Spinal manifestations of CLN1 disease start during the early postnatal period.

AIM: To understand the progression of CLN1 disease and develop effective therapies we need to characterize early sites of pathology. Therefore, we performed a comprehensive evaluation of the nature and timing of early CLN1 disease pathology in the spinal cord, which appears especially vulnerable, and how this may affect behaviour. METHODS: We measured the spinal volume and neuronal number, and quantified glial activation, lymphocyte infiltration and oligodendrocyte maturation, as well as cytokine profile analysis during the early stages of pathology in Ppt1-deficient (Ppt1-/- ) mouse spinal cords. We then performed quantitative gait analysis and open-field behaviour tests to investigate the behavioural correlates during this period. RESULTS: We detected significant microglial activation in Ppt1-/- spinal cords at 1 month. This was followed by astrocytosis, selective interneuron loss, altered spinal volumes and oligodendrocyte maturation at 2 months, before significant storage material accumulation and lymphocyte infiltration at 3 months. The same time course was apparent for inflammatory cytokine expression that was altered as early as one month. There was a transient early period at 2 months when Ppt1-/- mice had a significantly altered gait that resembles the presentation in children with CLN1 disease. This occurred before an anticipated decline in overall locomotor performance across all ages. CONCLUSION: These data reveal disease onset 2 months (25% of life-span) earlier than expected, while spinal maturation is still ongoing. Our multi-disciplinary data provide new insights into the spatio-temporal staging of CLN1 pathogenesis during ongoing postnatal maturation, and highlight the need to deliver therapies during the presymptomatic period.

Circulating lectin pathway proteins do not predict short-term cardiac outcomes after myocardial infarction.

Despite improvements in treatment, coronary artery disease is still responsible for one-third of all deaths globally, due predominantly to myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke. There is an important potential in developing new strategies for treatment of patients with these conditions. Inflammation, and in particular the actions of the complement system, has emerged as part of the pathogenesis in reperfusion injury in patients with MI. To further qualify this, we examined the association between the plasma levels of lectin pathway proteins and myocardial end-points, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and infarct size in a cohort of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). A blood sample was drawn the day after percutaneous coronary intervention from 73 patients with STEMI. The primary end-points, LVEF and infarct size, were measured with magnetic resonance imaging 6-9 days after the infarct. Complement pattern-recognition molecules of the lectin pathway (mannan-binding lectin, H-ficolin, L-ficolin and M-ficolin) were analysed along with soluble membrane attack complex (sMAC) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in plasma with immunofluorometric assays <50%. CRP correlated negatively with LVEF, regression coefficient = -0·17 (P = 0·01). None of the lectin pathway proteins correlated to LVEF or infarct size, nor did soluble membrane attack complex (sMAC). There were no differences in plasma levels of these complement proteins when comparing patients with ejection fraction <50% to patients with ejection fraction <50%. Pattern-recognition molecules of the lectin pathway and sMAC do not predict short-term cardiac outcomes after MI.

Incident microalbuminuria and complement factor mannan-binding lectin-associated protein 19 in people with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Evidence links the lectin pathway of complement activation to diabetic kidney disease. Upon carbohydrate-recognition by pattern-recognition molecules, eg, mannan-binding lectin (MBL), the MBL-associated serine protease (MASP-2) is activated and initiates the complement cascade. The MASP2 gene encodes MASP-2 and the alternative splice product MBL-associated protein 19 (MAp19). Both MAp19 and MASP-2 circulate in complex with MBL. We tested the hypothesis that MAp19 and MASP-2 concentrations predict the risk of incident microalbuminuria. METHODS: Baseline MAp19 and MASP-2 were measured in 270 persons with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes tracked for incidence of persistent microalbuminuria in a prospective observational 18-year-follow-up study. RESULTS: Seventy-five participants (28%) developed microalbuminuria during follow-up. MBL-associated protein 19 concentrations were higher in participants that later progressed to microalbuminuria as compared with those with persistent normoalbuminuria (268 ng/mL [95% CI, 243-293] vs 236 ng/mL [95% CI, 223-250], P = .02). Participants with MAp19 concentration within the highest quartile of the cohort had an increased risk of microalbuminuria as compared with participants with MAp19 concentration within the combined lower 3 quartiles in unadjusted Cox analysis, hazard ratio 1.86 ([95% CI, 1.17-2.96], P = .009). This remained significant in adjusted models, eg, adjusting for age, sex, HbA1c , systolic blood pressure, urinary albumin excretion, smoking, serum creatinine, and serum cholesterol. MBL-associated serine protease concentration was not associated with incidence of microalbuminuria. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, the results show an association between baseline MAp19 concentration and the incidence of microalbuminuria in an 18-year-follow-up study on persons with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes.

