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Glob Heart 2021 Feb 19;16(1):16. Epub 2021 Feb 19.

Graduate School for Health Sciences and Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM), University of Bern, Bern, CH.

Background: Although it is well acknowledged that psychosocial risk factors (PSRF) such as low socio-economic status, stress, social isolation, negative emotions and negative personality patterns may contribute to the development and adverse outcome of cardiovascular disease (CVD), screening for PSRF in CVD patients is usually limited to anxiety and depression, mainly for feasibility reasons. We therefore aimed to develop a user-friendly screening battery for routine assessment of PSRFs and to evaluate this instrument regarding feasibility of application, PSRF results and attendance of psychological counselling if recommended to cardiac rehabilitation (CR) patients.

Methods: This is a prospective single center cohort study including 609 consecutive CR patients. Read More

Front Immunol 2021 22;12:624013. Epub 2021 Mar 22.

Cell Biology, Deutsches Rheuma-Forschungszentrum Berlin, Institute of the Leibniz Association, Berlin, Germany.

Studies in animal models have shown that skin tissue-resident memory T (T) cells provide enhanced and immediate effector function at the site of infection. However, analyses of skin T cells in humans have been hindered by the lack of an optimized isolation protocol. Here, we present a combinatorial strategy-the 6-h collagenase IV digestion and gentle tissue dissociation - for rapid and efficient isolation of skin T cells with skin tissue-specific immune features. Read More

J Appl Oral Sci 2021 31;29:e20200770. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Odontologia de Bauru, Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Bauru, SP, Brasil.

Objective: Neutrophils are key effector cells of the innate immune system. They recognize antigens through membrane receptors, which are expressed during their maturation and activation. Neutrophils express FcγRII (CD32), FcγRIII (CD16), and FcγRI (CD64) after being activated by different factors such as cytokines and bacterial products. Read More

Curr Protoc 2021 Apr;1(4):e50

Division of Virology, Pathogenesis and Cancer, Institute of Human Virology, Baltimore, Maryland.

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) are a distinct lineage of bone-marrow-derived cells that reside mainly in blood and lymphoid organs in the steady state but are also present in sites of infection, inflammation, and cancer. The protocols in this article describes (1) detection and quantification of human pDCs in peripheral blood; (2) isolation of human pDCs by magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS); (3) evaluation of human pDC function by stimulation with TLR7 or TLR9 agonists; (4) detection of human pDCs in lymphoid tissues of humanized mice (hu-mice) by flow cytometry; (5) functional study of human pDC in hu-mice in vivo; and (6) specific depletion of human pDCs in vivo in hu-mice using monoclonal antibody targeting human pDCs. These assays thus provide comprehensive methods for phenotypic and functional studies in vitro and for the investigation of human plasmacytoid dendritic cells in hu-mice in vivo. Read More

Indian J Radiol Imaging 2021 Jan 23;31(Suppl 1):S101-S109. Epub 2021 Jan 23.

Department of Radiology, RCSM Government Medical College, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India.

Context: Corona virus disease (COVID-19) has spread in a rampant manner all over the World causing severe acute respiratory illness. Prompt recognition of disease is invaluable to ensure timely treatment, and rapid patient isolation is crucial for containment of this communicable disease.

Aims: To evaluate the performance of high resolution CT (HRCT) in the diagnosis of COVID-19. Read More

Cancers (Basel) 2021 Mar 5;13(5). Epub 2021 Mar 5.

Department of Gynecology, Medical Center, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are a potential predictive surrogate marker for disease monitoring. Due to the sparse knowledge about their phenotype and its changes during cancer progression and treatment response, CTC isolation remains challenging. Here we focused on the mechanical characterization of circulating non-hematopoietic cells from breast cancer patients to evaluate its utility for CTC detection. Read More

Front Cardiovasc Med 2021 16;8:599671. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

School of Human Nutrition, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a complex disease resulting from multiscale risk factors including genetics, age, and psychosocial factors (PSFs) such as depression and social isolation. However, previous research has lacked in operationalizing multiscale risk factors to determine individual and interactive associations over the life course. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate individual and interactive associations of multiscale risk factors for CVD outcomes including genetics and PSFs at middle and older-aged stages of the life course. Read More

J Proteome Res 2021 Apr 1. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Departamento de Genómica, IIBCE, 11600 Montevideo, Uruguay.

