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Life
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Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases
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Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Physiology and Pathology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (26 November 2021) | Viewed by 11762

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Marco Iannetta

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of System Medicine, Tor Vergata University of Rome, 00133 Roma, RM, Italy
Interests: infectious diseases; viral infections; emerging infectious diseases; innate immunity; HIV; dendritic cells; flow cytometry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Maria Antonella Zingaropoli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Roma, RM, Italy
Interests: infectious diseases; virology; microbiology; immunology; flow cytometry
Dr. Vincenzo Malagnino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of System Medicine, Tor Vergata University of Rome, 00133 Roma RM, Italy
Interests: infectious diseases; virology; hepatitis; HIV; opportunistic infections
Dr. Serena Vita

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Institute for Infectious Diseases (INMI) Lazzaro Spallanzani, 00149 Roma RM, Italy
Interests: adaptive immunity; infectious diseases; viral infections; public health; flow cytometry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The study of host-pathogen interaction can provide new insights in the understanding of the immune pathogenesis of infectious diseases and immune evasion mechanisms. Studies addressing the issue of immunology of infectious diseases could fill the existing gaps in several aspects of the diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic approaches of infectious diseases.

Host immune biomarkers able to distinguish infection from colonization would provide useful information to answer to the question whether to treat, give a prophylaxis or just observe patients with the identification of a specific pathogen in a body district. Moreover, host immune biomarkers could help to predict disease severity and poor outcome. Host immunity-based approaches in the field of infectious diseases are showing the potential to provide actional information. Specifically, a more in-depth analysis of the immune responses to infectious agents, as well as the understanding of the immunopathogenesis of infectious diseases, and the evaluation of the consequences deriving from a pre-existing immune dysregulation, will guide future therapeutic and vaccination strategies. The influence of age, sex, comorbidities on the immune system fighting an infectious agent, need to be further analyzed to shape the optimal therapeutic approach and vaccination strategy.

Finally, the increasing availability of molecules targeting specific pathways of the immune system and developed for cancer treatment, could be repurposed to overcome the immune system dysregulations observed during infections, and counteract those mechanisms that lead to immune evasion, hyperinflammation, lack of eradication with chronic persistence of infectious agents.  

The Special Issues is now open for submissions. Original research manuscripts or review articles related to various aspects of the immunology of infectious diseases with a translational significance are invited for this Special Issue.    

Dr. Marco Iannetta
Dr. Maria Antonella Zingaropoli
Dr. Vincenzo Malagnino
Dr. Serena Vita
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • innate immunity
  • adaptive immunity
  • vaccine
  • sepsis
  • cytokine storm
  • HIV
  • immunocompromised host
  • therapy
  • evasion
  • tolerance

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 1031 KiB  
Article
In Patients with Severe COVID-19, the Profound Decrease in the Peripheral Blood T-Cell Subsets Is Correlated with an Increase of QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus Indeterminate Rates and Reflecting a Reduced Interferon-Gamma Production
by Alessandra Imeneo, Grazia Alessio, Andrea Di Lorenzo, Laura Campogiani, Alessandra Lodi, Filippo Barreca, Marta Zordan, Virginia Barchi, Barbara Massa, Simona Tedde, Angela Crea, Pietro Vitale, Ilaria Spalliera, Mirko Compagno, Luigi Coppola, Luca Dori, Vincenzo Malagnino, Elisabetta Teti, Massimo Andreoni, Loredana Sarmati and Marco Iannettaadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Life 2022, 12(2), 244; https://doi.org/10.3390/life12020244 - 7 Feb 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2865
Abstract
Increased rates of indeterminate QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus Assay (QFT-Plus) were demonstrated in patients hospitalized with Coronavirus Disease (COVID)-19. We aimed to define the prevalence and characteristics of hospitalized COVID-19 patients with indeterminate QFT-Plus. A retrospective study was performed including hospitalized COVID-19 patients, stratified [...] Read more.
Increased rates of indeterminate QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus Assay (QFT-Plus) were demonstrated in patients hospitalized with Coronavirus Disease (COVID)-19. We aimed to define the prevalence and characteristics of hospitalized COVID-19 patients with indeterminate QFT-Plus. A retrospective study was performed including hospitalized COVID-19 patients, stratified in survivors and non-survivors, non-severe and severe according to the maximal oxygen supply required. Statistical analysis was performed using JASP ver0.14.1 and GraphPad Prism ver8.2.1. A total of 420 patients were included, median age: 65 years, males: 66.4%. The QFT-Plus was indeterminate in 22.1% of patients. Increased rate of indeterminate QFT-Plus was found in non-survivors (p = 0.013) and in severe COVID-19 patients (p < 0.001). Considering the Mitogen-Nil condition of the QFT-Plus, an impaired production of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) was found in non-survivors (p < 0.001) and in severe COVID-19 patients (p < 0.001). A positive correlation between IFN-γ levels in the Mitogen-Nil condition and the absolute counts of CD3+ (p < 0.001), CD4+ (p < 0.001), and CD8+ (p < 0.001) T-lymphocytes was found. At the multivariable analysis, CD3+ T-cell absolute counts and CD4/CD8 ratio were confirmed as independent predictors of indeterminate results at the QFT-Plus. Our study confirmed the increased rate of indeterminate QFT-Plus in COVID-19 patients, mainly depending on the peripheral blood T-lymphocyte depletion found in the most severe cases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases)
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12 pages, 4434 KiB  
Article
High Levels of TNF-α and TIM-3 as a Biomarker of Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome in People with HIV Infection
by Lucero A. Ramon-Luing, Ranferi Ocaña-Guzman, Norma A. Téllez-Navarrete, Mario Preciado-García, Dámaris P. Romero-Rodríguez, Enrique Espinosa, Gustavo Reyes-Terán and Leslie Chavez-Galan
Life 2021, 11(6), 527; https://doi.org/10.3390/life11060527 - 5 Jun 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2907
Abstract
Immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) is an exacerbated immune response that can occur to HIV+ patients after initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART). IRIS pathogenesis is unclear, but dysfunctional and exhausted cells have been reported in IRIS patients, and the TIM-3/Gal-9 axis has been associated [...] Read more.
Immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) is an exacerbated immune response that can occur to HIV+ patients after initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART). IRIS pathogenesis is unclear, but dysfunctional and exhausted cells have been reported in IRIS patients, and the TIM-3/Gal-9 axis has been associated with chronic phases of viral infection. This study aimed to evaluate the soluble levels of TIM-3 and Gal-9 and their relationship with IRIS development. TIM-3, Gal-9, TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-6, TNFR1, TNFR2, E-cadherin, ADAM10, and ADAM17 were measured to search for IRIS-associated biomarkers in plasma samples from 0-, 4-, 8-, 12-, and 24-weeks after ART initiation of 61 HIV+ patients (15 patients developed IRIS, and 46 did not). We found that patients who developed IRIS had higher levels of TIM-3 [median 4806, IQR: 3206–6182] at the time of the IRIS events, compared to any other follow-up time evaluated in these patients or compared with a control group of patients who did not develop IRIS. Similarly, IRIS patients had a higher TNF-α level [median 10.89, IQR: 8.36–12.34] at IRIS events than any other follow-up time evaluated. Other molecules related to the TIM-3 and TNF-α pathway (Gal-9, IL-6, IFN-γ, TNFR1, TNFR2, ADAM-10, and ADAM-17) did not change during the IRIS events. In conclusion, our data suggest that a high level of soluble TIM-3 and TNF-α could be used as an IRIS biomarker. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases)
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Review

