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Fanelli M, Petrone V, Maracchioni C, Chirico R, Cipriani C, Coppola L, Malagnino V, Teti E, Sorace C, Zordan M, Vitale P, Iannetta M, Balestrieri E, Rasi G, Grelli S, Malergue F, Sarmati L, Minutolo A, Matteucci C. Persistence of circulating CD169+monocytes and HLA-DR downregulation underline the immune response impairment in PASC individuals: the potential contribution of different COVID-19 pandemic waves. Curr Res Microb Sci 2023; 6:100215. [PMID: 38187999 PMCID: PMC10767315 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2023.100215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024] Open
Abstract
The use of CD169 as a marker of viral infection has been widely discussed in the context of COVID-19, and in particular, its crucial role in the early detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection and its association with the severity and clinical outcome of COVID-19 were demonstrated. COVID-19 patients show relevant systemic alteration and immunological dysfunction that persists in individuals with post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). It is critical to implement the characterization of the disease, focusing also on the possible impact of the different COVID-19 waves and the consequent effects found after infection. On this basis, we evaluated by flow cytometry the expression of CD169 and HLA-DR on monocytes from COVID-19 patients and PASC individuals to better elucidate their involvement in immunological dysfunction, also evaluating the possible impact of different pandemic waves. The results confirm CD169 RMFI is a good marker of viral infection. Moreover, COVID-19 patients and PASC individuals showed high percentage of CD169+ monocytes, but low percentage of HLA-DR+ monocytes and the alteration of systemic inflammatory indices. We have also observed alterations of CD169 and HLA-DR expression and indices of inflammation upon different COVID-19 waves. The persistence of specific myeloid subpopulations suggests a role of CD169+ monocytes and HLA-DR in COVID-19 disease and chronic post-infection inflammation, opening new opportunities to evaluate the impact of specific pandemic waves on the immune response impairment and systemic alterations with the perspective to provide new tools to monitoring new variants and diseases associated to emerging respiratory viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marialaura Fanelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Vita Petrone
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Christian Maracchioni
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Rossella Chirico
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Chiara Cipriani
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Luigi Coppola
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Malagnino
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Elisabetta Teti
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Chiara Sorace
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Marta Zordan
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Pietro Vitale
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Marco Iannetta
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Emanuela Balestrieri
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Guido Rasi
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Sandro Grelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Virology Unit, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Fabrice Malergue
- Global Research Organization, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, Marseille, 13009, France
| | - Loredana Sarmati
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Clinic, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Antonella Minutolo
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Claudia Matteucci
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1 - 00133, Rome, 00133, Italy
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Balestrieri E, Corinaldesi E, Fabi M, Cipriani C, Giudice M, Conti A, Minutolo A, Petrone V, Fanelli M, Miele MT, Andreozzi L, Guida F, Filice E, Meli M, Grelli S, Rasi G, Toschi N, Torcetta F, Matteucci C, Lanari M, Sinibaldi-Vallebona P. Preliminary Evidence of the Differential Expression of Human Endogenous Retroviruses in Kawasaki Disease and SARS-CoV-2-Associated Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15086. [PMID: 37894766 PMCID: PMC10606856 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242015086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Revised: 10/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a postinfectious sequela of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), with some clinical features overlapping with Kawasaki disease (KD). Our research group and others have highlighted that the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 can trigger the activation of human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs), which in turn induces inflammatory and immune reactions, suggesting HERVs as contributing factors in COVID-19 immunopathology. With the aim to identify new factors involved in the processes underlying KD and MIS-C, we analysed the transcriptional levels of HERVs, HERV-related genes, and immune mediators in children during the acute and subacute phases compared with COVID-19 paediatric patients and healthy controls. The results showed higher levels of HERV-W, HERV-K, Syn-1, and ASCT-1/2 in KD, MIS-C, and COV patients, while higher levels of Syn-2 and MFSD2A were found only in MIS-C patients. Moreover, KD and MIS-C shared the dysregulation of several inflammatory and regulatory cytokines. Interestingly, in MIS-C patients, negative correlations have been found between HERV-W and IL-10 and between Syn-2 and IL-10, while positive correlations have been found between HERV-K and IL-10. In addition, HERV-W expression positively correlated with the C-reactive protein. This pilot study supports the role of HERVs in inflammatory diseases, suggesting their interplay with the immune system in this setting. The elevated expression of Syn-2 and MFSD2A seems to be a distinctive trait of MIS-C patients, allowing to distinguish them from KD ones. The understanding of pathological mechanisms can lead to the best available treatment for these two diseases, limiting complications and serious outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuela Balestrieri
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Elena Corinaldesi
- Pediatric Unit, Ramazzini Hospital, 41012 Carpi, Italy; (E.C.); (F.T.)
| | - Marianna Fabi
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Chiara Cipriani
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Martina Giudice
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Allegra Conti
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (A.C.); (N.T.)
| | - Antonella Minutolo
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Vita Petrone
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Marialaura Fanelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Martino Tony Miele
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Laura Andreozzi
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Fiorentina Guida
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Emanuele Filice
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Matteo Meli
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Sandro Grelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Guido Rasi
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Nicola Toschi
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (A.C.); (N.T.)
- Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02129, USA
| | | | - Claudia Matteucci
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
| | - Marcello Lanari
- Pediatric Emergency Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy; (L.A.); (F.G.); (E.F.); (M.M.); (M.L.)
| | - Paola Sinibaldi-Vallebona
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy; (C.C.); (M.G.); (A.M.); (V.P.); (M.F.); (M.T.M.); (S.G.); (G.R.); (C.M.); (P.S.-V.)
