Effects of the Soluble Mediators of Mastocytes on the Intestinal Epithelial Barrier and of the Enteric...
Irritable Bowel SyndromePatients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) have increased intestinal permeability. In addition, mucosal soluble mediators are involved in the pathophysiology of pain in IBS. The investigators aimed to investigate: paracellular permeability in colonic biopsies of IBS patient the ability of soluble factors from colonic biopsies to reproduce in vitro these alterations
Changes in Different Fat Compartments and Their Effect on Particular Manifestations of Metabolic...
Morbid ObesityMetabolic Syndrome1 moreThe metabolic risks associated with obesity are closely correlated with central (abdominal), rather than a peripheral (gluteofemoral) fat pattern It has been shown that weight loss after bariatric surgery is followed by metabolic improvements. The amount of fat lost from each site may be independently regulated. Very scant information is found in the literature regarding the relative changes in different fat body compartments, and their effect on the improvement of the metabolic profile. In this study we define the absolute and relative changes in the different adipose tissue compartment after weight loss surgery
Utility of Presepsin in Children Sepsis
Sepsis SyndromePresepsin (formerly CD14), is a glycoprotein receptor occurring at the surface of monocytes/macrophages. CD14 binds to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) complexes and LPS binding protein (LPB), which triggers the activation of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), resulting in the production of numerous pro-inflammatory cytokines. Following Presepsin activation by bacterial products, the CD14 complex is released in the circulation as its soluble form (sCD14), which in turn is cleaved by a plasma protease to generate a sCD14 fragment called sCD14-subtype (sCD14- ST). Plasma levels of sCD14 can be measured using an automated chemo-luminescent assay (PATHFAST).
AMH, Glucose Intolerance and Metabolic Syndrome in PCOS
Polycystic Ovary SyndromeAssociation between serum anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) level and prevalence of glucose intolerance and metabolic syndrome in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
NFIL3-induced Pathological Enhancement of IgE Class Switch Recombination in Hyper-IgE Syndrome
Job SyndromeHyper IgE syndrome (HIES) is a rare and complex primary immunodeficiency that affects multiple systems. It is characterized by elevated Immunoglobulin E(IgE), recurrent skin and pulmonary infections and eczematoid dermatitis.Somatic manifestations include scoliosis, joint hyperextensibility, impaired shedding of deciduous teeth and facial dysmorphism. The reason of extremely high level of serum IgE in the patients with HIES is unknown. Signal transducers and activators of transcription 3(STAT3) gene mutations can cause the STAT3/Janus kinase(STAT3/JAK) signal transduction pathway disorder, then can affect the B cell development. It is reported that levels of extracellular signal cytokine and the prolonged half-life of IgE are not the causes of dramatically increased IgE levels in STAT3-HIES patients. According to our preliminary work, we found that the slight increase of IgE-secreting plasma cells could not explain the tremendously increased IgE level and that the key class switch recombination enzyme (AID) was up-regulated in STAT3-HIES patients. Intriguingly, we found that deregulation of immunoglobulin class switch recombination (CSR) in IgE secreting plasma cells in STAT3-HIES patients might play a key role in dramatically increased IgE levels. Nuclear factor IL-3 regulated (NFIL3) is a newly discovered transcriptional factor. During STAT3-HIES IgE-secreting plasma cells differentiating, NFIL3 was significantly upregulated. The CSR of IgE was down-regulated in STAT3-deficiency mice as well as NFIL3-deficiency mice, however Interleukin-4(IL-4), a STAT3-independent cytokine, promotes NFIL3 expression by Signal transducers and activators of transcription 6(STAT6) dependent manner. Thus, we hypothesize that NFIL3 may play a key role in dramatically increased IgE levels in STAT3-HIES patients. In-depth insight of the pathogenic role of NFIL3 within human STAT3-HIES has great significance in clarifying the pathogenesis of HIES and exploiting effective targeting interventions to improve clinical outcomes. Also, it can provide valuable clues for the clinical treatment of IgE-related diseases, such as parasite infection and malignant diseases.
Surviving ARDS: The Influence of Quality of Care and Individual Patient Characteristics on Quality...
