Multifactorial Diseases with Immunological Involvement

2016 ◽  
pp. 221-258
Author(s):  
Ting Xiao ◽  
Hong-Duo Chen ◽  
Jixin Gao ◽  
Gang Wang ◽  
Jeffrey D. Cizenski ◽  
...  
Author(s):  
Gabriella Casalino ◽  
Giovanna Castellano ◽  
Arianna Consiglio ◽  
Nicoletta Nuzziello ◽  
Gennaro Vessio

Abstract MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a set of short non-coding RNAs that play significant regulatory roles in cells. The study of miRNA data produced by Next-Generation Sequencing techniques can be of valid help for the analysis of multifactorial diseases, such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Although extensive studies have been conducted on young adults affected by MS, very little work has been done to investigate the pathogenic mechanisms in pediatric patients, and none from a machine learning perspective. In this work, we report the experimental results of a classification study aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of machine learning methods in automatically distinguishing pediatric MS from healthy children, based on their miRNA expression profiles. Additionally, since Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) shares some cognitive impairments with pediatric MS, we also included patients affected by ADHD in our study. Encouraging results were obtained with an artificial neural network model based on a set of features automatically selected by feature selection algorithms. The results obtained show that models developed on automatically selected features overcome models based on a set of features selected by human experts. Developing an automatic predictive model can support clinicians in early MS diagnosis and provide new insights that can help find novel molecular pathways involved in MS disease.


Author(s):  
Goutam Nanavati ◽  
T. Prasanth ◽  
Manab Kosala ◽  
Sujit K. Bhandari ◽  
Pamil Banotra

AbstractProbiotics are the living microorganisms that have been commonly used in the prevention of gastrointestinal disorders. In recent times, probiotic and prebiotics have been used to assess and develop a natural balance of the microbial flora in the respiratory tract and the oral cavity as an adjunct therapy. They are known to augment the existing microbial flora that is beneficial to the host. Prebiotics are nondigestible food ingredients that help in increasing populations of probiotic bacteria. Recent studies have shown that probiotics help in active reduction in gingivitis, dental caries, periodontitis, and halitosis by replacing the harmful oral species, by means of utilizing abundant health-associated oral microbial species. Additionally, the nitrate-reducing bacteria have shown promising effect in improving efficiency of probiotic strains to accentuate oral health benefits. Probiotics along with prebiotics effectively alter the host–microbial interface by achieving homeostasis in multifactorial diseases such as periodontal diseases and oral malodor. The aim of the review is to collate the existing information available on use of probiotics and prebiotics in oral cavity.


2021 ◽  
pp. 104063872110031
Author(s):  
Nicola Pozzato ◽  
Laura D’Este ◽  
Laura Gagliazzo ◽  
Marta Vascellari ◽  
Monia Cocchi ◽  
...  

Laboratory tests provide essential support to the veterinary practitioner, and their use has grown exponentially. This growth is the result of several factors, such as the eradication of historical diseases, the occurrence of multifactorial diseases, and the obligation to control endemic and epidemic diseases. However, the introduction of novel techniques is counterbalanced by economic constraints, and the establishment of evidence- and consensus-based guidelines is essential to support the pathologist. Therefore, we developed standardized protocols, categorized by species, type of production, age, and syndrome at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe), a multicenter institution for animal health and food safety. We have 72 protocols in use for livestock, poultry, and pets, categorized as, for example, “bovine enteric calf”, “rabbit respiratory”, “broiler articular”. Each protocol consists of a panel of tests, divided into ‘mandatory’ and ‘ancillary’, to be selected by the pathologist in order to reach the final diagnosis. After autopsy, the case is categorized into a specific syndrome, subsequently referred to as a syndrome-specific panel of analyses. The activity of the laboratories is monitored through a web-based dynamic reporting system developed using a business intelligence product (QlikView) connected to the laboratory information management system (IZILAB). On a daily basis, reports become available at general, laboratory, and case levels, and are updated as needed. The reporting system highlights epidemiologic variations in the field and allows verification of compliance with the protocols within the organization. The diagnostic protocols are revised annually to increase system efficiency and to address stakeholder requests.


2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alina Concepción Alvarez ◽  
Ivette Camayd Viera ◽  
Lisy Vento Buigues ◽  
Yanet Fernández Martínez ◽  
Eraida Hernández ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectivesHomocysteine (Hcy) is a nonessential amino acid, produced by the demethylation of methionine. High Hcy levels, or hyperhomocysteinemia, have been associated with genetic and multifactorial diseases. Hcy reference values may vary between different populations, as Hcy levels are affected by factors such as sex, age, diet, smoking, and coffee consumption. The estimation reference interval (RI) allows to establish the normal values of this marker in population. At present, these levels are unknown in Cuba. The aim of this work is to estimate the Hcy reference intervals in Cuban children and adults.MethodsTotal Hcy concentration was quantified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in plasma. Hcy levels were evaluated in samples from 507 healthy individuals (260 children, 247 adults).ResultsRIs were estimated by nonparametric methods. We found significant differences between both age groups, but we did not find significant differences between sexes, within these groups. The established ranges were 2.56–14.55 µM and 3.63–17.19 µM for children and adults, respectively. Also, we observed a weak association between Hcy levels and age in both sex groups.ConclusionsThis is the first study that assesses Hcy reference values in Cuban population. Our results will allow the introduction of Hcy as a biochemical marker in laboratory testing.


