Einfluß einer Selen-Substitution auf den Verlauf einer Autoimmunthyreoiditis

Selenium Supplementation in Patients with Autoimmue Thyroiditis Decreases Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies Concentrations ROLAND GÄRTNER, BARBARA C. H. GASNIER, JOHANNES W. DIETRICH, BJARNE KREBS, AND MATTHIAS W. A. ANGSTWURM Departement of Endocrinology, Medizinische Klinik Innenstadt, University of Munich, D-80336 Munich, Germany In areas with severe selenium deficiency there is a higher incidence of thyroiditis due to a decreased activity of selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase activity within thyroid cells. Selenium-dependent enzymes also have several modifying effects on the immune system. Therefore, even mild selenium deficiency may contribute to the developpement and maintenance of autoimmune thyroid dideases. We performed a blinded, placebo-controlled, prospective study in female patients (n = 70; mean age, 47.5 + 0.7 yr) with autoimmune thyroiditis and thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb) and/or Tg antibodies (TgAb) above 350 IU/ml. The primary end point of the study was the change of TPOAb concentrations. Secondary end points were changes in TgAb, TSH, and free thyroid hormone levels as well as ultrasound pattern of the thyroid and quality of life estimation. Patients were randomized into 2 age- and antibody (TPOAb)-matched groups; 36 patients received 200 µg (2.53 µmol) sodium selenite/d, orally, for 3 months, and 34 patients recieved placebo. All patients were substituted with L-T4 to maintain TSH within the normal range. TPOAb, TgAb, TSH, and free thyroid hormones were determined by commercial assays. The echogenicity of the thyroid was monitored with high resolution ultrasound. The mean TPOAb concentration decreased significantly to 63.6% (P = 0.013) in the selenium group vs. 88% (P = 0.95) in the placebo group. A subgroup analysis of those patients with TPOAb greater than 1200 IU/ml revealed a mean 40% reduction in the selenium-treated patients compared to a 10% increase in TPOAb in the placebo group. TgAb concentrations were lower in the placebo group at the beginning af the study and significantly further decreased (P = 0.018), but were unchanged in the selenium group. Nine patients in the selenium-treated group had completely normalized antibody concentrations, in contrast to two patients in the placebo group (by x2 test, P = 0.01). Ultrasound of the thyroid showed normalized echogenicity in these patients. The mean TSH, free T4, and free T3 levels were unchanged in both groups. We conclude that selenium substitution may improve the inflammatory activity in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis, especilally in those with high activity. Whether this effect is specific for autoimmune thyroiditis or may also be effective in other endocrine autoimmune diseases has yet to be investigated. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab 87: 1687-1691, 2002)ZUSAMMENFASSUNG UND AUSBLICK Initial gingen wir von der Hypothese aus, daß schon ein milder Selenmangel zur Entwicklung und Aufrechterhaltung einer AIT beitragen kann, und daß Selen einen modulierenden Effekt auf das Immunsystem hat. Aus diesen Überlegungen heraus führten wir eine prospektive, geblindete, randomisierte und placebokontrollierte Studie durch. Eingeschlossen wurden insgesamt 70 Patientinnen mit AIT. Von diesen erhielten 36 drei Monate lang 200 µg Natriumselenit pro Tag, 34 bekamen Placebo. Als primäres Studienziel erfaßten wir den Verlauf der TPO-AK-Konzentrationen im Serum, als sekundäre Studienziele - den Verlauf der TGAK-Konzentrationen, - der FT3- und FT4- und TSH-Plasmaspiegel - sowie Perfusionsausmaß und Echomuster der Schilddrüse in der hochauflösenden Doppler-Sonographie. - Außerdem wurde die Lebensqualität anhand eines SF 12-Fragebogens ermittelt. Es konnte gezeigt werden, daß eine Substitution mit 200µg Natrium-Selenit 1) sowohl die TPO-AK-Konzentrationen, als auch die Aktivität der Erkrankung signifikant senkte, 2) daß sich darunter bei 9 von 36 Patientinnen die Perfusion, Autoantikörper-Konzentrationen und sonographisches Bild der Schilddrüse normalisierten - in der Placebogruppe nur bei 2 von 34 Patientinnen, 3) daß sich die Schilddrüsenhormonwerte dabei nicht veränderten, 4) es zu einer hochsignifikanten Verbesserung des subjektiven Wohlbefindens kam, die mit den Serum-Selenspiegeln korrelierte, 5) daß diese Veränderung unabhängig vom Verlauf der Serumkonzentration der Autoantikörper eintrat und 6) daß sich die TGAK-Konzentrationen unabhängig von der Verabreichung von Selen änderten und zu Studienende signifikant niedrigere Werte in der Placebogruppe erreichten, als in der Verumgruppe. Mit dieser Pilotstudie gelang uns somit der Nachweis, daß der Einsatz von Selen schon bei einer mäßigen Selenunterversorgung eine signifikante Senkung der Entzündungsaktivität bei einer schilddrüsenspezifischen Autoimmunerkrankung bewirkt. Interessant wäre eine Folgestudie mit der Fragestellung, ob eine frühzeitige Behandlung den Verlauf von frisch aufgetretenen Erkrankungen verzögernd oder sogar kurativ beeinfussen könnte. Außerdem halten wir es für wichtig, herauszufinden, in wieweit sich diese Ergebnisse auf andere organspezifische Autoimmunerkrankungen übertragen ließen, wie z.B. auf Diabetes mellitus Typ I, Lupus erythematodes, Perniziöse Anämie, Vitiligo etc. In diesem Zusammenhang bleibt des weiteren zu untersuchen, ob im Rahmen des Syndroms der polyglandulären Autoimmun-Erkrankungen (PGA) vorbeugend die Entstehung von Folgeerkrankungen verhindert werden könnte, die häufig in Assoziation mit der AIT auftreten. Wie schon in anderen Studien gezeigt, besitzt Selen einen positiven Einfluß auf Wohlbefinden sowie auf kognitive Leistungen. Zusätzliche Studien sind auch hier notwendig, um dies weiter abzusichern, damit es Eingang in den klinischen Alltag finden kann. Wir hoffen, daß die Resultate unserer Studie einen Anstoß dazu geben werden, die Kenntnisse der gleichermaßen gesundheitserhaltenden wie heilsamen Wirkung einer ausreichenden Versorgung dieses derart vielseitigen und lebensnotwendigen Spurenelementes zu erweitern

