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Biomedical subjects

J Grunewald

Publications and source records attributed to J Grunewald.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

CD4+ and CD8+ T cell expansions using selected TCR V and J gene segments at the onset of giant cell arteritis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate T cell receptor (TCR) V alpha/V beta (and in selected cases, J beta) usage in CD4+ and CD8+ peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA), before and after treatment, as well as to analyze the HLA types of these patients. METHODS: Flow cytometry, with 10 anti-TCR V-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAb), was used. To analyze J beta usage by cell populations expressing certain V beta, we used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique, with V beta- and C beta-specific primers, Southern blotting of PCR products, and subsequent hybridization with radiolabeled J beta-specific probes. HLA typing was performed using the microlymphocytotoxicity technique. RESULTS: Seven of the 9 GCA patients had increased anti-TCR V MAb reactivities (interpreted as T cell expansions), which in many cases, correlated with clinical signs of disease. A strict preference for particular J beta segments was found in 3 of 3 expanded CD4+ T cell populations. CONCLUSION: T lymphocytes expressing specific antigen receptors are implicated in the pathogenesis of GCA.

Aged↗

Nonrandom T-cell receptor J beta usage pattern in human CD4+ and CD8+ peripheral T cells.

Association frequencies of TCR J beta gene segments with six V beta families (V beta 3, 6.1-3, 8, 9, 12, and 18) were analyzed in T-cell populations obtained from healthy blood donors. The six selected V beta families are located at various chromosomal positions relative to other recombinatorial elements (D beta, J beta, C beta). We report here that in CD4+ as well as CD8+ T-cell subsets, all 13 J beta gene segments were used in combination with all the V beta s tested and that no correlation between the genomic position of the individual V beta s and J beta gene segment usage was observed. J beta gene segment usage was found to be nonrandom in general, with J beta 2.7 and J beta 2.4 exhibiting highest and lowest frequency of utilization, respectively. J beta family 2 was used more frequently than J beta family 1 by the two T-cell subsets. Some individual J beta gene segments were skewed toward either CD4+ or CD8+ T cells. Thus, J beta 1.3 and J beta 1.6 were consistently biased toward expression in CD4+ T cells. In contrast, when combined with V beta 8 or V beta 9, J beta 2.1 results were skewed dramatically toward expression in CD8+ T cells. We also found 70 cases of expanded individual V beta/J beta associations in a total of 1092 investigated combinations, 62 of which were confined to the CD8+ T-cell populations. CD8+ T-cell populations are thus much more likely to contain TCR V beta/J beta-restricted expansions than CD4+ T cells.

Blotting, Southern↗

Induction of the prophenoloxidase-activating system of Simulium (Diptera: Simuliidae) following Onchocerca (Nematoda: Filarioidea) infection.

Trials were carried out to study the humoral immune response of blackflies to filariae following infection using the intrathoracic injection technique. An induced 66 kDa protein was abundant in the haemolymph of the European species Simulium ornatum following infection with bovine Onchocerca lienalis. This protein was apparently at higher concentrations in the haemolymph of sham-inoculated flies, i.e. flies that received sterile medium without the parasites. A molecule of the same size was also observed in the haemolymph of infected S. damnosum s.l. following infection with human O. volvulus or bovine O. ochengi. However, the level of this protein was lower in blackflies injected with microfilariae of bovine O. dukei. Unlike O. volvulus and O. ochengi this species is not transmitted by S. damnosum s.l. under natural conditions. No such reaction was observed if the African blackflies had received a sham inoculation. Feeding experiments with wild-caught nulliparous S. damnosum sl. on Onchocerca-infected cattle supported the results of the injection trials. The 66 kDa protein could only be found in the haemolymph of specimens infected via a blood meal. This 66 kDa molecule was identified as phenoloxidase. It appeared in the haemolymph due to the activation of the prophenoloxidase system following the filarial infection and we hypothesize that it may be sequestered by the parasites, as part of a non-self recognition system.

Animals↗

Characterization of regulatory T-cell responses in humans induced by the P. Falciparum blood stage antigen Pf155/RESA.

