Elevated osteoprotegerin predicts declining renal function in elderly women: a 10-year prospective cohort study.

Background: Elevated osteoprotegerin (OPG) levels are inversely correlated with creatinine clearance and end-stage renal disease in patients with diabetes, however its role in predicting decline in renal function and progression to a more advanced stage disease in the elderly general population is unknown.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of 1,157 elderly women with serum OPG measured in 1998 and renal function estimated using serum creatinine and cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 5-yearly intervals. The primary objective of the study was to determine the relationship of circulating OPG levels with 5- and 10-year renal decline.

Dairy food intake, peripheral bone structure, and muscle mass in elderly ambulatory women.

Previous studies suggest that dairy intake may be associated with reduced bone and muscle loss with aging, but there are limited data in the very old. We evaluated the association between intake of dairy foods and peripheral bone structure and muscle mass in 564 elderly women aged 80 to 92 (mean 84.7) years, who were participants of the Calcium Intake Fracture Outcome Study/CAIFOS Aged Extension Study (CAIFOS/CARES) cohort and attended the 10-year follow-up.

Genetic determinants of heel bone properties: genome-wide association meta-analysis and replication in the GEFOS/GENOMOS consortium.

Quantitative ultrasound of the heel captures heel bone properties that independently predict fracture risk and, with bone mineral density (BMD) assessed by X-ray (DXA), may be convenient alternatives for evaluating osteoporosis and fracture risk. We performed a meta-analysis of genome-wide association (GWA) studies to assess the genetic determinants of heel broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA; n = 14 260), velocity of sound (VOS; n = 15 514) and BMD (n = 4566) in 13 discovery cohorts. Independent replication involved seven cohorts with GWA data (in silico n = 11 452) and new genotyping in 15 cohorts (de novo n = 24 902).

Polyamine inhibitors for treatment of feline oral squamous cell carcinoma: a proof-of-concept study.

This study assessed proof-of-concept for use of polyamine inhibitor 2-diluoromethylornithine (DFMO) as a treatment for oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in client-owned cats. Polyamine levels in tumor tissue and normal oral mucosa were quantified before and after treatment. DFMO was administered orally to 14 client-owned cats with histologically confirmed oral SCC.

A predictive model for knee joint replacement in older women.

Knee replacement (KR) is expensive and invasive. To date no predictive algorithms have been developed to identify individuals at high risk of surgery. This study assessed whether patient self-reported risk factors predict 10-year KR in a population-based study of 1,462 women aged over 70 years recruited for the Calcium Intake Fracture Outcome Study (CAIFOS).

A genome-wide copy number association study of osteoporotic fractures points to the 6p25.1 locus.

Background: Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease characterised by reduced bone mineral density and increased susceptibility to fracture; these traits are highly heritable. Both common and rare copy number variants (CNVs) potentially affect the function of genes and may influence disease risk.

Aim: To identify CNVs associated with osteoporotic bone fracture risk.

The effects of 3 years of calcium supplementation on common carotid artery intimal medial thickness and carotid atherosclerosis in older women: an ancillary study of the CAIFOS randomized controlled trial.

Calcium is an essential nutrient for skeletal health; however, it has been suggested that supplemental calcium may be associated with adverse cardiovascular effects, raising widespread concern about their use. One suggested mechanism is via increasing carotid atherosclerosis, however few randomized controlled trials (RCT) of calcium supplements have assessed these mechanisms. The calcium intake fracture outcome study (CAIFOS) was a 5-year RCT (1998 to 2003) of 1.

DNA methylation within the I.4 promoter region correlates with CYPl19A1 gene expression in human ex vivo mature omental and subcutaneous adipocytes.

Background: DNA methylation at specific CpG sites within gene promoter regions is known to regulate transcriptional activity in vitro. In human adipose tissue, basal transcription of the aromatase (CYP19A1) gene is driven primarily by the I.4 promoter however the role of DNA methylation in regulating expression in ex vivo mature adipocytes is unknown.

Computed tomographic characteristics of odontogenic neoplasms in dogs.

Odontogenic neoplasms are locally invasive oral tumors in dogs. The purpose of this retrospective study was to describe CT characteristics for varying histopathologic types of canine odontogenic neoplasms. A board-certified veterinary radiologist who was unaware of histologic findings reviewed and scored imaging studies.

The economic evaluation of personalised oncology medicines: ethical challenges.

Insights into the molecular drivers of cancer are providing opportunities for the development of new targeted treatments and more personalised approaches to cancer management. Drugs targeting mutant epidermal growth factor receptors, such as erlotinib and gefitinib, may provide more effective, safer and better tolerated treatment options compared with chemotherapy among appropriately selected patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). First-line access to these newer treatments remains unfunded after several considerations by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and their assessment that these are not cost-effective treatments.

Prevalence of regional and distant metastasis in cats with advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma: 49 cases (2005-2011).

