Subject:
All Disciplines Arts & Humanities Biology & Life Sciences Business & Economics Chemistry & Materials Science Computer Science & Mathematics Engineering Environmental & Earth Sciences Medicine & Pharmacology Physical Sciences Public Health & Healthcare Social Sciences
Sort:
Most Viewed Latest Alphabetical (A-Z) Alphabetical (Z-A)
Filter:
All Topic Review Biography Peer Reviewed Entry Video Entry
Topic Review
Th1 Polarization Induced by Dendritic-Cell-Priming Adjuvant in Vaccination
Virus-derived nucleic acids are potential immune-enhancers and particularly good candidates as adjuvants in vaccines in mouse models. The most important nucleic-acid-sensing process involves the dendritic cell (DC) Toll-like receptor (TLR), which participates in the pattern recognition of foreign DNA/RNA structures. Human CD141+ DCs preferentially express TLR3 in endosomes and recognize double-stranded RNA. Antigen cross-presentation occurs preferentially in this subset of DCs (cDCs) via the TLR3–TICAM-1–IRF3 axis. Another subset, plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs), specifically expresses TLR7/9 in endosomes.
  • 420
  • 19 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Inflammatory Factors Involved in Cancer Transformation
Inflammation, when it became chronic, settles down the body’s normal inflammatory process, creating a favorable environment for the development of cancerous cells. There are numerous signaling pathways that are key contributors to generating epigenetic changes outside and inside the cell.
  • 416
  • 12 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Multistability in Macrophage Activation Pathways
Macrophages are innate immune cells with a dynamic range of reversible activation states including the classical pro-inflammatory (M1) and alternative anti-inflammatory (M2) states. Common regulatory motifs reported for macrophage transitions, such as positive or double-negative feedback loops, exhibit a switchlike behavior, suggesting the bistability of the system.  There are evidence for multistability (including bistability) in macrophage activation pathways at four molecular levels.
  • 415
  • 22 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Molecular Basis of Ferroptosis
Ferroptosis is a recently recognized iron-dependent form of non-apoptotic regulated cell death (RCD) characterized by lipid peroxide accumulation to lethal levels. Cancer cells, which show an increased iron dependency to enable rapid growth, seem vulnerable to ferroptosis. There is also increasing evidence that ferroptosis might be immunogenic and therefore could synergize with immunotherapies. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver tumor with a low survival rate due to frequent recurrence and limited efficacy of conventional chemotherapies, illustrating the urgent need for novel drug approaches or combinatorial strategies. Immunotherapy is a new treatment approach for advanced HCC patients.
  • 414
  • 03 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Circulating Cytokines and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that has no effective treatment. The lack of any specific biomarker that can help in the diagnosis or prognosis of ALS has made the identification of biomarkers an urgent challenge. Multiple panels have shown alterations in levels of numerous cytokines in ALS, supporting the contribution of neuroinflammation to the progressive motor neuron loss. 
  • 413
  • 10 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Oncolytic Adenoviruses for Cancer Therapy
Human adenoviruses (hAds) are non-enveloped viruses with a diameter of 70 to 100 nm.
  • 412
  • 29 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells in Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is a disease of malignant plasma cells and the second most common hematological cancer. This entry describes the history and use of CAR-T cells for the treatment of this disease as well as comment on future approaches.
  • 410
  • 03 Dec 2021
Topic Review
The Biotin–(Strept)avidin System
A prevalent, well-characterized immobilization design system is the biotin–(strept)avidin interaction. The biotin–(strept)avidin interaction is considered to be one of the most specific and stable non-covalent interaction, whose dissociation constant (KD) is about 103 to 106 times higher than an antigen–antibody interaction. Its high affinity is principally useful for isolating and amplifying the signal, which increases the ability for the detection of very low concentrations of analyte while decreasing the number of steps required for measurement, allowing for a more rapid quantitation of analyte. The biotin–(strept)avidin system offers enormous advantages over other covalent and non-covalent interactions, which include amplification of weak signals, efficient operation, robustness, and astonishing stability against manipulation, proteolytic enzymes, temperature and pH extremes, harsh organic reagents, and other denaturing reagents. Since the biotin–(strept)avidin interaction is one of the strongest known non-covalent interactions in nature, avidin and its analogues have therefore been extensively used as probes and affinity matrices for a wide variety of applications in the field of biotechnology, such as biochemical assays, diagnostics, affinity purification, and drug delivery.
