| 1. |
- Kattge, Jens, et al.
(author)
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TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access
- 2020
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In: Global Change Biology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 26:1, s. 119-188
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives.
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| 2. |
- Schunk, Stefan J., et al.
(author)
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Genetically determined NLRP3 inflammasome activation associates with systemic inflammation and cardiovascular mortality
- 2021
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In: European Heart Journal. - : Oxford University Press. - 0195-668X .- 1522-9645. ; 42:18, s. 1742-1756
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- AimsInflammation plays an important role in cardiovascular disease (CVD) development. The NOD-like receptor protein-3 (NLRP3) inflammasome contributes to the development of atherosclerosis in animal models. Components of the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway such as interleukin-1β can therapeutically be targeted. Associations of genetically determined inflammasome-mediated systemic inflammation with CVD and mortality in humans are unknown.Methods and resultsWe explored the association of genetic NLRP3 variants with prevalent CVD and cardiovascular mortality in 538 167 subjects on the individual participant level in an explorative gene-centric approach without performing multiple testing. Functional relevance of single-nucleotide polymorphisms on NLRP3 inflammasome activation has been evaluated in monocyte-enriched peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Genetic analyses identified the highly prevalent (minor allele frequency 39.9%) intronic NLRP3 variant rs10754555 to affect NLRP3 gene expression. rs10754555 carriers showed significantly higher C-reactive protein and serum amyloid A plasma levels. Carriers of the G allele showed higher NLRP3 inflammasome activation in isolated human PBMCs. In carriers of the rs10754555 variant, the prevalence of coronary artery disease was significantly higher as compared to non-carriers with a significant interaction between rs10754555 and age. Importantly, rs10754555 carriers had significantly higher risk for cardiovascular mortality during follow-up. Inflammasome inducers (e.g. urate, triglycerides, apolipoprotein C3) modulated the association between rs10754555 and mortality.ConclusionThe NLRP3 intronic variant rs10754555 is associated with increased systemic inflammation, inflammasome activation, prevalent coronary artery disease, and mortality. This study provides evidence for a substantial role of genetically driven systemic inflammation in CVD and highlights the NLRP3 inflammasome as a therapeutic target.
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| 3. |
- Mahmoodi, Bakhtawar K., et al.
(author)
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Association of Factor V Leiden With Subsequent Atherothrombotic Events A GENIUS-CHD Study of Individual Participant Data
- 2020
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In: Circulation. - : Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health). - 0009-7322 .- 1524-4539. ; 142:6, s. 546-555
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Studies examining the role of factor V Leiden among patients at higher risk of atherothrombotic events, such as those with established coronary heart disease (CHD), are lacking. Given that coagulation is involved in the thrombus formation stage on atherosclerotic plaque rupture, we hypothesized that factor V Leiden may be a stronger risk factor for atherothrombotic events in patients with established CHD.Methods: We performed an individual-level meta-analysis including 25 prospective studies (18 cohorts, 3 case-cohorts, 4 randomized trials) from the GENIUS-CHD (Genetics of Subsequent Coronary Heart Disease) consortium involving patients with established CHD at baseline. Participating studies genotyped factor V Leiden status and shared risk estimates for the outcomes of interest using a centrally developed statistical code with harmonized definitions across studies. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to obtain age- and sex-adjusted estimates. The obtained estimates were pooled using fixed-effect meta-analysis. The primary outcome was composite of myocardial infarction and CHD death. Secondary outcomes included any stroke, ischemic stroke, coronary revascularization, cardiovascular mortality, and all-cause mortality.Results: The studies included 69 681 individuals of whom 3190 (4.6%) were either heterozygous or homozygous (n=47) carriers of factor V Leiden. Median follow-up per study ranged from 1.0 to 10.6 years. A total of 20 studies with 61 147 participants and 6849 events contributed to analyses of the primary outcome. Factor V Leiden was not associated with the combined outcome of myocardial infarction and CHD death (hazard ratio, 1.03 [95% CI, 0.92-1.16];I-2=28%;P-heterogeneity=0.12). Subgroup analysis according to baseline characteristics or strata of traditional cardiovascular risk factors did not show relevant differences. Similarly, risk estimates for the secondary outcomes including stroke, coronary revascularization, cardiovascular mortality, and all-cause mortality were also close to identity.Conclusions: Factor V Leiden was not associated with increased risk of subsequent atherothrombotic events and mortality in high-risk participants with established and treated CHD. Routine assessment of factor V Leiden status is unlikely to improve atherothrombotic events risk stratification in this population.
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| 4. |
- His, Mathilde, et al.
