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Umbilical cord blood (UCB) transplants (UCBTs) are becoming increasingly common in the treatment of a variety of hematologic and nonhematologic conditions. The T cells from UCB are naïve T cells, which have not yet been exposed to antigens and therefore do not contain T cells with specific immune functions against viruses. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections occur in more than 80% of patients after UCBT compared to other types of transplantation. Anti-CMV medications are currently restricted, with ganciclovir, foscarnet, and valganciclovir being the most common in China; however, with limited efficacy and considerable side effects, all these drugs are susceptible to viral resistance. In recent years, cytomegalovirus-specific T cells (CMVST) have advanced the treatment of viral infections in immunodeficient patients. CMVST usually uses the same donor as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. CMVST should be administered to UCBT patients because of the absence of donors after UCBT. In China, there is no report on the use of CMVST to treat CMV infection after UCBT, and foreign reports are also limited. This paper reported a 20-year-old male patient with acute myeloid leukemia who developed cytomegalovirus retinitis (CMVR) after umbilical cord blood transplantation. After ineffective viral treatment, he was treated with a third-party donor CMVST and was successfully transformed into CMV nucleic acid negative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lung cancer is increasing every year and it has high morbidity and mortality. Antitumor immunotherapy is a new method for the treatment of lung cancer. Currently, tumor immunotherapy mainly includes classical immunotherapy and immune-targeted therapy To explore the influence of tumor T-lymphocyte (T-cell) infiltration in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, 100 NSCLC patients diagnosed and treated in Changde Second People's hospital were recruited. Patients were followed up for 3 years. The subjects were divided into a survival group (group S) and a death group (group D). The patient's pathological tissue sections were made, and the degree of T-cell infiltration was counted by H&E (Hematoxylin and eosin) staining. The infiltration degree was graded, and the positive rate of T-cell subsets was calculated by immunohistochemical staining. The 3-year positive rate was 48%, with 48 cases in group S and 52 cases in group D. The positive rate of H&E staining of group S was 100%, including 0 cases of grade 0, 5 cases of grade 1 (10.42%), 16 cases of grade 2 (33.33%), and 27 cases of grade 3 (56.25%). The positive rate of group D was 86.54%, including 4 cases of grade 0 (8.89%), 10 cases of grade 1 (22.22%), 25 cases of grade 2 (55.56%), and 6 cases of grade 3 (13.33%). The total number of T-cell infiltrates in group S was much higher than that in group D (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemical results showed that the mean positive rate of CD8+ T-cell infiltration was 72.1% in group S and 47.6% in group D, with a considerable difference (P < 0.05). No remarkable difference was found in CD4+ and CD25+ (P < 0.05). CD8+ + CD4+, CD8+/CD4+, CD25+/CD8+, CD25+/CD4+, and CD25+/(CD8+ + CD4+) positive rates were calculated, and the difference between group S and group D was substantial in CD8+ + CD4+ (P < 0.05). The results showed that T cells infiltrated by tumors had an immunosuppressive effect on tumor cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ChiCTR-TRC-11001263 study was the first large-scale double-blind randomized placebo-controlled traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) and adefovir (ADV) antihepatitis B virus (HBV) infection trial in the world. A total of 560 hepatitis B e antigen- (HBeAg-) positive Chinese patients with chronical HBV were randomly classified, in 1 : 1 ratio, into two groups: experimental group (EXG) receiving TCMs + ADV and controlled group (CTG) receiving ADV + TCM-placebo treatment for 48 weeks. This paper introduces two models to model and simulate the evolutions of dynamics for the complete-response patients and the poor-response patients in EXG and CTG, respectively. The stimulated mean HBV DNA and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were close to the patients' experimental data. Analysis and simulations suggest that the activated patients' immune functions by TCMs + ADV may not only clear infected hepatocytes, but also clear HBV, which made the complete-response patients' mean serum HBV DNA levels in EXG reduce rapidly 12 weeks' earlier than the ones in CTG. One can assume that both the TCMs and ADV have the function of preventing complete-response patients' infected hepatocytes from being injured by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs); the patients' activated immune cells may also