Special Issue "Nutritional Immunology"
Quicklinks
A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2011)
Special Issue Editor
Guest Editor
Prof. Dr. Antonio Ferrante
Department of Immunology, SA Pathology, Womens and Children’s Hospital Campus, Children’s Research Centre, University of Adelaide, North Adelaide, South Australia 5006, Australia
E-Mail: antonio.ferrante@adelaide.edu.au
Phone: +61 8 81617216
Fax: +61 8 81616046
Interests: cellular immunology, cytokines and inflammation; intracellular signalling and leukocyte function; immunomodulation by fatty acids, their metabolites and other bioactive nutrients
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
A range of foods and nutrients have been shown to be important in the deployment of an effective and balanced innate and adaptive immune response. Often seen at the level of the cellular elements of the immune system, including lymphocytes, neutrophils, macrophages and mast cells, nutrients can influence the development of leukocytes from precursors and their functional responses. Nutritional supplementations may be particularly important in individuals with illnesses, stress and inflammatory disorders, where we can take advantage of the ability of nutrients to act as stimulators or depressors of the immune responses. The action of a number of nutrients on the immune system has undergone assessment and in several cases it has been applied to maintaining good immune health in physical training-induced stress, infections and in inflammatory diseases. These nutrients include vitamins, flavanoides, Lactobacillus probiotics, zinc, short chain fatty acids and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Progress has been made in the use of such supplementation in improving defence against infection and decreasing immune reactivity in allergic and autoimmune diseases.
Prof. Dr. Antonio Ferrante
Guest Editor
Submission
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. Papers will be published continuously (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are refereed through a peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed Open Access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs).
Keywords
- Immune responses
- Immune health
- Nutrition
- Immunonutrient supplementation
- Calorie restriction
- Aging, nutrition and immunity
- Nutrients and cytokines
- n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids
- Short chain fatty acids
- Allergy
- Autoimmune inflammatory diseases
- Zinc
- Leukocyte function
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin A
- Immunodeficiency
- Nutrients and infection
Published Papers (5 papers)
|
Received: 18 July 2011; in revised form: 21 September 2011 / Accepted: 8 October 2011 / Published: 14 October 2011
Show/Hide Abstract
| Download PDF Full-text (536 KB) | Download XML Full-text
Abstract: The short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) acetate (C2), propionate (C3) and butyrate (C4) are the main metabolic products of anaerobic bacteria fermentation in the intestine. In addition to their important role as fuel for intestinal epithelial cells, SCFAs modulate different processes in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract such as electrolyte and water absorption. These fatty acids have been recognized as potential mediators involved in the effects of gut microbiota on intestinal immune function. SCFAs act on leukocytes and endothelial cells through at least two mechanisms: activation of GPCRs (GPR41 and GPR43) and inhibiton of histone deacetylase (HDAC). SCFAs regulate several leukocyte functions including production of cytokines (TNF-α, IL-2, IL-6 and IL-10), eicosanoids and chemokines (e.g., MCP-1 and CINC-2). The ability of leukocytes to migrate to the foci of inflammation and to destroy microbial pathogens also seems to be affected by the SCFAs. In this review, the latest research that describes how SCFAs regulate the inflammatory process is presented. The effects of these fatty acids on isolated cells (leukocytes, endothelial and intestinal epithelial cells) and, particularly, on the recruitment and activation of leukocytes are discussed. Therapeutic application of these fatty acids for the treatment of inflammatory pathologies is also highlighted.
|
Chiara Murgia, Dion Grosser, Ai Q. Truong-Tran, Eugene Roscioli, Agnes Michalczyk, Margaret Leigh Ackland, Meredin Stoltenberg, Gorm Danscher, Carol Lang, Darryl Knight, Giuditta Perozzi, Richard E. Ruffin and Peter Zalewski
Received: 29 June 2011; in revised form: 9 September 2011 / Accepted: 13 September 2011 / Published: 25 October 2011
Show/Hide Abstract
| Download PDF Full-text (2609 KB) | Download XML Full-text
Abstract: The apical cytoplasm of airway epithelium (AE) contains abundant labile zinc (Zn) ions that are involved in the protection of AE from oxidants and inhaled noxious substances. A major question is how dietary Zn traffics to this compartment. In rat airways, in vivo selenite autometallographic (Se-AMG)-electron microscopy revealed labile Zn-selenium nanocrystals in structures resembling secretory vesicles in the apical cytoplasm. This observation was consistent with the starry-sky Zinquin fluorescence staining of labile Zn ions confined to the same region. The vesicular Zn transporter ZnT4 was likewise prominent in both the apical and basal parts of the epithelium both in rodent and human AE, although the apical pools were more obvious. Expression of ZnT4 mRNA was unaffected by changes in the extracellular Zn concentration. However, levels increased 3-fold during growth of cells in air liquid interface cultures and decreased sharply in the presence of retinoic acid. When comparing nasal versus bronchial human AE cells, there were significant positive correlations between levels of ZnT4 from the same subject, suggesting that nasal brushings may allow monitoring of airway Zn transporter expression. Finally, there were marked losses of both basally-located ZnT4 protein and labile Zn in the bronchial epithelium of mice with allergic airway inflammation. This study is the first to describe co-localization of zinc vesicles with the specific zinc transporter ZnT4 in airway epithelium and loss of ZnT4 protein in inflamed airways. Direct evidence that ZnT4 regulates Zn levels in the epithelium still needs to be provided. We speculate that ZnT4 is an important regulator of zinc ion accumulation in secretory apical vesicles and that the loss of labile Zn and ZnT4 in airway inflammation contributes to AE vulnerability in diseases such as asthma.
