Plos One
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Inflammation plays an important role in the etiology and pathophysiology of spontaneous preterm birth (SPTB), and selenoprotein S (SEPS1) is involved in regulating the inflammatory response. Recently the G-105A promoter polymorphism in SEPS1 was shown to increase pro-inflammatory cytokine expression. We examined whether this functional polymorphism was related to the risk of SPTB in a Chinese population. ⋯ The -105A positive genotypes were also significantly associated with increased susceptibility to SPTB, both in the patients with PROM (adjusted OR, 2.65; 95% CI, 1.73-4.03; P<0.001) and in those without PROM (adjusted OR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.09-2.24; P = 0.015). The -105A positive genotypes were also significantly associated with increased susceptibility to SPTB between extremely preterm neonates and controls (adjusted OR, 4.46; 95% CI, 1.86-10.73; P = 0.002) and between moderately preterm neonates and controls (adjusted OR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.25-2.47; P = 0.001). Our findings suggest that the SEPS1 G-105A polymorphism contributes to the risk of developing SPTB in a Chinese population.
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Growing evidence indicates that advanced glycation end-product receptor (RAGE) might play a contributory role in the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease (CAD). To shed some light from a genetic perspective, we sought to investigate the interactive association of RAGE gene four common polymorphisms (rs1800625 or T-429C, rs1800624 or T-374A, rs2070600 or Gly82Ser, and rs184003 or G1704A) with the risk of developing CAD in a large northeastern Han Chinese population. ⋯ Our findings provided strong evidence for the potentially contributory roles of RAGE multiple genetic polymorphisms, especially in the context of locus-to-locus interaction, in the pathogenesis of CAD among northeastern Han Chinese.
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Guanylate Cyclase C (GC-C; Gucy2c) is a transmembrane receptor expressed in intestinal epithelial cells. Activation of GC-C by its secreted ligand guanylin stimulates intestinal fluid secretion. Familial mutations in GC-C cause chronic diarrheal disease or constipation and are associated with intestinal inflammation and infection. Here, we investigated the impact of GC-C activity on mucosal immune responses. ⋯ The GC-C signaling pathway blunts colonic mucosal inflammation that is initiated by systemic cytokine burst or loss of mucosal immune cell immunosuppression. These data as well as the apparent intestinal inflammation in human GC-C mutant kindred underscore the importance of GC-C in regulating the response to injury and inflammation within the gut.
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After 9/11/2001, some Fire Department of New York (FDNY) workers had excessive lung function decline. We hypothesized that early serum matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) expression predicts World Trade Center-Lung Injury (WTC-LI) years later. ⋯ Elevated serum levels of MMP-3 and MMP-12 reduce the risk of developing WTC-LI. At any level of MMP-3 or 12, increased time to blood draw is associated with a diminished protective effect.
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Conventional C-reactive protein assays have been used to detect or guide the treatment of acute sepsis. The objective of this study was to determine the association between elevated baseline high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and the risk of future sepsis events. ⋯ Elevated baseline hsCRP was associated with increased risk of future sepsis events. hsCRP may help to identify individuals at increased risk for sepsis.