  • 410
  • 22 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Hyperglycemia Induces Inflammatory Response
Hyperglycemia, a hallmark of diabetes, can induce inflammatory programming of macrophages. The macrophage scavenger receptor CD163 controls inflammation by the internalization and degradation of hemoglobin-haptoglobin (Hb-Hp) complexes built due to intravascular hemolysis. Clinical studies have demonstrated a correlation between impaired scavenging of Hb-Hp complexes via CD163 and diabetic vascular complications. Hyperglycemia induces an inflammatory response of innate immune cells to Hb-Hp1-1 and Hb-Hp2-2 uptake, converting the silent Hb-Hp complex clearance that prevents vascular damage into an inflammatory process, hereby increasing the susceptibility of diabetic patients to vascular complications.
  • 409
  • 08 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Dendritic Cells in Brief
Dendritic cells, often dubbed the "conductors" of the immune orchestra, are a remarkable subset of immune cells with a pivotal role in orchestrating our body's immune responses. Originating from hematopoietic stem cells, dendritic cells are strategically stationed in various tissues, acting as vigilant sentinels. These cells excel in capturing, processing, and presenting antigens to other immune cells, thereby initiating and shaping both innate and adaptive immunity. In the realm of innate immunity, dendritic cells are the rapid responders to infections and tissue damage. They sense danger signals, phagocytose pathogens, and release signals that summon reinforcements. Crucially, they bridge the gap between innate and adaptive immunity, acting as educators to naive T cells, thereby shaping our body's memory against specific pathogens. Beyond their role as immune initiators, dendritic cells play a vital part in the pathogenesis of various diseases. Their functions can either promote disease progression, as seen in certain infections, or help mitigate autoimmune reactions or combat cancer. As research advances, dendritic cells continue to be at the forefront of immunology, offering promising avenues for therapeutic interventions and a deeper understanding of immune responses and disease processes.
  • 406
  • 28 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Tuft Cells
Tuft cells have emerged as the focus of intense interest following the discovery of their chemosensory role in the intestinal tract, and their ability to activate Type 2 immune responses to helminth parasites. Moreover, they populate a wide range of mucosal tissues and are intimately connected to immune and neuronal cells, either directly or through the release of pharmacologically active mediators. They are now recognised to fulfil both homeostatic roles, in metabolism and tissue integrity, as well as acting as the first sensors of parasite infection, immunity to which is lost in their absence. 
  • 406
  • 22 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Approaches to Enhance Tumor Antigenicity
Cancer immunotherapy has revolutionized the oncology field, but many patients still do not respond to the immunotherapy approaches. One of the main challenges in broadening the range of responses to this type of treatment is the limited source of tumor neoantigens. New approaches must be taken into consideration to overcome these shortcomings. The possibility of making tumors more antigenic represents a promising front to further improve the success of immunotherapy in cancer. 
  • 405
  • 09 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Natural Killer Cells in Tumor Metastasis
Innate immune natural killer (NK) cells are capable of killing metastatic cancer cells without activation by antigen-presenting cells beforehand. The cytotoxic effects and immune regulation of NK cells are precisely controlled by an energetic balance of signals produced by a group of activating and inhibitory receptors expressed on NK cells, while metastatic tumor cells with multiple strategies escape immune cells attack.
  • 405
  • 19 Apr 2023
Topic Review
IRF8
Interferon regulatory factor 8 (IRF8) is a transcription factor of the IRF protein family. IRF8 was originally identified as an essentialfactor for myeloid cell lineage commitment and differentiation. Deletion of Irf8 leads to massive accumulation of CD11b+Gr1+ immature myeloid cells (IMCs), particularly the CD11b+Ly6Chi/+Ly6G− polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cell-like cells (PMN-MDSCs). Under pathological conditions such as cancer, Irf8 is silenced by its promoter DNA hypermethylation, resulting in accumulation of PMN-MDSCs and CD11b+ Ly6G+Ly6Clo monocytic MDSCs (M-MDSCs) in mice. IRF8 is often silenced in MDSCs in human cancer patients. MDSCs are heterogeneous populations of immune suppressive cells that suppress T and NK cell activity to promote tumor immune evasion and produce growth factors to exert direct tumor-promoting activity. Emerging experimental data reveals that IRF8 is also expressed in non-hematopoietic cells. Epithelial cell-expressed IRF8 regulates apoptosis and represses Osteopontin (OPN). Human tumor cells may use the IRF8 promoter DNA methylation as a mechanism to repress IRF8 expression to advance cancer through acquiring apoptosis resistance and OPN up-regulation. Elevated OPN engages CD44 to suppress T cell activation and promote tumor cell stemness to advance cancer. IRF8 thus is a transcription factor that regulates both the immune and non-immune components in human health and diseases.
