Enhanced Hemocompatibility and Cytocompatibility of Stainless Steel.

The present study introduces an advanced surface modification approach combining electrochemical anodization and non-thermal plasma treatment, tailored for biomedical applications on stainless steel grade 316L (SS316L) surfaces. Nanopores with various diameters (100-300 nm) were synthesized with electrochemical anodization, and samples were further modified with non-thermal oxygen plasma. The surface properties of SS316L surfaces were examined by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and Water contact angle measurements.

Deregulation in adult IgA vasculitis skin as the basis for the discovery of novel serum biomarkers.

Introduction: Immunoglobulin A vasculitis (IgAV) in adults has a variable disease course, with patients often developing gastrointestinal and renal involvement and thus contributing to higher mortality. Due to understudied molecular mechanisms in IgAV currently used biomarkers for IgAV visceral involvement are largely lacking. Our aim was to search for potential serum biomarkers based on the skin transcriptomic signature.

Fine-Tuning the Nanostructured Titanium Oxide Surface for Selective Biological Response.

Cardiovascular diseases are a pre-eminent global cause of mortality in the modern world. Typically, surgical intervention with implantable medical devices such as cardiovascular stents is deployed to reinstate unobstructed blood flow. Unfortunately, existing stent materials frequently induce restenosis and thrombosis, necessitating the development of superior biomaterials.

Insights into the immunological description of cryoglobulins with regard to detection and characterization in Slovenian rheumatological patients.

The detection of cryoglobulins (CG) used to diagnose cryoglobulinemic vasculitis requires strict adherence to protocol, with emphasis on the preanalytical part. Our main objectives were to introduce a more sensitive and specific protocol for the detection of CG and to characterize CG in Slovenian patients diagnosed with cryoglobulinemic vasculitis, other vasculitides, connective tissue diseases or non-rheumatic diseases examined at the Department of Rheumatology (University Medical Centre Ljubljana). Samples were routinely analyzed for the presence of CG with the protocol using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent.

Disturbed Antioxidant Capacity in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis Associates with Lung and Gastrointestinal Symptoms.

The correct balance between reactive oxygen species and antioxidant defense in an organism is disturbed in oxidative stress. To assess oxidative balance in 36 SSc patients and 26 healthy controls (HCs), we measured reactive oxidative metabolites (ROMs), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), lipid peroxidation (measuring 4-HNE), and DNA oxidative damage (measuring 8-OHdG) in serum. Furthermore, DNA breaks in leukocytes of 35 SSc patients and 32 HCs were evaluated using COMET.

Correlation of the High-Resolution Computed Tomography Patterns of Intrathoracic Sarcoidosis with Serum Levels of SAA, CA 15.3, SP-D, and Other Biomarkers of Interstitial Lung Disease.

Studies on the serum biomarkers of granulomatous inflammation and pulmonary interstitial disease in intrathoracic sarcoidosis have shown conflicting results. We postulated that differences in the concentrations of serum biomarkers can be explained by the heterogenous patterns of sarcoidosis seen on thoracic HRCT. Serum biomarker levels in 79 consecutive patients, newly diagnosed with intrathoracic sarcoidosis, were compared to our control group of 56 healthy blood donors.

Molecular Profiling of Inflammatory Processes in a Mouse Model of IC/BPS: From the Complete Transcriptome to Major Sex-Related Histological Features of the Urinary Bladder.

Animal models are invaluable in the research of the pathophysiology of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), a chronic aseptic urinary bladder disease of unknown etiology that primarily affects women. Here, a mouse model of IC/BPS was induced with multiple low-dose cyclophosphamide (CYP) applications and thoroughly characterized by RNA sequencing, qPCR, Western blot, and immunolabeling to elucidate key inflammatory processes and sex-dependent differences in the bladder inflammatory response. CYP treatment resulted in the upregulation of inflammatory transcripts such as , , and , which are predominantly involved in innate immunity pathways, recapitulating the crucial findings in the bladder transcriptome of IC/BPS patients.

Longitudinal Analysis of Antiphospholipid Antibody Dynamics after Infection with SARS-CoV-2 or Vaccination with BNT162b2.

Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) comprise a group of autoantibodies that reflect prothrombotic risk in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) but may also be present in a small proportion of healthy individuals. They are often transiently elevated in infections, including SARS-CoV-2, and may also be associated with vaccine-induced autoimmunity. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the dynamics of aPL in COVID-19 patients and in individuals (healthcare professionals-HCPs) after receiving BNT162b2 vaccine and to compare aPL levels and positivity with those found in APS patients.

