Clinical and subclinical cardiovascular disease in female SLE patients: Interplay between body mass index and bone mineral density

Background and aims

Since accelerated atherosclerosis has been reported in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), predictive biomarkers of cardiovascular disease (CVD) are needed. Among non-traditional risk factors, bone mineral density (BMD) has been related to CVD. However, its role in SLE remains controversial. This study aims to analyze the associations of subclinical atherosclerosis with traditional and non-traditional CV risk factors.

Survey of psychiatric disorders in a Taiwanese village population six months after a major earthquake.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The catastrophic Chi-Chi earthquake of September 21, 1999 in Taiwan provided a unique opportunity to study the disaster's psychiatric impact on survivors. This study assessed the development of psychiatric disorders among residents in a Taiwanese village near the epicenter of the earthquake within 6 months of the disaster. METHODS: A total of 442 of the 602 actual living residents of Tong-Chi village who were over 16 years of age and were present in the community at the time of the earthquake were included in this population survey. Subjects were interviewed by psychiatrists using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview and questionnaires to collect demographic information and risk factors for psychiatric disorders 4 to 6 months after the earthquake. RESULTS: The prevalence rates were 9.5% for current major depression, 2.8% for past major depressive episode, and 7.9% for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Females had significantly higher rates of most psychiatric disorders. After controlling for covariates, the significant risk factors for PTSD were female gender and having sought medical service after the earthquake. Significant risk factors for major depressive episode were divorced/widowed status, education level equal to or below primary school, and prominent house damage. CONCLUSION: This population survey of earthquake disaster survivors found an increased prevalence of psychiatric disorders after exposure to a catastrophic earthquake. These results highlight the need for prompt therapeutic attention to residents of earthquake disaster areas after the event.     

Anterior mediastinal immature teratoma with precocious puberty in a child with Klinefelter syndrome.

ABSTRACT: Klinefelter syndrome occurs in approximately 1 in 1000 males. A 4-year-old boy presented with precocious puberty and an anterior mediastinal mass. Serum alpha-fetoprotein and human chorionic gonadotropin levels were mildly increased. Computed tomography revealed a germ cell tumor (GCT) of the mediastinum. Complete resection of the tumor was performed. Histologic analysis revealed an immature teratoma. Males with Klinefelter syndrome develop GCTs at a rate 50 times higher than unaffected males. This case report calls attention to the need to rule out Klinefelter syndrome in boys who present with precocious puberty and a mediastinal GCT.     

Reversal of vascular 18F-FDG uptake with plasma high-density lipoprotein elevation by atherogenic risk reduction

Vascular 18F-FDG uptake marker represents inflammation in atherosclerotic lesions, but whether inflammation can be reversed by risk-modifying interventions has not, to our knowledge, been demonstrated. In this study, we evaluated the change of vascular 18F-FDG uptake in response to lifestyle intervention on serial PET/CT scans and further assessed how the findings relate to atherogenic risk reduction. METHODS: A total of 60 healthy adults underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT scans and atherogenic risk-factor assessment at baseline and again after 17.1 +/- 8.3 mo of practicing lifestyle modification. The PET/CT images were evaluated for the presence of vascular 18F-FDG lesions, and vessel-to-blood-pool 18F-FDG ratios were measured. Indices from summed ratios of positive lesions were compared and correlated to atherogenic risk factors. RESULTS: At follow-up, significant reductions in diastolic blood pressure (P < 0.05), total cholesterol (P < 0.05), and low-density lipoprotein level (P < 0.05) and an increase in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level (P < 0.0001) were demonstrated. On the initial PET/CT scan, 50 of 60 subjects showed 1 or more 18F-FDG-positive lesions (5.9 +/- 5.0/subject), leading to a total of 352 vascular sites. On follow-up, 18F-FDG-positive lesions were significantly reduced to 2.1 +/- 2.2 sites per subject (P < 0.0001) and a total of 124 sites (64.8% reduction). Follow-up 18F-FDG-positive rates were significantly reduced for the aorta and iliac arteries. In addition, significant reductions in the whole-body 18F-FDG index from 1.39 +/- 1.23 to 0.53 +/- 0.59 (P < 0.0001) and carotid 18F-FDG index from 0.08 +/- 0.16 to 0.03 +/- 0.06 (P = 0.01) were shown. The whole-body 18F-FDG index correlated with total cholesterol (P < 0.05) and HDL level (P < 0.05), and the magnitude of reduction in the 18F-FDG index closely correlated to the amount of increase in plasma HDL level (P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that vascular 18F-FDG uptake is reversed in response to atherogenic risk reduction by lifestyle intervention and that the magnitude of improvement correlates to increases in plasma HDL levels. Thus, serial 18F-FDG PET/CT may be useful for monitoring improvements in the inflammatory component of atherosclerotic lesions in response to risk modification.     