Axons are complex subcellular compartments that are extremely long in relation to cell bodies, especially in peripheral nerves. Many processes are required and regulated during axon injury, including anterograde and retrograde transport, glia-to-axon macromolecular transfer, and local axonal protein synthesis. Many omics approaches have been used to gain insight into these processes, but few have been applied . Read More

Cells Tissues Organs 2021 Mar 29:1-13. Epub 2021 Mar 29.

Clinical Stem Cell Center, the Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China.

For potential clinical applications in the future, we investigated the distinct biological features of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) derived from different origin areas of human placenta and individual heterogeneity among different donors. Chorionic plate MSCs (CP-MSCs), amniotic membrane MSCs (AM-MSCs), and decidual plate MSCs (DP-MSCs) were isolated from 5 human placentae and were analyzed in terms of main features of MSCs including surface marker profile, growth, differentiation potential, immune regulation capability, and tubulin acetylation (Ac-tubulin). The expression profile of surface markers in the 3 types of MSCs derived from the 5 donors was relatively stable. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2021 Mar 25;14(3). Epub 2021 Mar 25.

Neurology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York City, New York, USA.

COVID-19 affects a wide spectrum of organ systems. We report a 52-year-old man with hypertension and newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus who presented with hypoxic respiratory failure due to COVID-19 and developed severe brachial plexopathy. He was not treated with prone positioning respiratory therapy. Read More

Angiogenesis 2021 Mar 21. Epub 2021 Mar 21.

Division of Vascular Oncology and Metastasis, German Cancer Research Center Heidelberg (DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.

'Angiodiversity' refers to the structural and functional heterogeneity of endothelial cells (EC) along the segments of the vascular tree and especially within the microvascular beds of different organs. Organotypically differentiated EC ranging from continuous, barrier-forming endothelium to discontinuous, fenestrated endothelium perform organ-specific functions such as the maintenance of the tightly sealed blood-brain barrier or the clearance of macromolecular waste products from the peripheral blood by liver EC-expressed scavenger receptors. The microvascular bed of the liver, composed of discontinuous, fenestrated liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSEC), is a prime example of organ-specific angiodiversity. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2021 ;2294:209-218

Molecular Pharmacology Research Group, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, German University in Cairo, Cairo, Egypt.

Immune evasion hallmark has grabbed wide attention in cancer progression on the clinical level. Accordingly, innate and adaptive immune cells isolation and manipulation is essential in order to assess their activity and role in the tumor microenvironment (TME). This could open a gate toward a personalized therapy by a simple aspiration of blood sample from patients. Read More

Acta Diabetol 2021 Mar 19. Epub 2021 Mar 19.

Health City Institute, Rome, Italy.

Background: Since 2010, more than half of World population lives in Urban Environments. Urban Diabetes has arisen as a novel nosological entity in Medicine. Urbanization leads to the accrual of a number of factors increasing the vulnerability to diabetes mellitus and related diseases. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2021 Mar 18. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

Division of Toxicology, Office of Applied Research and Safety Assessment, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Laurel, MD, USA.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer the potential to generate tissue cells with donor diversity therefore promising to have widespread applications in regenerative medicine, disease modeling, drug discovery, and toxicity testing. Several somatic cell types have been utilized, with varying efficiencies, as source cells for the reprogramming of iPSCs. Recently, it has been reported that endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) derived from umbilical cord blood (CB) or adult peripheral blood (PB) afford a practical and efficient cellular substrate for iPSC generation, and possess several advantages over other cell types. Read More

Front Immunol 2021 26;12:622604. Epub 2021 Feb 26.

Ossium Health, Indianapolis, IN, United States.