 |
|
Received: 11 November 2011; in revised form: 2 December 2011 / Accepted: 20 December 2011 / Published: 28 December 2011
Show/Hide Abstract
| Download PDF Full-text (198 KB) | Download XML Full-text
Abstract: A role for vitamin D in the regulation of immune function was first proposed after the identification of Vitamin D Receptors in lymphocytes. It has since been recognized that the active form of vitamin D, 1α,25(OH)2D3, has direct affects on naïve and activated helper T cells, regulatory T cells, activated B cells and dendritic cells. There is a growing body of literature linking vitamin D (serum 25(OH)D, oral intake and surrogate indicators such as latitude) to various immune-related conditions, including allergy, although the nature of this relationship is still unclear. This review explores the findings of epidemiological, clinical and laboratory research, and the potential role of vitamin D in promoting the inappropriate immune responses which underpin the rise in a broad range of immune diseases.
|
|
Received: 17 January 2012; in revised form: 14 February 2012 / Accepted: 23 February 2012 / Published: 6 March 2012
Show/Hide Abstract
| Download PDF Full-text (1297 KB) | Download XML Full-text
Abstract: It has been shown that dietary materials are involved in immune regulation in the intestine. Lipids mediate immune regulation through a complex metabolic network that produces many kinds of lipid mediators. Sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) is a lipid mediator that controls cell trafficking and activation. In this review, we focus on the immunological functions of S1P in the regulation of intestinal immune responses such as immunoglobulin A production and unique T cell trafficking, and its role in the development of intestinal immune diseases such as food allergies and intestinal inflammation, and also discuss the relationship between dietary materials and S1P metabolism.
|
|
Received: 9 February 2012; in revised form: 27 February 2012 / Accepted: 5 March 2012 / Published: 22 March 2012
Show/Hide Abstract
| Download PDF Full-text (263 KB) | Download XML Full-text
Abstract: Females with sepsis have a better prognosis than males, while those of both genders with cirrhosis have a high mortality. Impaired immunity accompanies liver cirrhosis. The potential association between sex and immunologic response of cirrhotic rats in sepsis following immunonutrition was investigated. One hundred and forty-three rats were randomly divided into groups. Liver cirrhosis was produced by weekly feeding of CCl4 for 8 weeks. Among them, 24 male and 19 female underwent castration one month before studying. The rats were fed with either immune enhancing diet or control diet for five days, then sepsis was induced with cecal ligation and two holes puncture. Main outcomes included mortality and serum cytokines (IL-1β, 6, and 10). Comparisons were made both within and between genders. Cirrhotic non-castrated male rats showed a significant decrease in mortality (64.1% vs. 32.1%, p = 0.032) with better survival than control diet following immune enhancing diet. Lower mortality of cirrhotic non-castrated female rats was found after immune enhancing diet (69.6% vs. 52.1%, p = 0.365). Cirrhotic castrated male rats showed a lower mortality (44.4%) following immune enhancing diet, and cirrhotic castrated female rats also showed significantly lower mortality and better survival than control diet after immune enhancing diet (87.5% vs. 33.3%, p = 0.004). Plasma concentrations of IL-1β were higher in non-oophorectomized female rats fed with control diet compared to immune enhancing diet. Non-orchidectomized males and non-oophorectomized females exhibited similar increases in IL-10 after immune enhancing diet. Our results demonstrated that immunonutrition was more beneficial for male than female cirrhotic rats following sepsis. Though orchidectomy was not found to be more advantageous for the normal male rats in sepsis, immunonutrition seemed to be as important as sex hormone for female rats in sepsis.
|
Last update: 1 June 2011
