The tongue microbiome of young patients with chronic kidney disease and their healthy mothers.

OBJECTIVES: Oral microbiome plays a crucial role in the incidence and development of oral diseases. An altered intestinal microbiome has been reported in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study aimed to characterize the tongue microbiome of young patients with CKD compared to their healthy mothers to identify the influence of CKD-associated factors on resilient tongue ecosystem. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty patients with CKD (mean age, 14.2 years; 16 males and 14 females) and generalized gingivitis were included in the study. Swabs of the posterior tongue were collected from the patients and 21 mothers (mean age 40.8 years). Next-generation sequencing of 16S rDNA genes was employed to quantitatively characterize microbial communities. RESULTS: The bacterial communities were similar in terms of richness and diversity between patients and mothers (p > 0.05). In patients with CKD, 5 core phyla, 20 core genera, and 12 core species were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The tongue microbiome of the study participants showed no relevant CKD-associated differences compared to their mothers and appears to be a highly preserved niche in the oral cavity. Differences observed in the abundance of individual species in this study could be attributed to the age rather than CKD, even after a mean disease duration of 11 years. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: CKD and its associated metabolic changes appear to have no detectable impact on the resilient tongue microbiome observed in young patients.

Cognate Nonlytic Interactions between CD8+ T Cells and Breast Cancer Cells Induce Cancer Stem Cell-like Properties.

Targeting of tumor immune escape mechanisms holds enormous therapeutic potential. Still, most patients progress under immune checkpoint blockade and some even become hyperprogressors. To investigate how cancer cells respond to activated but ineffective T cells, we challenged peptide-loaded MCF-7 breast cancer cells with antigen-specific CD8+ T cells in which lytic granules had been destroyed by pretreatment with Concanamycin A. Gene expression analysis after coculture revealed simultaneous induction of PD-L1, IDO1, CEACAM1, and further immunoregulatory checkpoints in breast cancer cells. Strikingly, we further observed gene signatures characteristic for dedifferentiation and acquisition of pluripotency markers including Yamanaka factors. Cognate interaction with nonlytic CD8+ T cells also increased the proportion of stem cell-like cancer cells in a cell-to-cell contact- or (at least) proximity-dependent manner in various cell lines and in primary breast cancer cell cultures; this induction of stem cell-like properties was confirmed by enhanced tumor-forming capacity in immunodeficient mice. Resulting tumors were characterized by enhanced cell density, higher proliferation rates, and increased propensity for lymphoid metastasis. These findings describe a widely underappreciated pathway for immune escape, namely immune-mediated dedifferentiation of breast cancer cells, which is associated with profound changes in gene expression and cellular behavior. As the enhanced malignant potential of cancer cells after nonlytic cognate interactions with CD8+ T cells enables increased tumor growth and metastasis in BALB/cnu/nu mice, the described mechanism may provide a possible explanation for the clinical phenomenon of hyperprogression in response to unsuccessful immunotherapy. SIGNIFICANCE: This study shows that ineffective immune responses not only fail to clear a malignancy, but can also activate pathways in cancer cells that promote stemness and tumor-seeding capacity.

Western Diet Triggers NLRP3-Dependent Innate Immune Reprogramming.

Long-term epigenetic reprogramming of innate immune cells in response to microbes, also termed "trained immunity," causes prolonged altered cellular functionality to protect from secondary infections. Here, we investigated whether sterile triggers of inflammation induce trained immunity and thereby influence innate immune responses. Western diet (WD) feeding of Ldlr-/- mice induced systemic inflammation, which was undetectable in serum soon after mice were shifted back to a chow diet (CD). In contrast, myeloid cell responses toward innate stimuli remained broadly augmented. WD-induced transcriptomic and epigenomic reprogramming of myeloid progenitor cells led to increased proliferation and enhanced innate immune responses. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis in human monocytes trained with oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) and stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) suggested inflammasome-mediated trained immunity. Consistently, Nlrp3-/-/Ldlr-/- mice lacked WD-induced systemic inflammation, myeloid progenitor proliferation, and reprogramming. Hence, NLRP3 mediates trained immunity following WD and could thereby mediate the potentially deleterious effects of trained immunity in inflammatory diseases.

