Intersecting pathways: evaluating inflammatory markers and metabolism in chronic spontaneous urticaria with a multi-marker approach.

BACKGROUND: Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is an inflammatory skin disease with intricate mechanisms. This study comprehensively assessed markers from diverse metabolic pathways, including novel inflammatory indicators, to evaluate their potential for diagnosing and monitoring CSU. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the study involving 90 CSU patients and 90 healthy controls, the levels of albumin, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), fibrinogen, uric acid, D-dimer, C-reactive protein (CRP), and white blood cells (WBC) values were analyzed. The D-dimer/albumin ratio (DAR), fibrinogen/albumin ratio (FAR), and uric acid/HDL ratio (UHR), considered novel inflammatory markers, were calculated. The Urticaria Activity Score 7 (UAS7) was also calculated. Pearson chi-squared test, Mann-Whitney U test, Spearman correlation coefficient, and univariate logistic regression analysis were employed for data analysis. RESULTS: In the patient group, significant elevations were observed in DAR, FAR, fibrinogen, CRP, D-dimer, and UHR values. Additionally, albumin, HDL, and uric acid values exhibited significant decreases. HDL and albumin provided the most accurate results in the univariate logistic regression analysis. CRP had less accuracy, FAR exhibited greater accuracy than fibrinogen, and DAR demonstrated higher accuracy than D-dimer. There was no statistically significant correlation between the UAS7 and parameters. The considerable correlation of CRP with other parameters, except D-dimer, was also remarkable. CONCLUSIONS: Indicators from diverse metabolic pathways, including albumin, HDL, uric acid, fibrinogen, D-dimer, and CRP, can be valuable in assessing CSU. In particular, FAR and DAR are emerging as potential markers to consider in the assessment of CSU.

Lack of Association of Acne Severity with Depression, Anxiety, Stress, and Eating Attitudes: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: this study aimed to investigate the relationship between acne severity and depression, anxiety, stress, and negative eating attitudes in patients with acne vulgaris. METHOD: This study was conducted with 81 patients with acne vulgaris who applied to the dermatology outpatient clinic of Karaman Training and Research Hospital. The patients were asked to complete a sociodemographic data form, the three-factor nutrition questionnaire (TFEQ-21), and the depression anxiety stress scale (DASS-21). Acne severity was assessed using the global acne grading system (GAGS) by an expert dermatologist. RESULTS: Of the 81 patients, 74.1% were female and the average age of the cohort was 22.86 years. The average body mass index of the patients was 21.78 and the GAGS average score was 24.25. Correlation tests revealed the lack of any relationship between the GAGS score and the DASS-21 and TFEQ-21 scale scores (and their subscales). The DASS-21 depression subscale was correlated with the TFEQ-21 total score, and TFEQ-21 emotional eating and TFEQ-21 uncontrolled eating scores. Additionally, a relationship was identified between the DASS21-stress subscale score and TFEQ-21 uncontrolled Eating and TFEQ-21 total score, as well as between the DASS21-anxiety scale and the TFEQ-21 total score and TFEQ-21 uncontrolled eating subscale score. CONCLUSIONS: Although no relationship was found between acne severity and depression, anxiety, or eating disorders, these conditions can increase the risk of eating disorders among acne patients. Therefore, it is critical to take the necessary precautions for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders in this patient population.

Egg mineral levels, hatching results and bone properties in embryos and chicks obtained from broiler breeders at different ages.

