Journal of Cellular Immunology

Commentary Open Access

Glucose Metabolism is a Better Marker for Predicting Clinical Alzheimer’s Disease than Amyloid or Tau

Tyler C. Hammond, Ai-Ling Lin

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) research has long been dominated with communications regarding the amyloid hypothesis and targeting amyloid clearance through pharmacological therapies from the brain. Unfortunately, this research strategy has yielded only one new FDA-accelerated approved therapeutic for early AD, and its clinical benefit still needs to be verified. It may be time to employ a new strategy in AD therapeutics research. Hammond et al. reported that diminished uptake of glucose in the brain is a better marker for classifying AD than beta-amyloid (Aβ) or phosphorylated tau deposition.

Review Article Open Access

Essentials of CAR-T Therapy and Associated Microbial Challenges in Long Run Immunotherapy

Muhammad Kalim, Rui Jing, Xin Li, Zhiwu Jiang, Ningbo Zheng, Ziyu Wang, Guo Wei, Yong Lu

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy has shown potential in improving outcomes for individuals with hematological malignancies. However, achieving long-term full remission for blood cancer remains challenging due to severe life-threatening toxicities such as limited anti-tumor efficacy, antigen escape, trafficking restrictions, and limited tumor invasion. Furthermore, the interactions between CAR-T cells and their host tumor microenvironments have a significant impact on CAR-T function.

Review Article Open Access

TNFAIP8: Inflammation, Immunity and Human Diseases

Suryakant Niture, John Moore, Deepak Kumar

Inflammation can be caused by various environmental factors, including microbial infection and toxic chemical exposure. In response to inflammation, immune cells like macrophages, B and T lymphocytes, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and various stromal cells secrete soluble polypeptide cytokine Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF?)

Review Article Open Access

Naltrexone as a Novel Therapeutic for Diabetic Corneal Complications

Patricia J. McLaughlin, Joseph W. Sassani, Ian S. Zagon

Diabetes is approaching epidemic proportions worldwide. In the United States, there are more than 30 million individuals having a confirmed diagnosis of diabetes [1,2]. Worldwide, the number of people with diabetes exceeds 400 million [3], and is expected to reach 550 million by 2030. Diabetes is associated with complications that affect nearly all systems, including vision.

Research Article Open Access

Inulin Supplementation Mitigates Gut Dysbiosis and Brain Impairment Induced by Mild Traumatic Brain Injury during Chronic Phase

Lucille M. Yanckello, Brian Fanelli, Scott McCulloch, Xin Xing, McKenna Sun, Tyler C. Hammond, Rita Colwell, Zezong Gu, Aaron C. Ericsson, Ya-Hsuan Chang, Adam D. Bachstetter, Ai-Ling Lin

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has been shown to acutely alter the gut microbiome diversity and composition, known as dysbiosis, which can further exacerbate metabolic and vascular changes in the brain in both humans and rodents. However, it remains unknown how mTBI affects the gut microbiome in the chronic phase recovery (past one week post injury). It is also unknown if injury recovery can be improved by mitigating dysbiosis. The goal of the study is to fill the knowledge gap.

Research Article Open Access

The Natural History of Post-Chikungunya Viral Arthritis Disease Activity and T-cell Immunology: A Cohort Study

Aileen Yu-hen Chang, Alfonso Sucerquia Hernández, Jose Forero-Mejía, Sarah Renee Tritsch, Evelyn Mendoza-Torres, Liliana Encinales, Andres Cadena Bonfanti, Abigale Marie Proctor, Gary Leonard Simon, Samuel Joseph Simmens, Gary Steven Firestein

Background: Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an alphavirus spread by mosquitos that causes arthralgias and arthritis that may last for years. The objective of this study was to describe the arthritis progression and T cell immunology over a two-year period. Methods: A cohort of 40 cases of serologically confirmed CHIKV from Magdalena and Atlántico, Colombia were followed in 2019 and again in 2021. Arthritis disease severity, disability, pain, stiffness, physical function, mobility, fatigue, anxiety, sleep disturbances and depression were assessed. 

Short Communication Open Access

Targeting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR/NFkB Axis in Ovarian Cancer

Alia Ghoneum, Ammar Yasser Abdulfattah, Neveen Said

Phosphoinositol 3 kinase (PI3K) defines a class of lipid kinases that have the ability to phosphorylate the inositol ring 3?-OH group in inositol phospholipids and therefore produce phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate (PIP3) [1]. PI3K encompasses a family of enzymes divided into: Class IA PI3K which includes three isomers (?, ?, ?) and Class IB which include the group (?).

Commentary Open Access

Can Molecular Biomarkers be Utilized to Determine Appropriate Adjuvant Therapy in Early-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC)?

Prashanth Ashok Kumar, Alina Basnet, Stephen Graziano

Early-stage NSCLC, encompassing resectable stage I-III  are curable, and represents 25% of all lung cancers. The management of non-metastatic NSCLC is a rapidly changing area of clinical oncology, where utilization of molecular biomarkers has become a cornerstone in informing appropriate management. In current clinical practice, adjuvant chemotherapy is recommended after surgical resection for tumors ≥ 4 cms in size (AJCC 7th stage IB, AJCC 8th stage IIA, and higher stage groups thereafter).

Commentary Open Access

M1 Macrophages are More Susceptible to Necroptosis

Qin Hao, Steven Idell, Hua Tang

Macrophages are important cells of the innate immune system and play a crucial role in host immune defense against infection and injury [1-3]. Macrophages form the first line of defense against airborne particles and microbes through multiple functions including phagocytosis, production of cytokines and chemokines, and antigen presentation.

