Plasma Expression of Carotid Plaque Presence-Related MicroRNAs Is Associated with Inflammation in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with problems beyond the joints such as cardiovascular (CV) disease. MicroRNA-24, -146 and -Let7a are associated with carotid plaque presence in RA patients. We evaluated whether these microRNAs were involved in the inflammatory state of RA, and we studied their gene targets to understand their role in inflammation and atherosclerosis.

Association between exposure to air pollution and blood lipids in the general population of Spain.

Background And Aims: We aimed to assess the associations of exposure to air pollutants and standard and advanced lipoprotein measures, in a nationwide sample representative of the adult population of Spain.

Methods: We included 4647 adults (>18 years), participants in the national, cross-sectional, population-based di@bet.es study, conducted in 2008-2010.

Statistical mediation of the relationships between chronological age and lipoproteins by nonessential amino acids in healthy men.

Aging is a major risk factor for metabolic impairment that may lead to age-related diseases such as cardiovascular disease. Different mechanisms that may explain the interplay between aging and lipoproteins, and between aging and low-molecular-weight metabolites (LMWMs), in the metabolic dysregulation associated with age-related diseases have been described separately. Here, we statistically evaluated the possible mediation effects of LMWMs on the relationships between chronological age and lipoprotein concentrations in healthy men ranging from 19 to 75 years of age.

Effect of Radiation on the Expression of CVD-related miRNAs, Inflammation and Endothelial Dysfunction of HUVECs.

Background/aim: Radiotherapy (RT) can lead to cardiovascular disease (CVD). Evidence suggests that radiation modulates miRNA levels. Our purpose was to assess the acute response to radiation-induced modulation of the expression of miRNA-146a, miRNA-155, miRNA-221, and miRNA-222, inflammatory response and endothelial dysfunction on endothelial cells.

Renal and hepatic effects following neonatal exposure to low doses of Bisphenol-A and Cs.

137-Cesium (Cs) is one of the most important distributed radionuclides after a nuclear accident. Humans are usually co-exposed to various environmental toxicants, being Bisphenol-A (BPA) one of them. Exposure to IR and BPA in early life is of major concern, due to the higher vulnerability of developing organs.

Unravelling and Quantifying the "NMR-Invisible" Metabolites Interacting with Human Serum Albumin by Binding Competition and T2 Relaxation-Based Decomposition Analysis.

Quantitative profiling of low-molecular-weight metabolites (LMWMs) by H NMR is routinely used in high-throughput serum metabolomics. First, the protein background is attenuated using a T2 filter; then, the LMWM signals are resolved by line-shape fitting. However, protein-binding modifies the motional properties of LMWM, and their signal partially attenuates with the T2 filter, along with the protein background.

Body mass index correlates with atherogenic lipoprotein profile even in nonobese, normoglycemic, and normolipidemic healthy men.

Objective: To establish a relationship between body mass index (BMI), lipid, and lipoprotein parameters among nonobese, normoglycemic, and normolipidemic healthy men without any cardiovascular, metabolic, or chronic diseases.

Methods: A total of 297 healthy, nonsmoking males between 20 and 75 years were recruited. Exclusion criteria included familial hypercholesterolemia, any chronic diseases, and BMI ≥ 30 kg/m(2).

Improving Assessment of Lipoprotein Profile in Type 1 Diabetes by 1H NMR Spectroscopy.

Patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) present increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The aim of this study is to improve the assessment of lipoprotein profile in patients with T1D by using a robust developed method 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR), for further correlation with clinical factors associated to CVD. Thirty patients with T1D and 30 non-diabetes control (CT) subjects, matched for gender, age, body composition (DXA, BMI, waist/hip ratio), regular physical activity levels and cardiorespiratory capacity (VO2peak), were analyzed.

Polymorphisms in LPL, CETP, and HL protect HIV-infected patients from atherogenic dyslipidemia in an allele-dose-dependent manner.

HIV-infected patients treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) may be predisposed to a lipid profile, associated with increased cardiovascular risk, derived from having high triglycerides (TG) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc) levels. We propose that genetic variability leaves some HIV-infected patients more predisposed to this lipid profile than others. We performed a cross-sectional, observational study including 321 antiretroviral-treated HIV-infected patients classified as normolipidemic (n=173) or presenting with high TG (≥1.

[Epigenetics in atherosclerosis].

The association studies based on candidate genes carried on for decades have helped in visualizing the influence of the genetic component in complex diseases such as atherosclerosis, also showing the interaction between different genes and environmental factors. Even with all the knowledge accumulated, there is still some way to go to decipher the individual predisposition to disease, and if we consider the great influence that environmental factors play in the development and progression of atherosclerosis, epigenetics is presented as a key element in trying to expand our knowledge on individual predisposition to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Epigenetics can be described as the discipline that studies the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation, independent of changes in the sequence of DNA, and mostly induced by environmental factors.

Association between polymorphisms in genes involved in lipid metabolism and immunological status in chronically HIV-infected patients.

Several studies have reported associations between lipid parameters and clinical progression of HIV infection. We performed a cross-sectional study including 468 antiretroviral-treated HIV-infected patients to investigate the impact of 13 polymorphisms of 9 genes affecting lipid metabolism and CD4 and CD8-T cell levels. Polymorphisms were identified in genes selected for their role in the development of atherogenic dyslipidemia, defined as triglycerides ⩾1.

