Publications by authors named "K A Pucha"
Article Synopsis
- - Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease affecting various tissues, and animal models, particularly the rat medial meniscus transection (MMT) model, are used to study its progression and test potential treatments.
- - In the MMT model, significant changes to articular cartilage, subchondral bone, and formation of osteophytes were observed as early as 3 weeks post-surgery, with cartilage thickening initially, followed by thickening of subchondral bone and eventual cartilage degradation.
- - Extending the study period of the MMT model to 6- and 12-weeks is crucial, as it provides a better representation of severe osteoarthritis and helps in assessing the efficacy of new therapies for
Diet may promote brain health in metabolically impaired older individuals. In an 8-week randomized clinical trial involving 40 cognitively intact older adults with insulin resistance, we examined the effects of 5:2 intermittent fasting and the healthy living diet on brain health. Although intermittent fasting induced greater weight loss, the two diets had comparable effects in improving insulin signaling biomarkers in neuron-derived extracellular vesicles, decreasing the brain-age-gap estimate (reflecting the pace of biological aging of the brain) on magnetic resonance imaging, reducing brain glucose on magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and improving blood biomarkers of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, with minimal changes in cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnalysis of blood-based indicators of brain health could provide an understanding of early disease mechanisms and pinpoint possible intervention strategies. By examining lipid profiles in extracellular vesicles (EVs), secreted particles from all cells, including astrocytes and neurons, and circulating in clinical samples, important insights regarding the brain's composition can be gained. Herein, a targeted lipidomic analysis was carried out in EVs derived from plasma samples after removal of lipoproteins from individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and healthy controls.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBrain iron deficiency (ID) and, to a degree, systemic ID have been implicated in restless leg syndrome (RLS) pathogenesis. Previously, we found increased ferritin in neuron-derived extracellular vesicles (NDEVs) in RLS, suggesting a mechanism for depleting intracellular iron by secreting ferritin-loaded NDEVs. In this study, we hypothesized that increased NDEV ferritin occurs even in RLS accompanied by systemic ID and that neuronal intracellular iron depletion in RLS also manifests as NDEV abnormalities in other iron regulatory proteins, specifically, decreased transferrin receptor (TfR) and increased ferroportin.
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