Wanvisa Udomsinprasert

Plasma and synovial fluid connective tissue growth factor levels are correlated with disease severity in patients with knee osteoarthritis

Background: Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) has been implicated in development of osteoarthritis (OA). Objective: To determine the correlation between plasma and synovial fluid CTGF levels and the severity in knee osteoarthritis patients. Methods: A total of 100 subjects were recruited into this study (75 OA patients and 25 controls). CTGF concentrations in plasma and synovial fluid were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Plasma and synovial fluid CTGF concentrations were correlated with radiographic severity. There was a positive correlation between plasma and synovial fluid CTGF levels. Conclusion: CTGF could be useful for monitoring the severity and progression of OA.

Serum adiponectin and transient elastography as non-invasive markers for postoperative biliary atresia

BackgroundBiliary atresia (BA) is a progressive inflammatory disorder of the extrahepatic bile ducts leading to the obliteration of bile flow. The purpose of this study was to determine serum adiponectin in BA patients and to investigate the relationship of adiponectin with clinical parameters and liver stiffness scores.MethodsSixty BA patients post Kasai operation and 20 controls were enrolled. The mean age of BA patients and controls was 9.6 ± 0.7 and 10.1 ± 0.7 years, respectively. BA patients were classified into two groups according to their serum total bilirubin (TB) levels (non-jaundice, TB < 2 mg/dl vs. jaundice, TB ≥ 2 mg/dl) and liver stiffness (insignificant fibrosis, liver stiffness < 7 kPa vs. significant fibrosis, liver stiffness ≥ 7 kPa). Serum adiponectin levels were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Liver stiffness scores were examined by transient elastography (FibroScan).ResultsBA patients had markedly higher serum adiponectin levels (15.5 ± 1.1 vs. 11.1 ± 1.1 μg/ml, P = 0.03) and liver stiffness than controls (30.1 ± 3.0 vs. 5.1 ± 0.5 kPa, P < 0.001). Serum adiponectin levels were significantly elevated in BA patients with jaundice compared with those without jaundice (24.4 ± 1.4 vs. 11.0 ± 0.7 μg/ml, P < 0.001). In addition, BA patients with significant liver fibrosis had remarkably greater serum adiponectin than insignificant fibrosis counterparts (17.7 ± 1.2 vs. 9.4 ± 1.1 μg/ml, P < 0.001). Subsequent analysis revealed that serum adiponectin was positively correlated with total bilirubin, hyaluronic acid, and liver stiffness (r = 0.58, r = 0.46, and r = 0.60, P < 0.001, respectively).ConclusionsSerum adiponectin and liver stiffness values were higher in BA patients compared with normal participants. The elevated serum adiponectin levels also positively correlated with the degree of hepatic dysfunction and liver fibrosis. Accordingly, serum adiponectin and transient elastography could serve as the useful non-invasive biomarkers for monitoring the severity and progression in postoperative BA.

Global methylation, oxidative stress, and relative telomere length in biliary atresia patients

Alu and LINE-1 elements are retrotransposons with a ubiquitous presence in the human genome that can cause genomic instability, specifically relating to telomere length. Genotoxic agents may induce methylation of retrotransposons, in addition to oxidative DNA damage in the form of 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG). Methylation of retrotransposons induced by these agents may contribute to biliary atresia (BA) etiology. Here, we investigated correlations between global methylation, 8-OHdG, and relative telomere length, as well as reporting on Alu and LINE-1 hypomethylation in BA patients. Alu and LINE-1 hypomethylation were found to be associated with elevated risk of BA (OR = 4.07; 95% CI: 2.27–7.32; P < 0.0001 and OR = 3.51; 95% CI: 1.87–6.59; P < 0.0001, respectively). Furthermore, LINE-1 methylation was associated with liver stiffness in BA patients (β coefficient = −0.17; 95% CI: −0.24 to −0.10; P < 0.0001). Stratified analysis revealed negative correlations between Alu and LINE-1 methylation and 8-OHdG in BA patients (P < 0.0001). In contrast, positive relationships were identified between Alu and LINE-1 methylation and relative telomere length in BA patients (P < 0.0001). These findings suggest that retrotransposon hypomethylation is associated with plasma 8-OHdG and telomere length in BA patients.

+276 G/T single nucleotide polymorphism of the adiponectin gene is associated with the susceptibility to biliary atresia

BackgroundBiliary atresia (BA) is an intractable neonatal inflammatory and obliterative cholangiopathy, leading to progressive fibrosis and cirrhosis. Adiponectin, an anti-inflammatory adipokine, is known to play a possible role in liver diseases. The objective of our study was to determine the relationship between adiponectin gene polymorphisms and BA susceptibility.MethodsA total of 106 BA patients and 107 healthy controls were included in this study. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the adiponectin gene, +45T/G (rs2241766) and +276G/T (rs1501299), were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.ResultsGenotype distributions of +45 T/G and +276 G/T SNPs were seen in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for both BA patients and controls. The frequency of the G/G genotype at +276G/T was significantly higher in BA patients than in the controls (P=0.009). Regarding +45T/ G in BA patients, the frequency of the T/T genotype tended to be lower than in the controls, but the difference was not significant. Moreover, the G allele at +276G/T in BA patients was more common than in the controls (P=0.0043). In contrast, the frequency of the T allele at +45T/G was not significantly different between BA patients and the controls. None of the haplotypes studied was found to significantly influence the risk of BA.Conclusions+276G/T SNP is strongly associated with BA, particularly with the G allele. We postulate that the +276G/T adiponectin gene polymorphism confers increased susceptibility to BA.

