Restless legs syndrome in end stage renal disease patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Background: The prevalence of Restless legs syndrome (RLS) in End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients is higher than that in the general population. However, the associations of RLS within the ESRD population are inconsistent and RLS is usually neglected in dialysis centers, although it impairs the life quality among ESRD patients. We aim to investigate the prevalence of RLS in patients with ESRD undergoing maintenance hemodialysis and evaluate the risk factors of developing RLS and the effect of RLS on quality of life among ESRD patients.

CKD autophagy activation and skeletal muscle atrophy-a preliminary study of mitophagy and inflammation.

Background/objectives: Long-lived proteins and organelles, such as mitochondria and the sarcoplasmic reticulum, are degraded by autophagy. However, the specific role of autophagy in chronic kidney disease (CKD) muscle atrophy is still undefined.

Subjects/methods: This was a cross-sectional study with 20 subjects and 11 controls.

Phosphate stimulates myotube atrophy through autophagy activation: evidence of hyperphosphatemia contributing to skeletal muscle wasting in chronic kidney disease.

Background: Accelerated muscle atrophy is associated with a three-fold increase in mortality in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. It is suggested that hyperphosphatemia might contribute to muscle wasting, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Although evidence indicates that autophagy is involved in the maintenance of muscle homeostasis, it is not known if high phosphate levels can result in activation of autophagy, leading to muscle protein loss.

Potassium metabolism in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patients.

Background: Hypokalemia is common and may have contributed to the poor clinical outcome in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. In this study, we made a detailed investigation on the potassium metabolism in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) patients and tried to find out the possible factors associated with the high prevalence of hypokalemia in PD patients.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey in 243 clinically stable CAPD patients was made in our PD center in 2010.

[Measurement of dissolved organic nitrogen with nanofiltration pretreatment and its distribution characteristics in landscape water].

In this study, we present a nanofiltration (NF90, NF270) pretreatment to increase the precision of dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) measurements in water samples. The variations of DON measurements with and without NF pretreatment were investigated. And the effects on the removal of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) by NF90 and NF270 were compared.

Lack of an association between a newly identified promoter polymorphism (-1702G > A) of the leukotriene C4 synthase gene and aspirin-intolerant asthma in a Korean population.

Aspirin-intolerant asthma (AIA) is a distinct clinical syndrome that refers to the development of bronchoconstriction in asthmatic individuals following the ingestion of aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). It is widely recognized that increased cysteinyl leukotriene (cysLT) biosynthesis is associated with the development and progression of AIA. Leukotriene C4 synthase (LTC4S) is the terminal enzyme in cysLT production and is a strong candidate gene in the pathogenesis of aspirin-intolerant asthma (AIA).