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Biomedical subjects

J Kalil

Publications and source records attributed to J Kalil.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Genetic heterogeneity in susceptibility to autoimmune hepatitis types 1 and 2.

OBJECTIVE: Susceptibility to autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) type 1 has been associated with DRB1*03, DRB1*04, and DRB3 alleles in European and North-American whites, with DRB1*04 in Japan, and with DRB1*04 and DRB1*13 in Latin America. Very few studies have been performed on AIH type 2. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the association of AIH types 1 and 2 with HLA-DR and DQ loci. METHODS: We performed HLA-DRB and -DQB1 typing by polymerase chain reaction amplification with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) in 139 AIH patients. Most had AIH type 1 associated with circulating anti-smooth muscle antibody with F-actin specificity or antinuclear antibody. Twenty-eight patients presented AIH type 2 with anti-liver/kidney microsome type 1 or anti-liver cytosol type 1 antibodies. RESULTS: We observed a significant increase of DRB1*13 (70% vs 26% of controls, p < 0.00001) and DRB3 (93% vs 69% of controls, p < 0.00001) in AIH type 1 patients. Analysis of patients without DRB1*13 disclosed a secondary association with DRB1*03 (70% vs 30% of controls, p = 0.0001) and either the DRB1*13 or the DRB1*03 alleles were present in the majority of these patients (91% vs 48% of controls, p = 0.001). Comparison of DRB1*13- and DRB1*03-positive subjects revealed that the former alleles conferred susceptibility to younger patients with AIH type 1. DQB1 typing showed a significant increase in DQB1*06 (68% vs 41% of controls, p = 0.00007) in strong linkage disequilibrium with DRB1*13, and a decrease in DQB1*0301 (8% vs 47% of controls, p(c) = 0.0003). On the other hand, HLA typing of patients with AIH type 2 disclosed a significant increase in the DRB1*07 (68% vs 20% of controls, p(c) < 0.00014), DRB4 (79% vs 43% of controls, p(c) = 0.004), and DQB1*02 (86% vs 42%, p = 0.00002) alleles. After exclusion of DRB1*07, a secondary association with HLA-DRB1*03 was further observed in these patients (78% vs 30%, p = 0.007) and most of them had either DRB1*07 or DRB1*03 (93% vs 44% of controls, p(c) < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that predisposition to AIH types 1 and 2 is associated, respectively, with the DRB1*13 or DRB1*03 and DRB1*07 or DRB1*03 alleles, and suggest that protection against type 1 disease may be conferred by DQB1*0301. In addition, the cluster of DRB1*13 in children with AIH type 1 also supports the concept that different HLA alleles might influence the onset of the disease.

Adolescent↗

Familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy type 1 in Brazil is associated with the transthyretin Val30Met variant.

UNLABELLED: Familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy type 1 (FAP1) is an inherited systemic amyloidosis that is secondary to the deposition of transthyretin (TTR) variants in peripheral nerves and in certain visceral organs. More than 50 distinct mutations have already been described in the TTR gene. Yet, the most common mutation found worldwide is a substitution of valine for methionine in position 30 (Val30Met). Currently, the variants of TTR in Brazilian FAP1 patients remain largely unknown and the aim of this study was to analyze the frequency of the TTR Val30Met mutation in such Brazilian subjects. METHODS: Thirty-two FAP1 patients belonging to 24 different families were studied for the presence of Val30Met variant by PCR-RFLP. RESULTS: All Brazilian FAP1 subjects studied were positive for the TTR Val30Met variant. As expected, all of them were heterozygous for the mutation. CONCLUSION: TTR Val30Met mutation was the sole TTR variant found in Brazilian FAP1 patients in this cohort, and it was present even in those subjects without a clear history of Portuguese ancestry.

Adult↗

HLA-DRB1*0405 is the predominant allele in Brazilian patients with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease.

Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease is a rare disorder affecting pigmented structures especially the eye and is the main cause of autoimmune non-infectious uveitis in the Brazilian population. The autoimmune target is believed to be the melanocyte. A strong association of VKH disease with HLA-DR4 in the Japanese population is well known. The same association, albeit with lower relative risks has been found in other populations. A secondary association to HLA-DR1 involving a sequence linked with susceptibility to Rheumatoid Arthritis has also been described. VKH disease is more common in non-Caucasian populations. Brazilian patients of varying ethnic origins have been typed for HLA class II antigens. Several of the features found in other population samples are present. Over half of the patients typed HLA-DR4 (20/37) and typing with sequence-specific oligonucleotides disclosed predominance of the DRB1*0405 allele with a relative risk of 11.76 over the general population. In addition, HLA-DR1 and DQ4 were also present, in patients both positive and negative for HLA-DR4. These results suggest that, as in other autoimmune diseases, multiple overlapping susceptibility factors encoded by the MHC complex contribute to the overall susceptibility for the disease, the major factor however, being the presence of the DRB1*0405 allele.

Adolescent↗

Cytokine production profile of heart-infiltrating T cells in Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy.

The hallmark of chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy (CCC) is the finding of a T cell-rich inflammatory mononuclear cell infiltrate in the presence of extremely few parasites in the heart lesions. The scarcity of parasites in affected heart tissue casts doubt on the direct participation of Trypanosoma cruzi in CCC heart tissue lesions, and suggests the possible involvement of autoimmunity. The cells in the infiltrate are presumably the ultimate effectors of tissue damage, and there is evidence that such cells recognize cardiac myosin in molecular mimicry with T. cruzi proteins rather than primary reactivity to T. cruzi antigens (Cunha-Neto et al. (1996) Journal of Clinical Investigation, 98: 1709-1712). Recently, we have studied heart-infiltrating T cells at the functional level. In this short review we summarize the studies about the role of cytokines in human and experimental T. cruzi infection, along with our data on heart-infiltrating T cells in human Chagas' cardiomyopathy. The bulk of evidence points to a significant production of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha which may be linked to T. cruzi-induced IL-12 production.

Animals↗

Absence of linkage between MHC and a gene involved in susceptibility to human schistosomiasis.

Six hundred million people are at risk of infection by Schistosoma mansoni. MHC haplotypes have been reported to segregate with susceptibility to schistosomiasis in murine models. In humans, a major gene related to susceptibility/resistance to infection by S. mansoni (SM1) and displaying the mean fecal egg count as phenotype was detected by segregation analysis. This gene displayed a codominant mode of inheritance with an estimated frequency of 0.20-0.25 for the deleterious allele and accounted for more than 50% of the variance of infection levels. To determine if the SM1 gene segregates with the human MHC chromosomal region, we performed a linkage study by the lod score method. We typed for HLA-A, B, C, DR and DQ antigens in 11 informative families from an endemic area for schistosomiasis in Bahia, Brazil, by the microlymphocytotoxicity technique. HLA-DR typing by the polymerase chain reaction with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) and HLA-DQ were confirmed by PCR-sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes (PCR-SSOP). The lod scores for the different theta values obtained clearly indicate that there is no physical linkage between HLA and SM1 genes. Thus, susceptibility or resistance to schistosomiasis, as defined by mean fecal egg count, is not primarily dependent on the host's HLA profile. However, if the HLA molecule plays an important role in specific immune responses to S. mansoni, this may involve the development of the different clinical aspects of the disease such as granuloma formation and development of hepatosplenomegaly.

