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- Ferreira, Mjv, et al.
(author)
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Poster Session 3 : Tuesday 5 May 2015, 08
- 2015
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In: European Heart Journal Cardiovascular Imaging. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 2047-2404 .- 2047-2412. ; 16 Suppl 1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)
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- Rueda, B., et al.
(author)
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The STAT4 gene influences the genetic predisposition to systemic sclerosis phenotype
- 2009
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In: Human Molecular Genetics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0964-6906 .- 1460-2083. ; 18:11, s. 2071-2077
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study was to investigate the possible role of STAT4 gene in the genetic predisposition to systemic sclerosis (SSc) susceptibility or clinical phenotype. A total of 1317 SSc patients [896 with limited cutaneous SSc (lcSSc) and 421 with diffuse cutaneous SSc (dcSSc)] and 3113 healthy controls, from an initial case-control set of Spanish Caucasian ancestry and five independent cohorts of European ancestry (The Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Italy and USA), were included in the study. The rs7574865 polymorphism was selected as STAT4 genetic marker. We observed that the rs7574865 T allele was significantly associated with susceptibility to lcSSc in the Spanish population [P = 1.9 x 10(-5) odds ratio (OR) 1.61 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.29-1.99], but not with dcSSc (P = 0.41 OR 0.84 95% CI 0.59-1.21). Additionally, a dosage effect was observed showing individuals with rs7574865 TT genotype higher risk for lcSSc (OR 3.34, P = 1.02 x 10(-7) 95% CI 2.11-5.31). The association of the rs7574865 T allele with lcSSc was confirmed in all the replication cohorts with different effect sizes (OR ranging between 1.15 and 1.86), as well as the lack of association of STAT4 with dcSSc. A meta-analysis to test the overall effect of the rs7574865 polymorphism showed a strong risk effect of the T allele for lcSSc susceptibility (pooled OR 1.54 95% CI 1.36-1.74; P < 0.0001). Our data show a strong and reproducible association of the STAT4 gene with the genetic predisposition to lcSSc suggesting that this gene seems to be one of the genetic markers influencing SSc phenotype.
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| 8. |
- Gauckler, Philipp, et al.
(author)
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Rituximab in Membranous Nephropathy
- 2021
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In: Kidney International Reports. - : Elsevier BV. - 2468-0249. ; 6:4, s. 881-893
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Membranous nephropathy (MN) is the most common cause of primary nephrotic syndrome among adults. The identification of phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R) as target antigen in most patients changed the management of MN dramatically, and provided a rationale for B-cell depleting agents such as rituximab. The efficacy of rituximab in inducing remission has been investigated in several studies, including 3 randomized controlled trials, in which complete and partial remission of proteinuria was achieved in approximately two-thirds of treated patients. Due to its favorable safety profile, rituximab is now considered a first-line treatment option for MN, especially in patients at moderate and high risk of deterioration in kidney function. However, questions remain about how to best use rituximab, including the optimal dosing regimen, a potential need for maintenance therapy, and assessment of long-term safety and efficacy outcomes. In this review, we provide an overview of the current literature and discuss both strengths and limitations of “the new standard.”
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| 9. |
- Kowal-Bielecka, Otylia, et al.
(author)
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Update of EULAR recommendations for the treatment of systemic sclerosis
- 2017
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In: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 0003-4967 .- 1468-2060. ; 76, s. 1327-1339
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim was to update the 2009 European League against Rheumatism (EULAR) recommendations for the treatment of systemic sclerosis (SSc), with attention to new therapeutic questions. Update of the previous treatment recommendations was performed according to EULAR standard operating procedures. The task force consisted of 32 SSc clinical experts from Europe and the USA, 2 patients nominated by the pan-European patient association for SSc (Federation of European Scleroderma Associations (FESCA)), a clinical epidemiologist and 2 research fellows. All centres from the EULAR Scleroderma Trials and Research group were invited to submit and select clinical questions concerning SSc treatment using a Delphi approach. Accordingly, 46 clinical questions addressing 26 different interventions were selected for systematic literature review. The new recommendations were based on the available evidence and developed in a consensus meeting with clinical experts and patients. The procedure resulted in 16 recommendations being developed (instead of 14 in 2009) that address treatment of several SSc-related organ complications: Raynaud's phenomenon (RP), digital ulcers (DUs), pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), skin and lung disease, scleroderma renal crisis and gastrointestinal involvement. Compared with the 2009 recommendations, the 2016 recommendations include phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitors for the treatment of SSc-related RP and DUs, riociguat, new aspects for endothelin receptor antagonists, prostacyclin analogues and PDE-5 inhibitors for SSc-related PAH. New recommendations regarding the use of fluoxetine for SSc-related RP and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation for selected patients with rapidly progressive SSc were also added. In addition, several comments regarding other treatments addressed in clinical questions and suggestions for the SSc research agenda were formulated. These updated data-derived and consensus-derived recommendations will help rheumatologists to manage patients with SSc in an evidence-based way. These recommendations also give directions for future clinical research in SSc.
