Peripheral immune cell markers in children with recurrent respiratory infections in the absence of primary immunodeficiency.

The immune system of a child has a degree of immaturity that is maintained until 6-7 years of age. Immaturity may be due to age-related functional disorders in the immune response. A healthy child can contract a series of infections which contribute to the maturation of the immune system during the pre-pubertal period.

Natural killer cell monitoring in cutaneous melanoma - new dynamic biomarker.

Melanoma is responsible for most skin cancer deaths in humans. The immune system plays a major role in regulating tumor cell proliferation by initiating defence responses against tumor aggression. Research on murine cancer models allow for a better understanding of immune response in malignancies, revealing specific changes of the immune status in the presence of tumors.

Phenotypic changes of lymphocyte populations in psoriasiform dermatitis animal model.

Psoriasis is a T cell mediated, chronic inflammatory autoimmune skin disease that affects up to 2-3% of the global population and leads to a decrease in quality of life. Experimental data accumulated in recent years highlighted the important role played by the immune system in the pathogenesis of this disease. Non-human psoriasis models are an important research tool that attempts to reproduce the clinical features of the disease in order to explain the pathogenesis of psoriasis and to identify possible therapeutic targets.

Detection of EWS/FLI-1 fusion in non-Ewing soft tissue tumors.

Objectives: EWS/FLI-1 fusion mainly appears in Ewing's sarcoma or the primitive neuroectodermal tumors and represents a genomic marker for these tumors. However, it can appear with lower frequency in other soft tissue tumors. The paper investigates the presence of EWS/FLI-1 fusion in clinically diagnosed sarcoma belonging to different non-Ewing connective tissue tumors in order to search for a possible new biomarker valuable for investigators.

Immunological investigations in prostatic pathology--a prospective study.

Background: BPH with prostatitis represents one of the most common urological pathologies affecting most men. The etiology of both conditions remains at the discretion of the various assumptions.

Objectives: The body's cellular immune response in prostate adenoma is a less studied aspect which we have focused on, in this paper.

Dynamics of telopodes (telocyte prolongations) in cell culture depends on extracellular matrix protein.

Telocytes (TC) are cells with telopodes (Tp), very long prolongations (up to 100 μm) with an uneven caliber ( www.telocytes.com ).

Detection of EWS/FLI-1 fusion in non-Ewing soft tissue tumors.

Objectives: EWS/FLI-1 fusion mainly appears in Ewing's sarcoma or the primitive neuroectodermal tumors and represents a genomic marker for these tumors. However, it can appear with lower frequency in other soft tissue tumors. The paper investigates the presence of EWS/FLI-1 fusion in clinically diagnosed sarcoma belonging to different non-Ewing connective tissue tumors in order to search for a possible new biomarker valuable for investigators.

Regulatory T cells and TH1/TH2 cytokines as immunodiagnosis keys in systemic autoimmune diseases.

We assessed Helper T-cell involvement and possibilities to quantify the cell-based immune response in systemic autoimmune diseases (SAID) in 14 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and 7 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. The goals of investigation were T-CD4+/T-CD8+ ratio, regulatory T cells (Treg) status and TH1/TH2 serum cytokine profiles (IFN-gamma and IL-2, respectively IL-4 and IL-6). SLE group proved significant decreased average Treg value as compared to RA group and controls and showed significant low Treg incidence (86% patients).

Effects of menadione, hydrogen peroxide, and quercetin on apoptosis and delayed luminescence of human leukemia Jurkat T-cells.

Menadione (MD) is an effective cytotoxic drug able to produce intracellularly large amounts of superoxide anion. Quercetin (QC), a widely distributed bioflavonoid, can exert both antioxidant and pro-oxidant effects and is known to specifically inhibit cell proliferation and induce apoptosis in different cancer cell types. We have investigated the relation between delayed luminescence (DL) induced by UV-laser excitation and the effects of MD, hydrogen peroxide, and QC on apoptosis and cell cycle in human leukemia Jurkat T-cells.

CD28 T-cell costimulatory molecule expression in pemphigus vulgaris.