- National Research Council, Institute of Translational Pharmacology, 00133 Rome, Italy
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Petrone V, Fanelli M, Giudice M, Toschi N, Conti A, Maracchioni C, Iannetta M, Resta C, Cipriani C, Miele MT, Amati F, Andreoni M, Sarmati L, Rogliani P, Novelli G, Garaci E, Rasi G, Sinibaldi-Vallebona P, Minutolo A, Matteucci C, Balestrieri E, Grelli S. Expression profile of HERVs and inflammatory mediators detected in nasal mucosa as a predictive biomarker of COVID-19 severity. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1155624. [PMID: 37283924 PMCID: PMC10239953 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1155624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Our research group and others demonstrated the implication of the human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) in SARS-CoV-2 infection and their association with disease progression, suggesting HERVs as contributing factors in COVID-19 immunopathology. To identify early predictive biomarkers of the COVID-19 severity, we analyzed the expression of HERVs and inflammatory mediators in SARS-CoV-2-positive and -negative nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal swabs with respect to biochemical parameters and clinical outcome. Methods Residuals of swab samples (20 SARS-CoV-2-negative and 43 SARS-CoV-2-positive) were collected during the first wave of the pandemic and expression levels of HERVs and inflammatory mediators were analyzed by qRT-Real time PCR. Results The results obtained show that infection with SARS-CoV-2 resulted in a general increase in the expression of HERVs and mediators of the immune response. In particular, SARS-CoV-2 infection is associated with increased expression of HERV-K and HERV-W, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-17, TNF-α, MCP-1, INF-γ, TLR-3, and TLR-7, while lower levels of IL-10, IFN-α, IFN-β, and TLR-4 were found in individuals who underwent hospitalization. Moreover, higher expression of HERV-W, IL-1β, IL-6, IFN-α, and IFN-β reflected the respiratory outcome of patients during hospitalization. Interestingly, a machine learning model was able to classify hospitalized vs not hospitalized patients with good accuracy based on the expression levels of HERV-K, HERV-W, IL-6, TNF-a, TLR-3, TLR-7, and the N gene of SARS-CoV-2. These latest biomarkers also correlated with parameters of coagulation and inflammation. Discussion Overall, the present results suggest HERVs as contributing elements in COVID-19 and early genomic biomarkers to predict COVID-19 severity and disease outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vita Petrone
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Marialaura Fanelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Martina Giudice
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Nicola Toschi
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Allegra Conti
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Marco Iannetta
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia Resta
- Respiratory Medicine Unit, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Cipriani
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Martino Tony Miele
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesca Amati
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Massimo Andreoni
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Loredana Sarmati
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Rogliani
- Respiratory Medicine Unit, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Novelli
- Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Neuromed IRCCS Institute, Pozzilli, IS, Italy
- University of Nevada, Department of Pharmacology, Reno, NV, United States
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Sinibaldi-Vallebona
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- National Research Council, Institute of Translational Pharmacology, Rome, Italy
| | - Antonella Minutolo
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia Matteucci
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Emanuela Balestrieri
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Sandro Grelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Virology Unit, Policlinic of Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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Xoxi E, Rumi F, Kanavos P, Dauben HP, Gutierrez-Ibarluzea I, Wong O, Rasi G, Cicchetti A. A Proposal for Value-Based Managed Entry Agreements in an Environment of Technological Change and Economic Challenge for Publicly Funded Healthcare Systems. Front Med Technol 2022; 4:888404. [PMID: 35782579 PMCID: PMC9245041 DOI: 10.3389/fmedt.2022.888404] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Managed entry agreements (MEA) represent one of the main topics of discussion between the European National Payers Authorities. Several initiatives on the subject have been organized over the past few years and the scientific literature is full of publications on the subject. There is currently little international sharing of information between payers, mainly as a result of the confidentiality issues. There are potential benefits from the mutual sharing of information, both about the existence of MEAs and on the outcomes and results. The importance of involving all the players in the decision-making process on market access for a medicinal product (MP) is that it may help to make new therapies available to patients in a shorter time. The aim of this project is to propose a new pathway of value-based MEA (VBMEA), based on the analysis of the current Italian pricing and reimbursement framework. This requires elaboration of a transparent appraisal and MEA details with at least a 24-month contract. The price of the MP is therefore valued based on the analysis of the VBMEA registries of the Italian Medicines Agency. Although the proposal focuses on the Italian context, a similar approach could also be adapted in other nations, considering the particularities of the single health technology assessment (HTA)/payer system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Entela Xoxi
- Postgraduate School of Health Economics and Management (ALTEMS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Filippo Rumi
- Postgraduate School of Health Economics and Management (ALTEMS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
- *Correspondence: Filippo Rumi
| | - Panos Kanavos
- London School of Economics and Political Science, London, United Kingdom
| | - Hans-Peter Dauben
- Rheinische Fachhochschule Köln, University for Applied Science, Köln, Germany
| | - Iñaki Gutierrez-Ibarluzea
- BIOEF, Public Foundation of the Department of Health to Promote Innovation and Research in Euskadi, Bilbao, Spain
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- Clinical Trial Center, Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Americo Cicchetti
- Postgraduate School of Health Economics and Management (ALTEMS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
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Jommi C, Armeni P, Costa F, Alberti C, Bandello F, Bordonaro R, Caprodossi A, Di Maio M, Gaudioso A, Giuliani G, Langella R, Marata AM, Patarnello F, Pinto C, Rasi G, Villa F. [Early access programs and managed entry agreements for medicines in Italy: results of a Focus Group (Early Access Programs and Managed Entry Agreement).]. Recenti Prog Med 2021; 112:749-756. [PMID: 34782810 DOI: 10.1701/3696.36853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early access of medicines occurs with an uncertainty in the evidence even higher than the one experienced when price and reimbursement status is negotiated. Our aim is discussing the role of managed entry agreements (MEA) within early access programs (EAP) in Italy. METHODS The discussion relied on a Focus Group, participated by twelve experts, including clinicians and representatives of regulatory authorities, regional and local pharmaceutical departments, pharmaceutical companies, and an association advocating for active citizenship. RESULTS The Focus Group emphasised that the topic under discussion should be embedded into a more general reform of EAP in Italy. The 648 List mostly includes mature products and indications that are rarely launched into the market afterwards. The 5% Fund is affected by an important administrative burden uncertainty of the timing of reimbursement. CONCLUSIONS Starting from the discussion on MEA and EAP, the Focus Group recommended a new legislation better regulating EAP, that early access concerns specific classes of medicines selected on the grounds of the need to guarantee a rapid access and to collect real world data, that early access can be accompanied by outcome-based and population-based MEA, and that MEA are embedded into the subsequent price and reimbursement negotiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudio Jommi
- Cergas, SDA Bocconi School of Management, Università Bocconi, Milano
| | - Patrizio Armeni
- Cergas, SDA Bocconi School of Management, Università Bocconi, Milano
| | - Francesco Costa
- Cergas, SDA Bocconi School of Management, Università Bocconi, Milano
| | - Chiara Alberti
- UOC Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata di Verona
| | | | | | | | - Massimo Di Maio
- Dipartimento di Oncologia, Università di Torino; AO Ordine Mauriziano, Torino
| | | | | | | | - Anna Maria Marata
- Servizio assistenza territoriale, Area farmaci e dispositivi medici, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Bologna
| | | | - Carmine Pinto
- Oncologia Medica, Comprehensive Cancer Centre, AUSL-IRCCS di Reggio Emilia
| | - Guido Rasi
- Dipartimento di Medicina Sperimentale, Università di Roma Tor Vergata
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Maltese G, Rasi G. Legends of allergy and immunology: Sergio Bonini. Allergy 2021; 76:3227-3229. [PMID: 33838049 DOI: 10.1111/all.14847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Maltese
- Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals Surrey UK
- Unit for Metabolic Medicine School of Cardiovascular Medicine & Sciences King’s College London London UK
| | - Guido Rasi
- Former Executive Director European Medicines Agency University of Tor Vergata Rome Italy
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Kurz X, Arlett P, Eichler HG, Nolte A, Straus S, Rasi G. Increasing the impact of Post Authorisation Safety Studies: transparency is key. Eur J Intern Med 2021; 83:6-7. [PMID: 33277138 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejim.2020.11.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2020] [Accepted: 11/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xavier Kurz
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Peter Arlett
- EMA, Amsterdam, The Netherlands and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Hans-Georg Eichler
- EMA, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alexis Nolte
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Sabine Straus
- Medicines Evaluation Board (MEB), Utrecht, The Netherlands and EMA Pharmacovigilance and Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Guido Rasi
- EMA, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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Soumyanarayanan U, Choong M, Leong J, Lumpkin MM, Rasi G, Skerritt JH, Vogel S, Lim JCW. The COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity to strengthen global regulatory coordination for sustained enhanced access to diagnostics and therapeutics. Clin Transl Sci 2020; 14:777-780. [PMID: 33314667 PMCID: PMC8212715 DOI: 10.1111/cts.12954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Uttara Soumyanarayanan
