Activating NK cell receptors frequently transmit activating signals via immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motifs (ITAMs) present in accessory proteins non-covalently associated with the intracellular region of the activating receptor [17]. Activating NK cell receptors employing this strategy typically express a short cytoplasmic tail lacking ITIMs or other tyrosine signalling motif and possess a basic residue within their transmembrane sequence for association with transmembrane accessory proteins [10, 18, 19]. LLT1 possesses these properties associated with an activating receptor. In the present study, we have examined the signalling pathways

associated with LLT1-stimulated OTX015 IFN-γ production. We determined that the human NK cell line NK92 expresses LLT1 on its surface, and upon ligation with CD161 expressing K562 target cells stimulates IFN-γ production. Using this LLT1:CD161 ligation system, we analysed IFN-γ production in the presence or absence of specific pharmacological inhibitors to determine what signalling pathways are required for LLT1-induced IFN-γ production. These results indicate that LLT1 downstream signalling is likely dependent upon Src-protein tyrosine kinase [Src-PTK], p38 and ERK signalling pathways, but not dependent upon PKC, PI3K or calcineurin. These results were followed up with phosphorylation analysis, which confirmed that the ERK signalling pathway

is associated with Apoptosis Compound Library chemical structure LLT1-mediated IFN-γ production. Finally, we analysed IFN-γ mRNA transcription associated with LLT1 ligation. We found that LLT1 ligation is not associated with any change selleck screening library in detectable IFN-γ mRNA levels, suggesting that LLT1 stimulates IFN-γ production by modulating post-transcriptional or translational events. Tissue culture.  NK92 cells were maintained using alpha-MEM

(Hyclone, Logan, UT, USA) with 25% defined Foetal Bovine Serum (Hyclone, Logan, UT, USA) and where appropriate 30 U/ml recombinant human IL-2 (Calbiochem, La Jolla, CA, USA). All other cells were maintained using 4+RPMI 1640 (GibcoBRL, Grand Island, NY, USA; with 10 mm MEM non-essential amino acids, 10 mm HEPES, 100 mm Sodium Pyruvate, 2 mm glutamine and penicillin/streptomycin) with 10% FetalPlex Animal Serum Complex (Gemini Bio-Products, Sacramento, CA, USA) at 37 °C, 5% CO2 in a water-jacketed tissue culture CO2 incubator. Flow cytometry.  To evaluate the surface expression of LLT1 on NK92, cells were stained with 5 μg of anti-human OCIL/LLT1 monoclonal antibody (R & D Systems, Minneapolis, MN, USA) and 10 μg of 4C7 mouse anti-human LLT1 monoclonal antibody (Abnova, Taipei, Taiwan) and a PE-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG polyclonal secondary antibody. In order to confirm the lack of CD161 expression on NK92 cells, cells were stained with mouse anti-human CD161 (Clone DX12; BD Biosciences, San Diego, CA, USA) and an FITC-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG polyclonal secondary antibody.

Between 10% and 20% of the transduced cell lines had these properties. They were then transplanted into sublethally irradiated CD45.2+Rag1−/− hosts in the continued in vivo presence of doxycycline through the drinking water. Four weeks

after transplantation BM, spleen, peritoneal cavity and thymus of these mice were analyzed by flow cytometry for the expression of CD45.2, for cells of host PCI-32765 price origin, and for the expression of CD45.1 and of GFP, for miRNA-expressing cells of donor origin, as well as for the expression of CD19+CD45.1+, further differentiated pre-B and B cells of donor origin. These mature B-cell compartments did not contain host-derived CD45.2+CD19+ cells, as expected in a RAG1−/− host. In the absence of miRNA expression, CD45.1+CD19+ pre-B cells transduced with either miR-221 or miR-222,

or both, did not migrate to BM. Hence, only host-derived CD45.2+, but no CD45.1+ donor-derived CD19+ precursor B cells could be found in BM. In the same hosts donor cells were found as CD45.1+GFP−CD19+sIgM+ B cells in spleen and peritoneum (Fig. 3A and B and Supporting Information Fig. 5). This reconfirms for the transduced pre-B-I-cell lines CHIR-99021 mouse used in our experiments the previous findings [14], that fetal liver-derived pre-B-I cells, upon transplantation, do not home to BM, but populate spleen and peritoneum with B1-type CD19+sIgM+CD5+ B cells. By contrast, transplantation of miR-221-expressing cells in the in vivo presence of doxycycline led, within 4 weeks, to an accumulation of approximately 3 × 105 donor-derived CD45.1+ cells in BM (Fig. 3A and B). Practically all of these donor-derived cells expressed GFP, hence miR-221. They had preserved their original CD19+GFP+IgM−IL-7R+AA4.1+ pre-B-I-cell-phenotype (Supporting Information Fig. 5, first panel). In the doxycycline-fed mice 40% of the IgM+IL-7R−AA4.1− cells in spleen (and 30% of the CD19+IgM+CD5+ in peritoneum) were GFP+CD45.1+ donor-derived mature B

