Serum-mediated Inhibition Research Articles

Comparison of air-liquid interface transwell and airway organoid models for human respiratory virus infection studies

IntroductionComplex in vitro respiratory models, including air-liquid interface (ALI) transwell cultures and airway organoids, have emerged as promising tools for studying human respiratory virus infections. These models address several limitations of conventional two-dimensional cell line and animal models. However, the lack of standardized protocols for the application of these models in infection studies limits the possibilities for comparing results across different research groups. Therefore, we applied a collaborative approach to harmonize several aspects of experimental methodology between different research laboratories, aiming to assess the comparability of different models of human airway epithelium in the context of respiratory viral infections.MethodsIn this study, we compared three different models of human respiratory epithelium: a primary human bronchial epithelial cell-derived ALI transwell model, and two airway organoid models established from human airway- and lung-derived adult stem cells. We first assessed the presence of various differentiated cell types using immunofluorescence microscopy. Using a shared stock of influenza A virus, we then assessed viral growth kinetics, epithelial cytokine responses, and serum-mediated inhibition of infection.ResultsThe presence of club, goblet, and ciliated cells was confirmed in all models. We observed similar viral replication kinetics with a >4-log increase in virus titre across all models using a TCID50 assay. Following infection, a reproducible antiviral cytokine response, including a consistent increase in CXCL10, IL-6, IFN-λ1, IFN-λ2/3, and IFN-β, was detected across all models. Finally, neutralization was assessed by pre-incubation of virus with human serum. Reduced viral replication was observed across all models, resulting in a 3- to 6-log decrease in virus titres as quantified by TCID50.DiscussionIn conclusion, all three models produced consistent results regardless of the varying cell sources, culturing approaches, and infection methods. Our collaborative efforts to harmonize infection experiments and compare ALI transwell and airway organoid models described here aid in advancing our understanding and improving the standardization of these complex in vitro respiratory models for future studies.

Biochemical Amenability in Fabry Patients Under Chaperone Therapy-How and When to Test?

Current recommendations for Fabry disease include α-galactosidase A (AGAL) activity measurements to assess the biochemical response in migalastat-treated patients. Owing to contradictory data from laboratories, we aimed to analyze why AGAL activity measures from dried blood spots (DBS) often fail to detect migalastat-mediated enzymatic activity increases in treated patients. 43 patients with 58 visits under migalastat were consecutively recruited. Enzymatic AGAL activities were measured from DBS and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Migalastat concentrations in sera were determined using modified serum-mediated inhibition assays to assess Cmax and serum half-life. Results were set in relation to the time of last migalastat intake and blood sampling to assess an optimal timepoint for AGAL activity measures. DBS-based AGAL activity measurements of 21 (42.0%) amenable patients were below the limit of detection. Serum samples from migalastat-treated patients showed significant AGAL inhibition, depending on the time between migalastat intake and blood sampling (r2 = 0.8140, p < 0.0001). Migalastat concentrations were determined in serum samples confirming a Cmax at 3 h and a serum half-life of 4 h. At 24 h after intake, migalastat clearance was significantly associated with renal function (r2 = 0.3135, p = 0.0102). Enzymatic AGAL activities were higher in samples from DBS and PBMCs 24 h after migalastat intake (both p < 0.05). The optimal time for enzymatic AGAL activity measurement in migalastat-treated patients appears to be 24 h after the last migalastat intake. Since migalastat is a competitive inhibitor of AGAL, enzymatic AGAL activity measurements should be better performed from PBMCs to reduce migalastat-mediated interferences.

Assessment and impact of dose escalation on anti-drug antibodies in Fabry disease.

Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) with recombinant α-galactosidase A (AGAL) can lead to the formation of neutralizing anti-drug antibodies (ADA), which significantly limit treatment efficacy in patients with Fabry disease (FD). The effects of dose escalation on ADA titer and plasma globotriaosylsphingosine (lyso-Gb3) level are unknown. We screened 250 FD patients (200 males, 50 females) under ERT for ADAs and assessed the impact of an approved dose escalation in affected patients, focusing on ADA titers and plasma lyso-Gb3. ADA-positive patients were identified by serum-mediated inhibition assays, followed by titration assays to determine the individual inhibitory capacities of ADAs against agalsidase-alfa and agalsidase-beta. 70 (35%) of the male patients were ADA-positive, with a mean inhibitory capacity of 83.5 ± 113.7mg AGAL. Although patients receiving agalsidase-beta showed higher inhibitory capacities (84.7 ± 34.7mg) than patients under agalsidase-alfa (60.3 ± 126.7mg, p<0.001), the "theoretical deficit" to the infused dose was lower in patients receiving agalsidase-beta. In seven patients receiving agalsidase-alfa (0.2 mg/kg) ADAs were saturable by switching patients to agalsidase-beta (1.0 mg/kg). The switch resulted in increasing ADA titers within the first months. In 2 out of 7 (28.6%) therapy switchers, dose escalation could lead to durable ADA saturation. Independent of an increase in ADA titers, lyso-Gb3 levels decrease and cardiac and renal parameters remained stable after dose escalation. Dose escalation results in a heterogeneous, unpredictable ADA response, with more than a quarter of all treatment switchers succeeding in ADA saturation. Longitudinal ADA measurements are required to assess the individual risk of affected patients.

Multicomponent gold nano-glycoconjugate as a highly immunogenic and protective platform against Burkholderia mallei

Burkholderia mallei (Bm) is a facultative intracellular pathogen and the etiological agent of glanders, a highly infectious zoonotic disease occurring in equines and humans. The intrinsic resistance to antibiotics, lack of specific therapy, high mortality, and history as a biothreat agent, prompt the need of a safe and effective vaccine. However, the limited knowledge of protective Bm-specific antigens has hampered the development of a vaccine. Further, the use of antigen-delivery systems that enhance antigen immunogenicity and elicit robust antigen-specific immune responses has been limited and could improve vaccines against Bm. Nanovaccines, in particular gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), have been investigated as a strategy to broaden the repertoire of vaccine-mediated immunity and as a tool to produce multivalent vaccines. To synthesize a nano-glycoconjugate vaccine, six predicted highly immunogenic antigens identified by a genome-wide bio- and immuno-informatic analysis were purified and coupled to AuNPs along with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from B. thailandensis. Mice immunized intranasally with individual AuNP-protein-LPS conjugates, showed variable degrees of protection against intranasal Bm infection, while an optimized combination formulation (containing protein antigens OmpW, OpcP, and Hemagglutinin, along with LPS) showed complete protection against lethality in a mouse model of inhalational glanders. Animals immunized with different nano-glycoconjugates showed robust antigen-specific antibody responses. Moreover, serum from animals immunized with the optimized nano-glycoconjugate formulation showed sustained antibody responses with increased serum-mediated inhibition of adherence and opsonophagocytic activity in vitro. This study provides the basis for the rational design and construction of a multicomponent vaccine platform against Bm.

Characterization of drug-neutralizing antibodies in patients with Fabry disease during infusion

Characterization of drug-neutralizing antibodies in patients with Fabry disease during infusion

Anti-α-galactosidase A antibodies and serum-mediated inhibition in Fabry disease

Anti-α-galactosidase A antibodies and serum-mediated inhibition in Fabry disease

Serum-Mediated Inhibition of Enzyme Replacement Therapy in Fabry Disease

Fabry disease (FD) is a progressive multisystemic disorder, treatable with recombinant enzyme replacement therapy (agalsidase). However, recent studies suggest an endogenous inhibition of agalsidase in patients with FD, as reported for other lysosomal storage diseases. To assess the clinical consequences of serum-mediated agalsidase inhibition in affected patients, we determined the agalsidase inhibition status of 168 patients (68 male) with FD and compared outcomes of inhibition-positive patients with those of inhibition-negative patients. The assessment included clinical events during time on agalsidase, determination of renal and cardiac function, and evaluation of FD-related symptoms. The frequency of serum-mediated agalsidase inhibition was 40% in agalsidase-treated males. Inhibition did not depend on the compound initially used (agalsidase-α or -β). Agalsidase inhibition was associated with higher lyso-globotriaosylceramide levels and worse disease severity scores in patients. Compared with agalsidase inhibition-negative men, agalsidase inhibition-positive men showed greater left ventricular mass (P=0.02) and substantially lower renal function (difference in eGFR of about -30 ml/min per 1.73 m(2); P=0.04), which was confirmed by a longitudinal 5-year retrospective analysis. Additionally, affected patients presented more often with FD-typical symptoms, such as diarrhea, fatigue, and neuropathic pain, among others. Therefore, patients with poor clinical outcome on agalsidase should be tested for agalsidase inhibition. Future studies are warranted to determine if affected patients with FD benefit from acute reduction of anti-agalsidase antibodies or long-term immune modulation therapies to suppress agalsidase inhibition and to identify mechanisms that minimize antibody generation against agalsidase.