Gender-related and geographic trends in interactions between radiotherapy professionals on Twitter.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Twitter presence in academia has been linked to greater research impact which influences career progression. The purpose of this study was to analyse Twitter activity of the radiotherapy community around ESTRO congresses with a focus on gender-related and geographic trends. MATERIALS AND METHODS Tweets, re-tweets and replies, here designated as interactions, around the ESTRO congresses held in 2012-2021 were collected. Twitter activity was analysed temporally and, for the period 2016-2021, the geographical span of the ESTRO Twitter network was studied. Tweets and Twitter users collated during the 10 years analysed were ranked based on number of 'likes', 're-tweets' and followers, considered as indicators of leadership/influence. Gender representation was assessed for the top-end percentiles. RESULTS Twitter activity around ESTRO congresses was multiplied by 60 in 6 years growing from 150 interactions in 2012 to a peak of 9097 in 2018. In 2020, during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, activity dropped by 60 % to reach 2945 interactions and recovered to half the pre-pandemic level in 2021. Europe, North America and Oceania were strongly connected and remained the main contributors. While overall, 58 % of accounts were owned by men, this proportion increased towards top liked/re-tweeted tweets and most-followed profiles to reach up to 84 % in the top-percentiles. CONCLUSION During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, Twitter activity around ESTRO congresses substantially decreased. Men were over-represented on the platform and in most popular tweets and influential accounts. Given the increasing importance of social media presence in academia the gender-based biases observed may help in understanding the gender gap in career progression

The role of alexithymia and empathy on radiation therapists’ professional quality of life

Background and purpose: Physical and mental well-being are crucial for oncology professionals as they affect performance at work. Personality traits, as alexithymia and empathy, may influence professional quality of life. Alexithymia involves diminished skills in emotion processing and awareness. Empathy is pertinent to the ability to understand another's ‘state of mind/emotion’. The PROject on Burn-Out in RadiatioN Oncology (PRO BONO) investigates professional quality of life amongst radiation oncology professionals, exploring the role of alexithymia and empathy. The present study reports on data pertinent to radiation therapists (RTTs). Material and methods: An online survey targeted ESTRO members. Participants were asked to fill out 3 questionnaires for alexithymia, empathy and professional quality of life: (a) Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20); (b) Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI); (c) Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQoL). The present analysis focuses on RTTS to evaluate compassion satisfaction (CS), secondary traumatic stress (STS) and Burnout and their correlation with alexithymia and empathy, using generalized linear modeling. Covariates found significant at univariate linear regression analysis were included in the multivariate linear regression model. Results: A total of 399 RTTs completed all questionnaires. The final model for the burnout scale of ProQoL found, as significal predictors, the TAS-20 total score (β = 0.46, p < 0 0.001), and the individual's perception of being valued by supervisor (β = −0.29, p < 0.001). With respect to CS, the final model included TAS-20 total score (β = −0.33, p < 0.001), the Empatic Concern domain (β = 0.23, p < 0.001) of the IRI questionnaire and the individual's perception of being valued by colleagues (β = 0.22, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Alexithymia increased the likelyhood to experience burnout and negatively affected the professional quality of life amongst RTTs working in oncology. Empathy resulted in higher professional fulfillment together with collegaues’ appreciation. These results may be used to benchmark preventing strategies and implement organization-direct and/or individual-directed interventions

Set up of a methodology for participatory plant breeding in bread wheat in France

In Organic Agriculture, cultivation environments and agronomic practices are very diverse. This diversity can be handled with decentralized selection based on the knowledge of farmers and scientists. A collaborative work between associations from Réseau Semences Paysannes and the DEAP team from INRA du Moulon set up an innovative breeding approach on farm based on decentralization and participation of farmers. This approach makes it possible to (i) create new population varieties of bread wheat locally adapted (genetic innovation) (ii) set up an organizational scheme based on decentralization and co construction between actors (societal innovation) and (iii) develop experimental designs, create statistical and data management tools which stimulate these genetic and societal innovations

Glyphosate does not substitute for glycine in proteins of actively dividing mammalian cells

Glyphosate (N-phosphonomethyl glycine) and its commercial herbicide formulations have been shown to exert toxicity via various mechanisms. It has been asserted that glyphosate substitutes for glycine in polypeptide chains leading to protein misfolding and toxicity. However, as no direct evidence exists for glycine to glyphosate substitution in proteins, including in mammalian organisms, we tested this claim by conducting a proteomics analysis of MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells grown in the presence of 100 mg/L glyphosate for 6 days. Protein extracts from three treated and three untreated cell cultures were analysed as one TMT-6plex labelled sample, to highlight a specific pattern (+/+/+/−/−/−) of reporter intensities for peptides bearing true glyphosate treatment induced-post translational modifications as well as allowing an investigation of the total proteome