It is inevitable to obtain chicks from breeders of different ages in broiler fattening. However, breeder age has an effect on eggs. There is no detailed study on the changes in mineral levels in eggs and bones of these effects. Therefore, the aim of this study examines how mineral levels of shell, albumen, egg yolk, and bone, embryonic development and bone characteristics change according to the breeder age. A total of 370 fresh hatching eggs were obtained from Ross-308 breeders at 2 different ages (25 to 60-week-old). Egg, embryo, yolk sac and chick characteristics were determined. Morphometric parameters of bones of embryos at 19 days of age and chicks at hatch were examined. Mineral levels of albumen, yolk, shell and bones of embryo and chick were determined. Egg weight, embryo weight, embryo length, chick weight and chick length were higher in old breeder than those of younger one. Femur length, width and Seedor index of tibia, weight, width and Seedor index of metatarsus were found to be high in embryos at 19 days of old breeder than young breeder. There were differences in relative femur weight, tibia length and relative metatarsus weight of chicks at hatch. The mineral levels were high in the femur, tibia and metatarsus of embryos and chicks, in parts of the egg of old breeder. K, Ca, Mg, P, Fe and Mn levels in the eggshell were decreased during incubation. Ca and Mg levels were decreased in the yolk during incubation. K, Ca, Mg, P, Fe, Zn and Mn levels were found to be high in chick bones than those of bones of embryos at 19 days of age. The total embryonic death was found to be high in the fertile eggs of younger breeder group. No differences were observed in fertility, hatchability of fertile and set eggs according to the age of breeders. These data may be useful in designing in-ovo injections, formulating diets of broiler breeders and broilers and in preventing bone diseases in broilers.

A comprehensive investigation of novel and traditional inflammatory and metabolic markers as predictive indicators in psoriasis.

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory and papulosquamous dermatological disorder. While previous studies have discussed certain inflammatory markers for diagnosing and monitoring psoriasis, there is an absence of comprehensive research encompassing both novel and traditional inflammatory markers, as well as metabolic markers, in relation to psoriasis. METHODS: A total of 209 individuals participated, including 54 psoriasis patients and 155 controls. Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) was calculated for the patient group. Potential predictive markers for psoriasis were identified: Uric acid/HDL ratio (UHR), D-dimer/albumin ratio (DAR), fibrinogen/albumin ratio (FAR), erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CRP, WBC, HOMA-IR, and vitamin D levels. Differences between groups and correlations with PASI and each other were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test and Spearman correlation coefficient. RESULTS: The results indicate that the patient group exhibited statistically significantly higher levels of UHR, FAR, CRP, WBC, and HOMA-IR. Upon analyzing the correlations between PASI and the identified markers, statistically significant positive correlation with WBC and negative correlation with vitamin D were observed. The correlations of PASI with other markers did not reach statistical significance. It should be underlined that our study was conducted in a predominantly mild-to-moderate patient population. CONCLUSIONS: The absence of specificity of these markers for psoriasis limits their practical application. However, the development of new objective measures by using them in combination with specific data such as PASI will provide significant benefits in terms of disease diagnosis, follow-up, and treatment.

Demodex prevalence in mine, textile and food factory workers with dermatosis: a cross-sectional, multicenter study.

Demodex, a type of mite, lives in human hair follicles. They can multiply very quickly in some conditions and then start to irritate the skin by causing skin disorders. This study aims to investigate if working environment conditions affect the prevalence of Demodex. A cross-sectional, multicenter study was conducted with three different occupational groups: mine, textile and food factory workers (n = 102). Determined industry workers who applied to our outpatient dermatology clinics with the complaint of dermatosis in three different cities were included in the study. Demodex positivity was checked by dermoscopy. Differences between categorical variables examined with Chi-square analysis and T test was used to compare continuous variables between groups. 50% Demodex positivity was found in mine workers, 45.3% in food factory workers and 66.7% in textile manufacturing workers. A high rate of Demodex positivity was observed in all three occupational groups. Although the highest positivity rate was observed in textile manufacturing workers, no significant difference was found between the groups (p = 0.320). The overall prevalence of Demodex in female workers was statistically significantly higher than in male workers (p = 0.029). Exposure of workers to a wide variety of factors in work environments such as textile factories and the fact that women are more sensitive to external factors may have caused the prevalence of Demodex to be higher in these groups. So, a change in the work environment or the use of suitable protective equipment may benefit the treatment of diseases caused by Demodex. But, further studies are needed with larger and various industry groups to make more certain views.