cells (Supporting Information Fig. 5, second and third panel). This suggests that only pre-B-I cells expressing the transduced miR-221 migrate to and reside in the BM, while those not expressing miR-221 mature directly into IgM+ B cells, without migrating to BM. Furthermore, IMP dehydrogenase it indicated that continued miR-221 expression does not inhibit the in vivo differentiation to mature B cells. The transplanted, thereafter ex vivo FACS-sorted CD45.1+GFP+sIgM− BM cells were capable to develop to GFP+CD19+MHCII+sIgM+ B cells within 3 days in vitro (Supporting Information Fig. 6). Hence, again, overexpression of miR-221 had no detectable inhibitory effect on this development to immature and mature B cells. When CD45.1+ donor-derived cells from the spleen of untreated mice were sorted and cultured in vitro for 3 days, the cells became GFP+ within 3 days.

Seven months after implantation in October 2001, the knee prosthesis was finally removed after consent of the patient. Fungal and

bacterial cultures taken at this time remained negative. The patient showed a fast clinical improvement with a reduction of ESR and CRP to 23 and 16, respectively. Itraconazole therapy was continued with 400 mg day−1 for another 6 months. Serum levels were not measured during ITZ treatment. One Gefitinib month after the termination of ITZ administration, the patient developed a recurrence of infection with a draining fistula close to the knee. Therefore, in March 2002, the patient was referred for a second opinion to a tertiary care orthopaedic reference centre. The consultant advised to amputate the leg just above the knee to allow the proper fitting of a limb prosthesis. The patient refused to follow the advice of limb amputation. But in September 2002 he agreed to an arthrodesis of the knee with an external fixation devise. Cultures taken during the arthrodesis were negative. Four months after placement, the external fixation devise was removed but in January 2003 (only 1 month after removal) the patient presented again with

pain, mild swelling, skin lesions and one pus-producing fistula in a scar above the proximal left tibia (Fig. 3). Magnetic resonance imaging YAP-TEAD Inhibitor 1 manufacturer (MRI) showed a multi-loculated abscess on the anteromedial side of the left tibia and infiltration of the local tissue (Fig. 4a,b), while MRI of the upper leg was without pathological findings. During surgical exploration of the lower leg, several subcutaneous collections of fluid were excised and again P. apiosperma was cultured. In vitro next susceptibility testing according to CLSI 38A2 broth microdilution15 after almost 1 year of ITZ therapy showed that the causative P. apiosperma strain had high minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of amphotericin B (16 mg l−1), ITZ (>16 mg l−1), and isavuconazole

(16 mg l−1). The lowest MICs/MECs (minimal effective concentrations) were found for voriconazole (VORI; 1 mg l−1), posaconazole (1 mg l−1), caspofungin (1 mg l−1), anidulafungin (0.5 mg l−1) and micafungin (0.125 mg l−1). Because VORI was just registered in the European Union in 2003, with the label to treat Scedosporium and Pseudallescheria infections and based on our in vitro susceptibility results, previous case reports with favourable outcome,16–18in vitro studies19,20 and in vivo results21,22 with Scedosporium strains, the antifungal therapy was changed from ITZ to oral VORI (loading dose: 2 dd 400 mg for two days, followed by 1 dd 400 mg). As the patient was not clinically improving and ulcerous skin lesions persisted, suggesting progression and spreading of the Scedosporium infection, an above knee amputation was carried out in April 2003, six weeks after initiation of VORI therapy.

