IL-33/ST2 axis in systemic lupus erythematosus in relation to chronic kidney injury and disease activity / 中国病理生理杂志

AIM:To elucidate the association between chronic kidney injury and interleukin-33 (IL-33;an alarmin)/suppression of tumorigencity 2 (ST2) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).METHODS:Serum levels of IL-33 and soluble ST2 (sST2) were assessed by ELISA in 50 SLE patients and 30 healthy controls (HC).RESULTS:The levels of IL-33 and sST2,and IL-33/sST2 ratio were significantly higher in SLE patients than those in the HC.The IL-33 and sST2 levels were positively associated with SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI),erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR),proteinuria and triglyceride,but negatively associated with complement C3.IL-33/sST2 ratio was positively associated with SLEDAI and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).Independent explanatory variables associated with high IL-33/sST2 included chronic kidney disease (CKD) staging and albumin (R2 =0.442),especially CKD staging.CONCLUSION:Elevated serum sST2 and IL-33 levels in SLE patients are correlated with disease activity and risk factors of kidney injury.IL-33/sST2 ratio may serve as a potential biomarker for chronic kidney injury in SLE patients.

IL-33/ST2 axis in systemic lupus erythematosus in relation to chronic kidney injury and disease activity / 中国病理生理杂志

AIM:To elucidate the association between chronic kidney injury and interleukin-33 (IL-33;an alarmin)/suppression of tumorigencity 2 (ST2) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).METHODS:Serum levels of IL-33 and soluble ST2 (sST2) were assessed by ELISA in 50 SLE patients and 30 healthy controls (HC).RESULTS:The levels of IL-33 and sST2,and IL-33/sST2 ratio were significantly higher in SLE patients than those in the HC.The IL-33 and sST2 levels were positively associated with SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI),erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR),proteinuria and triglyceride,but negatively associated with complement C3.IL-33/sST2 ratio was positively associated with SLEDAI and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).Independent explanatory variables associated with high IL-33/sST2 included chronic kidney disease (CKD) staging and albumin (R2 =0.442),especially CKD staging.CONCLUSION:Elevated serum sST2 and IL-33 levels in SLE patients are correlated with disease activity and risk factors of kidney injury.IL-33/sST2 ratio may serve as a potential biomarker for chronic kidney injury in SLE patients.

Functional verification of vimentin as an alarmin / 中国免疫学杂志

Objective:To identify the function of extracellular soluble vimentin that promotes proliferation, activation and chemotaxis of inflammatory cells. Methods: The proliferation of rat splenocytes stimulated with vimentin was evaluated in vitro. The lymphocyte counts and vimentin-antibody levels of peripheral blood in mice immunized with vimentin were detected in vivo. Peritoneal macrophages were collected and cultured with different concentrations of vimentin to detect the effect on phagocytosing chicken red blood cells. The chemotaxis of NIH3T3 fibroblast towards vimentin was observed in transwell chamber. Results:In vitro vimentin dose dependently promoted the proliferation of splenocytes. The proliferation indexes of primed and naive splenocytes cultured with 16μg/ml vimentin were reached up to ( 196. 0 ± 9. 7 )% and ( 208. 9 ± 4. 6 )% respectively without significant difference. In vivo vimentin significantly enhanced the lymphocytes number(109 L-1)of peripheral blood(5. 74±0. 51 vs. 1. 69±0. 13)and the levels of vimentin specific antibody( OD value 2. 31 ± 0. 06 vs. 0. 19 ± 0. 08 ) that shown no significant difference from immunization with vimentin plus CFA. In vitro vimentin dose dependently stimulated phagocytic ability of macrophages and performed the chemotactic effects on NIH3T3 fibroblasts. Conclusion:Extracellular soluble vimentin promotes the proliferation,activation and chemotaxis of concerned inflammatory cells and possesses the functions as an alarmin.

Galectins: Double Edged Swords in the Cross-roads of Pregnancy Complications and Female Reproductive Tract Inflammation and Neoplasia

Galectins are an evolutionarily ancient and widely expressed family of lectins that have unique glycan-binding characteristics. They are pleiotropic regulators of key biological processes, such as cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, signal transduction, and pre-mRNA splicing, as well as homo- and heterotypic cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions. Galectins are also pivotal in immune responses since they regulate host-pathogen interactions, innate and adaptive immune responses, acute and chronic inflammation, and immune tolerance. Some galectins are also central to the regulation of angiogenesis, cell migration and invasion. Expression and functional data provide convincing evidence that, due to these functions, galectins play key roles in shared and unique pathways of normal embryonic and placental development as well as oncodevelopmental processes in tumorigenesis. Therefore, galectins may sometimes act as double-edged swords since they have beneficial but also harmful effects for the organism. Recent advances facilitate the use of galectins as biomarkers in obstetrical syndromes and in various malignancies, and their therapeutic applications are also under investigation. This review provides a general overview of galectins and a focused review of this lectin subfamily in the context of inflammation, infection and tumors of the female reproductive tract as well as in normal pregnancies and those complicated by the great obstetrical syndromes.