Patients with Schizophrenia Undergoing Gastric Bypass Surgery: a Case Series Study.

Purpose: Obesity affects approximately 45-55% of persons with schizophrenia and is more difficult to manage in these individuals than in the general population, apart from being an additional factor for morbidity and premature mortality. Although bariatric surgery is considered the most effective long-term treatment for severe obesity, there are few reports on the outcomes of this procedure in persons with schizophrenia. This study aimed to evaluate weight loss and psychiatric symptoms in persons with obesity and schizophrenia after bariatric surgery.

Indirect and direct costs of treating patients with ankylosing spondylitis in the Brazilian public health system.

Introduction: Patients with ankylosing spondylitis require a team approach from multiple professionals, various treatment modalities for continuous periods of time, and can lead to the loss of labour capacity in a young population. So, it is necessary to measure its socio-economic impact.

Objectives: To describe the use of public resources to treat AS in a tertiary hospital after the use of biological medications was approved for treating spondyloarthritis in the Health Public System, establishing approximate values for the direct and indirect costs of treating this illness in Brazil.

Reduced levels of cytosolic DNA sensor AIM2 are associated with impaired cytokine responses in healthy elderly.

Objective: Human aging is associated with remodeling of the immune system. While most studies on immunosenescence have focused on adaptive immunity, the effects of aging on innate immunity are not well understood. Here, we investigated whether aging affects cytokine responses to a wide range of well-defined pattern recognition receptor (PRR) ligands, such as ligands for Toll-like receptors (TLRs), C-type lectin receptors (CLRs), NOD-like receptors (NLRs), retinoic-acid-inducible gene-I like receptors (RLRs) and the cytosolic DNA sensor absent in melanoma 2 (AIM2).

Aging-dependent decline of IL-10 producing B cells coincides with production of antinuclear antibodies but not rheumatoid factors.

Aging is associated with development of autoimmunity. Loss of B cell tolerance in the elderly is suggested by an increased prevalence of anti-nuclear antibodies (ANAs) and rheumatoid factors (RFs). Accumulating evidence indicates that B cells also impact autoimmunity via secretion of cytokines.

Low-affinity TCR engagement drives IL-2-dependent post-thymic maintenance of naive CD4+ T cells in aged humans.

Insight into the maintenance of naive T cells is essential to understand defective immune responses in the context of aging and other immune compromised states. In humans, naive CD4+ T cells, in contrast to CD8+ T cells, are remarkably well retained with aging. Here, we show that low-affinity TCR engagement is the main driving force behind the emergence and accumulation of naive-like CD4+ T cells with enhanced sensitivity to IL-2 in aged humans.

Quantifying Distribution of Flow Cytometric TCR-Vβ Usage with Economic Statistics.

Measuring changes of the T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire is important to many fields of medicine. Flow cytometry is a popular technique to study the TCR repertoire, as it quickly provides insight into the TCR-Vβ usage among well-defined populations of T cells. However, the interpretation of the flow cytometric data remains difficult, and subtle TCR repertoire changes may go undetected.

Aging disturbs the balance between effector and regulatory CD4+ T cells.

Healthy aging requires an optimal balance between pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory immune responses. Although CD4+ T cells play an essential role in many immune responses, few studies have directly assessed the effect of aging on the balance between effector T (Teff) cells and regulatory T (Treg) cells. Here, we determined if and how aging affects the ratio between Treg and Teff cells.

IL-8 but not other biomarkers of endothelial damage is associated with disease activity in patients with ankylosing spondylitis without treatment with anti-TNF agents.

The objective of the study was to investigate the association between IL-8 and other biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction (MCP-1, V-CAM, I-CAM) and the disease activity scores in a sample of 54 patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) without use of biological agents. Fifty-four AS patients without treatment with anti-TNFs agents between 18 and 80 years old, who met modified New York criteria and at the same time the axial ASAS criteria, were evaluated using an epidemiological questionnaire that included among others clinical data, BASDAI, BASFI, ASQoL, ASDAS and plasma levels of CRP, ESR, MCP-1, IL-8, ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. IL-8 varied in proportion to disease activity rates (BASDAI and ASDAS) p < 0.

Rituximab-induced regression of CREST-related calcinosis.

About a quarter of sclerodermic patients present calcinosis. However, patients with limited form of the disease are more likely to have calcinosis than patients with diffuse form. We report a case of a 54-year-old female patient with limited cutaneous scleroderma using rituximab (RTX) to treat lung fibrosis and arthritis.