T-cells have a major role both as helper cells for efficient antibody production and as inducers and effector cells in antibody-independent malaria immunity. Thus, antigens to be included into a subunit vaccine must contain T-cell epitopes to become effectively immunogenic. The P. falciparum blood stage vaccine antigen Pf155/RESA has been shown to contain T-helper epitopes inducing T-dependent anti-malarial antibodies in vitro. We have also shown that synthetic peptides representing sequences from the amino-acid repeat regions of Pf155/RESA stimulate T-cells from P. falciparum primed donors to proliferate, to release IFN-gamma and/or IL-4. In individual donors there was no correlation between these different activities. Rather, they were frequently negatively associated. However, IL-4 secretion could be induced in T-cells from donors who had elevated concentrations of serum antibodies to the same peptide as used for T-cell activation. Taken together the results support the occurrence of malaria-specific CD4+ T-cell subsets (e.g. TH1 and TH2) in humans similar to what has been found in mice and suggest the involvement of TH2-type helper cells in the induction of some important P. falciparum specific antibodies. CD4+ T-cells recognize the antigen in the context of MHC class II molecules. However, in human outbred populations no consistent MHC restrictions of anti-Pf155/RESA immune responses could be demonstrated. This is not surprising in view of the extensive polymorphism of the HLA system. Neither were there any obvious MHC class II restrictions seen when antibody- and t-cell responses were measured in naturally primed monozygotic twins.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The effect of NeemAzal on Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae).

The effect of NeemAzal (TRIFOLIO-M GmbH, Lahnau), a neem seed kernel extract, on larvae of Aedes aegypti was tested. Second, third and fourth instar larvae were reared in water containing different concentrations of NeemAzal. Mortality rates and the stage in which mortality occurred were recorded. The surviving larvae were left in the treated water until adult emergence and the number of eggs laid by the emerged females was recorded in order to evaluate possible fecundity-reducing effect of sublethal doses of NeemAzal. Continuous exposure to treated water induced molting-inhibition and mortality in all larval instars tested. Sensitivity towards NeemAzal decreased with increasing age of the larvae. For female Ae. aegypti a tendency was observed to lay fewer eggs with increasing NeemAzahl concentration to which they had been exposed during larval development.

Aedes↗

Differential lectin binding of Onchocerca lienalis and Onchocerca ochengi infective larvae following their development in Simulium ornatum s.l.

Lectins have been used to investigate species specific differences in carbohydrate moieties on the surface of the infective larvae of two Onchocerca species following their development in Simulium ornatum. Of the seven FITC-labelled lectins used in this study only two, Arachis hypogea (PNA) and Helix pomatia (HPA), bound to the surface of O. lienalis, whereas no lectin binding could be detected on the surface of O. ochengi infective larvae. This indicates that in principal lectins might be a potential tool for the differentiation of more closely related Onchocerca species.

Animals↗

Serum factors regulate 5-lipoxygenase activity in maturating HL60 cells.

5-Lipoxygenase activity in DMSO-differentiated HL60 cells is regulated by human serum. The serum effect depended on the differentiation state of the cells. For a stimulatory effect to occur, it was required that the cells had been treated with DMSO before addition of serum. After this regimen, the HL60 cells acquired the same high 5-LO activity as found for human neutrophils isolated from peripheral blood (about 9-times higher than for HL60 cells treated only with DMSO). On the other hand, when serum was added together with DMSO and present during the entire differentiation period (seven days), or withdrawn after the first four days, the 5-LO activity did not increase. 5-LO activity of HL60 cells covaried with the expression of the CD14 molecule, a marker for myeloid cell maturation which was recently identified as a receptor for the complex of LPS and LPS-binding protein. These serum effects on 5-LO activity were only observed for intact cells. The prominent increase in 5-LO activity induced by serum was not concomitant with similar changes in the expression of 5-LO or 5-LO-activating protein (FLAP), as judged from analyses of immunoreactive protein and mRNA. Also, the high 5-LO activity induced by serum was rather insensitive to the drug MK886 under our standard assay conditions, which included addition of exogenous arachidonic acid (40 microM). The results indicate that additional cellular components of importance for 5-LO activity in HL60 cells become operative after serum treatment, and that mere expression of 5-LO and FLAP is insufficient for high 5-LO activity in intact cells.

Arachidonate 5-Lipoxygenase↗

Restricted T cell receptor V-beta and J-beta usage in T cells from interleukin-2-cultured lymphocytes of ovarian and renal carcinomas.

Tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) are often observed in human tumours and their presence has been correlated with a better prognosis. It has been suggested that TIL are enriched for tumour-specific cytotoxic cells, and TIL activated and expanded in vitro by interleukin-2 (IL-2) are currently used in the therapy of human cancer. We have studied the T cell repertoire in IL-2-expanded TIL cells from patients with ovarian and renal carcinoma using T-cell-receptor-V-beta-specific monoclonal antibodies and a polymerase-chain-reaction-based Southern blot technique for analysis of J-beta usage. In TIL lines derived from three of nine patients with ovarian carcinomas and from two of eight patients with renal carcinomas, selective usage of the V-beta 6 or V-beta 5 T-cell receptor gene products was found. The majority of the cells were CD4+, with up to 40% of the T cells utilizing the same V-beta gene. T-cell lines derived from peripheral blood lymphocytes from patients or healthy donors contained normal levels of V-beta subsets. Only moderate levels of V-beta 6+ T cells were detected from freshly isolated TIL and the increase of this subpopulation appeared as a result of in vitro culture. The level of clonal restriction, as measured by the usage of J-beta gene segments within the V-beta 5 or V-beta 6 families, was analysed using a recently developed technique based on the polymerase chain reaction. Evidence for restricted J-beta usage was detected only in TIL expanded in vitro, while this was not the case in freshly isolated tumour-derived lymphocytes or T cell lines obtained from peripheral blood lymphocytes. The presence of a population with biased T cell receptor expression in cells derived from tumour tissue could be explained by their activation in vivo as a result of contact with tumour antigens and should be taken into consideration when discussing the therapeutic efficiency of IL-2-expanded TIL.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

