Depending on the extent of both the underlying infection and the

Depending on the extent of both the underlying infection and the host response, including compensatory anti-inflammatory

Trametinib responses [43], these events can lead to septic shock, a condition in which poor perfusion can lead to major organ failure and death. In conjunction with rapid administration of antibiotics, early goal-directed therapy to normalize hemodynamic indices has been shown to limit mortality in septic patients, particularly if it is initiated within six hours of clinical presentation [36]. Resuscitation via intravenous administration of fluids is a key component of this approach, and can be undertaken with either crystalloids or colloids [31]. The former are solutions of mineral salts (e.g., normal saline or Ringer’s lactate), while the latter also contain osmotically active macromolecules of either natural (e.g., albumin) or artificial (e.g., hydroxyethyl starches) origin. Randomized clinical trials have shown that albumin was equivalent

to saline in critically ill patients, including a sepsis sub-group [9], while excess renal failure or mortality [3, 32, 28] Protein Tyrosine Kinase inhibitor has been associated with the use of starch products as compared to crystalloids. In spite of progress associated with the adoption of early goal-directed therapy and aggressive fluid resuscitation, a heavy burden of illness remains, as evidenced by the increasing incidence of sepsis [35]. An improved resuscitation fluid for septic patients would be one in which the macromolecule was not only

osmotically active, like most plasma proteins, but also conferred additional benefits without causing harm such as that associated with hydroxyethyl starch products [28]. Benzatropine AGP is one such plasma protein, since it has been suggested to assist in the maintenance of capillary permeability, by increasing the charge selectivity of the endothelium [14, 18, 40, 6]. AGP is a glycosylated positive acute phase protein whose upregulation during inflammation may also be indicative of an anti-inflammatory role [13]. Administration of bovine AGP has been reported to increase survival rates in mice challenged with lethal doses of Klebsiella pneumonia [15]. Addition of human AGP to the resuscitation protocol, in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock, increased blood volume and decreased edema formation [20]; similarly human AGP administration reduced mortality in a rat model of septic peritonitis [26]. The liver plays an important role in responding to infectious challenges, in part due to its filtering of blood draining the gastrointestinal tract and the spleen, brought to the organ via the hepatic portal vein [19]. In addition, it serves as a source of inflammatory mediators [7], and is an important modulator of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome [22].

55 g per kg body weight may be insufficient in kidney transplant

55 g per kg body weight may be insufficient in kidney transplant recipients. Until there is stronger evidence to suggest otherwise, a low protein diet should be avoided as it may lead to negative nitrogen balance. In a prospective, observational study, Bernardi et al.8 compared a number of parameters, including serum creatinine, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and 24 h urinary protein excretion, in two groups of kidney transplant recipients with chronic rejection. The patients were stratified into two groups based on dietary protein intake, calculated from 24 urinary urea measurement and dietary history. Group 1 patients consumed an average daily dietary protein intake of 0.73 ± 0.11 g/kg body

weight (n = 30). Autophagy signaling pathway inhibitor Opaganib concentration Group 2 those with a daily protein intake of 1.4 ± 0.23 g/kg body weight (n = 13). The observation period was 12 years. The serum creatinine levels differed between the two groups of patients – stable in those in Group 1; increasing in Group 2 (P < 0.001). The GFR over the 12-year period was stable in Group 1, but was observed to progressively decline in Group 2 (P < 0.0001). Twenty-four h urinary protein excretion was significantly reduced in Group 1 (P < 0.002) but not significantly in Group 2. The key limitation to this study is its small sample size. Furthermore, the authors do not present demographic data for the patients post-stratification. However, the follow-up period of 12 months

enabled long-term trends to be elucidated and an association between protein intake and GFR to be made. Until there is stronger evidence that suggests otherwise, adult kidney transplant recipients with chronic rejection should limit protein intake to 0.73 ± 0.11 g/kg body weight as this may safely stabilize glomerular filtration rate and slow the progression to kidney failure. Multi-centre trials are needed to establish the

safe level of dietary protein restriction and to assess the long-term efficacy and safety of protein selleck kinase inhibitor restriction on the progression of allograft nephropathy. The evidence examining the dietary protein requirement in kidney transplant recipients is sparse and of low quality being small and generally of short duration. High protein intake in the period after transplant is required to prevent loss of body mass and achieve neutral or positive nitrogen balance. This would appear to be applicable to kidney transplant recipients on high dose prednisone, however, there is a need for trials to confirm the dietary protein requirement of kidney transplant recipients receiving lower doses of prednisone. There is limited evidence that suggests restricting protein intake in transplant recipients with chronic allograft nephropathy may be beneficial in terms of kidney function however, low protein intake may lead to negative nitrogen balance. Based on the available evidence, it is not possible to identify a safe lower level of protein restriction.

