[IMMUNOREHABILITOLOGY: A LOOK FROM THE SOURCES TO THE FUTURE. FROM IMMUNOTHERAPY TO PERSONALIZED TARGETED IMMUNOREHABLITATION].

Development and introduction of modern clinical diagnostic tests (that allow to evaluate the functional system of immune homeostasis) into medical practice, a huge body of evidence on the leading role of the immune system in pathogenesis most acute and chronic diseases and even identification of specific nosological forms of immune-mediated diseases forced the scientists to search and develop new tools and techniques that have therapeutic effects on the impaired immune homeostasis and restore it to the normal state. The introduction of a new concept - immunorehabilitation - was an impetus for the accumulation of new knowledge and a catalyst for research in clinical immunology. It was Revaz Sepiashvili who breathed life into the concept of immunorehabilitation. He was lucky to be at its origi. He became not only the founder of the brand new scientific field - immunorehabilitation, but also the founder of a new medical science - immunorehablitology. In this paper, the author returns to the roots and recalls the way that medical science has gone before coming to understand immunorehablitology and tells readers about current successes and its development prospects.

Rituximab: how approval history is reflected by a corresponding patent filing strategy.

Because drug development is not a static process, a drug's market authorisation may change over time. In many cases, the number of indications for which a drug is approved increases. Because this facet of drug development also comes at significant costs, a corresponding patent filing strategy is required to protect these investments. The strategy as applied to rituximab, which is approved for a variety of indications, is discussed in this review.

[Throat disease in the periphery of Europe: the introduction of diphteria antitoxin in Romsdal county]. / Halsesyke i Europas utkant--da difteriantitoksinet kom til Romsdals amt.

Diphteria played a key role in establishing the bacteriological model for explaining infectious disease. This understanding of bacteriological factors spurred research that culminated in the development of diphteria antitoxin, the first effective therapeutic cure for an epidemiological disease. Prior to the introduction of antitoxin, isolation and disinfection were regarded as the key defences against diphteria. The opportunity to combine antitoxin therapy with existing methods for combatting the disease was a key factor for the rapid spread of the antitoxin. Diphteria antitoxin was first used in Romsdal county in 1895. Initially the serum had to be ordered from manufacturers abroad, which restricted its application in the district. Few available doctors and long transport routes were reasons that prevented the antitoxin from reaching its full potential. Industrial manufacturing methods were an obstacle to serum production in peripheral areas. In Norway, production of serum gradually got underway in Kristiania, which was one factor that caused mortality from diphteria to decline faster there than in other parts of the country. In this article we will elucidate the relationship between the centre and the periphery in the spread of medical advances by studying the implementation of diphteria antitoxin in Romsdal county.

[Investigation of biologically active compounds at the Department of Organic Chemistry of University of Debrecen between 1992-2009 part IV]. / Biológiailag aktív vegyületek kutatása a Debreceni Egyetem Szerves Kémiai Tanszékén 1992-2009 között IV. rész.

The author reviews the beginning of the application of the methods of structure elucidation by spectroscopic (metric) techniques at the Department of Organic Chemistry of University of Debrecen and summarizes the most important results obtained in this field between 1992-2009.

Beta-glucans, history, and the present: immunomodulatory aspects and mechanisms of action.

The present paper represents a comprehensive up-to-date review of beta -glucans, their chemical and biological properties, and their role in immunological reactions. beta -D-Glucans belong to a group of physiologically active compounds called biological response modifiers and represent highly conserved structural components of cell walls in yeast, fungi, or seaweed. Despite almost 150 years of research, the exact mechanisms of their action remain unclear. The present review starts with the history of glucans. Next, attention is focused on sources and structure, comparing the effects of physicochemical properties, and sources on biological effects. As glucans belong to natural products useful in preventing various diseases, they have been highly sought after throughout human history. Based on extensive recent research, this paper explains the various mechanisms of effects and the ways glucans mediate their effects on defense reactions against infections. Despite the fact that predominately pharmacological effects of glucans are positive, their unfavorable and potentially toxic side effects were not overlooked. In addition, attention was focused on the future research, possible alternatives such as synthetic oligosaccharides, and on clinical applications.

The cysteinyl leukotrienes: where do they come from? What are they? Where are they going?

Cysteinyl leukotrienes are established mediators of bronchial asthma and have agonist roles analogous to those of histamine in allergic rhinitis. We now know that the substance originally termed slow-reacting substance of anaphylaxis was composed of three cysteinyl leukotrienes that act in the inflammatory response via receptors on smooth muscle and on bone marrow-derived inflammatory cells. K. Frank Austen describes the work culminating in the identification, biosynthesis and functional characterization of these moieties.

"The Leeds Idea": an historical account of the spondarthritis concept.

In the 1960s, Professor Verna Wright became increasingly interested in possible relationships between certain seronegative "variants of rheumatoid arthritis", as they were then generally known. At the Rheumatism Research Unit, a department within the division of medicine at Leeds University, he gathered around him a succession of research workers, whom he inspired to study aspects of these relationships. The focus was on family studies, as it was thought that genetic factors could be important. The striking association previously noted between sacroiliitis or full-blown ankylosing spondylitis and several of these disorders to be studied - e.g., psoriatic arthritis, ulcerative colitis, and the arthritis associated with Crohn's disease - was to be central for each of these studies. As a provisional collective name for these possibly related conditions, the term "Spondarthritides" was chosen. These were the days before HLA B27, and so the research tools were simply clinical, radiological (for sacroiliitis) and serological (for rheumatoid factor). The research programme confirmed not only links between the primary disorders with ankylosing spondylitis, but also links between the disorders themselves. Over subsequent years, the spondarthritis concept (dubbed by some "The Leeds Idea") has gained further strength from HLA studies internationally. And membership of the group of conditions fulfilling spondarthritis criteria has grown substantially. It is hoped that this now consolidated framework of spondylitis-related entities will pave the way for further research, with exciting prospects of gene-based prevention and/or cure through the increasing sophistication of molecular biology.

Developments in immunological standardization.

In the century since Paul Erlich's innovative immunological standardization work with diphtheria anti-toxin, the field of immunological standardization has expanded dramatically. Biological standards for a diverse range of immunological substances have been produced e.g. immunoglobulins, complement components, autoantibodies and blood group reagents. The concept of calibration of such materials in biological units of potency is now widely accepted for many such substances. Most recently much effort has been devoted to producing biological standards for cytokines which can be used to calibrate and validate biological assays for these analytes. Immunoassays have been found to be particularly problematical from the standardization view point although provision of a single international standard for distribution world-wide is clearly advantageous and helps reduce assay variability. It is hoped that the considerable progress with immunological standardization achieved during the past century will continue and expand to ensure the validity of existing and new immunological assays which will be required in the future.