If scenario 2 be the case, then each tissue must be able to produce all three signals. Of course, a choice between the signals would have to depend on the characteristic of the pathogen–tissue interaction. Given coherence and independence of responsiveness, a decision between signals would be required. These are two extremes. However, they suggest a general case under which

each tissue has the potential to deliver all three signals but a given pathogen–tissue interaction would trigger only one of the three signals. Admittedly, there are many ambiguities here as tissues are composed of different cell types and themselves form organs. The relationship of pathogens to tissues will eventually have to deal with the relationship of pathogens to cells and organs. Further, implied is that the pathogenic universe itself is viewed by the adaptive immune system as Akt signaling pathway divided into four categories, each optimally responded to by one or the other of the four effector ecosystems. Lastly, if a given tissue traumatized

by different pathogens can deliver different signals (three are postulated), what might be the basis for the different interactions. One trauma signal might be determined by whether the pathogen is intracellular or extracellular (Signal 3a). Extracellular pathogens might be divided into those dependent on secreted toxins (Signal 3b) versus those that trigger and profit from immune subversion (Signal 3c) like a fulminating inflammatory response (i.e. immunopathology). The point being made, admittedly primitively, is XL184 nmr that the postulate of a small number of effector ecosystems and corresponding class controlling trauma signals implies that evolution has classified the pathogenic universe

into a few categories that exert a similar selection pressure to which the evolution of the 17-DMAG (Alvespimycin) HCl host can respond. The Trauma Model is a theory of the regulation of expression of the effector ecosystems. Here, we will try to formulate one of several possible sets of postulates that would define such a model. Then, we will propose tests of these postulates: 1  The uptake by APCs of Eliminons that the germline-selected (‘innate’) repertoire cannot recognize requires an Eliminon-antibody aggregate. The source of this primer uptake antibody is the B cell, which must secrete, antigen-independently, primer antibody after undergoing a sorting of its repertoire ([6], see discussion of Hypothesis VII in ref. [46]). This limits the presentation of exogeneous self by APCs making the requirement for ARA at the level of the S-NS discrimination (Module 2) less stringent but not obviated (see earlier). The overwhelming belief that T-suppressors play their major role by regulating autoimmunity makes it necessary to point out that the Trauma Model redefines their normal role. Feedback regulation of the magnitude of the effector response is essential [47].

It is caused by the dimorphic fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, which affects, among other organs in the human body, the oral cavity. Fungus virulence and immunocompetence of the host determine the establishment of infection or active disease, whose severity and clinical behaviour depend mostly on the cellular immune response of the host. Often, oral lesions constitute the first sign and site of confirmation of diagnosis, which in most cases is delayed. The success of the treatment depends on early and correct diagnosis, as well as on the patient’s adherence to the drug therapy. “
“Regulation of morphogenesis GS-1101 clinical trial through the production

of chemical signalling molecules such as isoamyl alcohol, 2-phenylethyl alcohol, 1-dodecanol, E-nerolidol and farnesol is reported in Candida albicans. The present study focuses on the effect of ethyl alcohol on C. albicans dimorphism and biofilm development.

Ethyl alcohol inhibited germ tube formation induced by the four standard inducers in a concentration-dependent manner. The germ tube inhibitory concentration (4%) did not have any effect on the growth and viability of C. albicans cells. Ethyl alcohol also inhibited the elongation of germ tubes. Four percentage of ethyl alcohol significantly inhibited biofilm development on Ferrostatin-1 clinical trial polystyrene and silicone surfaces. We suggest a potential morphogenetic regulatory role for ethyl alcohol, which may influence dissemination, virulence and establishment of infection. “
“Heat shock proteins (Hsp) are highly conserved molecules, which are both constitutively expressed and up-regulated

in response to various stress conditions. In particular, fungal Hsp60 can act as immunodominant antigens and facilitate powerful immunological properties. A possible cellular heat shock response was investigated in eight fungi (Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus terreus, Penicillium chrysogenum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Scedosporium apiospermum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Candida albicans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Fully automated RNA extraction was followed by quantitative real-time RT-PCR targeting fungus-specific Hsp60 mRNA and sequencing of the amplicon. Levels however of temperature-dependent gene expression were evaluated and rates of similarity and identity were compared. While Hsp60 mRNA was constitutively expressed in all the samples tested, a temperature-dependent induction was not shown in C. cladosporioides. In the 80-amino acid fragment from the hypothetical protein, 66% of the amino acids were identical, 20% showed a conserved and 8% a semi-conserved substitution. Our findings should contribute to a better understanding of host–pathogen relationship and suggest that fungal Hsp60 under temperature-related stress conditions might act as an immunogenic trigger in orchestrating fungi-related diseases. “
“Dermatomycoses are very common worldwide with increasing prevalence.

