Toll-like receptor 1 as a possible target in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in the liver compartment have repeatedly been attributed to the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Knowledge on TLR expression in blood cells and their relation to intestinal microbiota and NAFLD development is limited. Here, we determined TLR expression patterns in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of NAFLD patients and controls, their relation to intestinal microbiota and the impact of TLRs found altered in NAFLD development. Markers of intestinal permeability in blood and TLR mRNA expression in PBMCs were determined in 37 NAFLD patients and 15 age-matched healthy controls. Fecal microbiota composition was evaluated in 21 NAFLD patients and 9 controls using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Furthermore, TLR1−/− and C57BL/6 mice (n = 5–6/group) were pair-fed a liquid control or a fat-, fructose- and cholesterol-rich diet. Intestinal microbiota composition and markers of intestinal permeability like zonulin and bacterial endotoxin differed significantly between groups with the latter markers being significantly higher in NAFLD patients. Expression of TLR1-8 and 10 mRNA was detectable in PBMCs; however, only TLR1 expression, being higher in NAFLD patients, were significantly positively correlated with the prevalence of Holdemanella genus while negative correlations were found with Gemmiger and Ruminococcus genera. TLR1−/− mice were significantly protected from the development of diet-induced NAFLD when compared to wild-type mice. While intestinal microbiota composition and permeability differed significantly between NAFLD patients and healthy subjects, in PBMCs, only TLR1 expression differed between groups. Still, targeting these alterations might be a beneficial approach in the treatment of NAFLD in some patients.Fil: Baumann, Anja. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Nier, Anika. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Hernández Arriaga, Angélica. Universidad de Hohenheim; AlemaniaFil: Brandt, Annette. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Lorenzo Pisarello, Maria Jose. Universidad de Viena; Austria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Jin, Cheng J.. Universitat Jena; AlemaniaFil: Pilar, Esther. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Camarinha-Silva, Amélia. Universidad de Hohenheim; AlemaniaFil: Schattenberg, Jörn M.. University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg; AlemaniaFil: Bergheim, Ina. Universidad de Viena; Austri

Asmase Regulates autophagy and lysosomal membrane permeabilization and its inhibition prevents early stage nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

Background & Aims: Acid sphingomyelinase (ASMase) is activated in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). However, ASMase's contribution to NASH is poorly understood and limited to hepatic steatosis and glucose metabolism. Here we examined ASMase's role in high fat diet (HFD)-induced NASH. Methods: Autophagy, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP) were determined in ASMase-/- mice fed HFD. The impact of pharmacological ASMase inhibition on NASH was analyzed in wild type mice fed HFD. Results: ASMase deficiency determined resistance to HFD or methionine and choline deficient diet-mediated hepatic steatosis. ASMase-/- mice were resistant to HFD-induced hepatic ER stress, but sensitive to tunicamycin-mediated ER stress and steatosis, indicating selectivity in the resistance of ASMase-/- mice to ER stress. Autophagic flux determined in the presence of rapamycin and/or chloroquine was lower in primary mouse hepatocytes (PMH) from ASMase-/- mice and accompanied by increased p62 levels, suggesting autophagic impairment. Moreover, autophagy suppression by chloroquine and brefeldinA caused ER stress in PMH from ASMase+/+ mice but not ASMase-/- mice. ASMase-/- PMH exhibited increased lysosomal cholesterol loading, decreased LMP and apoptosis resistance induced by O-methyl-serine dodecylamide hydrochloride or palmitic acid, effects that were reversed by decreasing cholesterol levels by the oxysterol 25-hydroxycholesterol. In vivo pharmacological ASMase inhibition by amitriptyline, a widely used tricyclic antidepressant, protected wild type mice against HFD- induced hepatic steatosis, fibrosis, and liver damage, effects indicative of early-stage NASH. Conclusions: These findings underscore a critical role for ASMase in diet-induced NASH and suggest the potential of amitriptyline as a treatment for patients with NASH

Technical Evaluation of Commercial Mutation Analysis Platforms and Reference Materials for Liquid Biopsy Profiling