Polarized CTL Responses Detected in Patients with Autoimmune Neutropenia.

Drugs and intrinsic bone marrow diseases can explain most of the cases of neutropenia, and true autoimmune neutropenia (AIN) is a diagnosis of exclusion. Anti-neutrophil antibodies are not reliable, and their absence does not preclude the diagnosis of AIN. Lineage-restricted cytopenias, including neutropenia, were associated with T cell Large Granular Lymphocyte leukemia (T-LGL), but the diagnosis of this condition involves positive TCR rearrangement and flow cytometric identification of a pathologic cytotoxic T cell (CTL) population. These routinely applied methods have a limited sensitivity and rely on the presence of a high frequency of clonal cells in the sample. AIN, similar to T-LGL, may be related to a CTL-mediated process. We hypothesize that AIN, in a portion of patients, is a CTL-mediated disease in which myeloid progenitor cells are the targets. Consequently, in those patients, polarized expansions of CTL clones may be detected if efficient and sensitive diagnostic methods will be applied. Previously, we developed a diagnostic algorithm for the identification and quantification of clonal expansions in T-LGL based on the molecular analysis of TCR- utilization pattern. We studied a cohort of patients with various degrees of neutropenia (N=23) that was unexplained by clinical grounds and standard laboratory testing. Anti-neutrophil antibodies were found in 6 of these patients; in 3 patients, serum-mediated inhibition (>20%) of colony formation by normal hematopoietic progenitor was found, but there was no correlation between antibodies and serum inhibition. For detection of CTL expansions in AIN, VB typing and VB specific RT-PCR were applied followed by PCR cloning and sequencing of a large number of clones, and determination of expanded CDR3 clonotypes. When no expansion was detected by flow cytometry, multiplex PCR was used to amplify the whole VB spectrum. If identical CDR3 regions were detected by sequencing of at least 22 clones, CDR3 fragments of appropriate VB families were subcloned and sequenced, and immunodominant (identical clones occurring repetitively) were identified. Using this approach, we found only 2 expanded clones in 24 healthy donors. Those expanded clones accounted for 20% of a given VB family, or 0.7% of the CD8+ repertoire (as calculated by multiplication of clonal expansion within VB family by VB family contribution to the whole CTL population). In AIN we found expansion in 9 of 21 patients (3 of them were not detected by VB flow cytometry). Clonal frequency was 40%± 13% of a given VB family or 13%± 14% of the total CD8+ population. The presence of expanded CTL did not correlate with anti-neutrophil antibodies of serum-mediated colony inhibition. By comparison, CTL clones found in patients with T-LGL leukemia (N=75) comprised 68% of a given VB family, or 43% of the entire VB repertoire. We conclude that, using sensitive approaches, CTL expansions can be detected in a significant proportion of patients with AIN. These cases may represent minor variants of an autoimmune process that operates in T-LGL leukemia. The antigens that trigger these expansions likely may be shared. Clinically, detection of the CTL-mediated process in neutropenia may point toward rational immunosuppressive therapy aimed at T cells.

Serum inhibitors for human mast cell growth: possible role of retinol.