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)The purpose of the DACAPO study ("Surviving ARDS: the influence of quality of care and individual patient characteristics on quality of life") is to investigate the role of quality of care and individual patient characteristics on quality of life and return to work in survivors of ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome). It is hypothesized that higher quality of care is associated with better health-related quality of life and a higher rate of return to work among survivors. A prospective, observational, multi-centre patient cohort study is performed in Germany, using hospitals from the "ARDS Network Germany" as the main recruiting centres. It is envisaged to recruit 2400 patients into the DACAPO study and to analyze a study population of 1500 survivors. They will be followed up until 12 months after discharge from hospital. Quality of care will be assessed as process quality, structural quality and volume at the institutional level. The main outcomes (health related quality of life and return to work) will be gathered by self-report questionnaires. Further data assessment includes general medical and ARDS-related characteristics of patients as well as sociodemographic and psycho-social parameters. Multilevel hierarchical modelling will be performed to analyse the effects of quality of care and individual patient characteristics on outcomes, taking the cluster structure of the data into account.
The Secretion of Incretin Hormones in Patients With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Polycystic Ovary SyndromePolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine disease in reproductive women. It is characterized by anovulation and hyperandrogenism. Most patients with PCOS have metabolic abnormalities such as dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and glucose abnormalities. Almost 60-80﹪PCOS patients are obesity which exacerbates IR and hyperandrogenism. Obese PCOS patients tend to be overeating suggests that impaired appetite regulation might be contribute to the pathophysiology of PCOS. Our study is trying to observe difference of incretin between PCOS and normal control to figure out whether change of incretin is involved in the pathophysiology of PCOS.
Effect of Ramadan Fasting on Ovulation and Insuline Resistance in Patients With PCOS
Polycystic Ovary SyndromePolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) has a heterogeneous clinical presentation comprising reproductive (hyperandrogenism, menstrual irregularity, anovulation, infertility, pregnancy complications), metabolic [insulin resistance (IR), increased type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors] and psychological features (worsened quality of life and increased anxiety and depression) Whether prolonged fasting during Ramadan breaks the insulin resistance state of polycystic ovarian syndrome and subsequently improve the ovulation and spontaneous pregnancy will happen without ovarian stimulation.
Studying Finger-thumb Grip in Patients With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Carpal Tunnel SyndromeINTRODUCTION Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a common condition that results in impaired hand function. In cases of CTS the "pinch grip" force between the thumb and index finger becomes unnecessarily high to prevent objects from slipping when they are picked up. HYPOTHESES The proposed study will investigate the following hypotheses regarding CTS. As an object is picked up, the investigators suspect there will be several points at which grip force will be different between patients with different severities of CTS, i.e. grip may deteriorate as CTS gets worse. The investigators also suspect grip force will be affected depending on the weight of the object, i.e. patients with CTS may struggle with objects of a certain weight. Patients with CTS sweat less, and this may affect their grip. The investigators suspect that pinch grip in CTS patients is disproportionately altered by the frictional properties of the object and by the moistness of the skin. The investigators suspect patients with CTS will be less able to adapt to sudden changes in an object's weight. The investigators wish to examine how the above are affected after surgical treatment of CTS. METHODS The investigators will include patients with symptomatic, idiopathic CTS, aged between 18 and 80 years. The investigators' centre will recruit CTS patients who will attend their National Health Service (NHS) outpatient appointment followed by nerve conduction studies. An equal number of healthy participants will be recruited for comparison purposes. At the aforementioned appointment, patients will undertake a pinch grip force test using a device that will test the above points. Patients will have normal care under their surgeon, which may include an operation for treatment of CTS. Therefore some patients will be invited back to have grip tests again after their operation. No aspect of the study will prevent a patient from receiving their normal National Health Service (NHS) care.
The Use of Near Infrared Spectroscopy in the Diagnosis of Acute Compartment Syndrome in Trauma Patients...
Anterior Tibial Compartment SyndromeThis is a study intended to evaluate a new device that uses light to measure the amount of oxygen in the muscles of injured and non-injured legs and forearms in specific situations. The name of this technology is NIRS (near-infrared spectroscopy). This is a prospective observational cohort study intended to gather data using NIRS among injured and noninjured extremities over time. Additionally, this data will help in establishing diagnostic perfusion value thresholds to be used in a subsequent interventional study confirming the efficacy of NIRS-based ACS monitoring.