Publications by authors named "A J Van Wijk"
Children born with defective heart valves require multiple donor valve replacements throughout life, because these cannot grow and can cause early failure through immune degeneration. This study tests the lentiviral delivery of viral immune evasion genes US2 and human serpin 9 to shield human heart valves from immune rejection. The results show we can efficiently down-regulate human leukocyte antigen expression in heart valve cells and in intact heart valve tissue resulting in decreased activity of a human leukocyte antigen-reactive CD8+ T-cell clone without inducing cytotoxicity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (ccTGA) is a rare cardiac anomaly. The management strategy historically consisted of physiologic repair, leaving the morphologic right ventricle to support the systemic circulation. More recently, anatomic repair has been implemented to bring the left ventricle into the systemic circulation.
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- The study investigates tooth agenesis (TA) patterns in individuals with Down syndrome (DS) to inform treatment planning and understand underlying causes.
- A secondary analysis of six studies involving 241 individuals with DS was conducted, revealing 86 distinct Overall-TAC patterns for TA, with the most common types being bilateral maxillary lateral incisor and mandibular second premolar agenesis.
- Results indicate that nearly half of the cases showed symmetry in TA patterns, and the absence of both mandibular central incisors is a strong predictor for oligodontia in these individuals.
Article Synopsis
- IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is a serious kidney disease linked to IgA buildup, and a large study identified 30 genetic risk factors associated with it.
- Fourteen new loci were discovered that suggest a connection between genetic influences and abnormal IgA levels.
- The research highlights inflammation-related pathways and potential drug targets, revealing that higher genetic risk scores are tied to earlier kidney failure.