Interleukin-10 and IL-4 are known to play potent and direct roles in promoting alternatively activated macrophages and suppressing inflammation in macrophages and other cells,[73, 74] which indirectly influence adipocyte function. However, in obese humans and mice, adipose iNKT cells are greatly reduced, and therefore their protective effects may be blunted.[2, 3] One potent way to activate iNKT cells in vivo is through αGalCer treatment, which selleck kinase inhibitor increases iNKT cell levels 10-fold even in obesity.[3] We, and others, have shown that adipose iNKT cell activation

promotes M2 macrophage polarization as well as inducing weight loss and improved fatty liver and insulin resistance.[3, 39] Importantly, we did not observe any negative side effects of activating iNKT cells with αGalCer such as hypoglycaemia or cachexia, nor did αGalCer have any effects in mice lacking iNKT cells. While obvious caution needs to be considered given the potential of a cytokine storm, the effects of αGalCer treatment to loss of fat mass but not

lean mass in obesity is striking and warrants further study to elucidate the pathway from activation of iNKT cells to weight loss. Also, in obese humans, iNKT cells are found at a much lower frequency in liver and spleen, so administration of αGalCer may not have the potential side effects seen in older Bafilomycin A1 supplier mice after repeated injections. Administration tetracosactide of αGalCer to humans has been performed in many different clinical trials for cancer and has proven safe, capable of activating human iNKT cells in vivo, with minimal side effects. However, the effects of chronic iNKT

cell activation in humans has not yet been fully studied. In the case of type 2 diabetes and obesity, an ideal scenario might be to specifically activate anti-inflammatory adipose iNKT cells rather than whole body iNKT cells, which predominantly produce IFN-γ when activated (in mice at least). There is currently no method to specifically target particular populations of iNKT cells, but one may speculate that certain lipids may more potently activate different iNKT cell populations based on TCR affinity and co-stimulatory signals present or enriched in a particular environment. Indeed, indirect but strong evidence suggests that adipose tissue itself may contain an endogenous lipid that activates iNKT cells. First, CD1d is highly expressed in human[2] and murine adipose tissue.[7, 8] Moreover, not only is CD1d expressed on immune cells in the stromovascular fraction of adipose tissue, but CD1d is also expressed by adipocytes themselves.[7, 8] Furthermore, adipose iNKT cells appear to be constitutively activated in adipose tissue even in lean steady state, as measured by high CD69 expression. Therefore it makes sense that endogenous lipid antigens may be present in the lipid-rich environment of adipose tissue where CD1d is highly expressed.

In TLE patients, SV2A and SV2B expression was decreased in areas of synaptic loss. SV2C, which is weakly expressed or absent in the hippocampus of controls, was overexpressed in 10/11 cases with classical MTS1A and mossy fibre sprouting but not in cases with other types of MTS. SV2C staining was located in the inner molecular

layer of the dentate see more gyrus and colocalized with dynorphin, ZnT3 and VGLUT1, suggesting selective expression in presynaptic glutamatergic Zn2+-rich terminals of abnormal sprouting fibres. SV2 expression patterns correlated with histological subtypes of MTS, but not with clinical features or therapeutic regimens in this patient cohort. In classical MTS1A, the expression of SV2 isoforms is altered with a marked decrease of SV2A and SV2B paralleling

synaptic loss and a selective increase of SV2C in sprouting mossy fibres. These findings suggest a different physiology of sprouting synapses and the possibility to target them with SV2C-specific strategies. Synaptic vesicle proteins 2 (SV2) are a small family of integral transmembrane glycoproteins that are localized to synaptic vesicles and appear to function as modulators of Ca2+-dependent exocytosis [1]. NVP-LDE225 Of the three known isoforms, SV2A is ubiquitously expressed in the rat brain [2, 3] while SV2B, although widely expressed, is undetectable in several groups of neurones in the hippocampus, central grey nuclei and cerebellum [3, 4]. SV2C has a much more restricted distribution being found mostly in the basal ganglia, midbrain and brainstem [5, 6]. Although SV2 isoforms are not neurotransmitter specific, their distribution has been reported to differ between glutamatergic and GABAergic synaptic vesicles [7]. SV2s also act as receptors for botulinum neurotoxins [8]. Both clinical and experimental data suggest that SV2 isometheptene proteins, and particularly SV2A, are involved in epilepsy [9, 10]. The anticonvulsant