Commentary Open Access

Structural Consequences of Variation in SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7

David A. Ostrov

New globally circulating SARS-CoV-2 strains are causing concern about evolution of virus transmissibility, fitness and immune evasion mechanisms. A variant emerging from the United Kingdom called SARS-CoV-2 VUI 202012/01, or B.1.1.7, is thought to exhibit increased transmissibility that results from replication 4-10 times faster than the original Wuhan virus (Wuhan-Hu-1). 

Review Article Open Access

Ca² /calmodulin-dependent Protein Kinases in Leukemia Development

Changhao Cui, Chen Wang, Min Cao, Xunlei Kang

Calcium (Ca²⁺) is an intracellular universal second messenger that regulates a variety of cellular processes. Many biological processes, including gene transcription, cell cycle, migration, and apoptosis, are affected by changes in intracellular Ca²⁺ signaling. Disruption of normal Ca²⁺ signaling can cause tumorigenic phenotypes.

Mini Review Open Access

Cytoreductive Nephrectomy Following Immunotherapy: Evolution, Pearls, and Pitfalls of Treatment

Laura E. Davis, Adam Calaway, Eric A. Singer, Shawn Dason

Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) is among the most frequently diagnosed malignancies in both genders with over 81,000 estimated cases in 2024. Despite increasing incidence of renal cell carcinomas <4 cm, up to 1/3 of patients diagnosed with RCC exhibit metastatic disease (mRCC) at time of diagnosis. Cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN), a procedure which encompasses the surgical removal of the primary tumor in patients with metastatic disease

Commentary Open Access

The Issue of Monocyte Activation in ASD: Troubles with Translation

P Ashwood, R.J. Moreno

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) prevalence has increased year on year for the past two decades and currently affects 1 in 44 individuals in the US. An increasing number of studies have pointed to increased immune activation as both an etiological agent and also involved in the ongoing pathological process of ASD. Both adaptive and innate immune responses have been implicated. Evidence of innate dysregulation has so far included increased production of innate inflammatory cytokines, increased cell numbers, and altered activation in monocytes in the blood and microglia in the brain.

Review Article Open Access

Going above and Beyond: Using an Attenuated Herpes Viral Vaccine Vector to Elicit Protective Immune Responses Through Neutralizing and Non-neutralizing Functions of Antibodies

Katherine E. Kaugars, Angelo R. Retamal-Diaz, Anna Paula de Oliveira, Pablo A. Gonzalez, William R. Jacobs Jr.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made the development of novel vaccines a high priority for public health. While many vaccines have focused on the generation of neutralizing antibodies, we have discovered a novel herpes simplex virus (HSV) vaccine candidate, designated ΔgD-2, that can preferentially elicit non-neutralizing antibodies that function through Fcγ receptor (FcγR) activation

Review Article Open Access

Polyamines: Key Players in Immunometabolism and Immune Regulation

Shanmuga S. Mahalingam, Pushpa Pandiyan

Polyamines are small organic molecules ubiquitously present in all living organisms and function as crucial regulators of biological processes ranging from fundamental cellular metabolism to immune regulation. Dysregulation of polyamine metabolism has been implicated in numerous diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders, inflammatory conditions, autoimmune diseases, and cancer. This review provides an overview of pathophysiology of these conditions, highlighting polyamines’ role in immunometabolic alterations in the context of immune regulation.

Commentary Open Access

The Importance of miRNA Identification During Respiratory Viral Infections

Ivan Martinez-Espinoza, Ma Del Rocio Banos-Lara, Antonieta Guerrero-Plata

MicroRNA (miRNAs) constitute a large family of highly conserved ~21-nucleotide-long small noncoding RNAs. In mammals it is calculated to control ~50% of proteincoding genes by regulation at the post-transcriptional level affecting mRNA degradation.

Research Article Open Access

Preliminary Evidence of Differentially Induced Immune Responses by Microparticle-adsorbed LPS in Patients with Crohn’s Disease

P Ashwood

Inorganic microparticles are ubiquitous in the modern Western diet present as food additives and are actively scavenged by microfold (M) cells overlying human intestinal lymphoid aggregates. In Crohn’s disease (CD), inflammation is caused by the inability of the intestinal mucosa to sustain tolerance to gut luminal factors including bacteria and their by-products.

Commentary Open Access

Hypomagnesemia and Outcomes in Hematologic Malignancies

Jennifer Gile, Joy Heimgartner, Gordon Ruan, M. Molly McMahon, Thomas Witzig

Magnesium is an essential mineral and cofactor for hundreds of enzymes and reactions. Magnesium is essential for the regulation of cell growth, division, and differentiation as well as protein synthesis, cell signaling and structural functions.

Commentary Open Access

Exploring and Targeting the Tumor Immune Microenvironment of Neuroblastoma

Katherine E. Masih, Jun S. Wei, David Milewski, Javed Khan

Neuroblastoma is derived from the developing sympathetic nervous system and is the most common extracranial solid tumor of childhood.

Review Article Open Access

Potentials of Interferons and Hydroxychloroquine for the Prophylaxis and Early Treatment of COVID-19

Alexander Yang, Lakshmi S. Guduguntla, Bing Yang

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) causes a mild respiratory infection in most individuals. However, a portion of patients develop a severe infection resulting in the need for mechanical ventilation and ultimately death. Currently, the median infection fatality rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is estimated to be 0.27% .