Risk of early recurrent fetal loss and levels of thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor.

Introduction: Though thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) may contribute to hypercoagulability during pregnancy, limited data are available on the role of TAFI in women with recurrent fetal loss.

Material/methods: We performed a case-control study aimed at evaluating any possible association between TAFI levels and early recurrent fetal loss (≥ 3, or 2 with at least one normal fetal karyotype, before the 10th week of gestation). 140 women with early recurrent fetal loss and 140 age-matched healthy controls with at least one normal pregnancy were included.

Anti-HuD-induced neuronal apoptosis underlying paraneoplastic gut dysmotility.

Background & Aims: The role of autoimmunity underlying paraneoplastic gut dysmotility remains unsettled. Because anti-Hu antibodies may impair enteric neuronal function, we tested whether anti-HuD-positive sera from patients with paraneoplastic gut dysmotility or commercial anti-HuD antibodies activated the apoptotic cascade in a neuroblastoma cell line and cultured myenteric neurons.

Methods: Anti-HuD antibodies from patients with severe paraneoplastic gut dysmotility were characterized by immunofluorescence and immunoblot.