Factors Associated with Neutralizing Antibody Responses following 2-Dose and 3rd Booster Monovalent COVID-19 Vaccination in Japanese People Living with HIV.

People living with HIV (PLWH) could be at risk of blunted immune responses to COVID-19 vaccination. We investigated factors associated with neutralizing antibody (NAb) responses against SARS-CoV-2 and variants of concern (VOCs), following two-dose and third booster monovalent COVID-19 mRNA vaccination in Japanese PLWH. NAb titers were assessed in polyclonal IgG fractions by lentiviral-based pseudovirus assays.

The treatment choices and outcome of hepatocellular carcinoma in hemophilic patients with human immunodeficiency virus/hepatitis C virus (HIV/HCV) coinfection due to contaminated blood products in Japan.

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection through unheated blood product for hemophilia caused in early 1980s has been significantly serious problem in Japan. After the development of HIV treatment in 1990s, HCV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been one of the most significant problem in these population. Treatment choices for HCC might be limited in hemophilia patients because of their bleeding tendency.

Correlates of telomere length shortening in peripheral leukocytes of HIV-infected individuals and association with leukoaraiosis.

Telomere length (TL) is a marker of cellular and biological aging. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has been reported to be associated with short TLs, which suggests that accelerated biological aging occurs in some cellular compartments of HIV+ individuals. In this study, we measured the TLs of peripheral leukocytes of HIV+ and healthy individuals and examined the biological and environmental correlates of TL.

Clinical characteristics of HIV-1-infected patients with high levels of plasma interferon-γ: a multicenter observational study.

Background: Circulating interferon-γ (IFN-γ) concentration may be sustained at a high level regardless of the initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in some patients with HIV-1 infection. In the present study, we examined the clinical characteristics of HIV-1-infected patients with high levels of plasma IFN-γ.

Methods: The study subjects were patients infected with HIV-1 who were either naïve to ART with CD4 cell count > 200 cells/μL (n = 12), or had achieved viral suppression after ART for over a year (n = 188).

Addition of maraviroc to antiretroviral therapy decreased interferon-γ mRNA in the CD4+ T cells of patients with suboptimal CD4+ T-cell recovery.

The CCR5 antagonist, maraviroc (MVC), is associated with an enhanced CD4+ T-cell response independent of virological suppression; however, its mechanism of action has not been elucidated. In this study, we confirmed the effect of MVC on CD4+ T-cell count recovery in immunological non-responders, and compared the conventional combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) with MVC-intensified cART. We also investigated the effect of MVC on interferon-γ (IFN-γ) production in CD4+ T cells in vitro and in vivo, and evaluated the relationship between the mRNA level of IFN-γ and the degree of CD4+ T-cell count recovery.

[The Usefulness of the Scan with 67Ga-citrate to Assess the Therapeutic Effect on Pneumocystis pneumonia with HIV-1 Infection].

Objective: Peumocystis pneumonia (PCP) is one of the common opportunistic infections with severe respiratory failure, and is sometimes life-threatening in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Although treatment for PCP is established, an appropriate treatment period has not been evaluated to clarify the risk factors for immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) associated with PCP.

Method: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical characteristics of risk factor, which are the treatment period for PCP, and 67Ga scintigraphy (Ga-S) at the 21st day from the start of the treatment for PCP, with 21 cases of PCP and HIV infection treated during 2005-2012 at Kyushu Medical Center.

Corticoid therapy for overlapping syndromes in an HIV-positive patient.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection disturbs the host's immune function and often coexists with various autoimmune and/or systemic rheumatic diseases with manifestations that sometimes overlap with each other. We herein present the case of a 43-year-old Japanese man infected with HIV who exhibited elevated serum creatine kinase and transaminases levels without any symptoms. He was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis, polymyositis and Sjögren's syndrome and received combined antiretroviral therapy (cART); however, the laboratory abnormalities persisted.

[Clinical study of giant cell arteritis in our hospital].

Objective: To investigate clinical and laboratory features of giant cell arteritis (GCA).

Method: We included 24 patients (6 men, 18 women; mean age 69.8 years) in this study.

[CMV-induced duodenal papillitis in a patient with HIV-1 infection].

We present herein a case report of a 59-year-old patient with HIV-1 infection who developed a CMV-induced pseudotumor of the duodenum. The patient presented with oral pain and dysphagia. Physical examination revealed oral thrush.

[Rapidly progressive pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis : a case report].

A 68-year-old female who had Raynaud phenomenon for a decade was admitted to our hospital in January 2012. She complained of sclerodactyly and scleroderma that did not extend past the elbows. She also had fingertip ulcers that repeatedly disappeared and recurred for several years.

A case of refractory adult-onset Still's disease with high serum interleukin-18 levels treated with monitoring of serum levels of cyclosporine.

We report the case of a 31-year-old woman who developed adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) with a high level of serum interleukin (IL)-18. Although treated with high dose steroids, she suffered repeated remissions and her condition deteriorated. After we administered oral cyclosporine A (CsA), 200 mg/d, monitoring C2 and trough levels, her symptoms improved significantly.

[Simultaneous relapse of Basedow's disease in a patient with adult-onset Still's disease].

This report describes a 50-year-old woman with coexisting Basedow's disease and adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) that relapsed simultaneously. She was diagnosed with Basedow's disease in 1999, and treatment with antithyroid agents was started. However, the treatment was soon stopped because of severe side effects.

A case of relapsing polychondritis associated with auricular cartilage infiltration of immunoglobulin G4-positive plasma cells and lung cancer.