Animals↗

Identification of patients at high risk of graft loss by pre- and posttransplant monitoring of anti-HLA class I IgG antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Identification of risk factors influencing graft survival may lead to the development of models to predict graft outcome. Such models may provide guidance for immunosuppressive therapy, measure posttransplantation outcome, and eventually improve graft survival in high-risk patients. A major risk factor influencing graft survival is allosensitization. However, due to the lack of standardization of lymphocytotoxicity assays, the detection of alloantibodies utilizing this current methodology may not correlate with posttransplant events. Recently, a novel standardized enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the detection of anti-HLA class I IgG antibodies was developed. To evaluate the predictive value of this diagnostic test, a retrospective analysis of 124 renal allograft recipients with an 18-month follow-up time was performed. A highly significant (P=0.01) correlation between pre-transplant ELISA panel reactive antibody (PRA) results and graft loss was observed. Patients with pre-transplant ELISA PRA of >10% had a three times higher risk of graft loss compared with patients who tested negative. No such correlation was observed with complement-dependent cytotoxicity results independent of the reduction of IgM antibodies with dithiothreitol. Similarly, a highly significant correlation of ELISA results with the occurrence of early graft dysfunction was observed. Almost all patients (88%) with a pretransplant ELISA PRA of >50% required posttransplant dialysis, compared with 45% of patients with a pretransplant ELISA PRA of 10-50% and 27% of patients with a pretransplant ELISA PRA of <10%. No such difference was observed with complement-dependent cytotoxicity %PRA values. Analysis of posttransplant specimens by ELISA demonstrated a strong correlation of assay results with graft rejection and graft dysfunction. In summary, these results suggest that detection of anti-HLA class I antibodies by ELISA identifies patients at high risk for graft loss. No other single risk factor of such magnitude has been identified so far.

Adult↗

Molecular mimicry between cardiac myosin and Trypanosoma cruzi antigen B13: identification of a B13-driven human T cell clone that recognizes cardiac myosin.

Previous reports from our group have demonstrated the association of molecular mimicry between cardiac myosin and the immunodominant Trypanosoma cruzi protein B13 with chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy at both the antibody and heart-infiltrating T cell level. At the peripheral blood level, we observed no difference in primary proliferative responses to T. cruzi B13 protein between chronic Chagas' cardiopathy patients, asymptomatic chagasics and normal individuals. In the present study, we investigated whether T cells sensitized by T. cruzi B13 protein respond to cardiac myosin. T cell clones generated from a B13-stimulated T cell line obtained from peripheral blood of a B13-responsive normal donor were tested for proliferation against B13 protein and human cardiac myosin. The results showed that one clone responded to B13 protein alone and the clone FA46, displaying the highest stimulation index to B13 protein (SI = 25.7), also recognized cardiac myosin. These data show that B13 and cardiac myosin share epitopes at the T cell level and that sensitization of a T cell with B13 protein results in response to cardiac myosin. It can be hypothesized that this also occurs in vivo during T. cruzi infection which results in heart tissue damage in chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy.

Animals↗

Autoimmunity in Chagas' disease. Identification of cardiac myosin-B13 Trypanosoma cruzi protein crossreactive T cell clones in heart lesions of a chronic Chagas' cardiomyopathy patient.

Heart tissue destruction in chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy (CCC) may be caused by autoimmune recognition of heart tissue by a mononuclear cell infiltrate decades after Trypanosoma cruzi infection. Indirect evidence suggests there is molecular mimicry between T. cruzi and heart tissue. In murine models of CCC, antibodies and CD4+ T cells recognize myosin, the major heart protein. We recently identified a heart-specific epitope of cardiac myosin heavy chain (residues 1442-1447, AAALDK) that is crossreactive with a homologous sequence (AAAGDK) of the immunodominant T. cruzi antigen B13. Furthermore, cardiac myosin-B13 crossreactive antibodies are present in 100% CCC patients vs 14% asymptomatic T. cruzi-seropositive individuals (P = 2.3 x 10(-6)), suggesting a role for molecular mimicry between cardiac myosin and B13 in CCC pathogenesis. In this paper, we obtained heart-infiltrating T cell clones from CCC patients to assess whether molecular mimicry between cardiac myosin and B13 is directly involved in the genesis of heart lesions. We identified T cell clones derived from CCC heart lesions simultaneously responsive to cardiac myosin heavy chain (but not skeletal myosin heavy chain) and B13 T. cruzi protein, but could not find T cell clones primarily reactive to any T. cruzi antigen. Together with the association of myosin-B13 crossreactive antibodies with CCC, the present data strongly suggest the relevance of molecular mimicry between cardiac myosin and the T. cruzi protein B13 in the pathogenesis of heart lesions in chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy.