- Centre of Regulatory Excellence (CoRE), Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore City, Singapore
| | - Mimi Choong
- Health Sciences Authority (HSA), Singapore City, Singapore
| | - James Leong
- Centre of Regulatory Excellence (CoRE), Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore City, Singapore
| | | | | | | | - Silke Vogel
- Centre of Regulatory Excellence (CoRE), Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore City, Singapore
| | - John C W Lim
- Centre of Regulatory Excellence (CoRE), Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore City, Singapore.,SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute (SDGHI), Singapore City, Singapore.,Consortium for Clinical Research & Innovation Singapore (CRIS), Singapore City, Singapore
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Eichler HG, Pignatti F, Schwarzer-Daum B, Hidalgo-Simon A, Eichler I, Arlett P, Humphreys A, Vamvakas S, Brun N, Rasi G. Randomized Controlled Trials Versus Real World Evidence: Neither Magic Nor Myth. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2020; 109:1212-1218. [PMID: 33063841 PMCID: PMC8246742 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.2083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Compared with drugs from the blockbuster era, recently authorized drugs and those expected in the future present a heterogenous mix of chemicals, biologicals, and cell and gene therapies, a sizable fraction being for rare diseases, and even individualized treatments or individualized combinations. The shift in the nature of products entails secular trends for the definitions of “drugs” and “target population” and for clinical use and evidence generation. We discuss that the lessons learned from evidence generation for 20th century medicines may have limited relevance for 21st century medicines. We explain why the future is not about randomized controlled trials (RCTs) vs. real‐world evidence (RWE) but RCTs and RWE—not just for the assessment of safety but also of effectiveness. Finally, we highlight that, in the era of precision medicine, we may not be able to reliably describe some small treatment effects—either by way of RCTs or RWE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans-Georg Eichler
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Brigitte Schwarzer-Daum
- Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,EMA's Committee for Orphan Medical Products (COMP), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Peter Arlett
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | | | | | | | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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10
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Eichler HG, Cavaleri M, Enzmann H, Scotti F, Sepodes B, Sweeney F, Vamvakas S, Rasi G. Clinical Trials for COVID-19: Can we Better Use the Short Window of Opportunity? Clin Pharmacol Ther 2020; 108:730-733. [PMID: 32407539 PMCID: PMC7272975 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.1891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The scientific community has risen to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) challenge, coming up with an impressive list of candidate drugs and vaccines targeting an array of pharmacological and immunological mechanisms. Yet, generating clinical evidence of efficacy and safety of these candidate treatments may be frustrated by the absence of comprehensive trial coordination mechanisms. Many small stand‐alone trials and observational studies of single‐agent interventions are currently running or in planning; many of these will likely not deliver robust results that could support regulatory and patient‐level treatment decisions. In this paper, we discuss actions that all stakeholders in the clinical trial ecosystem need to take to ensure that the window of opportunity during this pandemic will not shut, both for patients in need of treatment and for researchers to conduct decision‐relevant clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans-Georg Eichler
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marco Cavaleri
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Harald Enzmann
- BfArM, Bonn, Germany.,EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Bruno Sepodes
- EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Fergus Sweeney
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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11
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Eichler H, Koenig F, Arlett P, Enzmann H, Humphreys A, Pétavy F, Schwarzer‐Daum B, Sepodes B, Vamvakas S, Rasi G. Are Novel, Nonrandomized Analytic Methods Fit for Decision Making? The Need for Prospective, Controlled, and Transparent Validation. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2020; 107:773-779. [PMID: 31574163 PMCID: PMC7158212 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.1638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2019] [Accepted: 09/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Real-world data and patient-level data from completed randomized controlled trials are becoming available for secondary analysis on an unprecedented scale. A range of novel methodologies and study designs have been proposed for their analysis or combination. However, to make novel analytical methods acceptable for regulators and other decision makers will require their testing and validation in broadly the same way one would evaluate a new drug: prospectively, well-controlled, and according to a pre-agreed plan. From a European regulators' perspective, the established methods qualification advice procedure with active participation of patient groups and other decision makers is an efficient and transparent platform for the development and validation of novel study designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans‐Georg Eichler
- European Medicines Agency (EMA)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Medical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | | | - Peter Arlett
- European Medicines Agency (EMA)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Harald Enzmann
- Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM)BonnGermany
- EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | | | - Frank Pétavy
- European Medicines Agency (EMA)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Brigitte Schwarzer‐Daum
- Medical University of ViennaViennaAustria
- EMA's Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Bruno Sepodes
- EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
- EMA's Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Universidade de LisboaLisbonPortugal
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA)AmsterdamThe Netherlands
- University Tor VergataRomeItaly
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12
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13
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Cave A, Brun NC, Sweeney F, Rasi G, Senderovitz T. Big Data - How to Realize the Promise. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2020; 107:753-761. [PMID: 31846513 PMCID: PMC7158218 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.1736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2019] [Accepted: 12/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
The increasing volume and complexity of data now being captured across multiple settings and devices offers the opportunity to deliver a better characterization of diseases, treatments, and the performance of medicinal products in individual healthcare systems. Such data sources, commonly labeled as big data, are generally large, accumulating rapidly, and incorporate multiple data types and forms. Determining the acceptability of these data to support regulatory decisions demands an understanding of data provenance and quality in addition to confirming the validity of new approaches and methods for processing and analyzing these data. The Heads of Agencies and the European Medicines Agency Joint Big Data Taskforce was established to consider these issues from the regulatory perspective. This review reflects the thinking from its first phase and describes the big data landscape from a regulatory perspective and the challenges to be addressed in order that regulators can know when and how to have confidence in the evidence generated from big datasets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison Cave
- European Medicines Agency, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | | | | | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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14
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans-Georg Eichler
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), Amsterdam, the Netherlands; University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
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15
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Arlett P, Straus S, Rasi G. Pharmacovigilance 2030: Invited Commentary for the January 2020 "Futures" Edition of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2019; 107:89-91. [PMID: 31758540 PMCID: PMC6977396 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.1689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2019] [Accepted: 10/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Peter Arlett
- European Medicines Agency, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Sabine Straus
- Medicines Evaluation Board, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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16
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Eichler HG, Bloechl-Daum B, Broich K, Kyrle PA, Oderkirk J, Rasi G, Santos Ivo R, Schuurman A, Senderovitz T, Slawomirski L, Wenzl M, Paris V. Data Rich, Information Poor: Can We Use Electronic Health Records to Create a Learning Healthcare System for Pharmaceuticals? Clin Pharmacol Ther 2018; 105:912-922. [PMID: 30178490 PMCID: PMC6587701 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.1226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 08/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Judicious use of real‐world data (RWD) is expected to make all steps in the development and use of pharmaceuticals more effective and efficient, including research and development, regulatory decision making, health technology assessment, pricing, and reimbursement decisions and treatment. A “learning healthcare system” based on electronic health records and other routinely collected data will be required to harness the full potential of RWD to complement evidence based on randomized controlled trials. We describe and illustrate with examples the growing demand for a learning healthcare system; we contrast the exigencies of an efficient pharmaceutical ecosystem in the future with current deficiencies highlighted in recently published Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) reports; and we reflect on the steps necessary to enable the transition from healthcare data to actionable information. A coordinated effort from all stakeholders and international cooperation will be required to increase the speed of implementation of the learning healthcare system, to everybody's benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Karl Broich
- Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices, Bonn, Germany
| | | | - Jillian Oderkirk
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France
| | | | - Rui Santos Ivo
- National Authority of Medicines and Health Products, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Ad Schuurman
- National Health Care Institute, Diemen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Luke Slawomirski
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France
| | - Martin Wenzl
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France
| | - Valerie Paris
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France
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17
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Tafuri G, Lucas I, Estevão S, Moseley J, d'Andon A, Bruehl H, Gajraj E, Garcia S, Hedberg N, Massari M, Molina A, Obach M, Osipenko L, Petavy F, Petschulies M, Pontes C, Russo P, Schiel A, Van de Casteele M, Zebedin-Brandl EM, Rasi G, Vamvakas S. The impact of parallel regulatory-health technology assessment scientific advice on clinical development. Assessing the uptake of regulatory and health technology assessment recommendations. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2018; 84:1013-1019. [PMID: 29370449 DOI: 10.1111/bcp.13524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2017] [Revised: 01/02/2018] [Accepted: 01/14/2018] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
AIMS The parallel regulatory-health technology assessment scientific advice (PSA) procedure allows manufacturers to receive simultaneous feedback from both EU regulators and health technology assessment (HTA) bodies on development plans for new medicines. The primary objective of the present study is to investigate whether PSA is integrated in the clinical development programmes for which advice was sought. METHODS Contents of PSA provided by regulators and HTA bodies for each procedure between 2010 and 2015 were analysed. The development of all clinical studies for which PSA had been sought was tracked using three different databases. The rate of uptake of the advice provided by regulators and HTA bodies was assessed on two key variables: comparator/s and primary endpoint. RESULTS In terms of uptake of comparator recommendations at the time of PSA in the actual development, our analysis showed that manufacturers implemented comparators to address both the needs of regulators and of at least one HTA body in 12 of 21 studies. For primary endpoints, in all included studies manufacturers addressed both the needs of the regulators and at least one HTA body. CONCLUSIONS One of the key findings of this analysis is that manufacturers tend to implement changes to the development programme based on both regulatory and HTA advice with regards to the choice of primary endpoint and comparator. It also confirms the challenging choice of the study comparator, for which manufacturers seem to be more inclined to satisfy the regulatory advice. Continuous research efforts in this area are of paramount importance from a public health perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Tafuri
- Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), Via del Tritone, 181-00187, Rome, Italy
| | - Inês Lucas
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, United Kingdom
| | - Steve Estevão
- The National Health Care Institute (ZIN), 4 Eekholt, Diemen, 1112 XH, The Netherlands
| | - Jane Moseley
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, United Kingdom
| | - Anne d'Andon
- Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS), 5 Avenue du Stade de France, 93210, Saint-Denis, France
| | - Hannah Bruehl
- The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), Wegelystr. 8, D-10623, Berlin, Germany
| | - Elangovan Gajraj
- The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 10 Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BU, United Kingdom
| | - Sonia Garcia
- Spanish Agency of Medicines and Medical Devices (AEMPS), Calle Campezo 1, Edificio 8, 28022, Madrid, Spain
| | - Niklas Hedberg
- Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency (TLV), Fleminggatan 18, 104 22, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Marco Massari
- Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), Via del Tritone, 181-00187, Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Molina
- Servei Català de la Salut (CatSalut), Travessera de les Corts, 131-159, Edifici Olímpia, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mercè Obach
- Servei Català de la Salut (CatSalut), Travessera de les Corts, 131-159, Edifici Olímpia, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leeza Osipenko
- The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 10 Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BU, United Kingdom
| | - Frank Petavy
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Petschulies
- The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), Wegelystr. 8, D-10623, Berlin, Germany
| | - Caridad Pontes
- Servei Català de la Salut (CatSalut), Travessera de les Corts, 131-159, Edifici Olímpia, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Pierluigi Russo
- Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), Via del Tritone, 181-00187, Rome, Italy
| | - Anja Schiel
- Norwegian Medicines Agency (NoMA), Strømsveien 96, 0663, Oslo, Norway
| | - Marc Van de Casteele
- National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (INAMI-RIZIV), Avenue de Tervueren 211, 1150, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Eva-Maria Zebedin-Brandl
- Main Association of Austrian Social Security Institutions (HVB), Kundmanngasse 21, A-1031, Vienna, Austria
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, United Kingdom
| | - Spiros Vamvakas
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, United Kingdom
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18
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Ciani O, Buyse M, Drummond M, Rasi G, Saad ED, Taylor RS. Time to Review the Role of Surrogate End Points in Health Policy: State of the Art and the Way Forward. Value Health 2017; 20:487-495. [PMID: 28292495 DOI: 10.1016/j.jval.2016.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2016] [Revised: 10/08/2016] [Accepted: 10/20/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The efficacy of medicines, medical devices, and other health technologies should be proved in trials that assess final patient-relevant outcomes such as survival or morbidity. Market access and coverage decisions are, however, often based on surrogate end points, biomarkers, or intermediate end points, which aim to substitute and predict patient-relevant outcomes that are unavailable because of methodological, financial, or practical constraints. We provide a summary of the present use of surrogate end points in health care policy, discussing the case for and against their adoption and reviewing validation methods. We introduce a three-step framework for policymakers to handle surrogates, which involves establishing the level of evidence, assessing the strength of the association, and quantifying relations between surrogates and final outcomes. Although the use of surrogates can be problematic, they can, when selected and validated appropriately, offer important opportunities for more efficient clinical trials and faster access to new health technologies that benefit patients and health care systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oriana Ciani
- Evidence Synthesis and Modelling for Health Improvement, Institute of Health Research, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK; Centre for Research on Health and Social Care Management, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.
| | - Marc Buyse
- International Drug Development Institute, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium; CluePoints, Inc., Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency, London, UK; University "Tor Vergata," Rome, Italy
| | | | - Rod S Taylor
- Evidence Synthesis and Modelling for Health Improvement, Institute of Health Research, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK
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19
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Bonini
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (S.B., G.R.); and the Second University of Naples, Naples (S.B.), and Istituto di Farmacologia Traslazionale del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (S.B.) and the University of Rome Tor Vergata (G.R.), Rome - all in Italy
| | - Guido Rasi
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (S.B., G.R.); and the Second University of Naples, Naples (S.B.), and Istituto di Farmacologia Traslazionale del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (S.B.) and the University of Rome Tor Vergata (G.R.), Rome - all in Italy
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20
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Tafuri G, Pagnini M, Moseley J, Massari M, Petavy F, Behring A, Catalan A, Gajraj E, Hedberg N, Obach M, Osipenko L, Russo P, Van De Casteele M, Zebedin EM, Rasi G, Vamvakas S. How aligned are the perspectives of EU regulators and HTA bodies? A comparative analysis of regulatory-HTA parallel scientific advice. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2016; 82:965-73. [PMID: 27245362 PMCID: PMC5137821 DOI: 10.1111/bcp.13023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2016] [Revised: 05/20/2016] [Accepted: 05/28/2016] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In 2010, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) initiated a pilot project on parallel scientific advice with Health Technology Assessment bodies (HTABs) that allows manufacturers to receive simultaneous feedback from both the European Union (EU) regulators and HTABs on their development plans for medicines. AIMS The present retrospective qualitative analysis aimed to explore how the parallel scientific advice system is working and levels of commonality between the EU regulators and HTABs, and among HTABs, when applicants obtain parallel scientific advice from both a regulatory and an HTA perspective. METHODS We analysed the minutes of discussion meetings held at the EMA between 2010, when parallel advice was launched, and 1 May 2015, when the cutoff date for data extraction was set. The analysis was based on predefined criteria and conducted at two different levels of comparison: the answers of the HTABs vs. those of the regulators, and between the answers of the participating HTA agencies. RESULTS The analysis was based on 31 procedures of parallel scientific advice. The level of full agreements was highest for questions on patient population (77%), while disagreements reached a peak for questions on the study comparator (30%). With regard to comparisons among HTABs, there was a high level of agreement for all domains. CONCLUSIONS There is evident commonality, in terms of evidence requirements between the EU regulators and participating HTABs, as well as among HTABs, on most aspects of clinical development. Indeed, regardless of the question content, the analysis showed that a high level of overall agreement was reached through the process of parallel scientific advice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Tafuri
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK. .,Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), via del Tritone, 181 - 00187, Rome, Italy.
