Cardiotoxicity: A Major Setback in Childhood Leukemia Treatment.

Ongoing research in the field of pediatric oncology has led to an increased number of childhood cancer survivors reaching adulthood. Therefore, ensuring a good quality of life for these patients has become a rising priority. Considering this, the following review focuses on summarizing the most recent research in anthracycline-induced cardiac toxicity in children treated for leukemia.

The Role of Vitamin D Deficiency in Children With Recurrent Wheezing-Clinical Significance.

Recurrent wheezing (RW) in infancy is one of the most frequent reasons for parents to consult health care providers and creates a significant global burden. Clinical course of RW is difficult to predict, also which infants will progress to asthma, since no valid biomarkers have been established. Identification of those infants with RW who are at risk of further recurrences and/or severe acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) could help pediatricians to improve their therapeutic decisions.

A Review of Macrophage MicroRNAs' Role in Human Asthma.

There is an imbalance in asthma between classically activated macrophages (M1 cells) and alternatively activated macrophages (M2 cells) in favor of the latter. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a critical role in regulating macrophage proliferation and differentiation and control the balance of M1 and M2 macrophage polarization, thereby controlling immune responses. Here we review the current published data concerning miRNAs with known correlation to a specific human macrophage phenotype and polarization, and their association with adult asthma.

Chondroprotective effects of pulsed shortwave therapy in rabbits with experimental osteoarthritis.

Introduction: Osteoarthritis (OA) represents a public health challenge since the pathogenic treatment, able to induce cartilage regeneration, still remains unknown. Ageing of the population and increasing OA prevalence have led to a lot of research, aiming to identify treatments acting on chondrocytes that play a determinant role in cartilage degeneration÷regeneration balance. Pulsed shortwave therapy (with the classical application form - Diapulse) is a physiotherapy method with anabolic effects demonstrated on nervous, conjunctive and vascular tissues, but its effects on OA cartilage are not known.

Vitamin D increases the antiviral activity of bronchial epithelial cells in vitro.

Background: By modulating the antiviral immune response via vitamin D receptor, the active form of vitamin D (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, calcitriol) could play a central role in protection against respiratory virus infections. This in vitro study tested the hypothesis that respiratory viruses modulate vitamin D receptor expression in human bronchial epithelial cells and this modulation affects the antiviral response to exogenous vitamin D.

Methods: Human primary bronchial epithelial cells were infected with rhinoviruses and respiratory syncytial virus in the presence or absence of vitamin D.

Vitamin D modulation of innate immune responses to respiratory viral infections.

Vitamin D, in addition to its classical functions in bone homeostasis, has a modulatory and regulatory role in multiple processes, including host defense, inflammation, immunity, and epithelial repair. Patients with respiratory disease are frequently deficient in vitamin D, implying that supplementation might provide significant benefit to these patients. Respiratory viral infections are common and are the main trigger of acute exacerbations and hospitalization in children and adults with asthma and other airways diseases.

The role of macrophage IL-10/innate IFN interplay during virus-induced asthma.

Activation through different signaling pathways results in two functionally different types of macrophages, the pro-inflammatory (M1) and the anti-inflammatory (M2). The polarization of macrophages toward the pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype is considered to be critical for efficient antiviral immune responses in the lung. Among the various cell types that are present in the asthmatic airways, macrophages have emerged as significant participants in disease pathogenesis, because of their activation during both the inflammatory and resolution phases, with an impact on disease progression.

Soluble major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain B molecules are increased and correlate with clinical outcomes during rhinovirus infection in healthy subjects.

Background: Surface major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain (MIC) A and B molecules are increased by IL-15 and have a role in the activation of natural killer group 2 member D-positive natural killer and CD8 T cells. MICA and MICB also exist in soluble forms (sMICA and sMICB). Rhinoviruses (RVs) are the major cause of asthma exacerbations, and IL-15 levels are decreased in the airways of subjects with asthma.

Could interleukin-15 potentiate histone deacetylase inhibitor effects in haematological malignancy?

Despite significant progress in cancer therapy, prognosis in acute leukaemia remains dismal, and the development of new therapies is urgently warranted: in acute myeloid leukaemia, the current cure rate is of 30-40% in younger and much less in older patients. Chromatin remodeling through histone acetylation is one of the major mechanisms of transcriptional control of genes, and is involved in 'gene silencing' of antioncogenes in various tumour cells. Chromatin remodeling is also involved in transcriptional control of other genes, such as NKG2D ligand genes.

Systemic sclerosis-polymyositis overlap syndrome associated with autoimmune hepatitis and cerebral vasculitis.

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a chronic disorder characterized by persistent hepatocellular inflammation and necrosis. AIH overlap syndromes with other autoimmune diseases have been reported, including connective tissue diseases (CTD). Reports of AIH in systemic sclerosis (SSc), however, are scarce and have been particularly described in the limited SSc subtype.

Immunological pathways in virus-induced COPD exacerbations: a role for IL-15.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by high levels of antiviral type 1 cytokine interferon-γ and activated CD8(+) T cells. COPD exacerbations are the major cause of morbidity and mortality, have a prolonged and intense effect on quality of life and may result in accelerated loss of lung function. Respiratory virus infections, frequently within a state of colonization by bacteria, are the major cause of COPD exacerbations, and there is also evidence of virus latency in 'stable' disease, suggesting that latent infection might be a cause of chronic inflammation in COPD.

Role of PD-L1/PD-1 in the immune response to respiratory viral infections.

Airway epithelial cells are the main cells infected by respiratory viruses including rhinoviruses and respiratory syncytial virus. Virus modulation of inhibitory molecule PD-L1 on epithelial cells may be important in limiting anti-viral effector CD8(+) T cell responses and, consequently, worsening acute virus-induced lung tissue damage.

The role of IL-15 deficiency in the pathogenesis of virus-induced asthma exacerbations.

Rhinovirus infections are the major cause of asthma exacerbations. We hypothesised that IL-15, a cytokine implicated in innate and acquired antiviral immunity, may be deficient in asthma and important in the pathogenesis of asthma exacerbations. We investigated regulation of IL-15 induction by rhinovirus in human macrophages in vitro, IL-15 levels in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid and IL-15 induction by rhinovirus in BAL macrophages from asthmatic and control subjects, and related these to outcomes of infection in vivo.

RSV-induced bronchial epithelial cell PD-L1 expression inhibits CD8+ T cell nonspecific antiviral activity.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major cause of bronchiolitis in infants. It is also responsible for high morbidity and mortality in the elderly. Programmed death ligands (PD-Ls) on antigen-presenting cells interact with receptors on T cells to regulate immune responses.