(author)
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Lifestyle correlates of eight breast cancer-related metabolites : a cross-sectional study within the EPIC cohort
- 2021
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In: BMC Medicine. - : BioMed Central. - 1741-7015. ; 19:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Metabolomics is a promising molecular tool for identifying novel etiological pathways leading to cancer. In an earlier prospective study among pre- and postmenopausal women not using exogenous hormones, we observed a higher risk of breast cancer associated with higher blood concentrations of one metabolite (acetylcarnitine) and a lower risk associated with higher blood concentrations of seven others (arginine, asparagine, phosphatidylcholines (PCs) aa C36:3, ae C34:2, ae C36:2, ae C36:3, and ae C38:2).Methods: To identify determinants of these breast cancer-related metabolites, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis to identify their lifestyle and anthropometric correlates in 2358 women, who were previously included as controls in case-control studies nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort and not using exogenous hormones at blood collection. Associations of each metabolite concentration with 42 variables were assessed using linear regression models in a discovery set of 1572 participants. Significant associations were evaluated in a validation set (n = 786).Results: For the metabolites previously associated with a lower risk of breast cancer, concentrations of PCs ae C34:2, C36:2, C36:3, and C38:2 were negatively associated with adiposity and positively associated with total and saturated fat intakes. PC ae C36:2 was also negatively associated with alcohol consumption and positively associated with two scores reflecting adherence to a healthy lifestyle. Asparagine concentration was negatively associated with adiposity. Arginine and PC aa C36:3 concentrations were not associated to any of the factors examined. For the metabolite previously associated with a higher risk of breast cancer, acetylcarnitine, a positive association with age was observed.Conclusions: These associations may indicate possible mechanisms underlying associations between lifestyle and anthropometric factors, and risk of breast cancer. Further research is needed to identify potential non-lifestyle correlates of the metabolites investigated.
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| 5. |
- Gentiluomo, Manuel, et al.
(author)
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Mitochondrial DNA Copy-Number Variation and Pancreatic Cancer Risk in the Prospective EPIC Cohort
- 2020
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In: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. - Philadelphia : American Association for Cancer Research. - 1055-9965 .- 1538-7755. ; 29:3, s. 681-686
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number in peripheral blood has been found to be sociated with risk of developing several cancers. However, data on pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma DAC) are very limited.Methods: To further our knowledge on this topic, we measured relative mtDNA copy number by a antitative real-time PCR assay in peripheral leukocyte samples of 476PDACcases and 357 controls sted within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort.Results: We observed lower mtDNA copy number with advancing age (P = 6.54 x 10(-5)) and with a high dy mass index (BMI) level (P = 0.004) and no association with sex, smoking behavior, and alcohol nsumption. We found an association between increased mtDNA copy number and decreased risk of veloping PDAC with an odds ratios (OR) of 0.35 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.160.79; P = 0.01] when mparing the fifth quintile with the first using an unconditional logistic regression and an OR of 0.19 5% CI, 0.07-0.52; P = 0.001) with a conditional analysis. Analyses stratified by BMI showed an sociation between high mtDNA copy number and decreased risk in the stratum of normal weight, nsistent with the main analyses.Conclusions: Our results suggest a protective effect of a higher number of mitochondria, measured in ripheral blood leukocytes, on PDAC risk.Impact: Our findings highlight the importance of understanding the mitochondrial biology in pancreatic ncer.
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| 6. |
- Viallon, Vivian, et al.
(author)
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A new pipeline for the normalization and pooling of metabolomics data
- 2021
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In: Metabolites. - : MDPI. - 2218-1989 .- 2218-1989. ; 11:9
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Pooling metabolomics data across studies is often desirable to increase the statistical power of the analysis. However, this can raise methodological challenges as several preanalytical and analytical factors could introduce differences in measured concentrations and variability between datasets. Specifically, different studies may use variable sample types (e.g., serum versus plasma) collected, treated, and stored according to different protocols, and assayed in different laboratories using different instruments. To address these issues, a new pipeline was developed to normalize and pool metabolomics data through a set of sequential steps: (i) exclusions of the least informative observations and metabolites and removal of outliers; imputation of missing data; (ii) identification of the main sources of variability through principal component partial R-square (PC-PR2) analysis; (iii) application of linear mixed models to remove unwanted variability, including samples’ originating study and batch, and preserve biological variations while accounting for potential differences in the residual variances across studies. This pipeline was applied to targeted metabolomics data acquired using Biocrates AbsoluteIDQ kits in eight case-control studies nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Comprehensive examination of metabolomics measurements indicated that the pipeline improved the comparability of data across the studies. Our pipeline can be adapted to normalize other molecular data, including biomarkers as well as proteomics data, and could be used for pooling molecular datasets, for example in international consortia, to limit biases introduced by inter-study variability. This versatility of the pipeline makes our work of potential interest to molecular epidemiologists.
