Regulatory CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells (Treg) are mandatory for maintaining immunologic self-tolerance. We demonstrate that the cell-cell contact-mediated suppression of conventional CD4(+) T cells by human CD25(+) Treg cells is fixation resistant, independent from membrane-bound TGF-beta but requires activation and protein synthesis of CD25(+) Treg cells. Coactivation of CD25(+) Treg cells with Treg...

Recent studies of the vaginal flora using molecular techniques have identified several novel bacterial species that are more prevalent in women with BV compared to women without BV. The first of these species to be identified was Atopobium vaginae, which was initially described after isolation from the vagina of a healthy woman (11). Subsequent studies using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-base...