| 1. |
- Brooke, Hannah Louise, et al.
(författare)
-
The Swedish cause of death register
- 2017
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Epidemiology. - : Springer. - 0393-2990 .- 1573-7284. ; 32:9, s. 765-773
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sweden has a long tradition of recording cause of death data. The Swedish cause of death register is a high quality virtually complete register of all deaths in Sweden since 1952. Although originally created for official statistics, it is a highly important data source for medical research since it can be linked to many other national registers, which contain data on social and health factors in the Swedish population. For the appropriate use of this register, it is fundamental to understand its origins and composition. In this paper we describe the origins and composition of the Swedish cause of death register, set out the key strengths and weaknesses of the register, and present the main causes of death across age groups and over time in Sweden. This paper provides a guide and reference to individuals and organisations interested in data from the Swedish cause of death register.
|
|
| 2. |
- Guerrieri, Davide, et al.
(författare)
-
Postmortem and Toxicological Findings in a Series of Furanylfentanyl-Related Deaths
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Journal of Analytical Toxicology. - : OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC. - 0146-4760 .- 1945-2403. ; 41:3, s. 242-249
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Over the course of 4 months in 2015 and 2016, a cluster of seven fatal intoxications involving the opioid-analogue furanylfentanyl occurred in Sweden; toxicological analysis showed presence of furanylfentanyl either as the only drug or in combination with other illicit substances. Previous publications have only reported non-lethal furanylfentanyl intoxications. In the cases presented here, furanylfentanyl intoxication-alone or in combination with other drugs-was determined to be the cause of death by the responsible pathologist. All victims were young (24-37 years old) males, five of which had a well-documented history of drug abuse. Femoral blood concentration of furanylfentanyl ranged from 0.41 ng/g to 2.47 ng/g blood. Five cases presented a complex panel of drugs of abuse and prescription drugs. Moreover, in five cases the concurrent presence of pregabalin corroborates previous observations indicating pregabalin as a possible contributing factor in polydrug intoxications. We conclude that it is difficult to establish a specific lethal concentration of furanylfentanyl, due to incompletely known effects of possible pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions with other drugs, as well as to the unknown degree of tolerance to opioids. We suggest that a full toxicological screening-to assess the possibility of drug interactions-together with segmental hair analysis regarding opioids-to estimate the level of opioid tolerance-be carried out to assist in the interpretation of cases involving synthetic opioids such as furanylfentanyl.
|
|
| 3. |
- Kononenko, Olga, et al.
(författare)
-
Opioid precursor protein isoform is targeted to the cell nuclei in the human brain
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-3002 .- 1878-2434 .- 0304-4165 .- 1872-8006. ; 1861:2, s. 246-255
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Neuropeptide precursors are traditionally viewed as proteins giving rise to small neuropeptide molecules. Prodynorphin (PDYN) is the precursor protein to dynorphins, endogenous ligands for the κ-opioid receptor. Alternative mRNA splicing of neuropeptide genes may regulate cell- and tissue-specific neuropeptide expression and produce novel protein isoforms. We here searched for novel PDYN mRNA and their protein product in the human brain.METHODS: Novel PDYN transcripts were identified using nested PCR amplification of oligo(dT) selected full-length capped mRNA. Gene expression was analyzed by qRT-PCR, PDYN protein by western blotting and confocal imaging, dynorphin peptides by radioimmunoassay. Neuronal nuclei were isolated using fluorescence-activated nuclei sorting (FANS) from postmortem human striatal tissue. Immunofluorescence staining and confocal microscopy was performed for human caudate nucleus.RESULTS: Two novel human PDYN mRNA splicing variants were identified. Expression of one of them was confined to the striatum where its levels constituted up to 30% of total PDYN mRNA. This transcript may be translated into ∆SP-PDYN protein lacking 13 N-terminal amino acids, a fragment of signal peptide (SP). ∆SP-PDYN was not processed to mature dynorphins and surprisingly, was targeted to the cell nuclei in a model cellular system. The endogenous PDYN protein was identified in the cell nuclei in human striatum by western blotting of isolated neuronal nuclei, and by confocal imaging.CONCLUSIONS AND GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE: High levels of alternatively spliced ∆SP-PDYN mRNA and nuclear localization of PDYN protein suggests a nuclear function for this isoform of the opioid peptide precursor in human striatum.
|
|
| 4. |
- Reu, Pedro, et al.
(författare)
-
The Lifespan and Turnover of Microglia in the Human Brain
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Cell Reports. - Cambridge, MA 02139, USA : Elsevier BV. - 2211-1247. ; 20:4, s. 779-784
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The hematopoietic system seeds the CNS with microglial progenitor cells during the fetal period, but the subsequent cell generation dynamics and maintenance of this population have been poorly understood. We report that microglia, unlike most other hematopoietic lineages, renew slowly at a median rate of 28% per year, and some microglia last for more than two decades. Furthermore, we find no evidence for the existence of a substantial population of quiescent long-lived cells, meaning that the microglia population in the human brain is sustained by continuous slow turnover throughout adult life.
|
|
