Frequency of Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific CD8+ T-cells in the course of anti-tuberculosis treatment.

Anti-tuberculosis drug treatment is known to affect the number, phenotype, and effector functionality of antigen-specific T-cells. In order to objectively gauge Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB)-specific CD8+ T-cells at the single-cell level, we developed soluble major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I multimers/peptide multimers, which allow analysis of antigen-specific T-cells without ex vivo manipulation or functional tests. We constructed 38 MHC class I multimers covering some of the most frequent MHC class I alleles (HLA-A*02:01, A*24:02, A*30:01, A*30:02, A*68:01, B*58:01, and C*07:01) pertinent to a South African or Zambian population, and presenting the following MTB-derived peptides: the early expressed secreted antigens TB10.

Effects in postmenopausal women of estradiol and medroxyprogesterone alone and combined on resistance artery function and endothelial morphology and movement.

Context: Endothelial dysfunction in resistance arteries after menopause is important for the development of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Objectives: Our objectives were to study the effects of different hormone replacement therapies on the function and morphology of isolated resistance arteries, and to look for their mechanistic basis.

Design And Setting: This was a randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind study in a University hospital, along with laboratory based studies.

Endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor in preeclampsia: heterogeneous contribution, mechanisms, and morphological prerequisites.

We hypothesized that in preeclampsia (PE), contribution of endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) and the mechanism/s of its action differ from that in normal pregnancy (NP). We aimed to assess endothelial function and morphology in arteries from NP and PE with particular focus on EDHF. Arteries ( approximately 200 mum) were dissected from subcutaneous fat biopsies obtained from women undergoing cesarean section.

The oestrogen receptor beta contributes to sex related differences in endothelial function of murine small arteries via EDHF.

Sex related differences in cardiovascular function have been reported in oestrogen receptor beta knockout (ERbetaKO) mice. In this study we examined the role of endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) in differences in small artery endothelial function between ERbetaKO and wild-type (WT) mice. Small femoral arteries were isolated from ERbetaKO and WT mice and mounted on a wire myograph.

Small artery endothelial dysfunction in postmenopausal women: in vitro function, morphology, and modification by estrogen and selective estrogen receptor modulators.

Objective: Our objective was to assess vascular endothelial function and morphology in resistance vasculature from healthy pre- and postmenopausal women in vitro and to determine potential mechanisms of vascular protection by estrogenic compounds.

Methods: Arteries (approximately 220 microm) were dissected from sc fat biopsies obtained from healthy premenopausal and postmenopausal women. Flow-mediated dilatation, agonist-induced endothelium-dependent and -independent relaxation, and myogenic responses to changes in intraluminal pressure were evaluated before and after incubation (3 h) with 17beta-estradiol, propyl pyrazole triol [a selective estrogen receptor-alpha (ERalpha) agonist], raloxifene (a second-generation selective ER modulator), and the phytoestrogen genistein, using pressure myography technique.