| | - Margherita Pagnini
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK
| | - Jane Moseley
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK
| | - Marco Massari
- Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), via del Tritone, 181 - 00187, Rome, Italy
| | - Frank Petavy
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK
| | - Antje Behring
- German Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), Wegelystr. 8, D-10623, Berlin, Germany
| | - Arantxa Catalan
- Catalan Agency for Health Quality and Assessment (AQuAS), Carrer de Roc Boronat 81-95, 08005, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elangovan Gajraj
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 10 Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BU, United Kingdom
| | - Niklas Hedberg
- Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency (TLV), Fleminggatan 7, 112 26, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mercè Obach
- Catalan Agency for Health Quality and Assessment (AQuAS), Carrer de Roc Boronat 81-95, 08005, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leeza Osipenko
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 10 Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BU, United Kingdom
| | - Pierluigi Russo
- Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), via del Tritone, 181 - 00187, Rome, Italy
| | - Marc Van De Casteele
- National Institute for Sickness and Invalidity Insurance (INAMI), Avenue de Tervueren 211, 1150, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Eva-Maria Zebedin
- Main Association of Austrian Social Security Institutions (HVB), Kundmanngasse 21, A-1031, Vienna, Austria
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK
| | - Spiros Vamvakas
- European Medicines Agency (EMA), 30 Churchill Place, London, E14 5EU, UK
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21
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Ciani O, Buyse M, Drummond M, Rasi G, Saad ED, Taylor RS. Use of surrogate end points in healthcare policy: a proposal for adoption of a validation framework. Nat Rev Drug Discov 2016; 15:516. [DOI: 10.1038/nrd.2016.81] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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22
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans-Georg Eichler
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (H.-G.E., G.R.); European Medicines Agency Management Board, London (H.H., K.B.); Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (H.-G.E.); College ter Beoordeling van Geneesmiddelen, Utrecht, the Netherlands (H.H.); Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte, Bonn, Germany (K.B.); and the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome (G.R.)
| | - Hugo Hurts
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (H.-G.E., G.R.); European Medicines Agency Management Board, London (H.H., K.B.); Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (H.-G.E.); College ter Beoordeling van Geneesmiddelen, Utrecht, the Netherlands (H.H.); Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte, Bonn, Germany (K.B.); and the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome (G.R.)
| | - Karl Broich
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (H.-G.E., G.R.); European Medicines Agency Management Board, London (H.H., K.B.); Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (H.-G.E.); College ter Beoordeling van Geneesmiddelen, Utrecht, the Netherlands (H.H.); Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte, Bonn, Germany (K.B.); and the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome (G.R.)
| | - Guido Rasi
- From the European Medicines Agency, London (H.-G.E., G.R.); European Medicines Agency Management Board, London (H.H., K.B.); Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (H.-G.E.); College ter Beoordeling van Geneesmiddelen, Utrecht, the Netherlands (H.H.); Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte, Bonn, Germany (K.B.); and the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome (G.R.)
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24
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Eichler HG, Baird LG, Barker R, Bloechl-Daum B, Børlum-Kristensen F, Brown J, Chua R, Del Signore S, Dugan U, Ferguson J, Garner S, Goettsch W, Haigh J, Honig P, Hoos A, Huckle P, Kondo T, Le Cam Y, Leufkens H, Lim R, Longson C, Lumpkin M, Maraganore J, O'Rourke B, Oye K, Pezalla E, Pignatti F, Raine J, Rasi G, Salmonson T, Samaha D, Schneeweiss S, Siviero PD, Skinner M, Teagarden JR, Tominaga T, Trusheim MR, Tunis S, Unger TF, Vamvakas S, Hirsch G. From adaptive licensing to adaptive pathways: delivering a flexible life-span approach to bring new drugs to patients. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2015; 97:234-46. [PMID: 25669457 PMCID: PMC6706805 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.59] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2014] [Accepted: 12/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The concept of adaptive licensing (AL) has met with considerable interest. Yet some remain skeptical about its feasibility. Others argue that the focus and name of AL should be broadened. Against this background of ongoing debate, we examine the environmental changes that will likely make adaptive pathways the preferred approach in the future. The key drivers include: growing patient demand for timely access to promising therapies, emerging science leading to fragmentation of treatment populations, rising payer influence on product accessibility, and pressure on pharma/investors to ensure sustainability of drug development. We also discuss a number of environmental changes that will enable an adaptive paradigm. A life‐span approach to bringing innovation to patients is expected to help address the perceived access vs. evidence trade‐off, help de‐risk drug development, and lead to better outcomes for patients.
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Pani L, Pecorelli S, Rosano G, Anker SD, Peracino A, Fregonese L, Prasad K, Rasi G. Steps forward in regulatory pathways for acute and chronic heart failure. ESC Heart Fail 2015; 1:87-93. [PMID: 28834626 DOI: 10.1002/ehf2.12015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2014] [Accepted: 11/03/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
A workshop was organized by the Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco (AIFA) to discuss unmet needs and ways forward in the development of medicines in heart failure, their rationale, and cost-effective use. An integrated, multidisciplinary approach, including patients' needs and perspectives, was advocated by all the participants as the way to the most effective treatment regimens. More work is needed for reaching consensus on clinical and functional endpoints, for validating patient reported outcomes and measurements of well-being. Similarly, the integration into the clinical programmes of the health technology assessment/payers perspective, in particular, the evaluation of 'real-life' treatment effectiveness and of health as a value, would help in shifting the development and authorization of medicines from the molecule paradigm to their evaluation in the context of the whole health care regimen. Through this kind of workshop, AIFA is trying to build a template for meetings devoted to debate unmet needs with all stakeholders towards tentative road maps for the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Pani
- Italian Medicines Agency-AIFA, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Giuseppe Rosano
- Italian Medicines Agency-AIFA, Rome, Italy.,Cardiovascular and Cell Sciences Research Institute, St George's University, London, UK.,IRCCS San Raffaele, Rome, Italy
| | - Stefan D Anker
- Department of Innovative Clinical Trials, University Medical Centre Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Andrea Peracino
- Fondazione Giovanni Lorenzini Medical Science Foundation, Milan, Italy, Houston, USA
| | | | - Krishna Prasad
- Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency-MHRA, London, UK.,St Thomas' Hospital, London, UK
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency-EMA, London, UK.,Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Bonini
- From the European Medicines Agency (S.B., H.-G.E., N.W., G.R.), London; the Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy (S.B.); the Institute of Translational Pharmacology, Italian National Research Council (S.B.), and the University of Rome Tor Vergata (G.R.) - both in Rome; and the Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (H.-G.E.)