Blockade of RAGE in Zucker obese rats with experimental periodontitis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Periodontitis and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) are two interrelated chronic diseases. Periodontitis is more prevalent in patients with T2D than in healthy subjects, and studies indicate that periodontitis impacts the metabolic control of patients with T2D. Hyperglycemia in T2D leads to the formation of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). Binding of AGEs to the receptor of AGE (RAGE) elicits an increased inflammatory response that may be a key modulator linking the two diseases. The present study aimed to elucidate the effect of blocking the RAGE on the interrelationship between periodontitis and T2D in a rat model of both diseases. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Zucker obese rats (HsdHlr:ZUCKER-Lepr fa/fa ) and their lean littermates were divided into five treatment groups, with and without periodontitis. Monoclonal anti-RAGE IgG3 were injected into the rats three times a week. The diabetic state was evaluated by oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs), the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA), concentration of free fatty acids and repeated measurements of blood glucose. Markers of systemic inflammation, including interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor α, were evaluated in plasma. Kidney complications were evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR, the creatinine clearance rate, the albumin excretion rate and kidney hypertrophy. Periodontitis was evaluated by morphometric registration of alveolar bone loss and radiographic recording of bone support. RESULTS: The diabetic state was improved by antibody treatment for 4 wk, resulting in a lower area under the glucose concentration curve during OGTTs, lower insulin levels and a lower HOMA. Furthermore, the antibody treatment resulted in milder kidney complications, as evaluated by measuring the albumin excretion rate and the kidney weight. There was no impact of periodontal inflammation on the level of complications. Periodontal bone support was influenced by diabetes, but the altered diabetic status as a result of treatment with anti-RAGE Ig had no effect on periodontitis. CONCLUSION: In this study, treatment with anti-RAGE IgG3 resulted in improved glucose tolerance and attenuated renal complications. However, no effect was observed on the diabetes-associated periodontitis in Zucker obese rats. Furthermore, periodontitis had no effect on diabetic markers or renal complications. Therefore, activation of RAGE is important in the development of T2D.

Latent autoimmune diabetes of the adult: current knowledge and uncertainty.

Patients with adult-onset autoimmune diabetes have less Human Leucocyte Antigen (HLA)-associated genetic risk and fewer diabetes-associated autoantibodies compared with patients with childhood-onset Type 1 diabetes. Metabolic changes at diagnosis reflect a broad clinical phenotype ranging from diabetic ketoacidosis to mild non-insulin-requiring diabetes, also known as latent autoimmune diabetes of the adult (LADA). This latter phenotype is the most prevalent form of adult-onset autoimmune diabetes and probably the most prevalent form of autoimmune diabetes in general. Although LADA is associated with the same genetic and immunological features as childhood-onset Type 1 diabetes, it also shares some genetic features with Type 2 diabetes, which raises the question of genetic heterogeneity predisposing to this form of the disease. The potential value of screening patients with adult-onset diabetes for diabetes-associated autoantibodies to identify those with LADA is emphasized by their lack of clinically distinct features, their different natural history compared with Type 2 diabetes and their potential need for a dedicated management strategy. The fact that, in some studies, patients with LADA show worse glucose control than patients with Type 2 diabetes, highlights the need for further therapeutic studies. Challenges regarding classification, epidemiology, genetics, metabolism, immunology, clinical presentation and treatment of LADA were discussed at a 2014 workshop arranged by the Danish Diabetes Academy. The presentations and discussions are summarized in this review, which sets out the current ideas and controversies surrounding this form of diabetes.

