Amyloid : the international journal of experimental and clinical investigation : the official journal of the International Society of Amyloidosis
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To address whether or not the rarity of amyloidosis in Greek patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is related to specific alleles of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 5'-flanking region and the exon 3 of the SSA1 gene. ⋯ In conclusion, the rarity of the putative amyloidogenic -13T allele in Greek populations may be related to low prevalence of AA amyloidosis development in Greek RA patients.
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Hereditary fibrinogen amyloidosis is characterized by deposition of amyloid fibrils in renal glomeruli. The subunit protein of the amyloid fibrils is a proteolytic fragment of the fibrinogen Aalpha-chain. ⋯ We have carried out a full structural characterization of amyloid fibrils taken from disease tissue. These studies revealed that ex vivo fibrinogen amyloid fibrils have a cross-beta structure similar to other chemical types of amyloid fibrils.
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The misfolded conformer of the prion protein (PrP) that aggregates into fibrils is believed to be the pathogenic agent in transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. In order to find fibril interfering compounds a screening assay in solution would be the preferred format to approximate more closely to physical conditions and enable the performance of kinetic studies. However, such an assay is hampered by the high irreproducibility because of the stochastic nature of the fibril formation process. ⋯ The assay was validated by comparison of the 50% fibril inhibition levels of peptide huPrP106-126 by six tetracyclic compounds. With this new assay, the fibrillogenic core (GAAAAGAVVG) of peptide huPrP106-126 was determined and for the first time it was possible to test the inhibition potentials of peptide analogues. Also it was found that variants of peptide huPrP106-126 with proline substitutions at positions Ala(115), Ala(120), or Val(122) inhibited the fibril formation of huPrP106-126.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Diagnostic performance of amyloid A protein quantification in fat tissue of patients with clinical AA amyloidosis.
Amyloid A protein quantification in fat tissue is a new immunochemical method for detecting AA amyloidosis, a rare but serious disease. The objective was to assess diagnostic performance in clinical AA amyloidosis. ⋯ Amyloid A protein quantification in fat tissue is a sensitive and specific method for detection of clinical AA amyloidosis. Advantages are independence from staining quality and observer experience, direct confirmation of amyloid AA type, and potential for quantitative monitoring of tissue amyloid over time.
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Transthyretin Val122Ile is one of greater than 80 mutations in transthyretin (TTR) that are associated with hereditary amyloidosis. Retrospective studies have shown a prevalence of this mutation as high as 3.9% in African-Americans. The present study was undertaken to determine in a prospective fashion the prevalence of the TTR Val122Ile allele in African-Americans in a Midwestern American city. ⋯ Zero of 490 DNA samples from newborns of Hispanic mothers and 0 of 30 from newborns with mothers classified as other (including Asian) were positive. This prospective study demonstrates that 3% of newborns of African-American women in an urban population have the TTR Val122Ile mutation which is associated with late-onset cardiomyopathy. The degree of penetrance of this mutation at the clinical level has not yet been determined.