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- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(author)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy
- 2012
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In: Autophagy. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1554-8635 .- 1554-8627. ; 8:4, s. 445-544
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process vs. those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process); thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from stimuli that result in increased autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.
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- Aoki, Sayaka, et al.
(author)
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Development of a new screening tool for neuromotor development in children aged two - the neuromotor 5min exam 2-year-old version (N5E2).
- 2018
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In: Brain & development. - : Elsevier BV. - 1872-7131 .- 0387-7604. ; 40:6, s. 445-451
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- As a new screening tool for neuromotor development in children aged two, we developed the Neuromotor 5min Exam 2-year-old version (N5E2), which can be easily administered by pediatricians or primary care physicians. In this study, as an initial attempt to examine the utility of the N5E2, the inter-rater reliability on scoring for the individual items in this scale was assessed.The participants of the study were 29 children (aged 1-5years, mean age=2.79) diagnosed with a variety of neuromotor/developmental disorders/high-risk conditions. Inter-rater reliability was examined on the following 11 items in the N5E2: (1) Retrieving a rolling ball, (2) Gait, (3) Toe-walking, (4) Asymmetries of posture and/or movement, (5) Age at unsupported walking, (6) Speaking in two-word understandable sentences, (7) Hypotonus, (8) Hypertonus, (9) Eye movement, (10) Vision problem, (11) Hearing problem. The items were administered to children by two pediatricians with different expertise and clinical experience, separately.The results showed that among the eleven items in the N5E2 examined, a high level of agreement (κ≥0.60) was found on 4 items, and a moderate level of agreement (0.40≤κ<0.60) was found on 5 items. The level of agreement somewhat improved after the dichotomization of the score; using this format, a high level of rater agreement (κ≥0.60) was found on 6 out of 11 items. The analyses also revealed high inter-rater reliability on the sum score of the 11 items (r=0.84).The results suggest the possibility that this brief screening tool could be feasible in settings where clinicians' experience varies, based on its inter-rater reliability on individual items between the clinicians with different expertise and amount of clinical experiences.
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- Hashimoto, Motomu, et al.
(author)
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Complement drives Th17 cell differentiation and triggers autoimmune arthritis
- 2010
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In: Journal of Experimental Medicine. - : Rockefeller University Press. - 0022-1007 .- 1540-9538. ; 207:6, s. 1135-1143
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Activation of serum complement triggers Th17 cell-dependent spontaneous autoimmune disease in an animal model. In genetically autoimmune-prone SKG mice, administration of mannan or beta-glucan, both of which activate serum complement, evoked Th17 cell-mediated chronic autoimmune arthritis. C5a, a chief component of complement activation produced via all three complement pathways (i.e., lectin, classical, and alternative), stimulated tissue-resident macrophages, but not dendritic cells, to produce inflammatory cytokines including IL-6, in synergy with Toll-like receptor signaling or, notably, granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). GM-CSF secreted by activated T cells indeed enhanced in vitro IL-6 production by C5a-stimulated macrophages. In vivo, C5a receptor (C5aR) deficiency in SKG mice inhibited the differentiation/expansion of Th17 cells after mannan or beta-glucan treatment, and consequently suppressed the development of arthritis. Transfer of SKG T cells induced Th17 cell differentiation/expansion and produced arthritis in C5aR-sufficient recombination activating gene (RAG)(-/-) mice but not in C5aR-deficient RAG(-/-) recipients. In vivo macrophage depletion also inhibited disease development in SKG mice. Collectively, the data suggest that complement activation by exogenous or endogenous stimulation can initiate Th17 cell differentiation and expansion in certain autoimmune diseases and presumably in microbial infections. Blockade of C5aR may thus be beneficial for controlling Th17-mediated inflammation and autoimmune disease.
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4. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(author)
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Assessment of Autistic Traits in Children Aged 2 to 4½ Years With the Preschool Version of the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS-P) : Findings from Japan
- 2017
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In: Autism Research. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 1939-3792 .- 1939-3806. ; 10:5, s. 852-865
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The recent development and use of autism measures for the general population has led to a growing body of evidence which suggests that autistic traits are distributed along a continuum. However, as most existing autism measures were designed for use in children older than age 4, to date, little is known about the autistic continuum in children younger than age 4. As autistic symptoms are evident in the first few years, to address this research gap, the current study tested the preschool version of the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS-P) in children aged 2 to 4½ years in clinical (N = 74, average age 40 months, 26-51 months) and community settings (N = 357, average age 39 months, 25-50 months) in Japan. Using information obtained from different raters (mothers, other caregivers, and teachers) it was found that the scale demonstrated a good degree of internal consistency, inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability, and a satisfactory degree of convergent validity for the clinical sample when compared with scores from diagnostic "gold standard" autism measures. Receiver operating characteristic analyses and the group comparisons also showed that the SRS-P total score discriminated well between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and those without ASD. Importantly, this scale could identify autistic symptoms or traits distributed continually across the child population at this age irrespective of the presence of an ASD diagnosis. These findings suggest that the SRS-P might be a sensitive instrument for case identification including subthreshold ASD, as well as a potentially useful research tool for exploring ASD endophenotypes. Autism Res 2016.
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