Allergy to Gibberellin-regulated proteins in an adolescent: A case of orange-induced anaphylaxis mediated by cofactors / Alergia a proteínas reguladas por giberelinas en un adolescente: un caso de anafilaxia inducida por naranja mediada por cofactores

This report is a case of anaphylaxis in an adolescent due to allergy to gibberellin-regulated proteins mediated by cofactors, in probable relation to a pollen/food allergy syndrome. It should also emphasizes the importance of obtaining a faithful clinical history, especially when it comes to adolescent patients as they tend to initiate toxic habits.(AU)

Real-life experience after 3 months with tezepelumab before marketing approval / Experiencia de la vida real después de 3 meses con tezepelumab antes de la aprobación de comercialización

Background: Tezepelumab is a monoclonal antibody targeting thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), implicated in asthma pathogenesis, and that has been approved for patients with severe uncontrolled asthma in Spain in October 2023. This study evaluates our experience with Tezepelumab for those patients who received the indicated drug off-label prior to its commercialization. Methods: We conducted a real-life observational study on three patients from the Severe Asthma Unit of the Hospital Universitario de Fuenlabrada, Spain, who received Tezepelumab off-label before its official approval. We analyzed symptoms control based on ACT, exacerbations, reductions in the doses of oral corticosteroid, lung function, blood changes and safety at 3 months of treatment. Results: Tezepelumab demonstrated efficacy in improving asthma control and a notable reduction in emergency department visits. OCS use decreased, with one patient halving their prednisone dose. Lung function, particularly FEV1 and FEV1/FVC parameters, improved, but no significant changes were observed in FeNO levels, blood eosinophil counts and total IgE. The treatment exhibited a favorable safety profile with no reported adverse effects during the study period. Conclusions: In this preliminary real-world experience prior to the official approval of tezepelumab in Spain, this monoclonal antibody showed promising results and suggests its potential as a valuable alternative for the treatment of severe asthma.(AU)

Primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of food allergy: current practices and future directions / Prevención primaria, secundaria y terciaria de la alergia alimentaria: prácticas actuales y direcciones futuras

The incidence of food allergies has risen around the globe, and experts have been exploring methods of preventing such allergies in young children to ease the burden of disease and reduce the morbidity and mortality caused by anaphylaxis to food allergens. Such preventative measures can be categorised as primary, secondary and tertiary prevention, which are discussed in detail in this review. Primary prevention is defined as the prevention of becoming sensitised towards specific allergens. The evidence suggests that avoiding common allergenic foods during pregnancy and breastfeeding is not protective against food allergies, and guidelines recommend weaning from 4 to 6 months of age, with recent studies supporting the early introduction of peanuts at 4 months to prevent peanut allergy. Secondary prevention targets patients who are already sensitised and aims to halt the progression of sensitisation, with evidence for high rates of success and safety in trials of early introduction to milk and peanuts using oral immunotherapy in sensitised infants. Tertiary allergy prevention focuses on reducing the risk of a patient having anaphylaxis, with oral immunotherapy being the most common method of promoting tolerance in allergic children. Several studies have demonstrated successful reintroduction for milk, egg and peanut; however, no such guidelines are recommended for other foods. Finally, dietary advancement therapy in the form of milk and egg ladders has been employed as a method of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of allergies, particularly in Ireland, the UK and Canada.(AU)

Oscilometría: de la teoría a la práctica / Oscillometry: from theory to practice

La oscilometría es una herramienta que, poco a poco, se está abriendo paso en las consultas de neumología y alergología. Se trata de una técnica sencilla de realizar para el paciente, que, además, aporta información adicional a las pruebas de función respiratoria clásicas. No solamente nos indica la alteración que existe en la vía aérea, sino que localiza a qué altura se produce (central o periférica). El objetivo es acercar esta técnica al personal sanitario y hacer más sencilla su interpretación. (AU)

Oscillometry is a tool that is gradually making its way into the daily routine of pneumology and allergology. It is a simple technique for the patient, which also provides additional information to the classic respiratory function tests. It not only indicates if there is an alteration in the airway, but also locates where it occurs (central or peripheral). The aim is to bring this technique closer to healthcare professionals and facilitate its interpretation. (AU)

