Comparison of urinary adiponectin in the presence of metabolic syndrome in peri- and postmenopausal women.

OBJECTIVES: To find the association between urinary adiponectin and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in peri- and postmenopausal women and its potential application as a noninvasive screening for MetS. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in healthy peri- and postmenopausal women (defined by STRAW + 10 staging) aged at least 40 years who attended annual check-ups or menopause clinics were recruited. Baseline demographic data, MENQOL, anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, laboratory (FBS, total cholesterol, HDL-C, LDL-C, TG), and urinary adiponectin were collected. The MetS was diagnosed according to JIS 2009. RESULTS: 290 peri- and postmenopausal women had participated. The prevalence of Mets among our participants was 18%. Urinary adiponectin levels were similar in peri- and postmenopausal women with and without MetS (2.6 ± 2.2 vs. 2.3 ± 1.9 ng/mL, respectively, P = 0.55). Urinary adiponectin provides no diagnostic value for MetS (AUC = 0.516). CONCLUSIONS: Urinary adiponectin has no role in screening and diagnosing MetS in peri- and postmenopausal women. The quest toward noninvasive screening for MetS is still going on.

Serum adiponectin is a potential biomarker for metabolic syndrome in peri-and postmenopausal women.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) increases its prevalence during menopausal period and there is no appropriate marker for screening before the cardiovascular damage begun. This study aims to find the diagnostic accuracy and the appropriate cutoff level of serum adiponectin for the screening of MetS in peri- and postmenopausal women. Women aged at least 40 years old attending health checkup clinic were recruited. Anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, MENQOL, and blood chemistry (glucose, adiponectin, HDL-C, LDL-C, and TG) were recorded. MetS was defined by JIS 2009 criteria. 290 peri-and postmenopausal women mean age 54.25 ± 8.6 years were recruited. 66% was postmenopause and 21.4% of them has MetS. The socioeconomic and lifestyle factors seem similar among women with and without MetS. In the participants with MetS, the prevalence of abdominal obesity was higher (96.8% vs 49.6%, p < .001, respectively) and more prevalence of android fat distribution pattern was observed (76.2% vs 36%, p < .001, respectively). Serum adiponectin was significantly lower in women with MetS (6.0 ± 4.6 vs 9.2 ± 5.2 µg/mL, p < .001 in MetS and non-MetS, respectively). Serum adiponectin is a good biomarker for MetS and we recommend the cutoff level of serum adiponectin lower than 7.15 µg/mL for screening of MetS (AUC (95% CI) of = 0.72 (0.64-0.79), p < .001).

Chikungunya virus infection of cell lines: analysis of the East, Central and South African lineage.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a re-emerging mosquito borne alphavirus that has caused large scale epidemics in the countries around the Indian Ocean, as well as leading to autochthonous transmission in some European countries. The transmission of the disease has been driven by the emergence of an African lineage of CHIKV with enhanced transmission and dissemination in Aedes mosquito hosts. Two main genotypes of this lineage have been circulating, characterized by the presence of a substitution of a valine for an alanine at position 226 of the E1 protein. The outbreak, numbering in millions of cases in the infected areas, has been associated with increasing numbers of cases with non-classical presentation including encephalitis and meningitis. This study sought to compare the original Ross strain with two isolates from the recent outbreak of chikungunya fever in respect of infectivity and the induction of apoptosis in eight mammalian cell lines and two insect cell lines, in addition to generating a comprehensive virus production profile for one of the newer isolates. Results showed that in mammalian cells there were few differences in either tropism or pathogenicity as assessed by induction of apoptosis with the exception of Hela cells were the recent valine isolate showed less infectivity. The Aedes albopictus C6/36 cell line was however significantly more permissive for both of the more recent isolates than the Ross strain. The results suggest that the increased infectivity seen in insect cells derives from an evolution of the CHIKV genome not solely associated with the E1:226 substitution.

Growth and production of the dengue virus in C6/36 cells and identification of a laminin-binding protein as a candidate serotype 3 and 4 receptor protein.

OBJECTIVES: Although dengue is one of the most common mosquito-borne viral diseases, few studies have investigated the relationship between the dengue virus and mosquito cells, and this study sought to describe the binding and propagation of the dengue viruses in C6/36 cells. METHODS: The internalization and production of the dengue virus was assayed by standard plaque assay methodologies, while dengue virus receptor proteins were examined by a virus overlay protein-binding assay and candidate gene analysis coupled with virus inhibition studies. RESULTS: All four serotypes were internalized linearly, and de novo virus production occurred 14-19 h postinfection. Virus overlay protein-binding assay identified a band of 50 kDa for dengue serotypes 2, 3 and 4 which comigrated with a protein that reacts with antibodies directed against the human 37/67-kDa high-affinity laminin receptor. Both antibodies directed against the human 37/67-kDa high-affinity laminin receptor protein and soluble laminin inhibited the binding and internalization of serotypes 3 and 4, but not serotypes 1 and 2. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that multiple receptors may be used by the dengue virus to enter into insect cells, and that one of these proteins may be a laminin-binding protein.