Since the publication of the first chicken genome sequence, we have encountered genes playing key roles in mammalian immunology, but being seemingly absent in birds. One of those was, until recently, Foxp3, the master transcription factor of regulatory T cells in mammals. Therefore, avian regulatory T cell research is still poorly standardized. In this study we identify a chicken ortholog of Foxp3. We prove sequence homology with known mammalian and sauropsid sequences, but also reveal differences in major domains. Expression profiling shows an association of Foxp3 and CD25 expression levels in CD4+CD25+ peripheral T cells and identifies a CD4−CD25+Foxp3high subset of thymic lymphocytes that likely represents yet undescribed avian regulatory T precursor cells. We conclude that Foxp3 is existent in chickens and that it shares certain functional characteristics with its mammalian ortholog. Nevertheless, pathways for regulatory T cell development and Foxp3 function are likely to differ between mammals and birds. The identification and characterization of chicken Foxp3 will help to define avian regulatory T cells and to analyze their functional properties and thereby advance the field of avian immunology.

The expression level of acute phase proteins (APPs) mirrors the health status of an individual. In human medicine, C-reactive protein (CRP), and other members of the pentraxin family are of significant relevance for assessing disease severity and prognosis. In chickens, however, which represent the most common livestock species around the world, no such marker has yet gained general acceptance. The aim of this study was therefore, to characterize chicken pentraxin 3 (chPTX3) and to evaluate its applicability as a general marker for inflammatory conditions. The mammalian and chicken PTX3 proteins were predicted to be similar in sequence, domain organization and polymeric structure. Nevertheless, some characteristics like certain sequence sections, which have varied during the evolution of mammals, and species-specific glycosylation patterns, suggest distinct biological functions. ChPTX3 is constitutively expressed in various tissues but, interestingly, could not be found in splenic tissue samples without stimulation. However, upon treatment with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), PTX3 expression in chicken spleens increased to 95-fold within hours. A search for PTX3 reads in various publicly available RNA-seq data sets of chicken spleen and bursa of Fabricius also showed that PTX3 expression increases within days after experimental infection with viral and bacterial pathogens. An experimental infection with avian pathogenic E.coli and qPCR analysis of spleen samples further established a challenge dose-dependent significant up-regulation of chPTX3 in subclinically infected birds of up to over 150-fold as compared to untreated controls. Our results indicate the potential of chPTX3 as an APP marker to monitor inflammatory conditions in poultry flocks.

No abstract

Introduction: Inhibins are dimeric glycoproteins, composed of an alpha-subunit (INH-a) and one of two possible beta-subunits (ßA or ßB), with substantial roles in human reproduction and in endocrine-responsive tumours. In breast cancer tissue, the growth factor Inhibin A is involved in cell differentiation and proliferation, thus suggesting a possible role as tumor marker. Aims of this study were to determine the serological measurement of Inhibin A (a- bA) in breast cancer patients during chemotherapy.Material and Methods: A series of 28 high risk N0 and N+ breast cancer patients who underwent standardized chemotherapy (3 x FEC and 3 x Docetaxel) followed by two years of zoledronate in the German SUCCESS trial were prospectively evaluated before chemotherapeutic treatment as well as after chemotherapy and two years after chemotherapy for the serological expression of Inhibin A. For serological analysis the ultrasensitive Inhibin A ELISA (DSL – U.S.A.) was used according to manufactures instruction. For statistical analysis the Wilcoxon rang sum test was used for paired samples. Statistical significance was assumed at p< 0.05.Results: The concentration of Inhibin A showed a significant decrease between data obtained before chemotherapy and after chemotherapy (p<0.005) and two-year follow up (p<0.001). Interestingly, there were seen no differences between the time point four weeks after chemoherapy and at two years (p=0.744).Discussion: Therefore, chemotherapy decreases significantly the Inhibin A concentration during chemotherapy. This might reflect a suppression of ovarian function and might be a marker for chemotherapy-induced amenorrhoea. Moreover, it has been suggested that Inhibin A might be a tumour marker for breast cancer, and therefore a sudden increase of its concentration might be indicative of breast cancer recurrence. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(24 Suppl):Abstract nr 3028.

Die großen NS-Prozesse der 1960er Jahre, besonders der Eichmann-Prozess von 1961, werden immer wieder als Schlüsselereignisse bezeichnet, die dazu geführt hätten, den Holocaust als eigenständiges Phänomen stärker ins Bewusstsein der Weltöffentlichkeit zu rücken. Bislang wurde jedoch kaum untersucht, wie diese Prozesse in den einzelnen Ländern tatsächlich von den Medien repräsentiert wurden und welche Folgen dies für die Holocaust-Erinnerung hatte. Diese Studie analysiert niederländische und belgische Presse-, Radio- und Fernsehberichte über spektakuläre NS-Verfahren. Der Eichmann- und der Auschwitz-Prozess stehen im Zentrum des Interesses; der Nürnberger Hauptprozess wird als frühes Beispiel vergleichend herangezogen. Während sich der Umfang der Beiträge und die vermittelten Informationen in den Massenmedien gleichen, ergeben sich bei der Frage nach den langfristigen gesellschaftlichen Auswirkungen eklatante Unterschiede zwischen den beiden Ländern. Besonders aufschlussreich ist dabei der Umgang mit der eigenen Besatzungsvergangenheit.