RESUMEN
Varicose veins of the lower extremities (VVs) is a common chronic vascular disease, with high prevalence rates in some countries; however, their pathogenesis remains unclear. Some studies have identified associations between changes in specific plasma lipid molecules, such as phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylcholine (PC), and sphingomyelin (SM), and the onset of VVs, but due to confounders and reverse causality, the causal relationship remains unclear. Meanwhile, studies on the potential link between other plasma lipids beyond PE, PC, and SM and the risk of VVs in the lower extremities are lacking. This study aimed to explore the potential causal relationship between VVs and plasma lipid levels to provide theoretical insights into the interrelation of plasma lipids and VVs in their occurrence and progression. We conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to assess the potential connection between genetically predicted levels of individual plasma lipids and the risk of developing VVs. We utilized data from a large-scale genome-wide association study involving 7174 Finnish individuals for 179 plasma lipidomes along with VVs genome-wide association study data from 408,455 UK individuals. MR analysis employed methods, such as inverse-variance weighting, weighted median, Bayesian Weighted Mendelian Randomization, and MR-Egger regression. The inverse-variance weighting method was primarily used to assess causality. The validity of the results was demonstrated through sensitivity analysis. In total, 12 lipids were found to have their plasma levels associated with an increased risk of VVs. This includes 3 types of PE, 7 types of PC, and 2 types of phosphatidylinositol. However, no significant causal relationship was found between the plasma levels of 11 types of SM and VVs. These results support the existence of a potential causal relationship between specific types of lipid levels and the risk of VVs, which can provide clues for further studies on biological mechanisms and the exploration of potential therapeutic targets.
Asunto(s)
Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Lípidos , Extremidad Inferior , Análisis de la Aleatorización Mendeliana , Várices , Humanos , Várices/sangre , Várices/genética , Várices/epidemiología , Lípidos/sangre , Extremidad Inferior/irrigación sanguínea , Femenino , Masculino , Finlandia/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Plasticizers are chemicals that make plastics flexible, and phthalates are commonly used. Due to the toxic effects of phthalates, there is increasing use of non-phthalate plasticizers like acetyl tributyl citrate (ATBC). ATBC has emerged as a safer alternative, yet concerns about its long-term safety persist due to its high leachability and potential endocrine-disrupting effects. This study aims to identify ATBC metabolites using human liver microsomes and suspect screening methods, and to explore potential urinary biomarkers for ATBC exposure. Using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry, we identified ATBC metabolites, including acetyl dibutyl citrate (ADBC), tributyl citrate (TBC), and dibutyl citrate (DBC). Urine samples from 15 participants revealed the presence of ADBC in 5, TBC in 11, and DBC in all samples, with DBC concentrations pointedly higher than the other metabolites. These metabolites show promise as biomarkers for ATBC exposure, though further validation with human data is required. Our results underscore the need for comprehensive studies on ATBC metabolism, exposure pathways, and urinary excretion to accurately assess human exposure levels.
Asunto(s)
Citratos , Microsomas Hepáticos , Plastificantes , Humanos , Microsomas Hepáticos/metabolismo , Plastificantes/metabolismo , Citratos/orina , Citratos/metabolismo , Biomarcadores/orina , Biomarcadores/metabolismo , Cromatografía Líquida de Alta Presión , Adulto , Disruptores Endocrinos/orina , Disruptores Endocrinos/metabolismoRESUMEN
Personal care products (PCPs) are integral components of daily human existence, including a large number of chemicals intentionally added for functional attributes (e.g., preservatives and fragrances) or unintentionally present, such as plasticizers. This investigation aimed to optimize the methodology for target and suspect screening via liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry, focusing on nine prevalent organic additives (comprising bisphenols A, F, and S, methyl, ethyl, propyl, and butylparaben, 5-chloro-2-methyl-4-isothiazolin-3-one, and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid). A total of 50 high-selling PCPs were purchased from the local online market as samples. In detail, PCP samples were classified into body washes, shampoos, hair conditioners, facial cleansers, body lotions, and moisture creams. For calibration, the quality assurance and quality control results demonstrated a coefficient of determination (R2) surpassing 0.999, with detection and quantification limits ranging from 2.5 to 100.0 ng/g. For recovery experiments, replicate recoveries (n = 5) ranged from 61 to 134%. In purchased PCP samples, five of the nine target compounds were detected via a target screening. Methylparaben exhibited the highest concentration (7860 mg/kg) in a facial cleanser, which is known as an endocrine-disrupting chemical. A total of 248 suspects of organic additives were screened in PCPs, leading to a tentative identification of 9. Confirmation (confidence level 1) via reference standards was achieved for three suspects, while six were tentatively identified with a confidence level of 2. This two-step extraction methodology utilizing methyl tert-butyl ether and isopropyl alcohol enabled simultaneous analysis of diverse chemical groups with distinct properties.
