Does autonomic neuropathy play a role in erythropoietin regulation in non-proteinuric Type 2 diabetic patients?

Aims Erythropoietin (EPO)-deficient anaemia has been described in Type 1 diabetic patients with both severe autonomic neuropathy (AN) and proteinuria. This study was aimed at distinguishing between the effects of AN and nephropathy on haemoglobin and EPO levels in Type 2 diabetic patients at an early stage of diabetic nephropathy. Methods In 64 Type 2 diabetic patients (age 52 +/- 10 years, duration 10 +/- 9 years) without overt nephropathy and other causes of anaemia or EPO deficit, we assessed cardiovascular tests of AN, 24-h blood pressure (BP) monitoring, urinary albumin excretion rate (UAE), a full blood count, and serum EPO. Results Although the Type 2 diabetic patients with AN did not show differences in haemoglobin and EPO when compared with patients without AN, the presence of haemoglobin < 13 g/dl was associated with the presence of AN (chi(2)= 3.9, P < 0.05) and of postural hypotension (chi(2)= 7.8, P < 0.05). In a multiple regression analysis including as independent variables gender, body mass index, duration of diabetes, smoking, creatinine, 24-h UAE, 24-h diastolic BP, ferritin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and autonomic score, we found that the only variables independently related to haematocrit were autonomic score, ferritin and erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Finally, the physiological inverse relationship between EPO and haemoglobin present in a control group of 42 non-diabetic non-anaemic subjects was completely lost in Type 2 diabetic patients. The slopes of the regression lines between EPO and haemoglobin of the control subjects and the Type 2 diabetic patients were significantly different (t = 14.4, P < 0.0001). Conclusion This study documents an early abnormality of EPO regulation in Type 2 diabetes before clinical nephropathy and points to a contributory role of AN in EPO dysregulation

With mouse age comes wisdom : a review and suggestions of relevant mouse models for age-related conditions

Ageing is a complex multifactorial process that results in many changes in physiological changes processes that ultimately increase susceptibility to a wide range of diseases. As such an ageing population is resulting in a pressing need for more and improved treatments across an assortment of diseases. Such treatments can come from a better understanding of the pathogenic pathways which, in turn, can be derived from models of disease. Therefore the more closely the model resembles the disease situation the more likely relevant the data will be that is generated from them. Here we review the state of knowledge of mouse models of a range of diseases and aspects of an ageing physiology that are all germane to ageing. We also give recommendations on the most common mouse models on their relevance to the clinical situations occurring in aged patients and look forward as to how research in ageing models can be carried out. As we continue to elucidate the pathophysiology of disease, often through mouse models, we also learn what is needed to refine these models. Such factors can include better models, reflecting the ageing patient population, or a better phenotypic understanding of existing models

Características hematológicas de bovinos (Bos taurus) sadios da raça Pantaneira.

O gado Pantaneiro é a raça brasileira local adaptada às condições extremas de temperatura, umidade e qualidade das pastagens naturais do Pantanal. Com o objetivo de conhecer seus aspectos fisiológicos, foi determinado o perfil hematológico utilizando indivíduos clinicamente sadios. Para isso foram examinadas 293 amostras de sangue colhidas em duas propriedades, no Mato Grosso e Mato Grosso do Sul. Estes animais foram divididos, de acordo com a faixa etária, em cinco grupos: G1, G2, G3, G4 e G5. Estudou-se o eritrograma e o leucograma, submetendo os resultados à estatística descritiva e comparativa para determinação da relação com a idade e sexo.bitstream/item/79836/1/BP104.pd

Enzimas séricas e parâmetros bioquímicos de bovinos (Bos taurus) sadios da raça pantaneira.