HIV infection leads to differential expression of T-cell receptor V beta genes in CD4+ and CD8+ T cells.

OBJECTIVE: To analyse variation in T-cell receptor (TCR) V beta gene expression in T cells in HIV-infected individuals. DESIGN: Because there are very few monoclonal antibodies available for studying TCR V beta gene expression, we used polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to analyse the TCR V beta repertoire in HIV-infected individuals using specific primers for 20 distinct families of TCR V beta. METHODS: Evaluation of TCR V beta gene expression in peripheral blood from HIV-1-infected individuals [two in Centers for Disease Control (CDC) stage II, five in CDC stage III and four in CDC stage IV]. Complementary DNA was produced from CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, amplified by PCR and analysed after Southern blotting and hybridization with a C beta-specific oligonucleotide probe. RESULTS: V beta gene expression was dramatically modified, especially in AIDS patients. The CD4+ T-cell subset showed both overexpression (V beta 2) and deletions or underexpression (V beta 9-V beta 20), whereas these gene segments were expressed normally in the CD8+ subset. Only V beta 3 was deleted or underexpression in both CD4+ and CD8+ populations in AIDS patients. CONCLUSIONS: HIV-1 infection induces CD4+ T-cell deficiency, both in total numbers and by causing a paucity of select V beta gene expression in this subset. In addition, the V beta 3 gene family was deleted or underexpressed was observed in both CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell subsets from patients in CDC stage IV. These results are compatible with changes in V beta gene expression known to occur under the action of endogenous or exogenous superantigens.

Base Sequence↗

Restricted V alpha 2.3 gene usage by CD4+ T lymphocytes in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from sarcoidosis patients correlates with HLA-DR3.

The alpha/beta T cell receptor (TcR) V gene usage of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) lymphocytes and peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) from 11 sarcoidosis patients and 4 healthy controls was investigated, using eight alpha/beta TcR V gene product-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb). Twenty-seven percent (3/11) of the sarcoidosis patients had a highly significant increase in V alpha 2.3+CD4+ T lymphocytes in the bronchoalveolar space, while displaying normal frequencies of these T cells in peripheral blood. The reactivities with the remaining seven TcR mAb were normal. In the control group, no compartmentalization of any T cells was seen. Four of the patients expressed the HLA-DR3 (w17), DQw2 haplotype. Interestingly, the three patients with distinct signs of compartmentalized V alpha 2.3+CD4+ T cells all expressed this HLA haplotype. Additionally, a fourth patient with pronounced, although less significant, accumulation of V alpha 2.3+CD4+ T cells in the lung, was also HLA-DR3(w17), DQw2+. Expression of V alpha 2.3+CD4+ T cells in BAL of these patients correlated with clinical disease, as revealed on re-analyzing the four patients after 6 months or longer. Predominant TcR V alpha 2.3 gene usage in compartmentalized CD4+ BAL T lymphocytes, linked to HLA-DR3(w17), DQw2 haplotype, may thus indicate presence of a specific antigen localized to the lungs of sarcoidosis patients.

Adult↗

Analysis of J beta gene segment usage by CD4+ and CD8+ human peripheral blood T lymphocytes.

Certain T cell antigen receptor V gene products in man have been shown by us and others to display a reproducible bias for preferential expression in CD4+ or CD8+ T cell subsets. In order to investigate whether such a skewed representation of V gene segments is also present at the J gene segment level, we tested the relative J beta gene usage by V beta 5.1 + T cells, as this V beta gene is biased towards CD4+ T cell expression in virtually all individuals. To analyze the usage of the 13 J beta gene segments, we developed a new approach using V beta 5.1 and C beta specific oligonucleotides as 5' and 3' primers respectively for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of cDNA derived from CD4+ or CD8+ peripheral blood lymphocyte (PBL) T cells. The PCR products were visualized for reactivity with individual J beta 1.1-1.6 and J beta 2.1-2.7 32P-labelled oligonucleotide probes using autoradiography and quantitative gel-scanning. Eleven normal blood donors provided the PBL T cells. The results showed that in every individual's V beta 5.1+ T cell populations (CD4 and CD8), all V beta/J beta combinations were used although at varying but reproducible levels for each J beta gene. Thus, no discernible disallowance of combinations existed. Moreover, we could show that six of 13 J beta genes were unequally expressed when compared in pairs with regard to expression in CD4+ and CD8+ T cell subsets.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Base Sequence↗

A persistent T cell expansion in the peripheral blood of a normal adult male: a new clinical entity?

