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APC Activator
APC Activators (or Antigen-presenting cell activators) are a type of immunotherapy which leverages antigen-presenting cells (APCs) to drive an adaptive immune response. APC Activators are agonists to APC surface-expressed ligands that, when bound, induce the maturation and activation of APCs. Professional antigen-presenting cells – including dendritic cells, macrophages, and B cells – serve an indispensable role in the adaptive immune response through their unique ability to phagocytose, digest, and present exogenous (circulating) antigens to T cells, facilitating antigen-specific immune responses. __TOC__ Background Professional APCs express MHC class II and CD40 molecules as surface receptors, and can be activated through direct interactions with T cells expressing these receptors' corresponding ligands, LAG-3 and CD40-L, respectively. A third class of receptors that can activate APCs are called toll-like receptors (TLRs); these receptors bind foreign ligands which are stru ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy or biological therapy is the treatment of disease by activating or suppressing the immune system. Immunotherapies designed to elicit or amplify an immune response are classified as ''activation immunotherapies,'' while immunotherapies that reduce or suppress are classified as '' suppression immunotherapies''. Immunotherapy is under preliminary research for its potential to treat various forms of cancer. Cell-based immunotherapies are effective for some cancers. Immune effector cells such as lymphocytes, macrophages, dendritic cells, natural killer cells, and cytotoxic T lymphocytes work together to defend the body against cancer by targeting abnormal antigens expressed on the surface of tumor cells. Vaccine-induced immunity to COVID-19 relies mostly on an immunomodulatory T cell response. Therapies such as granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), interferons, imiquimod and cellular membrane fractions from bacteria are licensed for medical use. Others includin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CD40 (protein)
Cluster of differentiation 40, CD40 is a costimulatory protein found on antigen-presenting cells and is required for their activation. The binding of CD154 (CD40L) on TH cells to CD40 activates antigen presenting cells and induces a variety of downstream effects. Deficiency can cause Hyper-IgM syndrome type 3. Function The protein receptor encoded by this gene is a member of the TNF-receptor superfamily. This receptor has been found to be essential in mediating a broad variety of immune and inflammatory responses including T cell-dependent immunoglobulin class switching, memory B cell development, and germinal center formation. AT-hook transcription factor AKNA is reported to coordinately regulate the expression of this receptor and its ligand, which may be important for homotypic cell interactions. The interaction of this receptor and its ligand is found to be necessary for amyloid-beta-induced microglial activation, and thus is thought to be an early event in Alzheimer disea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paclitaxel
Paclitaxel (PTX), sold under the brand name Taxol among others, is a chemotherapy medication used to treat a number of types of cancer. This includes ovarian cancer, esophageal cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, Kaposi's sarcoma, cervical cancer, and pancreatic cancer. It is administered by intravenous injection. There is also an albumin-bound formulation. Common side effects include hair loss, bone marrow suppression, numbness, allergic reactions, muscle pains, and diarrhea. Other serious side effects include heart problems, increased risk of infection, and lung inflammation. There are concerns that use during pregnancy may cause birth defects. Paclitaxel is in the taxane family of medications. It works by interference with the normal function of microtubules during cell division. Paclitaxel was first isolated in 1971 from the Pacific yew and approved for medical use in 1993. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. It has been made from precu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherapy may be given with a curative intent (which almost always involves combinations of drugs) or it may aim to prolong life or to reduce symptoms ( palliative chemotherapy). Chemotherapy is one of the major categories of the medical discipline specifically devoted to pharmacotherapy for cancer, which is called ''medical oncology''. The term ''chemotherapy'' has come to connote non-specific usage of intracellular poisons to inhibit mitosis (cell division) or induce DNA damage, which is why inhibition of DNA repair can augment chemotherapy. The connotation of the word chemotherapy excludes more selective agents that block extracellular signals (signal transduction). The development of therapies with specific molecular or genetic targets, wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fusion Protein
Fusion proteins or chimeric (kī-ˈmir-ik) proteins (literally, made of parts from different sources) are proteins created through the joining of two or more genes that originally coded for separate proteins. Translation of this ''fusion gene'' results in a single or multiple polypeptides with functional properties derived from each of the original proteins. ''Recombinant fusion proteins'' are created artificially by recombinant DNA technology for use in biological research or therapeutics. '' Chimeric'' or ''chimera'' usually designate hybrid proteins made of polypeptides having different functions or physico-chemical patterns. ''Chimeric mutant proteins'' occur naturally when a complex mutation, such as a chromosomal translocation, tandem duplication, or retrotransposition creates a novel coding sequence containing parts of the coding sequences from two different genes. Naturally occurring fusion proteins are commonly found in cancer cells, where they may function as oncoproteins ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eftilagimod Alpha