Os colonizadores trouxeram para o Brasil sua cultura, técnicas de produção agropecuária e animais domésticos. No Pantanal, esse processo evoluiu para a formação do bovino Pantaneiro, raça naturalizada local, exemplo de adaptabilidade ao meio ambiente. Porém esses animais vêm sendo gradativamente substituídos por zebuínos desde o final do século XIX, em cruzamentos absorventes que resultaram em risco de extinção dessa população. Para conservar e expandir esse patrimônio genético é necessário conhecer os parâmetros fisiológicos da raça, que podem auxiliar na interpretação de aspectos clínicos, sanitários e metabólicos desses animais. Este trabalho teve o objetivo de estabelecer os valores de referência para atividade sérica da aspartato aminotransferase (AST), fosfatase alcalina (ALP), gama glutamiltransferase (GGT) e creatino quinase (CK). Também foram quantificados os níveis de bilirrubina, proteína total, globulinas, albumina, uréia, creatinina, glicose, colesterol e fibrinogênio, além da sua correlação com as variáveis, idade e sexo. Para isso, foram colhidas amostras de sangue de 263 animais, em duas propriedades rurais do Pantanal de Mato Grosso e Mato Grosso do Sul. Esses indivíduos foram classificados em cinco grupos, de acordo com a faixa etária. Os dados obtidos foram submetidos à estatística descritiva e posteriormente utilizaram-se testes não paramétricos para comparação de medianas. Os resuiltados descritos levam a conclusão de que o aumento da idade cursa com elevação da AST e com a diminuição de ALP e GGT. Além disso, os maiores valores de CK são detectados no período entre 3 a 11 meses, para em seguida ocorrer diminuição. A idade tem relação com todos os parâmetros bioquímicos, exceto a bilirrubina indireta, sendo que o aumento da idade cursa com a elevação da proteína total, creatinina, uréia, colesterol e fibrinogênio e com a diminuição de bilirrubinas total e direta, albumina e glicose. As fêmeas apresentaram valores maiores de uréia e colesterol, enquanto os machos tiveram níveis maiores de glicose e fibrinogênio.bitstream/item/54532/1/BP106.pd

Multidisciplinary Experience In The Selection Of Patients For Tubal Sterilization.

Results of the use of a special protocol for evaluation of patients requiring tubal ligation is presented after applied by a multidisciplinary group. The authors conclude that the use of defined parameters of age, parity, marital union duration, number of children alive and the presence of maternal clinical pathology are useful to identify patients with smaller chances of regret after surgery.27% of reproductive-age women in Brazil have chosen surgical sterilization as their contraceptive method. Most of these women who have undergone tubal sterilization opted for cesarean surgery. However, given the young ages of many of these women, many regret having been sterilized. This paper summarizes the experience of a multidisciplinary group in evaluating women who apply for surgical sterilization at the Department of Tocogynecology, Faculdade de Ciencas Medicas, Universidade Estadual de Campinas in Sao Paulo. Detailed descriptions are presented of the medical and social characteristics of cases seen between June 1988 and July 1989. The authors conclude that the use of the defined parameters of age, parity, marital union duration, number of living children, and the presence of maternal clinical pathology are useful in identifying the patients who are least likely to regret undergoing surgical sterilization.113171572

Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Antagonism Improves Vasodilation During Hyperinsulinemia in Metabolic Syndrome

OBJECTIVE—Obesity is associated with chronic inflammation due to overproduction of proinflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α. We assessed the effects of TNF-α neutralization by infliximab on vascular reactivity during hyperinsulinemia in obesity-related metabolic syndrome

Model-based prediction of human hair color using DNA variants

Predicting complex human phenotypes from genotypes is the central concept of widely advocated personalized medicine, but so far has rarely led to high accuracies limiting practical applications. One notable exception, although less relevant for medical but important for forensic purposes, is human eye color, for which it has been recently demonstrated that highly accurate prediction is feasible from a small number of DNA variants. Here, we demonstrate that human hair color is predictable from DNA variants with similarly high accuracies. We analyzed in Polish Europeans with single-observer hair color grading 45 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 12 genes previously associated with human hair color variation. We found that a model based on a subset of 13 single or compound genetic markers from 11 genes predicted red hair color with over 0.9, black hair color with almost 0.9, as well as blond, and brown hair color with over 0.8 prevalence-adjusted accuracy expressed by the area under the receiver characteristic operating curves (AUC). The identified genetic predictors also differentiate reasonably well between similar hair colors, such as between red and blond-red, as well as between blond and dark-blond, highlighting the value of the identified DNA variants for accurate hair color prediction

Role of Gas6 and TAM Receptors in the Identification of Cardiopulmonary Involvement in Systemic Sclerosis and Scleroderma Spectrum Disorders