Improvement in growth and yield attributes of cluster bean through optimization of sowing time and plant spacing under climate change scenario.

Cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) yield has plateaued due to reduction in rainfall and rise in temperature. Therefore, its production cycle could not get appropriate water and temperature. It becomes important to standardize the sowing time and plant spacing of cluster beans in changing climate scenarios to get higher productivity. Therefore, a field study was conducted in 2019 at the Research area of MNS-University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan to evaluate the effect of four sowing times (15th May, 1st June, 15th June, and 1st July) and three plant spacings (10, 12 and 15 cm) on crop growth, yield, and physiological functions of cluster bean genotype BR-2017 under split plot arrangement under randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The sowing times (15th May, 1st June, 15th June, and 1st July) were placed in the main plot, while plant spacing (10, 12 and 15 cm) was maintained in subplots. The significant effect of sowing time and plant spacing was observed on pod plant-1, pod length, grain yield, and 1000-grain weight. Results showed that 1st June sowing performed better over 15th May, 15th June, and 1st July, while plant spacing 15 cm about in all sowing times showed higher results on growth and yield parameters of cluster bean over plant spacing 10, 12, and 15 cm. The 1st June sowing time at 15 cm plant spacing showed 8.0, 22.7, and 28.5% higher grains pod-1 than 15th May, 15th June, and 1st July sowing, respectively. Maximum grain yield was observed on 1st June in all three spacings (10, 12, and 15 cm). The chord diagram indicates that the crop has received optimum environmental conditions when sown 1st June over other sowing times. In conclusion, 1st June sowing with 15 cm plant spacing could be a good option to achieve maximum productivity of cluster bean under changing climate scenario.

Mitigation of lead (Pb) toxicity in rice cultivated with either ground water or wastewater by application of acidified carbon.

Toxicity induced by a high concentration of lead (Pb) can significantly decrease plant's growth, gas exchange, and yield attributes. It can also causes cancer in humans. The use of organic amendments, especially biochar, can alleviate Pb toxicity in different crops. The application of biochar can decrease the uptake of Pb by plant roots. However, the high pH of thermo-pyrolyzed biochar makes it an unfit amendment for high pH soils. As Pb is an acute toxin and its uptake in rice is a major issue, the current experiment was conducted to explore the efficacy of chemically produced acidified carbon (AC) to mitigate Pb toxicity in rice. Lead was introduced in concentrations of 0, 15, and 30 mg kg-1 soil in combination with 0, 0.5, and 1% AC, underground water (GW) and wastewater (WW) in rice plants. The addition of 1% AC significantly improved the plant height (52 and 7%), spike length (66 and 50%), 1000 grains weight (144 and 71%) compared to 0% AC under GW and WW irrigation, respectively at 30 mg Pb kg-1 soil (30 Pb) toxicity. Similar improvements in the photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate and stomatal conductance also validated the effectiveness of 1% AC over 0% AC. A significant decrease in electrolyte leakage and plant Pb concentration by application of 0.5 and 1% AC validates the effectiveness of these treatments for mitigating 30 Pb toxicity in rice compared to 0% AC under GW or WW irrigation. In conclusion, 1% AC is an effective amendment in alleviating Pb toxicity in rice irrigated with GW or WW at 30 Pb.

Effect of carbon-enriched digestate on the microbial soil activity.

