Project description:Cryptococcal osteomyelitis is an infrequent infection which is usually associated with disseminated cryptococcosis or underlying immunocompromised conditions. Here we described a rare case with isolated iliac cryptococcosis in an immunocompetent patient. Through histological, microbial, and molecular biological examinations, the pathogen was finally identified as C. neoformans VNI genotype, which likely originated from environmental bird droppings. The clinical isolate was hypomelanized but fully virulent in mouse infection model. The patient displayed lower CD4+-T lymphocyte ratio, reduced serum IFN-γ and IL-12, and dysregulated transcriptional profile of blood leukocytes compare with healthy host. After surgical excision and 34 weeks’ antifungal treatment, the patient got clinical cured. Our study suggested that cryptococcosis development was closely associated with the interaction of fungal agent and host immunity. Accurate diagnosis of bone cryptococcosis depends mainly on histological and fungal examinations. A combination of antifungal agent treatment regimen and surgery were quite effective for resolving bone cryptococcosis.
Project description:In this study we focussed on malignant post-transplant lymphomas. Post-transplant lymphoma is strongly associated with Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) infection in contrast to lymphoma arising in an immunocompetent population. Nevertheless, about 1 in 3 PTLD cases are negative for EBV. We used a microarray to define the gene expression profile of different PTLDs to elucidate the pathogenesis of EBV(+) and EBV(-) PTLD and to define whether EBV(-) PTLD is biologically different from EBV(-) lymphoma arising in an immunocompetent host. PTLD patient samples were randomly selected for RNA extraction and hybridization on an Affymetrix platform. The post-transplant tumors consisted of homogenous sheets of neoplastic cells ensuring reliability of the gene expression data.
Project description:Primary human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection usually goes unnoticed, causing mild or no symptoms in immunocompetent individuals. Some rare severe clinical cases have however been reported without investigation of host immune responses or viral virulence. In this present study, we investigate, for the first time, phenotypic and functional features together with gene expression profiles in immunocompetent adults experiencing a severe primary HCMV infection. Twenty PHIP were enrolled as well as 26 HCMV-seronegative and 39 HCMV-seropositive healthy controls. PHIP had a huge lymphocytosis marked by massive expansion of NK and T cell compartments. Interestingly, PHIP mounted efficient innate and adaptive immune responses with a deep HCMV imprint, revealed mainly by the expansion of NKG2C+ NK cells, CD16+ V2- T cells and conventional HCMV-specific CD8+ T cells. The main effector lymphocytes were activated and displayed an early immune phenotype that developed toward a more mature differentiated status. We suggest that both huge lymphocytosis and excessive lymphocyte activation could contribute to a massive cytokine production known to mediate tissue damage observed in PHIP. Taken together, these findings bring new insights into the comprehensive understanding of immune mechanisms involved during primary HCMV-infection in immunocompetent individuals.
Project description:This work describes a patient-derived tumoroid model (PDTs) to support precision medicine in lung oncology. The use of human adipose tissue-derived microvasculature and patient-derived PBMCs permits to achieve a physiologically relevant tumor-microenvironment in this 3D tumor model. This study involved ten patients at various stages of tumor progression. The vascularized, immune-infiltrated PDT model could be obtained within two weeks, matching the requirements of the therapeutic decision-making process. Histological and transcriptomic analyses confirmed that the main features from the original tumor were reproduced. The 3D tumor model could be used to determine the dynamics of response to antiangiogenic therapy and platinum-based chemotherapy. Antiangiogenic therapy showed a significant decrease in vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A expression, reflecting its therapeutic effect in the model. In an immune-infiltrated PDT model, chemotherapy showed the ability to decrease the levels of lymphocyte activation gene-3 protein (LAG-3), B and T lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA) and inhibitory receptors of T cells functions.
Project description:Macrophages represent an important component of the tumor microenvironment and play a complex role in cancer progression. These cells are characterized by a high degree of plasticity, and alter their phenotype in response to local environmental cues. While the M1/M2 classification of macrophages has been widely used, the complexity of macrophage phenotypes specifically in lung cancer has not been well studied. In this study we employed an orthotopic immunocompetent model of lung adenocarcinoma in which murine lung cancer cells are directly implanted into the left lobe of syngeneic mice. Using multi-marker flow cytometry we defined and recovered several distinct populations of monocytes/macrophages from tumors at different stages of progression. We used RNA-seq transcriptional profiling to define distinct features of each population and determine how they change during tumor progression. We defined an alveolar resident macrophage population that does not change in number and express multiple genes related to lipid metabolism and lipid signaling. We also defined a population of tumor-associated macrophages that increase dramatically with tumor, and selectively express a panel of chemokines genes. A third population, which resembles tumor-associated monocytes, expresses a large number of genes involved in matrix remodeling. By correlating transcriptional profiles with clinically prognostic genes, we show that specific monocyte/macrophage populations are enriched in genes that predict good or poor outcome in lung adenocarcinoma, implicating these subpopulations as critical determinants of patient survival. Our data underscore the complexity of monocytes/macrophages in the tumor microenvironment, and suggest that distinct populations play specific roles in tumor progression. mRNA profiles of macrophage/monocyte cells isolated from murine control or tumor-bearing lung. From naive mice: MacA cells (MacA-N), MacB1 cells (MacB1-N), MacB2 cells (MacB2-N); from 2 week tumor bearing mice: MacA cells (MacA-2wk), MacB2 cells (MacB2-2wk), MacB3 cells (MacB3-3wk); from 3-week tumor bearing mice: MacB2 (MacB2-3wk), MacB3 cells (MacB3-3wk). Each population was analyzed in triplicate (cells were isolated in 3 independent experiments).