Browsing by Author "Degirmenci, P"

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    Effects of allergen specific immunotherapy on functions of Th and Treg cells in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis
    Kirmaz, C; Kirgiz, O; Degirmenci, P; Yilmaz, Ö; Vatansever, S; Ozbilgin, K; Onur, E; Celik, O; Sogut, A; Ay, G; Yuksel, H
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    In-vitro Evaluation of Effects of Mesenchymal Stem Cells on TLR3, TLR7/8 and TLR9-activated Natural Killer Cells
    Ozdemir, AT; Kirmaz, C; Ozdemir, RBO; Degirmenci, P; Oztatlici, M; Degirmenci, M
    Objectives: In this study, it was aimed to investigate the immunomodulatory effects of Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on Natural Killer (NK) cells activated by Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists. Methods: MDA-MB-231, MCF-7 and NK-92 cells were induced with TLR3, TLR7/8 and TLR9 agonists and co-cultured with MSCs. Alterations in IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, Granzyme-b and Perforin expressions were determined by qPCR method, CD69 and CD107a expressions were determined by flow cytometry, and cytotoxicity was determined by MTT-assay. Results: All TLR agonists significantly increased the expressions of the IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, Granzyme-b, Perforin, CD69 and CD107a in-vitro. We determined that the cytokine, cytotoxic molecules, and activation markers of NK-92 cells interacting with breast tumor cells significantly increased by TLR3 and TLR9 agonists. However, suppression rather than activation occurred on the NK-92 cells due to the simultaneous induction of the immunosuppressive effects of MSCs by these agonists. On the other hand, the TLR7/8 agonists provided a low NK-92 induction, however, the inhibitory effects of MSCs were not triggered. Therefore, it provided a more significant activation than TLR3 and TLR9 agonists. Conclusion: Our findings suggested that TLR7/8 agonists may be a better choice to induce antitumor effects of NK cells in a tumor tissue rich in MSCs.
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    Clinical Features of Patients with Chronic Urticaria and the Results of the Skin Prick Tests
    Bilgir, F; Özdemir, RB; Degirmenci, P; Dede, B; Kirmaz, C
    Objective: Chronic urticaria (CU), which is mostly idiopathic, may also be a sign of an allergic or systemic disease. A variety of diseases and allergens that accompany CU have been reported in various studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors that play a role in the etiology of CU. Materials and Methods: The demographic and clinical data from 302 patients-aged over 18 years-who were being monitored for CU were recorded. Several tests were performed to analyze comorbidities such as infection, malignancy, and autoimmune and rheumatic diseases. Skin Prick Test (SPT) results and questionnaires were reviewed. Results: Two hundred and thirteen out of the 302 patients with a mean age of 40.26 +/- 14.3 years were females. The duration of CU was 43.30 +/- 62.60 months and 42.9% of the patients had comorbidities. The most common disease was autoimmune thyroiditis (13.9%). Fifty-five percent of the patients were sensitive to inhalant allergens, and 5% exhibited allergen positivity for food. The most common allergens were house (43.7%) dust mites. Allergen positivity was 37.2% in those with comorbidities, while it was 62.8% in those without any comorbidities and this relationship was statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study showed that there was an association between house dust mite and CU dust sensitivity. House dust mite sensitivity may trigger CU.
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    Drug allergy in tertiary care in Turkey: Results of a national survey. The ADAPT study: Adult drug allergy perception in Turkey
    Çelik, GE; Karakaya, G; Öztürk, AB; Gelincik, A; Abadoglu, Ö; Sin, A; Damadoglu, E; Yilmaz, I; Demirtürk, M; Dursun, B; Özdemir, SK; Çelikel, S; Degirmenci, P; Bozkurt, B; Göksel, Ö; Erkekol, FÖ; Aydin, Ö; Kavut, AB; Kirmaz, C; Kalpaklioglu, F; Büyüköztürk, S; Kalyoncu, F
    Background: No data are available on the incidence of drug hypersensitivity (DH) reactions in outpatient settings of tertiary allergy/immunology clinics. Our aims were to document the frequency of outpatient hospital admissions due to DH reactions to allergy/immunology clinics in adults and the management of these reactions in real life. We also investigated whether drug allergy affected social and medical behaviours of the patients. Methods: This multi-centre study was performed for one year with the participation of 11 out of 16 tertiary allergy/clinical immunology clinics in Turkey. The study group consisted of the patients with DH reactions. Results of a questionnaire including drug reactions and management were recorded. Results: Among 54,863 patients, 1000 patients with DH were enrolled with a median of 2.1% of all admissions. In real life conditions, the majority of approaches were performed for finding safe alternatives (65.5%; 1102 out of 1683) with 11.7% positivity. Diagnostic procedures were positive in 27% (154/581) of the patients. The majority of the patients had higher VAS scores for anxiety. A total of 250 subjects (25%) reported that they delayed some medical procedures because of DH. Conclusion: Our results documented the frequency of admissions due to DH reactions to allergy/clinical immunology clinics for the first time. Although physicians mostly preferred to perform drug tests in order to find safe alternatives, considering the fact that DH was confirmed in 27% of the patients, use of diagnostic tests should be encouraged, if no contraindication exists in order to avoid mislabelling patients as DH. (C) 2013 SEICAP. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. All rights reserved.