European journal of clinical investigation
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Obesity in adulthood is associated with decreased leucocyte telomere length (LTL), which is associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus type 2. The aim of our study was to investigate whether increased body mass index (BMI) is associated with decreased LTL in children and adolescents, and to identify other risk factors of shorter LTL in this population. ⋯ Overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence are associated with shorter LTL, even following adjustment for potential confounding effects. Therefore, the increased BMI in childhood and adolescence may be associated with accelerated biological ageing and may have an adverse impact on future health in adulthood.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2019
Review Meta AnalysisEfficacy and safety of everolimus treatment on liver transplant recipients: A meta-analysis.
Everolimus is an effective immunosuppressant in organ transplantation without impaired renal function. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of everolimus therapy in liver transplant recipients. ⋯ Although everolimus combined with reduced CNI therapy significantly improved the renal function in liver transplant recipients, it did not influence the incidence of BPAR, graft loss and death. This regimen might be associated with an increased risk of adverse events, which needs to be elucidated further.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2019
Plasma levels of the cardiovascular protective endogenous nucleoside adenosine are reduced in patients with primary aldosteronism without affecting ischaemia-reperfusion injury: A prospective case-control study.
Patients with primary aldosteronism (PA) experience more cardiovascular events compared to patients with essential hypertension (EHT), independent from blood pressure levels. In animals, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists limit ischaemia-reperfusion (IR) injury by increasing extracellular adenosine formation and adenosine receptor stimulation. Adenosine is an endogenous compound with profound cardiovascular protective effects. Firstly, we hypothesized that patients with PA have lower circulating adenosine levels which might contribute to the observed increased cardiovascular risk. Secondly, we hypothesized that by this mechanism, patients with PA are more susceptible to IR compared to patients with EHT. ⋯ As adenosine receptor stimulation induces various powerful protective cardiovascular effects, its lower concentration in patients with PA might be an important novel mechanism that contributes to their increased cardiovascular risk. We suggest that modulation of the adenosine metabolism is an exciting novel pharmacological opportunity to limit cardiovascular risk in patients with PA that needs further exploration.
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Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC) represent the most common forms of nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSCs). Although successful treatment of these neoplasms is based on surgical excision, an increasing number of BCCs relapses and many SCCs display high rates of recurrence and metastasis. Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) is a cytosolic enzyme, which was found to be upregulated in different solid tumours. However, there are no data regarding enzyme expression in NMSCs. The aim of this study was therefore to evaluate the potential involvement of NNMT in BCCs and SCCs. ⋯ These evidences seem to demonstrate that the different NNMT dysregulation detected in BCC and SCC may be the result of important biological traits distinctively characterizing these two forms within NMSCs. In addition, enzyme levels seem to be inversely correlated with tumour aggressiveness, thus suggesting the potential suitability of the enzyme as a prognostic biomarker for both neoplasms.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Dec 2019
Systemic sclerosis patients are at higher risk of hyperthyroidism and have a worse survival than those without hyperthyroidism: A nationwide population-based cohort study.
A high prevalence of thyroid disorders has been reported in patients with autoimmune diseases. The link between hyperthyroidism and systemic sclerosis (SSc) has been relatively overlooked, and only a few studies utilizing small samples or case reports have been reported so far. ⋯ Hyperthyroidism is highly prevalent among SSc patients and can negatively impact on their survival rates. Therefore, a pre-emptive screening may be warranted in all SSc patients. Further studies are needed to evaluate whether tight control and optimal treatment for hyperthyroidism may lead to a reduction of all-cause mortality in patients with SSc.