Serum autotaxin levels correlate with hepatic dysfunction and severity in postoperative biliary atresia

Abstract Objective: To investigate correlation of serum autotaxin and disease severity in biliary atresia (BA). Methods: Eighty postoperative BA patients and 15 controls were recruited. Serum autotaxin levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: BA patients had greater serum autotaxin and liver stiffness than controls. Serum autotaxin and liver stiffness were markedly elevated in BA patients with jaundice compared to those without jaundice. Furthermore, serum autotaxin was correlated with liver stiffness and biochemical parameters in BA. Conclusions: Elevated serum autotaxin was correlated with hepatic dysfunction in BA. Accordingly, serum autotaxin is a promising biomarker reflecting the severity in BA.

Elevated serum periostin is associated with liver stiffness and clinical outcome in biliary atresia.

Abstract Objective: To analyze serum periostin and liver stiffness in postoperative biliary atresia (BA). Methods: A total of 60 BA patients and 14 controls were enrolled. Serum periostin levels were analyzed by ELISA. Liver stiffness measurement was determined by transient elastography. Results: Biliary atresia patients had significantly higher periostin and liver stiffness values than controls. Serum periostin levels were remarkably increased in BA patients with jaundice compared to those without jaundice. Moreover, serum periostin was correlated with liver stiffness. Conclusions: Serum periostin was associated with liver stiffness in BA. Thus, serum periostin has potential as a parameter reflecting the severity in BA.

Correlation of connective tissue growth factor with liver stiffness measured by transient elastography in biliary atresia

Biliary atresia (BA) is a neonatal liver disease defined as chronic progressive fibrotic obliteration of extrahepatic bile ducts. The objective of this study was to determine the association of serum connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) with clinical outcome and liver stiffness measurement.

A Water-Based Chitosan-Maleimide Precursor for Bioconjugation: An Example of a Rapid Pathway for an In Situ Injectable Adhesive Gel.

Chitosan conjugated with maleimide (CS-Mal) as a potential precursor for bioconjugation and the example of the application in in situ injectable adhesive gel is proposed. The homogeneous reaction in water/dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) (1:1) followed by dialysis in HCl (10 × 10-3 m) is a good condition to obtain CS-Mal. When SH-PEG-SH is applied as the crosslinker, the gel can be obtained in a few seconds without any by-products at room temperature. The gel formation and properties are controllable by simply varying the concentration and the molecular weight of CS, the Mal substitution degree, and the temperature. The gel is injectable and shows adhesive property for soft tissue. Moreover, the gel shows not only biocompatibility to SAOS2 cells but also antimicrobial activity against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. CS-Mal is useful not only for bioconjugation of CS but also for development of biomaterials.

Plasma and synovial fluid autotaxin correlate with severity in knee osteoarthritis.

BACKGROUND This study aimed to investigate the relationships between plasma and synovial autotaxin and the severity in knee osteoarthritis (OA) patients. METHODS A total of 90 participants (70 knee OA patients and 20 controls) were recruited. Autotaxin and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels were determined. The symptomatic and radiographic severity of OA was assessed using the Western Ontario McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) scores and the Kellgren-Lawrence grades. RESULTS OA patients had significantly higher circulating autotaxin and hs-CRP than controls. Plasma autotaxin was directly correlated with synovial fluid autotaxin (r=0.639, P<0.001). Additionally, plasma and synovial fluid autotaxin were associated with radiographic severity (P<0.001). Furthermore, plasma and synovial fluid autotaxin levels were positively correlated with WOMAC scores (r=0.558, P<0.001 and r=0.371, P=0.002, respectively). CONCLUSION Plasma and synovial fluid autotaxin levels were positively correlated with the severity of OA. Thus, autotaxin has potential as a biomarker reflecting the severity of knee OA.

Telomere Length in Peripheral Blood Leukocytes Is Associated with Severity of Biliary Atresia

Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of telomere length in peripheral blood leukocytes with the severity of biliary atresia (BA). Methods One hundred and fourteen BA patients and 114 age-matched healthy controls were enrolled. Relative telomere length (RTL) was assessed using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Multivariate regression analysis was used to estimate RTL as an independent risk factor of BA. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to calculate the accuracy of biomarkers in the prediction of liver cirrhosis. Results BA patients had significantly shorter telomeres than healthy controls (p < 0.0001). The RTL in BA patients with jaundice was considerably lower than that of patients without jaundice (p = 0.005). Moreover, RTL was markedly shorter in patients with cirrhosis (F4), as compared to patients with mild fibrosis (F2) and non-fibrosis (F0-F1, p < 0.0001). Logistic regression analysis indicated that short RTL was associated with a higher risk of liver cirrhosis in BA. Tertile analysis showed a dose-response effect for this association (p trend < 0.0001). Additionally, RTL in BA children revealed a negative correlation with age (r = -0.50, p < 0.001). We noted an association between reduction of RTL and liver stiffness scores, adjusted for age and gender (b = -0.01, p < 0.0001). Short RTL can be employed to distinguish cirrhosis patients from non-cirrhosis patients (AUC = 0.78). Further analysis showed a linear correlation between leukocyte RTL and liver RTL in BA patients (r = 0.83, p < 0.001). Conclusion The findings of this study provide evidence that telomere shortening is associated with an elevated risk of liver cirrhosis in BA.