Plos One
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Growing evidence has linked autophagy to a protective role of preconditioning in liver ischemia/reperfusion (IR). Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is essential in limiting inflammation and preventing the apoptotic response to IR. We previously demonstrated that HO-1 is up-regulated in liver graft after remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC). The aim of this study was to confirm that RIPC protects against IR via HO-1-mediated autophagy. ⋯ RIPC may protect the liver from IRI by induction of HO-1/p38-MAPK-dependent autophagy.
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Population-specific matching probabilities (MP) are a key parameter to assess the benefits of unrelated stem cell donor registries and the need for further donor recruitment efforts. In this study, we describe a general framework for MP estimations of specific and mixed patient populations under consideration of international stem cell donor exchange. Calculations were based on population-specific 4-locus (HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1) high-resolution haplotype frequencies (HF) of up to 21 populations. ⋯ As a general result of our calculations, we observed a need for same-population donor recruitment in order to increase population-specific MP efficiently. This result was robust despite limitations of our input data, including the use of HF derived from relatively small samples ranging from n = 1028 (Bosnia-Herzegovina) to n = 33,083 (Turkey) individuals. National strategies that neglect domestic donor recruitment should therefore be critically re-assessed, especially if only few donors have been recruited so far.
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We evaluated the postmortem changes of striated muscle by comparing computed tomography (CT) images obtained postmortem and antemortem in the same patients. ⋯ This is the first longitudinal study to show hyperattenuation of striated muscle on postmortem CT images compared with antemortem CT images in the same patients.
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In order to test the hypothesis that in primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), an important cause of irreversible blindness, a spreading of neurodegeneration occurs through the brain, we performed multimodal MRI and subsequent whole-brain explorative voxelwise analyses in 13 advanced POAG patients and 12 age-matched normal controls (NC). Altered integrity (decreased fractional anisotropy or increased diffusivities) of white matter (WM) tracts was found not only along the visual pathway of POAG but also in nonvisual WM tracts (superior longitudinal fascicle, anterior thalamic radiation, corticospinal tract, middle cerebellar peduncle). ⋯ In POAG, abnormalities in structure and FC within and outside visual system correlated with visual field parameters in the poorer performing eyes, thus emphasizing their clinical relevance. Altogether, this represents evidence that a vision disorder such as POAG can be considered a widespread neurodegenerative condition.
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Lipid metabolism and particularly high-density lipoprotein (HDL) may be involved in the pathogenic mechanism of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). However, conflicting results have been reported in the associations of AMD with plasma HDL and other lipids, which may be confounded by the recently reported associations of AMD with HDL-related genes. We explored the association of AMD with plasma lipid levels and lipid-lowering medication use, taking into account most of HDL-related genes associated with AMD. ⋯ This study suggests that elderly patients with high HDL concentration may be at increased risk for AMD and, further, that HDL dysfunction might be implicated in AMD pathogenesis.