Life Sciences Commons^™

Elucidating The Roles Of Il-15 In The Tumor Microenvironment, Rosa Maria Santana Carrero

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

ELUCIDATING THE ROLES OF IL-15 IN THE TUMOR MICROENVIRONMENT

Rosa M. Santana Carrero, B.S.

Advisory Professors: Shao-Cong Sun, Ph.D. & Kimberly S. Schluns, Ph.D.

Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is a factor that promotes activation, proliferation, cytotoxicity, and survival of CD8 T cells and NK cells, and has been shown to have anti-tumor effects. Moreover, loss of IL-15 expression in human colorectal tumors correlates with increased risk of relapse, diminished survival, decreased density and proliferation of T cells. All together these findings suggest that IL-15 expressed locally in the tumor microenvironment (TME) is an important mediator of anti-tumor responses by tumor infiltrating lymphocytes …

Epidemiology And Pathophysiology Of Common Skin Diseases In West Africa: An Immunodermatological Framework, Osazomon Imarenezor

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

This capstone reviews the common skin diseases on a global scale. With these dermatoses being further funneled into Africa and then magnified into common West African dermatoses, the meta-analyses of literature available paints a clear picture of the epidemiological & pathological factors and their contribution to the skin disease. Each article analysed in this analysis was taken from a 20-year span of January 2000 to December 2019. The selection of articles was fine-tuned by identifying the distribution of skin disease, revealing the populations affected (age, gender, ethnicity, etc), the main causes, country of origin, the prognosis of disease, and the …

Mechanisms Of Cross-Presentation By Cdc1s, Derek James Theisen

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Classical dendritic cells (cDCs) are specialized antigen presenting cells that can be divided into distinct subsets based on the types of pathogens they respond to and the type of immune response they generate. The cDC1 subset is specialized in priming CD8 T cell responses through the process of cross-presentation. During cross-presentation, exogenous protein antigens are taken up by cDC1 and presented on MHCI molecules, allowing for the priming of CD8 T cells during conditions when DCs themselves are not directly infected. The ability to cross-present in vivo is unique to cDC1, and is essential for anti-viral responses and rejection of …

Review Of The Latest Trends In Transplantation Immunology And Its Role In Mortality Reduction, Vivian Adedoye

Honor’s College Freeman Research Journal

Transplantation immunology deals with the process of moving cells, tissues, or organs, from one site to another, either within the same person or between a donor and a recipient. If an organ system fails, or becomes damaged because of disease or injury, it can be replaced with a healthy organ or tissue from a donor. The process of transplantation has become increasingly popular due to its life saving benefit. In 2015 /2016 4601 patients' lives were saved or improved by an organ transplant in the United Kingdom alone. Kidney transplants are the most common organ transplant followed by liver and …

Vestigial-Like 1 Is A Shared Targetable Cancer-Placenta Antigen Expressed By Pancreatic And Basal-Like Breast Cancers, Sherille Denae Bradley

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-based cancer immunotherapies have shown great promise for inducing clinical regression by targeting tumor-associated antigens (TAA). To expand the TAA landscape of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), we performed tandem mass spectrometry analysis of HLA class I-bound peptides from tumors of PDAC patients. This led to the identification of a shared HLA-A*0101 restricted peptide derived from co-transcriptional activator Vestigial-like 1 (VGLL1), a novel putative TAA demonstrating overexpression in multiple tumor types and low or absent transcript expression in normal tissues with the exception of placenta. VGLL1-specific CTL isolated and expanded from the blood of a male PDAC patient …

Influenza Vaccination Coverage In Pediatric Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Kelly Brown

Senior Theses

Background: Children with chronic health conditions, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), are at especially high risk for influenza infection and complications. The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and American College of Gastroenterology recommend that IBD patients should receive annual influenza vaccination. The aims of this study were to evaluate influenza vaccination coverage over time and identify predictors of flu vaccination in pediatric IBD and non-IBD patients.

Methods: We utilized longitudinal data (2000 to 2016) from South Carolina Medicaid to conduct a matched cohort study. The primary exposure of interest was IBD diagnosis based upon ICD-9/10 diagnosis codes. Children with IBD were …

Synthesis And Preliminary Ex Vivo Testing Of Sirna Targeting Tcrb: A Proposed Therapy For The Treatment Of Autoimmunity, Nicholas J. Magazine

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract

Background:

As of 2018, the United States National Institutes of Health estimate that over half a billion people worldwide are affected by autoimmune disorders. Though these conditions are prevalent, treatment options remain relatively poor, relying primarily on various forms of immunosuppression which carry potentially severe side effects and often lose effectiveness overtime. Given this, new forms of therapy are needed. We propose small-interfering RNA (siRNA) for hypervariable regions of the T-cell receptor β-chain gene (TCRb) as a highly targeted, novel means of therapy for the treatment of autoimmune disorders.

Objectives:

To develop methods to produce siRNA targeting …

Mast Cells As Novel Effector Cells In The Pathogenesis Of Chronic Graft-Versus-Host Disease, Ethan Strattan

Theses and Dissertations--Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is most commonly a treatment for inborn defects of hematopoiesis or acute leukemias. Widespread use of HSCT, a potentially curative therapy, is hampered by onset of graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD), a condition wherein the donor cells recognize the patient tissues as non-self. GVHD can manifest anywhere from weeks to decades post-transplant and is classified as either acute or chronic GVHD, both of which are significant causes of transplant-related morbidity and mortality.

However, GVHD is a complex, multifactorial, and enigmatic disease. The factors driving GVHD at the cellular and molecular level are incompletely understood. Immunosuppression targeting T-cells has …