The degeneration and destruction of femoral articular cartilage shows a greater degree of deterioration than that of the tibial and patellar articular cartilage in early stage knee osteoarthritis: a cross-sectional study

SummaryObjectiveThe aim of the present study was to examine whether the degenerative and morphological changes of articular cartilage in early stage knee osteoarthritis (OA) occurred equally for both femoral- and tibial- or patellar- articular cartilage using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based analyses.DesignThis cross-sectional study was approved by the ethics committee of our university. Fifty patients with early stage painful knee OA were enrolled. The patients underwent 3.0 T MRI on the affected knee joint. Healthy volunteers who did not show MRI-based OA changes were also recruited as controls (n = 19). The degenerative changes of the articular cartilage were quantified by a T2 mapping analysis, and any structural changes were conducted using Whole Organ Magnetic Resonance Imaging Score (WORMS) technique.ResultsAll patients showed MRI-detected OA morphological changes. The T2 values of femoral condyle (FC) (P < 0.0001) and groove (P = 0.0001) in patients with early stage knee OA were significantly increased in comparison to those in the control, while no significant differences in the T2 values of patellar and tibial plateau (TP) were observed between the patients and the control. The WORMS cartilage and osteophyte scores of the femoral articular cartilage were significantly higher than those in the patellar- (P = 0.001 and P = 0.007, respectively) and tibial- (P = 0.0001 and P < 0.0001, respectively) articular cartilage in the patients with early stage knee OA.ConclusionsThe degradation and destruction of the femoral articular cartilage demonstrated a greater degree of deterioration than those of the tibial- and patellar- articular cartilage in patients with early stage knee OA

Application of generalized aurora computed tomography to the EISCAT_3D project

EISCAT_3D is a project to build a multi-site phased-array incoherent scatter radar system in northern Fenno-Scandinavia. We demonstrate via numerical simulation how useful monochromatic images taken by a multi-point imager network are for auroral research in the EISCAT_3D project. We apply the generalized aurora computed tomography (G-ACT) method to modelled observational data from real instruments, such as the Auroral Large Imaging System (ALIS) and the EISCAT_3D radar. G-ACT is a method for reconstructing the three-dimensional (3D) distribution of auroral emissions and ionospheric electron density (corresponding to the horizontal two-dimensional (2D) distribution of energy spectra of precipitating electrons) from multi-instrument data. It is assumed that the EISCAT_3D radar scans an area of 0.8° in geographic latitude and 3° in longitude at an altitude of 130 km with 10 × 10 beams from the radar core site at Skibotn (69.35° N, 20.37° E). Two neighboring discrete arcs are assumed to appear in the observation region of the EISCAT_3D radar. The reconstruction results from G-ACT are compared with those from the normal ACT as well as the ionospheric electron density from the radar. It is found that G-ACT can interpolate the ionospheric electron density at a much higher spatial resolution than that observed by the EISCAT_3D radar. Furthermore, the multiple arcs reconstructed by G-ACT are more precise than those by ACT. In particular, underestimation of the ionospheric electron density and precipitating electrons' energy fluxes inside the arcs is significantly improved by G-ACT including the EISCAT_3D data. Even when the ACT reconstruction is difficult due to the unsuitable locations of the imager sites relative to the discrete arcs and/or a small number of available images, G-ACT allows us to obtain better reconstruction results.</p

Study on Composition Distribution and Ferromagnetism of Monodisperse FePt Nanoparticles

Monodisperse FePt nanoparticles with size of 4.5 and 6.0 nm were prepared by simultaneous reduction of platinum acetylacetonate and thermal decomposition of iron pentacarbonyl in benzylether. The crystallography structure, size, and composition of the FePt nanoparticles were examined by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry measurements of individual particles indicate a broad compositional distribution in both the 4.5 and 6 nm FePt nanoparticles. The effects of compositional distribution on the phase-transition and magnetic properties of the FePt nanoparticles were investigated