Clinicopathological features of bladder cancer associated with chronic exposure to arsenic.

A high incidence of bladder cancer has been documented in an area of chronic arsenic (As) exposure. This study investigates the characteristics of As-associated (n = 49) and other (n = 64) bladder cancers. A higher histological grading was observed for the As-exposed tumours (P = 0.04), but no other difference in pathobiological features or prognosis was found between the two groups.     

Influence of Qingdai Compound Capsule on the expression of c-myc in psoriatic keratinocytes) on the expression of c-myc in psoriatic keratinocytes

In this immunohistochemical study, the authors detected the expression of c-myc in keratinocytes (ECK) from 30 psoriatics before and after Qingdai Compound Capsule (QDCC) treatment and 12 normal subjects for control. The results showed that the ECK of patients before treatment was significantly higher than that in the normal control group, and its level was correlated with histopathological changes of affected skin. After treatment the ECK was normalized. It is believed that QDCC could decrease the ECK in psoriatics and this effect was probably mediated by inhibiting c-myc expression. This study provided an experimental evidence for the application of QDCC in treating psoriasis.     

Hybrid tumours of the salivary glands. A report of two cases involving the palate and a review of the literature

Hybrid tumours are very rare salivary gland lesions composed of two or more different tumoural entities in a single neoplasm that arise within a definite topographical region. In most cases adenoid cystic carcinoma has been the predominant component in these lesions. In this study we describe two patients with hybrid tumours located in the palate, one in a 49-year-old woman and one in a 71-year-old man. The first case involved adenoid cystic carcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma, and the patient in the second case exhibited adenoid cystic carcinoma and epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma. Both patients were treated with surgery and radiotherapy, and there has been no evidence of recurrence after 13 and 36 months of follow-up, respectively. The recognition of the histologic component with the higher grade of malignancy in every case of hybrid tumour of the salivary glands is a necessary step to determine the biological behaviour and, consequently, to determine the proper therapeutic approach.     

Fidgetin-like 1 gene inhibited by basic fibroblast growth factor regulates the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts.

The FIGNL1 gene was proven to be a new subfamily member of ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities (AAA proteins). In this in vitro study, the AAA proteins inhibited osteoblast proliferation and stimulated osteoblast differentiation. We showed that FIGNL1 may play some regulatory role in osteoblastogenesis. INTRODUCTION: The fidgetin-like 1 (FIGNL1) gene encodes a new subfamily member of ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities (AAA proteins). Although the FIGNL1 protein localizes to both the nucleus and cytoplasm, the function of FIGNL1 remains unknown. In a previous study, we identified several genes that mediate the anabolic effects of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on bone by using microarray data. FIGNL1 was one of the genes that downregulated >2-fold in MC3T3-E1 cells after treatment with bFGF. Therefore, this study was aimed to identify and confirm the function of FIGNL1 on osteoblastogenesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We examined the effect of the FIGNL1 gene on proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis in mouse osteoblast cells (MC3T3-E1 and mouse primary calvarial cells) using flow cytometry, RT-PCR, cell proliferation assay, and cell death assay. MC3T3-E1 cells and mouse calvarial cells were transfected with small interfering RNA (siRNA) directed against the FIGNL1 or nontargeting control siRNA and examined by cell proliferation and cell death assays. Also, FIGNL1 was fused to enhance green fluorescent protein (EGFP), and the EGFP-fused protein was transiently expressed in MC3T3-E1 cells. RESULTS: Reduced expression of FIGNL1 by bFGF and TGF-beta1 treatment was verified by RT-PCR analysis. Overexpression of FIGNL1 reduced the proliferation of MC3T3-E1 and calvarial cells, more than the mock transfected control cells did. In contrast, siFIGNL1 transfection significantly increased the proliferation of osteoblasts, whereas overexpression of FIGNL1 did not seem to alter apoptosis in osteoblasts. Meanwhile, overexpression of FIGNL1 enhanced the mRNA expression of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OCN) in osteoblasts. In contrast, siFIGNL1 decreased the expression of ALP and OCN. A pEGFP-FIGNL1 transfected into MCT3-E1 cells had an initially ubiquitous distribution and rapidly translocated to the nucleus 1 h after bFGF treatment. CONCLUSIONS: From these results, we proposed that FIGNL1, a subfamily member of the AAA family of proteins, might play some regulatory role in osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. Further analyses of FIGNL1 will be needed to better delineate the mechanisms contributing to the inhibition of proliferation and stimulation of osteoblast differentiation.