Serum calprotectin (S100A8/A9): a promising biomarker in diagnosis and follow-up in different subgroups of juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Introduction: In the management of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), there is a lack of diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. This study assesses the use of serum calprotectin (sCal) as a marker to monitor disease activity, and as a classification and prognosis tool of response to treatment or risk of flares in patients with JIA.

Methods: Eighty-one patients with JIA from the CAP48 multicentric cohort were included in this study, as well as 11 non-paediatric healthy controls.

Antibodies against carbamylated proteins: prevalence and associated disease characteristics in Belgian patients with rheumatoid arthritis or other rheumatic diseases.

: Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies (anti-CarP) are reported to be associated with increased disease activity and with more severe joint damage in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. The present study investigated the presence of anti-CarP in various rheumatic diseases, and their specific clinical significance in RA, in Belgian rheumatology patients.: We tested sera from 254 RA patients, 56 healthy controls, and 153 patients with different rheumatic conditions: juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), axial spondyloarthritis, systemic sclerosis, and Sjögren's syndrome (SS).

Induction of Stearoyl-CoA 9-Desaturase 1 Protects Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Against Palmitic Acid-Induced Lipotoxicity and Inflammation.

In bone diseases such as osteonecrosis and osteoporosis, a shift toward a preferential differentiation of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) into adipocytes at the expense of the osteoblastic lineage is described, leading to excessive accumulation of adipocytes in the bone marrow of the patients. The influence of cytokines and adipokines secreted by adipocytes on skeletal health is already well-documented but the impact of free fatty acids release on bone cell biology and viability is an emerging concept. We have previously demonstrated that the saturated fatty acid (SFA) palmitate (Palm) is cytotoxic for human MSC (hMSC) and osteoblasts whereas oleate (Ole), a monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA), has no toxic effect.

Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head: Lipotoxicity Exacerbation in MSC and Modifications of the Bone Marrow Fluid.

Osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ON) is a multifactorial bone disease that can evolve to a progressive destruction of the hip joint. Different pathogenic processes have been proposed, among them, an increase of bone marrow (BM) fat resulting from adipocyte accumulation. Marrow adipocytes are active BM residents that influence the microenvironment by releasing cytokines, adipokines, and free fatty acids (FA).

Oleate Abrogates Palmitate-Induced Lipotoxicity and Proinflammatory Response in Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Osteoblastic Cells.

Osteoporosis is a metabolic bone disease associated with unequilibrated bone remodeling resulting from decreased bone formation and/or increased bone resorption, leading to progressive bone loss. In osteoporotic patients, low bone mass is associated with an increase of bone marrow fat resulting from accumulation of adipocytes within the bone marrow. Marrow adipocytes are active secretory cells, releasing cytokines, adipokines and free fatty acids (FA) that influence the bone marrow microenvironment and alter the biology of neighboring cells.