activity of levetiracetam (LEV), a powerful antiepileptic drug (AED), has been linked to its ability to bind SV2A [9, 11]. More recently developed LEV analogues, such as brivaracetam and seletracetam, also bind to SV2A [12]. Moreover, SV2A−/− knockout mice have been shown to die early after birth due to severe spontaneous seizures [2, 13]. SV2A+/− animals display lower seizure thresholds in a number of models, reduced anticonvulsant efficacy of LEV as well as accelerated epileptogenesis [13, 14]. Furthermore, reduced SV2A expression has been reported in rodent models of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) [10, 15-18]. In the human, SV2A expression is reduced in the hippocampus of patients with TLE and hippocampal sclerosis (HS) [19].

, 2000). STs sharing identity at the majority of these loci are grouped into clonal complexes (CCs) encompassing related lineages of MRSA (Enright et al., 2002). Another highly discriminatory approach that can identify genomic rearrangements and insertions/deletions is pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) whereby SmaI digested chromosomal DNA is separated

and similarities in banding patterns reflect relatedness among lineages (Bannerman et al., 1995; McDougal et al., 2003). Pictilisib datasheet This allows for the classification of S. aureus strains into the now familiar PFGE types USA100-1200. Employing these epidemiological approaches, researchers appreciated that most MRSA disease worldwide (nearly 70% of reported infections) was caused by five major CCs: CC5, CC8, CC22, CC30, and CC45 (McDougal et al., 2003; Robinson & Enright, 2003) (Fig. 1). CC5 includes clones belonging to the USA100 PFGE type (e.g. SCCmec-II New York/Japan clone), the most common source of US hospital-acquired MRSA as well as USA800 (SCCmec-IV Pediatric clone). CC8 includes the archaic, or original MRSA clones as well as the

related Iberian clone, the SCCmec-III Brazilian/Hungarian clone, and the SCCmec-IV USA500 clones. CC22 includes the EMRSA-15 clones that dominated hospital infections in the UK during the 1990s along with strains from CC30 encompassing EMRSA-16 as well as the USA200 PFGE type. Finally, CC45 consists of clones belonging to USA600 PFGE type (e.g. Berlin AZD0530 cell line clone) that caused widespread MRSA hospital infections in second northern Europe. In essence, after 30 years of investigation, the scientific community began to understand the population

structure of the MRSA clones responsible for the majority of hospital-acquired disease. The source of high virulence potential inherent to these five CCs was never fully appreciated before everything we knew about MRSA epidemiology changed at the turn of the century. Initially reported in 1993, patients without any contact with healthcare settings contracted invasive MRSA infections in Kimberly Australia, a region in the northern part of Western Australia (Udo et al., 1993). It was later discovered that simultaneously, strains related to these ‘community-acquired’ MRSA (CA-MRSA) clones were causing serious and fatal respiratory infections in Chicago, again in patients without direct contact with hospital environments (Center for Disease Control & Prevention, 1999). Prior to these reports, MRSA infections were exclusively associated with healthcare settings. These new clones belong to CC1 (USA400 PFGE type), a CC unrelated to the five traditional hospital-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) complexes (Center for Disease Control & Prevention, 1999).

All patients had experienced symptoms for a prolonged time period (mean time of disease 10±14 years) and presented with mucosal lesions involving the nasal cavity (100%), pharynx (35%) and/or larynx (11%). All tissue specimens were obtained before treatment; afterwards, patients received N-methylglucamine antimoniate (20 mg/Sb/kg/d) for 30 days. Nasal mucosal biopsy was performed under check details local anaesthesia with Lidocaine® spray (10%). Normal mucosal samples were obtained from turbinectomy nasal

surgery. Tissue fragments were cryopreserved or conserved in 10% formalin. This study was approved by the Gonçalo Moniz Research Center (CPqGM/FIOCRUZ-Bahia) Institutional Review Board, and informed consent was obtained from all patients before enrolment. Frozen sections (5 μm thick) were obtained and immunohistochemistry was performed as described previously 2. The following primary antibodies were used: rabbit anti-IL-17 (4 μg/mL) or anti-TGF-β (2 μg/mL) (both Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Santa Cruz, CA, USA), goat anti-IL-23 (0.01 μg/mL), mouse anti-IL-6 (25 μg/mL), mouse anti-IL-1β (10 μg/mL) PLX-4720 nmr or goat anti-MMP-9 (4 μg/mL) (all R&D Systems,

