Airways exposure of bacterial superantigen SEB enhances bone marrow eosinophil population and facilitates its egress to blood and lung tissue.

BACKGROUND: Differentiation of bone marrow eosinophils (BM-EO) and its trafficking to peripheral blood and respiratory mucosa are a hallmark of inflammatory diseases. Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) has been shown to aggravate airways eosinophilic inflammation. This study aimed to investigate the effects of mouse airways SEB exposure on BM-EO population, as well as its adhesive properties and release of cytokines/chemokines that orchestrate BM-EO trafficking to lungs. METHODS: Male BALB/c mice were intranasally exposed to SEB (1 µg), and at 4, 16, 24 and 48 h thereafter, bone marrow (BM), circulating blood and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid were collected. Levels of cytokines/chemokines and expressions of VLA-4 and CCR3 in BM were evaluated. Adhesion of BM to ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 were also evaluated. RESULTS: SEB exposure promoted a marked eosinophil influx to BAL at 16 and 24 h after exposure, which was accompanied by significant increases in counts of immature (16 h) and mature (4 to 48 h) forms of eosinophil in BM, along with blood eosinophilia (16 h). In BM, higher levels of eotaxin, IL-5, IL-4, IL-3 and IL-7 were detected at 16 to 48 h. SEB also significantly increased CCR3 expression and calcium levels in BM-EO, and enhanced the cell adhesion to ICAM-1 (24 h) and ICAM-1 (48 h). CONCLUSION: Airways SEB exposure increases the number of eosinophils in BM by mechanisms involving a network of cytokine and chemokine release, facilitating the BM-EO adhesion to ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 to gain access to the peripheral blood and lung tissues.

Enhancement of Th1 lung immunity induced by recombinant Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guerin attenuates airway allergic disease.

Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) has been shown to down-regulate experimental allergic asthma, a finding that reinforced the hygiene hypothesis. We have previously found that recombinant BCG (rBCG) strain that express the genetically detoxified S1 subunit of pertussis toxin (rBCG-S1PT) exerts an adjuvant effect that enhances Th1 responses against BCG proteins. Here we investigated the effect of this rBCG-S1PT on the classical ovalbumin-induced mouse model of allergic lung disease. We found that rBCG-S1PT was more effective than wild-type BCG in preventing Th2-mediated allergic immune responses. The inhibition of allergic lung disease was not associated with increased concentration of suppressive cytokines or with an increased number of pulmonary regulatory T cells but was positively correlated with the increase in IFN-gamma-producing T cells and T-bet expression in the lung. In addition, an IL-12-dependent mechanism appeared to be important to the inhibition of lung allergic disease. The inhibition of allergic inflammation was found to be restricted to the lung because when allergen challenge was given by the intraperitoneal route, rBCG-S1PT administration failed to inhibit peritoneal allergic inflammation and type 2 cytokine production. Our work offers a nonclassical interpretation for the hygiene hypothesis indicating that attenuation of lung allergy by rBCG could be due to the enhancement of local lung Th1 immunity induced by rBCG-S1PT. Moreover, it highlights the possible use of rBCG strains as multipurpose immunomodulators by inducing specific immunity against microbial products while protecting against allergic asthma.

Estructuras ENE y su relación con la microsporidiosis: un hecho histórico / ENE structures and its relation with the microsporidiosis: historical event

Se hace un análisis histórico comparando lo observado desde 1982 en material diarreico en niños, internados en el Hospital Nacional de Niños, "Dr. Carlos Saénz Herrera" con los estudios actuales de la microsporidiosis. Según los estudios con microscopía electrónica por el método de barrido, existe similitud notable entre Enterocytozoon bieneusi y las conocidas con el nombre de estructuras E.N.E., (estructuras no identificadas eosinófilas) que hemos observado desde hace más de 15 años. Se analiza este hallazgo como una contribución al estudio de los microsporidios como agentes etiológicos de diarrea

Diagnóstico preclínico de la lepra / Preclinical diagnosis of leprosy

El presente estudio trata sobre el diagnóstico preclínico de la lepra utilizando como prueba de laboratorio el Test ELISA. El trabajo incluyé a Ü000 de los 1450 trabajadores de ambos sexos (280 fueron masculinos para el 28 por ciento y 720 femeninos para el 72 por ciento), ya que el resto (450) estaban ausentes del Hospital provincial Celia Sánchez Manduley en el año 1994, por estar considerados como un grupo de riesgo (tasa de prevalencia superior a 1 x 1000 habitantes). Se tomó muestra del suero a las personas incluidas en el estudio y se enviaron al Laboratorio Provincial de Higiene y Epidemiología donde se montaron y procesaron en el SUMA. De las seis muestras que resultaron positivas, 1 correspondió al sexo masculino(16,6 por ciento) y 5 al sexo femenino (83,4 por ciento). A los seis casos se les completó el estudio establecido en el programa, resultando negativos, imponiéndose quimioprofilaxis. Se concluye que el Test ELISA es de gran valor para el diagnóstico preclínico y la prevención de la Lepra.(AU)

Hipereosinofilia na paracoccidioidomicose: relato de um caso / Hypereosinophilia in the paracoccidioidomycosis: case report

É relatado um caso de paracoccidioidomicose disseminada (tipo juvenil) em cujo transcurso foi observado número excepcionalmente elevado de eosinófilos no sangue. Casos incomuns como esse foram revistos