Immunolocalization of intermediate filaments in the kidney of the dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius)

Intermediate filaments belong to a large family of proteins which contribute to the formation of the cytoskeleton. The immunolocalization of cytoskeletal proteins has been used extensively in the diagnosis of various renal pathologies. The present study described the immunolocalization of the cytoskeletal proteins vimentin, desmin, smooth muscle actin, and cytokeratin 19 in the normal kidney of the dromedary camel. Kidney samples from eight adult camels were processed for histology and immunohistochemistry. The kidney was enclosed in a renal capsule composed of vimentin immunoreactive fibroblasts and smooth muscle actin immunoreactive smooth muscle cells. The smooth muscle cells in the renal capsule did not exhibit desmin immunoreactivity. Podocytes forming the visceral layer of the glomerular capsule were immunoreactive for vimentin. Immunoreactivity for vimentin and smooth muscle actin in the parietal layer of the glomerular capsule varied, with both reactive and non-reactive cells observed. Intraglomerular mesangial cells were immunoreactive for smooth muscle actin and desmin, but non-reactive to vimentin. The endothelial lining of blood vessels was vimentin immunoreactive, while smooth muscle actin and desmin were demonstrated in the smooth muscle cells of the vessels. The thin limbs of the loops of Henle in cortical nephrons displayed vimentin immunoreactivity. The proximal and distal convoluted tubules, as well as the collecting ducts were negative to vimentin, smooth muscle actin, desmin and cytokeratin 19 immunostaining. In conclusion, the present study has revealed that similarities and differences exist in the immunolocalization of cytoskeletal proteins in the camel when compared to other mammals. The presence of smooth muscle actin in the parietal cells of the glomerular capsule suggests a contractile function of these cells. The results of the study indicate that vimentin and smooth muscle actin can be used as markers for the identification of podocytes and intraglomerular mesangial cells, respectively, in the camel kidney.https://eurjanat.comhj2023Anatomy and Physiolog

Egyptian consensus on treat-to-target approach for osteoporosis: a clinical practice guideline from the Egyptian Academy of bone health and metabolic bone diseases

Background: This study was carried out to achieve an Egyptian expert consensus on a treat-to-target managementstrategy for osteoporosis using Delphi technique. A scientific committee identified researchers and clinicians with expertise in osteoporosis in Egypt. Delphi process was implemented (2 rounds) to establish a consensus on 15 clinical standards: (1) concept, (2) diagnosis, (3) case identification, (4) whom to treat, (5) who should treat?, (6) case stratification and intervention thresholds, (7) falls risk, (8) investigations, (9) treatment target, (10) management, (11) optimum treatment duration, (12) monitoring, (13) drug holiday, (14) osteoporosis in men, and (15) post-fracture care and fracture liaison service. Results: The surveys were sent to an expert panel (n = 25), of whom 24 participated in the two rounds. Respondents were drawn from different governorates and health centres across Egypt including the Ministry of Health. Most of the participants were rheumatologists (76%), followed by internists (8%), orthopaedic doctors (4%), rehabilitation doctors (4%), primary care (4%), and ortho-geriatrics (4%) physicians. Seventy-two recommendations, categorised into 15 sections, were obtained. Agreement with the recommendations (rank 7–9) ranged from 83.4 to 100%. Consensus was reached (i.e. ≥ 75% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed) on the wording of all 15 clinical standards identified by the scientific committee. An algorithm for the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis has been suggested. Conclusion: A wide and representative panel of experts established a consensus regarding the management of osteoporosis in Egypt. The developed guidelines provide a comprehensive approach to the assessment and management of osteoporosis for all Egyptian healthcare professionals who are involved in its management

Ultrasonography of Inflammatory and Structural Lesions in Hand Osteoarthritis: An OMERACT Agreement and Reliability Study