Asunto(s)
Cosméticos , Parabenos , Cosméticos/química , Cosméticos/análisis , Parabenos/análisis , Cromatografía Liquida/métodos , Límite de Detección , Espectrometría de Masas/métodos , Fenoles/análisis , Fenoles/química , Compuestos de Bencidrilo/análisis , Compuestos de Bencidrilo/química , Tiazoles/análisis , Tiazoles/química , Humanos , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , Espectrometría de Masas en Tándem/métodosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: This study aims to compare the clinical effects of two distinct surgical approaches, namely 3D printing-assisted extracorporeal pre-fenestration and Castor integrated branch stent techniques, in treating patients with Stanford type B aortic dissections (TBAD) characterized by inadequate proximal landing zones. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 84 patients with type B aortic dissection (TBAD) who underwent thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) with left subclavian artery (LSA) reconstruction at our center from January 2022 to July 2023. Based on the different surgical approaches, the patients were divided into two groups: the group assisted by 3D printing for extracorporeal pre-fenestration (n = 44) and the group using the castor integrated branch stent (n = 40). Clinical indicators: including general patient information, operative time, surgical success rate, intraoperative and postoperative complication rates, re-intervention rate, and mortality, as well as postoperative aortic remodeling, were compared between the two groups. The endpoint of this study is the post-TEVAR mortality rate in patients. RESULTS: The surgical success rate and device deployment success rate were 100% in both groups, with no statistically significant difference (P > 0.05). However, the group assisted by 3D printing for extracorporeal pre-fenestration had a significantly longer operative time (184.20 ± 54.857 min) compared to the group using the castor integrated branch stent (152.75 ± 33.068 min), with a statistically significant difference (t = 3.215, p = 0.002, P < 0.05). Moreover, the incidence of postoperative cerebral infarction and beak sign was significantly lower in the group assisted by 3D printing for extracorporeal pre-fenestration compared to the castor-integrated branch stent group, demonstrating statistical significance. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of other postoperative complication rates and aortic remodeling (P > 0.05). Notably, computed tomography angiography images revealed the expansion of the vascular true lumen and the reduction of the false lumen at three specified levels of the thoracic aorta. The follow-up duration did not show any statistically significant difference between the two groups (10.59 ± 4.52 vs. 9.08 ± 4.35 months, t = 1.561, p = 0.122 > 0.05). Throughout the follow-up period, neither group experienced new endoleaks, spinal cord injuries, nor limb ischemia. In the castor-integrated branch stent group, one patient developed a new distal dissection, prompting further follow-up. Additionally, there was one case of mortality due to COVID-19 in each group. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of re-intervention rate and survival rate (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Both 3D printing-assisted extracorporeal pre-fenestration TEVAR and castor-integrated branch stent techniques demonstrate good safety and efficacy in treating Stanford type B aortic dissection with inadequate proximal anchoring. The 3D printing-assisted extracorporeal pre-fenestration TEVAR technique has a lower incidence of postoperative cerebral infarction and beak sign, while the castor-integrated branch stent technique has advantages in operative time.
