Response to “Oral health in the elderly patient and its impact on general well-being: a nonsystematic review” paper

Malgorzata Muc-Wierzgoń, Teresa Kokot, Ewa Nowakowska-Zajdel, Adam Błażelonis, Edyta Fatyga Department of Internal Medicine, Silesian Medical University, Bytom, PolandDear editorGil-Montoya et al has recently published an interesting article in Clinical Interventions in Aging entitled: “Oral health in the elderly patient and its impact on general well-being: a nonsystematic review”.1 Authors presented a non-systematic review of the published data regarding the oral health status of the elderly and its main repercussions, including its impact on general health and nutrition.View original paper by Gil-Montoya and colleagues

The relationship between plasma lipids, oxidant–antioxidant status, and glycated proteins in individuals at risk for atherosclerosis

Sylwia Dzięgielewska-Gęsiak,1 Alicja Płóciniczak,2 Katarzyna Wilemska-Kucharzewska,1 Teresa Kokot,1 Małgorzata Muc-Wierzgoń,1 Ewa Wysocka21Department of Internal Medicine, Medical University of Silesia, 44-902 Bytom, Poland; 2Department of Laboratory Diagnostics, Poznan University of Medical Science, 60-569 Poznan, PolandObjective: Ageing is one of the major risks for atherosclerosis. The age-related changes of interactions between plasma lipids, oxidative stress, antioxidant defense, and glycation processes are still not established while we age. Thus, the aim of the study was to analyze such relationships in individuals at risk for atherosclerosis due to their age.Methods: Elderly and middle-aged persons with no acute disease or severe chronic disorder were assessed. Fasting plasma lipids (total cholesterol (T-C), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and triacylglycerols), thiobarbituric acid reacting substances (TBARS), plasma total antioxidant status (TAS), and glucose and glycated proteins (fructosamine (FA) and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c)) were determined. An oral glucose tolerance test allowed exclusion of persons with type 2 diabetes.Results: Lipid profiles were significantly profitable, increased HDL-C especially (p<0.0001), in the elderly versus middle-aged group. Decreased TBARS and TAS were found in the elderly versus middle-aged group (p=0.0001 and p=0.00002, respectively). Increased fructosamine was found in the elderly (255±30 μmol/L) versus middle-aged (236±33 μmol/L) group (p=0.006). Multiple regression analysis showed that in the middle-aged group TBARS correlated with T-C and HDL-C, and in the elderly group with HbA1c and FA independently of other factors.Conclusion: The factors which have an impact on oxidant–antioxidant status are crucial to understanding the pathomechanisms of senescence as well as the development of chronic diseases. Healthy aging may be maintained throughout proper lipid control. Moreover, data support the premise that the balance between lipid metabolism and oxidative stress may play a role in the initial phases of glycation plasma proteins particularly among elderly persons.Keywords: plasma lipids, oxidant-antioxidant markers, glycated proteins, aging, atherosclerosis ris

Response to vitamin D and depression in geriatric primary care patients

Malgorzata Muc-Wierzgon, Ewa Nowakowska-Zajdel, Katarzyna Klakla, Sylwia Dziegielewska-Gesiak, Edyta Fatyga, Teresa Kokot Department of Internal Medicine, Silesian Medical University, Katowice, PolandLapid et al recently published an interesting article in Clinical Interventions in Aging entitled: "Vitamin D and depression in geriatric primary care patients".1 Their conclusion that "lower vitamin D levels were associated with depression" was based on a study that analyzed the patients in primary care internal medicine "who had at least one total serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] level from 2004–2008. For those with multiple serum 25(OH)D measurements, authors used the index of first measurements".1View original paper by Lapid and colleagues

The Impact of Three Genospecies of Borrelia on Expression of Genes Associated with Chemokines and Their Receptors in Normal Human Dermal Fibroblasts

An important role in pathomechanism of Lyme disease is played by the ability of spirochetes to spread within tissues, and to adhere (to platelets, erythrocytes and vascular epithelium). The principal factors regulating that process are chemokines, cytokines and adhesion particles. The aim of this study was to select genes related to the chemokines and their receptors, differentiating the type of infection in the system model, i.e. a culture of normal human diploid fibroblasts infected with three different spirochete genospecies: B. afzelii, B. garinii and B. burgdorferii sensu stricto , by comparing the infected fibroblast culture with that of the control fibroblast. The differences in the expression of genes selected on the basis of a scientific database Affymetrix were analysed by comparing transcriptomes from the four cultures of fibroblasts, using the oligonucleotide microarrays HG_U133A. In the result of infection of fibroblast cultivation with a specific Borrelia genospecies, a variable expression of the chemokines and their receptors, specific for one genospecies was observed. The fibroblast infected with B. afzelii expressed CCL4, CCL1, CCL2 and CCR10; with B. garinii - CXCL12, IL6, CCR3 and CXCR5; and with B. burgorferii sensu stricto - CCL5, CCR1, CCL3, CCL16, CXCR6, IL8, CXCR7 and CXCR3