Molecular profiling from liquid biopsy, in particular cell-free DNA (cfDNA), represents an attractive alternative to tissue biopsies for the detection of actionable targets and tumor monitoring. In addition to PCR-based assays, Next Generation Sequencing (NGS)-based cfDNA assays are now commercially available and are being increasingly adopted in clinical practice. However, the validity of these products as well as the clinical utility of cfDNA in the management of patients with cancer has yet to be proven. Within framework of the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) program CANCER-ID we evaluated the use of commercially available reference materials designed for ctDNA testing and cfDNA derived from Diagnostic Leukaphereses (DLA) for inter-and intra-assay as well as intra-and inter-laboratory comparisons. In three experimental setups, a broad range of assays including ddPCR, MassARRAY and various NGS-based assays were tested. We demonstrate that both reference materials with predetermined VAFs and DLA samples are extremely useful for the performance assessment of mutation analysis platforms. Moreover, our data indicate a substantial variability of NGS assays with respect to sensitivity and specificity

Synergistic drug-cytokine induction of hepatocellular death as an in vitro approach for the study of inflammation-associated idiosyncratic drug hepatotoxicity

Idiosyncratic drug hepatotoxicity represents a major problem in drug development due to inadequacy of current preclinical screening assays, but recently established rodent models utilizing bacterial LPS co-administration to induce an inflammatory background have successfully reproduced idiosyncratic hepatotoxicity signatures for certain drugs. However, the low-throughput nature of these models renders them problematic for employment as preclinical screening assays. Here, we present an analogous, but high-throughput, in vitro approach in which drugs are administered to a variety of cell types (primary human and rat hepatocytes and the human HepG2 cell line) across a landscape of inflammatory contexts containing LPS and cytokines TNF, IFNγ, IL-1α, and IL-6. Using this assay, we observed drug–cytokine hepatotoxicity synergies for multiple idiosyncratic hepatotoxicants (ranitidine, trovafloxacin, nefazodone, nimesulide, clarithromycin, and telithromycin) but not for their corresponding non-toxic control compounds (famotidine, levofloxacin, buspirone, and aspirin). A larger compendium of drug–cytokine mix hepatotoxicity data demonstrated that hepatotoxicity synergies were largely potentiated by TNF, IL-1α, and LPS within the context of multi-cytokine mixes. Then, we screened 90 drugs for cytokine synergy in human hepatocytes and found that a significantly larger fraction of the idiosyncratic hepatotoxicants (19%) synergized with a single cytokine mix than did the non-hepatotoxic drugs (3%). Finally, we used an information theoretic approach to ascertain especially informative subsets of cytokine treatments for most highly effective construction of regression models for drug- and cytokine mix-induced hepatotoxicities across these cell systems. Our results suggest that this drug–cytokine co-treatment approach could provide a useful preclinical tool for investigating inflammation-associated idiosyncratic drug hepatotoxicity.Pfizer Inc.Institute for Collaborative BiotechnologiesMIT Center for Cell Decision ProcessesNational Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (grant P50-GM68762)National Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (grant T32-GM008334)Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Biotechnology Process Engineering CenterMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Environmental Health SciencesNational Institute of Mental Health (U.S.) (grant U19ES011399)Whitaker Foundatio

