| 4951. |
- Wramner, Lars, 1955, et al.
(författare)
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Impaired kidney graft survival is associated with the TNF-alpha genotype
- 2004
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Ingår i: Transplantation. - 0041-1337. ; 78:1, s. 117-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The TNF2 allele at position -308 of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha gene is associated with high TNF production. The purpose was to study the association of this gene polymorphism with rejection episodes and graft survival after kidney transplantation. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of transplant outcomes of patients who only had been treated with one single form of immunosuppression consisting of cyclosporine, azathioprine, and prednisolon was performed. RESULTS: We found that 115 (73%) patients had the TNF1/TNF1 genotype, whereas 42 (27%) were TNF2 positive. There was no difference in the overall acute rejection frequency between these two groups (50% in each), but our data showed a non-significant tendency towards a higher frequency of steroid resistant rejections in the TNF2 positive group (57% vs. 40%). There was no significant difference in graft survival between the two genotype groups, although an early tendency towards worse survival was seen in TNF2 recipients. However, the TNF2 positive recipients with rejection episodes had far worse graft survival compared with the TNF1/TNF1 recipients with rejection episodes (P<0.02). No difference was seen between the two genotype groups in patients without rejection episodes. CONCLUSION: Our data propose that potentially high TNF producers with the TNF2 allele do not have an increased risk for rejection episodes, but if rejection episodes occur, they have a significantly increased risk for early graft loss. TNF production may intensify rejection, but is not a primary factor for the induction of such acute immune activation.
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| 4952. |
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| 4953. |
- Wu, W. H., et al.
(författare)
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Pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain (PPP), I: Terminology, clinical presentation, and prevalence
- 2004
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Ingår i: Eur Spine J. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0940-6719. ; 13:7, s. 575-89
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pregnancy-related lumbopelvic pain has puzzled medicine for a long time. The present systematic review focuses on terminology, clinical presentation, and prevalence. Numerous terms are used, as if they indicated one and the same entity. We propose "pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain (PPP)", and "pregnancy-related low back pain (PLBP)", present evidence that the two add up to "lumbopelvic pain", and show that they are distinct entities (although underlying mechanisms may be similar). Average pain intensity during pregnancy is 50 mm on a visual analogue scale; postpartum, pain is less. During pregnancy, serious pain occurs in about 25%, and severe disability in about 8% of patients. After pregnancy, problems are serious in about 7%. The mechanisms behind disabilities remain unclear, and constitute an important research priority. Changes in muscle activity, unusual perceptions of the leg when moving it, and altered motor coordination were observed but remain poorly understood. Published prevalence for PPP and/or PLBP varies widely. Quantitative analysis was used to explain the differences. Overall, about 45% of all pregnant women and 25% of all women postpartum suffer from PPP and/or PLBP. These values decrease by about 20% if one excludes mild complaints. Strenuous work, previous low back pain, and previous PPP and/or PLBP are risk factors, and the inclusion/exclusion of high-risk subgroups influences prevalence. Of all patients, about one-half have PPP, one-third PLBP, and one-sixth both conditions combined. Overall, the literature reveals that PPP deserves serious attention from the clinical and research communities, at all times and in all countries.
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| 4954. |
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| 4955. |
- Wulff, Angela, 1963, et al.
(författare)
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Spatial and vertical distribution of phytoplankton pigments in the eastern Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean
- 2004
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Ingår i: Deep-Sea Research Part Ii-Topical Studies in Oceanography. - : Elsevier BV. - 0967-0645. ; 51:22-24, s. 2701-2713
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The spatial and vertical distribution of phytoplankton pigments was analysed during the Scandinavian/South African Southern Ocean JGOFS expedition of the S.A. Agulhas from 31 December 1997 to 26 January 1998. In total, seawater from 12 different stations along a transect at 6degreesE from 60.38 to 49.82degreesS were sampled at water depths of approximately 2, 10, 20, 30, 50, 75 and 100 m. Pigment concentrations were analysed using high-performance liquid chromatography. The highest chlorophyll a (chl a) concentrations were found within the Spring Ice Edge (SIE) at water depths of 2-30 m (1.5-2.0 mug l(-1)). The lowest phytoplankton biomass (chl a) was found within the Winter Ice Edge (WIE) with typical values around 0.3 mug l(-1). While the chl a concentrations decreased with depth within the SIE, no apparent difference between depths was found within WIE. The same trend with similar chl a concentrations (0.8-1.2 mug l(-1)) at all depths was found for the northernmost part of the Antarctic Polar Front (APF) except for samples from 100 m. Principal component analysis (PCA) and the matrix factorisation program, CHEMTAX, were used to interpret the pigment data. The PCA indicated small differences between the samples in WIE and APF, while the SIE samples were separated into three groups. At the southernmost stations a clear separation was found between surface samples and deeper samples; this was not seen at the two northernmost stations within SIE. Along the whole transect, CHEMTAX suggested a dominance of diatoms and haptophytes. In general, the haptophytes contributed more to total chl a further south and the diatom contribution increased from south to north. Within WIE, CHEMTAX indicated that cyanobacteria were contributing approximately 3% to the total autotrophic biomass. In APF, a more diverse phytoplankton community was found compared with WIE and SIE. The pigment patterns interpreted by CHEMTAX showed that different phytoplankton assemblages were associated with distinct water masses along the transect. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 4956. |
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| 4957. |
- Wysocki, Robert, et al.
