The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology
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J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. · Jul 2020
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyRuxolitinib in treatment of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A multicenter, single-blind, randomized controlled trial.
Accumulating evidence proposed Janus-associated kinase (JAK) inhibitors as therapeutic targets warranting rapid investigation. ⋯ Although no statistical difference was observed, ruxolitinib recipients had a numerically faster clinical improvement. Significant chest computed tomography improvement, a faster recovery from lymphopenia, and favorable side-effect profile in the ruxolitinib group were encouraging and informative to future trials to test efficacy of ruxolitinib in a larger population.
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J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. · Jul 2020
ReviewEosinophil responses during COVID-19 infections and coronavirus vaccination.
Eosinophils are circulating and tissue-resident leukocytes that have potent proinflammatory effects in a number of diseases. Recently, eosinophils have been shown to have various other functions, including immunoregulation and antiviral activity. ⋯ First, do patients with eosinophilia-associated diseases have an altered course of COVID-19? Second, do patients with eosinopenia (now intentionally induced by biological drugs) have unique COVID-19 susceptibility and/or disease course? This is a particularly relevant question because eosinopenia is associated with acute respiratory deterioration during infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, the causative agent of COVID-19. Third, do eosinophils contribute to the lung pathology induced during COVID-19 and will they contribute to immunopotentiation potentially associated with emerging COVID-19 vaccines? Herein, we address these timely questions and project considerations during the emerging COVID-19 pandemic.
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J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. · May 2020
Cost-effectiveness of implementing objective diagnostic verification of asthma in the United States.
Asthma diagnosis in the community is often made without objective testing. ⋯ Implementation of a simple diagnostic testing algorithm to verify asthma diagnosis might result in substantial savings and improvement in patients' quality of life.
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J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. · Apr 2020
ReviewAutoimmune bullous skin diseases, pemphigus and pemphigoid.
Autoimmune bullous skin diseases, such as pemphigus and pemphigoid, may enable clarification of the mechanisms of immune regulation in the skin. Pemphigus and pemphigoid are mediated by essentially IgG autoantibodies against structural proteins of the desmosomes at cell-cell junctions and hemidesmosomes at epidermal-dermal junctions, respectively, and are characterized by blisters and erosions in the skin and/or mucous membranes. Intensive investigation over the last 3 decades has identified their target antigens and developed serological diagnostic tools as well as mouse models to help us understand their pathophysiology. Based on these advances, several new therapeutic approaches have become available, and more effective and less toxic targeted approaches are under development.