Browsing by Author "Caramalho, Iris"
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Fatal CTLA-4 heterozygosity with autoimmunity and recurrent infections: a de novo mutationPublication . Moraes-Fontes, Maria Francisca; Hsu, Amy P.; Caramalho, Iris; Martins, Catarina; Araújo, Ana Carolina; Lourenço, Filipa; Taulaigo, Anna V.; Lladó, Ana; Holland, Steven M.; Uzel, GulbuPrimary immunodeficiency disorders are rarely diagnosed in adults but must be considered in the differential diagnosis of combined recurrent infections and autoimmune disease. We describe a patient with CTLA-4 haploinsufficiency and an abnormal regulatory T-cell phenotype. Unusually, infections were more severe than autoimmunity, illustrating therapeutic challenges in disease course.
- The Genetic Basis of Escherichia coli Pathoadaptation to MacrophagesPublication . Miskinyte, Migla; Sousa, Ana; Ramiro, Ricardo S.; de Sousa, Jorge A. Moura; Kotlinowski, Jerzy; Caramalho, Iris; Magalhães, Sara; Soares, Miguel P.; Gordo, IsabelAntagonistic interactions are likely important driving forces of the evolutionary process underlying bacterial genome complexity and diversity. We hypothesized that the ability of evolved bacteria to escape specific components of host innate immunity, such as phagocytosis and killing by macrophages (MΦ), is a critical trait relevant in the acquisition of bacterial virulence. Here, we used a combination of experimental evolution, phenotypic characterization, genome sequencing and mathematical modeling to address how fast, and through how many adaptive steps, a commensal Escherichia coli (E. coli) acquire this virulence trait. We show that when maintained in vitro under the selective pressure of host MΦ commensal E. coli can evolve, in less than 500 generations, virulent clones that escape phagocytosis and MΦ killing in vitro, while increasing their pathogenicity in vivo, as assessed in mice. This pathoadaptive process is driven by a mechanism involving the insertion of a single transposable element into the promoter region of the E. coli yrfF gene. Moreover, transposition of the IS186 element into the promoter of Lon gene, encoding an ATP-dependent serine protease, is likely to accelerate this pathoadaptive process. Competition between clones carrying distinct beneficial mutations dominates the dynamics of the pathoadaptive process, as suggested from a mathematical model, which reproduces the observed experimental dynamics of E. coli evolution towards virulence. In conclusion, we reveal a molecular mechanism explaining how a specific component of host innate immunity can modulate microbial evolution towards pathogenicity.
- The multifaceted Foxp3fgfp allele enhances spontaneous and therapeutic immune surveillance of cancer in micePublication . Almeida-Santos, Jose; Bergman, Marie-Louise; Jocelyne, Demengeot; Correia, Vasco; Caramalho, Iris; Cabral, InesIt is well established that therapeutic impairment of Foxp3+ Treg in mice and humans favors immune rejection of solid tumors. Less explored is the impact Foxp3 allelic variants may have on tumor incidence, progression and therapy. In this work, we tested and demonstrate that the Foxp3fgfp reporter allele, found previously to either enhance or reduce Treg function in specific autoimmunity settings, confers increased anti-tumor immunity. Our conclusions stem out of the analysis of three tumor models of different tissue origin, in two murine genetic backgrounds. When compared to wild type animals, mice carrying the Foxp3fgfp allele spontaneously delay, reduce or prevent primary tumor growth, decrease metastasis growth, and potentiate the response to anti-CTLA4 monotherapy. These findings suggest allelic variances at the Foxp3 locus may serve as predictive indicators for personalized therapy and prognostics, and point at possible new therapeutic targets.