ABSTRACT
Background & Aim: Due to its immunomodulatory potential, therapy based on the transfer of regulatory T cells (Tregs) has acquired great interest in the treatment of diseases in which it is necessary to restore immune homeostasis. Until now, autologous Treg cell therapy has proven to be safe, but the employment of blood as the source of Treg presents several limitations in terms of Treg recovery and the quality of the employed Tregs. Our group has developed a new technology to produce massive amounts of GMP Treg derived from the pediatric thymic tissue discarded in pediatric cardiac surgeries (thyTreg) that could overcome the main obstacles. Indeed, we are employing thyTreg cells with success in a clinical trial as autologous cell therapy in transplanted children. Given the large amounts of thyTreg that can be obtained from a single thymus, the main objective of this work is to evaluate the immunogenicity of thyTreg and confirm that its immature phenotype makes possible the allogeneic use of this cellular therapy in order to treat a range of immune diseases and patients. Methods, Results & Conclusion: The thyTreg obtained in the laboratory using the protocol developed by our group exhibit high viability (>90%) and high purity (>80%) in terms of CD25+FoxP3+ expression. ThyTreg have been observed to express low levels of immunogenicity markers (CD40L, CD80, CD86) by flow cytometry. Moreover, in vitro models of thyTreg co-culture with allogeneic peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from healthy donors have been performed to i) determine if thyTreg generate an immunogenic response on PBMC, and ii) evaluate the capacity of thyTreg to suppress the proliferation of allogeneic PBMC. Even that the HLA disparity in the allogeneic cocultures between thyTreg and PBMC was high (13 of the 21 typed pairs had HLA <4/12 concordance), thyTreg did not induce the expression of activation markers (CD25, CD69) nor the proliferation or the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IFN-g) by allogeneic PBMCs. Moreover, thyTreg greatly inhibit the proliferation of allogeneic CD4 and CD8 T cells, reaching levels of around 70% inhibition of proliferation at a 1: 1 ratio. The results suggest that allogenic thyTreg are not immunogenic and are capable of exerting their suppressive function in an allogeneic context, indicating their possible off-the-shelf use as a treatment for transplant rejection, graft-versus- host disease, autoimmune diseases or the cytokine release syndrome characteristic of severe COVID-19 patients.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: This paper aims to report on a post-confinement reflection (not post-COVID-19) resulting from a series of online forums that took place during the peak moments of the pandemic, with the intention of raising awareness and mobilising tourism agents for the development of tourism planning and tourism intelligence, taking advantage of the period of stagnation of the tourism industry. The project was named "Tourism in flight mode: Thinking together the post COVID-19 tourism". Design/methodology/approach: The project was based on the sharing of information and experiences in virtual forums where participants from all over the world had the opportunity to explain how the pandemic was influencing their work/business, the regional or national tourism activity, GDP and jobs and how they and their regions were preparing for the recovery of tourism. On a biweekly basis, virtual forums were organised, with participants from three continents and 12 countries. The results were contextualised by carrying out a review of the most recent literature and authors' tourism know-how in the field. Findings: The results of the discussions allowed for an identification of new potential successful tourism products and new proposals for the design of basic pillars for destinations planning. Practical implications: This paper offers practical recommendations for public administration and others on dealing with unexpected crises in the tourism sector and how to respond through the development of new and adapted products and approaches to tourism. Originality/value: This paper creates awareness in public administration and other agencies about the opportunities and the needs for this "new era".
ABSTRACT
The article presents a general overview on COVID-19 transmission in the context of public transport, particularly applicable to decision making in Latin America. Based on recent findings on COVID-19 transmission and the relative importance of each factor (droplets, fomites, and aerosol routes) in such transmission, we seek to update the discussion on the topic that has generally been based on social distance as the only parameter for reducing the risk of transmission and broadens the vision to integrate ventilation, users' behavior (mask and eye protection use, silence while in the transport system) and travel distance. Recommendations to improve mobility conditions reducing the risk of COVID-19 contagion are provided. © 2021 Asociacion Colombiana de Infectologia. All rights reserved.