Most importantly, engagement of the GITR resulted in potent anti-

Most importantly, engagement of the GITR resulted in potent anti-tumor responses including eradication of established Meth-A sarcomas [8], poorly immunogenic B16 melanoma [9], and CT26 Ivacaftor manufacturer colon tumors [10]. Conversely, inhibition of GITR/GITR-L interactions by administration of soluble GITR-Fc resulted in prolongation of allograft survival potentially by preventing GITR-L-mediated reversal of Treg-cell-mediated suppression [11]. GITR knockout mice and mice treated with a blocking GITR-Fc had reduced inflammation,

tissue damage, and reduced mortality in a model multiple organ failure [12]. While the costimulatory effects of GITR engagement on Teff cells are clear, controversial results have been reported on the effects of GITR engagement on Treg cells in vivo [11]. Some studies have demonstrated enhancement of Treg-cell numbers following treatment of mice with recombinant Fc-GITR-L [13] and mice expressing a GITR-L transgene in B cells had an increase in the ratio of Treg cells/Tconv cells and a delay in the onset of experimental autoimmune encephalitis [14].

Conversely, several studies in tumor models have described a decrease in the percentage of Foxp3+ T cells in the tumor, as well as a redistribution of the intracellular localization of Foxp3 [15]. However, interpretation of some of these studies that used anti-GITR mAbs is complicated as administration of anti-GITR in vivo can result in depletion of Treg cells [16]. In the present study, we have used Meloxicam a nondepleting, recombinant Fc-GITR-L and combinations of GITR WT and GITR KO Treg cells and Teff cells to reexamine the effects of GITR www.selleckchem.com/products/ldk378.html stimulation on each subpopulation in both unmanipulated mice and in a well-characterized model of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We demonstrate that the effects of that Fc-GITR-L-induced GITR signaling are complex and depend on the physiologic environment in the host as

well as the activation state of the Treg cells and Teff cells. The implications of these results regarding the therapeutic manipulation of the immune response by members of the TNFRSF are discussed. Previous studies have demonstrated that engagement of the GITR provides a costimulatory signal for activation of the proliferation of both CD4+ and CD8+ Foxp3− T cells in vitro [2, 3], while engagement of the GITR on Foxp3+ Treg cells in vitro stimulated their proliferation in the presence of IL-2, but in the absence of TCR stimulation [1]. To assess the effect of GITR engagement in vivo, we administered Fc-GITR-L, a nondepleting soluble recombinant protein dimer that has been shown to enhance tumor immunity [17] or human IgG1 as a control to unmanipulated mice. Fc-GITR-L administration in the absence of any other exogenous stimulation significantly increased Foxp3+ T-cell frequency and absolute numbers on day 3 after treatment (Fig. 1A–C).

We have developed an experimental infection model in which previo

We have developed an experimental infection model in which previously infected yearling sheep acquired a MK-2206 clinical trial substantial degree of protective immunity to T. circumcincta compared to naïve animals undergoing a primary infection (5,10,14,15). In this paper, we have repeated these experiments in 5-month-old lambs, to compare the responses of the two age groups. This investigation was motivated by the fact that age-related immunity to gastrointestinal nematode parasites has been widely documented in sheep, yet the underlying reasons are poorly understood. Thus, compared to adult sheep,

lambs develop impaired immunity to natural nematode infections or following immunisation with irradiated larvae (16–22), despite being capable of mounting protective immune responses to a variety of vaccines including ones containing nematode intestinal antigens (23). More specifically, prior experiments with a very similar Teladorsagia/gastric lymph model showed that young lambs were more susceptible than yearlings to infection and mounted measurably lower secondary immune responses (5,11). Two experiments were carried out involving Daporinad cell line a total of 66 lambs aged 5 months at time of challenge. All had been reared indoors