Asunto(s)
Aneurisma de la Aorta Torácica , Disección Aórtica , Implantación de Prótesis Vascular , Procedimientos Endovasculares , Humanos , Prótesis Vascular/efectos adversos , Implantación de Prótesis Vascular/efectos adversos , Aneurisma de la Aorta Torácica/diagnóstico por imagen , Aneurisma de la Aorta Torácica/cirugía , Estudios Retrospectivos , Resultado del Tratamiento , Procedimientos Endovasculares/efectos adversos , Factores de Tiempo , Stents/efectos adversos , Disección Aórtica/diagnóstico por imagen , Disección Aórtica/cirugía , Complicaciones Posoperatorias/terapia , Aortografía/métodos , Infarto Cerebral/complicacionesRESUMEN
Shark fins are a delicacy consumed throughout Southeast Asia. The life history characteristics of sharks and the challenges associated with regulating fisheries and the fin trade make sharks particularly susceptible to overfishing. Here, we used DNA barcoding techniques to investigate the composition of the shark fin trade in Singapore, a globally significant trade hub. We collected 505 shark fin samples from 25 different local seafood and Traditional Chinese Medicine shops. From this, we identified 27 species of shark, three species are listed as Critically Endangered, four as Endangered and ten as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Six species are listed on CITES Appendix II, meaning that trade must be controlled in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival. All dried fins collected in this study were sold under the generic term "shark fin"; this vague labelling prevents accurate monitoring of the species involved in the trade, the effective implementation of policy and conservation strategy, and could unwittingly expose consumers to unsafe concentrations of toxic metals. The top five most frequently encountered species in this study are Rhizoprionodon acutus, Carcharhinus falciformis, Galeorhinus galeus, Sphyrna lewini and Sphyrna zygaena. Accurate labelling that indicates the species of shark that a fin came from, along with details of where it was caught, allows consumers to make an informed choice on the products they are consuming. Doing this could facilitate the avoidance of species that are endangered, and similarly the consumer can choose not to purchase species that are documented to contain elevated concentrations of toxic metals.
Asunto(s)
Especies en Peligro de Extinción , Tiburones , Animales , Tiburones/genética , Conservación de los Recursos Naturales , Código de Barras del ADN Taxonómico , Explotaciones Pesqueras , Alimentos Marinos , ADN , Intoxicación por Metales PesadosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: To compare the outcomes of two Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair (TEVAR) techniques of Left Subclavian Artery (LSA) reconstruction for Stanford Type B Aortic Dissection (TBAD) patients with undesirable proximal anchoring zone. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 57 patients with TBAD who underwent either three dimensional (3D)-printing-assisted extracorporeal fenestration (n = 32) or conventional extracorporeal fenestration (n = 25) from December 2021 to January 2023. We compared their demographic characteristics, operative time, technical success rate, complication rate, secondary intervention rate, mortality rate, and aortic remodeling. RESULTS: Compared with the conventional group, the 3D-printing-assisted group had a significantly shorter operative time (147.84 ± 33.94 min vs. 223.40 ± 65.93 min, p < 0.001), a significantly lower rate of immediate endoleak (3.1% vs. 24%, p = 0.048) and a significantly higher rate of true lumen diameter expansion in the stent-graft segment (all p < 0.05), but a significantly longer stent graft modification time (37.63 ± 2.99 min vs. 28.4 ± 2.12 min, p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in other outcomes between the two groups (p > 0.05). The degree of false lumen thrombosis was higher in the stent-graft segment than in the non-stent-graft segment in both groups and the difference was statistically significant (X2 = 5.390, 4.878; p = 0.02, 0.027). CONCLUSIONS: Both techniques are safe and effective for TBAD with an undesirable proximal landing zone. The 3D-printing-assisted extracorporeal fenestration TEVAR technique has advantages in operative time, endoleak risk, and aortic remodeling, while the traditional extracorporeal fenestration TEVAR technique has advantages in stent modification.
Asunto(s)
Disección Aórtica , Endofuga , Humanos , Estudios Retrospectivos , Disección Aórtica/diagnóstico , Disección Aórtica/cirugía , Aorta , Impresión TridimensionalRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: CYP2C19*17 (rs12248560) is a functional single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the CYP2C19 gene. It has been shown that CYP2C19*17 is associated with the clinical outcome of some drugs metabolized by CYP2C19 and a decreased risk of some diseases. The aim of this study was to develop a reliable and simple method to detect this polymorphism. METHODS: Tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (T-ARMS-PCR) was used to detect the CYP2C19*17 polymorphism. A total of 93 samples were screened by this method, and the results of T-ARMS-PCR were validated by DNA sequencing. RESULTS: There were 91 samples with the CC genotype (97.8%) and two samples with the CT genotype (2.2%). The frequency of the C allele was 98.9%, and the frequency of the T allele was 1.1%. The DNA sequencing results were completely concordant with the T-ARMS-PCR results. CONCLUSION: T-ARMS-PCR can detect the CYP2C19*17 polymorphism with high accuracy, low costs, and a simple process.
