アーノルド・ファイン作品集

Urinary type IV collagen (U-Col4) and albumin excretion is evaluated to monitor the development of diabetic kidney disease. However, U-Col4 excretion in the general population without diabetes has not yet been fully elucidated. In this study, 1067 participants without diabetes and with urinary albumin-creatinine ratio <300 mg/gCr (normo- or microalbuminuria) who underwent an annual health examination in 2004 were enrolled and observed for 5 years. They were divided according to the amount of U-Col4 or urinary albumin excreted. The decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated. In participants with eGFR ≥80 mL/min, abnormal U-Col4 excretion was indicated as a significant independent risk factor for 10% eGFR change per year, which is one of the prognostic factors for the development of end-stage kidney disease. Moreover, in contrast to urinary albumin excretion, U-Col4 excretion was not related to age or kidney function, suggesting that some individuals with abnormal U-Col4 excretion can have an independent hidden risk for the development of kidney dysfunction. In conclusion, it is important to measure U-Col4 excretion in the general population without diabetes to determine changes in renal features in every individual and help detect future complications such as diabetic kidney disease. If U-Col4 excretion is abnormal, kidney manifestation should be carefully followed up, even if the kidney function and urinalysis findings are normal

Expression and localization of RLF/ INSL3 receptor RXFP2 in boar testes

This study investigated the possibility of the presence of specific receptor for relaxin-like factor (RLF)/insulin-like peptide 3 (INSL3) in boar testes. While RLF/INSL3 was produced by Leydig cells in the boar testis, its own receptor RXFP2 was expressed mainly in meiotic and post-meiotic germ cells, but not in Leydig cells, suggesting the existence of RLF/INSL3–RXFP2 signaling in germ cells of boars

Urinary type IV collagen excretion in the Japanese general population without diabetes

Urinary type IV collagen (U-Col4) and albumin excretion is evaluated to monitor the development of diabetic kidney disease. However, U-Col4 excretion in the general population without diabetes has not yet been fully elucidated. In this study, 1067 participants without diabetes and with urinary albumin-creatinine ratio <300 mg/gCr (normo- or microalbuminuria) who underwent an annual health examination in 2004 were enrolled and observed for 5 years. They were divided according to the amount of U-Col4 or urinary albumin excreted. The decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated. In participants with eGFR ≥80 mL/min, abnormal U-Col4 excretion was indicated as a significant independent risk factor for 10% eGFR change per year, which is one of the prognostic factors for the development of end-stage kidney disease. Moreover, in contrast to urinary albumin excretion, U-Col4 excretion was not related to age or kidney function, suggesting that some individuals with abnormal U-Col4 excretion can have an independent hidden risk for the development of kidney dysfunction. In conclusion, it is important to measure U-Col4 excretion in the general population without diabetes to determine changes in renal features in every individual and help detect future complications such as diabetic kidney disease. If U-Col4 excretion is abnormal, kidney manifestation should be carefully followed up, even if the kidney function and urinalysis findings are normal

Global Shifts in Gene Expression Profiles Accompanied with Environmental Changes in Cnidarian-Dinoflagellate Endosymbiosis

Stable endosymbiotic relationships between cnidarian animals and dinoflagellate algae are vital for sustaining coral reef ecosystems. Recent studies have shown that elevated seawater temperatures can cause the collapse of their endosymbiosis, known as ‘bleaching’, and result in mass mortality. However, the molecular interplay between temperature responses and symbiotic states still remains unclear. To identify candidate genes relevant to the symbiotic stability, we performed transcriptomic analyses under multiple conditions using the symbiotic and apo-symbiotic (symbiont free) Exaiptasia diaphana, an emerging model sea anemone. Gene expression patterns showed that large parts of differentially expressed genes in response to heat stress were specific to the symbiotic state, suggesting that the host sea anemone could react to environmental changes in a symbiotic state-dependent manner. Comparative analysis of expression profiles under multiple conditions highlighted candidate genes potentially important in the symbiotic state transition under heat-induced bleaching. Many of these genes were functionally associated with carbohydrate and protein metabolisms in lysosomes. Symbiont algal genes differentially expressed in hospite encode proteins related to heat shock response, calcium signaling, organellar protein transport, and sugar metabolism. Our data suggest that heat stress alters gene expression in both the hosts and symbionts. In particular, heat stress may affect the lysosome-mediated degradation and transportation of substrates such as carbohydrates through the symbiosome (phagosome-derived organelle harboring symbiont) membrane, which potentially might attenuate the stability of symbiosis and lead to bleaching-associated symbiotic state transition

Distribution of participants with abnormal urinary type IV collagen-creatinine ratio or microalbuminuria in each eGFR group.

<p>Distribution of participants with abnormal urinary type IV collagen-creatinine ratio or microalbuminuria in each eGFR group.</p

Characteristics of participants with or without 10% of eGFR change per year in each group.

<p>Characteristics of participants with or without 10% of eGFR change per year in each group.</p