Kon, Y. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2018

Morphofunctional analysis of antigen uptake mechanisms following sublingual immunotherapy with beads in mice

BackgroundRecently, sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) has been used as a safe and efficient method for the treatment of and immunization against asthma and various allergies. However, the routes of antigen uptake through the mucosa of the oral cavity remain incompletely understood, as do the roles of sex and age in the process. For this purpose, to elucidate the mechanism and efficacy of SLIT among different sexes and ages microbeads were dripped into the sublingual region to mimic antigen uptake by the sublingual mucosa.\n\nMethodsTwenty microliters of either phosphate buffered saline (PBS) or fluorescently labelled microbeads (latex and silica beads) were placed under the tongue of both male and female C57BL/6 mice at young (3 months) and old (6 months) ages. The lower jaw was examined 30 min after administration, and beads were detected with a fluorescence stereomicroscope. Morphological observations of the mucosa of the fluorescent areas were made with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and an all-in-one light fluorescence microscope (LM). Fluorescence intensity was compared between both sexes and ages.\n\nResultsStereomicroscopic observation revealed fluorescent illuminations in three compartments of the sublingual mucosa: the sublingual caruncles (SC), the oral rostral mucosa (OR) and the buccal mucosa (BM). Interestingly, the fluorescence intensity tended to be higher among females than among males in the SC region in particular. However, there were no significant age-related differences. SEM and LM revealed beads in the lumina of both mandibular ducts and sublingual ducts (Sd). Additionally, the apical cytoplasm of some Sd cells contained silica beads. However, there were no specification in the OR mucosa or BM.\n\nConclusionsThis study reveals the major role Sd play in local immunity via the antigen uptake mechanisms. Furthermore, our data suggest that the efficacy of SLIT in humans could be affected by sex.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2017

Jellyfish Oocyte Maturation Inducing Hormone And Neuroendocrine Regulation Of Reproduction

Oocyte meiotic maturation is a critical process for sexually reproducing animals, and its core cytoplasmic regulators are highly conserved between species. In contrast, the few known Maturation Inducing Hormones (MIHs) that act on oocytes to initiate this process have highly variable molecular natures. Using the hydrozoan jellyfish species Clytia and Cladonema, which undergo oocyte maturation in response to dark-light and light-dark transitions respectively, we deduced from gonad transcriptome data amidated tetrapeptide sequences and found that synthetic peptides could induce maturation of isolated oocytes at nanomolar concentrations. Antibody preabsorption experiments conclusively demonstrated that these W/RPRPamide-related neuropeptides account for endogenous MIH activity produced by isolated gonads. We further showed that the MIH peptides are synthesised by neural-type cells in the gonad, are released following dark-light / light-dark transitions, and probably act on the oocyte surface. They are produced by male as well as female jellyfish and can trigger both sperm and egg release, suggesting a role in spawning coordination. We propose an evolutionary link between hydrozoan MIH and the neuropeptide hormones that regulate reproduction upstream of MIH in bilaterian species.

developmental biology↗