Background: CD28 superfamily of immune costimulatory molecules could play an important role in autotolerance control. CD28 costimulation seems to be necessary for regulatory T cell (Treg) activation and successive suppressive activities involved in autoimmunity protection. This study investigates CD28 expression, especially inducible costimulator fraction, on T lymphocytes in pemphigus vulgaris (PV) patients.

[TGF-beta2 involvements in open angle glaucoma].

Purpose: To emphasize the correlation between TGF beta2 and primary open angle glaucoma (POAG).

Methods: Observational clinical study on two groups of patients: group I--17 patients with POAG who need surgical approach and group II--16 patients without glaucoma. The groups were homogeneous regarding age and sex.

Prolonged treatment with interferon alpha and peginterferon induces rheumatoid arthritis syndrome and erythema nodosum.

The antiviral treatment of chronic C hepatitis has improved significantly over the past decade with the introduction of interferons (IFNs), and more recently, pegylated IFNs. Up to two-thirds of all patients treated with pegylated IFN combined with ribavirin can now achieve viral eradication if treated according to current guidelines. Despite this success rate, hematological, immunological, rheumatological and dermatological side effects have been reported in chronic hepatitis C patients treated with IFN-alpha.

ICAM-1, ELAM-1, TNF-alpha and IL-6 in serum and blister liquid of pemphigus vulgaris patients.

The levels of ICAM-1, ELAM-1, TNF-alpha and IL-6 were determined in 12 patients with pemphigus vulgaris (PV) both in serum and the blister liquid. As a control, the same parameters were determined in 7 patients with herpes zoster (HZ). The patients with PV presented significantly higher values of ICAM-1 in the blister liquid, as compared to the serum values.

Photodynamic treatment of basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma with hypericin.

Hypericin displays antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects on tumor cells. This effect depends on photodynamic activation with visible light and oxygen. Hence, we explored its potential use in treating skin cancer.

Tumoral infiltrate after local treatment with interferon in squamous cell carcinoma.

Using monoclonal antibodies UCHL-1 (T lymphocytes), MT-1 (pan T) and L-26 (B lymphocytes) in the study of the tumoral infiltrate after local treatment with alpha interferon (Roferon) in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lower lip, it was observed that: the proportion of UCHL-1 positive cells was between 30% and 80%, the proportion of MT-1 positive cells was of 85% and that of the L-26 positive cells was of 30% of all the cells in the infiltrate. In the area in which after treatment with interferon the tumoral structures had disappeared, the proportion of T lymphocytes was smaller than in the areas in which the tumoral structures were still present. The therapeutic effect of interferon is due both to the direct effects on the tumoral cell and also to the indirect effects, namely the activation of the cytotoxic T lymphocytes and of other cells in the tumoral infiltrate.

Interleukin-2 (IL-2) in the treatment of malignant brain tumors (glioblastomas).

The present study is aimed to provide a new possible approach to the treatment of glioblastomas, in an effort to control the extremely severe evolution of these tumors. Thus, from May 28, 1991, we started the administration of IL-2 (produced at the "Victor Babeş" Institute, Bucharest) in 9 glioblastoma patients (operated on at the Neurosurgery department VII of the "G. Marinescu" Hospital, Bucharest) by repeated intraoperative and postoperative local injections.

[The action of the supernatants from human lymphocyte cultures on E-active rosette formation].

Lymphocytes separated from 20 normal subjects were introduced in two rosetation systems: the first was modulated rosetation (REM) with phytohemaglutinina (PHA), concanavalina A (Con. A). Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mbt), and tumoral extract from ocular malignant melanoma (ET-MMO): the second was E-active modulated rosetation with supernatants from human lymphocyte cultures stimulated with PHA, Con A, Mbf and ET-MMO (REM-S), he average values of percentages of rosettes forming cells in the two systems REM and REM-S are comparable.

[Functional E rosette study pre and post laser treatment in malignant ocular melanoma].

For 11 patients with ocular malignant melanoma (OMM) suspicion, before and after laser photocoagulation therapy, by E rosette test were studied. A higher activation and sensitisation to OMM antigen was obtained after laser therapy in 9 patients. These results suggest the influence of laser treatment on lymphocyte function by "revealing" the physiological reactivity.