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Matteucci C, Sorrentino R, Bellis L, Ettorre GM, Svicher V, Santoro R, Vennarecci G, Biasiolo A, Pontisso P, Scacciatelli D, Beneduce L, Sarrecchia C, Casalino P, Bernardini S, Pierimarchi P, Garaci E, Puoti C, Rasi G. Detection of high levels of Survivin-immunoglobulin M immune complex in sera from hepatitis C virus infected patients with cirrhosis. Hepatol Res 2014; 44:1008-18. [PMID: 24102797 DOI: 10.1111/hepr.12239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2013] [Revised: 09/09/2013] [Accepted: 09/09/2013] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
AIM The identification and surveillance of patients with liver dysfunctions and the discovering of new disease biomarkers are needed in the clinical practice. The aim of this study was to investigate on Survivin-immunoglobulin (Ig)M immune complex (IC) as a potential biomarker of chronic liver diseases. METHODS Serum levels of Survivin-IgM were measured using an enzyme-linked immunoassay that had been standardized and validated in our laboratory in 262 individuals, including healthy subjects and patients with chronic viral hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). RESULTS Survivin-IgM IC was lower in healthy subjects (median, 99.39 AU/mL) than in patients with chronic viral hepatitis (median, 148.03 AU/mL; P = 0.002) or with cirrhosis (median, 371.00 AU/mL; P < 0.001). Among patients with cirrhosis, those with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection showed the highest level of Survivin-IgM IC (median, 633.71 AU/mL; P < 0.001). The receiver-operator curve analysis revealed that Survivin-IgM accurately distinguishes HCV correlated cirrhosis from chronic viral hepatitis (area under the curve [AUC], 0.738; sensitivity, 74.5%; specificity, 70.7%). A multivariate logistic regression model, including Survivin-IgM IC, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and AST/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio increased the prediction accuracy for the identification of the cirrhotic HCV patients (AUC, 0.818; sensitivity, 87.2%; specificity, 65.9%). Conversely, Survivin-IgM IC significantly decreased in HCC patients (median, 165.72 AU/mL; P = 0.022). CONCLUSION Our results suggest that Survivin-IgM immune complex may be used as a potential biomarker for liver damage, particularly for the identification of the HCV-related cirrhotic population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Matteucci
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy; Institute of Translational Pharmacology, CNR, Rome, Italy
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Arlett P, Portier G, de Lisa R, Blake K, Wathion N, Dogne JM, Spooner A, Raine J, Rasi G. Proactively managing the risk of marketed drugs: experience with the EMA Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee. Nat Rev Drug Discov 2014; 13:395-7. [PMID: 24751815 DOI: 10.1038/nrd3713-c1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Peter Arlett
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
| | - Geraldine Portier
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
| | - Roberto de Lisa
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
| | - Kevin Blake
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
| | - Noel Wathion
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
| | - Jean-Michel Dogne
- Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products, Victor Horta Place, 40/40, 1060 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Almath Spooner
- Irish Medicines Board, Earlsfort Terrace Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - June Raine
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, 151 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 9SZ, UK
| | - Guido Rasi
- European Medicines Agency, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4 HB, UK
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Pignatti F, Ehmann F, Hemmings R, Jonsson B, Nuebling M, Papaluca-Amati M, Posch M, Rasi G. Cancer Drug Development and the Evolving Regulatory Framework for Companion Diagnostics in the European Union. Clin Cancer Res 2014; 20:1458-68. [DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-13-1571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Serafino A, Moroni N, Zonfrillo M, Andreola F, Mercuri L, Nicotera G, Nunziata J, Ricci R, Antinori A, Rasi G, Pierimarchi P. WNT-pathway components as predictive markers useful for diagnosis, prevention and therapy in inflammatory bowel disease and sporadic colorectal cancer. Oncotarget 2014; 5:978-92. [PMID: 24657851 PMCID: PMC4011599 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.1571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2013] [Accepted: 01/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The key role of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling in colorectal cancer (CRC) insurgence and progression is now recognized and several therapeutic strategies targeting this pathway are currently in developing. Wnt/β-catenin signaling not only dominates the early stages of sporadic colorectal cancer (SCC), but could also represent the connection between inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) and increased risk of developing SCC. The knowledge on the sequential molecular events of Wnt-signaling cascade in IBD and during colorectal carcinogenesis, might provide new diagnostic/prognostic markers and could be helpful for optimizing the treatment protocols, thus improving the efficacy of Wnt-targeting therapies. We performed a comparative evaluation of the expression of some crucial molecules participating to Wnt signaling in an animal model of chemically-induced CRC and in human tissues obtained from patients suffering from IBD or at sequential stages of SCC. Specifically, we analyzed upstream events of Wnt signaling including β-catenin nuclear translocation and loss of E-cadherin and APC functions, and downstream events including c-Myc and Cyclin-D1 expression. We demonstrated that these crucial components of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, when evaluated by immunohistochemistry using a multiparametric approach that includes the analyses of both expression and localization, could be potent markers for diagnosis, prevention and therapy in IBD and SCC, also possessing a predictive value for responsiveness to Wnt-targeting therapies. Furthermore, we showed that the animal model of chemically-induced CRC mimics the molecular events of Wnt signaling during IBD and SCC development in humans and may therefore be suitable for testing chemopreventive or therapeutic drugs targeting this pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalucia Serafino
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Noemi Moroni
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Manuela Zonfrillo
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Federica Andreola
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Luana Mercuri
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Nicotera
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Riccardo Ricci
- Department of Pathology, Catholic University of Rome, Italy
| | | | - Guido Rasi
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Science, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Italy
- European Medicines Agency, London, United Kingdom
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Bonini M, Bachert C, Baena-Cagnani CE, Bedbrook A, Brozek JL, Canonica GW, Cruz AA, Fokkens WJ, Gerth van Wijk R, Grouse L, Hellings PW, Howarth P, Kalayci O, Khaltaev N, Kuna P, Larenas Linnemann D, Nekam K, Palkonen S, Papadopoulos NG, Popov TA, Price D, Rosado Pinto J, Rasi G, Ryan D, Samolinski B, Scadding GK, Schünemann HJ, Thomas DM, Triggiani M, Yorgancioglu A, Yusuf OM, Zuberbier T, Pawankar R, Bousquet J, Bonini S. What we should learn from the London Olympics. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol 2013; 13:1-3. [PMID: 23222179 DOI: 10.1097/aci.0b013e32835c1b73] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M Bonini
- Department of Medicine, Lung Function Unit, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
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Rasi G. Straight talk with... Guido Rasi. Interview by Roxanne Khamsi. Nat Med 2012; 18:1725. [PMID: 23223048 DOI: 10.1038/nm1212-1725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Serafino A, Moroni N, Psaila R, Zonfrillo M, Andreola F, Wannenes F, Mercuri L, Rasi G, Pierimarchi P. Anti-proliferative effect of atrial natriuretic peptide on colorectal cancer cells: Evidence for an Akt-mediated cross-talk between NHE-1 activity and Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis 2012; 1822:1004-18. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2012.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2011] [Revised: 02/14/2012] [Accepted: 02/15/2012] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
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Abstract
Hans-Georg Eichler from the European Medicines Agency and colleagues provide a view from regulators on access to clinical trial data.
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Bordignon V, Cordiali-Fei P, Rinaldi M, Signori E, Cottarelli A, Zonfrillo M, Ensoli F, Rasi G, Fuggetta MP. Evaluation of antigen specific recognition and cell mediated cytotoxicity by a modified lysispot assay in a rat colon carcinoma model. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2012; 31:9. [PMID: 22296726 PMCID: PMC3395825 DOI: 10.1186/1756-9966-31-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2011] [Accepted: 02/01/2012] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Background Antigen-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes represent potent effector cells of the adaptive immune response against viruses as well as tumours. Therefore assays capable at exploring the generation and function of cytotoxic T lymphocytes represent an important objective for both clinical and experimental settings. Methods Here we show a simple and reproducible assay for the evaluation of antigen-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes based on a LysiSpot technique for the simultaneous determination of antigen-specific IFN-γ production and assessment of tumor cytolysis. The assay was developed within an experimental model of colorectal carcinoma, induced by the colorectal tumor cell line DHD-K12 that induces tumors in BDIX rats and, in turn, elicits a tumor- specific immune response. Results Using DHD-K12 cells transfected to express Escherichia coli β-galactosidase as target cells, and by the fine setting of spot colours detection, we have developed an in vitro assay that allows the recognition of cytotoxic T lymphocytes induced in BDIX rats as well as the assessment of anti-tumour cytotoxicity. The method highlighted that in the present experimental model the tumour antigen-specific immune response was bound to killing target cells in the proportion of 55%, while 45% of activated cells were not cytotoxic but released IFN-γ. Moreover in this model by an ELISPOT assay we demonstrated the specific recognition of a nonapeptide epitope called CSH-275 constitutionally express in DHD-K12 cells. Conclusions The assay proved to be highly sensitive and specific, detecting even low frequencies of cytotoxic/activated cells and providing the evaluation of cytokine-expressing T cells as well as the extent of cytotoxicity against the target cells as independent functions. This assay may represent an important tool to be adopted in experimental settings including the development of vaccines or immune therapeutic strategies
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Bordignon
- Laboratory of Clinical Pathology and Microbiology, San Gallicano Dermatologic Institute, Via Elio Chianesi, 53, 00144 Rome, Italy
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Lucibello M, Gambacurta A, Zonfrillo M, Pierimarchi P, Serafino A, Rasi G, Rubartelli A, Garaci E. TCTP is a critical survival factor that protects cancer cells from oxidative stress-induced cell-death. Exp Cell Res 2011; 317:2479-89. [PMID: 21801721 DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2011.07.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2011] [Revised: 07/11/2011] [Accepted: 07/13/2011] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
The translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) displays growth-promoting and antiapoptotic properties. To gain information on the role of TCTP in cancer disease, we studied the modulation of TCTP and cell survival under stress conditions on tumor cell lines of different origins. When cancer cells were exposed to a mild oxidative stress, such low doses of Arsenic trioxide (ATO) or hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), up-regulation of TCTP was observed in cells survived to the treatment. Differently, a strong oxidative hit provided by ATO combined with glutathione (GSH) depletion or condition of glucose deprivation caused a down-modulation of TCTP followed by cell death. Clones with a forced expression of TCTP or with silenced TCTP were obtained from the breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231. The sensitivity to oxidative stress was strongly enhanced in down-modulated TCTP cells while decreasing in cells with high levels of TCTP. Together these results indicate that TCTP is a survival factor that protects cancer cells from oxidative stress-induced cell-death. We propose TCTP as a "stress hallmark" that may be exploited as a therapeutic target to decrease the resistance of cancer cells to anticancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Lucibello
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy.