2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 943-951 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raffaella Cascella ◽  
Claudia Strafella ◽  
Giuliana Longo ◽  
Mara Maccarone ◽  
Paola Borgiani ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naeim Ehtesham ◽  
Maryam Zare Rafie ◽  
Meysam Mosallaei

Abstract Background: Considering that familial multiple sclerosis (FMS) can reveal the extent to which genetic and environmental factors each involve in the etiopathogenesis of the disease, we performed an updated meta-analysis of the worldwide prevalence of FMS by addition of recent publications. Methods: A search in PubMed, Scopus, the ISI Web of Science, and Google Scholar up to 20 December 2020 was done. The inclusion criteria were based on the CoCoPop approach (condition, context, and population). The qualified studies entered the process of the meta-analysis by using comprehensive meta-analysis ver. 2 software.Results: The pooled prevalence of MS in relatives of 16179 FMS cases was estimated to be 11.8% (95% CI: 10.7-13) based on a random-effects model. The pooled mean age of disease onset in adult probands was calculated to be 28.7 years (95% CI: 27.2± 30.2). In 13 studies that reported the data of FMS in pediatrics (n=6636) and adults (n=877), the FMS prevalence was 10.8% (95% CI: 8.1-14.2) and 15.5% (95% CI: 13.8-17.4), respectively. Considering the data of 9 studies, the prevalence of FMS in males (n=5243) and females (n=11503) patients was calculated to be 13.7% (95% CI: 10.1-18.2) and 15.4% (95% CI: 10.3-22.4), respectively. The odds ratio of male/female in FMS cases was not statistically significant (OR= 0.9; 95% CI: 0.6-1.2, P=0.55). Subgroup analysis demonstrated a significant difference in the prevalence of FMS between the geographical areas (P= 0.007). The meta-regression model for FMS prevalence was significantly lower in terms of higher latitude (P< 0.001) and increased MS prevalence (P< 0.001). In contrast, meta-regression based on prevalence day was not statistically significant (P=0.29).Conclusions: The prevalence of FMS is more in the pediatric group than that of adults, is distinct between geographical areas, and diminishes with the increment of MS prevalence and latitude. Also, the symptoms initiate relatively at lower ages in FMS cases. By contrast with multifactorial diseases, our analysis unveiled that the prevalence of FMS was not more prevalent in men than women and the risk of MS development in relatives was not more when the affected proband was male.


Planta Medica ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (14/15) ◽  
pp. 1130-1140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heba Abdel-Aziz ◽  
Olaf Kelber ◽  
Gerhard Lorkowski ◽  
Martin Storr

AbstractHerbal combination preparations are widely used in traditional herbal medicine and are even established as modern evidence-based herbal medicinal products. The rationale behind such combinations is often questioned and assessing the contribution of each of the combination partners to overall activity is challenging. STW 5 (Iberogast) is such a combination with confirmed clinical efficacy in functional gastrointestinal disorders. It consists of nine plant extracts responsible for its multitarget function in these multifactorial diseases with their heterogeneous and overlapping pathomechanisms. This makes the combination an ideal candidate for the use of the newly described method of stepwise cluster analysis, a standardized procedure to transfer heterogeneous pharmacological data, from different models, into effect size categories. This allows for a stepwise cluster formation starting from the level of single tests up to the level of different pathomechanisms involved in the development of a certain disease, in this case functional dyspepsia subtypes and irritable bowel syndrome. In the current article, an overview on the pharmacological data on STW 5 and its single components is provided. The data are further analyzed using stepwise cluster formation, resulting in a summary of the different modes of action of STW 5 along with an evaluation of the contribution of the single constituents to the overall multitarget effects of the herbal combination preparation.


1995 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph S. Alper

As a consequence of the problems caused by genetic discrimination, federal and state law makers are being pressured to pass a legislative remedy. A primary question is whether the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) applies to (1) individuals with a potentially disabling genetic disorder who are pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic and may never become ill and to (2) healthy individuals who are carriers of genetic conditions. At present, this question has relevance principally for individuals with the genotype for single gene disorders, like Huntington disease and hemochromatosis, and to asymptomatic carriers of single gene disorders such as cystic fibrosis. Although many such single gene conditions exist, the total incidence of these conditions in the U.S. population is less than 0.4 percent. However, the question concerning the applicability of the ADA will become increasingly important because genetic tests will almost certainly be developed in the near future for common multifactorial diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and certain forms of cancer.


2014 ◽  
Vol 76 (6) ◽  
pp. 379-383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa A. Hicks ◽  
Rebecca J. Cline ◽  
Angela M. Trepanier

An understanding of how genomics information, including information about risk for common, multifactorial disease, can be used to promote personal health (personalized medicine) is becoming increasingly important for the American public. We undertook a quantitative content analysis of commonly used high school textbooks to assess how frequently the genetic basis of common multifactorial diseases was discussed compared with the “classic” chromosomal–single gene disorders historically used to teach the concepts of genetics and heredity. We also analyzed the types of conditions or traits that were discussed. We identified 3957 sentences across 11 textbooks that addressed multifactorial and “classic” genetic disorders. “Classic” gene disorders were discussed relatively more frequently than multifactorial diseases, as was their genetic basis, even after we enriched the sample to include five adult-onset conditions common in the general population. Discussions of the genetic or hereditary components of multifactorial diseases were limited, as were discussions of the environmental components of these conditions. Adult-onset multifactorial diseases are far more common in the population than chromosomal or single-gene disorders; many are potentially preventable or modifiable. As such, they are targets for personalized medical approaches. The limited discussion in biology textbooks of the genetic basis of multifactorial conditions and the role of environment in modifying genetic risk may limit the public’s understanding and use of personalized medicine.


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