Search results for "Medicine and Health Sciences"
showing 10 items of 1075 documents
Genome wide DNA methylation profiling identifies specific epigenetic features in high-risk cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma
2019
ABSTRACTCutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the second most common skin cancer. Although most cSCCs have good prognosis, a subgroup of high-risk cSCC has a higher frequency of recurrence and mortality. Therefore, the identification of molecular risk factors associated with this aggressive subtype is of major interest. In this work we carried out a global-scale approach to investigate the DNA-methylation profile in patients at different stages, from premalignant actinic keratosis to low-risk invasive and high-risk non-metastatic and metastatic cSCC. The results showed massive non-sequential changes in DNA-methylome and identified a minimal methylation signature that discriminates bet…
Comparison of hemolytic activity of the intermediate subunit of Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar lectins.
2017
Galactose and N-acetyl-D-galactosamine-inhibitable lectin of Entamoeba histolytica has roles in pathogenicity and induction of protective immunity in rodent models of amoebiasis. Recently, the intermediate subunit of the lectin, Igl1, of E. histolytica has been shown to have hemolytic activity. However, the corresponding lectin is also expressed in a non-virulent species, Entamoeba dispar, and another subunit, Igl2, is expressed in the protozoa. Therefore, in this study, we compared the activities of Igl1 and Igl2 subunits from E. histolytica and E. dispar using various regions of recombinant Igl proteins expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant E. dispar Igl proteins had comparable h…
Timing of complementary feeding and associations with maternal and infant characteristics: A Norwegian cross-sectional study.
2018
Norwegian Health authorities recommend solid food to be introduced between child age 4-6 months, depending on both the mother´s and infant's needs. The aim of this paper is to describe timing of complementary feeding in a current sample of Norwegian mother/infant-dyads and explore potential associations between timing of introduction to solid foods and a wide range of maternal and infant characteristics known from previous literature to influence early feeding interactions. The paper is based on data from the Norwegian randomized controlled trial Early Food for Future Health. In 2016, a total of 715 mothers completed a web-based questionnaire at child age 5.5 months. We found that 5% of the…
Low-energy extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) improves metaphyseal fracture healing in an osteoporotic rat model.
2017
Purpose As result of the current demographic changes, osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures are becoming an increasing social and economic burden. In this experimental study, extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT), was evaluated as a treatment option for the improvement of osteoporotic fracture healing. Methods A well-established fracture model in the metaphyseal tibia in the osteoporotic rat was used. 132 animals were divided into 11 groups, with 12 animals each, consisting of one sham-operated group and 10 ovariectomized (osteoporotic) groups, of which 9 received ESWT treatment. Different energy flux intensities (0.15 mJ/mm2, 0.35 mJ/mm2, or 0.55 mJ/mm2) as well as different numbers o…
Integrative analysis of structural variations using short-reads and linked-reads yields highly specific and sensitive predictions.
2020
Genetic diseases are driven by aberrations of the human genome. Identification of such aberrations including structural variations (SVs) is key to our understanding. Conventional short-reads whole genome sequencing (cWGS) can identify SVs to base-pair resolution, but utilizes only short-range information and suffers from high false discovery rate (FDR). Linked-reads sequencing (10XWGS) utilizes long-range information by linkage of short-reads originating from the same large DNA molecule. This can mitigate alignment-based artefacts especially in repetitive regions and should enable better prediction of SVs. However, an unbiased evaluation of this technology is not available. In this study, w…
Use of deep learning methods to translate drug-induced gene expression changes from rat to human primary hepatocytes
2020
In clinical trials, animal and cell line models are often used to evaluate the potential toxic effects of a novel compound or candidate drug before progressing to human trials. However, relating the results of animal and in vitro model exposures to relevant clinical outcomes in the human in vivo system still proves challenging, relying on often putative orthologs. In recent years, multiple studies have demonstrated that the repeated dose rodent bioassay, the current gold standard in the field, lacks sufficient sensitivity and specificity in predicting toxic effects of pharmaceuticals in humans. In this study, we evaluate the potential of deep learning techniques to translate the pattern of …
Production Conditions Affect the In Vitro Anti-Tumoral Effects of a High Concentration Multi-Strain Probiotic Preparation.
2016
A careful selection of the probiotic agent, standardization of the dose and detailed characterization of the beneficial effects are essential when considering use of a probiotic for the dietary management of serious diseases. However, changes in the manufacturing processes, equipment or facilities can result in differences in the product itself due to the live nature of probiotics. The need to reconfirm safety and/or efficacy for any probiotic product made at a different factory is therefore mandatory. Recently, under the brand VSL#3®, a formulation produced by a manufacturer different from the previous one, has been commercialized in some European countries (the UK and Holland). VSL#3 is a…
With mouse age comes wisdom : a review and suggestions of relevant mouse models for age-related conditions
2016
Ageing is a complex multifactorial process that results in many changes in physiological changes processes that ultimately increase susceptibility to a wide range of diseases. As such an ageing population is resulting in a pressing need for more and improved treatments across an assortment of diseases. Such treatments can come from a better understanding of the pathogenic pathways which, in turn, can be derived from models of disease. Therefore the more closely the model resembles the disease situation the more likely relevant the data will be that is generated from them. Here we review the state of knowledge of mouse models of a range of diseases and aspects of an ageing physiology that ar…
Adipocytes as a Link Between Gut Microbiota-Derived Flagellin and Hepatocyte Fat Accumulation
2016
While the role of both elevated levels of circulating bacterial cell wall components and adipose tissue in hepatic fat accumulation has been recognized, it has not been considered that the bacterial components-recognizing adipose tissue receptors contribute to the hepatic fat content. In this study we found that the expression of adipose tissue bacterial flagellin (FLG)-recognizing Toll-like receptor (TLR) 5 associated with liver fat content (r = 0.699, p = 0.003) and insulin sensitivity (r = -0.529, p = 0.016) in humans (n = 23). No such associations were found for lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-recognizing TLR4. To study the underlying molecular mechanisms of these associations, human HepG2 he…
Efficacy of interleukin 10 gene hydrofection in pig liver vascular isolated ‘in vivo’ by surgical procedure with interest in liver transplantation
2019
AIM Liver transplantation is the only curative strategy for final stage liver diseases. Despite the great advances achieved during the last 20 years, the recipient immune response after transplantation is not entirely controlled. This results in high rates of acute cell rejection and, approximately, 10% of early mortality. Therapeutic treatment could be improved by efficiently transfecting genes that encode natural immunosuppressant proteins, employing safe procedures that could be transferred to clinical setting. In this sense, interleukin 10 plays a central role in immune tolerance response by acting at different levels. METHODS hIL10 gene was hydrofected by retrograde hydrodynamic inject…