Die Nierenbeteiligung beim systemischen Lupus erythematodes

Renal involvment in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus displays a broad variety of clinical symptoms ranging from asymptomatic hematuria to rapidly progressing glomerulonephritis. The histopathological findings in renal biopsy are classified in six different forms reflecting this diversity. Mild forms of lupus nephritis do not require immunosuppressive therapy whereas the diffuse-proliferative lupus nephritis (classified as type IV) as the most aggressive form with the worst prognosis demands immediate treatment. Recent approaches aimed to achieve remission in the early induction phase with reduced side effects (e.g. low-dose cyclophosphamide, mycophenolate). Novel therapeutic concepts promise further improvement in lupus nephritis treatment.     

Breastfeeding among Turkish Mothers Living in Suburbs of Istanbul and Stockholm–A Comparison

ABSTRACT. The infant feeding pattern among 96 Turkish mothers living in a suburb of Istanbul and 30 living in a suburb of Stockholm, both with working class characteristics, was determined. The duration of breastfeeding among the Turkish immigrant group living in the Stockholm suburb was significantly reduced compared with the group with a similar social background but living in a native urban area. Infant feeding pattern among the Turkish immigrant mothers was more similar to that of Swedish populations. Attitudes to breastfeeding among the immigrant group had changed. Early weaning, reliance on commercially available infant foods and bottle feeding characterized their infant feeding practices. The majority of the infants of this group showed a tendency to overweight.     

The basal ganglia-orofacial system: Studies on neurobehavioral plasticity and sensory-motor tuning

We have employed the unilateral removal of the vibrissae as a tool to examine ensuing behavioral changes in relation to concomitant changes in the central nervous system. In this paper we review a series of studies showing that unilateral removal of the vibrissae leads to behavioral asymmetries (e.g., in thigmotactic scanning) from which rats recover over time. Time-related to these behavioral changes we found neuronal alterations in striatal afferents, that is, in uncrossed and crossed projections from the substantia nigra and the tuberomammillary nucleus. The involvement of dopaminergic mechanisms was indicated by results showing that dopaminergic agonists can induce asymmetries in thigmotactic scanning and turning; the direction of these asymmetries was also dependent on time after vibrissae removal. Furthermore, it was shown that endogenous preferential use of one vibrissae side in thigmotactic scanning interacts with the expression of spontaneous and drug-induced behavioral asymmetries exhibited after unilateral vibrissae removal. Neurochemical studies indicated that both unilateral vibrissae removal and unilateral perioral stimulation can have lateralized effects on biogenic amines in the brain. Finally, using electrical stimulation of the substantia nigra, evidence was found for a lateralized and bidirectional interaction between basal ganglia and the orofacial systems, indicating an involvement in mechanisms of motivation and particular stimulation. These results are important from several perspectives. One, they indicate functional links between the orofacial systems and the basal ganglia. Two, they raise the possibility that unilateral removal of the vibrissae can serve as a model (a) to investigate the dynamics of recovery of function after CNS insults, in general, and specifically, (b) to study neuronal plasticity in the nigrostriatal and tuberomammillary-striatal pathways, and (c) to investigate the neuropharmacology of catecholamine systems in the brain.     

Differences in the plasma membrane glycoproteins of cultured myeloblastoid and promyelocytic human leukemia (HL60) cells

Since the mechanisms that control synthesis of surface and internal granule membranes are closely-related within the Golgi apparatus, we have compared the plasma membrane proteins and glycolipids of cells of the human promyelocytic line HL-60 with those of its agranular myeloblastoid variant (HL60-D), and of other human myeloid lines (KG-1a, KG-1 and ML-2). Proteolytic degradation by granule enzymes altered the protein profiles unless multiple inhibitors were included in the cell suspension before lysis and during subsequent handling of the extracts. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic profiles of the proteins accessible to lactoperoxidase-catalyzed 125I-labeling or to periodate [3H]-borohydride labeling, as well as those of the glycoproteins bound to and eluted from immobilized concanavalin A, showed distinct patterns. The apparent molecular weights of the two major sialylated glycoproteins were larger in cell lines with a greater content of azurophilic granules. Also, the blastic line incorporated less fucose into glycolipid and contained less complex gangliosides and neutral glycolipids than did the parent. These data demonstrate that, within the limits of this culture model, cells capable of cytoplasmic granule production express a different constellation of surface components.     

Virulence of major periodontal pathogens and lack of humoral immune protection in a rat model of periodontal disease

Oral Diseases (2010) 16 , 686–695 Objective: This study was designed to test the hypothesis that periodontal pathogens Tannerella forsythia and Porphyromonas gingivalis are synergistic in terms of virulence potential using a model of mixed‐microbial infection in rats. Materials and methods: Three groups of rats were infected orally with either T. forsythia or P. gingivalis in mono‐bacterial infections or as mixed‐microbial infections for 12 weeks and a sham‐infected group were used as a control. This study examined bacterial infection, inflammation, immunity, and alveolar bone loss changes with disease progression. Results: Tannerella forsythia and P. gingivalis genomic DNA was detected in microbial samples from infected rats by PCR indicating their colonization in the rat oral cavity. Primary infection induced significantly high IgG, IgG2b, IgG1, and IgG2a antibody levels indicating activation of mixed Th1 and Th2 immune responses. Rats infected with the mixed‐microbial consortium exhibited significantly increased palatal horizontal and interproximal alveolar bone loss. Histological examinations indicated significant hyperplasia of the gingival epithelium with moderate inflammatory infiltration and apical migration of junctional epithelium. The results observed differ compared to uninfected controls. Conclusion: Our results indicated that T. forsythia and P. gingivalis exhibit virulence, but not virulence synergy, resulting in the immuno‐inflammatory responses and lack of humoral immune protection during periodontitis in rats.