Association of Altered Plasma Lipidome with Disease Severity in COVID-19 Patients.

The severity of COVID-19 is linked to an imbalanced immune response. The dysregulated metabolism of small molecules and bioactive lipids has also been associated with disease severity. To promote understanding of the disease biochemistry and provide targets for intervention, we applied a range of LC-MS platforms to analyze over 100 plasma samples from patients with varying COVID-19 severity and with detailed clinical information on inflammatory responses (>30 immune markers).

Targeted proteomics identifies circulating biomarkers associated with active COVID-19 and post-COVID-19.

The ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is caused by the highly infectious Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). There is an urgent need for biomarkers that will help in better stratification of patients and contribute to personalized treatments. We performed targeted proteomics using the Olink platform and systematically investigated protein concentrations in 350 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, 186 post-COVID-19 individuals, and 61 healthy individuals from 3 independent cohorts.

Plasma Oxylipins and Their Precursors Are Strongly Associated with COVID-19 Severity and with Immune Response Markers.

COVID-19 is characterised by a dysregulated immune response, that involves signalling lipids acting as mediators of the inflammatory process along the innate and adaptive phases. To promote understanding of the disease biochemistry and provide targets for intervention, we applied a range of LC-MS platforms to analyse over 100 plasma samples from patients with varying COVID-19 severity and with detailed clinical information on inflammatory responses (>30 immune markers). The second publication in a series reports the results of quantitative LC-MS/MS profiling of 63 small lipids including oxylipins, free fatty acids, and endocannabinoids.

Severe COVID-19 Is Characterised by Perturbations in Plasma Amines Correlated with Immune Response Markers, and Linked to Inflammation and Oxidative Stress.

The COVID-19 pandemic raised a need to characterise the biochemical response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and find biological markers to identify therapeutic targets. In support of these aims, we applied a range of LC-MS platforms to analyse over 100 plasma samples from patients with varying COVID-19 severity and with detailed clinical information on inflammatory responses (>30 immune markers). The first publication in a series reports the results of quantitative LC-MS/MS profiling of 56 amino acids and derivatives.

Blood eosinophil count and GOLD stage predict response to maintenance azithromycin treatment in COPD patients with frequent exacerbations.

Introduction: Maintenance treatment with macrolides are useful in preventing COPD exacerbations. We investigated which characteristics of COPD patients with frequent exacerbations predicted the best response to maintenance treatment with azithromycin.

Methods: This study was part of the COLUMBUS trial, a prospective randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in 92 COPD patients with frequent exacerbations.

Usability of femoral head bone marrow to verify reference ranges for the assessment of myelodysplasia by flow cytometry.

Background: A flow cytometry score (FCS) based on four parameters has been proposed for analysis of myelodysplastic syndromes patients with <5% blasts. We evaluated whether bone marrow aspirate samples isolated from femoral heads could be used for verification of cutoff values of the individual parameters score (IPS), contributing to the FCS and compared the applicability of FCS parameters in two centers.

Study Design And Methods: Bone marrow cells were obtained from femoral heads of patients who underwent hip replacement surgery.

Azithromycin maintenance treatment in patients with frequent exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COLUMBUS): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: Macrolide resistance is an increasing problem; there is therefore debate about when to implement maintenance treatment with macrolides in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We aimed to investigate whether patients with COPD who had received treatment for three or more exacerbations in the previous year would have a decrease in exacerbation rate when maintenance treatment with azithromycin was added to standard care.

Methods: We did a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-centre trial in The Netherlands between May 19, 2010, and June 18, 2013.

Influence of macrolide maintenance therapy and bacterial colonisation on exacerbation frequency and progression of COPD (COLUMBUS): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterised by progressive development of airflow limitation that is poorly reversible. Because of a poor understanding of COPD pathogenesis, treatment is mostly symptomatic and new therapeutic strategies are limited. There is a direct relationship between the severity of the disease and the intensity of the inflammatory response.

Improving diagnosis of adult-type hypolactasia in patients with abdominal complaints.

Background: Adult-type hypolactasia is caused by genetic lactase non-persistence. It is the most common cause of lactose intolerance, which results in gastrointestinal symptoms after ingestion of dairy products. Currently, lactose intolerance is investigated by the hydrogen breath test (HBT), which is considered the preferred diagnostic test.

Hyperhomocysteinemia and functional cobalamin deficiency due to granulocytosis-induced alterations in the cobalamin-binding protein.

Serum cobalamin and homocysteine levels were studied in patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) and in stem cell donors treated with granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF). Cytoreductive treatment in patients with CML resulted in a decrease of cobalamin and homocysteine levels. In stem cell donors cobalamin and homocysteine levels increased after G-CSF administration.