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Garaci E, Rasi G. A critical evaluation of the process of drug discovery and evaluation: is the current approach the best possible one? Ann Ist Super Sanita 2011; 47:1. [PMID: 21430329 DOI: 10.4415/ann_11_01_01] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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Rasi G. A cinque anni dal Decreto sugli studi “non profit”, come eravamo e dove siamo. Italian Journal of Medicine 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.itjm.2010.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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Bernabei R, Caputi A, Di Cioccio L, Fini M, Gallo PF, Marchionni N, Marrocco W, Melchiorri D, Mugelli A, Pilotto A, Rasi G, Zuccaro SM. Need for Redesigning Pharmacologic Research in Older Individuals. A Position Statement of the Geriatric Working Group of the Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco (AIFA). J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2010; 66:66-7. [DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glq179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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Matteucci C, Minutolo A, Sinibaldi-Vallebona P, Palamara AT, Rasi G, Mastino A, Garaci E. Transcription profile of human lymphocytes following in vitro treatment with thymosin alpha-1. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2010; 1194:6-19. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2010.05484.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
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Russo P, Mennini FS, Siviero PD, Rasi G. Time to market and patient access to new oncology products in Italy: a multistep pathway from European context to regional health care providers. Ann Oncol 2010; 21:2081-2087. [PMID: 20335370 DOI: 10.1093/annonc/mdq097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
AIM The main purpose of this study was to identify each sequential phase followed by an oncology product, from European assessment until to patient access in each Italian region (IR). METHODS A panel of oncology products approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in the period 2006-2008 was considered. The explored sequential phases included the times to market for: the EMA; pharmaceutical companies; the Italian Medicines Agency (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco, AIFA); and IRs as final providers of health care. The IR's time to market was also analyzed by a Cox regression model. RESULTS The overall mean time required before patients access was 2.3 years. EMA accounted for the greater proportion of time (31.8%), followed by AIFA (28.2%). However, the duration for both pharmaceutical companies and IRs was associated with the highest variability. An oncology product authorized with a risk-sharing agreement showed an early access in the IRs. On the contrary, the introduction in IRs having a compulsory formulary was delayed. Both a high forecast of economic impact and a high oncology product price can also delay the patient access. CONCLUSION The process before patient access to an oncology product is time and cost consuming. This study identifies the main predictors that affect the missing overlap between market and patient access in Italy.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Russo
- OSMED Office, Italian Medicines Agency.
| | - F S Mennini
- CEIS Sanità (Centre for Health Economics and Management), Faculty of Economics, University 'Tor Vergata' Rome; Faculty of Statistics, University 'La Sapienza' Rome
| | - P D Siviero
- Center for Strategic Studies, Italian Medicines Agency
| | - G Rasi
- Italian Medicines Agency, General Director, Italy
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Bonini M, Braido F, Baiardini I, Del Giacco S, Gramiccioni C, Manara M, Tagliapietra G, Scardigno A, Sargentini V, Brozzi M, Rasi G, Bonini S. AQUA: Allergy Questionnaire for Athletes. Development and validation. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2009; 41:1034-41. [PMID: 19346984 DOI: 10.1249/mss.0b013e318193c663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Despite the high and increasing prevalence of allergic diseases in athletes, allergy diagnostics is not part of the routine medical examination in sports medicine. This study reports the development and validation of an easy and reliable questionnaire for screening allergy in athletes. METHODS AQUA was derived from the European Community Respiratory Health Survey Questionnaire. On the basis of open interviews with team doctors, coaches, and athletes, questions were added about: the type, duration, and intensity of training; exercise-related allergic and infectious symptoms; social habits (smoking); drug and food supplements intake; antidoping regulations. The final version of the questionnaire, made of 25 selected questions, was validated in 128 professional soccer players who underwent accurate history taking, medical examination, skin prick testing, and/or specific IgE determination. On the basis of the correlation with objective allergy (positive skin tests to at least one allergen), questions were scored from 1 to 5 according to their positive likelihood ratio. RESULTS Skin tests (gold standard for validation) were positive in 46.8% of soccer players. Mean total AQUA score was 9.4 +/- 7.8 in allergic athletes versus 1.3 +/- 2.3 in nonallergic athletes. A total AQUA score of >or=5 was shown to have the best positive predictive value for allergy (0.94) with a specificity of 97.1% and a sensitivity of 58.3%. CONCLUSIONS AQUA, produced in 10 European languages, is a validated, easy, and reliable tool for calling attention on the high prevalence of allergy in athletes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Bonini
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy
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Biasiolo A, Tono N, Beneduce L, Zuin J, Fassina G, Meo S, Paccagnella D, Mazzucco M, Farinati F, Giacomin A, Vanin V, Aldinio MT, Miola E, Donà S, Matteucci C, Sorrentino R, Rasi G, Gatta A, Pontisso P. Osteopontin-Igm as a Marker for the Diagnosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Int J Biol Markers 2009. [DOI: 10.1177/172460080902400332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Introduction Biomarkers for early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) detection are still a clinical need. Recent data indicate that cancer-associated antigens lead to the formation of circulating IgM-linked immune complexes as the result of natural IgM production by the innate immune response. The SCCA-IgM immune complex has already been described for primary liver cancer detection. Osteopontin (OPN) is a member of the SIBLING family of proteins recently shown to be related to tumorigenesis, progression and metastasis in various cancer types. Aim To evaluate the serum levels of the OPN-IgM complex in comparison to the SCCA-IgM complex in patients with HCC. Patients A total of 256 patients were analyzed including 151 patients with HCC (M/F 115/36; mean age ± SD: 67 ± 12 years) and 106 patients with cirrhosis (M/F 68/38; mean age ± SD: 62 ± 12 years). HCC, tested before any therapeutic approach, was mainly of viral etiology (58% HCV, 11% HBV), while alcohol abuse (22%) was the main risk factor for the remaining cases. A similar distribution was found in patients with cirrhosis (46% HCV, 15% HBV, 38% alcohol). Methods Serum levels of OPN-IgM were measured using a homemade ELISA assay with a polyclonal anti-human OPN antibody (Biodesign Int, USA). SCCA-IgM was detected in serum using an ELISA assay kit (Hepa-IC, Xeptagen). Results OPN-IgM was positive in 64/151 (42%) patients with HCC and in 45/106 (42%) patients with cirrhosis (specificity 58%), while the reference biomarker SCCA-IgM showed 35% sensitivity (49/139) and 71 % specificity. When patients were stratified on the basis of etiology, the sensitivity values for OPN-IgM and SCCA-IgM were 51% vs 44% in HCV patients, and 36% vs 23% in the other patients, while the specificity was lower for OPN-IgM (55% vs 69% in HCV patients; 62% vs 72% in the other patients). Combination of the two biomarkers resulted in an increase in sensitivity to 63% for viral etiology and to 40% for nonviral etiology. Conclusion Different IgM-linked biomarkers are detectable in primary liver cancer. OPN-IgM and SCCA-IgM showed a similar behavior, while the combination of these biomarkers increased the diagnostic performance for primary liver cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Biasiolo
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Padua, Padua
| | | | | | | | | | - Sabrina Meo