Tissue-specific DNA methylation profiles regulate liver-specific expression of the APOA1/C3/A4/A5 cluster and can be manipulated with demethylating agents on intestinal cells.

Objective: The tissue-specific expression profiles of genes within the APOA1/C3/A4/A5 cluster play an important role in lipid metabolism regulation. We hypothesize that the tissue-specific expression of the APOA1/C3/A4/A5 gene cluster will show an inverse pattern with DNA methylation, and that repression in non- or low-expressing tissue, such as the intestine, can be reversed using epigenetic drugs.

Methods And Results: We analyzed DNA samples from different human adult tissues (liver, intestine, leukocytes, brain, kidney, pancreas, muscle and sperm) using the Infinium HumanMethyation450 BeadChip array.

Polymorphisms in LPL, CETP, and HL protect HIV-infected patients from atherogenic dyslipidemia in an allele-dose-dependent manner.

Introduction: HIV-infected patients treated with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) may be predisposed to hypertriglyceridemia, which gives rise to a highly atherogenic lipid profile known as atherogenic dyslipidemia (AD). We propose that genetic variability leaves some HIV-infected patients more predisposed to AD than others (1, 2).

Methods: This was a cross-sectional, observational study conducted in 468 antiretroviral-treated HIV-infected patients attending at the outpatient clinic of a tertiary hospital over a 6-month period, who were classified as normolipidemic (n=173) or presenting with AD (triglycerides: 1.

Association between lipid genetic and immunological status in chronically HIV-infected patients.

Introduction: Polymorphisms in some host genes have a significant impact on susceptibility to HIV-1 infection and rate of disease progression (1, 2). The purpose of the current sub-study was to find out the relationship between polymorphisms in genes involved in the lipid metabolism and the CD4/CD8 T-cell counts.

Methods: Sub-study of a cross-sectional, observational study conducted in 468 patients with HIV infection attended at the outpatient clinic to investigate individual genetic predisposition to atherogenic dyslipidemia (AD).

Gene expression analysis of a human enterocyte cell line reveals downregulation of cholesterol biosynthesis in response to short-chain fatty acids.

It has been suggested that the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) produced by anaerobic bacterial intestinal fermentation of soluble fiber may regulate lipid metabolism in intestine, thus reducing plasma cholesterol levels. However, the exact mechanism of action of SCFAs in lowering cholesterol levels is not fully understood. The aims of this study were to test the effects of SCFAs on gene expression in a human enterocyte cell line Caco-2/TC-7 and to validate microarray data by real-time PCR.

Increased concentrations of circulating vitamin E in carriers of the apolipoprotein A5 gene - 1131T>C variant and associations with plasma lipids and lipid peroxidation.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the apolipoprotein A5 (APOA5) 1131T>C gene variant on vitamin E status and lipid profile. The gene variant was determined in 297 healthy nonsmoking men aged 20-75 years and recruited in the VITAGE Project. Effects of the genotype on vitamin E in plasma, LDL, and buccal mucosa cells (BMC) as well as on cholesterol and triglyceride (TG) concentrations in plasma and apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I), apoB, apoE, apoC-III, and plasma fatty acids were determined.

Aldehydes mediate tissue factor induction: a possible mechanism linking lipid peroxidation to thrombotic events.

Tissue factor (TF), which is expressed in atherosclerotic plaques and colocalizes with oxidized lipids, initiates the thrombogenic process. We have analyzed the effect of aldehydes derived from peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids on TF expression in human vascular smooth muscle cells (HVSMC). Our results demonstrate that hexanal and 2,4-decadienal (2,4-DDE), two apolar aldehydes, increase TF expression.

Cytotoxic effects of the lipid peroxidation product 2,4-decadienal in vascular smooth muscle cells.

It is well known that oxidized LDL can be cytotoxic to smooth muscle cells (SMC) and then contribute to the progression of atherosclerosis. Nevertheless, which oxidized compound and which mechanism are involved in cell death is still under study. In this work we have studied the role of two representative apolar aldehydes (hexanal and 2,4-decadienal (2,4-DDE)), derived from polyunsaturated fatty acids oxidation, on human SMC cytotoxicity.

Familial hypercholesterolemia in Morocco: first report of mutations in the LDL receptor gene.

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a genetic disorder mainly caused by defects in the low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) gene, although it can also be due to alterations in the gene encoding apolipoprotein B (familial defective apoB or FDB) or in other unidentified genes. In Morocco, the molecular basis of FH is unknown. To obtain information on this issue, 27 patients with FH from eight unrelated families were analyzed by screening the LDLR (PCR-SSCP and Southern blot) and apoB genes (PCR and restriction enzyme digestion analysis).

Antioxidant vitamins and lipid peroxidation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: association with inflammatory markers.

Objective: We evaluated vitamin status in relation to inflammatory markers and lipid peroxidation measures in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: Thirty patients with RA and 30 controls were studied. Lipid profile, vitamin A, vitamin E, and inflammatory markers were analyzed in all subjects.