Sex drives Tregs into fat.

Androgens promote inflammation in visceral adipose tissue (VAT), leading to the expansion of a distinct IL-33 producing stromal population and recruitment of Tregs.

Bovine milk fat enriched in conjugated linoleic and vaccenic acids attenuates allergic airway disease in mice.

BACKGROUND: It has been argued that a reduction in the Western diet of anti-inflammatory unsaturated lipids, such as n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, has contributed to the increase in the frequency and severity of allergic diseases. OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether feeding milk fat enriched in conjugated linoleic acid and vaccenic acids (VAs) ('enriched' milk fat), produced by supplementing the diet of pasture-fed cows with fish and sunflower oil, will prevent development of allergic airway responses. METHODS: C57BL/6 mice were fed a control diet containing soybean oil and diets supplemented with milk lipids. They were sensitized by intraperitoneal injection of ovalbumin (OVA) on days 14 and 28, and challenged intranasally with OVA on day 42. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, lung tissues and serum samples were collected 6 days after the intranasal challenge. RESULTS: Feeding of enriched milk fat led to marked suppression of airway inflammation as evidenced by reductions in eosinophilia and lymphocytosis in the airways, compared with feeding of normal milk fat and control diet. Enriched milk fat significantly reduced circulating allergen-specific IgE and IgG1 levels, together with reductions in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of IL-5 and CCL11. Treatment significantly inhibited changes in the airway including airway epithelial cell hypertrophy, goblet cell metaplasia and mucus hypersecretion. The two major components of enriched milk fat, cis-9, trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid and VA, inhibited airway inflammation when fed together to mice, whereas alone they were not effective. CONCLUSION: Milk fat enriched in conjugated linoleic and VAs suppresses inflammation and changes to the airways in an animal model of allergic airway disease.

Immunological hazards from nutritional imbalance in athletes.

This review examines the influences of nutritional imbalance on immune function of competitive athletes, who may adopt an unusual diet in an attempt to enhance performance. A major increase in body fat can have adverse effects on immune response. In contrast, a negative energy balance and reduction of body mass are likely to impair immune function in an already thin athlete. A moderate increase in polyunsaturated fat enhances immune function, but excessive consumption can be detrimental. Since endurance exercise leads to protein catabolism, an athlete may need 2.0 g/kg protein rather than the 0.7-1.0 g/kg recommended for a sedentary individual. Both sustained exercise and overtraining reduce plasma glutamine levels, which may contribute to suppressed immune function postexercise. A large intake of carbohydrate counters glutamine depletion but may also modify immune responses by altering the secretion of glucose-regulating hormones. Vitamins are important to immune function because of their antioxidant role. However, the clinical benefits of vitamin C supplementation are not enhanced by the use of more complex vitamin mixtures, and excessive vitamin E can have negative effects. Iron, selenium, zinc, calcium, and magnesium ion all influence immune function. Supplements may be required after heavy sweating, but an excessive intake of iron facilitates bacterial growth. In making dietary recommendations to athletes, it is important to recognize that immune response can be jeopardized not only by deficiencies but also by excessive intake of certain nutrients. The goal should be a well-balanced diet.

Detection of breast tumor associated mucin epitope on CAMA cell line using monoclonal antibody G3F1 generated against HMFG membrane.

The expression of breast tumor associated mucin epitope on CAMA cell line was detected employing the mouse MAB G3F1 generated against HMFG membrane. Immunocytochemical studies revealed that MAB G3F1 strongly reacted with 85% of breast cancer tissue sections with specific staining of apical cell membrane of malignant epithelial cells. The mucin antigen recognised by MAB G3F1 was detected by selectively extracting high molecular weight glycoprotein antigen from HMFG membrane using lectin affinity chromatography and gel filtration chromatography. Immunoprecipitation studies revealed that MAB G3F1 recognized a high molecular weight glycoprotein with an approximate molecular weight of 300kd. The expression of MAB G3F1 reactive antigen on CAMA cells was detected by immunocytochemistry and by immumoprecipitating 300kd antigen from 125I labelled Tx100 solubilized extract of CAMA cells. The results from these investigations suggest that CAMA cells express MAB G3F1 reactive antigen with tumor associated epitope, similar to tumor associated mucin epitope of HMFG membrane.