Background: Few biomarkers are available for early identification of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and interstitial lung disease (ILD) in systemic sclerosis (SS) and scleroderma spectrum disorders (SSD). Aims: To evaluate Gas6, sAxl, and sMer as biomarkers for cardiopulmonary complications of SS and SSD. Methods: In a cross-sectional observational study, we recruited 125 consecutive patients, affected by SS and SSD and referred to a tertiary-level pulmonary hypertension outpatient clinic. All patients underwent a comprehensive evaluation for identification of PAH and ILD. Gas6, sMer, and sAxl concentrations were measured with ELISA protocols, and concentrations were compared according to PAH or ILD. Results: Nineteen subjects had pulmonary hypertension (PH) (14 PAH), and 39 had ILD (6 severe). Plasma sMer was increased in PAH (18.6 ng/ml IQR [11.7-20.3]) with respect to the absence (12.4 [8.0-15.8]) or other form of pulmonary hypertension (9.6 [7.4-12.5]; K-W variance p < 0.04). Conversely, Gas6 and sAxl levels were slightly increased in mild ILD (25.8 ng/ml [19.5-32.1] and 24.6 [20.1-32.5]) and reduced in severe ILD (16.6 [15.0-22.1] and 15.5 [14.9-22.4]) in comparison to no evidence of ILD (23.4 [18.8-28.1] and 21.6 [18.1-28.4]; K-W, p 64 0.05). Plasma sMer 65 19 ng/ml has 50% sensitivity and 92% specificity in PAH identification (area under the ROC curve (AUC) 0.697, p < 0.03). Values of Gas6 64 24.5 ng/ml and of sAxl 64 15.5 ng/ml have 100% and 67% sensitivity and 47% and 86% specificity, respectively, in identifying severe ILD (Gas6 AUC 0.787, p < 0.001; sAxl AUC 0.705, p < 0.05). Conclusions: The assay of Gas6 sAxl and sMer may be useful to help in the identification of PAH and ILD in SS and SSD patients. The Gas6/TAM system seems to be relevant in cardiopulmonary complications of SS and SSD and merits further investigations

Hematologia e bioquímica sérica de bovinos curraleiro pé duro infectados por Babesia spp. e Leptospira spp.

A Babesia spp. e a Leptospira spp. são importantes enfermidades em sistemas de produção pecuária de países tropicais como o Brasil podendo causar alterações laboratoriais em animais clinicamente sadios. Esse trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar os títulos de anticorpos anti-Babesia bovis, anti-Babesia bigemina e anti-Leptospira interrogans, em bovinos da raça Curraleiro Pé Duro e correlacioná-los às características hematológicas e da bioquímica sérica em animais sadios submetidos à infecção natural. Em 2003 foram amostrados dois rebanhos, localizados no Estado de Goiás e Tocantins e avaliadas 282 amostras para detecção de anticorpos anti-B. bovis e anti- B. bigemina e 236 amostras para detecção de anticorpos anti-Leptospira spp. Foram realizados, hemograma, determinação da atividade sérica de Aspartato Amino Transferase (AST), Alanina Amino Transferase (ALP) e Gama Glutamil Transferase (GGT) e a quantificação no soro da proteína total (PT), albumina, colesterol, uréia, creatinina e bilirrubina, de todos os animais amostrados. Obteve-se 92,90% (n=262) de positividade para B. bovis, 85,46% (n=241) para B. bigemina e 33,05% (n=78) para L. interrogans. Não houve qualquer alteração nos valores médios hematológicos e da bioquímica sérica em relação aos valores de referência. Os resultados não mostraram nenhuma correlação entre títulos de anticorpos anti-Leptospiras e as variáveis laboratoriais avaliadas. O nível de anticorpos específicos para Babesia spp. apresentou correlação positiva com os valores de hemácias, hemoglobina, leucócitos totais e linfócitos, além de AST, ALP, bilirrubina direta (BD), colesterol e creatinina. Concluiu-se que as correlações observadas entre os anticorpos anti-Babesia sp. estão relacionados principalmente ao estímulo do sistema imunológico, funções hepática e renal. Porém, como todos os valores encontrados estão dentro do intervalo de referência, concluiu-se que não houve manifestação patológica decorrente da infecção ou de maiores títulos de imunoglobulinas.bitstream/item/171695/1/Juliano-BP-Curraleiro-final.pd