Non alcoholic fatty liver disease and risk of incident diabetes in subjects who are not obese

Background and aims

It is not known whether non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a risk factor for diabetes in non obese, non centrally-obese subjects. Our aim was to investigate relationships between fatty liver, insulin resistance and a biomarker score for liver fibrosis with incident diabetes at follow up, in subjects who were neither obese nor centrally-obese.

长春西部地区1258例过敏原特异性IgE检测结果分析

目的了解长春西部地区过敏原特异性IgE分布情况。方法应用免疫印迹法检测1 258例患者的19种吸入性及食物性过敏原特异性IgE抗体,统计过敏原结果及种类。结果 1 258例患者,检出至少一种特异性IgE阳性率为34.0%。男性阳性率为33.5%;女性阳性率为34.5%。男女间阳性率差异无统计学意义(P> 0.05)。吸入性过敏原阳性率由高到低依次为:普通豚草14.2%、艾蒿11.4%、屋尘螨/粉尘螨8.1%、猫毛3.8%、狗上皮2.4%、柳树/杨树/榆树2.1%,屋尘1.6%、蟑螂1.6%、点青霉/分枝孢霉/烟曲霉/交链孢霉1.2%、葎草1.1%。食物性过敏原阳性率由高到低依次为:鸡蛋白2.9%、鳕鱼/龙虾/扇贝2.7%、牛奶2.3%、黄豆1.9%、蟹1.5%、虾1.3%、牛肉1.2%、花生1.0%、羊肉0.8%。混合过敏达到了相当高的比例。结论长春西部地区吸入性过敏原以普通豚草、艾蒿和屋尘螨/粉尘螨为主;食物性过敏原以鸡蛋白、鳕鱼/龙虾/扇贝、牛奶为主,明确过敏原,对过敏性患者的预防和治疗有重大意义。     

Utility of exhaled nitric oxide as a noninvasive biomarker of lung inflammation in a disease model.

There is a great deal of interest in developing less invasive markers for monitoring airway inflammation and the effect of possible novel anti-inflammatory therapies that may take time to impact on disease pathology. Exhaled nitric oxide (eNO) has been shown to be a reproducible, noninvasive indicator of the inflammatory status of the airway in the clinic. The aim of the present study was to determine the usefulness of measuring eNO as a marker of the anti-inflammatory impact of glucocorticoid and an inhibitor of kappaB kinase-2 (IKK-2) inhibitor 2-[(aminocarbonyl)amino]-5-(4-fluorophenyl)-3-thiophenecarboxamide (TPCA-1), in a pre-clinical model of airway inflammation. Rats were given vehicle, budesonide or TPCA-1 prior to exposure to lipopolysaccharide, previously shown to induce an increase in eNO and airway neutrophilia/eosinophilia. Comparison of the effect of the two compounds on inflammatory components demonstrated a significant correlation between the impact on eNO and inflammatory cell burden in the airway. The current study demonstrates the usefulness of profiling potential disease-modifying therapies on exhaled nitric oxide levels and the way in which an effect on this noninvasive biomarker relates to effects on pathological parameters such as lung cellularity. Information from studies such as the current one would suggest that the measurement of exhaled nitric oxide has potential for monitoring inflammatory status in lung tissue.     

Role of tumour necrosis factor-alpha receptor p75 in cigarette smoke-induced pulmonary inflammation and emphysema.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterised by a local pulmonary inflammatory response to respiratory pollutants and by systemic inflammation. Tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha has been implicated in systemic effects of COPD and operates by binding the p55 (R1) and p75 (R2) TNF-alpha receptors. To investigate the contribution of each TNF-alpha receptor in the pathogenesis of COPD, the present study examined the effects of chronic air or cigarette smoke (CS) exposure in TNF-alpha R1 knockout (KO) mice, TNF-alpha R2 KO mice and wild type (WT) mice. CS was found to significantly increase the protein levels of soluble TNF-alpha R1 (by four-fold) and TNF-alpha R2 (by 10-fold) in the bronchoalveolar lavage of WT mice. After 3 months, CS induced a prominent pulmonary inflammatory cell influx in WT and TNF-alpha R1 KO mice. In TNF-alpha R2 KO mice, CS-induced pulmonary inflammation was clearly attenuated. After 6 months, no emphysema was observed in CS-exposed TNF-alpha R2 KO mice in contrast to WT and TNF-alpha R1 KO mice. CS-exposed WT and TNF-alpha R1 KO mice failed to gain weight, whereas the body mass of TNF-alpha R2 KO mice was not affected. These current findings suggest that both tumour necrosis factor-alpha receptors contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but tumour necrosis factor-alpha receptor-2 is the most active receptor in the development of inflammation, emphysema and systemic weight loss in this murine model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.     

Characteristics and outcome of patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis requiring intensive care.

Severe tuberculosis (TB) requiring intensive care unit (ICU) care is rare but commonly known to be of markedly bad prognosis. The present study aimed to describe this condition and to determine the mortality rate and risk factors associated with mortality. Patients with confirmed TB admitted to ICU between 1990 and 2001 were retrospectively identified and enrolled. Clinical, radiological and bacteriological data at admission and during hospital stay were recorded. A multivariate analysis was performed to identify the predictive factors for mortality. A total of 58 TB patients (12 females, mean age 48 yrs) admitted to ICU were included. Mean Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II score at admission was 13.1+/-5.6 and 22 of 58 (37.9%) patients required mechanical ventilation. The in-hospital mortality was 15 of 58 (25.9%); 13 (22.4%) patients died in the ICU. The mean survival of patients who died was 53.6 days (range 1-229), with 50% of the patients dying within the first 32 days. The factors independently associated with mortality were: acute renal failure, need for mechanical ventilation, chronic pancreatitis, sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and nosocomial pneumonia. These data indicate a high mortality of patients with tuberculosis requiring intensive care unit care and identifies new independently associated risk factors.     

Oral beta2-agonist use by preschool children with asthma in East and Central Harlem, New York.

Although studies have documented underuse of controller medications and overuse of short-acting inhaled ss(2)-agonist among children with persistent asthma in disadvantaged communities, the persistence of oral ss(2)-agonist use in pediatric practice has not been studied since inhaled short-acting ss(2)-agonists became widespread. We describe medications used to treat asthma among children 3 to 5 years of age at 10 Head Start and other subsidized preschool centers in East and Central Harlem, New York City. We interviewed 149 parents/guardians of children who were identified as having probable asthma based on physician's diagnosis, persistent symptoms, hospitalization, and medication use. We classified 86 of the 149 children (58%) as having current persistent asthma. Only 15 of them (17%) were reported to have used controller medications at least 5 days/week in the last 4 weeks-only 2 of whom used inhaled corticosteroids. By contrast, 53 children (62%) used oral ss(2)-agonist in the last 4 weeks, often (72%) in conjunction with nebulized or inhaled short-acting ss(2)-agonist. Use of oral ss(2)-agonist was associated with more severe symptoms. This study documents the continued widespread use of oral ss(2)-agonist for treatment of children in a low-income community with high prevalence of asthma.