Clin Chem Lab Med
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In a previous clinical study, levels of biomarkers of exposure (BoEs) for specific toxicants were significantly reduced in smokers who switched from conventional cigarettes to reduced toxicant prototype (RTP) cigarettes. Very little is known about the biological variability of tobacco smoke BoEs within individuals and sub-groups, and the descriptive group-comparison statistics might not be sufficient to understand such changes. Therefore, we assessed how different statistical methods could be used to interpret changes in urine BoE levels at the individual level. ⋯ Although we believe that is not possible to determine whether the observed changes in BoEs reflect biological relevance, the use of reference values enables assessment of changes in BoEs at the individual level. Estimates of the BoE variability between subjects might aid study design and setting minimum targets for smoke toxicant yields for future development of RTPs.
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Symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can overlap. Faecal calprotectin has recently been established to be a non-invasive marker for neutrophilic intestinal inflammation. We compared two devices for extraction of faecal calprotectin. Based on these results, two immunoassays for measurement of faecal calprotectin were evaluated. ⋯ The Thermo Fisher device is not reliable for extraction of faecal calprotectin. The performance characteristics of the EliA Calprotectin assay are statistically equivalent to the Bühlmann POCT.
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In January 2013, the international recommendations of the KDIGO (for "Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes") to define chronic kidney disease (CKD) and classify patients in CKD stages have been published. In this opinion article, we will review and discuss the most important guidelines proposed about CKD staging and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) estimating. In particular, we question the choice of fixed knot values at 60 mL/min/1.73 m² to define CKD. We also question the strategies proposed to measure and use cystatin C results.
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An estimated 5 % – 10 % of all breast cancers are due to an inherited predisposition and, out of these, about 30 % are caused by germline mutations of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. The prevalence of germline mutations in theBRCA1 and BRCA2 genes varies among ethnic groups. The aims of this study are to evaluate deleterious mutations and genomic rearrangements in BRCA1/2 genes and the CHEK21100delC mutation in a cohort of Italian women affected with hereditary breast and/or ovarian cancer. In addition we clarify the effect of the novel variants identified in BRCA2 gene bymRNA analysis and prediction software. ⋯ In silico analysis conducted for S1341, IVS1-59t > c, IVS11-74insA and IVS12 + 74c > g of BRCA2 predicted the variants as neutral and benign, whereas the results for I1167V was inconclusive. mRNA analysis for the novel BRCA2 intronic variant IVS11-74insA and the already published BRCA1 variant C197 shows that they have no effect on the splicing. These results are in agreement with in silico analysis.