Oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is proatherogenic and induces smooth muscle cell apoptosis, which contributes to atherosclerotic plaque destabilization. We showed previously that oxidized LDL downregulates insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor in human smooth muscle cells and that this is critical for induction of apoptosis. To identify mechanisms, we exposed smooth muscle cells to 60 mu...

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) play a critical role in antiviral immunity through their ability to produce large amounts of type I IFNs. Activation of pDCs upon viral infection has been shown to be dependent on MyD88 and mediated by Toll-like receptors (TLR) 7 and 9, which sense viral ssRNA and CpG DNA, respectively. In this study, we showed that murine pDC recognition of vaccinia virus (V...

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are pattern recognition receptors that recognize specific molecular patterns present in molecules that are broadly shared by pathogens but are structurally distinct from host molecules. The TLR7-agonistic imidazoquinolines are of interest as vaccine adjuvants given their ability to induce pronounced Th1-skewed humoral responses. Minor modifications on the imidazoquino...

Toll-like receptor (TLR)-8 agonists strongly induce the production of T helper 1-polarizing cytokines and may therefore serve as promising candidate vaccine adjuvants, especially for the very young and the elderly. Earlier structure-based ligand design led to the identification of 3-pentyl-quinoline-2-amine as a novel, human TLR8-specific agonist. Comprehensive structure-activity relationships ...

Ovarian cancer is the most deadly gynecologic cancer, with 15,000 anticipated deaths within the United States alone in 2012, and new treatment strategies are needed. Ovarian cancer tumors are known to host an immunosuppressive microenvironment. This suppression may be reversible via activation of the innate immune response. Toll-like receptor 8 activates innate immunity while simultaneously inh...