Induction of immune tolerance for solid organ and vascular composite allografts is the Holy Grail for transplantation medicine. This would obviate the need for life-long immunosuppression which is associated with serious adverse outcomes, such as infections, cancers, and renal failure. Currently the most promising means of tolerance induction is through establishing a mixed chimeric state by transplantation of donor hematopoietic stem cells; however, with the exception of living donor renal transplantation, the mixed chimerism approach has not achieved durable immune tolerance on a large scale in preclinical or clinical trials with other solid organs or vascular composite allotransplants (VCA). Read More

Adv Exp Med Biol 2021 ;1286:125-134

Department of Oral Biology and Diagnostic Sciences, Dental College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are malignant cells separate from primary tumors, which can migrate through the peripheral blood, colonize other tissues, and lead to the formation of metastases. The first description of CTCs dates back to 1869 when Thomas Ashworth recognized malignant cells similar to the ones of the primary tumor in the blood vessels of an autopsied patient with metastatic cancer. Currently, CTCs have been identified in various types of cancer and have been recognized for their clinical value in the prediction of prognosis, diagnosis of minimal residual diseases, assessment of tumor sensitivity to anticancer drugs, and personalization of therapies. Read More

Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd 2021 03 11;165. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Maasstad Ziekenhuis, afd. Interne Geneeskunde, Rotterdam.

Objective: To evaluate the implementation of home telemonitoring and oxygen therapy in COVID-19 patients. Primary outcomes were safety, patient satisfaction, reduction of hospital stay, and cost-effectiveness.

Design: Retrospective cohort study. Read More

STAR Protoc 2021 Mar 2;2(1):100369. Epub 2021 Mar 2.

Tumor Microenvironment and Cancer Immunology Program, NCI-Designated Cancer Center, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.

Humoral immune responses depend on the generation of high-affinity antigen-specific antibodies. Germinal center (GC) B cells are the cornerstone of this response in peripheral lymphoid organs. High purities of GC B cells, and also naive B cells, are required for accurate analysis in downstream assays to yield essential knowledge on immunity. Read More

STAR Protoc 2021 Mar 24;2(1):100365. Epub 2021 Feb 24.

Department of Internal Medicine, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Geert Grooteplein 8, 6500HB Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

A growing number of studies show that innate immune cells can undergo functional reprogramming, facilitating a faster and enhanced response to heterologous secondary stimuli. This concept has been termed "trained immunity." We outline here a protocol to recapitulate this using adherent monocytes from consecutive isolation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Read More

Aging (Albany NY) 2021 03 12;13(5):6289-6297. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

Department of Infectious Disease, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang 110004, China.

Objectives: To retrospectively evaluate the clinical and immunological characteristics of patients who died of COVID-19 and to identify patients at high risk of death at an early stage and reduce their mortality.

Results: Total white blood cell count, neutrophil count and C-reactive protein were significantly higher in patients who died of COVID-19 than those who recovered from it (p < 0.05), but the total lymphocyte count, CD4 + T cells, CD8 + T cells, B cells and natural killer cells were significantly lower when compared in the same groups. Read More

Curr Protoc 2021 Mar;1(3):e74

Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada.

Classical circulating LyC6 murine monocytes differentiate progressively from inflammatory tissue monocytes to mature macrophages (Mϕ) after entry into gut mucosa. This protocol provides a two-step in vitro culture method that replicates the human monocyte maturation cascade. First, purified circulating CD14 CD16 monocytes exposed to granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interferon gamma (IFNγ), and interleukin 23 (IL-23) differentiate into tissue-like inflammatory monocytes. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2021 ;2291:333-352

The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, UK.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) produce a number of virulence factors that interfere with lymphocyte functions, including mitogen- and antigen-activated proliferation and pro-inflammatory cytokine synthesis. Here we describe how to isolate lymphocyte subsets from bovine peripheral blood as well as methods that we have used to study the effects of STEC products on lymphocyte proliferation and cytokine production. We also describe an assay that allows for the detection of association of a given protein with lymphocytes. Read More

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2021 Mar 9;13(11):12972-12981. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

College of Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110004, China.