under conditions designed to exclude accidental infection with nematode parasites. Infective larvae were from an anthelmintic susceptible T. circumcincta isolate which had been passaged through sheep at Moredun Research Institute

for a number Bumetanide of years. Larvae were stored for up to 1 month at 4°C prior to administration. All infective larvae used within each experiment were derived from the same batch. The common gastric lymph duct, which contains efferent lymph draining all four stomachs, was cannulated as detailed elsewhere (24). The sheep were fitted with an indwelling venous catheter placed in the posterior vena cava. Collection, sampling and re-infusion of lymph, and post-mortem procedures were carried out as previously reported (10). Worm counts were carried out as detailed elsewhere (10). A random sample of approximately 50 parasites obtained from each animal killed on day 10 of Experiment 6 was measured by a Camera Lucida under 10× magnification. Sexually undifferentiated worms measuring <1·5 mm were classified as EL4, longer parasites were designated developing worms. Arithmetic means with standard errors are shown throughout. Parasite counts and percentage EL4 were compared by Student’s t-test. Frequency distributions of male and female worm lengths were made for individual sheep and group means were calculated from these. Immunoglobulin concentrations and cell numbers were compared using Student’s t-test, and, after log transformation, by repeated measures (Genstat).

To confirm the contact-dependent nature of the invariant NKT cell

To confirm the contact-dependent nature of the invariant NKT cell-mediated regulation of Th17 differentiation, transwell co-culture experiments were conducted. The transwell-separated NKT cells had only minimal inhibitory effects on Th17 differentiation compared with the direct co-cultures (Fig. 3A), suggesting a predominantly contact-dependent mechanism. To measure IL-17 produced by OT-II CD4+ T cells, NKT

cells purified from B6.Thy.1.1 mice were used in the co-culture, and Thy1.2+CD4+ OT-II T cells were purified from the culture after a 3-day stimulation and restimulated with PMA and ionomycin for an additional 6 h. IL-17 production from OT-II CD4+ T cells was reduced to 50%, following direct co-culture with NKT cells but only 10% in the transwell-separated cultures (Fig. 3B). We next compared the inhibitory effects of directly co-cultured NKT cells and the culture supernatants of activated NKT cells to confirm the major role of the Selleckchem GSI-IX contact-dependent mechanism. Although 1.5×104 NKT cells effectively suppressed

Th17 differentiation by more than 70%, culture supernatants from an equivalent number Neratinib of activated NKT cells inhibited Th17 differentiation by less than 40% (Fig. 3C and D). Therefore, contact-dependent inhibition was the predominant mechanism underlying the NKT cell-mediated suppression of Th17 differentiation, whereas soluble factors from NKT cells exerted only minor effects on IL-17+

cell differentiation. The inhibitory effects of NKT cells on Th1 differentiation were also further evaluated using purified NKT cells from various cytokine-deficient mice. NKT cells from WT mice reduced the percentage of IFN-γ-producing CD4+ T cells by 45% (Fig. 4A and B), and NKT cells from IL-10−/− and IFN-γ−/− mice also inhibited Th1 differentiation as efficiently as cells from WT mice (Fig. 4A and B). However, NKT cells from IL-4−/− mice did not suppress IFN-γ-producing CD4+ T-cell differentiation (Fig. 4A and B). The reciprocal suppression of IL-4 and IFN-γ signaling has been well established 2, old and activated NKT cell-produced IL-4 was the major inhibitory factor in the NKT cell-mediated inhibition of Th1 differentiation in vitro. We next evaluated the effect of contact-dependent factors on the NKT cell-mediated suppression of Th1 differentiation using the transwell co-culture system. NKT cells stimulated in the upper well (transwell separated) as well as in the bottom well (direct co-culture), efficiently inhibited IFN-γ-producing CD4+ T-cell differentiation in culture (Fig. 4C). IFN-γ produced by CD4+ T cells in the culture supernatants was reduced by 40% in the presence of NKT cells in both the direct co-cultures and the transwell-separated cultures (Fig. 4D). Therefore, the inhibitory effect of NKT cells on Th1 differentiation was largely dependent on IL-4 secreted by activated NKT cells.

These results indicate that patients with Buerger’s disease have

These results indicate that patients with Buerger’s disease have an altered production of several cytokines in response to different stimuli. The disturbances Selleckchem Galunisertib in immune cell reactivity could be a reason for the persistent immune inflammation in TAO, and may confirm the role of immune dysregulation in TAO disease.

