European journal of clinical investigation
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2023
Correlation of ex vivo cytokine secretion profiles with scoring indices in ulcerative colitis.
In ulcerative colitis, the complexity of mucosal cytokine secretion profiles and how they correlate with endoscopic and clinical scores is still unclear. ⋯ Our findings suggest that choosing biopsies from donors with MES = 2-3 and UCEIS = 2-6 from areas with no bleeding and no superficial and/or deep ulcers could enable a deeper insight into the cytokine profile of the inflamed tissue and represent a better tool for studying potential therapeutic targets and evaluation of novel therapies.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2023
Washed microbiota transplantation improves haemoglobin levels in anaemia of chronic disease.
Anaemia of chronic disease (ACD) is the second most common type of anaemia and lacks an effective treatment. Patients with anaemia are reported to have altered gut microbial profiles, which may affect erythropoiesis. Here, we investigated the gut microbial features of patients with ACD and determined whether regulating gut microbiota using washed microbiota transplantation (WMT) was effective in treating ACD. ⋯ Patients with ACD exhibited differences in gut microbial composition and function relative to healthy controls. WMT is an effective treatment for ACD that reshapes gut microbial composition, restores butyrate-producing bacteria and regulates the functions of gut microbiota.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2023
Association between the use of lipid-lowering drugs and the risk of inflammatory bowel disease.
Observational studies have suggested an association between lipid-lowering drugs and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) risk. This study aimed to assess the causal influence of lipid-lowering agents on IBD risk using Mendelian randomization analysis. ⋯ Inhibition of the lipid-lowering drug-target NPC1L1 leads to an increased IBD risk, mainly in the UC population.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2023
The body mass index increases the genetic risk scores' ability to predict risk of hepatic damage in European adolescents: The HELENA study.
Hepatic disorders are often complex and multifactorial, modulated by genetic and environmental determinants. During the last years, the hepatic disease has been progressively established from early stages in life. The use of genetic risk scores (GRS) to predict the genetic susceptibility to a particular phenotype among youth has gained interest in recent years. Moreover, the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) blood biomarker is often considered as hepatic screening tool, in combination with imaging techniques. The aim of the present study was to develop an ALT-specific GRS to help in the evaluation of hepatic damage risk in European adolescents. ⋯ Considering BMI status, both GRSs could contribute as complementary tools to help in the early diagnosis of hepatic damage risk in European adolescents.