Indeed, morphological examination of the mucosa shows epithelial cells in various states of degradation in the vicinity of the schistosome egg (56). Alternatively, the diminished secretion could result from adaptation of the ileal mucosa to the infection. Such an adaptive response has been described for N. brasiliensis-infected rats RGFP966 and is directed by a neurally mediated mechanism possibly aimed at preventing excessive fluid loss (57). Likewise, in T. spiralis infected ferrets,

basal and stimulated jejunal secretions were attenuated during the enteric stage of infection (58). In these models, the reduced secretion was accompanied by a shift from cholinergic to noncholinergic regulation of secretion, which was associated with an increase in substance P immunoreactivity within

the mucosa. Interestingly, in this context, S. mansoni infection in the mouse results in increased immunoreactivity for the neuropeptide CGRP in close apposition to MMC within the ileum (6,7). Although the role of CGRP in S. mansoni infection remains to be elucidated it is likely that CGRP is involved in neuro-immune interactions between local primary afferent nerve fibres and mast cells (7). Extrapolation of these murine data to man involves a large number of uncertain assumptions, partly arising out of the lack of adequate human data [for reviews see (59,60)] but also since schistosome infection in mice differs in many respects

from that in humans (60). In both human and murine, however, the majority of pathology develops FK506 in vitro at the sites of maximal accumulation of eggs: the intestine and the liver (59,60). Gastrointestinal schistosomiasis is characterized by chronic abdominal pain and discomfort, loss of appetite and diarrhoea that commonly contains occult blood (60). The present results show that in mice, in addition to the previously described impairment of sugar and fluid transport (61), the basal secretion and the maximal secretory capacity of the ileal epithelium are severely reduced 8 weeks after schistosome infection. next If and how this finding relates to the patient symptoms cannot be inferred at present, but a derangement of fluid transport may explain some of these. The reported impairment of the mucosal barrier in the murine ileum suggests that translocation of bacteria from the gut lumen to extra-intestinal sites (62) might be increased during schistosomiasis. At present, only limited information is available on the effects of schistosomiasis on murine intestinal function (63). The present results suggest, however, that use of murine models may be of importance for the dissection of the intestinal pathologies. In summary, in S. mansoni-infected mice, the intestinal barrier is severely impaired both in WT and in Mcpt-1−/− mice and egg excretion takes place independently of mMCP-1.

Counts of eosinophils and globule leucocytes were not normally distributed, were transformed as ln(count + 1), and were analysed using the general linear models procedure of SAS. The model included fixed effects of breed, group (infection status by day of sacrifice, with two infected and three control groups) and breed by group interaction. Results are presented as back-transformed means and SE. Serum

immunoglobulin concentrations were analysed within infection status using the model used for the repeat-measures analysis of variance of FEC and PCV. RGFP966 nmr Lymph node IgE concentrations at sacrifice were analysed using the model applied to the abomasal cell counts. Simple correlations (r) were calculated between measurements taken in infected animals at sacrifice at 3 and 27 days p.i. (i.e. in the presence of larvae and adult worms respectively). Reported correlation coefficients differed from zero (P < 0·05) unless stated otherwise. No parasite eggs were seen in the

faeces of control animals throughout the study, but all experimentally infected lambs had measurable FEC by 16 days p.i. (Figure 2). The mean FEC of wool sheep was similar to that of hair sheep on day 16, but was 2·8-fold higher at day 21 (3647 ± 770 vs. 1280 ± 867 respectively), and 2·5-fold higher at day 27 (3136 ± 1599 selleck screening library vs. 1267 ± 837) than that of wool sheep (P = 0·12 when mean FEC were averaged across days 21 and 27). Abomasa of control sheep were free of adult H. contortus, whereas worms were present in all challenged sheep. On day 27 p.i., the mean number of adult H. contortus in infected hair sheep (2491 ± 753) was lower (P = 0·07) than

that in wool sheep (4535 ± 690). Lower worm counts were correlated with higher PCV (r = −0·53, P = 0·08) and lower FEC (r = 0·71, P = 0·01). The average PCV of control hair (36·3 ± 0·7) and wool (35·5 ± 0·5) sheep were similar and did not differ between days. However, infection was associated with lower PCV in both breeds at days 16 and 21, followed by an increase in PCV in both breeds at day 27 (Figure 2). In infected animals, PCV were next higher in hair compared with wool sheep; this difference approached significance (P < 0·10) at day 21 p.i. The day of peak FEC corresponded to the time of lowest PCV and FEC and PCV were negatively correlated (r = −0·78, P = 0·07). Breed differences in abomasal lymph node weight were not observed in control animals, but lymph nodes from infected hair sheep were heavier than those of infected wool sheep (P = 0·04, Table 1). Lymph nodes of infected animals of both breeds were likewise heavier (P < 0·001) than those of corresponding control animals. Lymph node weights at sacrifice were favourably associated with PCV on days 0 (r = 0·58), 16 (r = 0·61) and 21 p.i. (r = 0·56).

