The correlation of salivary telomere length and single nucleotide polymorphisms of the ADIPOQ, SIRT1 and FOXO3A genes with lifestyle-related diseases in a Japanese population.

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that genetic factors are associated with risk factors and onset of lifestyle-related diseases, but this finding is still the subject of much debate. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation of genetic factors, including salivary telomere length and three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that may influence lifestyle-related diseases, with lifestyle-related diseases themselves. METHODS: In one year at a single facility, relative telomere length and SNPs were determined by using monochrome multiplex quantitative polymerase chain reaction and TaqMan SNP Genotyping Assays, respectively, and were compared with lifestyle-related diseases in 120 Japanese individuals near our university. RESULTS: In men and all participants, age was inversely correlated with relative telomere length with respective p values of 0.049 and 0.034. In men, the frequency of hypertension was significantly higher in the short relative telomere length group than in the long group with unadjusted p value of 0.039, and the difference in the frequency of hypertension between the two groups was of borderline statistical significance after adjustment for age (p = 0.057). Furthermore, in men and all participants, the sum of the number of affected lifestyle-related diseases, including hypertension, was significantly higher in the short relative telomere length group than in the long group, with p values of 0.004 and 0.029, respectively. For ADIPOQ rs1501299, men's ankle brachial index was higher in the T/T genotype than in the G/G and G/T genotypes, with p values of 0.001 and 0.000, respectively. For SIRT1 rs7895833, men's body mass index and waist circumference and all participants' brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity were higher in the A/G genotype than in the G/G genotype, with respective p values of 0.048, 0.032 and 0.035. For FOXO3A rs2802292, women's body temperature and all participants' saturation of peripheral oxygen were lower in the G/T genotype than in the T/T genotype, with respective p values of 0.039 and 0.032. However, relative telomere length was not associated with physiological or anthropometric measurements except for height in men (p = 0.016). ADIPOQ rs1501299 in men, but not the other two SNPs, was significantly associated with the sum of the number of affected lifestyle-related diseases (p = 0.013), by genotype. For each SNPs, there was no significant difference in the frequency of hypertension or relative telomere length by genotype. CONCLUSION: Relative telomere length and the three types of SNPs determined using saliva have been shown to be differentially associated with onset of and measured risk factors for lifestyle-related diseases consisting mainly of cardiovascular diseases and cancer.

Paragonimus ohirai metacercariae in crabs collected along the Arakawa River in Tokyo, Japan.

Brackish water crabs infected with Paragonimus ohirai metacercariae have been reported in various regions in Japan. However, infected crabs have not been identified in Tokyo. We therefore collected the crab, Chiromantes dehaani, between August 2002 and July 2003 from 12 locations along the Arakawa River that flows through Tokyo. Of the 922 captured crabs, 177 (19%) from 6 locations were infected with Paragonimus metacercariae. The prevalence of metacercariae at these 6 locations ranged from 5 to 89%. The number of metacercariae per infected crab ranged from 1 to 190, with an average of 13.1. The morphological features of the metacercariae and of adult worms recovered from test rats infected with metacercariae showed that the metacercariae in the infected crabs were P. ohirai Miyazaki, 1939. The ITS2 sequence data support this conclusion. This paper is the first description of P. ohirai infection of crabs in Tokyo.

Effects of scaling and root planing on the amounts of interleukin-1 and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist and the mRNA expression of interleukin-1beta in gingival crevicular fluid and gingival tissues.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the clinical changes after non-surgical periodontal therapy and interleukin 1 (IL-1) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and gingival tissues from patients with chronic periodontitis. BACKGROUND: The inflammatory responses mediated by IL-1 play an important role in periodontal tissue destruction. Although numerous studies have attempted to elucidate the dynamic movement involved in chronic periodontitis, the results have often conflicted. Such discrepancies may have been due to the inability to determine clinical disease activity. METHODS: Seven patients with chronic periodontitis were examined. The severity of periodontal inflammation was expressed using clinical parameters before and after a scaling and root planing (SRP) procedure. The amounts and concentrations of IL-1alpha, IL-1beta and IL-1 receptor antagonist in GCF were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and IL-1 activity index was calculated. A needle biopsy in matching gingival tissues was also performed before and after the SRP procedure. The localization and mRNA expression of IL-1beta were determined using histological methods. RESULTS: Clinical parameters improved slightly after the SRP procedure. Only the probing pocket depth (PPD) was reduced significantly (p < 0.05). However, the amount of IL-1beta in GCF was slightly increased. The localization and mRNA expression of IL-1beta could still be observed after the SRP procedure. Therefore, none of the clinical parameters showed a high sensitivity or specificity for evaluating subgingival inflammation. CONCLUSION: These observations suggest that IL-1 is effective for evaluating in detail the state of subgingival inflammation.