Objective: To standardize and assess the reliability of ultrasonographic assessment of inflammatory and structural lesions in patients with hand osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: The Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) Ultrasound Working Group selected synovial hypertrophy (SH), joint effusion (JE), and power Doppler (PD) signals as the main inflammatory lesions in hand OA, and suggested osteophytes in the scapho-trapezio-trapezoid (STT) and cartilage defects in the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints as novel additions to previous structural scoring systems. A complementary imaging atlas provided detailed examples of the scores. A reliability exercise of static images was performed for the inflammatory features, followed by a patient-based exercise with six sonographers testing inflammatory and structural features in twelve hand OA patients. We used Cohen's kappa (\u3ba) for intra-reader and Light's \u3ba for inter-reader reliability for all features except PD, in which Prevalence-Adjusted Bias-Adjusted Kappa (PABAK) was applied. Percentage agreement was also assessed. Results: The web-based reliability exercise demonstrated substantial intra- and inter-reader reliability for all inflammatory features (\u3ba>0.64). In the patient-based exercise, intra- and inter-reader reliability varied: SH \u3ba=0.73 and 0.45; JE \u3ba=0.70 and 0.55; PD PABAK=0.90 and 0.88; PIP cartilage \u3ba=0.56 and 0.45; STT osteophytes \u3ba=0.62 and 0.36. Percentage close agreement was high for all features (>85%). Conclusion: With ultrasound, substantial to excellent intra-reader reliability was found for inflammatory features of hand OA. Inter-reader reliability was moderate, but overall high close agreement between readers suggest that better reliability is achievable after further training. Assessment of osteophytes in the STT joint and cartilage in the PIP joints achieved less good reliability and the latter is not endorsed. Keywords: Hand osteoarthritis; outcome measures; ultrasonography

Consensus evidence-based recommendations for treat-to-target management of immunoglobulin A vasculitis

IgA vasculitis (IgAV), formerly known as Henoch-Schönlein purpura, is the most common cause of systemic vasculitis in childhood. Given its potential life-threatening systemic complications, early and accurate diagnosis as well as management of IgAV represent a major challenge for health care professionals. This study was carried out to attain an evidence-based expert consensus on a treat-to-target management approach for IgAV using Delphi technique. The preliminary scientific committee identified a total of 16 key clinical questions according to the patient, intervention, comparison, and outcomes (PICO) approach. An evidence-based, systematic, literature review was conducted to compile evidence for the IgAV management. The core leadership team identified researchers and clinicians with expertise in IgAV management in Egypt upon which experts were gathered from different governorates and health centers across Egypt. Delphi process was implemented (two rounds) to reach a consensus. An online questionnaire was sent to expert panel (n = 26) who participated in the two rounds. After completing round 2, a total of 20 recommendation items, categorized into two sections were obtained. Agreement with the recommendations (rank 7–9) ranged from 91.7–100%. Consensus was reached (i.e. ⩾75% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed) on the wording of all the 20 clinical standards identified by the scientific committee. Algorithms for the diagnosis and management have been suggested. This was an expert, consensus recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of IgAV and IgA vasculitic nephritis, based on best available evidence and expert opinion. The guideline presented a strategy of care with a pathway to achieve a state of remission as early as possible

Gene Properties and Chromatin State Influence the Accumulation of Transposable Elements in Genes

