OBJECTIVES IL-2 therapy increases memory and naive CD4 T cells in HIV-infected patients, but its effect on thymopoiesis is unknown. To investigate this effect, we quantified T-cell receptor rearrangement excision circles (TREC) in CD4 T cells from lymphopenic AIDS patients treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy and IL-2. METHODS CD4 cell subsets were evaluated by flow cytometry usi...

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating disease, characterized by extremely rapid loss of motor neurons. Our studies over the last decade have established CD4(+) T cells as important players in central nervous system maintenance and repair. Those results, together with recent findings that CD4(+) T cells play a protective role in mouse models of ALS, led us to the current hypothesi...

The age associated decline in immune function is preceded in mammals by a reduction in thymic output. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence of a link between immune competence and lifespan. One approach to determining thymic output is to quantify signal joint T cell receptor excision circles (sj-TRECs), a method which has been developed and used in several mammalian species. Life expectancy...

CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells are critical mediators of peripheral immune tolerance. However, many developmental and functional characteristics of these cells are unknown, and knowledge of human regulatory T cells is particularly limited. To better understand how human CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells develop and function, we examined the diversity of CD4(+)CD25(+) and CD4(+)CD25(-) T cell repertoires in both thy...

OBJECTIVE To apply, in Brazil, the T-cell receptor excision circles (TRECs) quantification technique using real-time polymerase chain reaction in newborn screening for severe combined immunodeficiency and assess the feasibility of implementing it on a large scale in Brazil. METHODS 8715 newborn blood samples were collected on filter paper and, after DNA elution, TRECs were quantified by real-...

Immunology has traditionally been a qualitative science describing the cellular and molecular components of the immune system and their functions. Only quite recently have new experimental techniques paved the way for a more quantitative approach of immunology. Lymphocyte telomere lengths have been measured to get insights into the proliferation rate of different lymphocyte subsets, T-cell rece...

Immunological abnormalities associated with pathological conditions, such as higher infection rates, inflammatory diseases, cancer or cardiovascular events are common in patients with panic disorder. In the present study, T cell receptor excision circles (TRECs), Forkhead-Box-Protein P3 gene (FOXP3) methylation of regulatory T cells (Tregs) and relative telomere lengths (RTLs) were investigated...

The origin of T cells after highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) is now under discussion. The possibility of renewed lymphopoiesis in aged thymuses is still controversial. In this work we combine the analysis of naïve T cells, T-cell receptor excision circles (TRECs), and computed tomography scanning of thymic tissue to fu...

Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), a primary immunodeficiency arising from variable defects in lymphocyte development and survival, is characterized by significant deficiency of thymus derived (T-) lymphocytes and variable defects in the B-lymphocyte population. Newborn screening for SCID is based on detection of low numbers of T-cell receptor excision circles (TRECs) by real time quantit...

Conflict of Interest: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Author manuscripts have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication but have not yet been edited. Translational Relevance This study examined whether the combination of anti-androgen therapy enzalutamide, plus a therapeutic vaccine targeting Twist, an antigen involved in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition a...