Physical activity, sex steroid, and growth factor concentrations in pre- and post-menopausal women: a cross-sectional study within the EPIC cohort.

PURPOSE: Increased physical activity (PA) is associated with a reduced risk of several cancers. PA may reduce cancer risk by changing endogenous hormones levels, but relatively little research has focused on this topic. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the relation between PA and endogenous hormone concentrations. METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis of 798 pre- and 1,360 post-menopausal women included as controls in case-control studies on endogenous hormones (steroids, progesterone, sex-hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and growth factors) levels, and cancer risk nested within European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort was performed. Multivariate regression analyses were performed to compare geometric mean levels of hormones and SHBG by categories of PA. RESULTS: In pre-menopausal women, active women had 19 % significantly lower concentrations of androstenedione, 14 % lower testosterone, and 20 % lower free testosterone than inactive women, while no differences were observed for estrogens, progesterone, SHBG, and growth factors. In post-menopausal women, active women had 18 % significantly lower estradiol and 20 % lower free estradiol concentrations than inactive women, while no differences were observed for the other hormones and SHBG. More vigorous forms of physical activity were associated with higher insulin-like growth factor-I concentrations. Adjustment for body mass index did not alter the associations. Overall, the percentage of variance in hormone concentrations explained by PA levels was <2 %. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the hypothesis of an influence, although small in magnitude, of PA on sex hormone levels in blood, independent of body size.

Diabetes-induced changes in mannan-binding lectin levels and complement activation in a mouse model of type 1 diabetes.

Circulating mannan-binding lectin (MBL) levels are elevated in type 1 diabetes. Further, high MBL levels are associated with the development of diabetic nephropathy. In animals, a direct effect of MBL on diabetic kidney changes is observed. We hypothesized that MBL levels and detrimental complement activation increase as a consequence of diabetes. We measured plasma MBL before and 7 weeks after inducing diabetes by streptozotocin. Mice have two MBLs, MBL-A and MBL-C. Diabetes induction led to an increase in MBL-C concentration, whereas no change during the study was found in the control group. The increase in MBL-C was associated with the increasing plasma glucose levels. In accordance with the observed changes in circulating MBL levels, liver expression of Mbl2mRNA (encoding MBL-C) was increased in diabetes. Mbl1expression (encoding MBL-A) did not differ between diabetic and control animals. The estimated half-life of recombinant human MBL was significantly prolonged in mice with diabetes compared with control mice. Complement activation in plasma and glomeruli did not differ between groups. We demonstrate for the first time that MBL levels increase after induction of diabetes and in parallel with increasing plasma glucose. Our findings support the previous clinical observations of increased MBL in type 1 diabetes. This change may be explained by alternations in both MBL production and turnover.

The efficacy and safety of long-term Norditropin® treatment in children with Prader-Willi syndrome.