Among these

genes, IL1RALP2 belongs to a novel class of IL-1/Toll-like receptor family characterized by the presence of a 150 amino acids carboxy terminus that has no significant homology check details with any protein of known function [55]. Signalling experiments indicate that neither ILRAPL2 nor its homologue ILRAPL1 can mediate transcriptional activation of nuclear factor (NF)-κB in response to IL-1α, IL-1β or IL-18 [56] and the protein biological features remain to be defined, but a functional study suggests that the ILRAPL1 intracellular domain is crucial to neutrophil function during the inflammatory response [57]. Finally, we were intrigued by the observation that several genes associated with hypomethylated sites have been linked BGB324 chemical structure with neurological

disorders and mental retardation. While we can only speculate on the putative mechanisms justifying this association, we are traced back to earlier reports of the co-existence of phenylketonuria-associated mental retardation and scleroderma [58]. Further, there are data suggesting that patients with SSc may have disturbances of the nervous system as represented by an impaired response to stress [59], the detection of central nervous system ischaemic vasculopathy at magnetic resonance imaging [60,61] and the changes in cerebrovascular reactivity [62]. To determine the mechanistic implications of our findings we utilized IPA in an unsupervised manner to allow the identification of Acyl CoA dehydrogenase gene–gene relationship without a priori assumptions. This analysis linked seven of our 26 genes in a highly significant network around IL-6. This is not surprising, as IL-6 seems to be involved in SSc endothelial dysfunction and fibrogenesis

[63]. Increased IL-6 levels have been found in serum [64] and lesional skin specimens from patients with SSc [65]. Further, an increased B cell-mediated IL-6 production has been reported from SSc lung fibroblasts in vitro with a parallel increased collagen production, and the pharmacological B cell depletion in SSc leads to a decrease in skin score paralleled by decreased IL-6 serum levels [66]. Finally, SSc serum is able to induce IL-6-mediated endothelial activation and apoptosis [67]. Nevertheless, we should also note that the genes identified in the present work do not include interleukins or their receptors, possibly based on a more indirect effect of other genes [68]. In conclusion, we report herein X chromosome genes that may contribute to SSc susceptibility through differential gene methylation, and thus expression, independent of genomic SNPs or variants. This is particularly relevant provided that data were gathered from MZ twins which recognize an identical genomic sequence.

n. once with Alisertib allergen alone produced a significant amount of IgE (4.5 ± 1.2 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12) and served as a positive control. A small amount of IgE (1.4 ± 0.4 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12) was produced by the mixture of lymphocyte- and macrophage-rich populations from mice that had been treated once i.n. with a mixture of allergen and adjuvant and these served as a negative control. A combination of the lymphocyte-rich population (for IgG production) with the macrophage-rich fraction (for IgE production)

produced a significant amount of IgE (3.3 ± 0.8 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12). In contrast, a combination of the lymphocyte-rich population (for IgE production) with the macrophage-rich fraction (for IgG production) produced a small amount of IgE (1.1 ± 0.5 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12). Similarly, a mixture of cells in the lymphocyte-rich and macrophage-rich populations from mice that had been treated i.n. once with Ulixertinib in vivo a mixture of allergen and adjuvant produced a large amount of IgG (477.0 ± 135.0 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12) Ab and served as a positive control. A small amount

of IgG (9.4 ± 1.2 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12) was produced by a mixture of lymphocyte- and macrophage-rich populations from mice that had been treated i.n. once with allergen and these served as a negative control. A combination of the lymphocyte-rich population (for IgE production) with the macrophage-rich population (for IgG production) produced a large amount of IgG (359.5 ± 65.0 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= almost 12). In contrast, a combination of the lymphocyte-rich fraction (for IgG production) with the macrophage-rich fraction (for IgE production) produced a small amount of IgG (181.6 ± 57.6 ng/mL; mean ± SD; n= 12). These results taken together indicate that cells in the macrophage-rich population are involved in class switching to IgE or IgG after i.n. sensitization by allergen alone or with complete Freund’s adjuvant, respectively. Interleukin-4 is essential for in vitro or in vivo production of nonspecific IgE Abs in lymphocytes after sensitization with cedar

