Intranasal administration of abatacept enhances IL-35+ and IL-10+ producing Bregs in lung tissues of ovalbumin-sensitized asthmatic mice model.

Backgrounds: Treating asthmatic rheumatoid arthritis patients with abatacept has been shown to associate with better control of asthma symptoms. However, the mechanism behind that is not investigated.

Methods: Ovalbumin (OVA)- sensitized BALB/c female mice were treated intranasally (IN) or intraperitoneally (IP) with abatacept 4 hrs before the OVA challenge.

Characterization of pyrene and chrysene degradation by halophilic Hortaea sp. B15.

Polycyclic aromatics hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous and toxic pollutants that are dangerous to humans and living organism in aquatic environment. Normally, PAHs has lower molecular weight such as phenanthrene and naphthalene that are easy and efficient to degrade, but high-molecular-weight PAHs such as chrysene and pyrene are difficult to be biodegraded by common microorganism. This study investigated the isolation and characterization of a potential halophilic bacterium capable of utilizing two high-molecular-weight PAHs.

Th-17 regulatory cytokines inhibit corticosteroid induced airway structural cells apoptosis.

Background: Although corticosteroid is a powerful anti-inflammatory drug that is used widely to control asthma, still severe asthmatics can develop steroid resistance. Airway fibroblasts are quite resistant to steroids during Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and fibrosis in asthmatic lungs is not always controlled. Th-17 regulatory cytokine which are elevated in lung tissues of asthmatics were shown to enhance the survival of various types of cells.

IL-17 Enhances Chemotaxis of Primary Human B Cells during Asthma.

IL-17 is a pro-inflammatory mediator that is believed to play a critical role in regulating tissue inflammation during asthma, COPD, as well as other inflammatory disorders. The level of expression of IL-17 has been shown to be upregulated in lung bronchial tissue of asthmatic patients. Several reports have provided further evidence that this cytokine could play a key role in enhancing the migration of inflammatory as well as structural cells of the bronchial lung tissue during asthma and COPD.