Adult↗

Pretransplant rejection risk assessment through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay analysis of anti-HLA class I antibodies.

Soluble HLA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) for the detection of anti-HLA class I immunoglobulin G (IgG), IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, IgM, and IgA antibodies were developed and used to analyze retrospectively the correlation between pretransplant allosensitization and posttransplant rejection episodes in renal allograft recipients. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay plates were coated with 46 different soluble HLA preparations representing 40 different HLA class I antigens. After incubation with a serum specimen, bound antibodies were detected with a peroxidase-conjugated antibody. Serum specimens from 85 patients were analyzed. All patients tested positive by microlymphocytotoxicity (ie, >5% panel-reactive antibody [PRA]). Approximately half (56%) of the patients had experienced one or more rejection episodes within 12 months posttransplantation. Fifty-five patients tested positive by ELISA (total IgG %PRA >10%). A strong correlation between first-year rejection and ELISA-detected anti-HLA class I IgG1 was observed (P = 0.0004). The predictive value for IgG1 and first-year rejection was 77.5%, demonstrating that ELISA results identify patients at high risk of rejecting the transplanted kidney. Anti-HLA class I total IgG detected by ELISA also correlated with first-year rejection episodes (P = 0.04). The presence of anti-HLA class I IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, or IgM was not predictive of first-year rejection episodes. Anticlass I IgA antibodies were only found in combination with anti-class I IgG1 antibodies.

Antibody Specificity↗

Genetic localization of a locus controlling the intensity of infection by Schistosoma mansoni on chromosome 5q31-q33.

Three hundred million individuals are at risk of infection by schistosomes and around 200,000 die each year of this disease. Severe clinical disease in schistosomiasis is often the consequence of heavy infection which, in several endemic areas, are determined largely by the susceptibility/resistance of individuals. Previously, we reported evidence, based on a segregation analysis in Brazilian pedigrees, that intensity of infection by Schistosoma mansoni was influenced by a major gene, indicating that host genetic factors are probably critical in controlling schistosome infection and disease development. To localize this gene, referred to as SM1, we performed a genome-wide study on 142 Brazilian subjects belonging to 11 informative families Our results show a linkage to only one region, on chromosome 5q31-q33, with maximum two-point lod scores of +4.74 and +4.52 for D5S636 and the colony stimulating factor-1 receptor marker (CSF1R), respectively. This was corroborated by multipoint analysis, indicating a close proximity to CSF1R as the most likely location of SM1. This region contains several candidate genes encoding immunological molecules that were shown to play important roles in human protection against schistosomes.

Brazil↗

Molecular analysis of sex determination in sex-reversed and true hermaphroditism.

The SRY (sex region of Y) gene determines testis formation but not all cases of sex reversal in humans can be explained by alterations in this gene. We studied one 46,XY female, four 46,XX males, and nine true hermaphrodites (TH): three with an XY and six with an XX chromosomal constitution. The SRY gene was identified in the XX males and the TH with a Y chromosome but was not demonstrated in the XY female and the six XX TH. The Y-heterochromatin region was also identified in one 46,XX male, indicating a low grade mosaicism undetected by cytogenetics. The amplification of the amelogenin gene showed the presence of a 977-bp band that belongs to the short arm of chromosome X in all patients but the absence of a 780-bp band of the short arm of chromosome Y in three 46,XX males and in all the 46,XX TH. These studies demonstrate that the molecular study of sex-reversed patients and TH will help to understand the complex mechanisms of sex determination. The SRY gene is involved but other genes on the X chromosome and autosomes still remain to be studied.

Adolescent↗

Gamma delta T cells play no major role in human heart allograft rejection.

