Periodontitis-induced systemic inflammation exacerbates atherosclerosis partly via endothelial-mesenchymal transition in mice.

Growing evidence suggests close associations between periodontitis and atherosclerosis. To further understand the pathological relationships of these associations, we developed periodontitis with ligature placement around maxillary molars or ligature placement in conjunction with Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide injection at the ligature sites (ligature/P.g. LPS) in Apolipoprotein E knock out mice and studied the atherogenesis process in these animals. The mice were fed with high fat diet for 11 weeks and sacrificed for analyzing periodontitis, systemic inflammation, and atherosclerosis. Controls did not develop periodontitis or systemic inflammation and had minimal lipid deposition in the aortas, but mice receiving ligature or ligature/P.g. LPS showed severe periodontitis, systemic inflammation, and aortic plaque formation. The aortic plaque contained abundant macrophages and cells expressing both endothelial and mesenchymal cell markers. The severity of periodontitis was slightly higher in mice receiving ligature/P.g. LPS than ligature alone, and the magnitude of systemic inflammation and aortic plaque formation were also notably greater in the mice with ligature/P.g. LPS. These observations indicate that the development of atherosclerosis is due to systemic inflammation caused by severe periodontitis. In vitro, P.g. LPS enhanced the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines from macrophages and increased the adhesion of monocytes to endothelial cells by upregulating the expression of adhesion molecules from endothelial cells. Moreover, secretory proteins, such as TNF-α, from macrophages induced endothelial-mesenchymal transitions of the endothelial cells. Taken together, systemic inflammation induced by severe periodontitis might exacerbate atherosclerosis via, in part, causing aberrant functions of vascular endothelial cells and the activation of macrophages in mice

Estimation of hospital-based HIV seroprevalence as a nationwide scale by novel method; 2002-2008 in Korea

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In Korea, approximately 70% of HIV-positive individuals are currently diagnosed in hospitals, while most HIV-positive patients were diagnosed at public health centers in 1980 s and 1990 s. However, there are no reporting systems to identify how many HIV tests are performed in the Korean hospitals different from public health centers and Blood centers. We estimated how many HIV tests were performed in hospitals and analyzed the nationwide hospital-based HIV seroprevalence in the present study.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Between 2002 and 2008, data included HIV tests on insurance claims in hospitals and the proportion of computerized insurance claims from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Services. The number of HIV tests from the survey in the External Quality Assurance Scheme for hospital laboratories was collected to calculate the insurance claim proportion. HIV seroprevalence was estimated using data of tested individuals, including infected individuals. Statistical analysis was confirmed with the 95% confidence interval. Statistical significance was defined at p-values < 0.05.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The number of HIV tests in hospitals increased from 2.7 million in 2002 to 5.0 million in 2008. The trend of HIV seroprevalence was decrease (1.5-1.3 per 10,000 individuals, P < 0.0028), except in 2002. The number of women tested was greater than men, and the proportion increased in older individuals and in small towns. Men had a higher annual HIV seroprevalence than women (P < 0.0001). The annual seroprevalence decreased in men (P = 0.0037), but was stable in women. The seroprevalence in the 30-39 year age group demonstrated higher than other age groups except 2008.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The nationwide hospital-based number of HIV tests and seroprevalence were estimated using a new method and seroprevalence trends were identified. This information will facilitate improvement in national HIV prevention strategies.</p

Geographical subdivision of Alviniconcha snail populations in the Indian Ocean hydrothermal vent regions

The hairy snails of the genus Alviniconcha are representative deep-sea hydrothermal vent animals distributed across the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean. Out of six known species in the genus Alviniconcha, only one nominal species of A. marisindica was found in the Indian Ocean from the Carlsberg Ridge (CR), Central Indian Ridge (CIR) to the northern part of Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) and Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR). Recently, the Alviniconcha snails were found at three new vent fields, named Onnare, Onbada, and Onnuri, in the northern CIR, which promotes a more comprehensive phylogeographic study of this species. Here, we examined the phylogeography and connectivity of the Alviniconcha snails among seven vent fields representing the CR and CIR based on DNA sequence data of a mitochondrial COI gene and two protein-coding nuclear genes. Phylogenetic inferences revealed that the Alviniconcha snails of the newly found in the northern CIR and two vent fields of Wocan and Tianxiu in the CR were divergent with the previously identified A. marisindica in the southern CIR and mitochondrial COI data supported the divergence with at least greater than 3% sequence divergence. Population structure analyses based on the three genetic markers detected a phylogeographic boundary between Onnuri and Solitaire that divides the whole snail populations into northern and southern groups with a low migration rate. The high degree of genetic disconnection around the ‘Onnuri’ boundary suggests that the Alviniconcha snails in the Indian Ocean may undergo allopatric speciation. The border may similarly act as a dispersal barrier to many other vent species co-distributed in the CIR. This study would expand understanding the speciation and connectivity of vent species in the Indian Ocean

Resistance to High-Fat Diet–Induced Obesity but Exacerbated Insulin Resistance in Mice Overexpressing Preadipocyte Factor-1 (Pref-1): A New Model of Partial Lipodystrophy