block HBV replications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Henoch–Schönlein purpura nephritis (HSPN) is the principal cause of morbidity and mortality in Henoch–Schönlein purpura (HSP). However, there is no absolute consensus for the best management of severe HSPN till now. Qingzixiaoban Granule (QZXB GR), a traditional Chinese medicine formula, has been applied to treat HSP in clinical in China. However, the therapeutic effects and potential mechanism of QZXB GR on HSPN is still unknown. Methods. A Gliadin plus Indian Ink-induced HSPN mice model was established. Renal histopathologic changes and the subcutaneous hemorrhage on left legs were assessed. Hematuria and proteinuria were determined using hemocytometer and bicinchoninic acid assay, respectively. The serum circular immune complex and interleukin-6 were quantified by ELISA. Using blood biochemical analyzer, the renal biochemical parameters, including serum total protein, albumin, creatinine, and blood urea nitrogen, were measured. The deposition of immune complex in renal tissues and the lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood and spleen was investigated by immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry. Results. QZXB GR treatment significantly ameliorated renal injury in HSPN mice, by attenuating renal histopathological changes, reducing subcutaneous hemorrhage, decreasing proteinuria/hematuria, regulating renal biochemical parameters, and inhibiting the release of serum interleukin-6. Furthermore, QZXB GR treatment significantly decreased the level of serum circular immune complex, decreased immune complex IgA and IgG deposition in renal tissue, and suppressed Th2 immunodeviation. Conclusion. QZXB GR could prevent renal injury in HSPN mice, and its renoprotective mechanism might be exerted partly through suppressing immune complexes deposition and Th2 immune deviation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) continues to confound transplant surgeons and physicians. There are no effective methods to predict the patients at risk for recurrence so far although many studies have sought meaningful biomarkers. The ImmuKnow (IMK) assay is an immune cell function assay that detects cell-mediated immunity in an immunosuppressed population, mainly measuring peripheral blood CD4(+) adenosine triphosphate (ATP) release. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between cellular immune function measured by the ImmuKnow assay and HCC recurrence post-OLT.Methods: A total of 76 HCC cases underwent Donation after Cardiac Death (DCD) liver transplant, which confirmed hepatocellular carcinoma by histology postoperatively. The ImmuKnow assay was prospectively performed in these cases at a range of 6-36 months post-OLT. Every test was repeated 1 week later, obtaining the average value for every patient. In addition, every case had liver imaging findings at approximately the exam time.Results: Fifteen cases with liver imaging findings showed HCC recurrence (19.7%) post-OLT, and the average ImmuKnow assay in these patients was 190 ± 48 ng/ml, which was less (p < 0.05) than in patients without HCC recurrence, whose average ATP level was 313 ± 90 ng/ml. ATP levels post-OLT were found to be significantly associated with the risk of tumour recurrence. The ratio of T reg cells and the levels of TGFβ and IL-10 were higher in recurrence patients than in recurrence-free patients.Conclusion: Greater suppression of cellular immunity, as measured by the ImmuKnow assay, was associated with progression of HCC recurrence post-OLT. ImmuKnow assay was helpful in determining the risk of early recurrence of HCC postliver transplant. A pathway consisting of T reg cells, TGFβ and IL-10 might be the HCC recurrence-predominant pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (URSA) is an alloimmune disease associated with the failure of fetal-maternal immunologic tolerance in which the regulatory T lymphocytes (Treg) play a pivotal role. It is well known that Forkhead box P3 (Foxp3) is a crucial regulatory factor for the development and function of Treg cells. It has also been established that deficiency of the Foxp3 gene suppresses the regulatory function of Treg cells. To determine if functional polymorphisms at the Foxp3 loci are associated with URSA in humans, we genotyped four common polymorphisms of Foxp3 gene in 146 unrelated URSA patients and 112 healthy women. The results showed that rs3761548A/C and rs2232365A/G polymorphisms were significantly associated with URSA. Additionally, we found that the allelic distribution of rs5902434 del/ATT in URSA group was slightly different from that in the control group. We conclude that functional polymorphisms of the Foxp3 gene may confer an important susceptibility to URSA in the Chinese Han population, probably by altering Foxp3 function and/or its expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]