International Journal of Molecular Sciences

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Stress, Immunity, and Tissue Microenvironment 2.0

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Dear Colleagues,

The inflammatory response is activated by a complex network of exogenous and endogenous warning signals that bring about either repair and homeostasis or disease. The tissue microenvironment is essential in dictating these alternative responses by engendering cellular pathways of stress, such as those related to the endoplasmic reticulum and the mitochondria. The hyperthermic response (i.e., fever) seems to be the link among different cell types and molecular stressors, indicating that other inflammation-related events might be responsible for alterations in the microenvironment. This Special Issue aims to unveil the composite roles of molecular stress responses in cancer, chronic inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases. It is undoubtful that an in-depth knowledge of these pathways will indicate how to bring forth both novel biomarkers and therapeutic approaches for these important diseases.

Dr. Massimo Conese
Prof. Dr. Arcangelo Liso
Guest Editors

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11 pages, 685 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Vitamin D Status and Psoriatic Arthritis: Association with the Risk for Sacroiliitis and Influence on the Retention Rate of Methotrexate Monotherapy and First Biological Drug Survival—A Retrospective Study

by Cinzia Rotondo, Francesco Paolo Cantatore, Daniela Cici, Francesca Erroi, Stefania Sciacca, Valeria Rella and Addolorata Corrado

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(6), 5368; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24065368 - 10 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1888

Abstract

A growing body of evidence on the importance of vitamin D in immune modulation has increased the interest in its possible impact on the course of rheumatological diseases. The scope of our study is to assess if the presence of different statuses of vitamin D could interfere in the clinical subsets, in methotrexate monotherapy discontinuation, and biological drug (b-DMARDs) survival in psoriatic arthritis patients (PsA). We conducted a retrospective study on PsA patients and split them into three groups based on their vitamin D status: the group with 25(OH)D ≤ 20 ng/mL, the group with levels of 25(OH)D between 20 and 30 ng/mL, and the group with serum levels of 25(OH)D ≥ 30 ng/mL. All patients were required to fulfill the CASPAR criteria for psoriatic arthritis and to have the evaluation of vitamin D serum levels at baseline visit and at clinical follow-up visits. The exclusion criteria were ages less than 18 years old, the presence of HLA B27, and satisfaction of rheumatoid arthritis classification criteria (during the study time). Statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Furthermore, 570 patients with PsA were screened and 233 were recruited. A level of 25(OH)D ≤ 20 ng/mL was present in 39% of patients; levels of 25(OH)D between 20 and 30 ng/mL presented in 25% of patients; 65% of patients with sacroiliitis presented 25 (OH)D ≤ 20 ng/mL. Methotrexate monotherapy discontinuation for failure was higher in the group with 25 (OH)D ≤ 20 ng/mL (survival time: 92 ± 10.3 weeks vs. 141.9 ± 24.1 weeks vs. 160.1 ± 23.6 weeks; p = 0.02) with higher discontinuation risk (HR = 2.168, 95% CI 1.334, 3.522; p = 0.002) than those with 25(OH)D between 20 and 30 ng/mL and those with 25(OH)D ≥ 30 ng/mL. Significantly shorter survival of first b-DMARDs was assessed in the group with 25 (OH)D ≤ 20 ng/mL versus the other groups (133.6 ± 11 weeks vs. 204.8 ± 35.8 weeks vs. 298.9 ± 35.4; p = 0.028) (discontinuation risk 2.129, 95% CI 1.186, 3.821; p = 0.011). This study highlights significant differences in clinical presentation, in particular sacroiliac involvement and on drug survival (methotrexate and b-DMARDs) in PsA patients with vitamin D deficiency. Further prospective studies, including a larger sample of patients, are needed to validate these data and to assess if the supplementation of vitamin D could improve the b-DMARDs response in PsA patients. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stress, Immunity, and Tissue Microenvironment 2.0)

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16 pages, 2839 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Developmental Changes of Immunity and Different Responses to Weaning Stress of Chinese Indigenous Piglets and Duroc Piglets during Suckling and Weaning Periods

by Sujuan Ding, Yating Cheng, Md. Abul Kalam Azad, Qian Zhu, Pan Huang and Xiangfeng Kong

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(24), 15781; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232415781 - 12 Dec 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1413

Abstract

To investigate developmental changes in immunity and different responses to weaning stress of piglets from different breeds during suckling and weaning periods, a total of 30 litters of Taoyuan black (TB) piglets, Xiangcun black (XB) piglets, and Duroc (DR) piglets (ten litters per breed) were selected at 1, 10, 21, and 24 days of age, respectively. The results showed that the liver index of TB piglets was higher at 10 days of age than that of the other days of age and breeds. Regardless of the days of age, TB and XB piglets had a higher plasma IgA level and lower ileal IgM level than in the DR piglets, and XB piglets had a lower plasma IgG level than the other breeds. TB and XB piglets had a higher IL-6 level and lower IL-17 level in plasma at 24 days of age than DR piglets, regardless of the days of age. The ileal levels of IL-2, IL-10, IFN-γ, and TNF-α were lower in the TB and XB piglets at 24 days of age than in the DR piglets. The ileal expression levels of IRAK1, CD14, MyD88, and NF-κB were down-regulated in the TB and XB piglets at 24 days of age compared to those in the DR piglets. These findings suggest that there were differences in the development of immune function among different pig breeds. Moreover, TB and XB piglets presented stronger resistance to weaning stress than the DR piglets, which may be related to the immune regulation mediated by the MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stress, Immunity, and Tissue Microenvironment 2.0)

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