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The interaction between regulatory T (Treg) cells and self-reactive T cells is a crucial mechanism for maintaining immune tolerance. In this study, we investigated the cross-activation of Treg cells by self-antigens and its impact on self-reactive CD8+ T cell responses, with a focus on the P53 signaling pathway. We discovered that major histocompatibility complex (MHC) I-restricted self-peptides not only activated CD8+ T cells but also induced the delayed proliferation of Treg cells. Following HLA-A*0201-restricted Melan-A-specific (pMelan) CD8+ T cells, we observed the direct expansion of Treg cells and concurrent suppression of pMelan+CD8+ T cell proliferation upon stimulation with Melan-A peptide. Transcriptome analysis revealed no significant alterations in specific signaling pathways in pMelan+CD8+ T cells that were co-cultured with activated Treg cells. However, there was a noticeable upregulation of genes involved in P53 accumulation, a critical regulator of cell survival and apoptosis. Consistent with such observation, the blockade of P53 induced a continuous proliferation of pMelan+CD8+ T cells. The concurrent stimulation of Treg cells through self-reactive TCRs by self-antigens provides insights into the immune system's ability to control activated self-reactive CD8+ T cells as part of peripheral tolerance, highlighting the intricate interplay between Treg cells and CD8+ T cells and implicating therapeutic interventions in autoimmune diseases and cancer immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tumor suppressor, QM has been cloned and characterized from eukaryotic organisms including humans, vertebrates, invertebrates, plants and yeast. However, no study on Pieris rapae QM ( PrQM) has been reported to date. In this study, cDNA encoding a putative QM protein ( PrQM) was obtained from expressed sequence tags ( ESTs) of the Pieris rapae cDNA library. Phylogenetic analysis of PrQM showed high similarity of amino acid sequence with other putative homologues identified from Heliothis virescens (95%), Bombyx mori (92%), Plutella xylostella (92%), Drosophila melanogaster (89%) and Polyrhachis vicina (85%), indicating that QM is highly conserved among insects. Semi-quantitative PCR datasets revealed that PrQM transcripts are highly expressed in head, silk gland, integument and fat body, with pronounced expression observed during the egg stage. The coding region of the PrQM gene was cloned into the pET28 (+) expression vector and the recombinant protein purified by His-tag affinity chromatography was used for antibody production. Western blotting with the anti- PrQM antibody detected a single band corresponding to the expected molecular weight of both endogenous (26 kDa) and recombinant (29 kDa) PrQM. Furthermore, immunohistochemical and confocal microscopic analysis with the anti- PrQM antibody showed that the QM gene is highly expressed in the cytoplasm of fat body, gut and Malpighian tubules in virus-uninfected control larvae, but down-regulated at 4 days post Pieris rapae granulovirus ( PiraGV) infection. These data show that PrQM is negatively regulated upon virus infection and suggests a putative immunomodulatory function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previously, most studies did not discuss about the characteristics of lung-involved toxocariasis without eosinophilia. However, the patients are not always accompanied by eosinophilia, so it is necessary to learn about the clinical and radiologic features that may predict pulmonary toxocariasis without eosinophilia. In addition, we also want to check the differences in characteristics between the two groups based on the presence of eosinophilia., Methods: We investigated patients from October 2009 to February 2014 with antibody against Toxocara positive using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), abnormal chest X-ray, and computed tomography (CT) findings. This retrospective study included patients diagnosed as toxocariasis with pulmonary involvement, using the results of laboratory findings, symptoms, and CT at the time of diagnosis., Results: Out of 88 patients, 78% were male and 22% were female; and the mean age was 51 years. The mean eosinophil fraction in peripheral blood was 11.8%. The most common chest CT findings of patients with eosinophilia were nodules plus ground glass opacity (GGO) pattern, and nodules were found in patients with no eosinophilia. Pure GGO was the most common predominant subtype in GGO lesions of patients with eosinophilia. In terms of anatomical distribution, random distribution was seen more in patients with eosinophilia than those without eosinophilia, with statistically significance (P=0.042). In patients who underwent additional CT scans, 44% of those with eosinophilia had migrating lesions and had significant differences from patients without eosinophilia (P=0.008)., Conclusions: There were no significant differences in lesion characteristics with the exception of random anatomic distribution between patients with and without eosinophilia. However, there was a significant difference between the fixation and migration of the lesion in patients with and without eosinophilia.