Asunto(s)
Alelos , Citocromo P-450 CYP2C19/genética , Mutación/genética , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/métodos , Secuencia de Bases , HumanosRESUMEN
Despite rapid developments in the detection techniques for genetically modified organisms (GMOs), the event-specific PCR method with high specificity is still the most used technique. In this study, event-specific simplex and duplex qualitative and quantitative detection systems were developed targeting the 3' insertion site of GM maize SYN-E3272-5 (3272) construct. A reference molecule p3272 was constructed to act as positive control and as calibrator for quantitative analysis. The LOD for simplex and duplex qualitative PCR assays was 10 copies of p3272 control DNA. LOD and the LOQ for simplex and duplex quantitative PCR assays were 10 and 25 copies of p3272 DNA, respectively. Furthermore, four practical GM maize samples were quantified using the established simplex and duplex quantitative PCR systems by in-house validation. Results from five operators showed that the bias ranged from 3.44 to 17.24% in the simplex system and from 0.42 to 16.06% in the duplex system, respectively. These results demonstrated that the established event-specific simplex and duplex qualitative and quantitative PCR systems combined with the reference molecule p3272 are suitable for the detection of GM maize 3272 and its derived products.
Asunto(s)
Técnicas de Química Analítica , Análisis de los Alimentos/métodos , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/métodos , Zea mays/genética , Zea mays/metabolismo , Secuencia de Bases , Calibración , Productos Agrícolas , ADN/análisis , Contaminación de Alimentos , Intrones , Modelos Genéticos , Datos de Secuencia Molecular , Plantas Modificadas Genéticamente , Estándares de Referencia , Valores de Referencia , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , TransgenesRESUMEN
Reference molecules, as positive controls and calibrators, have been recently developed in genetically modified organism analysis as a potential substitute for reference materials derived from plant raw materials. In this study, a novel reference molecule p59122, including the revealed 5' integration sequence of maize Herculex RW (59122), was constructed that was suitable for simplex and duplex event-specific qualitative and quantitative PCR detections. The LOD values were 10 copies both for simplex and duplex qualitative PCR when p59122 was used as the calibrator. These values were comparable to those of using genomic DNA samples with 0.01 and 0.05%, approximately 5 and 25 hyploid genomic DNA copies, respectively. The absolute LOD and LOQ values were confirmed to be as low as 10 and 25 copies of p59122 DNA both in simplex and duplex quantitative systems. Furthermore, ideal quantification data with low bias, SD and RSD values were obtained from the practical samples analyses in simplex and duplex real-time PCR systems using the reference molecule p59122 as a calibrator. All these results suggested that the developed reference molecule p59122 and the qualitative and quantitative PCR detection methods are suitable for identification and quantification of GM maize 59122 and its derived products.
Asunto(s)
Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/métodos , Zea mays/genética , Secuencia de Bases , Sitios de Unión , Calibración , Cartilla de ADN/genética , ADN de Plantas/genética , Genes de Plantas , Modelos Genéticos , Datos de Secuencia Molecular , Proteínas de Plantas/metabolismo , Plantas Modificadas Genéticamente , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , Sensibilidad y EspecificidadRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Since more than one hundred events of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have been developed and approved for commercialization in global area, the GMO analysis methods are essential for the enforcement of GMO labelling regulations. Protein and nucleic acid-based detection techniques have been developed and utilized for GMOs identification and quantification. However, the information for harmonization and standardization of GMO analysis methods at global level is needed. RESULTS: GMO Detection method Database (GMDD) has collected almost all the previous developed and reported GMOs detection methods, which have been grouped by different strategies (screen-, gene-, construct-, and event-specific), and also provide a user-friendly search service of the detection methods by GMO event name, exogenous gene, or protein information, etc. In this database, users can obtain the sequences of exogenous integration, which will facilitate PCR primers and probes design. Also the information on endogenous genes, certified reference materials, reference molecules, and the validation status of developed methods is included in this database. Furthermore, registered users can also submit new detection methods and sequences to this database, and the newly submitted information will be released soon after being checked. CONCLUSION: GMDD contains comprehensive information of GMO detection methods. The database will make the GMOs analysis much easier.