The association of the serum levels of myostatin, follistatin, and interleukin-6 with sarcopenia, and their impacts on survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Background/Aims: The role of serum myokine levels in sarcopenia and the outcome of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients are not clear. This study investigated the serum levels of myostatin, follistatin, and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in HCC patients and their association with sarcopenia and survival.Methods: Using prospectively collected pretreatment samples from 238 HCC patients in a hospital from 2012 to 2015, the serum levels of 3 myokines were determined and compared to 50 samples from age and sex-matched healthy controls. Sarcopenia was evaluated using the psoas muscle index (PMI) measured at the third lumbar level in the computed tomography, and clinical data were collected until 2017.Results: The median levels of the 3 myokines for the male and female HCC patients were as follow: myostatin (3,979.3 and 2,976.3 pg/mL), follistatin (2,118.5 and 2,174.6 pg/mL), and IL-6 (2.5 and 2.7 pg/mL), respectively. Those in the HCC patients were all significantly higher than in the healthy controls. In the HCC patient, the median PMI was 4.43 (males) and 2.17 cm<sup>2</sup>/m<sup>2</sup> (females) with a sarcopenic prevalence of 56.4%. The serum levels of myostatin, IL-6 and follistatin in the HCC patients showed a positive, negative, and no correlation with PMI, respectively. The serum follistatin level was an independent factor for poor survival in HCC patients.Conclusions: The serum levels of myostatin, follistatin, and IL-6 and their correlation with sarcopenia and survival were presented in HCC patients for the first time. The role of the serum follistatin level as a poor prognostic biomarker warrants further study.

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Serum naturally occurring anti-TDP-43 auto-antibodies are increased in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-81599-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Elisa Conti ◽

Gessica Sala ◽

Susanna Diamanti ◽

Marco Casati ◽

Christian Lunetta ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽

Serum Levels ◽

The Other ◽

Diagnostic Process ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Naturally Occurring ◽

Als Patients ◽

First Time ◽

Lateral Sclerosis

AbstractAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients express significant clinical heterogeneity that often hinders a correct diagnostic definition. Intracellular deposition of TDP-43, a protein involved in RNA metabolism characterizes the pathology. Interestingly, this protein can be detected in serum, wherein cognate naturally-occurring auto-antibodies (anti-TDP-43 NAb) might be also present, albeit they have never been documented before. In this exploratory study, we quantified the levels of both anti-TDP-43 NAb and TDP-43 protein as putative accessible markers for improving the ALS diagnostic process by using ELISA in N = 70 ALS patients (N = 4 carrying TARDBP mutations), N = 40 age-comparable healthy controls (CTRL), N = 20 motor neuron disease mimics (MN-m), N = 20 Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and N = 15 frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) patients. Anti-TDP-43 NAb were found to be significantly increased in ALS patients compared to all the other groups (p < 0.001). On the other hand, the distribution of serum levels of TDP-43 protein was highly variable among the various groups. Levels were increased in ALS patients, albeit the highest values were detected in MN-m patients. NAb and protein serum levels failed to correlate. For the first time, we report that serum anti-TDP-43 NAb are detectable in human serum of both healthy controls and patients affected by a variety of neurodegenerative disorders; furthermore, their levels are increased in ALS patients, representing a potentially interesting trait core marker of this disease. Further studies are needed to clarify the exact role of the NAb. This information might be extremely useful for paving the way toward targeting TDP-43 by immunotherapy in ALS.

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Serum levels of interleukin 6 and of interleukin 6 receptor in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Journal of Hepatology ◽

10.1016/s0168-8278(01)80298-1 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 34 (0) ◽

pp. 85

Author(s):

L Giannitrapani

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Interleukin 6 ◽

Serum Levels ◽

Interleukin 6 Receptor

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Overexpressed pseudogene MT1L associated with tumor immune infiltrates and indicates a worse prognosis in BLCA

World Journal of Surgical Oncology ◽

10.1186/s12957-021-02231-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yanpeng Ding ◽