Abingdon, UK), goat anti-MPO (4 μg/mL; US Biological, Swampscott, MA, USA) and goat anti-NE (12 μg/mL; Santa Cruz Biotechnology). Biotin-labelled anti-rabbit, anti-mouse or anti-goat IgG (Vector Laboratories, Peterborough, 4��8C England) was used as a secondary antibody. Isotype control antibodies (R&D Systems) were used as negative controls. Positive-control sections consisted of frozen mucosal tonsillar tissue and frozen nasal polyps. Digital images of tissue sections were captured using a Nikon E600 light microscope and a Q-Color 1 Olympus digital camera. Quantification of stained areas was performed using Image Pro-Plus software (Media Cybernetics). Double immunofluorescence staining was performed for IL-17 and CD4, CD8, CD14 or

CCR6 markers. The following primary antibodies were used: mouse anti-CD4 (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA, USA), mouse anti-CD8 (BD Biosciences), mouse anti-CCR6 (R&D Systems) and rabbit anti-IL-17 (8 μg/mL, Santa Cruz Biotechnology). Secondary antibodies were biotin anti-mouse IgG (Vector Laboratories) or anti-rabbit Alexa 488 (Molecular Probes, Eugene, OR, USA). Streptavidin Cy3 (Sigma, Buchs, Switzerland) was used after biotin antibodies. Multiple images representing positive staining and negative controls were acquired using a confocal microscope (Leica TCS SP2 SE and SP5 AOB5). Image Pro Plus was used for image processing. The extraction of total RNA from mucosal tissues was performed following the protocol recommended by the manufacturer (Life Technologies, Rockville, MD, USA). cDNA was synthesised using 1 μg of RNA through a reverse transcription reaction (M-MLV reverse transcriptase, Promega, Madison, WI, USA).

[89] To date there is no effective treatment for patients suffering from ALS. Recent studies have indicated that it is possible to generate

motor neurons in culture check details from stem cells that include ESCs and NSCs.[90-93] Mouse ESC-derived motor neurons transplanted into motor neuron-injured rat spinal cord survived and extended axons into the ventral root,[92] and human EGCs transplanted into cerebrospinal fluid of rats with motor neuron injury migrated into the spinal cord and led to improved motor function.[94] Transplantation of NSCs isolated from fetal spinal cord[95] was also effective in delaying disease progression in a mouse ALS model. In a recent study, human spinal cord NSCs derived from an 8-week gestation fetus were transplanted into lumbar spinal cord of superoxide dismutase (SOD)/G93A rats. The results indicated that the neurological function of NSC-transplanted animals was well preserved, but disease onset of transplanted animals was not different from the untreated controls and the overall animal survival was also not affected.[96] A phase I trial of intraspinal injections selleck kinase inhibitor of fetal-derived NSCs in ALS patients was conducted in the USA. Ten total injections were made into the lumbar spinal cord at a dose of 100 000 cells per

injection in 12 ALS patients. Clinical assessments ranging from 6 to 18 months after transplantation demonstrated no evidence of acceleration of disease

progression due to the intervention.[97] A previous study has reported that iPSCs isolated from an ALS patient were differentiated into motor neurons[98] and these patient-derived neurons could be an ideal cellular source for screening new drug candidates. Neurons and glia induced from patient-derived iPSCs are autologous, easily accessible, without immune rejection and with no ethical problem. The systemic transplantation of NSCs via an intravascular route is probably the least invasive method of cell administration in ALS. Recently rat NSCs labeled with Cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase green fluorescent protein were transplanted in a rat ALS model via intravenous tail vein injection and 7 days later 13% of injected cells were found in the motor cortex, hippocmampus and spinal cord. However, no improvement in clinical symptoms was reported.[99] It is unrealistic to expect the transplantation of stem cells or stem cell-derived motor neurons in ALS patients in a clinical setting will replace lost neurons, integrate into existing neural circuitry and restore motor function. Rather, preventing cell death in host motor neurons via provision of neurotrophic factors by transplanted stem cells or stem cell-derived motor neurons is more realistic and an achievable approach.