Linfocitos B instruidos por bacterias potencian la capacidad citotóxica de linfocitos T CD8 naïve / [B lymphocytes instructed by bacteria enhance the cytotoxic capacity of naïve CD8 T lymphocytes]

Los linfocitos B desempeñan un papel bien conocido en la respuesta inmunitaria adaptativa, tanto a nivel humoral mediante la producción de anticuerpos y citoquinas como durante la activación de los linfocitos T CD4. Sin embargo, su capacidad para capturar, procesar y activar linfocitos T CD8 naïve mediante presentación cruzada (“cross-presentation”) es un campo en que los mecanismos moleculares que regulan dicha capacidad no están definidos. De forma previa, se sabía que las células B son capaces de incrementar las respuestas citotóxicas de linfocitos T CD8 durante la infección. En este trabajo recientemente publicado en EMBO Reports con Raquel García-Ferreras como primera autora, del laboratorio del Dr. Esteban Veiga en el Centro Nacional de biotecnología (CNB, Madrid), se demuestra cómo los linfocitos B capturan bacterias vía endocitosis a través de contactos con células dendríticas infectadas, siendo la transfagocitosis pues la vía preferida. Estos linfocitos B así instruidos procesan los componentes bacterianos mediante autofagia y presentan los antígenos producidos a linfocitos T CD8, que van a mejorar su capacidad citotóxica y por tanto su actividad para eliminar células diana. Para entender los mecanismos moleculares que regulan esto procesos los autores han utilizado diferentes modelos de ratón y cepas bacterianas derivadas de L monocytogenes, determinando mediante citometría de flujo y microscopía confocal la capacidad de presentación antigénica de los linfocitos B y la proliferación de los linfocitos T CD8. La transfagocitosis de dichas bacterias conlleva el uso de autofagia y esto ocurre mediante el aumento en la expresión de moléculas co-estimuladoras y del MHC-I y es dependiente de la autofagia no clásica. Las células CD8 citotóxicas entrenadas por los linfocitos B son así más efectivas en el reconocimiento de células tumorales que expresan antígenos específicos. ... (AU)

Effect of comprehensive nursing intervention on quality of life and self-care ability of retired athletic patients with lung cancer undergoing surgery

Objective: To investigate the effectiveness of synthetical nursing intervention on the quality of life and self-care ability of lung cancer retired athletic patients undergoing surgery. Methods: 72 retired athletic patients with lung cancer and received surgical treatment were research subjects and put into two groups i.e., control group (n=36) and research group (n=36). The control group was given routine nursing intervention while the research group received a comprehensive nursing intervention on top of routine nursing intervention. Serum indexes, quality of life, self-care ability, complication rate and measure for nursing satisfaction were measured in both groups before and after intervention. Results: After the intervention, the serum measure of each index of the two groups were in a higher status than those before the intervention, and the levels of CRP, IL-6, MAP and RR in the research group were lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). The scores of family, relationship with doctors, emotion, function, and lung cancer-related status were all lower than those before intervention, and the ameliorate of quality of life in the research group was better than that in the control group (P<0.05). The scores of disease cognition and self-concept were higher than those before intervention, and the amelioration of self-care ability in the research group was better than that in the other (P<0.05); the incidence of complications in the research group (8.33%) was lower than in the control group (19.44%) (P>0.05). The nursing service satisfaction of the research group was 94.44% and significantly higher than that of the control group at 86.11% (P<0.05). Conclusion: Comprehensive nursing intervention in retired athletic patients with lung cancer surgery are able to elevate the quality of life and self-care ability of retired athletic patients and achieve significant nursing impression which are worthwhile for future clinical application. (AU)

The perspective of allergy and immunology specialists on the innovations of metaverse: A survey study