A dramatic and persistent T cell expansion in a healthy adult male was initially identified, using anti-T cell receptor for antigen (TCR)-specific MoAbs. The expanded T cells were found to be expressing TCR containing V alpha 12.1 and V beta 5.2, and they composed approximately one third of all the CD8+ T cells. The cells were shown to be not only non-activated (HLA-DR-, IL-2R-) but also of 'virgin' cell type (CD45RA+/CD45RO-) and they persisted over the observation period of more than one and a half years. Various T and B cell markers, and all other laboratory and physical parameters analysed, were normal. The expanded CD8+ T cells were further characterized by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification, using V beta- and C beta-specific primers, followed by hybridization with J beta-specific probes. Close to 90% of the V alpha 12.1+ V beta 5.2+ T cells were found to utilize the J beta 2.5 gene segment, thus strongly suggesting the expanded T cells to be monoclonal. The condition may constitute a T cell counterpart to 'monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance' (MGUS), and by analogy we suggest it should be designated 'monoclonal T cell expansion of undetermined significance' (MTUS).

Adult↗

Nearly identical T-cell receptor V-gene usage at birth in two cohorts of distinctly different ethnic origin: influence of environment in the final maturation in the adult.

We have previously analysed the T-cell receptor (TCR) V-gene usage in peripheral blood T lymphocytes from a group of healthy Scandinavians, and described a biased representation (i.e. a statistically significant higher median representation) for some of the TCR V genes towards the CD4+ subpopulation. In a subsequent study the usage of the same V genes was analysed in single positive (CD4+ CD8- and CD4- CD8+) human thymocytes, and a similar type of skewness was noted. These observations might be explained by an influence of the specificity of the TCR of thymocytes on the maturation into the CD4+ or the CD8+ lineage. Such a model would assume an interaction between a common determinant on the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I or class II molecules, or with a peptide that is preferentially presented by either of the two molecules, and the TCR on the maturing thymocyte. To investigate the possible influence of a different genetic background and environment on skewed TCR V-gene representation, we have in this study analysed the TCR V-gene usage in peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood lymphocytes obtained from Asians, with a different ethnic and environmental background from our previous Scandinavian subjects. In the umbilical cord blood lymphocytes the TCR V-gene usage was close to identical between the two different ethnic groups in both CD4+ and CD8+ subpopulations. Analysing the peripheral blood lymphocyte (PBL) TCR V-gene usage, we found that three of the four monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) with a biased reactivity towards the CD4+ subpopulation in the Scandinavian group also showed a similar skewed reactivity in this study. Thus, the majority of the TCR V genes were used in a similar way. Some minor but definite discrepancies could be detected when comparing TCR V-gene usage in adult individuals from these two different ethnic groups. These differences could be inferred to be due to selective peripheral expansion through environmental pressure of T cells utilizing a specific V beta gene segment. We conclude that a striking preservation of biased TCR V-gene usage does exist in humans of distinctly different ethnic origin.

Age Factors↗

T cell receptor V-segment frequencies in peripheral blood T cells correlate with human leukocyte antigen type.

We compared T cell receptor (TCR) V-segment frequencies in human leukocyte antigen (HLA) identical siblings to sibling pairs who differ at one or both HLA haplotypes using four V beta-specific and one V alpha-specific monoclonal antibody. In every one of nine families HLA-identical sibs had the most similar patterns of V-segment frequencies in their peripheral blood, whereas totally mismatched sibs were, in general, the most dissimilar; HLA haploidentical sibs tended to be intermediate between the two groups. The degree of similarity among HLA-identical sibs was comparable to that observed among three pairs of identical twins suggesting that HLA is the major genetic component influencing TCR V-segment frequency. Consistent with this observation, it was found that the frequency of T cells expressing particular V beta segments was skewed towards either CD4+ or CD8+ cells indicating that T cells expressing some V beta genes may be positively selected primarily by class I or class II major histocompatibility complex proteins. Finally, it was observed that individuals who express the HLA class I specificity, B38, tend to express high levels of V alpha 2.3+ cells among their CD8+ T cells. These observations represent definitive proof that human V-segment frequencies are profoundly influenced by the HLA complex.

Alleles↗