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| 10. |
- Lembrechts, Jonas J., et al.
(author)
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Global maps of soil temperature
- 2022
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In: Global Change Biology. - : Wiley. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 28:9, s. 3110-3144
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Research in global change ecology relies heavily on global climatic grids derived from estimates of air temperature in open areas at around 2m above the ground. These climatic grids do not reflect conditions below vegetation canopies and near the ground surface, where critical ecosystem functions occur and most terrestrial species reside. Here, we provide global maps of soil temperature and bioclimatic variables at a 1-km2 resolution for 0–5 and 5–15cm soil depth. These maps were created by calculating the difference (i.e. offset) between in situ soil temperature measurements, based on time series from over 1200 1-km2 pixels (summarized from 8519 unique temperature sensors) across all the world's major terrestrial biomes, and coarse-grained air temperature estimates from ERA5-Land (an atmospheric reanalysis by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts). We show that mean annual soil temperature differs markedly from the corresponding gridded air temperature, by up to 10°C (mean=3.0±2.1°C), with substantial variation across biomes and seasons. Over the year, soils in cold and/or dry biomes are substantially warmer (+3.6±2.3°C) than gridded air temperature, whereas soils in warm and humid environments are on average slightly cooler (−0.7±2.3°C). The observed substantial and biome-specific offsets emphasize that the projected impacts of climate and climate change on near-surface biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are inaccurately assessed when air rather than soil temperature is used, especially in cold environments. The global soil-related bioclimatic variables provided here are an important step forward for any application in ecology and related disciplines. Nevertheless, we highlight the need to fill remaining geographic gaps by collecting more in situ measurements of microclimate conditions to further enhance the spatiotemporal resolution of global soil temperature products for ecological applications.
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| 11. |
- Rueda, B., et al.
(author)
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A large multicentre analysis of CTGF - 2945 promoter polymorphism does not confirm association with systemic sclerosis susceptibility or phenotype
- 2009
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In: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 68:10, s. 1618-1620
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective: To conduct a replication study to investigate whether the 2945 CTGF genetic variant is associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc) susceptibility or specific SSc phenotype. Methods: The study population comprised 1180 patients with SSc and 1784 healthy controls from seven independent case-control sets of European ancestry (Spanish, French, Dutch, German, British, Swedish and North American). The 2945 CTGF genetic variant was genotyped using a Taqman 59 allelic discrimination assay. Results: An independent association study showed in all the case-control cohorts no association of the CTGF 2945 polymorphism with SSc susceptibility. These findings were confirmed by a meta-analysis giving a pooled OR=1.12 (95% CI 0.99 to 1.25), p=0.06. Investigation of the possible contribution of the 2945 CTGF genetic variant to SSc phenotype showed that stratification according to SSc subtypes (limited or diffuse), selective autoantibodies (anti-topoisomerase I or anticentromere) or pulmonary involvement reached no statistically significant skewing. Conclusion: The results do not confirm previous findings and suggest that the CTGF 2945 promoter polymorphism does not play a major role in SSc susceptibility or clinical phenotype.
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| 13. |
- Fransen, J., et al.