Molecular and Cellular Markers in Chlorhexidine-Induced Peritoneal Fibrosis in Mice.

Understanding the tissue changes and molecular mechanisms of preclinical models is essential for creating an optimal experimental design for credible translation into clinics. In our study, a chlorhexidine (CHX)-induced mouse model of peritoneal fibrosis was used to analyze histological and molecular/cellular alterations induced by 1 and 3 weeks of intraperitoneal CHX application. CHX treatment for 1 week already caused injury, degradation, and loss of mesothelial cells, resulting in local inflammation, with the most severe structural changes occurring in the peritoneum around the ventral parts of the abdominal wall.

DES-Amyloidoses "Amyloidoses through the looking-glass": A knowledgebase developed for exploring and linking information related to human amyloid-related diseases.

More than 30 types of amyloids are linked to close to 50 diseases in humans, the most prominent being Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD is brain-related local amyloidosis, while another amyloidosis, such as AA amyloidosis, tends to be more systemic. Therefore, we need to know more about the biological entities' influencing these amyloidosis processes.

Hyperspectral evaluation of vasculature in induced peritonitis mouse models.

Imaging of blood vessel structure in combination with functional information about blood oxygenation can be important in characterizing many different health conditions in which the growth of new vessels contributes to the overall condition. In this paper, we present a method for extracting comprehensive maps of the vasculature from hyperspectral images that include tissue and vascular oxygenation. We also show results from a preclinical study of peritonitis in mice.

Differences in SARS-CoV-2-Specific Antibody Responses After the First, Second, and Third Doses of BNT162b2 in Naïve and Previously Infected Individuals: A 1-Year Observational Study in Healthcare Professionals.

Background: Safe and effective vaccines against COVID-19 are critical for preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2, but little is known about the humoral immune response more than 9 months after vaccination. We aimed to assess the humoral immune response after the first, second, and third (booster) doses of BNT162b2 vaccine in SARS-CoV-2 naïve and previously infected healthcare professionals (HCP) and the humoral immune response after infection in vaccinated HCP.

Methods: We measured anti-spike (anti-S) and anti-nucleocapsid antibodies at different time points up to 12 months in the sera of 300 HCP who had received two or three doses of BNT162b2 vaccine.

An Optimized Tissue Dissociation Protocol for Single-Cell RNA Sequencing Analysis of Fresh and Cultured Human Skin Biopsies.

We present an optimized dissociation protocol for preparing high-quality skin cell suspensions for in-depth single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis of fresh and cultured human skin. Our protocol enabled the isolation of a consistently high number of highly viable skin cells from small freshly dissociated punch skin biopsies, which we use for scRNA-seq studies. We recapitulated not only the main cell populations of existing single-cell skin atlases, but also identified rare cell populations, such as mast cells.

Increased L-Selectin on Monocytes Is Linked to the Autoantibody Profile in Systemic Sclerosis.

Monocytes are known to be implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc), as they exert prominent migratory, adhesive, and chemotactic properties. The aim of our study was to characterize the surface expression of adhesion/chemotactic molecules (CD62L, CD11b, CCR2, CCR5) on the SSc monocytes and determine correlations with the clinical presentation of SSc. We included 38 SSc patients and 36 healthy age-and sex-matched controls.

From Active to Non-active Giant Cell Arteritis: Longitudinal Monitoring of Patients on Glucocorticoid Therapy in Combination With Leflunomide.

In the present study, we longitudinally monitored leukocyte subsets, expression of neutrophil surface adhesion molecules (CD62L and CD11b) and serum analytes in therapy-naïve patients with active giant cell arteritis (GCA). We collected blood samples at the baseline, and at weeks 1, 4, 12, 24, and 48 of follow-up, and evaluated short- and long-term effects of glucocorticoids (GC) vs. GC and leflunomide.

Bio-Performance of Hydrothermally and Plasma-Treated Titanium: The New Generation of Vascular Stents.

The research presented herein follows an urgent global need for the development of novel surface engineering techniques that would allow the fabrication of next-generation cardiovascular stents, which would drastically reduce cardiovascular diseases (CVD). The combination of hydrothermal treatment (HT) and treatment with highly reactive oxygen plasma (P) allowed for the formation of an oxygen-rich nanostructured surface. The morphology, surface roughness, chemical composition and wettability of the newly prepared oxide layer on the Ti substrate were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and water contact angle (WCA) analysis.

