analysis-simian-immunodeficiency-virus-specific-cd8-t-cells-rhesus

Analysis of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-specific CD8<sup>+</sup> T-cells in Rhesus Macaques by Peptide-MHC-I Tetramer Staining

Peptide-major histocompatibility complex class I (pMHC-I) tetramers have been an invaluable tool to study CD8+ T-cell responses. Because these reagents ...

University of Miami

We report the clinical and therapeutic features of three patients with an obsessive-compulsive syndrome that emerged during the course of panic disorder. The DSM-IV criteria for panic disorder places central attention on the patient's phobic responses to the panic attacks and their perceived consequences. These phobic responses may develop into a syndrome that closely resembles obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) but typically responds to conventional anti-panic approaches. Our cases suggest that patients with OCD should be probed for an underlying panic disorder. This 'panic disorder-related subtype of OCD' may be associated with an excellent treatment response and increased rates of remission.

Obsessions with aggressive content emerging during the course of panic disorder: a different subtype of obsessive-compulsive disorder?

We aimed to compare the history of trauma and the profile and severity of dissociative symptoms of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) to those of patients with social anxiety disorder (SAD). Patients with OCD (n = 34) and patients with SAD (n = 30) were examined with the following instruments: Trauma History Questionnaire (THQ), Dissociative Experience Scale (DES), Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (OCI), Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Patients with OCD reported significantly lower rates of exposure to traumatic events. Nevertheless, the severity of dissociative symptoms was not significantly different between the groups. Regression analyses showed that, while the OCI scores better predicted the variance on DES scores in the OCD sample, the LSAS and the BAI better predicted the variance on the DES among patients with SAD. Patients with OCD are probably less vulnerable to some types of traumatic experiences. Dissociative symptoms may cut across different anxiety disorders.

History of trauma and dissociative symptoms among patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and social anxiety disorder.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease is one of the most common digestive diseases and an important cause of distress to patients. Diagnosis of this condition can require ambulatory pH monitoring.

Impact of prolonged 48-h wireless capsule esophageal pH monitoring on diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease and evaluation of the relationship between symptoms and reflux episodes.

SOST encodes sclerostin, an inhibitor of bone formation that antagonizes canonical Wnt signaling. Variations of SOST expression have an impact on bone mineral density (BMD) and bone strength. We hypothesized that genetic and epigenetic DNA modifications have an impact on SOST gene expression. By analyzing 43 bone samples from women, we found that rs851054 (G/A) is associated with SOST mRNA expression, donors with one or two G allele(s) displaying higher SOST expression (p<0.05). Beside this polymorphism, we also investigated the role of CpG methylation in SOST mRNA expression, and analyzed methylation variation at 13 CpG sites on the 1st exon of SOST in 14 human bone samples. Principal component analysis identified three groups of CpG sites that explained most of the methylation variation. We calculated the percentage of methylation in the main group of CpGs, and showed that higher rates of methylated CpGs are associated with higher SOST mRNA expression. To demonstrate that change in SOST expression might be related to human bone disease, we analyzed 131 patients with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), a rare disease characterized by low BMD, bone fragility, and marked intra-familial variability of bone phenotypes. We found an association between rs851054 of the SOST promoter and the fracture rate only during childhood (p<0.01). In conclusion, genetic and epigenetic changes contribute to variation in SOST expression in human bone. Our data also indicate that these variations may be related to the severity of OI.

Aline Domingues

Department of Pathology

University of Miami

Analysis of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-specific CD8⁺ T-cells in Rhesus Macaques by Peptide-MHC-I Tetramer Staining

Aline Domingues

Department of Pathology

University of Miami

Analysis of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-specific CD8+ T-cells in Rhesus Macaques by Peptide-MHC-I Tetramer Staining

Analysis of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-specific CD8⁺ T-cells in Rhesus Macaques by Peptide-MHC-I Tetramer Staining