Gene set class comparison identifies biological pathways that are over-represented in the experimental data by comparing the number of differentially expressed genes for a given BioCarta pathway with that expected by random chance alone. The significance threshold for this test was p = 0.005 using a univariate F-test to define differentially AZD8055 solubility dmso expressed genes (as above) with an LS permutation test used to identify BioCarta gene sets having more genes differentially expressed among the phenotype classes than expected by chance. Of the 218 BioCarta gene lists tested, 107 gene lists contained

one or more differentially expressed genes, and of these BioCarta gene lists, two were identified as significantly enriched for differentially expressed genes: “Adhesion Molecules on Lymphocytes” and “Monocyte and its Surface Molecules,” containing 11 and 12 genes, respectively. When examined, these two gene sets contained 11 of 12 identical genes. Hierarchical clustering of genes was used to survey the differentially expressed genes to identify global patterns of expression. To perform this analysis, the genes were centered and scaled, using one-minus correlation with average linkage computed. Differences between

the means of experimental groups were analyzed using the two-tailed Student’s t-test or ANOVA as appropriate. Differences were considered significant where p ≤ 0.05. Inherently logarithmic data from bacterial growth were transformed for statistical analysis. This work was supported by the Trudeau Institute, Inc., NIH grants AI46530 and AI069121 and an American Lung Association DeSouza Award to AMC.; PTDC/SAU-MII/099102/2008 from the I-BET-762 mw FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) to RA. The Authors would like to thank Flow Cytometry Core and the Imaging Core at Trudeau Institute and Phyllis Spatrick at the Genomic

Core Facility at UMASS Medical School for excellent technical support. The authors declare no financial or commercial conflict of interest. Disclaimer: Supplementary materials have been peer-reviewed but not copyedited. Figure S1. Live CD4+ T-cell populations in M. avium infected mice. WT and nos2−/− mice were either left uninfected (UnInf) or infected (Inf) intravenously with 106 M. unless avium 25291 and the spleens, lungs and livers harvested. The organs were processed for flow cytometry and the (A, C) frequency and (B, D) number of live lymphocytes (LO) (A, B) and CD4+ T cells (C, D) within the organs determined. Cells were gated on live lymphocytes, doublet discrimination, and CD3+, CD4+ (n = 4–22, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001, by ANOVA). Figure S2. Gating scheme for flow cytometric analysis and cell sorting. (A) The gating scheme for the detection of live, single cell, CD3+CD4+CD44+ T cells is shown in sequence. (B) Representative purity of the live, single cell (i) CD4+CD44+CD69hi and (ii) CD4+CD44+CD69lo cells sorted prior to RNA extraction.

194 FRACTIONAL EXCRETION OF MAGNESIUM AND RENAL FUNCTION IN CYSTIC FIBROSIS C MUNRO1,2, S RANGANATHAN1,2, C QUINLAN1,2 1The

Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria; 2The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Aim: To assess the fractional excretion and renal function of children with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Background: Patients with CF are at risk of magnesium deficiency due to: gastrointestinal losses, renal losses, and drugs causing magnesium wasting. The prevalence is suggested to be 3% and it is less frequently reported in children than in adults. We sought to examine FeMg in subjects with CF during

treatment with aminoglycosides. Methods: Patients aged ≤ 6 years were recruited when commencing IV aminoglycosides and PS-341 purchase have urinary and serum sampling of creatinine and magnesium on days 1, 4, 5, 7 and 10–14. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated using the Zapitelli, Bouvet and Schwartz CKiD formulae. FEMg was calculated as: Results: 6 patients, aged 0.53–6.87 years, 3 males, 3 gentamicin and 3 tobramycin, have been recruited to date. A total of 44 patients will be recruited. Mean eGFR (± SD) was 102.7 (± 11.3) mL/min/1.73 m2 by the Zapitelli formula, 59 (± 21.9) mL/min/m2 by the Bouvet and 107 (± 16.3) Ribonucleotide reductase mL/min/1.73 m2

