeks. The patient had a best-corrected visual acuity of 20/30 OD and 20/200 OS.

Ets transcription factor GABP controls T cell homeostasis and immunity.

Peripheral T cells are maintained in the absence of vigorous stimuli, and respond to antigenic stimulation by initiating cell cycle progression and functional differentiation. Here we show that depletion of the Ets family transcription factor GA-binding protein (GABP) in T cells impairs T-cell homeostasis. In addition, GABP is critically required for antigen-stimulated T-cell responses in vitro and in vivo.

The cellular and molecular origin of tumor-associated macrophages.

Long recognized as an evolutionarily ancient cell type involved in tissue homeostasis and immune defense against pathogens, macrophages are being rediscovered as regulators of several diseases, including cancer. Here we show that in mice, mammary tumor growth induces the accumulation of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) that are phenotypically and functionally distinct from mammary tissue macrophages (MTMs). TAMs express the adhesion molecule Vcam1 and proliferate upon their differentiation from inflammatory monocytes, but do not exhibit an "alternatively activated" phenotype.

TGF-β cytokine signaling promotes CD8+ T cell development and low-affinity CD4+ T cell homeostasis by regulation of interleukin-7 receptor α expression.

Interleukin-7 receptor α chain (IL-7Rα) is induced upon T cell positive selection and controls thymic CD8-lineage specification and peripheral naive T cell homeostasis. How IL-7Rα expression is regulated in developing thymocytes is unclear. Here, we show that transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) signaling promoted IL-7Rα expression and CD8+ T cell differentiation.