Eftilagimod alpha (INN; development code IMP321 or efti) is a large-molecule cancer drug being developed by the clinical-stage biotechnology company Immutep. Efti is a soluble version of the immune checkpoint molecule LAG-3. It is an APC Activator used to increase an immune response to tumors, and is administered by subcutaneous injection. Efti has three intended clinical settings: * as adjuvant to cancer vaccines (in a low, effective dose of ~250 µg) * as first-line 'chemo-immunotherapy,' that is, combined with standard chemotherapy (e.g. paclitaxel) * in combination immunotherapy with PD-1 treatments (e.g. pembrolizumab) Eftilagimod alpha is in Phase II clinical testing. Currently, the main indications for the drug are metastatic breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Background Eftilagimod alpha ("efti" in short) is a soluble LAG-3 fusion protein that activates antigen-presenting cells. It is a 160 k ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bleeding, prolonged cough, unexplained weight loss, and a change in bowel movements. While these symptoms may indicate cancer, they can also have other causes. Over 100 types of cancers affect humans. Tobacco use is the cause of about 22% of cancer deaths. Another 10% are due to obesity, poor diet, lack of physical activity or excessive drinking of alcohol. Other factors include certain infections, exposure to ionizing radiation, and environmental pollutants. In the developing world, 15% of cancers are due to infections such as ''Helicobacter pylori'', hepatitis B, hepatitis C, human papillomavirus infection, Epstein–Barr virus and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). These factors act, at least partly, by changing the genes of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pathogen-associated Molecular Pattern
Pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) are small molecular motifs conserved within a class of microbes. They are recognized by toll-like receptors (TLRs) and other pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) in both plants and animals. A vast array of different types of molecules can serve as PAMPs, including glycans and glycoconjugates. PAMPs activate innate immune responses, protecting the host from infection, by identifying some conserved nonself molecules. Bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPSs), endotoxins found on the cell membranes of gram-negative bacteria, are considered to be the prototypical class of PAMPs. LPSs are specifically recognised by TLR4, a recognition receptor of the innate immune system. Other PAMPs include bacterial flagellin (recognized by TLR5), lipoteichoic acid from gram-positive bacteria (recognized by TLR2), peptidoglycan (recognized by TLR2), and nucleic acid variants normally associated with viruses, such as double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), recognized by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Microorganism
A microorganism, or microbe,, ''mikros'', "small") and ''organism'' from the el, ὀργανισμός, ''organismós'', "organism"). It is usually written as a single word but is sometimes hyphenated (''micro-organism''), especially in older texts. The informal synonym ''microbe'' () comes from μικρός, mikrós, "small" and βίος, bíos, "life". is an organism of microscopic size, which may exist in its single-celled form or as a colony of cells. The possible existence of unseen microbial life was suspected from ancient times, such as in Jain scriptures from sixth century BC India. The scientific study of microorganisms began with their observation under the microscope in the 1670s by Anton van Leeuwenhoek. In the 1850s, Louis Pasteur found that microorganisms caused food spoilage, debunking the theory of spontaneous generation. In the 1880s, Robert Koch discovered that microorganisms caused the diseases tuberculosis, cholera, diphtheria, and anthrax. Because mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toll-like Receptor
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are a class of proteins that play a key role in the innate immune system. They are Bitopic protein, single-pass membrane-spanning Receptor (biochemistry), receptors usually expressed on sentinel cells such as macrophages and dendritic cells, that recognize structurally conserved molecules derived from microbes. Once these microbes have reached physical barriers such as the skin or intestinal tract mucosa, they are recognized by TLRs, which activate immune cell responses. The TLRs include TLR1, TLR2, TLR3, TLR4, TLR5, TLR6, TLR7, TLR8, TLR9, TLR10, TLR11, TLR12, and TLR13. Humans lack genes for TLR11, TLR12 and TLR13 and mice lack a functional gene for TLR10. TLR1, TLR2, TLR4, TLR5, TLR6, and TLR10 are located on the cell membrane, whereas TLR3, TLR7, TLR8, and TLR9 are located in Intracellular receptor, intracellular Vesicle (biology and chemistry), vesicles (because they are sensors of nucleic acids). TLRs received their name from their similarity to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CD154
CD154, also called CD40 ligand or CD40L, is a protein that is primarily expressed on activated T cells and is a member of the Tumor necrosis factors, TNF superfamily of molecules. It binds to CD40 (protein), CD40 on antigen-presenting cells (APC), which leads to many effects depending on the target cell type. In total CD40L has three binding partners: CD40, Alpha-5 beta-1, α5β1 integrin and αIIbβ3. CD154 acts as a costimulatory molecule and is particularly important on a subset of T cells called Follicular B helper T cells, T follicular helper cells (TFH cells). On TFH cells, CD154 promotes B cell maturation and function by engaging CD40 on the B cell surface and therefore facilitating cell-cell communication. A defect in this gene results in an inability to undergo immunoglobulin class switching and is associated with hyper IgM syndrome. Absence of CD154 also stops the formation of germinal centers and therefore prohibiting antibody affinity maturation, an important process in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LAG3
Lymphocyte-activation gene 3, also known as LAG-3, is a protein which in humans is encoded by the ''LAG3'' gene. LAG3, which was discovered in 1990 and was designated CD223 (cluster of differentiation 223) after the Seventh Human Leucocyte Differentiation Antigen Workshop in 2000, is a cell surface molecule with diverse biologic effects on T cell function. It is an immune checkpoint receptor and as such is the target of various drug development programs by pharmaceutical companies seeking to develop new treatments for cancer and autoimmune disorders. In soluble form it is also being developed as a cancer drug in its own right. Gene The LAG3 gene contains 8 exons. The sequence data, exon/ intron organization, and chromosomal localization all indicate a close relationship of LAG3 to CD4. The gene for LAG-3 lies adjacent to the gene for CD4 on human chromosome 12 (12p13) and is approximately 20% identical to the CD4 gene. Protein The LAG3 protein, which belongs to immunoglob ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