Prader-Willi syndrome is a genetic disorder that is associated with short stature, partial growth hormone deficiency, small hands and feet, learning and behavioural problems, and hyperphagia leading to severe, often morbid, obesity. Growth hormone therapy is associated with an improvement in height and body composition. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of long-term growth hormone treatment in a retrospective observational multinational study of 41 prepubertal children (mean age 3.8±3.0 years) with genetically diagnosed Prader-Willi syndrome treated with growth hormone (0.03-0.06 mg/kg/day) for >12 months [mean duration 4.1 (range 0.9-9.5) years]. Height, weight, and body composition measurements were recorded at baseline and at 6 month intervals until last observation. Mean (SD) gain in height at 12 months was 0.9 (0.2) SD score (p<0.0001). At last observation (after approximately 6 years) mean gain in height was 1.3 (0.3) (p=0.0001) with 85% of children achieving height>- 2 SD score. Body composition improved during treatment with an estimated 9.1% increase in lean body mass and 9.1% decrease in fat mass at last observation (p=0.019). Scoliosis was reported in 3 patients at baseline and 8 patients at last observation. Sleep apnoea was recorded in 3 (7.3%) patients. There were no other severe adverse events reported. Long-term growth hormone treatment of prepubertal children with Prader-Willi syndrome was associated with significant improvements in height and body composition. Treatment was well tolerated. The development of scoliosis warrants monitoring by an orthopaedic specialist.

Physical activity reduces the risk of incident type 2 diabetes in general and in abdominally lean and obese men and women: the EPIC-InterAct Study.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: We examined the independent and combined associations of physical activity and obesity with incident type 2 diabetes in men and women. METHODS: The InterAct case-cohort study consists of 12,403 incident type 2 diabetes cases and a randomly selected subcohort of 16,154 individuals, drawn from a total cohort of 340,234 participants with 3.99 million person-years of follow-up. Physical activity was assessed by a four-category index. Obesity was measured by BMI and waist circumference (WC). Associations between physical activity, obesity and case-ascertained incident type 2 diabetes were analysed by Cox regression after adjusting for educational level, smoking status, alcohol consumption and energy intake. In combined analyses, individuals were stratified according to physical activity level, BMI and WC. RESULTS: A one-category difference in physical activity (equivalent to approximately 460 and 365 kJ/day in men and women, respectively) was independently associated with a 13% (HR 0.87, 95% CI 0.80, 0.94) and 7% (HR 0.93, 95% CI 0.89, 0.98) relative reduction in the risk of type 2 diabetes in men and women, respectively. Lower levels of physical activity were associated with an increased risk of diabetes across all strata of BMI. Comparing inactive with active individuals, the HRs were 1.44 (95% CI 1.11, 1.87) and 1.38 (95% CI 1.17, 1.62) in abdominally lean and obese inactive men, respectively, and 1.57 (95% CI 1.19, 2.07) and 1.19 (95% CI 1.01, 1.39) in abdominally lean and obese inactive women, respectively. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: Physical activity is associated with a reduction in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes across BMI categories in men and women, as well as in abdominally lean and obese men and women.

High MBL-expressing genotypes are associated with deterioration in renal function in type 2 diabetes.

Introduction: Accumulating evidence support that mannan-binding lectin (MBL) is a promising prognostic biomarker for risk-stratification of diabetic micro- and macrovascular complications. Serum MBL levels are predominately genetically determined and depend on MBL genotype. However, Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is associated with higher MBL serum levels for a given MBL genotype, but it remains unknown if this is also the case for patients with T2D. In this study, we evaluated the impact of MBL genotypes on renal function trajectories serum MBL levels and compared MBL genotypes in newly diagnosed patients with T2D with age- and sex-matched healthy individuals. Furthermore, we evaluated differences in parameters of insulin resistance within MBL genotypes. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, we included 100 patients who were recently diagnosed with T2D and 100 age- and sex-matched individuals. We measured serum MBL levels, MBL genotype, standard biochemistry, and DEXA, in all participants. A 5-year clinical follow-up study was conducted, followed by 12-year data on follow-up biochemistry and clinical status for the progression to micro- or macroalbuminuria for the patients with T2D. Results: We found similar serum MBL levels and distribution of MBL genotypes between T2D patients and healthy individuals. The serum MBL level for a given MBL genotype did not differ between the groups neither at study entry nor at 5-year follow-up. We found that plasma creatinine increased more rapidly in patients with T2D with the high MBL expression genotype than with the medium/low MBL expression genotype over the 12-year follow-up period (p = 0.029). Serum MBL levels did not correlate with diabetes duration nor with HbA1c. Interestingly, serum MBL was inversely correlated with body fat percentage in individuals with high MBL expression genotypes both at study entry (p=0.0005) and 5-years follow-up (p=0.002). Discussion: Contrary to T1D, T2D is not per se associated with increased MBL serum level for a given MBL genotype or with diabetes duration. Serum MBL was inversely correlated with body fat percentage, and T2D patients with the high MBL expression genotype presented with deterioration of renal function.