Nuomin Liu ◽

Mengge Chen ◽

Yulian Xu ◽

Sha Fang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Cells ◽

Biological Function ◽

Prognostic Biomarker ◽

Poor Survival ◽

Common Cancer ◽

Kaplan Meier ◽

Cox Analysis ◽

Kaplan Meier Plotter ◽

Worse Prognosis

Abstract Background BLCA is a common cancer worldwide, and it is both aggressive and fatal. Immunotherapy (ICT) has achieved an excellent curative effect in BLCA; however, only some BLCA patients can benefit from ICT. MT1L is a pseudogene, and a previous study suggested that MT1L can be used as an indicator of prognosis in colorectal cancer. However, the role of MT1L in BLCA has not yet been determined. Methods Data were collected from TCGA, and logistic regression, Kaplan-Meier plotter, and multivariate Cox analysis were performed to demonstrate the correlation between the pseudogene MT1L and the prognosis of BLCA. To identify the association of MT1L with tumor-infiltrating immune cells, TIMER and TISIDB were utilized. Additionally, GSEA was performed to elucidate the potential biological function. Results The expression of MT1L was decreased in BLCA. Additionally, MT1L was positively correlated with immune cells, such as Tregs (ρ = 0.708) and MDSCs (ρ = 0.664). We also confirmed that MT1L is related to typical markers of immune cells, such as PD-1 and CTLA-4. In addition, a high MT1L expression level was associated with the advanced T and N and high grade in BLCA. Increased expression of MT1L was significantly associated with shorter OS times of BLCA patients (p < 0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that MT1L expression could be an independent prognostic factor in BLCA. Conclusion Collectively, our findings demonstrated that the pseudogene MT1L regulates the immune microenvironment, correlates with poor survival, and is an independent prognostic biomarker in BLCA.

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Synchronous hepatocellular carcinoma and Castleman's disease: The role of the interleukin-6-signaling pathway

Hepatology ◽

10.1002/hep.25857 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 56 (1) ◽

pp. 392-393 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Yun Shin Chun ◽

Julien Calderaro ◽

Jessica Zucman-Rossi

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Signaling Pathway ◽

Interleukin 6 ◽

Castleman’S Disease ◽

Castleman's Disease

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The Role of Butyric Acid in Treatment Response in Drug-Naïve First Episode Schizophrenia

Frontiers in Psychiatry ◽

10.3389/fpsyt.2021.724664 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Xue Li ◽

Xiaoduo Fan ◽

Xiuxia Yuan ◽

Lijuan Pang ◽

Shaohua Hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Treatment Response ◽

Butyric Acid ◽

Serum Levels ◽

First Episode ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Drug Naïve ◽

First Episode Schizophrenia ◽

Risperidone Treatment

Background: Butyric acid, a major short-chain fatty acid (SCFA), has an important role in the microbiota–gut–brain axis and brain function. This study investigated the role of butyric acid in treatment response in drug-naïve first episode schizophrenia.Methods: The study recruited 56 Chinese Han schizophrenia inpatients with normal body weight and 35 healthy controls. Serum levels of butyric acid were measured using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) analysis at baseline (for all participants) and 24 weeks after risperidone treatment (for patients). Clinical symptoms were measured using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for patients at both time points.Results: At baseline, there was no significant difference in serum levels of butyric acid between patients and healthy controls (p = 0.206). However, there was a significant increase in serum levels of butyric acid in schizophrenia patients after 24-week risperidone treatment (p = 0.030). The PANSS total and subscale scores were decreased significantly after 24-week risperidone treatment (p's < 0.001). There were positive associations between baseline serum levels of butyric acid and the reduction ratio of the PANSS total and subscale scores after controlling for age, sex, education, and duration of illness (p's < 0.05). Further, there was a positive association between the increase in serum levels of butyric acid and the reduction of the PANSS positive symptoms subscale scores (r = 0.38, p = 0.019) after controlling for potential confounding factors.Conclusions: Increased serum levels of butyric acid might be associated with a favorable treatment response in drug-naïve, first episode schizophrenia. The clinical implications of our findings were discussed.

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Anti-ceramide antibodies in leprosy: marker for nerve damage?

The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries ◽

10.3855/jidc.513 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 4 (06) ◽

pp. 378-381 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Kalpana Singh ◽

Bhawna Singh ◽

Prakash Ray

Keyword(s):

Infectious Disease ◽

Serum Levels ◽

Serum Marker ◽

Nerve Damage ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Chi Square ◽

Leprosy Patients ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Multibacillary Leprosy

Background: Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease primarily affecting the peripheral nervous system and skin. Multibacillary leprosy is associated with nerve damage which could contribute to myelin alteration. As ceramide is a constituent of myelin sheath, the present study aimed to compare anti-ceramide antibody titre in paucibacillary and multibacillary leprosy patients with controls. Methodology: Serum levels of anti-ceramide antibody were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) in 50 leprosy patients (25 paucibacillary and 25 multibacillary) and 25 healthy controls. Results were reported in OD units as mean ± SD and analyzed by Chi square test (significance at p < 0.05). Results: Patients suffering from multibacillary leprosy had significantly higher anti-ceramide antibody serum levels compared to paucibacillary leprosy patients and healthy controls (p < 0.005). Conclusions: Since nerve damage is the most debilitating effect of leprosy, the search for a serum marker for assessing nerve damage is required in countries where leprosy is still widespread. In multibacillary leprosy patients, the role of anti-ceramide antibody as a marker for nerve damage should be explored.