To investigate the role of gamma delta T cells in human heart transplantation, we searched for this T cell population in endomyocardial biopsies as well as in T cell lines and clones derived from graft-infiltrating lymphocytes. The number of gamma delta T cells in endomyocardial biopsies from transplanted patients (n = 55) was mostly low and did not differ significantly from nontransplanted patients (n = 21). Moreover, there was no association of gamma delta T cell distribution with rejection status or with time posttransplantation. Graft-derived T cell lines were established in the presence of autologous feeder cells and recombinant interleukin-2 to favor the growth of in vivo-activated T cells. Twenty T cell lines analyzed by flow cytometry showed low percentages of gamma delta T cells, and we were unable to obtain gamma delta T cell clones for functional studies. These results show that gamma delta T cells are poorly expressed on human heart allograft infiltrates and indicate that, when present, they are not activated in the graft. Our data suggest that gamma delta T cells do not have a major role in human heart rejection.

Antigens, CD↗

Autoimmunity in Chagas disease cardiopathy: biological relevance of a cardiac myosin-specific epitope crossreactive to an immunodominant Trypanosoma cruzi antigen.

Heart tissue destruction in chronic Chagas disease cardiopathy (CCC) may be caused by autoimmune recognition of heart tissue by a mononuclear cell infiltrate decades after Trypanosoma cruzi infection. Indirect evidence suggests that there is antigenic crossreactivity between T. cruzi and heart tissue. As there is evidence for immune recognition of cardiac myosin in CCC, we searched for a putative myosin-crossreactive T. cruzi antigen. T. cruzi lysate immunoblots were probed with anti-cardiac myosin heavy chain IgG antibodies (AMA) affinity-purified from CCC or asymptomatic Chagas disease patient-seropositive sera. A 140/116-kDa doublet was predominantly recognized by AMA from CCC sera. Further, recombinant T. cruzi protein B13--whose native protein is also a 140- and 116-kDa double band--was identified by crossreactive AMA. Among 28 sera tested in a dot-blot assay, AMA from 100% of CCC sera but only 14% of the asymptomatic Chagas disease sera recognized B13 protein (P = 2.3 x 10(-6)). Sequence homology to B13 protein was found at positions 8-13 and 1442-1447 of human cardiac myosin heavy chain. Competitive ELISA assays that used the correspondent myosin synthetic peptides to inhibit serum antibody binding to B13 protein identified the heart-specific AAALDK (1442-1447) sequence of human cardiac myosin heavy chain and the homologous AAAGDK B13 sequence as the respective crossreactive epitopes. The recognition of a heart-specific T. cruzi crossreactive epitope, in strong association with the presence of chronic heart lesions, suggests the involvement of crossreactivity between cardiac myosin and B13 in the pathogenesis of CCC.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Extensive polymorphism of a (CA)n microsatellite located in the HLA-DQA1/DQB1 class II region.

A highly polymorphic (CA)n microsatellite marker (DQCAR), located between the DQA1 and the DQB1 genes, was characterized in four ethnic groups. Based on length polymorphism, 12 alleles could be defined. The marker is located 1- to 2-kb telomeric to the DQB1 gene and 10 kb centromeric to the DQA1 gene and was shown to be in tight linkage disequilibrium with HLA-DQ. Analysis of the linkage disequilibrium pattern revealed little additional diversity in DQ1-associated haplotypes. Almost all DQ1 subjects examined were DQCAR 103 or DQCAR 107 (13 and 15 CA repeats, respectively). In contrast, significant haplotypic diversity was observed for most DQ2-, DQ3-, and DQ4-associated haplotypes. These haplotypes often had longer allele sizes (DQCAR > 111, more than 17 CA repeats) and more DQCAR alleles per haplotype. These haplotypes also carried DQCAR alleles of different sizes, even though they bore the same DQA1 and DQB1 alleles, and sometimes the same DRB1 allele as well. These results indicate that DQCAR could be a useful marker to better define disease associations with HLA. Our results are also consistent with the hypothesis that CAR alleles with higher numbers of repeats have higher mutation rates and that recombination within the HLA-DR/DQ region is haplotype dependent.

Alleles↗