OBJECTIVES: As a liquid organic fertilizer used in agriculture, digestate is rich in many nutrients (i.e. nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, calcium, potassium); their utilization may be however less efficient in soils poor in organic carbon (due to low carbon:nitrogen ratio). In order to solve the disadvantages, digestate enrichment with carbon-rich amendments biochar or humic acids (Humac) was tested. METHODS: Soil variants amended with enriched digestate: digestate + biochar, digestate + Humac, and digestate + combined biochar and humic acids-were compared to control with untreated digestate in their effect on total soil carbon and nitrogen, microbial biomass carbon, soil respiration and soil enzymatic activities in a pot experiment. Yield of the test crop lettuce was also determined for all variants. RESULTS: Soil respiration was the most significantly increased property, positively affected by digestate + Humac. Both digestate + biochar and digestate + Humac significantly increased microbial biomass carbon. Significant negative effect of digestate + biochar (compared to the control digestate) on particular enzyme activities was alleviated by the addition of humic acids. No significant differences among the tested variants were found in the above-ground and root plant biomass. CONCLUSIONS: The tested organic supplements improved the digestate effect on some determined soil properties. We deduced from the results (carbon:nitrogen ratio, microbial biomass and activity) that the assimilation of nutrients by plants increased; however, the most desired positive effect on the yield of crop biomass was not demonstrated. We assume that the digestate enrichment with organic amendments may be more beneficial in a long time-scaled trial.

Evaluation of urticaria patients before and during the period of the COVID-19 pandemic: A retrospective study.

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most serious health crisis facing the modern world; hospital admissions have risen dramatically. Urticaria is characterized by itchy edematous papules/plaques, angioedema, and involvement of one or both of the deep dermis or subcutis. We investigated the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of acute and chronic urticaria, the proportions of urticaria patients among all dermatology patients before and after the onset of the pandemic, and age and sex characteristics. About 57 patients diagnosed with urticaria before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in December 2019 and January and February 2020 at the Dermatology Polyclinic of Beysehir State Hospital, and 25 patients diagnosed within 3 months (March-May 2020) after the onset of the pandemic, were included. We retrospectively recorded age, sex, and the duration of the disease. Patients were divided into those with acute and chronic urticaria using the EAACI/GA(2)/LEN/EDF/WAO guidelines and data obtained before and after the onset of the pandemic were compared. Fifty-one (62.2%) patients were female and the mean patient age was 40.88 ± 17.38 years. We found no significant difference in the mean age or sex distribution before and after the onset of the pandemic (P = .341; P = .604). The proportion of urticaria patients (1.6%) among all dermatology patients treated in a 3-month period after the onset of the pandemic was higher than that before the pandemic (1.19%; P < .001). During the pandemic, the acute urticaria rate was significantly higher than before the pandemic (P = .002). The urticaria rate (particularly that of acute disease) increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dermatologists should consider whether patients with urticaria might be infected with COVID-19.

Correlation of urticaria activity score in chronic spontaneous urticaria with serum C-reactive protein level and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio.

Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) lacks a specific trigger. The urticaria activity score (UAS) is used to evaluate disease status. Some studies have reported elevated serum levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) in CSU patients, which is correlated with disease severity. The neutrophil/lymphocyte (N/L) ratio is a significant indicator of systemic inflammation. We investigated the potential correlation between serum levels of hsCRP and N/L ratio, as well as urticaria activity, in CSU patients. We included 52 CSU patients treated at the Dermatology Polyclinic of Beysehir State Hospital between August and October 2020, and 50 controls. The 7-day UAS were graded mild, moderate, or intense. We measured N/L ratios, erythrocyte sedimentation rates (ESRs), and the levels of hsCRP, T4, and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) in each group. The anti-thyroglobulin (anti-TG) and anti-microsomal antibody (anti-TPO) levels of CSU patients were also assayed. There were no significant differences in hsCRP, T4, or TSH levels between the groups; however, both the ESR and N/L ratio were significantly higher in CSU patients hsCRP (P = .96), T4 (P = .07), TSH (P = .67), ESR (P < .001), N/L(P < .001). No correlation was evident between the UAS day 7 (UAS7) score and the hsCRP level or the N/L ratio (P = .528 and P = .387). Of all the CSU patients, 19.2% tested positive for anti-TPO and 9.6% were positive for anti-TG; these data were not correlated with the UAS7 (P = 1 and P = .637). Inflammation plays a role in CSU. Although we did not find a correlation between the UAS and either the hsCRP level or the N/L ratio, the ESR and N/L ratio were higher in CSU patients than in controls.