Genetic Overlap Between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Bipolar Disorder: Evidence From Genome-wide Association Study Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and bipolar disorder (BPD) are frequently co-occurring and highly heritable mental health conditions. We hypothesized that BPD cases with an early age of onset (≤21 years old) would be particularly likely to show genetic covariation with ADHD. METHODS: Genome-wide association study data were available for 4609 individuals with ADHD, 9650 individuals with BPD (5167 thereof with early-onset BPD), and 21,363 typically developing controls. We conducted a cross-disorder genome-wide association study meta-analysis to identify whether the observed comorbidity between ADHD and BPD could be due to shared genetic risks. RESULTS: We found a significant single nucleotide polymorphism-based genetic correlation between ADHD and BPD in the full and age-restricted samples (rGfull = .64, p = 3.13 × 10-14; rGrestricted = .71, p = 4.09 × 10-16). The meta-analysis between the full BPD sample identified two genome-wide significant (prs7089973 = 2.47 × 10-8; prs11756438 = 4.36 × 10-8) regions located on chromosomes 6 (CEP85L) and 10 (TAF9BP2). Restricting the analyses to BPD cases with an early onset yielded one genome-wide significant association (prs58502974 = 2.11 × 10-8) on chromosome 5 in the ADCY2 gene. Additional nominally significant regions identified contained known expression quantitative trait loci with putative functional consequences for NT5DC1, NT5DC2, and CACNB3 expression, whereas functional predictions implicated ABLIM1 as an allele-specific expressed gene in neuronal tissue. CONCLUSIONS: The single nucleotide polymorphism-based genetic correlation between ADHD and BPD is substantial, significant, and consistent with the existence of genetic overlap between ADHD and BPD, with potential differential genetic mechanisms involved in early and later BPD onset.

IL12-mediated sensitizing of T-cell receptor-dependent and -independent tumor cell killing.

Interleukin 12 (IL12) is a key inflammatory cytokine critically influencing Th1/Tc1-T-cell responses at the time of initial antigen encounter. Therefore, it may be exploited for cancer immunotherapy. Here, we investigated how IL12, and other inflammatory cytokines, shape effector functions of human T-cells. Using a defined culture system, we followed the gradual differentiation and function of antigen-specific CD8(+) T cells from their initial activation as naïve T cells through their expansion phase as early memory cells to full differentiation as clonally expanded effector T cells. The addition of IL12 8 days after the initial priming event initiated two mechanistically separate events: First, IL12 sensitized the T-cell receptor (TCR) for antigen-specific activation, leading to an approximately 10-fold increase in peptide sensitivity and, in consequence, enhanced tumor cell killing. Secondly, IL12 enabled TCR/HLA-independent activation and cytotoxicity: this "non-specific" effect was mediated by the NK cell receptor DNAM1 (CD226) and dependent on ligand expression of the target cells. This IL12 regulated, DNAM1-mediated killing is dependent on src-kinases as well as on PTPRC (CD45) activity. Thus, besides enhancing TCR-mediated activation, we here identified for the first time a second IL12 mediated mechanism leading to activation of a receptor-dependent killing pathway via DNAM1.

Impairment of Wound Healing in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Influences Circulating MicroRNA Patterns via Inflammatory Cytokines.

OBJECTIVE: MicroRNAs (miRNA/miR) are stably present in body fluids and are increasingly explored as disease biomarkers. Here, we investigated influence of impaired wound healing on the plasma miRNA signature and their functional importance in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. APPROACH AND RESULTS: miRNA array profiling identified 41 miRNAs significantly deregulated in diabetic controls when compared with patients with diabetes mellitus-associated peripheral arterial disease and chronic wounds. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction validation confirmed decrease in circulating miR-191 and miR-200b levels in type 2 diabetic versus healthy controls. This was reverted in diabetic subjects with associated peripheral arterial disease and chronic wounds, who also exhibited higher circulating C-reactive protein and proinflammatory cytokine levels compared with diabetic controls. miR-191 and miR-200b were significantly correlated with C-reactive protein or cytokine levels in patients with diabetes mellitus. Indeed, proinflammatory stress increased endothelial- or platelet-derived secretion of miR-191 or miR-200b. In addition, dermal cells took up endothelial-derived miR-191 leading to downregulation of the miR-191 target zonula occludens-1. Altered miR-191 expression influenced angiogenesis and migratory capacities of diabetic dermal endothelial cells or fibroblasts, respectively, partly via its target zonula occludens-1. CONCLUSIONS: This study reports that (1) inflammation underlying nonhealing wounds in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus influences plasma miRNA concentrations and (2) miR-191 modulates cellular migration and angiogenesis via paracrine regulation of zonula occludens-1 to delay the tissue repair process.

Vγ9Vδ2 TCR-activation by phosphorylated antigens requires butyrophilin 3 A1 (BTN3A1) and additional genes on human chromosome 6.

Pyrophosphorylated metabolites of isoprenoid-biosynthesis (phosphoantigens, PAgs) activate Vγ9Vδ2 T cells during infections and trigger antitumor activity. This activation depends on expression of butyrophilin 3 A1 (BTN3A1) by antigen-presenting cells. This report defines the minimal genetic requirements for activation of Vγ9Vδ2 T cells by PAgs and mAb 20.1. We compared PAg-presentation by BTN3A1-transduced CHO hamster cells with that of CHO cells containing the complete human chromosome 6 (Chr6). BTN3A1 expression alone was sufficient for activation of Vγ9Vδ2 T-cell receptor transductants by mAb 20.1., while activation by PAgs also required the presence of Chr6. We take this finding as evidence that gene(s) on Chr6 in addition to BTN3A1 are mandatory for PAg-mediated activation of Vγ9Vδ2 T cells. This observation is important for the design of animal models for PAg-mediated immune responses and provokes speculations about the analogy between genes controlling PAg presentation and MHC-localized genes controlling peptide-antigen presentation.