It is essential to emphasize that the inflammatory response is closely related to tabagism, as the plasma cytokines of TAO former smoker patients were similar to the controls. We did not find any studies concerning plasma cytokines in TAO patients. So far, we have found only one report that examines cytokines in patients with TAO [17]. In this ex-vivo study, the authors observed abnormal production of IL-6, IL-12 and IL-10, increased apoptosis and increased levels of circulating immune complexes, which may explain the persistence of TAO immune inflammation. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) strongly promotes angiogenesis, and monocyte colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF) regulates the differentiation, proliferation and survival of monocytes selleck chemicals in TAO [18]. The data indicate that endothelial cells in

TAO can be activated in TAO and that vascular lesions are associated with TNF-α secretion by tissue-infiltrating inflammatory cells, intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) and E-selectin expression on endothelial cells and leucocyte adhesion via their ligands. The preferential expression of inducible adhesion molecules in microvessels and mononuclear inflammatory cells suggests that this is due probably to inflammation contributing to the persistence of the inflammatory process in TAO [19]. Although the cause of TAO disease remains unknown, a strong association with tobacco use has been established [3,20]. Use of or exposure to tobacco plays a central role in the initiation and progression of the disease. By using an antigen-sensitive thymidine-incorporation assay, Adar et al. [21] showed that patients with TAO have an increased

HSP90 cellular sensitivity to types I and III collagen compared to patients with arteriosclerosis obliterans or healthy males. De Moerloose et al. [22] found a marked decrease in the frequency of human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-B12 in patients with Buerger’s disease (2·2% versus 28% in controls). Similarly to other autoimmune diseases, TAO may have a genetic predisposition without a direct ‘causative’ gene mutation. Most investigators believe that TAO is an immune-mediated endarteritis. Immunocytochemical studies have demonstrated a linear deposition of immunoglobulins and complement factors along the elastic lamina [20,23]. Patients with Buerger’s disease present a statistically significantly higher frequency of HLA-DR4 and a significantly lower frequency of the HLA-DRW6 antigen.

In contrast, IL-17A- and IL-22-secreting cells were more abundant

In contrast, IL-17A- and IL-22-secreting cells were more abundantly derived Selleckchem Proteasome inhibitor from lesional skin (Supporting Information

Fig. S3B). This observation led us to use such lesions as a source of T cells to generate CD4+ T-cell clones with various Th profiles, including Th17 and Th22 cells. Hierarchical cluster analysis performed on the cytokine pattern of skin-infiltrating T-cell clones obtained from two psoriasis patients yielded distance trees that highlighted their organization into five dominant groups, each characterized by a typical cytokine secretion profile (Fig. 3A and Supporting Information Fig. S4A). The number of clusters obtained was validated using the non-hierarchical cluster analysis (data not shown) with an excellent inter-classification comparison index (kappa agreement value κ=0.89 and 0.70 respectively). The inter-cluster differences were confirmed through the computation of the mean relative cytokine productions in each proposed cluster, followed by inter-cluster comparisons (Fig. 3B and Supporting Information Fig. S4B).

This analysis confirmed that IFN-γ was most increased in the first cluster, as compared with other clusters (p<0.0001 for both patients), IL-10 in the second cluster (p<0.0001), IL-4 (p=0.001 and p=0.0065, 1st and 2nd patient respectively) and IL-5 (p<0.0001) in the third, IL-17 https://www.selleckchem.com/products/bmn-673.html in the fourth (p<0.0001) and IL-22 in the fifth (p<0.0001) (Fig. 3B and Supporting Information Fig. S4B). The clusters were therefore named Th1, Tr1, Th2, Th17 and Th22 respectively. Altogether, these data suggest that Th1, Th2, Tr1, Th17 and Th22 orientation can be