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| 7. |
- Alexander, Steven M., et al.
(author)
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Qualitative data sharing and synthesis for sustainability science
- 2020
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In: Nature Sustainability. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2398-9629. ; 3:2, s. 81-88
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Opportunities, challenges and recommended targeted actions to accelerate qualitative data sharing to address complex socio-environmental problems Socio-environmental synthesis as a research approach contributes to broader sustainability policy and practice by reusing data from disparate disciplines in innovative ways. Synthesizing diverse data sources and types of evidence can help to better conceptualize, investigate and address increasingly complex socio-environmental problems. However, sharing qualitative data for re-use remains uncommon when compared to sharing quantitative data. We argue that qualitative data present untapped opportunities for sustainability science, and discuss practical pathways to facilitate and realize the benefits from sharing and reusing qualitative data. However, these opportunities and benefits are also hindered by practical, ethical and epistemological challenges. To address these challenges and accelerate qualitative data sharing, we outline enabling conditions and suggest actions for researchers, institutions, funders, data repository managers and publishers.
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| 8. |
- Fjeldstad, Øystein D., et al.
(author)
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Networked health care : Rethinking value creation in learning health care systems
- 2020
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In: Learning Health Systems. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 2379-6146. ; 4:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Creating better value in health care service today is very challenging. The social pressure to do so is real for every health care system and its leadership. Real benefit has been achieved in manufacturing sector work by the use of "value-chain" thinking, which assumes that the work is a series of linked processes necessary to make a product. For those activities in health care systems that are similar, this model may be very helpful. Attempts to "install" the value chain widely in health care systems have, however, been frustrating. As a result, well-meaning leaders seeking better value have resorted to programs of cost reduction, rather than service redesign. Professionals have not been very happy or willing participants. The work of health care service invites an expanded model of value creation, one that better matches the work. This paper proposes a networked architecture that can mobilize and integrate the resources of health care professionals, interested patients, family, and other community members in the delivery and improvement of health care systems. It also suggests how this value-creation architecture might contribute to research and the development of new knowledge. Two cases illustrate the proposed architecture and its implications for system design and practice, technology development, and roles and responsibilities of all actors involved in health care systems. We believe that this model better fits the need of making and improving health care services. This expanded understanding of how value is created invites attention by senior leaders, by those attempting to facilitate the improvement of current systems, by patients and clinicians involved in the daily work of health care service coproduction, by those charged with the preparation and formation of future professionals, by those who measure and conduct research in health care services, and by those leading policy, payment, and reimbursement systems.
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| 9. |
- Nano, Rita, et al.
(author)
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Heterogeneity of Human Pancreatic Islet Isolation Around Europe : Results of a Survey Study
- 2020
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In: Transplantation. - : LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS. - 0041-1337 .- 1534-6080. ; 104:1, s. 190-196
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Europe is currently the most active region in the field of pancreatic islet transplantation, and many of the leading groups are actually achieving similar good outcomes. Further collaborative advances in the field require the standardization of islet cell product isolation processes, and this work aimed to identify differences in the human pancreatic islet isolation processes within European countries.Methods: A web-based questionnaire about critical steps, including donor selection, pancreas processing, pancreas perfusion and digestion, islet counting and culture, islet quality evaluation, microbiological evaluation, and release criteria of the product, was completed by isolation facilities participating at the Ninth International European Pancreas and Islet Transplant Association (EPITA) Workshop on Islet-Beta Cell Replacement in Milan.Results: Eleven islet isolation facilities completed the questionnaire. The facilities reported 445 and 53 islet isolations per year over the last 3 years from deceased organ donors and pancreatectomized patients, respectively. This activity resulted in 120 and 40 infusions per year in allograft and autograft recipients, respectively. Differences among facilities emerged in donor selection (age, cold ischemia time, intensive care unit length, amylase concentration), pancreas procurement, isolation procedures (brand and concentration of collagenase, additive, maximum acceptable digestion time), quality evaluation, and release criteria for transplantation (glucose-stimulated insulin secretion tests, islet numbers, and purity). Moreover, even when a high concordance about the relevance of one parameter was evident, thresholds for the acceptance were different among facilities.Conclusions: The result highlighted the presence of a heterogeneity in the islet cell product process and product release criteria.
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