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Genetic polymorphisms of interleukin-6 influence the development of hepatitis B virus-related liver cirrhosis

10.21203/rs.2.522/v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Caixia Xia ◽

Wei Zhu ◽

Chunhong Huang ◽

Guohua Lou ◽

Bingjue Ye ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Liver Cirrhosis ◽

Hepatitis B Virus ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Interleukin 6 ◽

Serum Levels ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

B Virus ◽

Infected Liver

Abstract Background Interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays an important role in chronic inflammation. Thus, we aimed to investigate the effects of IL-6 polymorphisms in predicting the progression of hepatitis B virus (HBV) -related liver cirrhosis. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to analysis IL-6 polymorphisms and serum levels of IL-6 in HBV-infected patients of different clinical phases and in healthy controls. IL-6 polymorphisms were detected by Taqman PCR method and plasma IL-6 levels were assessed by ELISA. Results Our analysis included 182 chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients, 190 HBV-infected liver cirrhosis cases, 125 inactive HBsAg carriers, and 246 healthy controls. Seven SNPs in IL-6 including rs10499563, rs17147230, rs1800796, rs2069837, rs1524107, rs2066992, rs2069852 were analyzed. In haplotype analysis between HBV-infected liver cirrhosis cases with CHB patients, inactive HBV-carriers or healthy controls, haplotype CT in block 1 and haplotype GGCGG in block 2 were associated with liver cirrhosis (P<0.05). What’s more, the genotype or allele frequencies were significantly different in IL-6 rs10499563 and rs2069837 when HBV-infected liver cirrhosis patients compared with CHB patients, inactive HBV-carriers or healthy controls. A further study found that compared with the controls or CHB patients, plasma IL-6 was elevated in HBV-infected liver cirrhosis patients (P<0.05). Conclusion In conclusion, the polymorphisms of the IL-6 rs10499563 and rs2069837 are associated with the susceptibility of liver cirrhosis may through their effects on IL-6 expressions and these two single nucleotide polymorphisms can be used as potential predicting markers for prognosis of HBV-infected liver cirrhosis.

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The Role of Cytokines, Chemokines, and Growth Factors in the Pathogenesis of Pityriasis Rosea

Mediators of Inflammation ◽

10.1155/2015/438963 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Francesco Drago ◽

Giulia Ciccarese ◽

Francesco Broccolo ◽

Massimo Ghio ◽

Paola Contini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Factors ◽

Human Herpesvirus ◽

Inflammatory Cells ◽

Serum Levels ◽

Vascular Endothelial ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Pityriasis Rosea ◽

Vasculogenesis And Angiogenesis ◽

Endothelial Growth Factor

Introduction. Pityriasis rosea (PR) is an exanthematous disease related to human herpesvirus- (HHV-) 6/7 reactivation. The network of mediators involved in recruiting the infiltrating inflammatory cells has never been studied.Object. To investigate the levels of serum cytokines, growth factors, and chemokines in PR and healthy controls in order to elucidate the PR pathogenesis.Materials and Methods. Interleukin- (IL-) 1, IL-6, IL-17, interferon- (IFN-)γ, tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-)α, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), and chemokines, CXCL8 (IL-8) and CXCL10 (IP-10), were measured simultaneously by a multiplex assay in early acute PR patients’ sera and healthy controls. Subsequently, sera from PR patients were analysed at 3 different times (0, 15, and 30 days).Results and discussion. Serum levels of IL-17, IFN-γ, VEGF, and IP-10 resulted to be upregulated in PR patients compared to controls. IL-17 has a key role in host defense against pathogens stimulating the release of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines. IFN-γhas a direct antiviral activity promoting NK cells and virus specific T cells cytotoxicity. VEGF stimulates vasculogenesis and angiogenesis. IP-10 can induce chemotaxis, apoptosis, cell growth, and angiogenesis.Conclusions. Our findings suggest that these inflammatory mediators may modulate PR pathogenesis in synergistic manner.

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Role of BCYRN1 in hepatocellular carcinoma pathogenesis by lncRNA–miRNA–mRNA network analysis and its diagnostic and prognostic value

Epigenomics ◽

10.2217/epi-2018-0218 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 1209-1231 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Xin-Liang Ming ◽

Yan-Lin Feng ◽

Ding-Dong He ◽

Chang-Liang Luo ◽

Jia-Ling Rong ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Data Mining ◽

Microarray Data ◽

Prognostic Value ◽

Prognostic Biomarker ◽

Tumor Node Metastasis ◽

Comprehensive Strategy ◽

Node Metastasis ◽

Diagnostic And Prognostic Value

Aim: This study aimed to excavate the roles of BCYRN1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: A comprehensive strategy of microarray data mining, computational biology and experimental verification were adopted to assess the clinical significance of BCYRN1 and identify related pathways. Results: BCYRN1 was upregulated in HCC and its expression was positively associated with both tumor, node, metastasis and worse survival rate in patients with HCC. Through combing plasma BCYRN1 with alpha fetoprotein, the diagnosis of HCC was remarkably improved. BCYRN1 may regulate some cancer-related pathways to promote HCC initiation via an lncRNA–miRNA–mRNA network. Conclusion: Our results propose BCYRN1 as a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker and offer a novel perspective to explore the etiopathogenesis of HCC.

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