bims-maitce 2024-12-29 papers

Issue of 2024–12–29
two papers selected by
Andy E. Hogan, Maynooth University

Anal Chem. 2024 Dec 27.

A High-Efficiency Electrochemical Biosensor for the Detection of Mucosal-Associated Invariant T Cells.

Zhenguo Zhang, Hongshuai Wei, Yunqing Zhi, Congcong Zhang, Min Jia, Lixia Lu, Kaijing Wang, Jun Zhou, Xin Du.

Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells exhibit significant potential in the assessment of tumor development and immunotherapy. However, there is currently no convenient and efficient method to analyze the quantitative changes of MAIT cells during cancer development and treatment, which has not been extensively studied. Here, we report an electrochemical biosensor designed to efficiently monitor MAIT cells in peripheral blood by simultaneously recognizing Vα7.2 and CD161 on MAIT cells. Natural red blood cell membrane, tetrahedral DNA nanostructure, and modified nanometal framework are selected as antifouling coating, antibody scaffold, and electrochemical probe, respectively. Owing to the synergistic effects of these materials, the biosensor achieves robust antifouling ability while maintaining excellent detection performance using rapid differential pulse voltammetry. We show a decrease in the number of MAIT cells in peripheral blood associated with aging and the development of mucosa-associated tumors. Our research has prospects in assessing the degree of malignancy of tumors, distinguishing immunotherapy responses in patients, reducing costs, and promoting the transformation of electrochemical sensing technology into clinical settings.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.4c04981

Front Neurosci. 2024 ;18 1488382

Myeloid antigen-presenting cells in neurodegenerative diseases: a focus on classical and non-classical MHC molecules.

Reham Afify, Katherine Lipsius, Season J Wyatt-Johnson, Randy R Brutkiewicz.

In recent years, increasing evidence has highlighted the critical role of myeloid cells, specifically those that present antigen (APCs) in health and disease. These shape the progression and development of neurodegenerative disorders, where considerable interplay between the immune system and neurons influences the course of disease pathogenesis. Antigen-presenting myeloid cells display different classes of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and MHC-like proteins on their surface for presenting various types of antigens to a wide variety of T cells. While most studies focus on the role of myeloid MHC class I and II molecules in health and disease, there is still much that remains unknown about non-polymorphic MHC-like molecules such as CD1d and MR1. Thus, in this review, we will summarize the recent findings regarding the contributions of both classical and non-classical MHC molecules, particularly on myeloid microglial APCs, in neurodegenerative diseases. This will offer a better understanding of altered mechanisms that may pave the way for the development of novel therapeutic strategies targeting immune cell-MHC interactions, to mitigate neurodegeneration and its associated pathology.

Keywords: CD1d; MHC; MR1; microglia; myeloid cells; neurodegenerative diseases

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2024.1488382