In vitro culture systems have been used to study the physiological and pathological characteristics of human mast cells. However, there are some differences in proliferation and maturation of mast cells between fetal bovine serum (FBS)-containing and serum-deprived cultures. Accordingly, we attempted to identify circulating factor(s) affecting the development of human mast cells. We measured the serum levels of retinol and several cytokines. To elucidate the antiproliferative effects of the serum, a retinoic acid receptor (RARalpha) antagonist and neutralizing antibodies against cytokines were used. Similar to FBS, human serum dose-dependently suppressed the growth of tryptase+ cells from CD34+ cord blood cells or 20-week cultured mast cells under stimulation with stem cell factor (SCF). The serum-mediated inhibition might be based on a decline in proliferation rate. Among inhibitors for mast cell growth, retinol and transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 were present at high levels in human serum. In contrast with anti-TGF-beta1 antibody, an RARalpha antagonist counteracted the serum-induced suppression of human mast cell proliferation. Our results suggest that retinol and its derivatives act as a circulating regulator for human mast cell growth. The RARalpha antagonist may be a useful tool to obtain higher numbers of mast cells in FBS-containing cultures.

Effect of Pluronic‐block copolymers on the reduction of serum‐mediated inhibition of gene transfer of polyethyleneimine–DNA complexes

Serum stability of non-viral vectors is a crucial factor for successful in vivo gene delivery. Pluronic-block copolymers consisting of hydrophilic ethylene oxide and hydrophobic propylene oxide blocks were tested to prevent the reduction of serum-mediated inhibition of gene transfer of polyethyleneimine (PEI)-DNA complexes in NIH/3T3 cells. The order of hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) of six different types of Pluronics used in this study was F68>F127>P105>P94>L122>L61. Transfection activities of NIH/3T3 cells with PEI-DNA complexes containing Pluronics with higher HLB showed marked improvement of gene-expression levels in serum media from 10 to 50% fetal bovine serum compared with PEI-DNA complexes alone. Also, higher concentrations (1 and 3%) of Pluronics with higher HLB in the PEI/DNA dispersion provided a stronger steric hindrance in resisting serum components than those obtained in a lower concentration (0.1%). These results suggested that non-viral vectors incorporated with higher HLB of Pluronics may be used as potential vehicles for in vivo delivery of DNA.

Enhanced gene transfer with fusogenic liposomes containing vesicular stomatitis virus G glycoprotein.

Exposure of Lipofectin-DNA complexes to the partially purified G glycoprotein of the vesicular stomatitis virus envelope (VSV-G) results in loss of serum-mediated inhibition and in enhanced efficiency of gene transfer. Sucrose density gradient sedimentation analysis indicated that the VSV-G associates physically with the DNA-lipid complex to produce a VSV-G liposome. The ability to incorporate surrogate viral or cellular envelope components such as VSV-G into liposomes may allow more-efficient and possibly targeted gene delivery by lipofection, both in vitro and in vivo.

Polybrene increases the efficiency of gene transfer by lipofection.

Lipofection involves the introduction of foreign genetic information into mammalian cells through the use of lipophilic reagents that enhance cellular uptake of polynucleotides. Despite the use of currently optimized lipofection conditions, including the use of serum-depleted media, the efficiency of gene transfer is often low. We show here that, in a variety of cell lines, polybrene markedly enhances the efficiency of lipofection under standardized conditions and also compensates the serum-mediated inhibition of lipofection. Although the degree of the polybrene effect depends on the nature of the cell line, these results indicate that individually optimized concentrations of polybrene can be useful for increasing the efficiency of lipofectin-mediated gene transfer in vitro.

Complement-Mediated Inactivation of Interferon-Gamma in Elisa Systems

The recovery of a predetermined amount of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) added to normal serum was studied in two independent sandwich ELISA systems specific for rat and human IFN-gamma. In both assays the ELISA activity was rapidly lost in fresh but not in heat-inactivated (30', 56 degrees C) serum. Ninety percent of the initial activity had disappeared within 30 minutes upon incubation at 37 degrees C. Serum-mediated inhibition was not species-specific as the ELISA activity of rat IFN-gamma diminished equally well in rat and human sera. Inhibition was critically dependent on the isotype of the solid-phase monoclonal antibody (mAb) used in the ELISA systems. IgG1 and IgG2a mAbs efficiently inhibited the ELISA activity of IFN-gamma, whereas an IgA mAb was ineffective. The inhibition was not influenced by a wide variety of anti-proteolytic agents but was effectively blocked by anti-complementary substances or treatments directed to the first (C1) and third (C3) component of complement. Our results indicate that activation of the classical pathway of complement (CPC) and the concomitant covalent binding of C3 to the IFN-gamma molecule play a major role in the inhibitory process. It is concluded that reduction of the ELISA activity is attributable to diminished accessibility of the detector antibody for the IFN-gamma protein as a consequence of C3 binding.