Effective isolation and removal of target tumor cells from patients' peripheral blood are of great importance to clinical prognosis and recovery. However, the extremely low quantity of target cells in peripheral blood becomes one of the challenges in this respect. Herein, we design and synthesize an innovative nanostructure based on magnetic TiO nanotubes with Pt nanoparticles' asymmetrical decoration for effectively capturing and inactivating target cells. Read More

J Am Chem Soc 2021 Mar 9;143(11):4133-4137. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

TU Dortmund University, Inorganic Chemistry, Otto-Hahn-Str. 6, D-44227, Dortmund, Germany.

The halogen bonded adduct between the commonly used constituents quinuclidine and iodobenzene is based on a single weak nitrogen-iodine contact, and the isolation of this adduct was initially unexpected. Iodobenzene does not contain any electron-withdrawing group and therefore represents an unconventional halogen bond donor. Based on excellent diffraction data of high resolution, an electron density study was successfully accomplished and confirmed one of the longest N···I molecular halogen bonds with a distance of 2. Read More

Blood Adv 2021 03;5(5):1523-1534

Université Côte d'Azur, Inserm, C3M, Nice, France.

Dysregulated immune response is the key factor leading to unfavorable coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outcome. Depending on the pathogen-associated molecular pattern, the NLRP3 inflammasome can play a crucial role during innate immunity activation. To date, studies describing the NLRP3 response during severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection in patients are lacking. Read More

Cancer Med 2021 Apr 6;10(7):2300-2309. Epub 2021 Mar 6.

Second Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan.

The present study aimed to establish a novel isolation strategy for circulating tumor cells (CTCs) using a microcavity array (MCA) system and to evaluate the clinical significance of CTCs in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We examined recovery rates of HCC cell lines spiked into whole blood in MCA assay. Circulating tumor cells were isolated from peripheral blood samples (3 mL) of 7 healthy donors (HD), 14 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC), and 31 patients with HCC using the MCA system. Read More

Chronic Illn 2021 Mar 5:1742395321999450. Epub 2021 Mar 5.

University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Health, IMPACCT, Broadway, NSW, Australia.

Objectives: To ascertain a comprehensive perspective of the impact of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) on people including needs for access to disease specific information, education, services, and support.

Methods: Participants were recruited from outpatient clinics at a tertiary hospital in metropolitan Australia. Telephone and face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine individuals living with PAD and analysed using qualitative content thematic analysis. Read More

Toxins (Basel) 2021 Feb 18;13(2). Epub 2021 Feb 18.

Independent Researcher, São Paulo 04029-200, Brazil.

Unilateral peripheral facial nerve palsy jeopardizes quality of life, rendering psychological consequences such as low self-esteem, social isolation, anxiety, and depression. Among therapeutical approaches, use of Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) on the nonparalyzed side has shown promising results and improvement of quality of life. Nevertheless, the correct technique is paramount, since over-injection of the muscles can result in lack of function, leading to a "paralyzed" appearance, and even worse, functional incompetence, which may cause greater distress to patients. Read More

STAR Protoc 2021 Mar 17;2(1):100346. Epub 2021 Feb 17.

State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China.

Generating induced neural stem/progenitor cells (iNPCs) from somatic cells for medical applications has remained challenging. Here, we describe a reliable protocol to make human iNPCs from a small volume of immobilized adult peripheral blood by direct reprogramming. We have verified that the integration-free human iNPCs can efficiently differentiate into mature neurons in mouse brain upon transplantation and display capacities to functionally replace the damaged neurons, suggesting their potential as donor cells in developing replacement medicine for neurodegenerative diseases. Read More

Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2021 Mar 20;20:559-571. Epub 2021 Jan 20.

Laboratory of Transplantation Immunotherapy, Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.

Transduction of primary human natural killer (NK) cells with lentiviral vectors has historically been challenging. We sought to evaluate multiple parameters to optimize lentiviral transduction of human peripheral blood NK cells being expanded to large numbers using a good manufacturing practice (GMP)-compliant protocol that utilizes irradiated lymphoblastoid (LCL) feeder cells. Although prestimulation of NK cells with interleukin (IL)-2 for 2 or more days facilitated transduction with vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSVG)-pseudotyped lentivirus, there was a subsequent impairment in the capacity of transduced NK cells to proliferate when stimulated with LCL feeder cells. Read More