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Immunology and Infectious Disease

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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

The Role Of Reactive Oxygen Species In The Accumulation Of Driver Mutations In B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Mia P. Sams Jun 2022

The Role Of Reactive Oxygen Species In The Accumulation Of Driver Mutations In B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Mia P. Sams

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) is the most prevalent type of cancer in young children and is associated with recurrent mutations and high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The antioxidant N-acetylcysteine was tested for its ability to prolong lifespan of a mouse model of B-ALL and reduce frequency of mutations. Mice treated with 1g/L of N-acetylcysteine in drinking water were found to have delayed onset of B-ALL at 11 weeks of age and changes in gene expression relating to B cell development, calcium-apoptosis signaling, and pathways in cancer, although no differences in lifespan were observed. Tumours from treated …


Differential Effects Of Kim-1 In Subcutaneous And Orthotopic Renca Models Of Kidney Cancer, Demitra M. Yotis Dy Apr 2021

Differential Effects Of Kim-1 In Subcutaneous And Orthotopic Renca Models Of Kidney Cancer, Demitra M. Yotis Dy

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) is the most common and fatal type of kidney cancer. Over 30% of patients that are diagnosed with RCC exhibit metastases. Almost 88% of patients with distant metastases succumb to the disease within 5 years of diagnosis. Kidney Injury Molecule-1 (KIM-1) is a cell surface glycoprotein that is not expressed in a healthy kidney but becomes highly expressed on proximal tubular epithelial cells (PTECs) following injury. Data from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) reveals that >90% of RCC tumours express KIM-1 mRNA and that higher expression levels correlate with increased overall survival rates of patients. The …


Inducing Dna-Mismatch Repair Deficiency In Tumours: A Strategy To Enhance Anti-Tumour Immunity, Mikal El-Hajjar Oct 2020

Inducing Dna-Mismatch Repair Deficiency In Tumours: A Strategy To Enhance Anti-Tumour Immunity, Mikal El-Hajjar

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Immunotherapy has improved patient outcomes in advanced or metastatic settings across a number of cancers. Patients with tumours deficient in the DNA mismatch repair (DNA-MMR) pathway often show high response rates to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) with a rise in immune surveillance. However, little is known about the immune sensitization effects of inducing DNA- MMR-deficiency in low tumour mutational burden (TMB) cancers, such as ICI refractory neuroblastoma. In addition, the dynamic T-cell profile that results from such a DNA-MMR inactivation, and whether this may confer a therapeutic benefit, is poorly understood. Here we used CRISPR/CAS9 genome editing technology to knock …


Exploiting The Immunomodulatory Potentials Of Inkt Cells In Sepsis And Cancer., Joshua Choi Aug 2020

Exploiting The Immunomodulatory Potentials Of Inkt Cells In Sepsis And Cancer., Joshua Choi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are a unique unconventional T cell subset that recognize glycolipids presented by CD1d expressing cells. The prototypical glycolipid agonist of iNKT cells, α-Galactosylceramide (α-GalCer), can induce the rapid release of an arsenal of cytotoxic effector molecules and enormous amounts of immunomodulatory cytokines as early as two hours after activation. In addition to α-GalCer, various glycolipid agonists are available that allow for specific, in vivo targeting of iNKT cells, and can exert divergent T-helper (TH)1 and/or TH2 immune responses. Therefore, the type of response instigated by iNKT cells can profoundly influence …