The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of regional and distant metastasis in cats with advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in a retrospective case series. Forty-nine cats with cytologically- or histopathologically-confirmed oral SCC presented to the Matthew J Ryan Veterinary Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. History, clinical and laboratory results, diagnostic imaging findings and survival times were obtained from the medical records of patients who received diagnostic evaluation for metastasis.

Associations of proanthocyanidin intake with renal function and clinical outcomes in elderly women.

Background: Progression to chronic renal failure involves accelerated atherosclerosis and vascular calcification. Oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction play a role in renal failure pathophysiology. In addition to improving vascular health and function, proanthocyanidins have been shown to exert renoprotective effects in animal models.

Association of dairy intake with body composition and physical function in older community-dwelling women.

Impaired muscle function has been demonstrated to be an important predictor of frailty and fracture in elderly people. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the association of dairy intake with body composition and physical performance in 1,456 older women aged 70 to 85 years. Participants were assessed for dairy consumption (milk, yogurt, and cheese) by a validated food frequency questionnaire, body composition by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry, and physical performance using hand-grip strength and Timed Up and Go tests.

Therapeutic decision making and planning in veterinary dentistry and oral surgery.

Veterinary dentistry is an exacting science, in which decisions are made not only for an individual patient, but also for individual teeth, which may vary in severity of disease. Multiple therapeutic decisions and treatment plans may be necessary for a single patient. Veterinary dental patients must be anesthetized to receive thorough treatment, which results in additional decisions that may not be necessary for human dental patients.

Tea and non-tea flavonol intakes in relation to atherosclerotic vascular disease mortality in older women.

Epidemiological studies have indicated that dietary flavonoids generally, and flavonols specifically, may contribute to cardiovascular health. Tea consumption, which is often the main dietary source of flavonoids and flavonols, is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular outcomes. The primary objective of the present study was to explore the association of the habitual intake of flavonols from tea and non-tea sources with the risk of atherosclerotic vascular disease mortality in a population of elderly women.

Five-year decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate associated with a higher risk of renal disease and atherosclerotic vascular disease clinical events in elderly women.

Background: Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) has been demonstrated to predict atherosclerotic vascular disease (ASVD)-associated clinical events independent of traditional vascular risk factors. Recent studies have demonstrated that eGFR decline over time may improve prediction of ASVD-associated mortality risk in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.

Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between 5-year change in eGFR with renal disease and ASVD-associated clinical events.

Update on colonoscopy preparation, premedication and sedation.

The advent of optical colonoscopy has enabled gastroenterologists to visualize the colonic mucosa. This procedure has since become the cornerstone of colon cancer screening programs. Clinicians and scientists have made great strides to fine-tune the technical aspects of this procedure and have also made important advances that allow for a more effective and safer colonoscopy.

Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B is a key regulator of IFNAR1 endocytosis and a target for antiviral therapies.

Type 1 interferons (IFN1) elicit antiviral defenses by activating the cognate receptor composed of IFN-α/β receptor chain 1 (IFNAR1) and IFNAR2. Down-regulation of this receptor occurs through IFN1-stimulated IFNAR1 ubiquitination, which exposes a Y466-based linear endocytic motif within IFNAR1 to recruitment of the adaptin protein-2 complex (AP2) and ensuing receptor endocytosis. Paradoxically, IFN1-induced Janus kinase-mediated phosphorylation of Y466 is expected to decrease its affinity for AP2 and to inhibit the endocytic rate.

Copy number variation of the APC gene is associated with regulation of bone mineral density.

Introduction: Genetic studies of osteoporosis have commonly examined SNPs in candidate genes or whole genome analyses, but insertions and deletions of DNA, collectively called copy number variations (CNVs), also comprise a large amount of the genetic variability between individuals. Previously, SNPs in the APC gene have been strongly associated with femoral neck and lumbar spine volumetric bone mineral density in older men. In addition, familial adenomatous polyposis patients carrying heterozygous mutations in the APC gene have been shown to have significantly higher mean bone mineral density than age- and sex-matched controls suggesting the importance of this gene in regulating bone mineral density.

Estimated glomerular filtration rate as an independent predictor of atherosclerotic vascular disease in older women.

Background: Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) levels have been shown to predict atherosclerotic vascular disease hospitalization and mortality. We sought to investigate the role of renal function in the prediction of 10-year atherosclerotic vascular hospitalization and deaths in an unselected population of elderly women and compared these predictions to Framingham equations.

Methods: Complete 10-year verified mortality and hospitalization discharge records for atherosclerotic vascular disease were collected for a prospective study of 1,239 unselected female subject's ≥ 70 from the Calcium Intake Fracture Outcome Study (CAIFOS) with 10 years of follow-up.

Orofacial manifestations of high-rise syndrome in cats: a retrospective study of 84 cases.

Medical records of cats with high-rise trauma were reviewed to document the prevalence and clinical manifestations of orofacial injury. Cats were presented over a 10-year period from January 2000 to December 2009. Signalment, weight, number of stories fallen, and survival data were recorded in 84 cats and physical examination findings were obtained from 83 cats.