The current study suggests the possibility to manipulate NKT-cell activity in inflammatory disorders through intervention to the adenosine-A2AR pathway. “
“Human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is the leading cause of respiratory illness in infants and young children around the globe. This pathogen, which was discovered in 1956, continues to cause a huge number of hospitalizations due to respiratory disease and it is considered a health and economic burden worldwide, especially in developing countries. The immune response elicited by hRSV infection leads to lung

and systemic inflammation, which results in lung damage but is not efficient at preventing viral replication. AG-014699 ic50 Indeed, natural hRSV infection induces a poor immune memory that allows recurrent infections. Here, we review the most recent knowledge about the lifecycle of hRSV, the immune response elicited PF-02341066 price by this virus and the subsequent pathology induced in response to infection in the airways. Novel findings about the alterations that this virus causes in the central nervous system and potential therapies

and vaccines designed to treat or prevent hRSV infection are discussed. In 1956 Morris and co-workers isolated a cytopathogenic agent from a colony of chimpanzees at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, which presented a respiratory illness characterized by coughing, sneezing and mucopurulent nasal discharge.[1, 2] The infected animals showed inflammatory damage in the upper respiratory tract and this condition was rapidly spread to other members of the colony, suggesting the presence of a highly infectious pathogen.[1] Because the major sign of disease in the affected monkeys was coryza – or nasal inflammation – the pathogen was termed ‘chimpanzee coryza agent’. One

year later, Chanock and Finberg[3] reported the isolation of a similar agent from two throat swab samples of infants with severe respiratory illness. These viruses were identical to the ‘chimpanzee coryza agent’ reported by Morris, suggesting that this pathogen Isoconazole could infect both chimpanzees and humans.[3] The unusual cytopathic effect caused by the virus on HEp-2 cells, characterized by the syncytia formation and giant cells in cultures, led to its current denomination as human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV).[1] Human RSV is now the most important cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections (ALRTI) that include acute bronchitis, bronchiolitis, pneumonia and tracheitis in infants and young children worldwide.[4] Data from a recent meta-analysis showed that this pathogen causes up to 33·8 million ALRTI in children under 5 years of age each year, of which around 3·4 million of cases need hospital admission worldwide.[5] Further, hRSV infection causes the deaths of 66 000–199 000 children every year in developing countries.[5] For these reasons, hRSV is considered a global health burden.