Association between mannose-binding lectin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and the progression of diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetes.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Diabetic nephropathy has been associated with low-grade inflammation and activation of the complement system in cross-sectional studies. Data from prospective studies are sparse. We investigated the associations of the complement activator mannose-binding lectin (MBL) and the inflammatory marker high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) with the development of nephropathy in a large prospective study of patients with type 1 diabetes from the Finnish Diabetic Nephropathy (FinnDiane) Study. METHODS: Baseline MBL and hsCRP were measured in 1,564 type 1 diabetes patients from the FinnDiane study, of whom 1,010 had a normal albumin excretion rate, 236 had microalbuminuria and 318 had macroalbuminuria. The main outcome was progression in renal disease during follow-up. RESULTS: Both baseline MBL (p = 0.038) and hsCRP (p < 0.001) increased with increasing level of albuminuria. During 5.8 +/- 2.2 years of follow-up, progression to a higher albuminuria level or end-stage renal disease (ESRD) occurred in 201 patients. MBL levels were higher in progressors compared with non-progressors at all steps of progression, and in a covariate adjusted multivariate Cox-regression analysis MBL levels above the median were significantly associated with progression from macroalbuminuria to ESRD (hazard ratio 1.88, 95% CI 1.06-3.32, p = 0.030). In a univariate analysis, hsCRP levels above the median were significantly associated with progression from normal albumin excretion rate to microalbuminuria, but the association was only borderline significant after adjustment for covariates (hazard ratio 1.56, 95% CI 0.97-2.51, p = 0.068). CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: This study demonstrates that concentrations of both MBL and hsCRP are associated with the progression of renal disease in type 1 diabetes.

Combined effects of weight loss and physical activity on all-cause mortality of overweight men and women.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the excess deaths associated with weight loss in combination with leisure time physical activity among overweight or obese people. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SUBJECTS: In two consecutive examinations in 1976-1978 and 1981-1983, 11 135 people participated in the Copenhagen City Heart Study. Of these, 3078 overweight or obese participants lost weight or remained weight stable from 1976-1978 to 1981-1983, and were without pre-existing diagnosis of diabetes, stroke, ischaemic heart disease or cancer in 1981-1983. They were followed up until 2007 in the Danish Civil Registration System, with a <0.2% loss to follow-up only. MEASUREMENTS: The following measurements were taken: body mass index (BMI) and physical activity in 1976-1978 and 1981-1983 and hazard ratio (HR) of mortality during 53 976 person-years of follow-up. RESULTS: Of the initially overweight or obese subjects who either lost weight or remained weight stable, 2060 died. Overall, weight loss was associated with excess mortality when compared with weight stability. Weight loss was associated with a higher mortality among those who became physically inactive, compared with those who remained active while losing weight (men: HR 2.25, 95% confidence interval 1.31-3.84; women: 1.43, 1.07-1.91). However, losing weight while remaining physically active was still associated with excess mortality when compared with those who were weight stable and initially active (men: 1.72, 1.27-2.34; women: 1.57, 1.06-2.31). Among those who remained physically inactive, weight loss seemed associated with excess mortality when compared with weight loss among those who became active, although not statistically significant (men: 2.00, 0.94-4.29; women: 1.40, 0.82-2.39). Finally, weight loss among those who became physically active was not associated with excess mortality when compared with those who were weight stable and initially inactive (men: 1.12, 0.61-2.07; women: 1.19, 0.58-2.43). CONCLUSION: Weight loss among the overweight or obese seemed hazardous to survival. However, weight loss seemed less hazardous to survival among those who remained physically active or those who became active.