Adipose tissue and adipose secretome in systemic sclerosis.

Purpose Of Review: Adipose tissue is closely associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc)-pathology, both anatomically and functionally. This review focuses on local effects of adipocytes in the context of adipose to mesenchymal transdifferentiation (AMT), effects of the adipose stromal vascular fraction on SSc pathogenesis and systemic effects of adipose tissue secretome.

Recent Findings: Novel populations of fibroblasts evolving from adipose tissue were identified- for example COL11+ cancer-associated fibroblasts differentiated from adipose-derived stromal cells.

Dysregulated Expression of Arterial MicroRNAs and Their Target Gene Networks in Temporal Arteries of Treatment-Naïve Patients with Giant Cell Arteritis.

In this study, we explored expression of microRNA (miR), miR-target genes and matrix remodelling molecules in temporal artery biopsies (TABs) from treatment-naïve patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA, = 41) and integrated these analyses with clinical, laboratory, ultrasound and histological manifestations of GCA. NonGCA patients ( = 4) served as controls. GCA TABs exhibited deregulated expression of several miRs (miR-21-5p, -145-5p, -146a-5p, -146b-5p, -155-5p, 424-3p, -424-5p, -503-5p), putative miR-target genes (, , , , ) and matrix remodelling factors (, , , ) with key roles in Toll-like receptor signaling, mechanotransduction and extracellular matrix biology.

Adiponectin Deregulation in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases.

Deregulation of adiponectin is found in systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs). Its expression is downregulated by various inflammatory mediators, but paradoxically, elevated serum levels are present in SARDs with high inflammatory components, such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. Circulating adiponectin is positively associated with radiographic progression in rheumatoid arthritis as well as with cardiovascular risks and lupus nephritis in systemic lupus erythematosus.

COVID-19 in Association With Development, Course, and Treatment of Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases.

Autoimmune diseases and infections are often closely intertwined. Patients with autoimmune diseases are more susceptible to infections due to either active autoimmune disease or the medications used to treat them. Based on infections as environmental triggers of autoimmunity, an autoimmune response would also be expected in COVID-19.

Synergy between 15-lipoxygenase and secreted PLA promotes inflammation by formation of TLR4 agonists from extracellular vesicles.

Damage-associated endogenous molecules induce innate immune response, thus making sterile inflammation medically relevant. Stress-derived extracellular vesicles (stressEVs) released during oxidative stress conditions were previously found to activate Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), resulting in expression of a different pattern of immune response proteins in comparison to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), underlying the differences between pathogen-induced and sterile inflammation. Here we report that synergistic activities of 15-lipoxygenase (15-LO) and secreted phospholipase A (sPLA) are needed for the formation of TLR4 agonists, which were identified as lysophospholipids (lysoPLs) with oxidized unsaturated acyl chain.

Human mesenchymal stromal cells from different tissues exhibit unique responses to different inflammatory stimuli.

Background: Mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) - based therapies are emerging as promising treatment of various autoimmune diseases, however the utility of different MSC tissue sources remains elusive. We aimed to characterize MSC from different origins, namely bone marrow (BM), adipose tissue (AT) and umbilical cord (UC) and determine their functional effects on normal human lung fibroblasts (NHLF).

Methods: BM-, AT- or UC-MSC were isolated each from 3 different healthy donors.

Does the Urothelium of Old Mice Regenerate after Chitosan Injury as Quickly as the Urothelium of Young Mice?

The aging of organisms leads to a decreased ability of tissue to regenerate after injury. The regeneration of the bladder urothelium after induced desquamation with biopolymer chitosan has been studied in young mice but not in old mice. Chitosan is a suitable inducer of urothelial desquamation because it is known to be non-toxic.

Hyperspectral evaluation of peritoneal fibrosis in mouse models.

Analysis of morphological changes of the peritoneal membrane is an essential part of animal studies when investigating molecular mechanisms involved in the development of peritoneal fibrosis or testing the effects of potential therapeutic agents. Current methods, such as histology and immunohistochemistry, require time consuming sample processing and analysis and result in limited spatial information. In this paper we present a new method to evaluate structural and chemical changes in an animal model of peritoneal fibrosis that is based on hyperspectral imaging and a model of light transport.