pollen i.n. once (8). Therefore, we assessed the cellular source of IL-4 and its amount in the culture medium (Fig. 9). Bulk submandibular lymph node cells from mice that had been injected once i.n. with allergen alone produced a large amount of IL-4 (96.1 ± 8.6 pg/mL; mean ± SD; n= 9). In contrast, the lymphocyte-rich (fraction 3) fraction of the lymph node cells produced a small amount (31.3 ± 10.9 pg/mL; mean ± SD; n= 9); and the macrophage-rich (fraction 2) fraction was almost inactive (20.1 ± 6.9 pg/mL; mean ± SD; n= 9). Surprisingly, mixed cultures of the lymphocyte-rich fraction with the macrophage-rich fraction produced a large amount of IL-4 (75.3 ± 9.9 pg/mL; mean ± SD; n= 9) that was released into the culture medium (Fig. 9a). In contrast, the amounts of IL-4 produced by cells in the damaged cell (fraction 1; 11.5 ± 2.

Approaches to enhance antimicrobial penetration in biofilms have been evaluated by different research groups. Alipour et al. (2009) reported that co-administration of DNase and alginate lyase significantly enhance activity of certain aminoglycosides in reducing biofilm check details growth and cystic fibrosis sputum bacterial counts of P. aeruginosa (Alipour et al., 2009). Lipopeptide biosurfactant produced by Bacillus licheniformis was shown to significantly enhance the efficacy of antibiotics in killing E. coli biofilms (Rivardo et al., 2011). Micelle-encapsulated antibiotics and antibiotic-encapsulated

biodegradable polymeric nanoparticles are also reported to efficiently kill biofilm cells (Jones, 2005; Cheow et al., 2010). Efflux pump systems are involved in biofilm formation and antimicrobial resistance (Pamp et al., 2008; Zhang & Mah, 2008). Inactivation of efflux systems by efflux pump inhibitors was reported to abolish bacterial biofilm formation or enhance antimicrobial activity against biofilms (Kvist et al., 2008; Liu et al., 2010). In recent years, phages are suggested as alternatives to antibiotics for the treatment of biofilms. Phages are inexpensive and specific against a host or host range, and will not affect the normal microflora of the environment where they are applied. A T7-like lytic phage against P. aeruginosa isolated from Pavana river water has been shown to prevent

and disperse biofilms of P. aeruginosa (Ahiwale et al., 2011). Carson et al. (2010) reported that lytic bacteriophages could eradicate Olaparib purchase established

biofilms of Proteus mirabilis and E. coli, and impregnation of hydrogel-coated Guanylate cyclase 2C catheter sections with these lytic bacteriophages could prevent biofilm formation on catheter biomaterials (Carson et al., 2010). Some phages also possess polysaccharide-degrading enzymes that can rapidly destroy the integrity of biofilms (Suthereland et al., 2004). A P. aeruginosa-specific phage was isolated and shown to produce alginase to depolymerize the alginate capsule from the mucoid cystic fibrosis isolates of P. aeruginosa (Glonti et al., 2010). This alginase might accelerate phagocytic uptake of bacteria and perturb bacterial biofilms of patients with cystic fibrosis. An engineered bacteriophage which expresses a biofilm-degrading enzyme during infection was reported to simultaneously attack the biofilm cells and the EPS matrix (Lu & Collins, 2007). A cell-wall-degrading enzyme SAL-2 from a new podoviridae S. aureus bacteriophage (SAP-2) was cloned and expressed by Son et al. (2010). The SAL-2 enzyme has specific lytic activity against S. aureus with a minimum inhibitory concentration of about 1 μg mL−1 and can efficiently remove S. aureus biofilms (Son et al., 2010). Phages are also reported to improve the conventional antimicrobial treatment to biofilm related infections. Verma et al.

Thus, the effect of STAT2 https://www.selleckchem.com/products/AG-014699.html over-expression was first examined on the suppression of the IL-4 signaling in terms of STAT6 localization in Ramos B cells. In the STAT2 over-expressing cell system, IFN-α not only increased cytoplasmic accumulation of the endogenous and transfected pY-STAT2, but also upregulated cytoplasmic levels of the IL-4-activated pY-STAT6 compared with the mock-transfected system (Fig. 7A: The CE/NE ratio of pY-STAT6/STAT6 increased

from 4.2 to 10.9). Next, we analyzed the effect of STAT6 over-expression on the inhibitory action of IL-4 on IFN-α signaling. We found that the cytoplasmic retention of pY-STAT2 induced by IL-4 treatment was promoted corresponding to the increment of pY-STAT6 cytoplasmic levels, resulting in a further reduction in nuclear pY-STAT2 levels (Fig. 7B: The CE/NE ratio of pY-STAT2/STAT2 increased from 3.2 to 13.7). The effects of STAT over-expression were then investigated on the target gene expression in Ramos B cells. Upon STAT2 over-expression, IL-4-induced CD23 mRNA levels were severely reduced, and the suppression by IFN-α proceeded faster check details than in mock cells, reducing the lag

