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Abstract Objectives Ultrasonography (US), computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are the most common radiological procedures for the diagnosis of tumor-like lesions of the salivary glands. The aim of the present study was to determine whether MRI or CT provide additional information besides that delivered by US. Study design/Methods 109 patients with a tumor-like lesion of the salivary glands underwent surgery. MRI and CT were arranged in 73 and in 40 patients respectively, whereas all 109 patients were prospectively diagnosed by US. The results of CT, MRI and US were compared with the histological outcome. Furthermore, the recent rise in the number of CT and MRI studies was investigated. Results On CT and MRI, there was no rise in the percentage of malignant tumors or advanced surgical procedures. In respect of the radiological assessment of the lesion (benign/malignant) and the correct diagnosis, CT, MRI and US were comparable in terms of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. No significant difference was found in the Chi-square test (p > 0.05). Conclusion The evaluation of the preoperative results of CT, MRI and US revealed no advantage for CT or MRI; these procedures are only required in specific cases. An update or revision of the current preoperative diagnostic management is deemed necessary.

General interest in the biological functions of IFN type I in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection increased after the recent identification of a distinct IFN gene expression signature in tuberculosis (TB) patients. Here, we demonstrate that TB-susceptible mice lacking the receptor for IFN I (IFNAR1) were protected from death upon aerogenic infection with Mtb. Using this experimental model to mimic primary progressive pulmonary TB, we dissected the immune processes affected by IFN I. IFNAR1 signaling did not affect T-cell responses, but markedly altered migration of inflammatory monocytes and neutrophils to the lung. This process was orchestrated by IFNAR1 expressed on both immune and tissue-resident radioresistant cells. IFNAR1-driven TB susceptibility was initiated by augmented Mtb replication and in situ death events, along with CXCL5/CXCL1- driven accumulation of neutrophils in alveoli, followed by the discrete compartmentalization of Mtb in lung phagocytes. Early depletion of neutrophils rescued TB-susceptible mice to levels observed in mice lacking IFNAR1. We conclude that IFN I alters early innate events at the site of Mtb invasion leading to fatal immunopathology. These data furnish a mechanistic explanation for the detrimental role of IFN I in pulmonary TB and form a basis for understanding the complex roles of IFN I in chronic inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a hallmark of tuberculosis (TB), Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) induces granulomatous lung lesions and systemic inflammatory responses during active disease. Molecular regulation of inflammation is associated with inflammasome assembly. We determined the extent to which MTB triggers inflammasome activation and how this impacts on the severity of TB in a mouse model. MTB stimulated release of mature IL-1β in macrophages while attenuated M. bovis BCG failed to do so. Tubercle bacilli specifically activated the NLRP3 inflammasome and this propensity was strictly controlled by the virulence-associated RD1 locus of MTB. However, Nlrp3-deficient mice controlled pulmonary TB, a feature correlated with NLRP3-independent production of IL-1β in infected lungs. Our studies demonstrate that MTB activates the NLRP3 inflammasome in macrophages in an ESX-1-dependent manner. However, during TB, MTB promotes NLRP3- and caspase-1-independent IL-1β release in myeloid cells recruited to lung parenchyma and thus overcomes NLRP3 deficiency in vivo in experimental models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tuberculosis causes 2 million deaths per year, yet in most cases the immune response successfully contains the infection and prevents disease outbreak. Induced lymphoid structures associated with pulmonary granuloma are observed during tuberculosis in both humans and mice and could orchestrate host defense. To investigate whether granuloma perform lymphoid functions, mice lacking secondary lymphoid organs (SLO) were infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). As in WT mice, granuloma developed, exponential growth of MTB was controlled, and antigen-specific T-cell responses including memory T cells were generated in the absence of SLO. Moreover, adoptively transferred T cells were primed locally in lungs in a granuloma-dependent manner. T-cell activation was delayed in the absence of SLO, but resulted in a normal development program including protective subsets and functional recall responses that protected mice against secondary MTB infection. Our data demonstrate that protective immune responses can be generated independently of SLO during MTB infection and implicate local pulmonary T-cell priming as a mechanism contributing to host defense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Ultrasonography (US), computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are the most common radiological procedures for the diagnosis of tumor-like lesions of the salivary glands. The aim of the present study was to determine whether MRI or CT provide additional information besides that delivered by US. Study design/Methods: 109 patients with a tumor-like lesion of the salivary glands underwent surgery. MRI and CT were arranged in 73 and in 40 patients respectively, whereas all 109 patients were prospectively diagnosed by US. The results of CT, MRI and US were compared with the histological outcome. Furthermore, the recent rise in the number of CT and MRI studies was investigated. Results: On CT and MRI, there was no rise in the percentage of malignant tumors or advanced surgical procedures. In respect of the radiological assessment of the lesion (benign/malignant) and the correct diagnosis, CT, MRI and US were comparable in terms of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. No significant difference was found in the Chi-square test (p > 0.05). Conclusion: The evaluation of the preoperative results of CT, MRI and US revealed no advantage for CT or MRI; these procedures are only required in specific cases. An update or revision of the current preoperative diagnostic management is deemed necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]