Diagnosis of breast carcinoma with radiolabeled monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) to carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and human milk fat globulin (HMFG).

The current study attempted to assess the potential proficiency of radioimmunodetection (RAID) of primary, residual, multicentric, and recurrent breast carcinoma using two radiolabeled murine monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs), anti-human milk fat globulin (HMFG1) labeled with iodine (123I) and anti-carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) labeled with technetium (99Tc). Thirteen patients with suspicious clinical and/or mammographic primary or recurrent breast carcinoma were studied in a phase I-II prospective, consecutive, nonrandomized, noncontrolled study. Five patients received intravenous infusion with 0.5-2.0 mg anti-CEA MoAb type CYT 380 labeled with 99Tc [13-22 millicurie (mCI)] and 8 patients received intravenous infusion with 0.25-1.0 mg anti-HMFG1 MoAb (Unipath, U.K.) labeled with 123I (4-17 mCI). Both MoAbs used in this study demonstrated ability to bind specifically to breast cancer lesions, resulting in successful RAID in 10 of 12 of studied patients (5 of 5 patients in the anti-CEA-99Tc and 5 of 7 in the anti-HMFG-123I group--accuracy 83.3%). One patient was excluded due to protocol violation. Seven patients had true-positive scans when correlated with surgery (sensitivity 87.5%). The MoAb scans accurately diagnosed lesions in 3 of the 4 primary invasive breast carcinomas confirmed histologically. Presence of residual carcinoma following wide excision was established in 1 of 2 patients and presence of soft tissue metastases in 3 patients. Three patients had true-negative scan (specificity 75%): 2 patients presented with suspicious mammographic recurrence postlumpectomy and 1 patient had questionable soft tissue recurrence. One patient with primary breast carcinoma had a false-negative scan and another had a false-positive scan in the presence of fibrosis following lumpectomy and radiation therapy. No adverse reactions were noted in the patients studied. RAID findings were confirmed by immunohistochemistry in 6 of 9 cases studied. Our data suggest that radiolabeled MoAbs used in this study are potentially useful diagnostic agents for evaluation of primary or recurrent breast carcinoma, particularly in the areas where conventional methodology is limited.

Effect of homogenization and pasteurization on the allergenicity of bovine milk analysed by a murine anaphylactic shock model.

In a factorial design study a murine anaphylactic shock model was used to analyse the effect of homogenization, pasteurization, and fat content on the ability of bovine milk to induce anaphylactic reactions. Mice were sensitized by either oral or subcutaneous immunizations with various types of bovine milk. In spite of a significantly higher antibody titre in the mice sensitized subcutaneously, there was no difference in the sensitivity between orally and subcutaneously immunized mice with respect to anaphylactic reactions. Pasteurization did not seem to change the ability of milk to induce anaphylactic reactions. However, increasing fat contents in combinations with homogenization resulted in an increase of the ability of the milk to induce anaphylactic reactions.

Monoclonal antibodies to epithelium-specific components of the human milk fat globule membrane: production and reaction with cells in culture.

Three hybridomas producing monoclonal antibodies (IgG), reacting with components of the human mammary milk fat globule have been isolated. When tested for binding to a wide range of human cell lines and strains, all three antibodies show negative reactions with fibroblasts, lymphoblastoid cells, and a large number of epithelial cell lines of non-breast origin. Two of the antibodies (1.10.F3 and 3.14.A3) reacted with seven out of eight breast cancer lines tested, and with epithelial cells cultured from human milk. The other antibody (3.15.C3) reacted with only two of the breast cancer cell lines.