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12 pages, 663 KiB  
Review
Immune System Disorders, Cancer and Viral Infections: A New Treatment Opportunity for the Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
by Alejandro Olivares-Hernández, Luis Figuero-Pérez, José Pablo Miramontes-González, Álvaro López-Gutiérrez, Rogelio González-Sarmiento, Juan Jesús Cruz-Hernández and Emilio Fonseca-Sánchez
Life 2021, 11(12), 1400; https://doi.org/10.3390/life11121400 - 15 Dec 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2182
Abstract
The relationship between viral infections and cancer is well known and has been established for decades. Multiple tumours are generated from alterations secondary to viral infections 2 resulting from a dysregulation of the immune system in many cases. Certain causal relationships, such as [...] Read more.
The relationship between viral infections and cancer is well known and has been established for decades. Multiple tumours are generated from alterations secondary to viral infections 2 resulting from a dysregulation of the immune system in many cases. Certain causal relationships, such as that between the Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) in nasopharyngeal cancer or hepatitis C and B viruses in hepatocarcinoma, have been clearly established, and their implications for the prognosis and treatment of solid tumours are currently unknown. Multiple studies have evaluated the role that these infections may have in the treatment of solid tumours using immunotherapy. A possible relationship between viral infections and an increased response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has been established at a theoretical level in solid neoplasms, such as EBV-positive cavum cancer and human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive and oropharyngeal cancer. These could yield a greater response associated with the activation of the immune system secondary to viral infection, the consequence of which is an increase in survival in these patients. That is why the objective of this review is to assess the different studies or clinical trials carried out in patients with solid tumours secondary to viral infections and their relationship to the response to ICIs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases)
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Other

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12 pages, 603 KiB  
Brief Report
BNT162b2 SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination Elicits High Titers of Neutralizing Antibodies to Both B.1 and P.1 Variants in Previously Infected and Uninfected Subjects
by Ilaria Vicenti, Francesca Gatti, Renzo Scaggiante, Adele Boccuto, Daniela Zago, Monica Basso, Filippo Dragoni, Saverio Giuseppe Parisi and Maurizio Zazzi
Life 2021, 11(9), 896; https://doi.org/10.3390/life11090896 - 29 Aug 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2376
Abstract
We aimed to investigate neutralizing antibody titers (NtAbT) to the P.1 and B.1 SARS-CoV-2 variants in a cohort of healthy health care workers (HCW), including 20 previously infected individuals tested at baseline (BLinf, after a median of 298 days from diagnosis) [...] Read more.
We aimed to investigate neutralizing antibody titers (NtAbT) to the P.1 and B.1 SARS-CoV-2 variants in a cohort of healthy health care workers (HCW), including 20 previously infected individuals tested at baseline (BLinf, after a median of 298 days from diagnosis) and 21 days after receiving one vaccine dose (D1inf) and 15 uninfected subjects tested 21 days after the second-dose vaccination (D2uninf). All the subjects received BNT162b2 vaccination. D1inf NtAbT increased significantly with respect to BLinf against both B.1 and P.1 variants, with a fold-change significantly higher for P.1. D1inf NtAbT were significantly higher than D2uninf NtAbT, against B.1 and P.1. NtAbT against the two strains were highly correlated. P.1 NtAbT were significantly higher than B.1 NtAbT. This difference was significant for post-vaccination sera in infected and uninfected subjects. A single-dose BNT162b2 vaccination substantially boosted the NtAb response to both variants in the previously infected subjects. NtAb titers to B.1 and P.1 lineages were highly correlated, suggesting substantial cross-neutralization. Higher titers to the P.1 than to the B.1 strain were driven by the post-vaccination titers, highlighting that cross-neutralization can be enhanced by vaccination. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Immunology of Infectious Diseases)
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