Wellbeing indicators affecting female entrepreneurship in OECD countries

[EN] The objective of this research is to know which wellbeing indicators, such as work-life balance, educational level, income or job security, are related to the rate of female entrepreneurship in 29 OECD countries. In addition, these countries have been classified according to the motivation of the entrepreneur either by necessity or by opportunity. The empiric study is focused on 29 OECD countries covering the different geographic areas (Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, etc.) Due to the fact that the sample is relatively small, it is essential to use a selective approach when selecting the causal conditions. To this end, fsQCA is the most appropriate methodology for such a small data set. A total of 5 variables have been used: an independent variable (female TEA ratio), and four dependent variables (work life balance, educational level, sustainable household income and job security). Data measuring female TEA ratio have been obtained from Global Entrepreneur Monitor (GEM in Global report, 2015) data base, while data measuring wellbeing dimensions were taken from the Better Life Index (OECD in How¿s life? Measuring wellbeing, 2015. http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org). The results of this piece of research show that countries with high sustainable household income together with high level of education achieves high female entrepreneurship ratio with both, a good work-life balance (despite of a high unemployment probability), or a high labour-personal imbalance (in this latter, with a low probability of unemployment).This work has been funded by the R + D project for emerging research groups with reference (GVA) GV/2016/078.Ribes-Giner, G.; Moya Clemente, I.; Cervelló Royo, RE.; Perelló Marín, MR. (2019). Wellbeing indicators affecting female entrepreneurship in OECD countries. 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Genetic variability in CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 in primary liver, gastric and colorectal cancer patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Drug-metabolizing enzymes play a role in chemical carcinogenesis through enzymatic activation of procarcinogens to biologically reactive metabolites. The role of gene polymorphisms of several cytochrome P450 enzymes in digestive cancer risk has been extensively investigated. However, the drug-metabolizing enzymes with the broader substrate specificity, CYP3A4 and CYP3A5, have not been analyzed so far. This study aims to examine associations between common CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 polymorphisms and digestive cancer risk.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 genotypes were determined in 574 individuals including 178 patients with primary liver cancer, 82 patients with gastric cancer, 151 patients with colorectal cancer, and 163 healthy individuals.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The variant allele frequencies for patients with liver cancer, gastric cancer, colorectal cancer and healthy controls, respectively, were: <it>CYP3A4*1B</it>, 4.8 % (95% C.I. 2.6–7.0), 3.7 % (0.8–6.6) 4.3% (2.0–6.6) and 4.3% (2.1–6.5); <it>CYP3A5*3</it>, 91.8 % (93.0–97.4), 95.7% (92.6–98.8), 91.7% (88.6–94.8) and 90.8% (87.7–93.9). The association between <it>CYP3A4*1B </it>and <it>CYP3A5*3 </it>variant alleles did not significantly differ among patients and controls. No differences in genotypes, allele frequencies, or association between variant alleles were observed with regard to gender, age at diagnosis, tumour site or stage.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Common polymorphisms on <it>CYP3A4 </it>and <it>CYP3A5 </it>genes do not modify the risk of developing digestive cancers in Western Europe.</p

Intuition and Reasoning in Choosing Ambiguous and Risky Lotteries

This paper focuses on information acquisition and individual decision making in ambiguous situations and presents a novel experimental design which may help to tackle open questions from a fresh perspective. Instead of giving subjects the choice between risky and ambiguous Ellsberg urns, we let them choose between a safe option and a risky lottery, whose risk is a priori unknown to subjects. By acquiring information about the probability distribution of the lottery's payoff s, subjects can reduce or even eliminate the ambiguity and turn the decision situation into one of risk. Under the assumption that an ambiguity averse subject should reduce ambiguity within a decision process we predicted that these subjects would request more information. Moreover, we investigate whether the relation between attitudes towards risk and ambiguity is linked to intuitive and deliberate thinking. Based on a detailed analysis of subjects' information acquisition and decision processes we do not find that those subjects showing ambiguity aversion in an urn experiment based on Halevy (2007) significantly reduce the ambiguity more than others. More intuitive subjects acquire less information and are more likely to avoid the risky lottery. Intuition seems to be negatively correlated with risk aversion, but not with ambiguity aversion. Moreover, we find a positive correlation between risk and ambiguity aversion.Die experimentelle Studie untersucht den Einfluss von Risiko- und Unsicherheitsaversion auf das individuelle Entscheidungsverhalten. Darüber hinaus wird der Einfluss von intuitivem Denken auf den Entscheidungsprozess betrachtet. Dabei stellt die Studie ein neues experimentelles Design vor, welches hilft, die offenen Fragen auf diesem Themengebiet aus einem neuen Blickwinkel zu betrachten. Anders als in der bestehenden Literatur ist der Grad an Unsicherheit in diesem Experiment endogen und kann durch die Probanden verringert werden. Entscheidungen zwischen einer sicheren Option und eingangs durch Unsicherheit charakterisierter Lotterien können somit durch Informationsgewinnung über die Wahrscheinlichkeitsstruktur der Lotterien zu Entscheidungssituationen unter Risiko verändert werden. Basierend auf detaillierten Analysen des Entscheidungsprozesses zeigen die Ergebnisse, dass Individuen mit höherem Grad an Unsicherheitsaversion, gemessen mit einem Testverfahren nach Halevy (2007), die Unsicherheit nicht signifikant mehr reduzieren als andere. Intuitiv denkende Individuen fragen weniger Informationen nach, vermeiden jedoch risikoreichere Lotterien. Die Studie findet eine positive Korrelation zwischen Intuition und Risikoaversion, aber keine zwischen Unsicherheitsaversion und Intuition. Darüber hinaus zeigen die Ergebnisse eine positive Korrelation zwischen Risiko- und Unsicherheitsaversion

How Do Fair Value Measurements of Financial Instruments Affect Investments in Banks?