Background: New technologies have resulted in dramatic shifts in the field of medicine, and it stands to reason that metaverse will also affect the practice of allergy and immunology. This study aimed to determine the attitudes of allergists and raise awareness about metaverse applications in allergy and immunology.Methods: A nationwide survey-based study was conducted in Turkey. First, a 28-item questionnaire was developed and sent to Turkish allergists. After completing the first questionnaire, the participants were asked to watch a 5-min informative video about the metaverse. Lastly, a second survey was conducted to evaluate the changes in the views of the participants.Results: A total of 148 allergy doctors in Turkey participated in the survey. After watching a video containing updated information about the metaverse, there was a significant increase in the importance that participants attributed to the use of virtual reality and augmented reality applications in the field of immunology and allergy (P < 0.05). Additionally, there was a significant increase in the percentage of participants who thought that Metaverse applications could be integrated into the existing system and said that this possibility excited them (P < 0.05). There was also a significant increase in the percentage of participants who thought this innovative technology could be helpful in patient examination, student and physician education, allergy testing, and patient education (P < 0.05).Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that providing information to professionals working in the field can positively influence physicians’ views on the potential of the metaverse, which is a valuable tool in the field of immunology and allergy. (AU)

CD69 regula la expresión de PD-1 en linfocitos T CD4 / CD69 regulates PD-1 expression on CD4 T lymphocytes

D69 es una molécula inmunorreguladora que es expresada rápidamente por los leucocitos tras su activación, cuyo papel como inmunoregulador negativo, y no pro-inflamatorio, es cada vez más patente por las investigaciones in vivo que se están realizando. En el artículo publicado en Cell Mol Life Sci por María Jiménez como primera autora, se pone de manifiesto la capacidad de CD69 para unir y responder a lipoproteínas de baja densidad(LDL) aisladas y oxidadas in vitro (oxLDL). Esta unión incrementa la expresión de los receptores nucleares anti-inflamatorios NR4A, especialmente de NR4A3, y de PD1, molécula que actúa como freno para la activación de linfocitos T. Para ello, los autores han usado una línea estable de Jurkat que sobre-expresaCD69, linfocitos CD4 primarios, secuenciación masiva de ARNm, así como otras técnicas de biología molecular como el silenciamiento mediante ARN pequeño de interferencia para NR4A3,receptor nuclear que está implicado en la expresión de PD1. La unión de las oxLD La CD69 produjo el incremento de PD1 tanto a nivel de transcripción (ARNm) como de proteína (citometría deflujo). En este contexto, CD69 señaliza a través NFAT, un factor de transcripción dependiente de calcio. Por otra parte, los autores estudiaron biopsias de pacientes intervenidos por aneurisma de la aorta abdominal; en aquellos con inflamación crónica la expresión de PD1, NR4A3y CD69 está incrementada. Además, se observó una correlación positiva entre los niveles de ARNm de CD69 y de PD1 en estos pacientes, delos que más de la mitad presentaban hiperlipidemia. Estos datos apoyan el papel inmunoregulador negativo de CD69 en patologías como la aterosclerosis, y lo sitúan en el centro de rutas de señalización que actúan como freno de respuestas inflamatorias de origen inmunitario. (AU)

Vinculación del virólogo profesor Adolfo García Sastre con la Universidad de Salamanca y con la Real Academia Nacional de Farmacia / Relationship of the virologist professor Adolfo García Sastre with the University of Salamanca and the Royal National Academy of Pharmacy

