Incidence of second primary malignancies in relapsed/refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients in England.

Background: Treatments for relapsed/refractory (r/r) B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) may be associated with an increased risk of second primary malignancies (SPMs). Currently available SPM incidence benchmarks are unreliable due to small sample sizes.

Methods: The Cancer Analysis System (CAS), a population-level cancer database in England, was used to identify patients with incident B-cell NHL diagnosed during 2013-2018 with evidence of r/r disease.

Identification and Immune Assessment of T Cell Epitopes in Five Blood Stage Antigens to Facilitate Vaccine Candidate Selection and Optimization.

The hurdles to effective blood stage malaria vaccine design include immune evasion tactics used by the parasite such as redundant invasion pathways and antigen variation among circulating parasite strains. While blood stage malaria vaccine development primarily focuses on eliciting optimal humoral responses capable of blocking erythrocyte invasion, clinically-tested (Pf) vaccines have not elicited sterile protection, in part due to the dramatically high levels of antibody needed. Recent development efforts with non-redundant, conserved blood stage antigens suggest both high antibody titer and rapid antibody binding kinetics are important efficacy factors.

Bridging Computational Vaccinology and Vaccine Development Through Systematic Identification, Characterization, and Downselection of Conserved and Variable Circumsporozoite Protein CD4 T Cell Epitopes From Diverse Strains.

An effective malaria vaccine must prevent disease in a range of populations living in regions with vastly different transmission rates and protect against genetically-diverse (Pf) strains. The protective efficacy afforded by the currently licensed malaria vaccine, Mosquirix™, promotes strong humoral responses to Pf circumsporozoite protein (CSP) 3D7 but protection is limited in duration and by strain variation. Helper CD4 T cells are central to development of protective immune responses, playing roles in B cell activation and maturation processes, cytokine production, and stimulation of effector T cells.

Identification, Selection and Immune Assessment of Liver Stage CD8 T Cell Epitopes From .

Immunization with radiation-attenuated sporozoites (RAS) has been shown to protect against malaria infection, primarily through CD8 T cell responses, but protection is limited based on parasite strain. Therefore, while CD8 T cells are an ideal effector population target for liver stage malaria vaccine development strategies, such strategies must incorporate conserved epitopes that cover a large range of class I human leukocyte antigen (HLA) supertypes to elicit cross-strain immunity across the target population. This approach requires identifying and characterizing a wide range of CD8 T cell epitopes for incorporation into a vaccine such that coverage across a large range of class I HLA alleles is attained.

Better Epitope Discovery, Precision Immune Engineering, and Accelerated Vaccine Design Using Immunoinformatics Tools.

Computational vaccinology includes epitope mapping, antigen selection, and immunogen design using computational tools. Tools that facilitate the prediction of immune response to biothreats, emerging infectious diseases, and cancers can accelerate the design of novel and next generation vaccines and their delivery to the clinic. Over the past 20 years, vaccinologists, bioinformatics experts, and advanced programmers based in Providence, Rhode Island, USA have advanced the development of an integrated toolkit for vaccine design called iVAX, that is secure and user-accessible by internet.

identification and modification of T cell epitopes in pertussis antigens associated with tolerance.

The resurgence of whooping cough since the introduction of acellular (protein) vaccines has led to a renewed interest in the development of improved pertussis vaccines; Outer Membrane Vesicles (OMVs) carrying pertussis antigens have emerged as viable candidates. An immunogenicity screen was carried out on 49 well-known proteins in order to better understand their potential role toward the efficacy of pertussis OMVs for vaccine design; seven proteins were identified as being good candidates for including in optimized cellular and acellular pertussis vaccines. We then screened these antigens for putative tolerance-inducing sequences, as proteins with reduced tolerogenicity have improved vaccine potency in preclinical models.

Multi-antigen Vaccination With Simultaneous Engagement of the OX40 Receptor Delays Malignant Mesothelioma Growth and Increases Survival in Animal Models.

Malignant Mesothelioma (MM) is a rare and highly aggressive cancer that develops from mesothelial cells lining the pleura and other internal cavities, and is often associated with asbestos exposure. To date, no effective treatments have been made available for this pathology. Herein, we propose a novel immunotherapeutic approach based on a unique vaccine targeting a series of antigens that we found expressed in different MM tumors, but largely undetectable in normal tissues.

Bridging the [Health Equity] Gap at a Free Clinic for Uninsured Residents of Rhode Island.

Poor management of chronic diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes, particularly among the uninsured, places medical and financial burdens on the healthcare system. Clínica Esperanza/Hope Clinic initiated a chronic disease management program for uninsured residents of Rhode Island (RI) called Bridging the [Health Equity] Gap (BTG), which offers continuity of care, quarterly goal-setting appointments, and healthy lifestyle interventions. Outcomes for 549 participants from the initial evaluation period are presented here.