Inhibition of colony-stimulating factor (CSF) production by postburn serum: negative feedback inhibition mediated by lactoferrin.

Fatal infections in severely burned patients are often preceded by a decline in the production of colony-stimulating factor (CSF) and the proliferation of granulocyte-macrophage stem cells (CFU-GM), and overwhelming sepsis is often associated with leukopenia. The underlying mechanisms accounting for these granulopoietic defects are poorly understood, but the fact that postburn serum has been shown to inhibit CSF production suggests that a humoral factor or factors may play a role. Previous work has demonstrated that plasma levels of lactoferrin (LF), a known inhibitor of CSF production, are elevated following burn injury. To determine if LF is responsible for serum-mediated inhibition of CSF production, serial plasma levels of LF were measured in 18 burn patients using an enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA). LF was elevated within 24 hours of injury and was associated with an absolute granulocytosis which rapidly declined, reaching a nadir at postburn days 3 through 5. Postburn serum, especially when collected during the first 24 hours following burn injury, inhibited in vitro CSF production by normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Pre-incubation of postburn serum with an LF antibody restored normal CSF production. These data suggest that LF may play an important role in the regulation of postburn granulopoiesis.

Lytic effector cell function in schizophrenia and depression

Natural killer (NK) cell activity and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) were tested in patients with schizophrenia or depression. It was found that NK activity as well as ADCC were significantly lower in both groups, as compared to healthy control individuals ( P < 0.001). Psychopharmacologic treatment with neuroleptics and antidepressives resulted in a significant increase in NK activity and ADCC ( P < 0.005) in patients with schizophrenia but not in treated patients with depression. In patients with schizophrenia, no correlation could be established between the dose of neuroleptic given and the increase in NK activity. Lithium also did not produce an increase in NK activity and ADCC. The addition of serum, derived from untreated patients with schizophrenia, to cell cultures in concentrations of 10 and 20% had an inhibitory effect upon the ADCC and, to a lesser degree, upon NK activity (20% serum concentration only); sera from treatment schizophrenics produced no inhibition of NK activity, but did affect ADCC. No serum-derived inhibitory effect upon either NK activity or ADCC was found to be present in sera from patients with depression. We conclude that lytic effector mechanisms are impaired in patients with schizophrenia or depression and that this defect is reversed in schizophrenic patients on treatment, but not in depressives on therapy. Patients with schizophrenia also tend to have a reversible serum-mediated inhibition of NK activity which is absent in patients with depression.

Dissociation of membrane binding and lytic activities of the lymphocyte pore-forming protein (perforin).

Granules isolated from CTL and NK cells contain a cytolytic pore-forming protein (PFP/perforin). At low temperatures (on ice), PFP binds to erythrocyte membranes without producing hemolysis. Hemolysis occurs when the PFP-bound erythrocytes are warmed up to 37 degrees C, which defines a temperature-dependent, lytic (pore-formation) step distinct from the membrane-binding event. Ca2+ and neutral pH are required for both membrane binding and pore formation by PFP. Serum, LDL, HDL, and heparin inhibit the hemolytic activity of PFP by blocking its binding to lipid membranes. Lysis by PFP that has bound to erythrocyte membranes is no longer susceptible to the effect of these inhibitors. The hemolytic activities associated with intact granules and solubilized PFP show different requirements for Ca2+ and pH, indicating that cytolysis produced by isolated granules may involve an additional step, possibly fusion of granules with membranes. It is suggested that three distinct Ca2+- and pH-dependent events may be involved during cell killing by CTL and NK cells: fusion of cytoplasmic granules of effector cells with their plasma membrane, releasing PFP from cells; binding of the released PFP to target membranes; and insertion of monomers and the subsequent formation of lytic pores in the target membrane. The serum-mediated inhibition of membrane binding by PFP could prevent the accidental injury of bystander cells by cell-released PFP, but would allow cytolysis to proceed to completion once PFP has bound to the target membrane.

