Dear reader,
In this issue of Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, we are happy to present a Special Focus on Cytokines as drugs and targets in immunotherapy with 8 articles presenting an update on the roles played by various cytokine pathways in the development and treatment of cancer, immune disorders and infectious diseases.
Gonzalez-Aparicio et al. (p 2312) review recent studies on IL-8, a potent angiogenesis and immunosuppressive cytokine that is expressed by some solid tumors to promote their growth. A pair of articles discuss IL-10 in cancer immunotherapy. Thepmalee and colleagues (p 2318) report that inhibition of the IL-10 and TGF-β pathways led to activation of dendritic cells and increased killing of cholangiocarcinoma cells in vitro; and Ni et al. (p 2328) review the ways in which IL-10 targeting is utilized for cancer immunotherapy.
IL-9 can have both stimulatory and inhibitory effects on the immune system, and it has been associated with strong anti-tumor responses in solid tumors, as reviewed by Zheng and Lu (p 2333). In contrast, the IL-3 pathway has been implicated in the proliferation of blood cancer cells, and Aldoss et al. (p 2341) review the targeting of IL-3 receptor for treatment of acute leukemia.
A product review summarizes the development and uses of monoclonal antibodies for asthma therapy, including IL-4- and IL-5-targeting mepolizumab, reslizumab, benralizumab, dupilumab (Ridolo, p 2349), and two commentaries discuss the IL-6 family of cytokines in liver functioning, disease and therapy (Widjaja, p 2357) and cytokine storm as an important mechanism of COVID-19 mortality (Rokni, p 2363).
Further in this issue we present three articles on the novel Coronavirus: a mini-review on vaccine prospects (Zhang, p 2366), a commentary on the challenges of the COVID-19 disease in developing countries (Anjum, p 2370), and a Letter to the Editor proposing the use of pulmonary-proteoliposome as a new therapeutic approach (Feliciello, p 2373).
Three articles on Immunotherapy include reviews on T-cell glycosylation in cancer immunotherapy (De Bousser, p 2374) and on oncolytic virotherapy (Mondal, p 2389), and a report on the co-presence of EBV and HPV in colorectal cancer samples from Syria (Malki, p 2403).
The Acceptance section features surveys of vaccine knowledge and behaviors among Nigerian caregivers (Sato, p 2408), determinants of hesitancy in Palermo, Italy (Costantino, p 2415), knowledge and attitudes in Italian community pharmacists (Della Polla, p 2422), barriers to vaccination among pregnant women in Kenya (Otieno, p 2429), and knowledge and behaviors of women in Northern Nigeria (Sato, p 2438).
Five articles on Licensed Vaccines investigate the link between SNPs in cytokine genes and antibody responses to JEV vaccination (Yao, p 2449), safety and immunogenicity of liquid and lyophilized formulations of a tetravalent dengue vaccine (Turner, p 2456), vaccination costs in Iran (Goudarzi, p 2465), rubella seroprevalence in pregnant women in Sub-Saharan Africa (Kassa, p 2472), and a Letter to the Editor on the assessment of the mucosal immune responses to oral cholera vaccine (Leach, p 2479).
The Rotavirus section presents a retrospective study of intussusception risk in infants in relation to vaccination (Oberle, p 2481), assessment of impact of vaccination on severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in Japan (Oishi, p 2495), and a Letter to the Editor in response to a recent systematic review of the risk of intussusception following vaccination (Benninghoff, p 2502).
The Pneumococcal articles include an analysis of impact of PCV-13 on community-acquired pneumonia and related hospitalizations in Turkey (Gönüllü, p 2504) with an associated Letter to the Editor on cases of PCV-13 failure with respect to S. pneumoniae serotype 19A (Özkaya-Parlakay, p 2509) and a Response Letter (Gönüllü, p 2511).
The Meningococcal section introduces a screen of YouTube videos related to meningococcal B vaccine (Hernandez-Garcia, p 2513) and a commentary on vaccination strategy in France (Taha, p 2518). Articles on Novel Vaccines include a review on Zika vaccine (pre-)clinical development (Thomas, p 2524) and a report on the protection from Chlamydia trachomatis following vaccination with an Omp vaccine in mice (Pal, p 2537).
Finally, two research papers survey HPV-related information on Chinese social media (Li, p 2548) and intentions to vaccinate among Japanese mothers in response to recommendations by authorities (Shiomi, p 2555), a Phase 4 trial investigates long-term immunogenicity of two Hepatitis A vaccines (Wang, p 2559), a behavioral study reports on seasonal Influenza vaccination among diabetes patients (Bocquier, p 2565), and a commentary discusses the role of regulatory agencies in increasing Public Health confidence in maternal vaccines (Giles, p 2573).
Our monthly News, Policy and Profiles (NP&P) track offers a selection of the latest news in the field of vaccines and immunotherapeutics. In this section we also regularly publish opinion pieces on timely, interesting and controversial topics related to vaccines and immunotherapeutics, profiles of companies and organizations, as well as portraits of distinguished scientists in our field. Please contact Acquisitions Editor Adam Weiss ([email protected]) with your ideas for commentaries, opinion pieces, profiles and portraits. Your suggestions for and contributions to our N&P&P track are always welcome!
Sincerely,