Transposable elements (TEs) are mobile DNA sequences found in the genomes of almost all species. By measuring the normalized coverage of TE sequences within genes, we identified sets of genes with conserved extremes of high/low TE density in the genomes of human, mouse and cow and denoted them as ‘shared upper/lower outliers (SUOs/SLOs)’. By comparing these outlier genes to the genomic background, we show that a large proportion of SUOs are involved in metabolic pathways and tend to be mammal-specific, whereas many SLOs are related to developmental processes and have more ancient origins. Furthermore, the proportions of different types of TEs within human and mouse orthologous SUOs showed high similarity, even though most detectable TEs in these two genomes inserted after their divergence. Interestingly, our computational analysis of polymerase-II (Pol-II) occupancy at gene promoters in different mouse tissues showed that 60% of tissue-specific SUOs show strong Pol-II binding only in embryonic stem cells (ESCs), a proportion significantly higher than the genomic background (37%). In addition, our analysis of histone marks such as H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in mouse ESCs also suggest a strong association between TE-rich genes and open-chromatin at promoters. Finally, two independent whole-transcriptome datasets show a positive association between TE density and gene expression level in ESCs. While this study focuses on genes with extreme TE densities, the above results clearly show that the probability of TE accumulation/fixation in mammalian genes is not random and is likely associated with different factors/gene properties and, most importantly, an association between the TE insertion/fixation rate and gene activity status in ES cells

Nuclear Importation of Mariner Transposases among Eukaryotes: Motif Requirements and Homo-Protein Interactions

Mariner-like elements (MLEs) are widespread transposable elements in animal genomes. They have been divided into at least five sub-families with differing host ranges. We investigated whether the ability of transposases encoded by Mos1, Himar1 and Mcmar1 to be actively imported into nuclei varies between host belonging to different eukaryotic taxa. Our findings demonstrate that nuclear importation could restrict the host range of some MLEs in certain eukaryotic lineages, depending on their expression level. We then focused on the nuclear localization signal (NLS) in these proteins, and showed that the first 175 N-terminal residues in the three transposases were required for nuclear importation. We found that two components are involved in the nuclear importation of the Mos1 transposase: an SV40 NLS-like motif (position: aa 168 to 174), and a dimerization sub-domain located within the first 80 residues. Sequence analyses revealed that the dimerization moiety is conserved among MLE transposases, but the Himar1 and Mcmar1 transposases do not contain any conserved NLS motif. This suggests that other NLS-like motifs must intervene in these proteins. Finally, we showed that the over-expression of the Mos1 transposase prevents its nuclear importation in HeLa cells, due to the assembly of transposase aggregates in the cytoplasm

Blood lead, cadmium and mercury among children from urban, industrial and rural areas of Fez Boulemane Region (Morocco): Relevant factors and early renal effects

Objectives: To describe blood lead (Pb-B), cadmium (Cd-B) and mercury (Hg-B) levels in children living in urban, industrial and rural areas in Fez city (north of Morocco) and to identify the determinants and some renal effects of exposure. Material and Methods: The study was conducted from June 2007 to January 2008 in 209 school children (113 girls, 96 boys), aged 6-12 years, from urban, industrial and rural areas in Fez city. Interview and questionnaires data were obtained. Blood and urinary samples were analyzed. Results: The mean of blood lead levels (Pb-B) in our population was 55.53 μg/l (range: 7.5-231.1 μg/l). Children from the urban area had higher blood lead levels (BLLs) mean (82.36 μg/l) than children from industrial and rural areas (48.23 and 35.99 μg/l, respectively); with no significant difference between boys and girls. BLLs were associated with traffic intensity, passive smoking and infancy in the urban area. The mean of blood cadmium levels (BCLs) was 0.22 μg/l (range: 0.06-0.68 μg/l), with no difference between various areas. Rural boys had higher BCLs mean than rural girls, but no gender influence was noticed in the other areas. BCLs were associated with the number of cigarettes smoked at children's homes. The blood mercury levels (BMLs) mean was 0.49 μg/l (range: 0.01-5.31 μg/l). The BMLs mean was higher in urban and industrial areas than in the rural area with no gender-related difference. BMLs were associated with amalgam fillings and infancy in the urban area. About 8% of the children had BLLs ≥ 100 μg/l particularly in the urban area, microalbuminuria and a decrease in height were noticed in girls from the inner city of Fez and that can be related to high BLLs (89.45 μg/l). Conclusions: There is a need to control and regulate potential sources of contamination by these trace elements in children; particularly for lead