Evaluation of molecular apoptosis signaling pathways and its correlation with EBV viral load in SLE patients using systems biology approach.

BACKGROUND: Considerable evidence supports that SLE could be related to apoptotic cells and EBV infection. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to identify the transcriptional signature of EBV infection in SLE patients for survey of the molecular apoptosis signaling pathways. METHODS: The PBMCs gene expression profiles of healthy control and SLE patients were obtained from GEO. Functional annotation and signaling pathway enrichment were carried out using DAVID, KEGG. To validate bioinformatics analysis the changes in genes expression of some of obtained genes, Real time PCR was performed on PBMCs from 28 SLE patients and 18 controls. RESULTS: We found that mean viral load was 6013 ± 390.1 copy/µg DNA from PBMCs in all patients. QRT-PCR results showed that the expression of the DUSP1 and LAMP3 genes which had most changes in the logFC among 4 candidate genes, increased significantly in comparison with control. The consistent expression of LMP2 as viral latency gene involve in apoptosis signaling pathways was detected in SLE patients with EBV viral load and some controls. CONCLUSIONS: The study indicated that some cellular genes may have an important role in pathogenesis of SLE through apoptosis signaling pathways. Beside, EBV infection as an environmental risk factor for SLE may affect the dysfunction of apoptosis.

Synbiotic supplementation and the effects on clinical and metabolic responses in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Synbiotic intake may be associated with reduced inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) due to optimised inflammatory markers, oxidative stress and insulin resistance. This research was conducted to assess the effects of synbiotic supplementation on the clinical and metabolic parameters of patients with RA. A total of fifty-four patients with RA were allocated into two groups to receive either a synbiotic capsule (n 27) or a placebo (n 27) for 8 weeks in this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Fasting blood samples were taken at baseline and week 8 of the study to quantify related markers. After the 8-week intervention, compared with the placebo, synbiotic supplementation resulted in a significant reduction in serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels (-1427·8 (sd 3267·2) v. +2833·4 (sd 5639·7) ng/ml, P=0·001). In addition, compared with the placebo, synbiotic supplementation improved disease activity score-28 joints (DAS-28) (-1·6 (sd 0·8) v. -0·3 (sd 0·5), P<0·001) and visual analogue scales (VAS) pain (-30·4 (sd 18·7) v. -11·5 (sd 15·9), P<0·001). In addition, a significant elevation in plasma nitric oxide (NO) (+0·8 (sd 4·4) v. -2·6 (sd 4·5) µmol/l, P=0·008), and significant reductions in insulin values (-13·8 (sd 26·4) v. +4·2 (sd 28·2) pmol/l, P=0·01), homoeostasis model of assessment-estimated insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (-0·5 (sd 1·0) v.+0·1 (sd 1·1), P=0·03) and homoeostatic model assessment-ß-cell function (HOMA-B) (-9·4 (sd 17·9) v. +3·3 (sd 18·9), P=0·01) following supplementation with the synbiotic compared with the placebo. Compared with the placebo, synbiotic supplementation also resulted in a significant increase in plasma GSH (+36·6 (sd 63·5) v. -58·5 (sd 154·4) µmol/l, P=0·005). Overall, our study demonstrated that synbiotic supplementation for 8 weeks among patients with RA had beneficial effects on hs-CRP, DAS-28, VAS, NO, insulin levels, HOMA-IR, HOMA-B and GSH levels.

Proton pump inhibitors use and change in bone mineral density.

OBJECTIVE: Limited data are available reporting the effect of proton pump inhibitor (PPI) use on changes in bone mineral density (BMD). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between PPI use and BMD. METHODS: The current cross-sectional study included 80 patients (31 male and 49 female) aged 20-45 years old without history of hip fracture with a follow-up of at least 2 years. The study was carried out in 40 daily PPI users and 40 PPI non-users. Femur and posterior-anterior spine BMD were quantified by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in all participants. The relationship between use of PPI and BMD was tested by multivariate linear regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, BMI and serum vitamin D levels. RESULTS: Our study demonstrated that mean femoral T-scores were significant between PPI and non-user groups (-0.44 ± 1.11 vs. +0.19 ± 0.95, P = 0.007). In addition, the frequency of femoral osteoporosis and osteopenia in the exposed group was significantly more in the control group (P = 0.04). Mean femoral Z-scores, lumbar spine T-score and lumbar spine Z-score were not statistically different between PPI and non-user groups. The linear regression analysis revealed that there was no association between PPI and non-users, and lumbar spine T-score. CONCLUSION: Overall, the results of this study showed that PPI use in subjects without risk factors of osteoporosis determined by the femoral T-score compared with the control group was associated with increased risk of developing osteoporosis and osteopenia in the femur bones.

Clinical and metabolic response to probiotic supplementation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to determine the effects of probiotic supplementation on clinical and metabolic status of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: Sixty patients with RA aged 25-70 years were assigned into two groups to receive either probiotic capsules (n = 30) or placebo (n = 30) in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The patients in the probiotic group received a daily capsule that contained three viable and freeze-dried strains: Lactobacillus acidophilus (2 × 10(9) colony-forming units [CFU]/g), Lactobacillus casei (2 × 10(9) CFU/g) and Bifidobacterium bifidum (2 × 10(9) CFU/g) for 8 weeks. The placebo group took capsules filled with cellulose for the same time period. Fasting blood samples were taken at the beginning and the end of the study to quantify related markers. RESULTS: After 8 weeks of intervention, compared with the placebo, probiotic supplementation resulted in improved Disease Activity Score of 28 joints (DAS-28) (-0.3 ± 0.4 vs. -0.1 ± 0.4, P = 0.01). In addition, a significant decrease in serum insulin levels (-2.0 ± 4.3 vs. +0.5 ± 4.9 µIU/mL, P = 0.03), homeostatic model assessment-B cell function (HOMA-B) (-7.5 ± 18.0 vs. +4.3 ± 25.0, P = 0.03) and serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) concentrations (-6.66 ± 2.56 vs. +3.07 ± 5.53 mg/L, P < 0.001) following the supplementation of probiotics compared with the placebo. Subjects who received probiotic capsules experienced borderline statistically significant improvement in total- (P = 0.09) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol levels (P = 0.07) compared with the placebo. CONCLUSION: Overall, the results of this study indicated that taking probiotic supplements for 8 weeks among patients with RA had beneficial effects on DAS-28, insulin levels, HOMA-B and hs-CRP levels.