by Schwartz. FEMg was Selleckchem Enzalutamide considered elevated if >1.4%. Mean (± SD) FEMg on day 1 was 3.95 (± 2.78)%, rising to 9.3 (± 2.35)% on day 5 and dropping back to 3.64 (± 1.66)% by day 10–14. Conclusions: Aminoglycosides are widely used in CF and are introduced at a younger age, as more children are diagnosed following newborn screening. There are concerns that aminoglycosides contribute to renal disease in patients with CF. The effect of aminoglycosides on FEMg has not previously been studied. The proposed action of Mg in CF is incompletely understood. These results suggest that the metabolism and excretion of Mg in CF warrants further study, and that aminoglycosides considerable alters Mg excretion. 195 HETEROZYGOUS LMX1B MUTATION DETECTION IN FAMILIAL FSGS WITHOUT EXTRARENAL MANIFESTATIONS USING WHOLE EXOME SEQUENCING J FLETCHER1, A MALLETT2,3, G HO4, H MCCARTHY5, A SAWYER6, A MALLAWAARACHCHI7, M ROSIER1, M LITTLE8, B BENNETTS4, H JUPPNER9, A TURNER10, SI ALEXANDER5 1Department of Paediatrics, The Canberra Hospital, Australian Capital Territory; 2Department of Renal Medicine, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Queensland; 3CKD.

The strips were developed using TMB substrate and stop solution, according to manufacturer’s instructions. The plate was read at 450 nm using Spectramax 340 PC and SoftMax Pro 5.2, and the detection limit was set to 5 pg/ml. Cytometric bead array: IFN-γ, IL-2 and IL-5 content were determined using the Human Th1/Th2 Cytokine

Cytometric Bead Array kit according to manufacturer’s instructions (BD Biosciences, Pharmingen). Briefly, 20 μl of capture beads were added to a V-bottomed 96-well plate together with 20 μl of the unknown samples or the Th1/Th2 standard in two-fold serial dilutions (top concentration: 5000 pg/ml) and 20 μl of the human Th1/Th2 –II PE detection antibody. The plate was then incubated for 3 h in the dark at room temperature, where after 200 μl of HDAC inhibitor washing buffer was added and the plate was centrifuged at 200 g for 5 min. The supernatants were removed and the pelleted beads were resuspended in 300 μl of washing buffer and analysed on a FacsCanto2 flow cytometer. The data were analysed using the FCAP array software (BD Biosciences, Pharmingen). All given values calculated from the standard curve were considered as positive. Selleckchem Talazoparib For all cytokine measurements, undetected samples were set

as 1 pg/ml. Statistic analysis.  Statistical analyses were performed using one-way anova followed by Bonferroni or Dunnet’s multiple comparison tests for GraphPad Prism (La Jolla, CA, USA). Ethics.  This study was approved by the Ethics Committee in Gothenburg, Sweden. The first question we addressed was whether CD4+ T cells respond differently to adult and cord mDC and pDC. As cord T cells have not yet met a specific antigen, it is not possible to measure recall T cell responses in these cells. Instead, we assessed the cytokine profiles in cord T cells in response to allogenic DC, that is in a mixed lymphocyte

reaction (MLR). We, therefore, incubated purified cord blood CD4+ T cells with allogenic cord mDC or cord pDC and analysed the cytokine profile after 48 h of coculture. Similarly, adult CD4+ T cells were incubated with allogenic adult mDC or adult pDC, and the cytokine profile was assessed after 48 h of coculture. The cytokines analysed were the Th1-specific cytokines IL-2 and IFN-γ and the Th2 cytokines IL-5 this website and IL-13. We found that pDC from cord blood induced significantly higher levels of the Th2 cytokines IL-5 and IL-13 in responding CD4+ T cells compared with both pDC and mDC from adult blood and to mDC from cord blood (Fig. 2C,D). Cord pDC induced 8.5-fold higher levels of IL-13 and 19-fold higher levels of IL-5 compared with adult pDC, and five-fold and 13-fold higher levels of these cytokines compared with cord mDC. We could not detect any differences in Th2 cytokine production when comparing mDC from cord and adult blood (Fig. 2C,D). Furthermore, cord pDC also induced higher levels of the Th1 cytokines IL-2 and IFN-γ compared with adult pDC and compared to mDC from both adult and cord blood (Fig. 2A,B).