(author)
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Clinical prediction of 5-year survival in systemic sclerosis: validation of a simple prognostic model in EUSTAR centres
- 2011
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In: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 70:10, s. 1788-1792
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is associated with a significant reduction in life expectancy. A simple prognostic model to predict 5-year survival in SSc was developed in 1999 in 280 patients, but it has not been validated in other patients. The predictions of a prognostic model are usually less accurate in other patients, especially from other centres or countries. A study was undertaken to validate the prognostic model to predict 5-year survival in SSc in other centres throughout Europe. Methods A European multicentre cohort of patients with SSc diagnosed before 2002 was established. Patients with SSc according to the preliminary American College of Rheumatology classification criteria were eligible for the study when they were followed for at least 5 years or shorter if they died. The primary outcome was 5-year survival after diagnosis of SSc. The predefined prognostic model uses the following baseline variables: age, gender, presence of urine protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and carbon monoxide diffusing capacity (DLCO). Results Data were available for 1049 patients, 119 (11%) of whom died within 5 years after diagnosis. Of the patients, 85% were female, the mean (SD) age at diagnosis was 50 (14) years and 30% were classified as having diffuse cutaneous SSc. The prognostic model with age (OR 1.03), male gender (OR 1.93), urine protein (OR 2.29), elevated ESR (1.89) and low DLCO (OR 1.94) had an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.78. Death occurred in 12 (2.2%) of 509 patients with no risk factors, 45 (13%) of 349 patients with one risk factor, 55 (33%) of 168 patients with two risk factors and 7 (30%) of 23 patients with three risk factors. Conclusion A simple prognostic model using three disease factors to predict 5-year survival at diagnosis in SSc showed reasonable performance upon validation in a European multicentre study.
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| 15. |
- Kvien, TK, et al.
(author)
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Considerations for improving quality of care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and associated comorbidities
- 2020
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In: RMD open. - : BMJ. - 2056-5933. ; 6:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disorder with a global prevalence of approximately 0.5–1%. Patients with RA are at an increased risk of developing comorbidities (eg, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease, diabetes and depression). Despite this, there are limited recommendations for the management and implementation of associated comorbidities. This study aimed to identify good practice interventions in the care of RA and associated comorbidities.MethodsA combination of primary research (180+ interviews with specialists across 12 European rheumatology centres) and secondary research (literature review of existing publications and guidelines/recommendations) were used to identify challenges in management and corresponding good practice interventions. Findings were prioritised and reviewed by a group of 18 rheumatology experts including rheumatologists, comorbidity experts, a patient representative and a highly specialised nurse.ResultsChallenges throughout the patient pathway (including delays in diagnosis and referral, shortage of rheumatologists, limited awareness of primary care professionals) and 18 good practice interventions were identified in the study. The expert group segmented and prioritised interventions according to three distinct stages of the disease: (1) suspected RA, (2) recent diagnosis of RA and (3) established RA. Examples of good practice interventions included enabling self-management (self-monitoring and disease management support, for example, lifestyle adaptations); early arthritis clinic; rapid access to care (online referral, triage, ultrasound-guided diagnosis); dedicated comorbidity specialists; enhanced communication with primary care (hotline, education sessions); and integrating patient registries into daily clinical practice.ConclusionLearning from implementation of good practice interventions in centres across Europe provides an opportunity to more widely improved care for patients with RA and associated comorbidities.
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| 16. |
- Potapov, Anton M., et al.
(author)
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Globally invariant metabolism but density-diversity mismatch in springtails
- 2023
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Nature. - 2041-1723. ; 14:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Soil life supports the functioning and biodiversity of terrestrial ecosystems. Springtails (Collembola) are among the most abundant soil arthropods regulating soil fertility and flow of energy through above- and belowground food webs. However, the global distribution of springtail diversity and density, and how these relate to energy fluxes remains unknown. Here, using a global dataset representing 2470 sites, we estimate the total soil springtail biomass at 27.5 megatons carbon, which is threefold higher than wild terrestrial vertebrates, and record peak densities up to 2 million individuals per square meter in the tundra. Despite a 20-fold biomass difference between the tundra and the tropics, springtail energy use (community metabolism) remains similar across the latitudinal gradient, owing to the changes in temperature with latitude. Neither springtail density nor community metabolism is predicted by local species richness, which is high in the tropics, but comparably high in some temperate forests and even tundra. Changes in springtail activity may emerge from latitudinal gradients in temperature, predation and resource limitation in soil communities. Contrasting relationships of biomass, diversity and activity of springtail communities with temperature suggest that climate warming will alter fundamental soil biodiversity metrics in different directions, potentially restructuring terrestrial food webs and affecting soil functioning.
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