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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Trained Immunity Enhances The Immune Response And Maintains Microbiome Diversity In Aging And Sepsis, P. Spencer Gill
Trained Immunity Enhances The Immune Response And Maintains Microbiome Diversity In Aging And Sepsis, P. Spencer Gill
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The global population is rapidly aging. It is estimated that over the next thirty years, the number of individuals >60 years of age will increase by over a billion, and the number of individuals over age 80 may increase by 300 million. As humans age, our immune system becomes progressively weaker through a process called immune senescence. This age-related decrease in immune function increases susceptibility to infection and chronic diseases. Sepsis is a leading cause of death worldwide. Over the past two decades, there has been an increased incidence of sepsis which is due, in part, to our aging population …
Factors Influencing Primate Hair Microbiome Diversity, Catherine Kitrinos
Factors Influencing Primate Hair Microbiome Diversity, Catherine Kitrinos
Masters Theses
Primate hair is both a substrate upon which essential social interactions occur and an important host-pathogen interface. As commensal microbes provide important immune functions for their hosts, understanding the microbial diversity in primate hair could provide insight into primate immunity and disease transmission. While studies of human hair and skin microbiomes show differences in microbial communities across body regions, little is known about the nonhuman primate hair microbiome. In this study, we collected hair samples (n=159) from 8 body regions across 12 nonhuman primate species housed at 3 US institutions to examine 1) the diversity and composition of the primate …
Tick Saliva And The Alpha-Gal Syndrome: Finding A Needle In A Haystack, Surendra Raj Sharma, Shahid Karim
Tick Saliva And The Alpha-Gal Syndrome: Finding A Needle In A Haystack, Surendra Raj Sharma, Shahid Karim
Faculty Publications
Ticks and tick-borne diseases are significant public health concerns. Bioactive molecules in tick saliva facilitate prolonged blood-feeding and transmission of tick-borne pathogens to the vertebrate host. Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), a newly reported food allergy, is believed to be induced by saliva proteins decorated with a sugar molecule, the oligosaccharide galactose-⍺-1,3-galactose (α-gal). This syndrome is characterized by an IgE antibody-directed hypersensitivity against α-gal. The α-gal antigen was discovered in the salivary glands and saliva of various tick species including, the Lone Star tick (Amblyomma americanum). The underlying immune mechanisms linking tick bites with α-gal-specific IgE production are poorly understood and are …
The Roles Of Capsular Polysaccharides And Diet In The Immune Response To A Bacteroides Thetaiotaomicron Antigen, Samantha Hsieh
The Roles Of Capsular Polysaccharides And Diet In The Immune Response To A Bacteroides Thetaiotaomicron Antigen, Samantha Hsieh
Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The environment is well recognized to modulate immune responses within the intestinal mucosa in a general fashion. However, the connection between the effects of the environment on the immune response directed towards specific intestinal microbes is unclear. Progress in this area has been hampered by the lack of a model system in which the immune responses to a specific antigen in a gut symbiont can be examined. To this end, we developed a novel CD4+ T cell model, termed BθOM, that is specific for a dominant antigen in the gut symbiont Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (B. theta). In this work, we use …
Unraveling Host-Gut Microbiota Dialogue And Its Impact On Response To Immune Checkpoint Blockade, Alexandria Cogdill
Unraveling Host-Gut Microbiota Dialogue And Its Impact On Response To Immune Checkpoint Blockade, Alexandria Cogdill
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Cancer is a disease with only one degree of separation, affecting one in two men and one in three women in their lifetimes; accounting for 1 of every 6 deaths. While cancer mortality rates continue to improve, incidence rates are expected to rise and shift through 2050 due to epidemiological and demographic transitions worldwide. As such, it is imperative to continue to investigate and improve our understanding of both disease etiology and hallmarks of response to treatment. Currently, conventional therapies include, but are not limited to, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. However, within the past decade, major advances have been made …