Thermoreversible (Ionic-Liquid-Based) Aqueous Biphasic Systems

The ability to induce reversible phase transitions between homogeneous solutions and biphasic liquid-liquid systems, at pre-defined and suitable operating temperatures, is of crucial relevance in the design of separation processes. Ionic-liquid-based aqueous biphasic systems (IL-based ABS) have demonstrated superior performance as alternative extraction platforms, and their thermoreversible behaviour is here disclosed by the use of protic ILs. The applicability of the temperature-induced phase switching is further demonstrated with the complete extraction of two value-added proteins, achieved in a single-step. It is shown that these temperature-induced mono(bi)phasic systems are significantly more versatile than classical liquid-liquid systems which are constrained by their critical temperatures. IL-based ABS allow to work in a wide range of temperatures and compositions which can be tailored to fit the requirements of a given separation process

Angiogenic Activity of Sera from Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients in Relation to IL-12p40 and TNFα Serum Levels

The role of angiogenesis in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis (TB) is not clear. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of sera from TB patients on angiogenesis induced by different subsets of normal human mononuclear cells (MNC) in relation to IL-12p40 and TNFα serum levels. Serum samples from 36 pulmonary TB patients and from 22 healthy volunteers were evaluated. To assess angiogenic reaction the leukocytes-induced angiogenesis test according to Sidky and Auerbach was performed. IL-12p40 and TNFα serum levels were evaluated by ELISA. Sera from TB patients significantly stimulated angiogenic activity of MNC compared to sera from healthy donors and PBS (p < 0.001). The number of microvessels formed after injection of lymphocytes preincubated with sera from TB patients was significantly lower compared to the number of microvessels created after injection of MNC preincubated with the same sera (p < 0.016). However, the number of microvessels created after the injection of lymphocytes preincubated with sera from healthy donors or with PBS alone was significantly higher (p < 0.017). The mean levels of IL-12p40 and TNFα were significantly elevated in sera from TB patients compared to healthy donors. We observed a correlation between angiogenic activity of sera from TB patients and IL-12p40 and TNFα serum levels (p < 0.01). Sera from TB patients constitute a source of mediators that participate in angiogenesis and prime monocytes for production of proangiogenic factors. The main proangiogenic effect of TB patients’ sera is mediated by macrophages/monocytes. TNFα and IL-12p40 may indirectly stimulate angiogenesis in TB

Oligomerization of ZFYVE27 (Protrudin) Is Necessary to Promote Neurite Extension

ZFYVE27 (Protrudin) was originally identified as an interacting partner of spastin, which is most frequently mutated in hereditary spastic paraplegia. ZFYVE27 is a novel member of FYVE family, which is implicated in the formation of neurite extensions by promoting directional membrane trafficking in neurons. Now, through a yeast two-hybrid screen, we have identified that ZFYVE27 interacts with itself and the core interaction region resides within the third hydrophobic region (HR3) of the protein. We confirmed the ZFYVE27's self-interaction in the mammalian cells by co-immunoprecipitation and co-localization studies. To decipher the oligomeric nature of ZFYVE27, we performed sucrose gradient centrifugation and showed that ZFYVE27 oligomerizes into dimer/tetramer forms. Sub-cellular fractionation and Triton X-114 membrane phase separation analysis indicated that ZFYVE27 is a peripheral membrane protein. Furthermore, ZFYVE27 also binds to phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate lipid moiety. Interestingly, cells expressing ZFYVE27ΔHR3 failed to produce protrusions instead caused swelling of cell soma. When ZFYVE27ΔHR3 was co-expressed with wild-type ZFYVE27 (ZFYVE27WT), it exerted a dominant negative effect on ZFYVE27WT as the cells co-expressing both proteins were also unable to induce protrusions and showed cytoplasmic swelling. Altogether, it is evident that a functionally active form of oligomer is crucial for ZFYVE27 ability to promote neurite extensions