Serum-Mediated Inhibition of the Interferon-Gamma-Induced HLA-DR Expression on Monocytes in Patient with Psoriasis

Psoriatic patients have a decreased proportion of monocytes expressing class II major histocompatibility complex antigens (DR+ monocytes) in their peripheral blood. The expression of the DR antigen on monocytes after culture in the presence of either autologous lymphocytes (endogenous interferon-gamma, IFN-gamma) or exogenous IFN-gamma was investigated. In normal AB serum the lymphocytes of the majority of the patients showed a spontaneous IFN-gamma production which was sufficient for DR antigen induction, while the monocytes displayed approximate normal susceptibility to exogenous IFN-gamma as judged by DR antigen expression. However, the sera of psoriatic patients contained one or more factors that interfered with the IFN-gamma-mediated DR antigen expression on cultured monocytes of the same patients. Restoration of IFN-gamma-induced DR antigen expression on monocytes in the presence of the patient's sera was achieved by the addition of superoxide dismutase, 2-mercaptoethanol, or indomethacin. The clinical significance of these observations is discussed.

Evidence for shared antigenic determinants on rabbit and human interleukin 1 (IL 1).

An antiserum to human interleukin 1 (IL 1) was prepared by immunizing a goat with the isoelectric point (pI) 6.9 type of IL 1 in Freund's complete adjuvant. Serum-mediated inhibition of the biological activity of IL 1 appeared within 4 wk after the first immunization, and showed a progressive rise in titer over a 9-mo period. The inhibitory moiety was purified by sequential ammonium sulfate fractionation and DEAE-Sephacel ion exchange chromatography, and the activity was found to co-purify with the IgG fraction of the serum. The antibody neutralized the biological activity of the pI 6.9 type of human IL 1 derived from either human placental tissue or human peripheral blood adherent cells, but did not neutralize the pI 5.2 type of IL 1 derived from either source. When used as an affinity reagent, the antibody selectively absorbed the pI 6.9 human IL 1, but not the pI 5.2 human IL 1. Furthermore, the antibody neutralized the pI 7.4 type of IL 1 derived from rabbit alveolar macrophages, but had no activity against the pI 4.6 IL 1 derived from the same source. No inhibitory activity against rat spleen cell-derived IL 1 or murine P388D1 cell line-derived IL 1 was detected. These experiments support the concept that the differing pI types of IL 1 derived from the same species are both biochemically and antigenically distinct molecules, and IL 1 of similar pI type derived from different species may share antigenic determinants.

Fetal calf serum-mediated inhibition of neurite growth from ciliary ganglion neurons in vitro.

Embryonic chick ciliary ganglion (CG) neurons cultured in fetal calf serum-containing medium have been previously reported to extend neurites on polyornithine (PORN) substrata precoated with a neurite-promoting factor (PNPF) from rat schwannoma-conditioned medium. On PORN substrata alone, however, no neuritic growth occurred. This was interpreted as evidence that PORN was an incompetent substratum for ciliary neuritic growth. In this study, we now find that an untreated PORN substratum allows neuritic growth in serum-free defined medium. When PNPF was added to PORN, a more rapid and extensive neuritic response occurred. After 5 hr of culture, a 60% neuritic response occurred on PNPF/PORN, whereas no neurons initiated neurites until 10-12 hr on PORN. The inhibitory effect of fetal calf serum noted above on PORN could be obtained in part by pretreating the substratum with serum for 1 hr. Maximal inhibitory effects in the PORN pretreatment were achieved after 30 min and were not further improved by treatments up to 4 hr. Bovine serum albumin was also found to inhibit neurite growth on PORN to about 60% of the inhibition obtained by an equivalent amount of serum protein. Fetal calf serum was shown to cause a 15% reduction in the percentage of neurons bearing neurites after its addition to 18-hr serum-free PORN cultures and to cause statistically significant reductions in neurite lengths measured 2 hr later.

Serum-mediated inhibition of polymorphonuclear leukocyte function following burn injury

Serum-mediated inhibition of polymorphonuclear leukocyte function following burn injury