Distribution of circulating and glomerular IgG subclasses against full-length anti-phospholipase A2 receptor and its epitopes in primary membranous nephropathy

OBJECTIVE: Research towards understanding PLA2R, the human antigen of primary membranous nephropathy has steadily gained ground since its discovery in 2009. This autoimmune kidney disease features a unique immunological character of high IgG4 prevalence, both in circulation and as immune complexes deposited in tissue. We seek to characterize and better understand the distribution of all IgG subclasses between serum and glomerular deposits, as well as characterize IgG reactivity directed against both full-length PLA2R and its immunogenic components. METHODS: Using biopsy data obtained from renal pathology centers, we identified 13 patients with primary membranous nephropathy as well as biopsy immunofluorescence data for all IgG subclasses. We compared anti-PLA2R staining in glomeruli to serum anti-PLA2R using western blot, and analyzed concordance of subclass distribution between the two sets of data using Cohen's kappa score. We also studied and similarly analyzed, using western blot, subclass distribution of IgG against PLA2R epitopes CysR, CTLD1, and CTLD4-8. RESULTS: All 13/13 (100%) patient samples were positive for circulating anti-PLA2R IgG4 in western blot, with 11/13 (84.6%) positive for IgG3, 6/13 (46.2%) for IgG2, and 11/13 (84.6%) for IgG1. When compared with biopsy immunofluorescence these results exhibited fair agreement for IgG4, IgG3, and IgG1; IgG2 was discordant with corresponding biopsies. For reactivity against PLA2R epitopes, 11/12 (91.7%) samples were positive for anti-CysR IgG4, 5/12 (41.7%) positive for IgG3, 0/11 (0.0%) for IgG2, and 8/11 (72.7%) for IgG1. Reactivity against epitopes CTLD1 and CTLD4-8 was detected less frequently than against CysR, though IgG4 was still the predominant subclass in almost all cases. CONCLUSION: In general, levels of circulating IgG subclasses directed against PLA2R is concordant between serum and in biopsy, and as such serum anti-PLA2R can act as a good proxy for all IgG subclasses found in glomerular deposits. Furthermore, both full-length PLA2R and its extracellular domain containing the CysR epitope exhibit concordance between IgG3 and IgG4 levels, demonstrating potential for anti-CysR autoantibodies to be a good indicator for primary MN in addition to anti-PLA2R

PreZon: Prediction by Zone and Its Application to Egg Productivity in Chickens

Taiwan red-feathered country chickens (TRFCCs) are one of the main meat resources in Taiwan. Due to the lack of any systematic breeding programs to improve egg productivity, the egg production rate of this breed has gradually decreased. The prediction by zone (PreZone) program was developed to select the chickens with low egg productivity so as to improve the egg productivity of TRFCCs before they reach maturity. Three groups (A, B, and C) of chickens were used in this study. Two approaches were used to identify chickens with low egg productivity. The first approach used predictions based on a single dataset, and the second approach used predictions based on the union of two datasets. The levels of four serum proteins, including apolipoprotein A-I, vitellogenin, X protein (an IGF-I-like protein), and apo VLDL-II, were measured in chickens that were 8, 14, 22, or 24 weeks old. Total egg numbers were recorded for each individual bird during the egg production period. PreZone analysis was performed using the four serum protein levels as selection parameters, and the results were compared to those obtained using a first-order multiple linear regression method with the same parameters. The PreZone program provides another prediction method that can be used to validate datasets with a low correlation between response and predictors. It can be used to find low and improve egg productivity in TRFCCs by selecting the best chickens before they reach maturity

The Context of Cloud Computing/Services Adoption in Business: A Systematic Review with Activity Theory perspective

Cloud computing has been established as a prominent research topic with the rise of a ubiquitous provision of computing resources over the last decade. According to literature review, previous studies are found focusing on the technical issue mostly; however, accompanying with the cloud service developing progress, there are a wide range of applications for adopting cloud computing/services and without an overall comprehension. This study aims to proposed a conceptual framework to systematically explore the activities and elements related to cloud computing/services adoption in business. The research framework is found useful for understanding the context of cloud computing and services and the preliminary findings are helpful to further explore the related activities and relationships behind on cloud computing/services adoption in business

Metabolism of Ricinine in Ricinus Communis L.

Chemistr