Cutaneous symptoms in drug allergy: what have we learnt?
CURRENT OPINION IN ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY
Authors: Mayorga, Cristobalina; Torres, Maria Jose; Fernandez, Javier; Canto, Gabriela; Blanca, Miguel
Abstract
Purpose of review A number of studies over recent years have shown the relevance of nonimmediate immunological reactions to drugs and emphasized the need for these reactions to be studied in greater depth, including both in-vivo and in-vitro tests and provocation studies. Recent findings Several clinical entities are involved, ranging from mild to severe reactions. Nonimmediate reactions have a special tropism for the skin, although other organ-specific or systemic reactions may also occur. In the affected organ, the drug acts as a hapten or protohapten, originating an immunological stimulus that is followed by recruitment of T lymphocytes and other types of cells, depending on the reaction. This involves a trafficking phenomenon in which these cells use different receptors that interplay with their corresponding ligands in the tissue. In addition, a number of activation and cytotoxic markers are also expressed, which are related with disease severity. Summary Current studies provide overwhelming evidence of the interaction between the organ involved, very often the skin, and immunocompetent cells. This is of relevance for diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.
The chemokine ESkine/CCL27 displays novel modes of intracrine and paracrine function
JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY
Authors: Gortz, A; Nibbs, RJB; McLean, P; Jarmin, D; Lambie, W; Baird, JW; Graham, GJ
Abstract
We have previously shown that the beta-chemokine ESkine/CCL27 is differentially spliced to produce two alternative forms. One is a secreted chemokine (ESkine), whereas the other (PESKY) lacks a signal peptide and is translocated to the nucleus. The role of this nuclear-targeted chemokine has not so far been defined, and it was the purpose of this study to examine this chemokine variant in more depth. To identify the region of PESKY involved in the nuclear translocation we tagged fragments with enhanced green fluorescent protein and expressed them in Chinese hamster ovary cells. We show PESKY nuclear translocation to be dependent on C-terminal residues that are shared with the signal peptide-bearing variant ESkine. Indeed we further demonstrate that ESkine can also use these C-terminal residues to enter the nucleus of cells following receptor (CCR10)-mediated internalization. To examine biological roles for PESKY we have overexpressed it in 3T3 cells. Such overexpression results in marked cytoskeletal rearrangements that are coincident with a radical reorganization of the cellular actin cytoskeleton. Microarray analyses and Ab neutralization studies indicate that these changes are mediated in part by insulin-like growth factor-1. Furthermore, monolayer wounding assays indicate that PESKY expression correlates with markedly increased migratory capacity. Thus, it is our contention that nuclear PESKY and ESkine both enter the nucleus by either intracrine or paracrine mechanisms and may facilitate cellular migration by inducing actin cytoskeletal relaxation. Therefore, nuclear ESkine/PESKY represents a novel paradigm for chemokine function.