Large scale calcium channel gene rearrangements in episodic ataxia and hemiplegic migraine: implications for diagnostic testing.

BACKGROUND: Episodic ataxia type 2 (EA2) and familial hemiplegic migraine type 1 (FHM1) are autosomal dominant disorders characterised by paroxysmal ataxia and migraine, respectively. Point mutations in CACNA1A, which encodes the neuronal P/Q-type calcium channel, have been detected in many cases of EA2 and FHM1. The genetic basis of typical cases without CACNA1A point mutations is not fully known. Standard DNA sequencing methods may miss large scale genetic rearrangements such as deletions and duplications. The authors investigated whether large scale genetic rearrangements in CACNA1A can cause EA2 and FHM1. METHODS: The authors used multiplex ligation dependent probe amplification (MLPA) to screen for intragenic CACNA1A rearrangements. RESULTS: The authors identified five previously unreported large scale deletions in CACNA1A in seven families with episodic ataxia and in one case with hemiplegic migraine. One of the deletions (exon 6 of CACNA1A) segregated with episodic ataxia in a four generation family with eight affected individuals previously mapped to 19p13. In addition, the authors identified the first pathogenic duplication in CACNA1A in an index case with isolated episodic diplopia without ataxia and in a first degree relative with episodic ataxia. CONCLUSIONS: Large scale deletions and duplications can cause CACNA1A associated channelopathies. Direct DNA sequencing alone is not sufficient as a diagnostic screening test.

Biopharmaceutical implications of excipient variability on drug dissolution from immediate release products.

Elucidating the impact of excipient variability on oral product performance in a biopharmaceutical perspective would be beneficial and allow excipient implementation on Quality by Design (QbD) approaches. The current study investigated the impact of varying viscosity of binders (hypromellose (HPMC)) and superdisintegrants (sodium starch glycolate (SSG)) and particle size distribution of lubricants (magnesium stearate (MgSt)) on the in vitro dissolution of a highly and a poorly soluble drug from immediate release formulations. Compendial (pharmacopoeia buffers) and biorelevant (media simulating the gastrointestinal fluids) media and the USP 2 and USP 4 apparatuses were used to assess the exerted excipient effects on drug dissolution. Real-time dissolution UV imaging provided mechanistic insights into disintegration and dissolution of the immediate release formulations. Varying the viscosity type of HPMC or SSG did not significantly affect drug dissolution irrespective of the compound used. Faster drug dissolution was observed when decreasing the particle size of MgSt for the highly soluble drug. The use of real-time dissolution UV Imaging revealed the influential role of excipient variability on tablet disintegration, as for the highly soluble drug, tablets containing high viscosity HPMC or low particle size MgSt disintegrated faster as compared to the control tablets while for the poorly soluble drug, slower tablet disintegration was observed when increasing the viscosity of the HPMC as compared to the control tablets. Changes in drug dissolution when varying excipients may be anticipated if the excipient change has previously affected drug solubility. The use of multivariate data analysis revealed the influential biopharmaceutical factors such as critical excipient types/properties, drug aqueous solubility, medium/hydrodynamic characteristics affecting the impact of excipient variability on in vitro drug dissolution.

Development and validation of a microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography method for patulin quantification in commercial apple juice.

A microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEECK) method for patulin (PAT) quantification in apple juice samples has been developed. The effects of several important factors such as co-surfactant type, concentration of surfactant, acetonitrile percentage in the microemulsion, and running voltage and temperature were investigated to determine the optimum conditions. They resulted to be: a background electrolyte (BGE) composed of 25mM of sodium tetraborate, SDS (2.16%w/w), ethanol (6.49%w/w), n-octanol (0.82%w/w) and 2%v/v acetonitrile; applied voltage of +15kV; and a capillary temperature of 35 degrees C. PAT was detected at 276nm. Quantification and detection limits (LOQ and LOD) in apple juice samples were 8.0microgL(-1) and 3.2microgL(-1), respectively. Patulin was extracted from apple juice using ethyl acetate with a mean recovery value of 75.3% (RSD=4.5). This method was applied to the measurement of patulin in twenty commercial apple juice samples obtained from different Danish supermarkets. The PAT apple juice mean and median levels obtained were 35.9 and 10.9microgL(-1), respectively. The comparison with a previously validated micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) method for PAT analysis showed the suitability of using MEEKC for this mycotoxin analysis. However, the expectations of obtaining a higher efficiency and thus lower limits of detection and quantitation when using MEEKC were not met.

Ligature-associated bacterial profiles are linked to type 2 diabetes mellitus in a rat model and influenced by antibody treatment against TNF-α or RAGE.

There is a bidirectional relationship between periodontal disease (PD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). T2D may lead to ecological perturbations in the oral environment, which may facilitate an altered microbiota. However, previous studies have been inconclusive in determining the effect of T2D on oral bacterial profiles. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the influence of T2D on the ligature-associated bacterial profile in a diabetic rat model with PD and investigated the impact of blocking inflammatory pathways with antibodies targeting either Tumor Necrosis Factor α (TNF-α) or the receptor of advanced glycation end-products (RAGE). A total of 62 Zucker obese rats (45 T2D) and 17 lean (non-T2D) were divided into 4 treatment groups; lean with PD, obese with PD, obese with PD and anti-TNF-α treatment, and obese with PD with anti-RAGE treatment. Periodontal disease was ligature induced. Ligature-associated bacterial profiles were analyzed using Human Oral Microbe Identification Microarray (HOMIM). Ligature-associated bacterial profiles differed between lean and obese rats. Furthermore, treatment with antibodies against TNF-α or RAGE had an impact on subgingival bacterial profiles. T2D phenotypes are associated with different ligature-associated bacterial profiles and influenced by treatment with antibodies against TNF-α or RAGE.

Amino acid sequences of three acyl-binding/lipid-transfer proteins from rape seedlings.

The complete amino acid sequence of three acyl-binding/lipid-transfer proteins, AB/LTP I, AB/LTP II and AB/LTP III from germinated rape seeds were determined. AB/LTP I and AB/LTP II consist of 93 residues and the M(r) was determined as 9408 by mass spectrometry and calculated as 9406.8 from the sequence. AB/LTP III consists of 92 residues and the M(r) was determined as 9424 by mass spectrometry and calculated as 9422.8 from the sequence. The primary structures were determined by automated Edman degradations of the intact proteins and peptides obtained from digestion with trypsin and endoproteinase Asp-N and cyanogen bromide cleavage. Use of 252Cf plasma-desorption mass spectrometry facilitated the identification and verification of peptides.

Acyl-binding/lipid-transfer proteins from rape seedlings, a novel category of proteins interacting with lipids.

From rape (Brassica napus) seedlings proteins able to bind fatty acids and their CoA-esters were purified by gel filtration and cation-exchange chromatography. Among the four proteins detected, one of them (peak IV) appeared purified to homogeneity. This protein is a monomer with a molecular mass of about 9 kDa, as estimated by gel filtration and by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The isoelectric point of the rape protein was higher than 10.5 as determined by chromatofocusing. The pure rape protein appeared furthermore to be able to transfer several phospholipids (phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylethanolamine) between membranes. The rape protein, having a multifunctional property, was thus called acyl-binding/lipid-transfer protein (AB-LTP). In order to compare this protein to plant lipid-transfer proteins (LTPs), its structure was determined. The amino acid analysis of the rape AB-LTP revealed a high amount of alanine, an absence of histidine and tryptophan and the presence of eight cysteine residues. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the rape protein revealed a high homology to plant LTPs. These observations led us to propose that the rape AB-LTPs belong to a category of plant proteins interacting with lipids and playing a role in the fatty acid dynamics.