Ein- und Zwei-Jahres-Ergebnisse der zervikalen Bandscheibenersatzoperation unter Verwendung der Bryan Prothese

Die Behandlung zervikaler Bandscheibenleiden mittels Fusionen kann zu Anschlussdegenerationen führen. Zunehmend kommen künstliche Prothesen zur Anwendung. Es wurden 21 Patienten nach Implantation einer Bryan Bandscheibenprothese über 24 Monate nachuntersucht. Die Beweglichkeit der endoprothetisch versorgten und der angrenzenden Bandscheibenräume, sowie die sagittale Ebene wurden gemessen. Subjektive Beschwerdesymptomatik wurde standardisiert. Nach 24 Monaten fand sich eine signfikante Zunahme der Beweglichkeit in den operierten Segmenten. Kranial des operierten Segmentes nahm die Beweglichkeit nach 1 Jahr signifikant zu. Es fand sich keine signifikante Veränderung der sagittalen Ebene. Vergleichbar der Fusion kam es nach Bandscheibenersatz zur Zustandsverbesserung. Es ist nicht ersichtlich, inwieweit die erhaltene Beweglichkeit die Beschwerdebesserung beeinflusst. Geringe Patientenzahl, kurzer Beobachtungszeitraum, sowie fehlende Kontrollgruppen lassen keine eindeutige Aussage zu

Upregulation of ribosome biogenesis via canonical E-boxes is required for Myc-driven proliferation

The transcription factor Myc drives cell growth across animal phyla and is activated in most forms of human cancer. However, it is unclear which Myc target genes need to be regulated to induce growth and whether multiple targets act additively or if induction of each target is individually necessary. Here, we identified Myc target genes whose regulation is conserved between humans and flies and deleted Myc-binding sites (E-boxes) in the promoters of fourteen of these genes in Drosophila. E-box mutants of essential genes were homozygous viable, indicating that the E-boxes are not required for basal expression. Eight E-box mutations led to Myc-like phenotypes; the strongest mutant, ppan(Ebox-/-), also made the flies resistant to Myc-induced cell growth without affecting Myc-induced apoptosis. The ppan(Ebox-/-) flies are healthy and display only a minor developmental delay, suggesting that it may be possible to treat or prevent tumorigenesis by targeting individual downstream targets of Myc.Peer reviewe

The transcriptional landscape of age in human peripheral blood

Disease incidences increase with age, but the molecular characteristics of ageing that lead to increased disease susceptibility remain inadequately understood. Here we perform a whole-blood gene expression meta-analysis in 14,983 individuals of European ancestry (including replication) and identify 1,497 genes that are differentially expressed with chronological age. The age-associated genes do not harbor more age-associated CpG-methylation sites than other genes, but are instead enriched for the presence of potentially functional CpG-methylation sites in enhancer and insulator regions that associate with both chronological age and gene expression levels. We further used the gene expression profiles to calculate the 'transcriptomic age' of an individual, and show that differences between transcriptomic age and chronological age are associated with biological features linked to ageing, such as blood pressure, cholesterol levels, fasting glucose, and body mass index. The transcriptomic prediction model adds biological relevance and complements existing epigenetic prediction models, and can be used by others to calculate transcriptomic age in external cohorts.Peer reviewe

Characterization of cereal β-glucan extracts : Conformation and structural aspects

Several health benefits have been established for cereal mixed-linkage β-glucan of high molar mass (M), and are said to be attributed to the ability of β-glucan to form viscous slurries in the gut. As no comprehensive understanding exists yet, the characterization of β-glucan solution behavior is crucial. β-Glucan was characterized in terms of M, molecular size and conformation characteristics in aqueous solutions utilizing asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation (AF4) coupled to multi-angle light scattering (MALS) and differential refractive index (dRI) detectors. Polymers and aggregates were investigated using conformational data from comparing hydrodynamic radii (rhyd, from AF4) and root-mean-square radii (rrms, from MALS), Kratky plots (from MALS) and persistence length determination (from small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS)). The aggregated structures were also analyzed with cryo-transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM). The results show the presence of highly aggregated structures in aqueous solution, in addition to dissolved, highly polydisperse polymers. The structural and conformational properties of the aggregates are different between oat and barley β-glucan. While oat β-glucan seems to be aggregated in a widely distributed, loose structure, barley β-glucan showed surprisingly dense and well-defined aggregates

Characterization of cereal β-glucan extracts from oat and barley and quantification of proteinaceous matter.

An extraction method for mixed-linkage β-glucan from oat and barley was developed in order to minimize the effect of extraction on the β-glucan structure. β-Glucan were characterized in terms of molecular size and molar mass distributions using asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation (AF4) coupled to multiangle light scattering (MALS), differential refractive index (dRI) and fluorescence (FL) detection. The carbohydrate composition of the extracts was analysed using polysaccharide analysis by carbohydrate gel electrophoresis (PACE) and high-performance anion-exchange chromatography (HPAEC). Whether there were any proteinaceous moieties linked to β-glucan was also examined. Purified extracts contained 65% and 53% β-glucan for oats and barley, respectively. The main impurities were degradation products of starch. The extracts contained high molecular weight β-glucan (105-108 g/mol) and large sizes (root-mean-square radii from 20 to 140 nm). No proteins covalently bound to β-glucan were detected; therefore, any suggested functionality of proteins regarding the health benefits of β-glucan can be discounted