Anti-KLRK1 monoclonal antibody, clone NJ-7 (NJ7) Functional Grade

Objectives: Sepsis is characterised by the frequent presence of organ failure and marked immunologic alterations. We studied the association between the extent of organ failure and the transcriptomic response of septic patients. Methods: Gene expression profiles in the blood of 74 surgical patients with sepsis were compared with those of 30 surgical patients with no sepsis. Differentially expressed genes were assessed for their correlation with the sequential organ failure (SOFA) score. Results: The expression levels of a group of genes participating in the cell cycle (HIST1H1C, CKS2, CCNA2, CDK1, CCNB2, CIT, CCNB1, AURKA, RAD51), neutrophil protease activity (ELANE, ADORA3, MPO, MMP8, CTSG), IL-1R and IL-18R response correlated directly with SOFA and mortality. Genes involved in T cell (LCK, CD3G, CD3D, ZAP70, ICOS, CD3E, CD28, IL2RB, CD8B, CD8A, CD40LG, IL23A, CCL5, SH2D1A, ITK, CD247, TBX21, GATA3, CCR7, LEF1, STAT4) and NK cell immunity (CD244, KLRK1, KLRD1) were inversely associated with SOFA and mortality. Conclusions: The extent of organ failure in sepsis correlates directly with the existence of imbalanced innate and adaptive responses at the transcriptomic level. Quantification of the expression levels of the genes identified here could contribute to the simultaneous assessment of disease severity and immunological alterations in sepsis. (C) 2014 The British Infection Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

NKG2D (KLRK1) is a C-type lectin receptor present on natural killer (NK) cells, gamma delta, CD8(+) and CD4(+) T cells. Upon ligand binding, NKG2D mediates activatory and co-stimulatory signals to NK cells and activated CD4(+) T cells, respectively. Polymorphisms in NKG2D predispose to infectious diseases, cancer, transplantation and autoimmune disorders. We studied the influence of this NK receptor polymorphism on predisposition to and modification of the disease phenotype in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Eight different single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in the NKG2 gene were genotyped in 236 patients with RA and 187 controls using Taqman 5' nuclease assays. NKG2D genotype/allele frequency did not differ between patients and controls. Subgroup analysis showed that the frequency of A allele of NKG2D9 and T allele of NKG2D10 was significantly higher in patients with deformities (a marker of severe disease) [11 versus 5%, Pc = 0.03, odds ratio (OR) = 2.44, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.09- 5.98 and 10 versus 4%, Pc = 0.04, OR = 2.45, 95% CI = 1.05-6.39, respectively], while the frequency of alleles G of NKG2D9 and A of NKG2D10 was greater in patients without deformities (Pc = 0.03, OR = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.17-0.91 and Pc = 0.04, OR = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.16-0.96). Similar trends of association were observed with deforming phenotype of RA in female patients and deforming young onset RA subgroups. Haplotype analysis revealed that the frequency of haplotype G-C- A-G-A-T-C-C was higher in patients than in controls (12 versus 8%, P = 0.04, OR = 1.61, 95% CI = 1.01-2.55), suggesting that it may predispose to RA. Our study suggests that the NKG2D gene polymorphisms may modify the risk of development and severity of RA.