The FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism might be associated with some autoantibody presence in patients with SLE in a Polish population.

OBJECTIVES: The Fcrl3 -169T>C (rs7528684) polymorphism has been shown to be a risk factor of various autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); however, these results are inconsistent between distinct ethnicities. METHODS: Using PCR-RFLP we studied the distribution of the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism in SLE patients (n = 263) and controls (n = 528) in a sample from the Polish population. RESULTS: We found no significant differences of FCRL3 -169T>C genotypes and alleles between patients with SLE and healthy individuals. However, in the dominant model we found a significant association between the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism and the presence of anti-Scl-70 antibody (Ab) [OR = 4.747 (95 % CI = 1.639-13.749), p = 0.0011, p corr = 0.0198]. Moreover, in the dominant model we observed a significant contribution of FCRL3 -169T>C to the presence of either anti-La or anti-Scl-70 Abs [OR = 4.378 (95 % CI = 1.793-10.690, p = 0.0003, p corr = 0.0054)]. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated that the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism is not a risk factor of SLE in the Polish population, but this polymorphism may contribute to autoantibody production in this disease.

The FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism might be associated with some autoantibody presence in patients with SLE in a Polish population.

OBJECTIVES: The Fcrl3 -169T>C (rs7528684) polymorphism has been shown to be a risk factor of various autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); however, these results are inconsistent between distinct ethnicities. METHODS: Using PCR-RFLP we studied the distribution of the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism in SLE patients (n = 263) and controls (n = 528) in a sample from the Polish population. RESULTS: We found no significant differences of FCRL3 -169T>C genotypes and alleles between patients with SLE and healthy individuals. However, in the dominant model we found a significant association between the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism and the presence of anti-Scl-70 antibody (Ab) [OR = 4.747 (95 % CI = 1.639-13.749), p = 0.0011, p corr = 0.0198]. Moreover, in the dominant model we observed a significant contribution of FCRL3 -169T>C to the presence of either anti-La or anti-Scl-70 Abs [OR = 4.378 (95 % CI = 1.793-10.690, p = 0.0003, p corr = 0.0054)]. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated that the FCRL3 -169T>C polymorphism is not a risk factor of SLE in the Polish population, but this polymorphism may contribute to autoantibody production in this disease.

Patients' knowledge of heart failure and their perception of the disease.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to gain a deeper insight into patients' perception of chronic heart failure (CHF) symptoms by analyzing their compliance with nonpharmacological recommendations. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a prospective, single-center survey-based registry. Patients included in this study were hospitalized between December 2014 and January 2016 at the 1st Department of Cardiology, University Hospital of Lord's Transfiguration, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, and had been diagnosed with CHF at least 3 months prior to inclusion. Participants were divided according to New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class into mild CHF (NYHA I and II) and severe CHF (NYHA III and IV), and according to age into young (<50 years), middle-aged (50-70 years) and old (>70 years). The survey included information about the patients' sex, age, education, length of the illness and 12 questions about their perception of CHF. This study included 201 patients. The mean age was 58±15 years. RESULTS: The younger the patients, the more often they thought that CHF is curable. The patients presenting with severe CHF tended to think that CHF is incurable significantly more often than those with mild CHF. Most of the patients considered loss of appetite, cough and vomiting the least alarming symptoms. Significantly more patients with severe CHF exercised less and reported reduced sexual activity more often in comparison to the mild CHF patients. Most of the young patients reported no changes to their sexual activity, body mass index (BMI) or exercise after diagnosis of CHF. Most of the old patients exercised less than before diagnosis of CHF. Significantly more middle-aged patients reduced their BMI, quit smoking and reported lower sexual activity after diagnosis of CHF in comparison to the other groups. CONCLUSION: Patients need to be better educated about the nature of CHF and the importance of lifestyle changes.

Role of rs13117307 single nuclear polymorphism in the risk of uterine cervical cancer from Polish population and its impact on exocyst complex component 1 expression.

We evaluated the role of NM_001024924.1:c.1330+1646C>T (rs13117307) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), situated in the intronic region of exocyst complex component 1 (EXCO1), in the development and spreading of cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Utilizing high resolution melting curve analysis, we analyzed this polymorphism in patients with cervical SCC (n=485) and controls (n=509) in the Polish Caucasian population. Logistic regression analysis was used to adjust for age, parity, oral contraceptive use, tobacco smoking, and menopausal status. The influence of this polymorphism on the expression of EXCO1 was assessed by reverse transcription and real-time quantitative PCR analysis. For all patients with SCC, the p trend value calculated for rs13117307 was statistically significant (ptrend=0.0158). The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for T/T vs. C/C was 1.434 (95 % CI 1.105-1.861, p=0.007). We also found a significant contribution of rs13117307 to tumor stages III, IV and grade of differentiation G3. Other contributors are parity, oral contraceptive use, smoking, and women of postmenopausal age. We observed significant upregulation of EXCO1 transcript levels in the non-cancerous cervical tissues in carriers of the T/T vs. C/C (p=0.016), as well as an increase in the EXCO1 transcript levels in the cervical SCC tissue in carriers of the T/T vs. C/C (p=0.029) and for T/T vs C/T (p=0.0032). The rs13117307 SNP variants may upregulate the transcription of EXCO1, as well as the risk of development and spreading of cervical SCC.

Does the influence of obesity on prognosis differ in men and women? A study of obesity paradox in patients with acute coronary syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have reported the existence of obesity paradox in acute coronary syndromes (ACS). However, the occurrence of obesity paradox in men and women has not yet been thoroughly investigated, even though both genders differ in patterns and incidence of obesity. AIM: Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether obesity influence on outcomes of patients with ACS varies by gender. METHODS: This retrospective study included 341 patients admitted to hospital for treatment due to ACS in 2012. They were classified according to the World Health Organisation with use of body mass index (BMI) as normal weight, overweight, and obese. All patients received standard discharge medication. All-cause mortality was assessed during a mean follow-up time of 212 ± 121 days. RESULTS: There were 82 (24%) normal weight, 160 (47%) overweight, and 99 (29%) obese patients. There were 252 (73.9%) men. All-cause mortality was lower in the obese and overweight vs. normal weight male patients (1.4% vs. 3.3% vs. 13.1%, respectively, p = 0.009). There was a trend favouring the normal weight and obese vs. overweight women (4.8% vs. 3.6% vs. 17.5%, respectively, p = 0.103). In the general population, after adjustment, BMI increase by one reduced risk by 15.6% (p = 0.015), and obesity reduced risk by 50.8% (p = 0.056). Obesity reduced risk for men by 69.4% (p = 0.015), and BMI increase by one reduced risk for men by 22% (p = 0.002). BMI and obesity were independent prognostic factors in men, whereas no such phenomenon was observed in women. CONCLUSIONS: Only male patients seem to contribute to the obesity paradox observed in patients with ACS. The obesity paradox does not occur in female patients when considered separately. Obesity seems to have a different influence on outcomes in both genders, and this might be worthy of further studies.