This paper experimentally investigates how fair value measurements of financial instruments affect the decision of nonprofessional investors to invest in a bank's shares. Specifically, we assess how investors respond to variations in net income resulting from fair value adjustments in trading assets and how the reliability of the fair value estimates affects their decision. We find that investment decreases as a result of transitions from the first to the third level and we even observe lower investments in case of positive changes in income. Investment decreases most if negative valuation adjustments are based on level 1 estimates suggesting that down pricing by the market is considered as a worse signal than model-based decreases in net income. For larger positive and negative adjustments the impact of valuation levels on investment turns out to be limited. Our results do not provide evidence that Fair Value Accounting per se induces pro-cyclical investment behavior.Die experimentelle Studie untersucht, wie die Bewertung zum Fair Value die Investitionsentscheidung nicht-professioneller Investoren beeinflusst. Dabei wird die Entscheidung, in Aktien einer Bank zu investieren, in Reaktion auf verschieden hohe Bewertungsänderungen der Aktiva Position 'Wertpapiere' der Bank untersucht. Es erfolgt des Weiteren eine differenzierte Betrachtung der Auswirkungen der Fair Value Hierarchie (Level 1-3) auf die Investitionsbereitschaft. Die Resultate zeigen, dass die Investitionsbereitschaft sowohl für negative als auch positive Bewertungsänderungen abnimmt. Die geringste Investitionsbereitschaft wird im Fall von negativen Bewertungsänderungen auf Grundlage beobachtbarer Marktpreise beobachtet (Level 1)

Call for emergency action to restore dietary diversity and protect global food systems in times of COVID-19 and beyond: Results from a cross-sectional study in 38 countries

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the fragility of the global food system, sending shockwaves across countries\u27 societies and economy. This has presented formidable challenges to sustaining a healthy and resilient lifestyle. The objective of this study is to examine the food consumption patterns and assess diet diversity indicators, primarily focusing on the food consumption score (FCS), among households in 38 countries both before and during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A cross-sectional study with 37 207 participants (mean age: 36.70 ± 14.79, with 77 % women) was conducted in 38 countries through an online survey administered between April and June 2020. The study utilized a pre-tested food frequency questionnaire to explore food consumption patterns both before and during the COVID-19 periods. Additionally, the study computed Food Consumption Score (FCS) as a proxy indicator for assessing the dietary diversity of households. Findings: This quantification of global, regional and national dietary diversity across 38 countries showed an increment in the consumption of all food groups but a drop in the intake of vegetables and in the dietary diversity. The household\u27s food consumption scores indicating dietary diversity varied across regions. It decreased in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries, including Lebanon (p \u3c 0.001) and increased in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries including Bahrain (p = 0.003), Egypt (p \u3c 0.001) and United Arab Emirates (p = 0.013). A decline in the household\u27s dietary diversity was observed in Australia (p \u3c 0.001), in South Africa including Uganda (p \u3c 0.001), in Europe including Belgium (p \u3c 0.001), Denmark (p = 0.002), Finland (p \u3c 0.001) and Netherland (p = 0.027) and in South America including Ecuador (p \u3c 0.001), Brazil (p \u3c 0.001), Mexico (p \u3c 0.0001) and Peru (p \u3c 0.001). Middle and older ages [OR = 1.2; 95 % CI = [1.125–1.426] [OR = 2.5; 95 % CI = [1.951–3.064], being a woman [OR = 1.2; 95 % CI = [1.117–1.367], having a high education (p \u3c 0.001), and showing amelioration in food-related behaviors [OR = 1.4; 95 % CI = [1.292–1.709] were all linked to having a higher dietary diversity. Conclusion: The minor to moderate changes in food consumption patterns observed across the 38 countries within relatively short time frames could become lasting, leading to a significant and prolonged reduction in dietary diversity, as demonstrated by our findings