The effects of aging on the immune system are manifest at multiple levels that include reduced production of B and T cells in bone marrow and thymus and diminished function of mature lymphocytes in secondary lymphoid tissues. As a result, elderly individuals do not respond to immune challenge as robustly as the young. An important goal of aging research is to define the cellular changes that oc...

A basic leucine zipper transcription factor, NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), plays a critical role in the cellular defense mechanism by mediating a coordinate up-regulation of antioxidant responsive element-driven detoxification and antioxidant genes. Here, we report that targeted disruption of Nrf2 causes regenerative immune-mediated hemolytic anemia due to increased sequestration of damaged er...

The innate immune system is the first line of defense in response to nonself and danger signals from microbial invasion or tissue injury. It is increasingly recognized that each organ uses unique sets of cells and molecules that orchestrate regional innate immunity. The cells that execute the task of innate immunity are many and consist of not only "professional" immune cells but also nonimmune...

New-onset psychosis in children represents a complex presenting symptom. Psychosis can be attributable to a combination of factors and etiologies, and all possible causes must be systematically examined. There is growing evidence that a proportion of psychosis/ psychiatric manifestations in children may be immunemediated, and physicians should consider this etiology in each presentation of firs...