- ABO Association, Regional Center for the Study of Biological Markers of Malignancy, AULSS 12, Venice
| | | | | | - Fabio Farinati
- Department of Surgical and Gastroenterological Sciences, University of Padua, Padua
| | - Anna Giacomin
- Department of Surgical and Gastroenterological Sciences, University of Padua, Padua
| | - Veronica Vanin
- Department of Surgical and Gastroenterological Sciences, University of Padua, Padua
| | | | | | - Silvio Donà
- Internal Medicine, Azienda Ospedaliera, Padua
| | - Claudia Matteucci
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Science, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome - Italy
| | - Roberta Sorrentino
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Science, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome - Italy
| | - Guido Rasi
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome - Italy
| | - Angelo Gatta
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Padua, Padua
| | - Patrizia Pontisso
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Padua, Padua
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Matteucci C, Sorrentino R, Ettorre GM, Bellis L, Antenucci A, Beneduce L, Santoro R, Vennarecci G, Zuin J, Biasiolo A, Pontisso P, Pierimarchi P, Puoti C, Rasi G. Circulating Survivin-IGM is a Novel Candidate Biomarker of Cirrhosis and Increases with Child Score in Patients Affected by Liver Diseases. Int J Biol Markers 2009. [DOI: 10.1177/172460080902400336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Background Survivin, also known as BIRC5, is the smallest member of the mammalian IAP family and is a well recognized inhibitor of apoptosis with an important role in cell-cycle regulation. It is detected in fetal and neoplastic adult tissue, but not in normal tissues. Survivin acts on cancer promotion not only by the inhibition of apoptosis but also by acceleration of the proliferative activity of cancer cells and several papers have suggested the involvement of this protein in hepatocarcino-genesis. It has been reported that the detection of HCC biomarkers circulating as IgM immune complexes (ICs) improved the diagnosis and prognosis of HCC. The aim of this study was to compare the expression of survivin as an IgM immune complex in serum from healthy controls and of patients with cirrhosis and patients with HCC to identify a novel biomarker for the monitoring of liver diseases. Methods Serum levels of survivin-IgM from 1 97 individuals, including 39 healthy subjects, 94 patients with cirrhosis and 64 with HCC, were measured by ELISA and the relationship with clinical parameters was evaluated. Results Survivin-IgM was almost undetectable in sera from healthy subjects, high in patients with cirrhosis, and moderately lower in patients with HCC. The survivin-IgM assay was positive in 62 of 94 patients with cirrhosis (66%) and in 28 of 64 patients with HCC (43.7%) using a cut-off of 264.89 AU/mL (specificity of 94%). Statistical analysis showed that IC values were significantly different between groups (cirrhosis versus healthy control group, p<0.001; HCC versus cirrhosis group, p<0.001). Circulating survivin-IgM ICs in patients with HCC were lower than in patients with cirrhosis; in fact, the statistical significance in comparison with healthy subjects was lost. On the other hand, the concentration of circulating survivin-IgM ICs was found to increase with progression of Child score. Conclusions The high expression of survivin-IgM in sera from patients with cirrhosis and the values of sensitivity indicate that survivin-IgM could be a novel candidate biomarker for cirrhotic disease. Furthermore, the increase in ICs with the progression of Child score seems to promote the survivin-IgM immune complex as marker of liver failure. Survivin-IgM was found to be lower in sera from HCC patients. Follow-up studies are in progress to monitor patients with cirrhosis and to validate the association of the downregulation of this marker with progression towards hepatocellular carcinoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Matteucci
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Science, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome
| | - Roberta Sorrentino
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Science, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome
| | | | - Lia Bellis
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Unit, Marino general Hospital, Marino, Rome
| | | | | | - Roberto Santoro
- Division of general Surgery and Transplantation, San Camillo Hospital, Rome
| | | | | | - Alessandra Biasiolo
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Padua, Padua - Italy
| | - Patrizia Pontisso
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Padua, Padua - Italy
| | | | - Claudio Puoti
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Unit, Marino general Hospital, Marino, Rome
| | - Guido Rasi
- Institute of neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Rome
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Castorina A, Tiralongo A, Giunta S, Carnazza ML, Rasi G, D'Agata V. PACAP and VIP prevent apoptosis in schwannoma cells. Brain Res 2008; 1241:29-35. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2008.09.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2008] [Revised: 05/20/2008] [Accepted: 09/08/2008] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Serafino A, Sinibaldi Vallebona P, Andreola F, Zonfrillo M, Mercuri L, Federici M, Rasi G, Garaci E, Pierimarchi P. Stimulatory effect of Eucalyptus essential oil on innate cell-mediated immune response. BMC Immunol 2008; 9:17. [PMID: 18423004 PMCID: PMC2374764 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2172-9-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2007] [Accepted: 04/18/2008] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Besides few data concerning the antiseptic properties against a range of microbial agents and the anti-inflammatory potential both in vitro and in vivo, little is known about the influence of Eucalyptus oil (EO) extract on the monocytic/macrophagic system, one of the primary cellular effectors of the immune response against pathogen attacks. The activities of this natural extract have mainly been recognized through clinical experience, but there have been relatively little scientific studies on its biological actions. Here we investigated whether EO extract is able to affect the phagocytic ability of human monocyte derived macrophages (MDMs) in vitro and of rat peripheral blood monocytes/granulocytes in vivo in absence or in presence of immuno-suppression induced by the chemotherapeutic agent 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Methods Morphological activation of human MDMs was analysed by scanning electron microscopy. Phagocytic activity was tested: i) in vitro in EO treated and untreated MDMs, by confocal microscopy after fluorescent beads administration; ii) in vivo in monocytes/granulocytes from peripheral blood of immuno-competent or 5-FU immuno-suppressed rats, after EO oral administration, by flow cytometry using fluorescein-labelled E. coli. Cytokine release by MDMs was determined using the BD Cytometric Bead Array human Th1/Th2 cytokine kit. Results EO is able to induce activation of MDMs, dramatically stimulating their phagocytic response. EO-stimulated internalization is coupled to low release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and requires integrity of the microtubule network, suggesting that EO may act by means of complement receptor-mediated phagocytosis. Implementation of innate cell-mediated immune response was also observed in vivo after EO administration, mainly involving the peripheral blood monocytes/granulocytes. The 5-FU/EO combined treatment inhibited the 5-FU induced myelotoxicity and raised the phagocytic activity of the granulocytic/monocytic system, significantly decreased by the chemotherapic. Conclusion Our data, demonstrating that Eucalyptus oil extract is able to implement the innate cell-mediated immune response, provide scientific support for an additional use of this plant extract, besides those concerning its antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties and stimulate further investigations also using single components of this essential oil. This might drive development of a possible new family of immuno-regulatory agents, useful as adjuvant in immuno-suppressive pathologies, in infectious disease and after tumour chemotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalucia Serafino
- Institute of Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine - ARTOV, CNR, Via Fosso del Cavaliere 100, 00133 Rome, Italy.
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