Potential benefit of vitamin D supplementation in people with respiratory illnesses, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This review describes the evidence for the potential benefit of vitamin D supplementation in people with respiratory diseases who may have a higher susceptibility to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection and its consequences. Clinical evidence indicates that vitamin D may reduce the risk of both upper and lower respiratory tract infections and offers benefit particularly in people with vitamin D deficiency. Some evidence exists for a higher incidence of active tuberculosis (TB) in patients who are deficient in vitamin D. An association between low levels of 25(OH)D (the active form of vitamin D) and COVID-19 severity of illness and mortality has also been reported. In addition, low 25(OH)D levels are associated with poor outcomes in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The cytokine storm experienced in severe COVID-19 infections results from excessive release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Due to its immunomodulatory effects, adequate vitamin D levels may cause a decrease in the pro-inflammatory cytokines and an increase in the anti-inflammatory cytokines during COVID-19 infections. Vitamin D deficiency was found in 82.2% of hospitalized COVID-19 cases and 47.2% of population-based controls (p < 0.0001). The available evidence warrants an evaluation of vitamin D supplementation in susceptible populations with respiratory diseases, such as TB, and particularly in those who are deficient in vitamin D. This may mitigate against serious complications of COVID-19 infections or reduce the impact of ARDS in those who have been infected.

Association of Folate Level in Blood with the Risk of Schizophrenia.

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between folate level and the risk of schizophrenia and to identify possible biomarker for schizophrenia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data about folate were extracted from 16 high quality studies. The association of folate level in blood and schizophrenia was evaluated using standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: Totally 1183 (52.1%) cases and 1089 (47.9%) controls were included in the current metaanalysis. Folate level in schizophrenia patients was significantly lower than that in healthy controls (SMD= -0.65; 95% CI: [-0.86, -0.45]; P <0.00001). Subgroup analysis demonstrated that the decreased folate level was found in both Asian and European patients (SMD=-0.86, P<0.00001; SMD=-0.44, P<0.00001, respectively), while there were no significant differences in patients from other areas (P>0.05). Sensitivity analysis confirmed that these results were stable and reliable, no publication bias existed in our meta-analysis based on Egger's and Begg's tests (P=0.48 and 0.30, respectively). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that decreased folate may be a risk factor for schizophrenia. More epidemiological and biochemistry studies are required to describe how folate or folate supplementation play roles in the progress of schizophrenia.

Growth stimulating antibody, as another predisposing factor of Graves' disease (GD): analysis using monoclonal TSH receptor antibodies derived from patients with GD.

TSH receptor antibody (TRAb) is clinically classified into thyroid stimulating antibody (TSAb) and thyroid-stimulation blocking antibody (TSBAb). Although the former is considered to cause Graves' disease (GD), its activity does not necessarily reflect hormone production and goiter size. Moreover, uptake of 99mTcO4(-), the best indicator for GD, is correlated with activity of TSH binding inhibitor immunoglobulin better than activity of TSAb. Because uptake of 99mTcO4(-) reflects thyroid volume, these observations suggest that there exist TRAb with thyrocyte growth stimulating activity (GSA) other than TSAb. In this study, we analyzed GSA of monoclonal TRAb established from patients with GD or idiopathic myxedema (IME). GSA was measured as the degree of FRTL-5 cell growth stimulated by each TRAb. The signaling pathways of the cell growth were pharmacologically analyzed. The cell growth stimulated by TSH was strongly suppressed by protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor, but was not affected by extracellular signal regulated kinase kinase (MEK) inhibitor. Although TSAb from GD stimulated the cell growth, both inhibitors suppressed it. Surprisingly, the cell growth was also induced by TSBAb from GD and was only suppressed by MEK inhibitor. TSBAb from IME did not have GSA and attenuated the cell growth stimulated by TSH. We concluded that 1; in GD, not only TSAb but some TSBAb could stimulate thyrocyte growth. 2; TSBAb might be classified with respect to their effects on thyrocyte growth; i.e., thyrocyte growth stimulating antibody and thyrocyte growth-stimulation blocking antibody.

Small dense low-density lipoprotein concentration and oxidative susceptibility changes after consumption of soybean oil, rice bran oil, palm oil and mixed rice bran/palm oil in hypercholesterolaemic women.

The effects of a diet containing soybean oil (SBO), rice bran oil (RBO), palm oil (PO) or a RBO/PO (3:1) mixture on the composition and oxidation of small dense low-density lipoproteins (sdLDL) in 16 hypercholesterolaemic women were investigated. During the 8-week control period, participants consumed a free-choice weight-maintaining diet comprising carbohydrate (55% energy), protein (15% energy) and fat (30% energy) with < 300 mg/day of cholesterol. During each 10-week study period, participants consumed this same diet but with the addition of one of the three test oils or the RBO/PO mixture. Total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol levels were significantly reduced during SBO, RBO and RBO/PO consumption, while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly decreased by SBO consumption. There was a significant reduction in sdLDL-cholesterol levels only after using SBO and it tended to be reduced during RBO/PO consumption, whereas it was significantly increased following PO consumption. The sdLDL oxidation lag time was significantly increased during PO, RBO/PO and RBO consumption, but significantly reduced following SBO. The results for the RBO/PO mixture suggest that this oil mixture might further reduce the risk of atherosclerosis.

[The effect of glibenclamide on the spontaneous evolution of genetically determined diabetes mellitus in C57BL/KsJY db+/+db mice]. / Vliianie glibenklamida na spontannuiu évoliutsiiu geneticheski determinirovannogo sakharnogo diabeta u myshei linii C57BL/KsJY db+/+db.

The study was carried out on 25 mice of the mutant C57BL/KsJY line carrying the autosomal-recessive gene db (diabetes) in the homozygous state with basal normo- and hyperglycemia by the beginning of the treatment with glybenclamide (the latent and manifest stages of insulin-independent diabetes mellitus). It was found that long-term oral administration of the drug in the therapeutic dose (20 micrograms per mice a day for 3-3.5 months) enhanced the genetically determined disturbances of glucose homeostasis and the insulin-producing apparatus of the pancreas irrespective of the stage of spontaneous diabetes genesis. The development of the organ-specific autoimmune reactions directed to antigens of the pancreatic islands was found.