Relationship between MPV and paraoxonase-1 activity, brachial artery diameter and IMT in patients with diabetes mellitus

Aims: Higher mean platelet volume (MPV) in diabetic patients has been considered as an emerging risk factor for diabetes related micro- and macrovascular complications. Human paraoxonase 1/arylesterase (PON1), which has antioxidant and antiatherogenic properties, is documented in high oxidative stress conditions like uncontrolled diabetes. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between mean platelet volume (MPV) and paraoxonase-1 (PON-1) activity, brachial artery diameter (BAd) and intima media thickness (BA-IMT), in diabetic patients with regard to obesity and diabetic complications.Methods: Two-hundred and one diabetic patients (mean age: 52.4 ± 13.4 years, 73.6% females) were grouped according to obesity and diabetic complications (microvascular and macrovascular). Data on demographics, anthropometrics, diabetic complications, MPV levels, BAd and BA-IMT, and serum paraoxonase and arylesterase activities were recorded. The correlation of MPV values to paraoxonase and arylesterase activities, BAd and BA-IMT was evaluated.Results: Paraoxonase and arylesterase values were 119.8 ± 37.5 U/L and 149.0 ± 39.9 U/L, respectively, with no significant difference in respect of obesity and macrovascular complications. Significantly lower values for paraoxonase (107.5 ± 30.7 vs. 123.9 ± 38.8 U/L, p = 0.007) and arylesterase (132.1 ± 30.2 vs. 154.7 ± 41.2, U/L, p = 0.001) were noted in patients with microvascular complications. MPV values were 9.10 ± 0.87 fL, with no significant difference across the groups and no significant correlation with other parameters.Conclusion: In conclusion, PON-1 activity is more significantly decreased in diabetic patients with microvascular than macrovascular complications with no effects on MPV values. On the other hand, no relationship was found between thrombogenic activity and PON-1 activity, BAd and BA-IMT regardless of obesity and diabetic complications.Keywords: cardiovascular, diabetes, insulin resistance, obesity, vasculatur

Serum Presepsin Levels Are Not Elevated in Patients with Controlled Hypertension

Introduction. Hypertension (HT) is a common serious condition associated with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The pathogenesis of HT is multifactorial and has been widely investigated. Besides the vascular, hormonal, and neurological factors, inflammation plays a crucial role in HT. Many inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein, cytokines, and adhesion molecules have been studied in HT, which supported the role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of HT. Presepsin (PSP) is a novel biomarker of inflammation. Therefore, the potential relationship between PSP and HT was investigated in this study. Methods. Forty-eight patients with controlled HT and 48 controls without HT were included in our study. Besides routine clinical and laboratory data, PSP levels were measured in peripheral venous blood samples from all the participants. Results. PSP levels were significantly lower in patients with HT than in controls (144.98±75.98 versus 176.67±48.12 pg/mL, p=0.011). PSP levels were positively correlated with hsCRP among both the patient and the control groups (p=0.015 and p=0.009, resp.). However, PSP levels were not correlated with WBC among both groups (p=0.09 and p=0.67, resp.). Conclusions. PSP levels are not elevated in patients with well-controlled HT compared to controls. This result may be associated with anti-inflammatory effects of antihypertensive medicines

The Effect of Host miRNAs on Prognosis in COVID-19: miRNA-155 May Promote Severity via Targeting Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling 1 (SOCS1) Gene

The epigenetic features contribute to variations in host susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and severity of symptoms. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the relative expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) and the severity of the disease in COVID-19 patients. The miRNA profiles were monitored during the different stages of the disease course using reverse transcription–quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The expression levels of the selected 11 miRNAs were measured in the blood samples collected from 73 patients (moderate, n = 37; severe, n = 25; critically ill, n = 11, a total of 219 longitudinal samples) on hospitalization day and days 7 and 21. Expression changes were expressed as “fold change” compared to healthy controls (n = 10). Our study found that several miRNAs differed according to disease severity, with the miR-155-5p the most strongly upregulated (p = 0.0001). A statistically significant negative correlation was observed between the expression of miR-155-5p and its target gene, the suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1). The relative expression of miR-155-5p was significantly increased and SOCS1 was significantly decreased with the disease progression (r = −0.805 p = 0.0001, r = −0.940 p = 0.0001, r = −0.933 p = 0.0001 for admission, day 7, and day 21, respectively). The overexpression of miR-155-5p has significantly increased inflammatory cytokine production and promoted COVID-19 progression. We speculated that microRNA-155 facilitates immune inflammation via targeting SOCS1, thus establishing its association with disease prognosis

Dynamic collagen changes in cervix during the first trimester and decreased collagen content in cervical insufficiency

Objective: To determine the changes in cervical collagen during the first trimester of pregnancy and to evaluate the collagen deficit in cases with a previous diagnosis of cervical insufficiency (CI)

The correlation between bone biomarkers, glucosylsphingosine levels, and molecular findings in Gaucher type 1 patients under enzyme therapy

Objectives We aimed to determine the relationship of Lyso-Gb1 levels, bone biomarkers, and mutation findings with bone marrow burden (BMB) scores. Methods Lyso-Gb1 and bone biomarkers, and BMB scores of 10 Gaucher type 1 (GD1) patients under enzyme therapy were prospectively evaluated. Results Ten GD1 patients, aged between 4.5 and 40 (mean 23 +/- 11 years), were included in the study. Four patients were homozygous for L444P/L444P, and six patients were compound heterozygous for N370S/R415H. We found positive correlations between pain and BMB scores with Lyso-Gb1 levels (r=0.889, p=0.001 and r=0.701, p=0.035, respectively). There were negative correlations between bone mineral density (BMD) of both the lumbar spine and femoral neck between Lyso-Gb1 levels (r=-0.929, p=0.001 and r=-0.893, p=0.007, respectively). Patients with L444P/L444P mutation had higher Lyso-Gb1 levels and BMB, pain scores and lower BMD measurements than patients with N370S/R415H (p=0.01, p=0.02, p=0.03, p=0.04, p=0.04, respectively). Conclusions There was an apparent correlation between, Lyso-Gb1 levels, BMB scores and genotype in evaluating bone involvement in Gaucher patients