Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0019209 (hepatomegaly)
 5,798 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Mice infected with the parasite Mesocestoides corti develop hypergammaglobulinemia, hepatomegaly, and splenomegaly. The immune response to M. corti infection is directed, in part, at molecules secreted by the organism. Two of these molecules have been shown to be hsp70 and hsp60 homologues. In this study it was found that incubation of splenocytes from infected animals with M. corti-secreted molecules or the isolated M. corti hsp70 results in the expansion of an unusual cell type with the morphology of large granular lymphocytes. The cell lines express Thy-1, CD4 (low), and CD45RB but lack TCR alpha beta, TCR gamma delta, CD3, CD8, and slg. The lack of a TCR suggested NK cells, but no cytolytic activity could be detected. In addition, the cell lines constitutively produce IL-6 and can be induced to express IL-2, but not IL-4, IL-5, or IFN-gamma. Given the phenotype of these cells, it is possible that they represent T lineage precursors or some type of effector cells. Notably, CD3- CD4+ cells appear to be expanded in the spleens and livers of M. corti-infected animals, suggesting an important role in infection. Moreover, the selective growth of this cell type with M. corti hsp70 suggests that the outgrowth and in vivo expansion of these cells may be related to the stress response of the parasite.
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PMID:Characterization of an unusual cell type (CD4+ CD3-) expanded by helminth infection and related to the parasite stress response. 843 20

Toxocara canis is a nematode of the Ascaridae family that normally parasites the small intestine of canid species. Humans are accidentally infected upon ingestion of embryonated eggs, and can manifest several clinical alterations such as fever, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, respiratory symptoms, muscle pain and anorexia. In the present work, we investigated the kinetics of tissue distribution of L2 larva in lungs, liver, kidney, brain, skeletal muscle and myocardium. Also, we analyzed the blood and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) for levels of IL-6, IFN-gamma, eotaxin and Regulated on Activation Normal T Cell Expressed and Secreted (RANTES) in experimental murine T. canis infection. We observed liver, lung and kidney lesions correlated to larva migration as early as the first day of infection. After the seventh post-infection day, larva could also be detected in brain, skeletal muscle and heart, as an indicator of biphasic migration pattern. Increased inflammatory activity was detected in BAL and plasma of infected animals, as was an intense eosinophil migration associated with an increase in the levels of all the cytokines studied. In conclusion, our results establish a tight correlation between tissue lesions caused by larva migration and increased plasma levels of pro-inflammatory and eosinophil chemotactic cytokines. Thus, murine T. canis infection may prove to be useful in understanding the role of cytokines in infection.
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PMID:Influence of murine Toxocara canis infection on plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid eosinophil numbers and its correlation with cytokine levels. 1616 64

CD137-mediated signals costimulate T cells and protect them from activation-induced apoptosis; they induce curative antitumor immunity and enhance antiviral immune responses in mice. In contrast, anti-CD137 agonistic mAbs can suppress T-dependent humoral immunity and reverse the course of established autoimmune disease. These results have provided a rationale for assessing the therapeutic potential of CD137 ligands in human clinical trials. In this study, we report that a single 200-mug injection of anti-CD137 given to otherwise naive BALB/c or C57BL/6 mice led to the development of a series of immunological anomalies. These included splenomegaly, lymphadenopathy, hepatomegaly, multifocal hepatitis, anemia, altered trafficking of B cells and CD8 T cells, loss of NK cells, and a 10-fold increase in bone marrow (BM) cells bearing the phenotype of hemopoietic stem cells. These events were dependent on CD8 T cells, TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and type I IFNs. BM cells up-regulated Fas, and there was a significant increase in the number of CD8+ T cells that correlated with a loss of CD19+ and Ab-secreting cells in the BM. TCR Valphabeta usage was random and polyclonal among liver-infiltrating CD8 T cells, and multifocal CD8+ T cell infiltrates were resolved upon termination of anti-CD137 treatment. Anti-CD137-treated mice developed lymphopenia, thrombocytopenia, and anemia, and had lowered levels of hemoglobin and increased numbers of reticulocytes.
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PMID:Cytokine-mediated disruption of lymphocyte trafficking, hemopoiesis, and induction of lymphopenia, anemia, and thrombocytopenia in anti-CD137-treated mice. 1737 76