Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 3 of 3
Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
The Role Of Drak2 In T Cell Function And Autoimmunity, Tarsha L. Harris
The Role Of Drak2 In T Cell Function And Autoimmunity, Tarsha L. Harris
Theses and Dissertations (ETD)
The immune system utilizes many regulatory mechanisms to limit immune responses and ensure that immune cells target foreign pathogens and not healthy cells of the body. However, some immune cells can escape these checkpoints and attack the body’s healthy cells, leading to tissue destruction and devastating autoimmune disorders. For example, multiple sclerosis (MS) occurs when immune cells attack the myelin sheath surrounding neurons of the central nervous system (CNS). Likewise, the destruction of pancreatic islet cells by dysregulated immune cells leads to type 1 diabetes (T1D). Remarkably, there are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases. An estimated 50 million …
Antibodies To Heterogenous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein A1 Penetrate Neurons Leading To Multiple Downstream Effects Resulting In Neurodegeneration, Joshua Nathan Douglas
Antibodies To Heterogenous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein A1 Penetrate Neurons Leading To Multiple Downstream Effects Resulting In Neurodegeneration, Joshua Nathan Douglas
Theses and Dissertations (ETD)
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. MS is believed to occur in genetically susceptible individuals due to an unknown environmental stimulus. MS patients produce autoantibodies to heterogenous nuclear ribonuclearprotein A1 (hnRNP A1), an RNA binding protein (RBP) highly expressed in neurons. hnRNP A1 functions in pre-mRNA splicing, mRNA trafficking, and translation. Furthermore, the anti-hnRNP A1 antibodies are specific to a N-terminal region termed ‘M9’ which serves as a nuclear export sequence/nuclear localization sequence (NES/NLS) responsible for nuclear/cytoplasmic transport of the protein. In this manuscript we will provide data revealing that anti-hnRNP A1 …
Pten Signaling In Regulatory T Cells And Inflammatory Disease, Sharad Krishna Shrestha
Pten Signaling In Regulatory T Cells And Inflammatory Disease, Sharad Krishna Shrestha
Theses and Dissertations (ETD)
Regulatory T (Treg) cells suppress CD4+ T cell responses during homeostasis and inflammation to prevent autoimmunity and other immune disorders. Although the transcriptional and epigenetic programs impacting Treg cell function have been extensively studied, the signaling and metabolic pathways underlying Treg stability and function are not fully understood. In this study, we determined the role of the phosphatase PTEN in Treg cells. We found that specific depletion of PTEN in Treg cells results in excessive TH1 and T follicular helper cells (TFH) responses, associated with elevated germinal center (GC) B cells and spontaneous development of autoimmune and lymphoproliferative disease in …