OBJECTIVE—White adipose tissue is a critical regulator of whole-body glucose metabolism. Preadipocyte factor-1 (Pref-1) is a secreted protein that inhibits adipocyte differentiation, both in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we have investigated the effects of Pref-1 overexpression on whole-body glucose homeostasis and its contribution to the development of insulin resistance

Liverome: a curated database of liver cancer-related gene signatures with self-contained context information

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common cancer worldwide. A number of molecular profiling studies have investigated the changes in gene and protein expression that are associated with various clinicopathological characteristics of HCC and generated a wealth of scattered information, usually in the form of gene signature tables. A database of the published HCC gene signatures would be useful to liver cancer researchers seeking to retrieve existing differential expression information on a candidate gene and to make comparisons between signatures for prioritization of common genes. A challenge in constructing such database is that a direct import of the signatures as appeared in articles would lead to a loss or ambiguity of their context information that is essential for a correct biological interpretation of a gene’s expression change. This challenge arises because designation of compared sample groups is most often abbreviated, <it>ad hoc</it>, or even missing from published signature tables. Without manual curation, the context information becomes lost, leading to uninformative database contents. Although several databases of gene signatures are available, none of them contains informative form of signatures nor shows comprehensive coverage on liver cancer. Thus we constructed Liverome, a curated database of liver cancer-related gene signatures with self-contained context information.</p> <p>Description</p> <p>Liverome’s data coverage is more than three times larger than any other signature database, consisting of 143 signatures taken from 98 HCC studies, mostly microarray and proteome, and involving 6,927 genes. The signatures were post-processed into an informative and uniform representation and annotated with an itemized summary so that all context information is unambiguously self-contained within the database. The signatures were further informatively named and meaningfully organized according to ten functional categories for guided browsing. Its web interface enables a straightforward retrieval of known differential expression information on a query gene and a comparison of signatures to prioritize common genes. The utility of Liverome-collected data is shown by case studies in which useful biological insights on HCC are produced.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Liverome database provides a comprehensive collection of well-curated HCC gene signatures and straightforward interfaces for gene search and signature comparison as well. Liverome is available at <url>http://liverome.kobic.re.kr</url>.</p

Acute Obstructive Cholangitis after Transarterial Chemoembolization: the Effect of Percutaneous Transhepatic Removal of Tumor Fragment

Acute obstructive cholangitis due to the migration of necrotized tumor fragment is a rare complication occurring after a transarterial chemoembolization. The percutaneous tumor removal procedure following percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage is an appropriate treatment over endoscopic removal for the relief of acute cholangitis in this case. Following this serial management, no invasive hepatocellular carcinoma of the bile duct recurred after two years of follow-up

Efficient Cultivation Conditions for Human Limbal Epithelial Cells

To compare the stem niche in different culture conditions of limbal epithelial cells, the suspended human limbal epithelial cells (HLECs) were seeded on the 3T3-pretreated plates and the other suspended cells were plated on amniotic membranes (AMs) which were either cryo-preserved or freeze-dried. All were cultured for 10 to 12 days. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for ATP-binding casette, subfamily G, member 2 (ABCG2), p63, cytokeratin 12, and connexin 43 were performed in cultivated HLECs and their expression levels were compared. The mRNA expression of all markers examined showed no statistically significant differences between the cells on cryo-preserved and on freeze-dried AM. The expression of p63 and cytokeratin 12 in cultivated cells on AMs were significantly lower than those in 3T3-cocultured cells on RT-PCR and immunofluorescent staining. Cultivated HLECs on AMs showed reduced proliferation and differentiation while maintaining stem-property regardless of the preservative method of AM

Stimulatory Effect of β-glucans on Immune Cells

β-Glucans are naturally occurring polysaccharides that are produced by bacteria, yeast, fungi, and many plants. Although their pharmacological activities, such as immunomodulatory, anti-infective and anti-cancer effects, have been well studied, it is still unclear how β-glucans exert their activities. However, recent studies on the β-glucan receptors shed some light on their mechanism of action. Since β-glucans have large molecular weights, they must bind surface receptors to activate immune cells. In this review, we summarize the immunopharmacological activities and the potential receptors of β-glucans in immune cells

Factors Influencing Residual Pleural Opacity in Tuberculous Pleural Effusion

Tuberculous pleural effusion (TPE) leads to residual pleural opacity (RPO) in a significant proportion of cases. The aim of this study was to investigate which TPE patients would have RPO following the treatment. This study was performed prospectively for a total of 60 TPE patients, who underwent pleural fluid analysis on the initial visit and chest radiographs and computed tomography (CT) scans before and after the administration of antituberculous medication. At the end of antituberculous medication, the incidence of RPO was 68.3% (41/60) on CT with a range of 2-50 mm. Compared with the non-RPO group, the RPO group had a longer symptom duration and lower pleural fluid glucose level. On initial CT, loculation, extrapleural fat proliferation, increased attenuation of extrapleural fat, and pleura-adjacent atelectasis were more frequent, and parietal pleura was thicker in the RPO group compared with the non-RPO group. By multivariate analysis, extrapleural fat proliferation, loculated effusion, and symptom duration were found to be predictors of RPO in TPE. In conclusion, RPO in TPE may be predicted by the clinico-radiologic parameters related to the chronicity of the effusion, such as symptom duration and extrapleural fat proliferation and loculated effusion on CT