A 79-year-old man was diagnosed with relapsing polychondritis, from symptoms of bilateral auricular deformity and pigmentation, polyarthralgia, and audiovestibular damage, and from histological examination of the left auricular cartilage. The left auricular cartilage biopsy specimen revealed cartilage destruction with infiltration of plasmacytes expressing IgG4. This case suggests that IgG4 may be involved in the pathogenesis and etiology of relapsing polychondritis.

A case of Takayasu's arteritis associated with human leukocyte antigen A24 and B52 following resolution of ulcerative colitis and subacute thyroiditis.

A 46-year-old female with a past history of ulcerative colitis (UC) was diagnosed with subacute thyroiditis (SAT), which improved with prednisolone (PSL) treatment (60 mg/day). The dose of PSL was gradually decreased, however upper back and neck pain and chest discomfort developed. The patient was diagnosed with Takayasu's arteritis (TA) based on wall thickening and luminal narrowing of the left common carotid artery and the left subclavian artery.

Idiopathic portal hypertension in a patient with mixed connective tissue disease and protein C deficiency.

We report a 29-year-old woman with a 2.5 year history of mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) who developed idiopathic portal hypertension (IPH) and thrombocytopenia as a result of hypersplenism. She had recurrent esophagogastric variceal rupture.

Comparison of the influence of four classes of HIV antiretrovirals on adipogenic differentiation: the minimal effect of raltegravir and atazanavir.

Antiretroviral therapy for HIV infection is associated with lipodystrophy. However, raltegravir (RAL), a new integrase inhibitor, and atazanavir (ATV), a new generation of protease inhibitor (PI), have not been reported to significantly induce metabolic abnormalities in some clinical studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence and molecular mechanisms of RAL and compared it with the other three classes of ARVs (nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors; NRTI, nonnucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor; NNRTI, and PI) on adipogenesis using 3T3-L1 cells.

Churg-Strauss syndrome: a retrospective study of 11 cases from a single center in Japan.

Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics of patients with Churg-Strauss syndrome (CSS), including symptoms, blood chemistry and immunological findings.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively investigated the records of 11 patients (six female and five male) with CSS admitted to our hospital from September 2003 to October 2009.

Results: Eight patients had preceding symptoms including bronchial asthma and allergic rhinitis.

Churg-Strauss syndrome associated with elevated levels of serum interleukin-5 and T cell receptor-Cβ gene rearrangement.

A 58-year-old woman was diagnosed with Churg-Strauss syndrome (CSS) based on the symptoms of bronchial asthma, eosinophilia, mononeuritis multiplex and histological examination of the right sural nerve. Prior to treatment, the serum interleukin (IL)-5 level was high, and rearrangement of the T cell receptor (TCR) gene was identified. This is the first report of TCR gene rearrangement in a patient with CSS.

Clinical analysis of cerebrospinal fluid interleukin-6 in neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: To clarify the clinical usefulness of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) interleukin-6 (IL-6) measurement in patients with neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE), we studied CSF IL-6 levels in patients with NPSLE and analyzed the association between CSF IL-6 levels and other clinical findings of NPSLE.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively analyzed records of 37 patients (33 females and four males) with NPSLE admitted to our hospital between January 2003 and December 2008.

Results: All patients showed neuropsychiatric symptoms.

An infected abdominal aortic aneurysm due to non-typhoidal Salmonella in an HIV-1-infected Japanese patient.

We herein report a case study of an HIV-1-infected 64-year-old Japanese man who presented, with an abdominal aortic aneurysm due to non-typhoidal Salmonella. He was admitted with a 7-day history of intermittent left back pain. A culture of a blood specimen yielded gram-negative bacilli, which were identified as non-typhoidal Salmonella.

Refractory antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis successfully treated with rituximab: a case report.

A 63-year-old-man was diagnosed in March 2002 with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis because of mononeuritis multiplex, interstitial pneumonia and a positive finding for myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA. Although treated with prednisolone and oral cyclophosphamide, he suffered repeated remission and deterioration of his conditon, which was complicated by hypertrophic pachymeningitis and sinusitis. In July 2006, he was diagnosed with an exacerbation of ANCA-associated vasculitis because of pyrexia, general malaise, numbness in his face and legs, and elevated serum CRP level.

Whole brain radiation alone produces favourable outcomes for AIDS-related primary central nervous system lymphoma in the HAART era.

Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) related to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a lethal disorder, but the recent application of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has significantly improved prognosis. This retrospective cohort study of AIDS-related PCNSL examined the actual clinical outcomes and prognostic variables affecting overall survival (OS) in the HAART era. Twenty-three newly diagnosed AIDS-related PCNSL at 12 regional centre hospitals for HIV/AIDS in Japan between 2002 and 2008 were consecutively enrolled.

[Microscopic polyangiitis in a patient on hemodialysis : a case report].

A 62-year-old male was admitted to a local hospital due to a clouding of consciousness in October 2006. On admission, his renal function was observed to have severely deteriorated, which is thought to cause disturbance of consciousness. Laboratory data showed blood urea nitrogen to be 160 mg/dl and the serum creatinine level was 25 mg/dl and, as a result, continuous hemodiafiltration (CHDF) was started.

Influenza virus B-associated hemophagocytic syndrome and recurrent pericarditis in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus.

We report a 24-year-old male with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who developed influenza virus B-associated hemophagocytic syndrome and cardiac tamponade. Although the patient's general condition improved after steroid pulse therapy and pericardiocentesis, pericardial effusion re-accumulated. Colchicine and aspirin were administered, together with prednisolone, after which no further relapses occurred.