objectively distinguished by cluster analysis of cytokine production profiles. The Th22 subset should therefore clearly be distinguished from the previously recognized Th17 subset. We then used TCRα and TCRβ clonotypic analysis to assess whether the commitment Tobramycin of these functionally distinct subsets of CD4+ T cells would be antigen-driven or TCR-independent. Surprisingly, only 45 different clonotypes were used by the 66 T-cell clones derived from the skin biopsy of a psoriasis patient. Eight different clonotypes were extensively shared between subsets and represented 39% of the T-cell infiltrate (Fig. 4). One clone was shared by four different subsets. TCR sharing between the Th17 and Th22 subset, with only one clone shared, was not more extensive than that between other subsets. TCR sharing between functionally distinct T-cell clones was confirmed in a skin biopsy from a second psoriasis patient. In this case, TCR sharing was less extensive, but clones overlapping between Th17 and Th22 as well as Th17 and Th2 were nonetheless identified among the 59 skin-derived T-cell clones analyzed (Supporting Information Fig. S4C). These results demonstrate that none of the five Th cell types use a strictly dedicated TCR repertoire.

Recent work has emphasized that the unique destruction of

Recent work has emphasized that the unique destruction of

biliary cells requires the triad of macrophages from patients with PBC, biliary epithelial cell apotopes and AMAs; this leads to a burst of proinflammatory cytokines [23]. In addition, there is evidence that NK cells are involved in biliary cell cytotoxicity, and in this respect it is noteworthy that there is considerable heterogeneity among the NK and perhaps also the NK T cell lineages [24,25]. Thus, previous dogmas with regard to NK cells require HER2 inhibitor re-examination, particularly with regard to function, as there is now evidence for NK cell memory and a regulatory function has also been ascribed to NK cells [25]. One of the strongest cases for NK cell heterogeneity comes from studies of the phenotypical and functional differences of the NK cell lineages that reside within the gut compared with the blood and lymph nodes [26,27]. Thus, while organ-resident NK cells control the magnitude of organ inflammation, they also

have a role concurrently in influencing the generation of autoimmunity and pathology [28,29]. Peripherally derived NK cells have an impact upon autoimmune responses which are manifested by their ability to synthesize cytokines rapidly that, in turn, influence the quality and quantity of acquired immune responses [30–34]. While the CD1d-deficient mouse [35–38] and the use of α-GalCer to activate NK T cells [39–41] are both available to perform standard addition/subtraction NSC 683864 experiments in efforts to define a role for the NK T cell lineage, reagents are not readily available for a similar study of the role of NK cells. This is due to the fact that the use of the Afatinib manufacturer classical NK1·1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) to deplete NK cells also deletes NK T cells, because the latter lineage also expresses NK1·1. As NK T cells have been shown to contribute to the exacerbation of disease in PBC

[5,6], results of the findings reported herein indicate that the depletion of both NK cells and NK T cells prior to immunization has a minimal role in the overall breakdown of tolerance. Thus, and as shown herein, while depletion of NK1·1 cells appeared to delay significantly the generation of autoimmune-specific acquired humoral and cellular responses, the data indicate clearly that depletion of the NK1·1 lineage did not lead to any detectable differences in the pathology seen in the NK1·1-depleted versus control mice. It is well known that liver contains NK cell subsets which have reduced effector function [42,43], but under appropriate inflammatory conditions become potent killers [44]. NK cells sense normal or abnormal cells with their inhibitory or activating receptors [32]. Thus, under normal circumstances, NK cells will not damage autologous cells due to the engagement of inhibitory receptors.

The results demonstrated that treatment with either mAb resulted

The results demonstrated that treatment with either mAb resulted in dysregulation, with GCs exhibiting abnormally elevated numbers of switched GC B cells (Figs 8 and 9). These findings would appear to confirm learn more iTreg cells as the effector sub-set governing GC reactions to exogenous antigens. It should be noted, however, that both TGF-β81 and IL-1082

have been implicated as Treg-derived effector molecules mediating suppression, in addition to their role in iTreg-cell induction and maintenance. As such, the possibility exists that these molecules are directly regulating cellular events within the GC as opposed to sustaining antigen-specific iTreg cells. In summary, the current study extends our understanding of how Treg cells govern humoral immunity. Whereas previous work clearly showed that the Treg cells control levels of secreted antibodies16–29 and numbers of antibody-forming cells33,34,36 the findings herein are the first to detail the extent to which