Se detallan y comentan algunos datos biográficos relativos al virólogo Profesor Adolfo García Sastre correspondientes a su etapa como estudiante en la Facultad de Biología de la Universidad de Salamanca, durante los cursos finales de su Licenciatura (años 1981-1986), así como a los siguientes en que realizó su Tesis de Licenciatura (Tesina) en 1986, y Doctorado (1986-1990), en el Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular de dicha Facultad (Director: Prof. J.A. Cabezas); habiendo obtenido en ambas las máximas calificaciones y el Premio Extraordinario en la de Doctorado. También se resumen las líneas de investigación que cultivó en Salamanca hasta 1991 en colaboración con el director de ambas Tesis (el Profesor Titular Enrique Villar), el Profesor J.A. Cabezas y, a veces, otros. Los resultados obtenidos, así como los derivados de su breve etapa inmediata en el Instituto Pasteur de Paris, en coordinación con el Departamento salmantino, fueron publicados en revistas de Virología o de Bioquímica de gran prestigio y presentados en congresos nacionales e internacionales. Posteriormente, en su etapa americana en el Mount Sinai de Nueva York, entró en contacto con el Profesor Mariano Esteban, entonces trabajando en el Downstate Medical Center de New York, SUNY, y ambos, conjuntamente con el grupo del New York University (NYU) dirigido por Ruth Nussenweig y Fidel Zavala, llevaron a cabo experimentos seminales de inmunología que abrieron las bases a la combinación de vacunas en protocolos prime/boost y activación de linfocitos TCD8+ con resultado de alta eficacia frente a patógenos. Estos protocolos están siendo implementados en numerosos ensayos preclínicos y clínicos. La contribución del Prof. García Sastre a la ciencia está actualmente en fase exponencial, abriendo nuevos horizontes en el entendimiento de la biología molecular de virus emergentes, su patología, interacción virus-hospedador y desarrollando nuevos procedimientos de control viral. (AU)

We give some biographical details of the virologist Professor Adolfo Garcia Sastre, as a Graduate student (1981-1986) in the Biology School of University of Salamanca and during his PhD Thesis (1986-1990) in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Chairman Prof J.A. Cabezas), under the supervision of Prof. Enrique Villlar and obtaining the highest academic marks. The research lines that he established in collaboration with his Thesis director, with Prof. J.A Cabezas and others, as well as his results during his stay at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, are also highlighted. His findings in this period were published in prestigious Virology and Biochemistry journals and presented at national and international meetings. Thereafter, when he moved to Mount Sinai in New York, he met Prof Mariano Esteban, then working at Downstate Medical Center in New York, SUNY, and both, in collaboration with the group of Prof. Ruth Nussenzweig and Fidel Zavala at New York University, set up seminal immunological studies that are the basis for combined vaccination approaches, prime/boost and activation of CD8+ T cells, now widely used in preclinical and clinical studies. The scientific research contributions of Prof. García Sastre are growing at an exponential rate, opening new horizons in understanding the molecular biology of emerging viruses, their pathology, virus-host cell interactions and strategies of virus control. (AU)

Élie Metchnikoff, ¿el primer transhumanista moderno? / Élie metchnikoff, the first modern transhumanist?

Élie Metchnikoff, ganador del Premio Nobel de medicina en 1908 y sucesor de Pasteur, fue sin duda un hombre intelectualmente muy fértil. Sus investigaciones pioneras en una gran variedad de áreas científicas, como la gerontología, la tanatología y la inmunología modernas, constatan lo anterior. Pero ¿es posible considerarlo, además, como el primer transhumanista moderno? El objetivo de este artículo es estudiar la pertinencia de atribuirle tal título. Para ello analizaremos su vida y obra desde un punto de vista transhumanista. En un primer momento examinaremos cómo Metchnikoff concebía la naturaleza de nuestra especie; posteriormente, esbozaremos el modo en que podría presentarse su proyecto de mejoramiento humano; y, por último, expondremos su interesante concepción de la mortalidad humana. Existen dos alicientes para esta investigación: rescatar para los lectores hispanohablantes el pensamiento de Metchnikoff bajo esta novedosa perspectiva, y la necesidad de observar críticamente cualquier propuesta que aspire a superar los límites de la humanidad.(AU)

Élie Metchnikoff, winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1908 and Pasteur’s successor, was undoubtedly a very intellectually fertile man. His pioneering research in a wide variety of scientific areas, such as modern gerontology, thanatology, and immunology, confirms this. But is it also possible to consider him as the first modern transhumanist? The objective of this article is to study the appropriateness of attributing him such a title. To do so, we will analyze his life and work from a transhumanist point of view. We will first examine how Metchnikoff conceived the nature of our species; then we will outline how his project of human improvement might be presented; and finally, we will expose his interesting conception of human mortality. There are two incentives for this research: to rescue Metchnikoff’s thought under this novel perspective for Spanish-speaking readers, and the need to critically observe any proposal that aspires to overcome the limits of humanity.(AU)