(författare)
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Transcriptional Activation of Metalloid Tolerance Genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Requires the AP-1–like Proteins Yap1p and Yap8p
- 2004
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Ingår i: Molecular Biology of the Cell. ; 15:5, s. 2049-2060
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- All organisms are equipped with systems for detoxification of the metalloids arsenic and antimony. Here, we show that two parallel pathways involving the AP-1–like proteins Yap1p and Yap8p are required for acquisition of metalloid tolerance in the budding yeast S. cerevisiae. Yap8p is demonstrated to reside in the nucleus where it mediates enhanced expression of the arsenic detoxification genes ACR2 and ACR3. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, we show that Yap8p is associated with the ACR3 promoter in untreated as well as arsenic-exposed cells. Like for Yap1p, specific cysteine residues are critical for Yap8p function. We further show that metalloid exposure triggers nuclear accumulation of Yap1p and stimulates expression of antioxidant genes. Yap1p mutants that are unable to accumulate in the nucleus during H2O2 treatment showed nearly normal nuclear retention in response to metalloid exposure. Thus, our data are the first to demonstrate that Yap1p is being regulated by metalloid stress and to indicate that this activation of Yap1p operates in a manner distinct from stress caused by chemical oxidants. We conclude that Yap1p and Yap8p mediate tolerance by controlling separate subsets of detoxification genes and propose that the two AP-1–like proteins respond to metalloids through distinct mechanisms.
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| 4958. |
- Wårdh, Inger, et al.
(författare)
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Oral bacteria and clinical variables in dependent individuals at a special facility.
- 2004
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Ingår i: International journal of dental hygiene. - : Wiley. - 1601-5029 .- 1601-5037. ; 2:4, s. 185-92
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The oral health of dependent residents at special facilities has often been reported as being poor, but it is difficult to relate oral health to general health and define the need for oral health care. Microbiological analyses of the oral flora have been suggested as a suitable method for evaluating oral health in this group of patients. A study was performed at a nursing facility where 33 individuals participated. The aim was to describe their oral flora in relation to other health variables and to classify the residents on different risk levels. An oral examination of the residents was made at the facility, together with a 3-day food record and an oral microbiological analysis. The analysis classified the residents in different categories according to both acid-producing bacteria and the flora correlated with a reduction in general health. The categories were based on previous studies conducted at the Department of Microbiology (Faculty of Odontology in Göteborg). The present study revealed that the level for acid-producing bacteria was high in 12 individuals and the micriobial level according to decreased general health was high in seven individuals. A high level of acid-producing bacteria was related to functional impairment, which was in turn related to nutritional problems and help with oral hygiene. The microbial level according to the reduction in general health did not significantly correlate with other variables.
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| 4959. |
- Wängberg, Sten-Åke, 1955, et al.
(författare)
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Impact of ultraviolet-B radiation on the development of phytoplankton communities in the eastern Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean - results from on-deck model ecosystem experiments
- 2004
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Ingår i: Deep-Sea Research Part Ii-Topical Studies in Oceanography. - : Elsevier BV. - 0967-0645. ; 51:22-24, s. 2731-2744
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two model ecosystem experiments to assess the effects of UVB radiation (UVBR, 280-320 nm) on phytoplankton communities were performed on-deck during the SWEDARP 97/98 expedition to the eastern Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean in January 1998. The first experiment was run in the Spring Ice Edge, around 60degreesS, and the second at the Antarctic Polar Front, around 50degreesS. The duration of the experiments were 12 and 10 days, respectively. Ambient UVBR was modified to three levels (i.e. treatments): NoUVB-shielded from UVBR (mylar foil); AMB-ambient UVBR; UVB+--enhanced UVBR. The development of the phytoplankton communities was followed by measuring primary production and composition of pigments and diatom species. At the start of the first experiment UVB+ had lower primary production per volume, but not when normalised to chlorophyll a. At the end there were no differences between treatments in primary production per volume but there were differences when normalised to chlorophyll a. In addition, a significant increase in the stimulation of primary production for UVB+ when excluding UVBR and in chlorophyll a concentration was found. These changes, together with changes in species composition, are assumed to be the result of an adaptation to the enhanced UVBR. During the second experiment, the effects from changes in UVBR were generally smaller but resembled to some extent the first experiment. The chlorophyll a concentration increased significantly in the UVB+ treatment at the end of the experiment and there was a strong tendency towards a reduction in primary production per chlorophyll a, but not per volume. The results are important when estimating the effects of increased UVBR as they show variability in short-term sensitivity, and also the capacity of phytoplankton communities to adapt to UVBR and retain primary production even in enhanced UVBR. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 4960. |
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