Treg cells can influence GCs over the course of the entire reaction. In addition to containing the overall size of the GC response, Treg cells appear to limit the pool of switched GC B cells and thereby maintain a steady ratio of IgM+ to IgM− GC cells. Although it is presently unclear as to why there is pressure AZD6244 concentration to carefully regulate numbers of switched GC B cells, this process may be necessary to enforce selection away from self-reactivity and towards high-affinity antigen-specific clones within the GC. This work is supported by grant NIH R01AA019438 to T.W. The authors declare having no financial or commercial conflicts of interest. Figure S1.    Effect of regulatory T (Treg) cell disruption on splenic non-germinal centre (GC) B cells. Figure S2.    Depletion of regulatory T (Treg) cells leads to abnormal sheep red blood

cell (SRBC) -induced Ergoloid germinal centre responses in BALB/c mice. Figure S3.    Germinal centre (GC) B cells do not express glucocorticoid-induced tumour necrosis factor receptor-related protein (GITR), CD25 or interleukin-10 receptor (IL-10R). Figure S4.    Disruption of regulatory T (Treg) cells does not alter numbers of T follicular helper (Tfh) cells in the spleen at the peak of the response. “
“The aim of the study was to evaluate long-term clinical and immunological effects of anti-B cell treatment in patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA)-associated vasculitis refractory to conventional immunosuppressive treatment. Rituximab (RTX) was added to the ongoing immunosuppressive treatment in 29 patients with refractory ANCA-associated vasculitis. The disease activity was measured using Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score/Wegener’s granulomatosis (BVAS/WG score), and clinical laboratory variables were recorded. The median BVAS/WG score before treatment was 6 (IQR 3–8), and 28 patients (97%) had disease flare classified either severe (62%) or limited (34%).

(L ) amazonensis infection at 4th (528·49 cell/mm2) and 8th weeks

(L.) amazonensis infection at 4th (528·49 cell/mm2) and 8th weeks PI (586·82 cell/mm2), and the control group (402·99 Selleckchem AZD3965 cell/mm2) (Figure 3). At 4th weeks PI, the Th2 cytokines production under specific antigenic stimulation showed that IL-4 levels in the L. (L.) amazonensis infection (139·61 pg/mL) were higher (P < 0·05) than those in the L. (V.) braziliensis infection (15·68 pg/mL), as well as at 8th

weeks PI when IL-4 was detected in the L. (L.) amazonensis group (14·45 pg/mL) and absence in mice infected with L. (V.) braziliensis (Figure 4a). In a similar way, the IL-10 levels were also higher (P < 0·05) in the L. (L.) amazonensis infection than in the L. (V.) braziliensis infection either at 4th (374·64 and 17·62 pg/mL) or at 8th (26·03 pg/mL and not detected) weeks PI (P < 0·05), respectively (Figure 4b). Concerning the production of Th1 cytokines, the IFN-γ levels were higher (P < 0·05) in the L. (V.) braziliensis infection than in the L. (L.) amazonensis infection either at 4th (174·41 pg/mL and 50·83 pg/mL) or at 8th (454·13 pg/mL and 30·16 pg/mL) weeks PI, respectively (Figure 4c). Production of the Th1/Th2 cytokines under nonspecific antigen stimuli (Concanavalin

A) showed similar profiles in both groups (Figure 4a–c). Concerning the control group, a click here nondetectable amount of cytokines was observed in the supernatant of lymph node cell cultures under either specific antigen or nonspecific

stimuli, according to the standard curve. The interaction process between Leishmania PtdIns(3,4)P2 parasites and DCs is complex and involves paradoxical functions, which can inhibit or stimulate T-cell response, leading to either progression or control of infection (18). It is assumed that not only the degree of DCs maturation but also specific subtypes and the compartmentalization of the antigen presentation are of critical interest to the quality of T-cell response (19). In the early phase of the Leishmania infection, besides macrophage, three types of DCs, in particular dDC, LC and inflammatory dendritic cells (iDC), can perform the function of antigen-presenting cells; however, it was demonstrated in murine cutaneous leishmaniasis that both dDC and iDC, but not resident LC in the epidermis, are responsible for the transportation of Leishmania antigens to the draining lymph nodes and stimulate the efficient Th1 immune response (9). Together with the above comments, it was demonstrated in the present work that Leishmania species can also be a crucial factor in priming DCs (dDC and LC) function for preferentially modulating an efficient Th1 or a defective Th2 immune responses. First, at 4th weeks PI, an increase in the cellular densities of both DCs populations in the skin of BALB/c mice infected with L. (L.) amazonensis (P < 0·05) in relation to those infected with L. (V.