time for inhibition from 4 to 2 h (Fig. 8A: The graph scale in the box was enlarged in the right panel). A similar phenomenon was observed in STAT6 over-expressing cells; IRF7 mRNA levels induced why by IFN-α were substantially downregulated, and the suppressive effect of IL-4 on the IFN-α-induced IRF7 gene expression obtained by 8 h was more prominent as compared with the mock-transfected

cells (Fig. 8B). The data demonstrate that increase in cytoplasmic STAT2 or STAT6 levels caused a concomitant retention of STAT6 or STAT2, respectively, which in turn promoted the inhibitory effects of IFN-α and IL-4 on CD23 and IRF7 gene expression, respectively. The increased co-retention of STAT6 and STAT2 observed in cells over-expressing either STAT2 or STAT6 is likely to occur through the molecular interaction and complex formation between activated STATs induced by cytokine treatment. We have utilized the CD23 gene expression system in Ramos B cells to investigate the regulation mechanism of IL-4 signaling pathways by IFN-α. While IFN-α was shown to suppress the IL-4-induced IL-4R expression in primary immune cells 21, it had no effect on IL-4R levels throughout 12 h-period sufficient for the regulation of CD23 expression in Ramos cells (data not shown). Yet, IFN-α perturbed IL-4 signaling leading to CD23 gene activation in these cells as shown by a significant decrease in IL-4-induced nuclear pY-STAT6 levels and the subsequent STAT6 binding to the CD23 promoter, leading to the effective downregulation of the IL-4-induced CD23 expression at both protein and mRNA levels (Figs. 1 and 2).

ELISPOT multiscreen plates (Millipore, Billerica,

MA, USA) were coated with anti-mouse IgG (1 μg/mL, Southern Biotech) or precoated with poly-L-lysine (Sigma) followed by calf thymus DNA (20 μg/mL, Sigma) or highly purified recombinant nucleolin (10 μg/mL, Diarect, Freiburg, Germany) kindly provided by U. Wellmann (University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany). Purity of recombinant nucleolin was assessed by silver staining (Supporting Information Fig. 2B). After blocking with 2% FCS in PBS, single cell suspensions from kidney, spleen and BM from two femurs were incubated for 2 h at 37°C. Selleck R788 Plates were washed and incubated with HRP-goat antibody to mouse IgG (Jackson ImmunoResearch Laboratories, West Grove, PA, USA) for 1 h at 20°C. Spots were detected by tetramethylbenzidine MEK inhibitor substrate (Kirkegaard & Perry Laboratories, Gaithersburg, MD, USA) and analyzed using an automatic ELISPOT reader (AID Diagnostics, Strassberg, Germany) and AID ELISPOT reader software 4.0. Data were analyzed using either a non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test or a two-tailed paired T-test using GraphPad Prism 5.0 (GraphPad Software, San Diego, CA, USA). Both, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test and the Shapiro–Wilks test were applied to test for a normal distribution. Significant differences are indicated as * for p<0.05,

** for p<0.01 and *** for p<0.001. We are grateful to Daniela Graef and Miriam Reutelshöfer (Department of Pathology) for expert technical assistance. This work was supported by grants from the German Research Society (FOR 831 TP 8; VO673/3-2) and Collaborative Research Center (SFB 643; project B3), the BayImmuNet Atazanavir program of the state of Bavaria and the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research Erlangen (IZKF, project number A31). Conflict of interest: The authors declare no financial or commercial conflict of interest. Detailed facts of importance

to specialist readers are published as ”Supporting Information”. Such documents are peer-reviewed, but not copy-edited or typeset. They are made available as submitted by the authors. “
“In addition to archetypal cognitive defects, Down syndrome (DS) is characterized by altered lymphocyte development and function, including premature thymic involution and increased incidence of infections. However, the potential mechanisms for these changes have not been fully elucidated. The current study used the Ts65Dn mouse model of DS to assess deficiencies in T-cell development and possible molecular alterations. Ts65Dn mice exhibited premature thymic involution and a threefold to fourfold decrease in the number and proportion of immature, double-negative thymocyte progenitors. In addition, there were twofold fewer double-positive and CD4 single-positive thymocytes in Ts65Dn thymuses.