  • 403
  • 31 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Fungal Host Defence
Humans have developed complex immune systems that defend against invading microbes, including fungal pathogens. Many highly specialized cells of the immune system share the ability to store antimicrobial compounds in membrane bound organelles that can be immediately deployed to eradicate or inhibit growth of invading pathogens. These membrane-bound organelles consist of secretory vesicles or granules, which move to the surface of the cell, where they fuse with the plasma membrane to release their contents in the process of degranulation. Lymphocytes, macrophages, neutrophils, mast cells, eosinophils, and basophils all degranulate in fungal host defence. While anti-microbial secretory vesicles are shared among different immune cell types, information about each cell type has emerged independently leading to an uncoordinated and confusing classification of granules and incomplete description of the mechanism by which they are deployed. While there are important differences, there are many similarities in granule morphology, granule content, stimulus for degranulation, granule trafficking, and release of granules against fungal pathogens.
  • 402
  • 30 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Galectin-1 as a Context-Dependent Regulator in Infection
Galectin-1, a ubiquitously expressed 14-kDa protein with an evolutionarily conserved β-galactoside binding site, translates glycoconjugate recognition into function. That galectin-1 is demonstrated to induce T cell apoptosis has led to substantial attention to the immunosuppressive properties of this protein, such as inducing naive immune cells to suppressive phenotypes, promoting recruitment of immunosuppressing cells as well as impairing functions of cytotoxic leukocytes. 
  • 402
  • 21 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Immune System, Inflammation and Autoantigens in wAMD
Wet age-related macular degeneration (wAMD) is a chronic inflammation-associated neurodegenerative disease affecting the posterior part of the eye in the aging population. Aging results in the reduced functionality of cells and tissues, including the cells of the retina. Initiators of a chronic inflammatory and pathologic state in wAMD may be a result of the accumulation of inevitable metabolic injuries associated with the maintenance of tissue homeostasis from a young age to over 50. Apart from this, risk factors like smoking, genetic predisposition, and failure to repair the injuries that occur, alongside attempts to rescue the hypoxic outer retina may also contribute to the pathogenesis. Aging of the immune system (immunosenescence) and a compromised outer blood retinal barrier (BRB) result in the exposure of the privileged milieu of the retina to the systemic immune system, further increasing the severity of the disease. 
  • 402
  • 12 Dec 2023
Topic Review
T Cells in Cancer
T cells play a key role in tumour surveillance, both identifying and eliminating transformed cells.
  • 401
  • 06 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Adaptive Immunity and Diabetic Retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is currently one of the common causes of vision loss in working-age adults. It is clinically diagnosed and classified according to the vascular changes in the fundus. The activation of immune cells occurs before these vascular changes become detectable. These, together with molecular studies and the positive clinical outcomes of anti-inflammatory treatment, highlight the pivotal involvement of the immune system. The role of innate immunity in DR pathophysiology has been studied in depth, but the contribution of adaptive immunity remains largely elusive.
  • 400
  • 16 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Antineoplastic Therapy Involved in Hypersensitivity Reactions
As widely accepted at present, in addition to their benefits, medicines can also be accompanied by side effects and adverse reactions, of which some can be detrimental to therapies or even life-threatening. In some cases, these effects are enabled or enhanced by certain individual-specific hypersensitivity. Among other manifestations, adverse reactions to drugs resulting from excessive sensitivity may include anaphylaxis. Given that regular toxicity studies are not relevant to point to possible delayed hypersensitivity reactions triggered by systemic products and from the perspective of mechanisms involved in the early and late stages phases of hypersensitivity events, in vitro and in vivo tests remain the means to reveal the cells activated and the mediators released in this process.
  • 400
  • 22 Feb 2023
  • Page
  • of
  • 39
Featured Entry Collections
>>

Featured Books

>>
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Encyclopedia of COVID-19
Encyclopedia of Fungi
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
ScholarVision Creations
Feedback