Refine
Has Fulltext
- yes (5)
Is part of the Bibliography
- yes (5)
Document Type
- Journal article (4)
- Doctoral Thesis (1)
Keywords
- Abstoßung (1)
- CMV (1)
- CMV-specific cellular immunity (1)
- Dünndarmtransplantation (1)
- IFN-γ ELISpot (1)
- NK-Zellen (1)
- NK-cells (1)
- RESP model (1)
- T cells (1)
- Toleranz (1)
Background
Empirical studies investigating the prevalence of mental disorders and psychological distress in cancer patients have gained increasing importance during recent years, particularly with the objective to develop and implement psychosocial interventions within the cancer care system. Primary purpose of this epidemiological cross-sectional multi-center study is to detect the 4-week-, 12-month-, and lifetime prevalence rates of comorbid mental disorders and to further assess psychological distress and psychosocial support needs in cancer patients across all major tumor entities within the in- and outpatient oncological health care and rehabilitation settings in Germany.
Methods/Design
In this multicenter, epidemiological cross-sectional study, cancer patients across all major tumor entities will be enrolled from acute care hospitals, outpatient cancer care facilities, and rehabilitation centers in five major study centers in Germany: Freiburg, Hamburg, Heidelberg, Leipzig and Würzburg. A proportional stratified random sample based on the nationwide incidence of all cancer diagnoses in Germany is used. Patients are consecutively recruited in all centers. On the basis of a depression screener (PHQ-9) 50% of the participants that score below the cutoff point of 9 and all patients scoring above are assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview for Oncology (CIDI-O). In addition, all patients complete validated questionnaires measuring emotional distress, information and psychosocial support needs as well as quality of life.
Discussion
Epidemiological data on the prevalence of mental disorders and distress provide detailed and valid information for the estimation of the demands for the type and extent of psychosocial support interventions. The data will provide information about specific demographic, functional, cancer- and treatment-related risk factors for mental comorbidity and psychosocial distress, specific supportive care needs and use of psychosocial support offers.
The trypanothione synthetase (TryS) catalyses the two-step biosynthesis of trypanothione from spermidine and glutathione and is an attractive new drug target for the development of trypanocidal and antileishmanial drugs, especially since the structural information of TryS from Leishmania major has become available. Unfortunately, the TryS structure was solved without any of the substrates and lacks loop regions that are mechanistically important. This contribution describes docking and molecular dynamics simulations that led to further insights into trypanothione biosynthesis and, in particular, explains the binding modes of substrates for the second catalytic step. The structural model essentially confirm previously proposed binding sites for glutathione, ATP and two \(Mg^{2+}\) ions, which appear identical for both catalytic steps. The analysis of an unsolved loop region near the proposed spermidine binding site revealed a new pocket that was demonstrated to bind glutathionylspermidine in an inverted orientation. For the second step of trypanothione synthesis glutathionylspermidine is bound in a way that preferentially allows \(N^1\)-glutathionylation of \(N^8\)-glutathionylspermidine, classifying \(N^8\)-glutathionylspermidine as the favoured substrate. By inhibitor docking, the binding site for \(N^8\)-glutathionylspermidine was characterised as druggable.
Einleitung/Zielsetzung: Chronische Abstoßung ist der Hauptgrund für die späte Transplantatdysfunktion. Derzeit ist wenig bekannt über den möglichen Einfluß der intraepithelialen Lymphozyten (IEL) auf die chronische Abstoßung nach Dünndarmtransplantation (DDTx). Deshalb wird hier die Zusammensetzung der IEL im Dünndarm (DD) und ihre Bedeutung in der Phase der Abstoßung sowie in der Phase der Toleranz nach experimenteller DDTx an der Ratte untersucht. Material und Methodik: Nach orthotoper Dünndarmtransplantation in der allogenen BN-auf-LEW Rattenstammkombination erhielten die Transplantatempfänger täglich das Immunsuppressivum FK 506 in der Dosierung von 2 mg/kg KG/Tag intramuskulär: von Tag 0 bis Tag 5 p.op. im Abstoßungsmodell (AB) und von Tag 0 bis 9 p.op. im Toleranzmodell (TOL). An den postoperataiven Tagen 3, 7, 14, 30, 60, 100 und 250 wurden die IEL (3,5 x10 hoch 6 pro DD)isoliert und durchflußzytometrisch analysiert. Ergebnisse: Im AB-Modell betrug die mittlere Transplantatüberlebenszeit 98+-2,8 Tage, während im TOL-Modell mit der im Vergleich zum AB-Modell um vier Tage verlängerten Immunsuppression Toleranz induziert wurde. Der Versuch wurde an Tag 250 ohne klinische und histologische Zeichen einer Transplanttabstoßung beendet. Der Nachweis von Toleranz wurde durch heterotop transplantierte allogene BN-Herzen an Tag 60 nach DDTx gezeigt. Die dominierende Population im intraepithelialen Kompartiment waren CD8+ ab T-Lymphozyten (64%), gefolgt von 10% CD4+ ab T-Lymphozyten und 8,5% CD8+ gd T-Lymphozyten. Mit fast 5% gehörten auch Natürliche Killerzellen (NK-Zellen) zur Normalpopulation des intraepithelialen Kompartiments. Nach allogener DDTx erfolgte in beiden Modellen ein Austausch der Spenderlymphozyten durch Empfängerlymphozyten aus der Peripherie. An Tag 100 waren die IEL zu 98% empfängerspezifisch, unabhängig davon, ob sich eine Abstoßung entwickelt hat (AB) oder nicht (TOL). Während im AB-Modell die NK-Zell-Infiltration im DD-Epithel an Tag 100 ein Maximum von fast 40% erreichte, betrug ihr Anteil im Tol-Modell wie in der physiologischen Normalpopulation 5%. In der Phase der Abstoßung stieg auch der Anteil aktivierter IEL signifikant von 3% auf 20%. Hiervon entfiel ein Drittel auf die NK-Zellen. Schlußfolgerung: Während die Abstoßung im intraepithelialen Kompartiment des DD-Transplantates ein NK-Zell-dominierter Entzündungsprozeß zu sein scheint, blieben die NK-Zellen im TOL-Modell als normaler Bestandteil der IEL-Subpopulation unauffällig.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a major cause of morbidity and mortality following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Measuring CMV-specific cellular immunity may improve the risk stratification and management of patients. IFN-γ ELISpot assays, based on the stimulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells with CMV pp65 and IE-1 proteins or peptides, have been validated in clinical settings. However, it remains unclear to which extend the T-cell response to synthetic peptides reflect that mediated by full-length proteins processed by antigen-presenting cells. We compared the stimulating ability of pp65 and IE-1 proteins and corresponding overlapping peptides in 16 HSCT recipients using a standardized IFN-γ ELISpot assay. Paired qualitative test results showed an overall 74.4% concordance. Discordant results were mainly due to low-response tests, with one exception. One patient with early CMV reactivation and graft-versus-host disease, sustained CMV DNAemia and high CD8\(^+\) counts showed successive negative protein-based ELISpot results but a high and sustained response to IE-1 peptides. Our results suggest that the response to exogenous proteins, which involves their uptake and processing by antigen-presenting cells, more closely reflects the physiological response to CMV infection, while the response to exogenous peptides may lead to artificial in vitro T-cell responses, especially in strongly immunosuppressed patients.